On the plane from Singapore I indulged in an informative documentary on the new 'Drone' phenomenon. Drones are those tech-underpinned, lego, robot-like flying things, that have heaps of utility and seem to be a controversial breakthrough in contemporary society's 'running of things.' Not only are they now accessible and affordable to the everyday consumer, they are under big speculation and a new fascination of operation in government and business, whilst stirring up all sorts of media attention. I'm going to be my usual skeptic urbanist self and provide my take on why Drone's are essentially modern society's social drone.
Image source: Fossbytes.com
To be honest, I'm not quite sure why it's taken so long for Drones to become a 'thing.' They encapsulate the simplest of ideas and compared to other flying bodies, are quite basic to run. Perhaps I'm too ignorant to their internal composition...
I shall explain why social lives and modern sociology are transformed by these technological advances. You could say I'm influenced by the voice of philosopher, tech sociologist and anthropologist Bruno Latour here. Drones are built for extended autonomy of the users, complete with a camera most of the time, useful for accurate monitoring, journalistic and security measures, have the ability to deliver without the use of physical human movement or transport means, are fairly agile, small in airspace, can be created with an abundance of other add-ons and have dropped down from a rare, high-end, highly technological product, to a $750 purchase you or I could get for our go-pro adventures.
The thing that bugs me from the latter perspective, taking it down to the human lifestyle, is that Drones are the top of the pyramid along the progression line from interconnectedness to individualism. Basically, as the Western world is technologically advancing, it is also getting socially inept. I look at it like:
> Before social media and the gadgets to showcase our lives in digital, people had conversations, met up, didn't think to whip out a camera in day-to-day occurrences, then went home to bed with their memories.
> As time went on, social media boomed, and platforms were an exciting new tool to showcase what you did via smartphones. Taking a picture is now an everyday habit as opposed to a special occasion activity and coupled with social platforms, people seem to be increasingly living in the digital world over the real one.
> I notice in the younger generation, and also from my previous behaviour, it's all about checking feeds and needing to post a picture of what's happening or new possessions. This is my reason for deleting some of my social channels- for personal life it can be too habitual and absorb invaluable time spent in 'the present.' However, for commercial use and information consumption, it's awesome!
It appears as if people are disconnecting from one another, and more connected to their technology. With this, the social presentation of lifestyle becomes priority and real communication skills are less in tune. Not sharing our social lives with others, but for others. Power is also transferred to inanimate objects...?! weird.
My 'from sharing to self' diagram:
So next up, the simultaneous sharing of live content...? Is this essentially just having a camera on your life at all times, like an individual Big Brother? Like I said, society shifts from sociability to a exhibition of self. This can sometimes be seen as a way to parade around to followers/ a form of competition depending on how it's used, as opposed to the real connection and moment sharing with those beside you. I know it's not all doom and gloom though; it's just about being aware of personal use and the reason for it, because this innovation is marvellous for businesses and a range of projects that need that added perspective edge!
