CHAPTER 1
Title: The Oldest Questions in the Digital Age: Power, Knowledge, and Our Human Future Reframing Ancient Dilemmas for a New World In 1981, a simple question by a paper mill manager sparked a lifelong exploration: “Are we all going to be working for a smart machine, or will we have smart people around the machine?” This question, posed over dinner in a small southern town, was not just about technology or jobs. It was a modern version of age-old human concerns—Who holds power? Who makes decisions? Who serves whom? These questions have echoed throughout history in different forms: Home or exile? Master or slave? Ruler or ruled? What makes this question eternal is not its form, but its focus on how humans relate to power and knowledge—whether those forces are gods, kings, corporations, or now, intelligent machines. The Digital Era: A New Setting for Old Power Struggles The early days of digital technology brought hope. Machines would free us from routine work, boost productivity, an...