Homo Techne taking over the world, as depicted in R.U.R. and Metropo- lis, never came to pass. It seems that people were gener- ally optimistic about technology in the 1920s, and it paid off, as the decade saw major advancements in electric- ity, transportation, and communication. Reid: But there have been other times throughout his- tory when fears about technology were realized. How do we make sense of that while remaining optimistic about future innovations? GPT-4 (edited for length): There definitely have been times when fears about new technologies have been realized in one way or another. For example, during the Industrial Revolution, many workers worried that machines would replace them and take away their livelihoods—and in some cases they were right. Or, more recently, people have been concerned about the privacy implications of social media and big data, and we’ve seen numerous cases of data breaches and mis- use of personal information. I think it’s important to be pragmatic, and to consider both the potential benefits and risks of new technologies. We should be open to innovation, but also be cautious and mindful of where it might lead. Just because the fears of the 1920s didn’t materialize doesn’t mean we should dismiss all concerns outright. Ultimately, I think we need to be proactive and thoughtful when it comes to technology, and not just blindly embrace it or reject it out of fear. Today, many aspects of our lives that we now take for granted would make even Hugo Gernsback himself gasp in wonder. First and foremost is the dramatic change in our own mortality. As Steven Johnson noted in an April 2021 article in the New York Times Magazine, “the average human life has doubled” in the last hundred years. Thanks to antibiotics, vaccines, 191