Sunday, November 29, 2015

A Different Perspective on a STEM Education

I was reading about factories and warehouses that are becoming so completely automated that humans are not needed to build the product or operate the warehouse.  Then I looked at my cellphone and gave it a verbal command.

I stopped to think, when society "advances" to the point where everything that humans produce and make is verbally commanded to a machine to make, will an education in the humanities then become essential?

When we create robots that can produce everything, including making more robots, won't it be even more important to make sure that the commands we give robots are beneficial not just to the group commanding the robots but to society as well?



When this time comes it is imperative that the people commanding the robots make their decisions based on principles for the common good, not just the benefit of the robots' owners.  Where will they learn these principles?

I asked a 14 year old at a dinner party what college he wants to go to and he quickly replied MIT because he wants a good "STEM" education.  This is good, I thought, but how would a 14 year old learn to make "robot commands" that keeps the human race going if he also doesn't study humanities?  And if robots can make other robots how much of a demand will there be for a STEM education?

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