| |
| |
|
Humor Information |
|
|
|
|
I cracked open the fortune cookie and read the little slip of paper on the inside. Immediately I realized that it had been written by a weather forecaster.
"You will be approached in the late afternoon by a pink polka-dot octopus..."
It continued on the other side: "... and asked to provide details of your application for a yellow cloud mulching permit."
Two things struck me about this particular fortune. The first is that they have come a long way in their ability to predict exactly what will happen and when, just like weather forecasters. This is undoubtedly due to recent technological developments. Laser technology, for example. Nano technology. Robotics. Bioengineering. And so many other specialized fields have been developed to points of precision unimagined just a generation ago.
And it's not just the weather forecasters.
In London, Ontario, specialists are performing microscopic cardiac surgery on patients miles away using a robot named CSTAR (Can't you just wait for new parents to start naming their children after the famous surgeon, CSTAR?). This has opened up the door to many benefits, such as sending robots to remote locations without having to worry about a surgeon replacing the wrong organs due to jet lag.
But the real benefit was revealed when one surgeon confided in me: "You know the world is a better place when we don't have to scrub our hands before surgery anymore."
I can call anybody in North America on the telephone and they will answer in real time. Not only is this a better response than I can give people face-to-face, but the telephone cables direct my call to the exact person I want, saving the other 400 million telephone subscribers the inconvenience of having to say, "Wrong number...again!" Just a few decades ago, Switchboard Suzie was manually connecting everybody.
"Janice Land? No problem. I'll connect you." CLICK.
"No, wait. I wanted to speak to Janet Lam. Hello?"
My father can pinpoint the exact amount of blood sugar he packs in his veins. Not very long ago, people could not care less how much sugar was in their blood, as long as they had plenty of it in their double-fudge sundaes.
Yes technology has come a long way, allowing us to send and received very specific information in great detail and in great volumes, allowing such thrilling 21st century innovations as spam (I know, I know, the great spam innovators you admire most did their heroic deeds in the 20th century, but you ain't seen nothing yet!)
Despite the volume of information I receive in my inbox, there is one very disturbing element to all this extra free information, which brings me back to the second thing that struck me about my fortune cookie message.
It was wrong.
I waited all day for that pink polka-dot octopus to approach me, and it never did. Just because modern technology can deliver huge volumes of laser-detailed information, does not make that information valuable or even accurate.
Which brings me back to the revelation that a weather forecaster is now writing fortune cookies. Weather forecasts have become increasingly more precise. For instance, I am told that today it will hail in the town just east of here and be sunny in the town just west of here.
Once upon a time, the forecast would be simply "Sun and hail expected to pass through the region." Less accurate and less wrong. Just as useless, though.
Maybe we should hire CSTAR to make the fortune cookies. Surely CSTAR would deliver fortunes that are not only precise but also accurate, right? As a bonus, the pastry chefs won't have to scrub their hands before baking.
And I wouldn't have to wait for a pink polka-dot octopus all afternoon.
About The Author
David Leonhardt is author of Climb Your Stairway to Heaven
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/bookSearch/isbnInquiry.asp?ISBN=059517826X
Read more personal growth articles: http://www.thehappyguy.com/self-actualization-articles.html
Visit his liquid vitamins store: http://www.vitamin-supplements-store.net
Or his happiness website: http://www.thehappyguy.com
 New York Daily News | Animated 'Click & Clack' lacks humor of real thing Salt Lake Tribune, United States - But the show's humor seems forced and wooden. Lacking the spontaneous feel of the radio show, it all feels a little too predictable. ... TV NOTE Car Talk's' Click and Clack duo gets animated PBS show |
Five humor hints on how to take control of your life by taking ... Seattle Post Intelligencer - The next blog on the Boomer Consumer will discuss: Five Humor Hints on How to Deal With Jerks and Knee Jerk Reactions. Posted by Rita R. Robison at July 4, ... |
Kia Motors Downplays Humor, Flash in Latest TV Ads Orange County Business Journal, CA - It’sa move away from past humor-filled ads, where Kia tried to be more hip and woo buyers with punchy campaigns. One featured a sales spot that parodied the ... |
Omaha clubs discover patrons tend to appreciate offbeat humor Omaha World-Herald (subscription), NE - ... bands to do something different," Nelson said, adding that Barry's style of edgy, offbeat humor should appeal to fans who attend concerts at Slowdown. ... |
Teacher: You need humor, God, insurance Muskogee Daily Phoenix, OK - By Travina Coleman Cindy Kane, a computer science teacher at Muskogee High School, has been living with lupus since her diagnosis in 1982. ... |
Blog of the week: Love + derivatives = comedy San Francisco Chronicle, USA - "Saturday Night Live" it ain't - xkcd's humor is gentle, and it freely delights in erudition of all kinds. But in a world of crude, common humor, ... |
A little humor sells Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, PA - By Mark Russell To illustrate how seriously we Americans are taking this election, I note such products as "Vote for Hillary" thongs, as well as songs ... |
The humor potential: Ladies get their revenge Kingston Reporter, MA - To share your pet peeves, questions or comments, write to The Humor Potential, 50 Court St., Plymouth 02360, send E-mail to inquiry@lorettalaroche.com, ... |
Five humor hints on how to be stressed for success Seattle Post Intelligencer - By Patt Schwab, Ph.D., Humorist Humor is not a joke! When it comes to reducing stress, humor can help put our problems into perspective faster than just ... |
For the Big Bucks, Try a Little Yuk Yuk Washington Post, United States - This book, written like a case study of the benefits of humor, could help many managers see that laughter is good for business. ... |
|
|