| The Curmudgeon believes that, without necessary and | | | | introduced. What is the brain to do with this massive |
| sufficient prior consideration, the US is starting down a | | | | new assault on a person's private space? What |
| technological path which may well prove to be | | | | unforeseen problems in human behavior lie ahead? |
| unfortunate, festooned with many unforeseen | | | | Why weren't these possibilities considered before we |
| consequences. One wishes that some rational | | | | rushed ahead with even more technology "just |
| consideration would have been given prior to starting | | | | because we can do it?" |
| the journey, but with most of today's consumer | | | | 2. The practical liability of the possession/use of these |
| technology being driven almost entirely by free-market | | | | fully-portable devices is that they divert attention from |
| enterprise, "whatever can be done.....will be done" as | | | | a user's local environment. If that environment happens |
| long as a buck can be made. | | | | to be a metropolitan street intersection, a busy |
| The Curmudgeon is normally a big proponent of the | | | | highway, or even a farm tractor/combine, such |
| use of the electromagnetic spectrum (i.e., radio) to do | | | | diversion carries real risks. Significant injury to an |
| tasks that can't easily be accomplished in other ways | | | | individual can occur in just hundreds of milliseconds -- |
| or, in some instances, couldn't be accomplished in any | | | | sufficient time to avoid danger if one is attentive, or to |
| other way. But not in this present case. There are too | | | | suffer consequences if one is not. |
| many liabilities waiting to arise. | | | | Certainly not all portable devices are equally |
| He is speaking here of the on-going, uncritical mass | | | | attention-diversive. Barcode readers, medical monitors, |
| public adoption of one- and two-way | | | | RFID readers carry almost no risk at all. One-way |
| consumer-portable wireless devices, of which the | | | | audio devices, such as broadcast radios, are probably |
| iPhone is probably the signature icon. This does NOT | | | | only marginally risky. Slightly more risky would be some |
| include such specialized items as wireless medical | | | | visual devices, such as mobile GPS receivers. Here, at |
| monitors, industrial bar-code readers, mobile GPS | | | | least, the individual can choose his (occasional) viewing |
| navigators, and RFID tags. These special purpose | | | | instants. More risky are the audio two-way devices, |
| wireless devices, along with many other similar items, | | | | such as cell phones, that require little visual attention but |
| have practical virtues and carry far less risk than does | | | | do require mental participation in a conversation. At the |
| the new class of consumer-targeted devices. | | | | highest risk level, in my opinion, are the two-way visual |
| These radio-based portable (i.e., | | | | devices such as mobile television and text messaging, |
| routinely-carried-on-the-consumer) devices are | | | | which foster both visual diversion and mental |
| intended to accomplish many contemporary | | | | involvement. Some real thought should be given to |
| telecommunications functions that previously were the | | | | consequences before these are made available to the |
| province of stationary systems. Some of these new | | | | general public. |
| acceptances, most notably cellular telephones, have | | | | 3. Massive adoption of what are, in essence, portable |
| advanced to the point such that the devices are | | | | broadband wireless digital stations inevitably requires |
| already in nearly universal usage. Others are just | | | | massive use of the (still) finite RF spectrum. While new |
| appearing on the scene: wireless Internet access, | | | | technologies generally lead to more efficient usage of |
| portable television receivers, text-messengers. | | | | each Hertz, there are "Tragedy of the Commons" |
| Now the Curmudgeon is not a technological Luddite; he | | | | limitations awaiting the complete consumption of the |
| well understands the engineering behind, and owns and | | | | spectrum. What is to be done in the decades to come, |
| uses many different pieces of electronic | | | | as new (and perhaps compelling) wireless applications |
| communications systems (in the broadest sense). But | | | | are developed, only to be shelved because of |
| The Curmudgeon is both philosophically and practically | | | | unavailability of usable spectrum? Should we not |
| opposed to the mass consumption of the radio | | | | "save" today against tomorrow's needs? Let's use the |
| frequency spectrum by consumer-portable devices, | | | | RF spectrum for tasks that cannot be done any other |
| and in some cases strongly opposed. Since nobody | | | | way, and use our (nearly infinite bandwidth) wire line |
| seems to want to present the case against them, he | | | | networks for those that can operate quite well without |
| will herein present at least some of it. | | | | radio. |
| 1. Most importantly, the granting of "instant access | | | | 4. These portable wireless devices inevitably foster a |
| directly to the person" through these devices -- on | | | | feeling of "self-aggrandizement" on the part of their |
| what can easily become a continuous 7/24 | | | | users, telling all that "I can make my presence, my skills, |
| basis---removes the possibility of maintaining an | | | | my expertise available anywhere, and at any time. I |
| individual's psychological "private space." With these | | | | am thus an important person!" The Curmudgeon, |
| new devices in use there is no longer any "time out," | | | | however, believes differently. He is not a Public Safety |
| any chance to stop, to process information already | | | | officer, an emergency room physician, or a Supreme |
| received, to consider possibilities, to plan next-steps. | | | | Court justice sitting on a convict's appeal of a capital |
| The world becomes real-time, continuous, and without | | | | execution. There is nothing that he can do for another |
| end. The distinction between "work time" and "leisure | | | | person *in real time* that carries any important |
| time" evaporates. Addictions (i.e., "can't turn it off!") | | | | consequences. Everything that he is able to do will not |
| begin, along with frustration as the individual begins to | | | | suffer from the delay of a few minutes or a few |
| realize that the ceaseless incoming "data flood" can | | | | hours, or in some cases even a few days. There is |
| never be fully processed or mastered. | | | | almost always time to stop, to think, and to consider |
| Most of the communications functions that are about | | | | before action commences. |
| to be adopted were handled previously by fixed, wired | | | | This is not to deny that there are times when real-time |
| devices (i.e., corded telephones, desktop computers, | | | | communications are absolutely required, and these |
| in-home radio and television receivers) or, at most, in | | | | portable devices can do that task well. But the |
| very limited ways by simple portable and mobile | | | | Curmudgeon very much contends that the numbers of |
| devices (car broadcast radios). One usually had to | | | | such occasions are not nearly as large as the number |
| take very specific actions to use these, and if (s)he | | | | of instances when subscribers use their portable |
| were away from the locations of the fixed devices, | | | | devices to make themselves feel self-important, for |
| their use was deferred to a later time, almost always | | | | tasks that don't even remotely require such real-time |
| with very few negative consequences. | | | | usage. Perhaps the difference between real need and |
| All this is about to vanish in less than an eye blink on | | | | self-aggrandizement usage amounts to orders of |
| the time scale of human evolution. The problem is.....the | | | | magnitude. |
| human brain evolves very slowly; it has no precedents | | | | So the questions remain: What are the real costs, and |
| or existing adaptations for the state of "being wired-in | | | | the real consequences, of the mass adoption of these |
| continuously." The brain is probably is just now coming | | | | wireless, always-on-the-consumer communications |
| to grips with the previous generation of | | | | devices? Is the Curmudgeon really the first to ask |
| communications devices, and even for these there had | | | | these questions? |
| been few earlier neural analogs when they were | | | | What do you think? |