Technology x Being Aware

Recently, I finished reading the book “The Circle” by Dave Eggers. Although the book was very predictable, it was an entertaining and accurate (although blown out of proportion) read. Essentially, the book is about a girl, Mae, who gets hired by one of the most popular internet companies in the world. There have been rumors and predictions that Eggers based this book off of Google (or the like), but that’s beside the point.

The story goes on to uncover incredible yet scary revelations and technologies that are created by the company Mae works at. Recently, I had the honor to visit the Fremont Google campus in Seattle. While reading this book, I couldn’t help but notice similarities between what Eggers wrote, and what I saw. Now, I am in no way saying that technology is bad or that tech companies are horrible.

However, things are becoming more and more connected. In essence, “The Circle” is about connecting everyone to everything all the time. I would argue that some companies have this same goal in mind in today’s world.

But is it a bad thing?

I, for one, don’t necessarily want everything I have to be connected to the internet. Another example would be an employer not knowing my personal social media accounts. Sure, there’s the argument of, “well, what are you trying to hide?” Nonetheless, it makes me a bit uneasy thinking about how much more difficult it has gotten to stay “off the grid” in recent years.

As I was walking through the campus of Google I literally saw a place that I would never want to leave. Free cold brews? Free video games? Whatever hardware/software I want for my computer? A gym? I mean, why leave?

There are negatives and positives to technology, and I love it just as much as the next person. This doesn’t mean that we can’t acknowledge some of the risks associated with technology.

If you are interested in reading the book, you can pick it up here.