Plant ID Aps, existential threat?

There's a lot of talk these days about artificial intelligence. Bots like ChatGPT are blowing our minds and threatening everything from writing term papers to creative endeavors like poetry. But should we really be concerned about the future of human creativity?

I've always prided myself on my plant ID skills, though I'm by no means an expert. Yet being able to identify plants in gardens is important to me, and something that I've developed over decades of observation and study. So you can imagine how I might feel when someone pulls out their phone and gets an instant ID for some obscure native plant I've never seen or, even worse, one I've forgotten?

It used to be, before the age of computers and instantaneous information, a unique skill to be able to identify plants. It also used to be far more common for the average Joe to have some basic understanding of the natural world and some baseline of plant knowledge. Gone are those days, and just being able to ID something doesn't translante into a passion and love for learning it.

We now we live in a time when someone with no experience or education can use our ubiquitous smartphones to ID practically anything, be it a song, a rock, or a collectible. It's been said that we are entering a new phase in our evolution, one where we've essentially"outsourced our brains" to computers. We've accelerated a transition from biological memory to memory monopolized by technology.

I say the word "accelerated" because this has been going on for centuries. Ever since the first scribes began recording information on stones or paper, we've gradually lost our powers of memory and ceded learning to our "creations". But this process has been ramped up during our time! Just take a little moment to think about all the areas of our lives that have been overtaken by technology.

One that repeatedly comes to mind is our constant use of GPS. When was the last time we pulled out our physical maps? I, for one, haven't used a "real" map in years, and I wouldn't think of going on a trip without my Google phone. Such is my dependency, that I almost have a breakdown when I enter an area without service.

These changes may not seem like a big deal, but they add up. And it is plausible that given a few more years, our brains and bodies will be augmented by technology to the point where we can't literally survive without it. Superhuman abilities of memory, perception, and things unimaginable are possible for our species in the not-so-far-off future.

My other job and passion in life is as a musician and composer. But not even this profession is safe from technology and AI. Even the art of musical composition, which I always assumed to be safe from technology, is now threatened by it. If you aren't aware, new versions of AI can essentially create whole symphonies that can fool even the most experienced critics. If creating sensitive, beautiful, and fresh-sounding music can be churned out in seconds by a machine, what's the point of laboring for countless hours? What is the point of all that work and emotional upwelling?

So how will we artists, writers, and composers continue to find meaning in a world where computers have the upper hand?

Let us take some solace in the fact that technology, so far, hasn't been able to surpass our abilities to do physical work. At least, as of 2023, there isn't a robot that can dig a hole, pluck a weed, or play the piano with the sensitivity of human hands and fingers. But it is just a matter of time before technology is able to do everything we can do but better.

So, even though it seems futile, I still think it is important to develop a passion, a skill. What is the purpose of living without having something to do and look forward to? Self-indulgence and constant entertainment gets old. We all need real challenge and "work" in our lives. "An idle mind is the devil's workshop" as the saying goes. Issues like anxiety and mental illness will certainly skyrocket if we can't find a deep purpose in our lives.