We all feel that we are now facing changes that we do not really understand and where they are leading us. Where do we come from and where are we going by and large?
In order to understand tomorrow, you have to re-reexamine yesterday. So I went to examine what major 'disruptive changes the world has undergone since the beginning of the industrial revolution.
The common description of what are the main changes ever since is as four major industrial revolutions. The first revolution used water and steam power to automate production. The second revolution utilized electricity for mass production. The third revolution involved the integration of robotics technology to further automate production, and the fourth revolution focuses on using AI to optimize operational performance.
However, I propose a different perspective that expands beyond the industrial realm. . I argue that the invention of the first cellular phone in 1983, marked a transition from the Industrial Revolution Era to The Information Revolution Era.
It marked a shift from using technology to serve industrial needs to using it to enhance human well-being.
The first phase of this era is mainly reflected in the accessibility of information and its summoning to human needs. Today it is hard to imagine ourselves without a mobile phone. We are connected to it like an infusion that provides us with all the information we need functionally, entertainingly, and communicatively.
And recently we are witnessing the second phase in this era when we have at our disposal a new series of Generative AI tools whose current prominent representative is the Chat GPT, in which artificial intelligence demonstrates to us that it is possible to conduct a conversation between a machine and a human interlocutor in which it is no longer possible to distinguish which of the two entities is a machine or a human. And that the machine interlocutor in this conversation reveals general knowledge that exceeds that of the human interlocutor.
The Information Age has made tremendous progress since the invention of the cell phone in 1983. AI demonstrated its capacity to access all the record knowledge humans have accumulated so far and cater to any of our inquiries at our fingertips.
The process of processing and absorbing information and knowledge is a demanding huge task for the brain in terms of energy usage. However, with the use of AI tools, this task can be performed for us, allowing our brains to utilize their energy towards a higher level of human intelligence - cultivating Practical Wisdom.
Practical wisdom is the ability to make wise judgments and take effective actions in real-life situations by applying abstract principles and general rules to specific scenarios while taking into account the well-being of others and the long-term impact of our actions.
Aristotle introduced the concept of practical wisdom over 2400 years ago and believed that this ability to think and apply practical wisdom is the epitome of human intelligence, surpassing even philosophy and science.
In today's rapidly changing world, Practical Wisdom is more critical than ever. It's up to us to seize the opportunity that AI provides us now to steer the direction of the transition from the Information Age to the Age of Wisdom.
Join us in the Practical Wisdom Revolution and stay tuned for further developments