In What Technology Wants, Kevin Kelly views technology’s evolution from multiple perspectives–the anthropologist, the sociologist, the evolutionary biologist, the technologist and the futurist. Using these perspectives, he examines his core thesis: technology is an extension of our abilities.
Broken into four sections, Origins, Imperatives, Choices and Directions he combines ideas from various disciplines with stories, documented history and deconstruction of facts. In Origins, evolutionary biology and anthropology explain humans and human interaction with technology. We began as a very simple species, and we adopted tools as we needed them. As homo sapiens evolved, our needs became more complex.
Throughout Imperatives, he documents history and science with sociology in mind–how does technology affect us as it progresses? How do we reconcile our needs and abilities as humans adapt and grow into higher order civilizations? Technology comes from lower order needs, desiring of higher order abilities.
Choices begins with Kelly stating that the Unabomber was right. Quoted at length from his manifesto, the Unabomber disdained technology due to it taking over our lives and growing beyond our control. Kelly points out the flaws in the manifesto somewhat cautiously–humans are incapable of fully living without technology. The Unabomber relied on others for tools and materials.
The last two chapters consist of Kelly’s futurist, philosopher take on where technology is going. At length, he charts Technology’s Trajectories among 10 different areas: complexity, diversity, specialization, ubiquity, freedom, mutualism, beauty, sentience, structure, evolvability. These areas are the same areas that life itself works within, he states. Lastly, in a nod to James P. Carse’s Finite and Infinite Games, Kelly believes that our relationship with technology and ideas will constantly push boundaries and seek ways to grow in order to continue.
In short, this book is full of ideas and perspectives. One particularly interesting idea he proposes is how many geniuses missed out on fully reaching their potential because they weren’t alive at the right time in history? Further, once a technology is created, in never ceases to exist. It may become rare, but it will serve a niche. If you want to get the most out of What Technology Wants in the shortest amount of time, read the last two chapters. Read the entire book for a synthesis of numerous ideas converging at once.
