Task 12: Speculative Futures

UL: Universal Language for All

September started off like any other September; school, school, and more school. I have never loved the harsh transition of returning to school in September, but this year I was excited. My family and I moved to a new town in Silicon Valley, which meant that we were the new family in town and I was the new kid at school. We apparently moved because my dad had a new job opportunity, but I know that my parents made this decision to set me up with the best education and experiences to prepare me for my “future.” This town is known for its highly rated schools and high exposure to technology-related experiences for youth. You know, as they say, technology is the future, so my parents wanted to set me up for success. 

My first day at my new school was unlike any other first day I had ever had. Driving up to the school was like driving up to a technologically advanced space station. The exterior of the school was constructed out of reflective metal panels, and the doors automatically opened when we walked up to them. Before even entering the school, I could tell it wasn’t just the aesthetic that was different about this school. The population of students was very diverse. They were all walking around chatting with each other, but the variety of languages that I heard was immense. Two students walking together were each speaking and responding to each other in different languages without skipping a beat. It looked like an average conversation with people who shared the same language, but the languages they spoke were different. I did not know how this was possible, but the only plausible explanation I could come up with was that this school must have a very diverse language learning program.

When I finally entered the school with my parents, we were immediately directed to the school office where we met with the principal. There, I was provided with a school backpack filled with the required materials and technologies that I would need to participate in the classes that I was signed up for. My parents and I went back outside and I bid them farewell. Although they were hesitant to leave me, I was confident that I was going to be just fine.

Outside, I sat on the steps of the school, waiting for my first class to start. While I was waiting, I figured I better go through my school assigned bag to see what was inside.

Everything looked fairly normal: The latest generation Macbook Pro, charging cables, an iPad, and one earbud with the symbol UL on it. I was surprised to only see one wireless earbud in the bag, and I figured that this was a mistake. I put the earbud into my ear, held my finger on the power button to pair to my phone, and was met by this message:

 

At first, I did not believe what the message said. How can one earbud handle the job of directly translating any language in real time to my own, home language? But then it struck me. Early that morning, seeing those two people walking together, talking to each other in different languages…this must be the explanation. So, I decided to try it out. With the earbud comfortably placed in my ear, I walked over to a group of students hanging around outside, and just listened to their conversation. Very clearly, in English, I heard them talking about their summer vacations, where they travelled to, and which classes they were taking in the first term. Then, I decided to take the earbud out. Nothing! I could not understand one word that was coming out of their mouths. It was like flicking a switch, and each of them was using a different language now. So, I placed the earbud back into my ear and again, perfect English translation. My mind was blown.

As I entered the school, still trying to process this advanced piece of translation technology in my ear, I completely forgot that my first course of the morning was Physics 10. Physics was a subject that was not offered at my old school, and I was very nervous about being behind from the start. When I entered the classroom, my translating earpiece was working overtime, processing the countless languages booming around the classroom as we all waited for the teacher to come. When the teacher entered and asked us all to sit down, I could tell that she was speaking a different language because her mouth was creating shapes that did not match the words I was hearing in my earpiece. She immediately started writing things down on the interactive whiteboard, jumping right into heavy physics language and terminology. I was completely lost, until I remembered something from the UL’s introduction message. I double clicked the button on the UL earpiece and immediately, the translation that I was hearing from the teacher was simplified into more accessible physics concepts. I continued to double click the button until I could finally understand what the teacher was talking about. Again, I was amazed by the technology in UL’s earpiece. I was able to take any auditory language and simplify it until I could understand it. The possibilities for this feature were endless. I started thinking about Stephen Hawking’s lectures and how anyone, no matter what age, could find common ground for understanding his brilliant concepts around black holes and relativity. Mind blown times two.

I went home that day, feeling overwhelmed with ideas and possibilities. UL’s earpiece really made my first day at school accessible and exciting. I understood everything in my classes and I understood everyone around the school. What could go wrong? But this also got me thinking about the bad, the dark, and the gloomy. With technology like this, what is next? Will people stop learning different languages? Is bilingualism dead? What will happen if we rely on this technology but it fails somehow? If the earpiece is always listening, is UL’s company collecting logs of verbal interactions? If so, what will they do with those logs? In the wise words of Spiderman, “With great power comes great responsibility.” I decided to be responsible by taking the earpiece out when I got home. I know that I will have to navigate this technology carefully, just like any other technology.

Imagine

I want you to imagine a time. 

Imagine a time of technology. 

Imagine a time where technology thinks for humans. 

Imagine a time where technology takes over our increasingly boring and repetitive daily tasks. 

Imagine a time where technology embraces the job of responding to human connections. 

Imagine a time where technology generates human responses to human interactions. 

Imagine a time where technology becomes our human voice in email, text messages, and other technology focused communication styles. 

Imagine a time where humans gain convenience through the use of predictive text technology in everyday lives. 

Imagine a time where predictive text technology gives confidence to diffident writers.

Imagine a time where humans gain more time through using predictive text technologies to respond to banal messages. 

Imagine a time where technology writes for writers. 

Imagine a time where technology thinks for thinkers. 

Imagine a time where predictive text technology replaces writing lessons in school.

Imagine a time where technology divides humans through assistive communication and predictive text. 

Imagine a time where technological advances in predictive text connect humans to technology but disconnect humans from humans.

I want you to imagine a time.

Reflection

I really wanted to focus on the idea of predictive text technology and it’s future in the world. With each new predictive text technology feature that is tested and released by major technology corporations, I have started to wonder to which point predictive text technology will be developed. In the ever evolving space of innovation and metadata, I have a hard time believing that the progress in this technology space will be halted anytime soon. The idea of automatically generated email and text responses is becoming a reality, specifically with Google’s advances in testing out Smart Reply and Smart Compose in Gmail. With auto-generated responses in email and other communication forms, we are starting to eliminate the “human” in communication. Imagining a world where humans are taken out of the concept of communication is daunting and dreary. But, on the flip-side, predictive text technologies provide accessibility for those who need the technology as a support in their daily lives. So, this leads me to question “Where does predictive text technology responsibly fit within our human world?”