The Presidio and Sherry Turkle

My trip to the Presidio started near Arguello and Pacific Street. Ramune and I biked along trails to the Andy Goldsworthy Spire, out to the Pacific coast, over to Crissy Field, and back down to where we started. Prior to this trip, most of my excursions to the Presidio were limited to running along the Bay Trail, but now that I know what is in there, I plan to make it a new favorite. This is clearly a very special place, and a San Francisco treasure.

 It was a muddy day the day we went and, unfortunately, one of the first things I noticed was a trampled banana slug. I think it comes down to bikers and hikers really being unaware of their surroundings. Hmmm…

Second think I noticed were the birds. It was a beautiful day, and the birds were literally chirping. It seemed that every time I looked up, there was some raptor circling in the sky above me. Hmmm…

My idea for a robot deals with education and observation. At first, I was uncertain that Turlke’s book has anything to do with what I was purposing. After all, she is warning us against the perils of becoming too dependent on technology. Warning us against loving things that “can never love us back,” and in doing so, replace human connection. Well, my little Bird Observer robot doesn’t carry that threat. It is simply providing delightful images for a curious public. Or does it? Will this robot eventually cause people to feel like they no longer have the need to bird watch? Will constant availability of images mean that people feel like connecting to nature in “real-time” is unnecessary? I tend to think that it does not. After all, Google Earth did not replace leisure travel or the traveler’s drive to see new places in the world. I do hesitate, though, because Turkle was once a proponent of a life filled with and driven by technology. Now, years later, she is warning us against it.