Into the Wild

I finished Into the Wild on a plane, seated next to a very…fratty…college boy who was blatantly reading over my shoulder for the entire last few chapters. Yet somehow the last few chapters managed to draw me in enough not to care. I felt liberated, yet chained down. Skeptical of a careless and romanticized journey of just another stupid kid, yet in utter admiration of the story he left behind. Sometimes I’m curious as to whether it’s better to live a good and long life, or a fleeting one which will be told as a story for years to come. Christopher McCandless grew on me more than I imagined he could. I believe that at some stage in the time he spent in Alaska, he found euphoria, nirvana, whatever it is the rest of us seek but almost never find. If not, I don’t think he would have continued writing, or searching, or sharing his words. For some reason, reading the words of pain from his parents and sister feels like the most fictional part of the entire story, despite the fact that all the rest of it, while true, is stitched together by a few journal entries and a quote from a local here and there. In reality the only completely verifiable portions of the whole book come from everyone but McCandless.

I think that’s because while we can all sympathize with the feelings of those he left behind, we yearn to feel what McCandless felt on his journey. He is the hero. He lived barely a third of his life and yet we write the essays and blogs about him, not his parents, not anyone who drove him. Critics claim that he was just another stupid kid, but he is the one they choose to write about.

After I finished reading, I picked up a copy of the Sky magazine in the pocket of the seat in front of me. The first article that caught my eye was something about Beyonce swimming in Cabo, but a couple more minutes of skimming told me that wasn’t the most captivating article in the magazine. “The Internet of Things”. Daunting. The first sentence: “Imagine if your dental floss was connected to the internet.”

Luckily, the frat boy wasn’t interested in my literature anymore and I had some alone time to attempt to comprehend the rest of this article. In it, MIT professor Joseph Flaherty deconstructs the world we’re fast approaching – one in which everything we own is connected to the internet, enabling us to essentially lose all that is left of our humanity and have our existences boiled down to vehicles for capitalism. Starting off the day flossing, once our roll had been half-used, it would place an order at Amazon and have it delivered straight to our home. Sorry, but that’s just straight up terrifying. I have enough things to worry about without watching for Amazon drones here to deliver me my dental hygiene products. Creepier still, Flaherty illustrates the new era of waking up – no more alarm clocks. Instead, threads in our blankets will be in sync with our sleep cycles and a streaming traffic report. “…your REM patterns will be compared to traffic data. If it looks like a traffic jam will make you late for your 9am meeting, a wristband will gently vibrate to wake you up at the perfect time in your sleep cycle”, explains Flaherty. Ok ok ok. The floss was enough. This is too far.

But yet there’s more. In the rest of the article, the reader is introduced to technology such as

a)      Task chairs at work while will monitor posture and send emails telling you not to slouch

b)      Cameras in your computer watching your eye movement to ensure that you are focused, and if not, drawing your attention to something that will bring you back

c)      Data from a trip to the gym which will immediately be sent to your physician so that at your next check up you can’t lie about how many hours of exercise you get per week

d)     Cameras in grocery store aisles which will determine your exact demographic and tailor coupons to match your needs

e)      Air quality thermostat which can sense carbon monoxide levels and automatically shut the furnace and call the police

Had enough yet?

I have.

Industries which haven’t been touched by the internet yet – furniture, cars, buildings – are quick on the uptake. The worst part is that this isn’t speculation – all of this technology has been created and is currently bouncing around major industries with super high price tags, not yet released to the public. Google employees are driving to work in autopilot cars. This is happening.

I haven’t even shared the scariest one yet.

You’ll be begging for hacked passwords in a minute.

Armed with this knowledge, computer hackers will literally be able to hijack pieces of the internet that are inside of you. Not sure what I’m talking about? Pacemakers. We’re looking at a future where people can hold your heart for ransom.

I don’t think this is the world Christopher McCandless could ever have survived in. I barely know if I can. Privacy is one thing when you’re talking about college admissions officers looking at your profile photos – it’s another when the NSA knows what you’re eating for dinner.