Nicholas Carr is the author of
several books on the interaction of information and computers. The book The
Glass Cage looks at several pit falls of our reliance on computers. A history of automation explains the
counterintuitive nature of the process.
An analogy of his logic would be that
computers produce a homogenized summary of the data we give them and this summary
lacks the richness to really understand the phenomenon we are hoping to grasp.
Instead of a true understanding we get a solution generated by rule based
statistics, a generalization lacking in nuance, a ham and cheese sandwich with
no garnishment or condiments. Consider the person on vacation, blindly following
the instructions on his GPS and missing the cues on a paper map to interesting
points of local culture, or if overly distracted by the navigation tool, misses
the visual cues that he has wandered into an intersection with a high
probability of carjacking. The point being that modern conveniences can
expedite a trip but bypasses what may make the journey worthwhile.
This book is a concise attempt at
presenting a far more accurate depiction of a generally misunderstood social
misperception. Realizing the limitations of a system
allows one to adapt to maximize its potential and in the end its performance
that counts. By reading Mr. Carr’s works one can harvest more from your
computer efforts or avoid hidden traps that might denigrate those efforts.
