I don’t think there’s any question that modern computer technology is indeed a boon to society for the most part. But I also doubt that there is any question that educated people the world over know that statements like that also require hedge phrasing: For the most part. Mostly. Overall. Generally speaking. Phrases like that.
We’re allowing ourselves, however, to let computers do our thinking for us. I think that Brett Frischmann makes this good point in his blog in Scientific American where he writes, “I believe we may be making ourselves dumber when we outsource thinking and rely on supposedly smart tech to micromanage our daily lives for the sake of cheap convenience.” (Is Smart Technology Making Us Dumb?, https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/is-smart-technology-making-us-dumb/). I titled this entry about GPS because, though I have to deal with this on an almost daily basis to a small extent, I had to deal with it more today.
I took today off work in order to get my Georgian Tax Identification Number (TIN) so that I could take delivery on some equipment I had ordered from Poland (which, it turned out, actually came here from the U.K.). I walked up to the main road and ordered a car with Bolt (our Uber or Didi here in Tbilisi). We can discuss why I had to go to the main road to order a car presently.
Even from the main road, though, ordering a car was a bit of a hassle, because the Bolt algorithm needs some work. The app’s map showed my location, I ordered the car, but then, as usual, the app instructed the driver to a place several meters away from where I was, outside of visual contact. He called, didn’t speak English (and I don’t speak Georgian) so he switched to text. I told him that I was there where I appeared on the map, but NOT at the location Bolt sent him to.
Here’s the thing – the map showed my location accurately, but the driver chose to ignore that and go to the app-given destination. If that had been a temporary mental break for this guy, that would be one thing. But it wasn’t. That very thing happens all the time here. In fact, it happened again when I wanted to come home, having been given my TIN.
Is there some reason that drivers go to the app-given site rather than to where I am, again, marked clearly on the map? Perhaps. I don’t drive for Bolt, so maybe so.
But now, let’s get back to why I have to walk a couple hundred meters to the main road, rather than call from my home: my home isn’t on GPS.
It turns out, this is not totally unheard of in Tbilisi. If I open Google Maps (or any other GPS-powered map), it shows me as a blue dot, but that blue dot moves all over the neighborhood and even crosses the main road. But it doesn’t sit still for a moment. It can’t locate me, even if I’m standing still outside my building. What’s worse is that, even if it did, when you get within fifty meters of my building, the maps go blank. There are no marked roads or buildings where I actually am, in front of my building, which is not new, surrounded by other buildings which are also not on the map.
That’s not a complaint. It’s an interesting anomaly. The complaint is this – shouldn’t drivers be able to find an address without using GPS at all? In my opinion, yes, they should. But none can. My address exists. I pay rent on my apartment every month. I have wi-fi and electricity and water service and all that, right to my own apartment. Just no GPS. I am completely hidden from these people. Because they are entirely relying on their tech, not their own brains, to do things for them.
I could make this a whole series. Hell, I could probably make it the topic of another blog all by itself. I’m not going to, but I just wanted to point out that we’re not using our brains, and because of this our brains are getting weaker. Look at how many people believe in conspiracy theories, especially ridiculous ones like the flat earth. We’re no longer learning critical thinking, and of those of us who were taught it at some point, many are no longer using it.
Just food for thought. Thanks for reading.
I still like to draw simple maps from my computer screen because I don’t have (want) a cellphone. Maps still work great!
I LOVE maps; always have. They fascinate me. Google Maps works pretty well in the States, but there are other instances where I wonder about critical thinking. Using cash to pay for something? You better know what your return change is supposed to be, because chances are the person in charge of the transaction doesn’t.
I just subscribed. THANK YOU for putting out blog posts; your writing cracks me up 🤣 and makes me feel closer to you.
I like maps, too, though I also think that Google maps or whatever GPS tech we have now are cool. They’re really useful….but they don’t replace THINKING, dammit, we still need to remember to think. I make this mistake occasionally, myself, but I immediately catch that mistake and correct it. Too many people now don’t even realize that they’re making a mistake in not thinking.