Open Sky: With A Clouded Future

In this section of the book Open Sky, Virilio talks about how technology is making everyone lazy and in turn making them want to travel less. The reasoning behind this thought is that he says if a person can just get on their computer and pull up a picture of something, such as Big Ben in London, why would they actually want to travel all the way to London in person. In Virilio's mind people would rather indulge in virtual reality than experience actually reality because it is so much easier in modern times.

However, one of the flaws in this logic is that you are removing the human element from the argument. Virilio doesn't take into account that people would rather experience something in person than virtually and financial restrictions or distance is the reason the don't get the opportunity. I still believe that if people had the choice they wouldn't be satisfied with just looking at a picture of a beautiful site when they could see it with there own eyes.

Additionally, with all the new technology, even when we do travel that technology is affecting our experience. With the distraction of iPhones, iPods, computers and so on people aren't paying the same attention to their surrounding as they used to in a new environment. The experience of traveling is getting somewhat hindered by the distractions we expose ourselves too. Even though technology like cameras and items of the sort that help us to remember a trip a good, the overall experience has become less enriching in many instances with the inclusion of phones, Mp3s and computers.

The final thing I want to talk about in this section of Open Sky is the subject of the disabling of able people mentally and physically.For instance, with the invention of the calculator people no longer have to be able to do basic math that well because they have a device that will do it for them. In the same way, people no longer have to walk across large parts of the airport because they installed moving walkways. Through the new technology we embrace, we are hurting ourselves mentally and physically without even realizing it. Our dependence on things outside ourselves is weakening our ability to perform in society.


Discussions Questions to Ponder:
1) What makes people want to travel rather than viewing a place virtually?

2) How can we become less disabled in society after we've been exposed to all these technologies?