Artificial Intelligence - Will It Save Society or Bring About Its Downfall?
Apr 4, 2025 | Written by: | Share
Although the roots of Artificial Intelligence (AI) ideas predated the twentieth century, research began in the 1950s. Since that time there have been books, movies, and television shows where AI has led to the destruction of organized society or even mankind. Having grown up with movies like 2001: A Space Odyssey, WarGames, The Terminator, The Matrix, and even more recently a Netflix show Black Mirror (where technology has gone awry), I have had a healthy dose of skepticism toward AI. However, I am also amazed at the remarkable achievements by AI in recent years.
Even something as basic as watching television has been changed by AI. I recall manually changing channels as a child, choosing only between the three major networks (ABC, NBC and CBS) and a few smaller networks, with the signal by way of antenna on the TV set or on the roof of the house). Today we have razor-sharp thinking TVs with hundreds of channels with voice-activated remote controls and wireless connections. But does AI actually make our lives better? Does it make us happier? And what are the potential downsides?
Certainly, AI has made us more efficient and made our lives easier in many ways. We have virtual meetings, virtual doctors’ appointments, banking through our cell phones, and an enormous amount of information literally at our fingertips. This is positive for the most part, but I do have some concerns. While I am not concerned about a war between machines and humans such as in The Terminator (at least not in my lifetime), I am concerned that AI will make people intellectually lazy and unable to think or do for themselves, as depicted in the movie Wall-E. I am also concerned about the level of misinformation and potential fraud created by AI (but I will leave that issue out of this blog).
AI has made so much information available to us at the press of a button that we no longer have to think for ourselves. While I love the fact that I can instantly find out the answer to virtually any question I have about science, nature, pop culture, or anything, there was something to be said for actually researching to find answers in books, or having discussions with more knowledgeable individuals on a particular subject to get more information. I do believe the more work that was put into finding an answer, the more likely it was to be retained in our brains. With AI we no longer have the need to retain information because, if we forget it, we can simply look it up again in a matter of seconds.
Prior to having cell phones with all of our contacts, including home phone numbers (if anyone still has a landline other than me), cell numbers and emails, we had that information stored in our brains. Everyone knew at least six to ten phone numbers and many addresses of friends and family. Now people have difficulty even remembering their own cell number because they never have to tell people the number (they just send a contact card to a cell number or email address). How many people can tell you their closest five (5) friends’ cell phone numbers? We do not have a reason to use our brains to store and remember because the information is too easy to find. We also do not remember because we rarely physically dial numbers from our phone.
Even things as simple as mathematical conversions for Celsius to Fahrenheit, kilometers to miles per hour, or conversions of measurements to bake a cake, we no longer need to know how to figure out. The mental exercises we would often do in our head, or on a piece of scratch paper, used to keep our brains sharp. But this has been replaced by simply typing a question into our cell phone to find the answer, and then immediately forgetting the answer because we can simply look it up again. Even something as basic as reading a map (maps are apparently now obsolete) or paying attention while driving to find a location has been replaced by GPS. I believe this contributes to drivers not paying attention to their surroundings, but rather being focused on their GPS systems. This not only makes them terrible drivers, but they no longer have to use their brains to find places. Like most men, I have always been proud of the fact that I have never needed directions…why is technology taking this skill from me (note sarcasm)?
Now we have features in cars that keep the car in a lane or steer the car. There are parallel parking features that essentially park the car for you (as if the cameras do not make parallel parking easy enough). We even have autonomous (self-driving) vehicles. While this is quite amazing, now that people no longer need to know how to parallel park (why require this on the driving test?), how soon before they can “drive” self-driving cars without learning how to drive? This is likely to become one more feature of technology that I do not agree with, as I refuse to allow AI to drive a car for me, make corrective driving maneuvers for me, or even parallel park for me. I still enjoy the slight challenge of parking using mirrors rather than the cameras. I do not want to lose these skills by allowing AI to take over these tasks.
The more we allow artificial intelligence to think for us and do for us, the more we become useless blobs who cannot do anything for ourselves. While I have read articles that AI is likely to replace doctors, teachers, etc., in the future, I am hopeful that does not come to pass in my lifetime. Teachers play such an important role in the development of children, and a big part of it is beyond simply teaching a subject matter. It is the teacher relating to the student on a personal level - a human level - and understanding the difficulties and nuances in a child’s life that impact how a child learns. I have such fond memories of some teachers and college and law school professors that would not exist if I had simply been taught by artificial intelligence. Some were role models and truly impacted my growth as a person. Perhaps I could learn the same information, but I would not have the same life experience and would not have grown as a person in the same way if I had not been taught by and connected with such special people. The same is true for doctors and many other professions. The human connection should be of the utmost importance to all of us. We are not simply individuals who can independently function with the help of AI. We are social beings who require social interactions with other humans in order to be healthy, happy, and productive in society.
While the growth of artificial intelligence is not likely to stop, we cannot solely rely on AI, as it makes us less human. I encourage you all to think, to do simple math or conversions in your head, or figure out solutions to a problem on a piece of paper, because it is healthy to do so. I encourage you all to pay attention to your surroundings while driving, and to keep your driving (and parking) skills sharp. I encourage you to interact with other people. I encourage you to “to take the road less traveled” (as Robert Frost suggested) rather than taking the easy route simply because it is easy and we are lazy. Use AI but do not become dependent on it. While artificial intelligence certainly makes our lives easier in many ways, I do not believe people are any happier using AI than they were prior to its existence. Stay human and be happy.
William J. Rudnik, Esq., is a partner with Gebhardt & Kiefer, PC. He is certified by the NJ Supreme Court as a Matrimonial Law Attorney. In addition to handling divorce litigation, he is qualified as a Mediator in the field of Family Law under the New Jersey Court rules, and he is trained in Collaborative Divorce. Contact Mr. Rudnik at 908-735-5161 or via email.
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