GPS & Navigation

We are covering navigation and GPS in this week’s blog and, unsurprisingly, I don’t know what direction to go in (ba dum tss). This is a topic that, for me, represents a bit of the disconnect between my existence and the life of my family and previous generations. Some inventions are so groundbreaking that it is hard to envision the world without them. Once, we waited wistfully while watching worried mothers myopically mark maps mere minutes before a road trip. This time has since been replaced.

This is not to pretend things were better in the past or that the present (and future) are doom and gloom. GPS is incredible. The ability for us to locate anything we want instantly is now accepted as part of reality. To type “car repair near me” and have a computer tell us exactly where to go and how to get there barely causes us to raise our eyebrows. The lack of continuous gratitude for GPS is not surprising and can be explained by the most insidious characteristic of the human experience: habituation. The phenomenon by which the extraordinary (peanut butter, the internet, and existence itself) becomes the mundane.

Despite our absence of appreciation, GPS has had an impact on our lives. GPS has changed what it feels like to interact with our environment. We walk around cities we have never been before with the confidence and grace of a local. Our phones tell us what locations have services that might interest us. It all seems too good to be true. This is not to say there are no costs to the omnipresence of GPS and navigational aids. In fact, there has been a great deal lost to us due to the advent of these technologies. These devices rob us of the thrill of being lost and the joy of truly getting to know one’s city. Having lived in Boston for 4 years you might expect most college seniors to know there way around town. You would be mistaken. My friends spend every weekend in the city and cannot walk from Fenway to the Boston Common without pulling out their cell phones. I had the same problem until I decided to start walking through the city and getting lost on weekends. At first the city seemed alien and threatening. However, as I began to know more about the city, I started learning about unique shortcuts and interesting parks that were tucked away in the middle of nowhere. In this respect, GPS acts as a shortcut; you will always find yourself in the right place, but what a price you pay for missing the journey.

I think the introduction of GPS is a good example about the balance that must be walked with new technologies. GPS is incredible. It is undeniably a step forward. Yet, it limits a lot of our experiences and has a nasty habit of further tethering us in the future. What is the point of a trip if you already know where you are going? Instead of enjoying the experience of walking across the city, GPS keeps you focused on your next destination. In this way, GPS can guide our attention away from the time frame that makes us happiest: the present. If we consider life as a road trip, would we really want a GPS to ensure we make it to the end untouched on the fastest and most generic path? I take criticism for blowing menial things out of proportion, (and you can see why) but navigational tools and GPS could be used to accomplish so much more. Imagine if Google had a setting for exploratory based navigation. If you had a directional arrow facing the location of your destination, and you still got to choose the way you walked. How many hidden parks, impressive statues, unique buildings, and new paths would you discover?