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Robert Tamayo

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The Goal of Technology

As I continue my studies in the "humanities", my vision and goals for what I want to accomplish in the field of technology become more clear to me. Ultimately, it comes down to understanding the purpose of technology: to improve people's lives. Technology should be used where necessary to improve people's lives, and not to control them. Here are a few examples of what I mean:

Technology should help people get directions to a store, not track their movements.

Technology should help people communicate with others, not spy on their phone calls and texts.

Technology should provide access to cheap education, not require students to purchase homework software in addition to their overpriced textbooks.

Technology should enhance entertainment, not replace it.

This list could continue, but the point should be clear: technology is a great tool for helping humanity, but it is being misused on purpose for suppressing humanity. Moreover, technology no longer inspires people the way it used to, probably because the only "advancements" are incremental and not revolutionary. The most "clever" use cases for technology are absurd violations of privacy and autonomy.

What I want to do is work on things that actually improve people's lives. Oftentimes, the simple things actually do improve our lives, such as games for entertainment and shopping list apps for helping with groceries. But there are other, bigger projects out there. Ultimately, I hope to one day work on those. The output may not even be technological, but I can work on them with my engineering skills to contribute my part.
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