| Joy’s main concern is the outlook on where our future is headed with the advancements in technology. He notes that “failing to understand the consequences of [these advancements while creating them are common faults of] scientists and technologists (243). They never take the time to note that the progress of powerful advancements, such as GNR, can take on their own lives. The physical scientists are the ones that should be accredited, having the true insight of these advancements. Moore’s law precisely predicts the “exponential rate of improvement of semi-conductor technology”(243). If this law is proven true, then the power of the new machines could redesign the processes confined in our world to “become realms of human endeavor”(243). In other words, engineers such as Joy will create the tools to construct advancement in technology that could later replace the human race. There were two ideas initially formed about robotics. One being that the machines would provide a life of luxury, doing the work for the humans. The other idea is that the robotic form of technology will re-replicate itself to gradually replace Homo sapiens. It is the second idea that concern’s Joy the most. Genetic engineering is a powerful form of technology that “threatens the notion of equality, the cornerstone of our democracy”(244). Joy finds that he is not all that concerned about nanotechnology as he was genetic engineering, because he doesn’t feel pressured to solve the numerous problems that are present. However, nanotechnology could create problems in the future. Like nuclear technology,”nanotechnology has military and terrorist uses, and can be built to be used selectively”(246). He believes that it is the overall self-replication power of GNR that the world should be worried about. “Self-replication is the modus operandi of genetic engineering, [using machinery] of the cell to replicate designs, and the prime danger underlying gray goo in nanotechnology”(248). Joy states that even though the warnings of GNR haven’t been heavily publicized, “we have had them hand in hand for years”(248). |