You Are Not a Gadget summary

As you know, the internet contains billions of pieces of information, scattered all over the chaos of the web. But some believe it won’t be long before we create technology capable of collecting all these pieces together – into a single form of ultimate wisdom!

And if this singularity happens, it will signpost the moment when human knowledge is surpassed by computer intelligence.

These days, almost everyone has a favorite online mash-up – a blending together of parts of separate songs or videos. But did you ever stop to think about the original works from which they were created? Probably not.

This disregard for originality is a consequence of the internet’s design, which treats unique content created by individuals as interchangeable bits of a greater whole. This phenomenon is known as free culture, where all information and media is free to be edited and repackaged by others – and it changes the way content is consumed.

We’ve all seen it before: someone has taken a scene from our favorite movie, and spliced it together with a video of a cute cat. Pretty cool, right?

Maybe not.

Nearly everyone familiar with YouTube comments has encountered the unlimited negativity of trolls – people who deliberately start arguments or upset people – and the often mob-like mentality that governs the “conversation.”

But why exactly does this type of behavior happen online? Could it be the result of natural human tendencies?

So we have seen who loses out because of the almost limitless availability of content on the internet, but who benefits?

The main beneficiaries are those who own websites that direct users to content, like Google or Facebook.

As we have the seen, in the modern world the collective is more important than the individual.

Many businesses, from content providers to financial traders have learned this, and try to use it to their advantage.

From the invention of the wheel to the advent of smartphones, technology has been harnessed to make people’s lives easier.

For example, before the Industrial Revolution, slaves and near-slave manual laborers handled the brunt of the work.

Many of us were born before the advent of the internet. This means that the web and other technologies are still young and malleable – which allows us to change technology to maintain and promote the values of human intelligence and individuality.

The best way to do this is to make sure people are able to create unique and original works by ensuring that their intellectual property is protected.