technoculture314-09

When contemplating about the idea that somehow due to our dependence on technology in the modern era, discourses have arose regarding the idea that humans are becoming cyborgs: part human, part machine. In other words, technology is such an integral part of our lives now that it is actually a part of us. I cannot help but to disagree with such ideas. One, our heavy reliance on something does not make it part of us. Thinking back to before the invention of electricity, human kind existed for millions of years, surviving on basic human needs such as food, water, shelter and various emotional support. Those are the essences which make us human-beings. However after the invention and the widespread use of electricity, we can hardly imagine a world without it, because the convenience and luxury it brings. Human nature however has not changed due to it's existence. If one day we must face a lifestyle without electricty, no doubt it would be a tough one, we will however continue to survivor as per normal. In fact in many third world countries or rural areas of developing countries, the use of electricity has almost never really sunk in. People work during the day, when the sun sets, people simply go to bed. Entertainment and other enjoyment come from sources other than those made available by electricity. I think in this sense, it paints a clear picture that while technology has benefited us greatly, its disappearance would not mean the end of the human race.
My second point is that our reliance on technology differs greatly from person to person. Some of us make a living with the help of cellphones and computers, some of us can't stand to go a day without our iPods, while others totally reject such dependence, having no phone, no internet or no iPod. There is no denying that in today's society, the latter group of people would have a much harder time staying in touch with the rest. One may ask how do we even keep in touch with people who have no cellphone or a facebook account? But the truth is these people do exist and they are just as human as the rest of us. As much as we claim how "we'd die without our phone/iPod/laptop", the truth is we won't. It would perhaps cause us great amount of distress and discomfort, but we do continue to live like those that reject technology or those that lived before the invention of such technology. Cyborg however suggest a hybrid human, who is also part machine. The human side gives the cyborg life and personality, the technology side allows the expression of those human characteristics such as talk, walk etc. Losing either factor would mean the death of the cyborg, it may still be a machine, or a body, it would no longer be a cyborg, and it seems to me that humans will never reach such an extreme point. We haven't in the last few millions year, what makes this any different now?