jogonzalez1stuff-blog

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When looking at theme “The Speculative Body: Technology and the Future,” this leaves a lot of room for open discussion. When I hear the term “technology” I immediately think of an electronic device such as a smart phone, T.V., computer, etc… I viewed technology as something that needs power to function. But after reading different authors pieces my view on how I see technology has changed. Technology is an innovation that helps society function easier.

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After reading Bruno Latour’s “Sociology of the Door-Closer,” he makes a compelling argument on how technological advances improve how we interact with the world around us. Latour gives a great example of how, “A hole-wall, often called a door, has always struck me as a miracle of technology. (Latour 74-75)” So by stating this he means how the architecture around us plays a big part in our daily lives. Then continues saying how these inventions, such as the door, save much time because “... you do not have to find trowel and cement to rebuild the wall you have just destroyed. (Latour 75)” Without the door or its hinges we would have to complete the pain stacking task of finding a way around. He also states how technological advances also ease our mind from danger/ stress around us. For example he discussed how having his child in a car seat prevents him having to yell at his child to stay seated and replaces his arm to a steel bar to keep the child safe. Latour’s piece gives clear reasoning to how technological advances shed light to our daily activities.  

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Every once in a while, a new technology, an old problem, and a big idea turn into an innovation.

Dean Kamen 

I really enjoyed this quote because it ties into Latour’s piece on how new innovative technology, such as the door, is able to solve problems we face today.

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If you stop and look at your daily surrounding we see how nonhuman items do play a big role in our lives; stairs allow us to enter certain buildings, a lamp provides light so we can see more clearly, and a lock allows us to safely keep items from others.

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Latour’s perspective on technology made me rethink my definition and realize how technological advances are all around us. I formed my mentality that technology is defined by having an electric power source because of how I grew up. I grew up on a date ranch and since we did not have many electronics only a TV and a land line, I considered those as a technological advancements. These items stood out to me since they opened up my world to new things. I never noticed how the small things around me as a kid could be considered technology. Like the tools in my abuelos packing shed can be considered a form of technology because they allowed operations to run smoother.

Then a quote from the text that really stuck out to me was, “... there are thousands of such lieutenants to which we have delegated competences, it means that what defines our social relations is, for the most part, prescribed back to us by non humans. (Latour 86)” This is a valid statement because in today's world of technology there is a constant pattern of technology becoming more efficient and people becoming more reliant on it. We begin to wonder can these nonhuman (inanimate objects) can play a negative threat to society.

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Technology makes society easier to create this false reality thanks to social media sites. We are able to hide behind a screen and create someone we wish we can be. Just with one post we can make it seem as the day is going well and we can post a photo of ourselves smiling. But on the inside our body is broken, we are afraid to show our true self. This mask we are hiding behind displays one the effects technology has on people.

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A form of technology that I have grown to become dependent on has been my cell phone. I use my cell phone multiple times throughout the whole day whether it is for communication purposes, entertainment, or educational help. Above is screenshots from the Screen Usage feature on my phone. It breaks down multiple factors such as how many times I pick up my phone to how much time I spend on an app.

The older I have become the more attached I become to my phone because new innovations keep coming out. These innovations allow you control different household features such as the lights, front door, thermostat and much more so you basically become reliant on your phone. Since I live 8 hours away from home my cell phone connects me to everyone back home and allows me to send them a message within seconds.

My cell has basically become an attachment to my body because if I do not feel the outline of it on my pants, I immediately start to worry where it went. My mind starts to recall how I have saved so much information just on that one device such as passwords, pictures, personal data, and even my debit card information. Or when I lose grip of my phone, it is like the whole world stops around me and I just see my phone fall in slow motion hitting the concrete. My hearts beats faster and faster with anticipation as I pick it up to examine if it has been damaged. People say it is bad to put our trust into this device but this small device has such a big brain. Once I find my phone or see it undamaged I can finally relax. My connection to my phone shows a relationship between technology and the body present.

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A study published in the New York Times reports on average Americans check their phone every 12 minutes and have their heads on their phone 80 times a day. The study goes on by describing how some people even get anxiety being away from their phones for a period of time. I relate myself to this study because looking at my phone usage statistics I is clear how I am always on it. Society has become accustomed to always having their phone around it has become their technological attachment.

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A lot of the times we become so reliant on technology that we let it navigate the way we live. There are many apps we use that tell us when to do certain things. The most common one is the GPS system, which gives directions to a destination we are trying the find. We place our trust in it that it will guide us without getting us lost. But have you ever heard of the saying “If your phone tells you to jump off a cliff, will you do it,” sometimes we become so blind to our surrounding. We believe the phone will be right so we go for it.

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Latour’s theory of technology in relationship to the human body is similar to Haraway’s concept on how the human is now a hybrid between organism and machine. Both connect because they deal with how we has a humans become attached to these objects to help our day to day life. Unlike my connection between myself and my cell, Haraways connections deal with how items are physically attached to the human body. In Haraway’s reading one of the big questions that comes from it is if humans are a form of a cyborg. Haraways definition of a cyborg is a hybrid of machine and organism, a creature of social reality as well as a creature of fiction, it carries no origin story. My first reaction to this concept was no because I always seen a cyborg as a half robotic/ half human object as seen in cartoons. But with today's technology we are able to have machines, such as pacemakers, placed inside us that allow us to function. Even items such as glasses or even shoes enhance our ability to perform in life. We psychically use the items to transform the way we go about the world.

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A great example to Haraways argument is the new concept of impleading a chip in your skin and allowing it to act as your wallet, keys, and identification. The video explains more of how it works but it shows how humans are now integrating technology to their physical bodies to make there life easier.

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Body Identification

The whole idea of the body connected to technology opens up a conversation to how the body is identified for what it is. This means, a lot of times the way we label something acts as a mark that is carried down through generations. Reading Susan Stryker “My Words to Victor Frankenstein…” she discusses why and how the transsexual body can be labeled similar to Frankenstein's monster for various reasons. Her comparison of the two is really interesting because the reader sees how the made up creature in Frankenstein truly exists. Like the monster the transsexual body has been pieced together and has “often perceived as less than fully human due to the means of my embodiment. (Stryker 238)”

Technology has been able to help transform our bodies into what we desire but has its effects on our day to day life. In “My Words to Victor Frankenstein” we see how having a transexual body is not fully accepted in society. An example was how the Seattle Bisexual Women’s Network stated if they were to admit transsexuals they will no longer be a women’s organization. All of the hate and rejection these people receive accumulates into rage just like the monster. With the rage the person accumulates they are encouraged to let it transform their actions, then the world. So yes technology has helped humans but does have its negatives.

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We see everyday how technology plays an impact on people's lives. Technology defines us as people and sometimes acts as a mask take covers one's true self. An example is when you think of two objects braces and glasses, both are tools that are very useful for a person's version and teeth. One of the stereotypes that existed in the past is the image of a nerd, a dorky person who wears glasses, suspenders, and high waisted pants. So when a person had to wear glasses and braces some people saw them as nerds because of the stereotypical image. These features mask the person's true body, unintentionally giving off a false reality.

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Many of the readings in this unit connect relate because they deal with how our bodies are connected with technology. Technology has the power to affect one's mood or physical state. The more we advance to the future the more reliant we will become on technology.