Technology of Life Itself
By Phil on Feb. 28, 2009.
Humanity has participated in the creation, development, implementation, and use of many technologies throughout its history. Each of these advances has taken its place—to prolong life, speed its pace, or even to destroy it. Most were developed for the purpose of enhancing social well-being, born under a broad mission to “improve the standard of living.” Some of these have yet to reveal their full implications.
When computers first became available, I thought they were complicated machines that were irrelevant to me. Today I use the computer to check my email at least twice a day. It is hard to imagine my life without this machine.
Technology that was once isolated in laboratories or monopolized by specialists now flows to all of us, a routine part of our daily lives. I am amazed at the speed with which it has altered our world, and I feel a humble gratitude for the extraordinary convenience it has provided us.
Still, I always return to the matter that has always been first and foremost in my heart: how to promote healthier living. Technology can speed the achievement of our intentions, but such acceleration is neutral with respect to the substance of those intentions. If we are vulnerable to harmful information, is it valuable for us to accelerate our exposure to negative ideas or images?
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One Response to “Technology of Life Itself”
Mr. Lee, I just finished your book (on audio). Thank you for the work that you put into the book and for sharing your learnings in this way. When I went to our work out room to try the technique for the first time, I saw our Chi Machine (rarely used) and began to wonder how using a machine like that may or may not be similar to practicing the techniques you describe in your book? I would be quite interested to hear your feedback. The principles seem the same to me, are they?
-David
By david on Sep 23, 2009