Anne Galloway, calm technology, resistentialism and Bjork

Anne Galloway delivers the sharp content as always:

Calm Technology and Resistentialism
- Today's word from The Word Spy: calm technology. For more on this, see The Origins of Ubiquitous Computing and Calm Technology. And then there is resistentialism (ri.zis.TEN.shul.iz.um) n. The belief that inanimate objects have a natural antipathy toward human beings, and therefore it is not people who control things, but things which increasingly control people. [Anne Galloway]

After going to the definition of "calm technology," I found this:

calm technology

(KAWM tek.nawl.uh.gee) n. Technology that remains in the background until needed and thus enables a person to interact with it in a calm, engaged manner.

First of all, after spending some time in the south (Mike Keene suggested that there's maybe a southern Clancy and a northern Clancy? Could be.), I'm surprised to see that the pronunciation key is saying "KAWM tek.nawl.uh.gee." Kawm? Tek-nawl-uh-gee? I would have thought it'd be something more like "noll."

Anyway...calm technology remains in the background. Galloway sees a connection between calm technology and resistentialism, "the belief that inanimate objects have a natural antipathy toward human beings, and therefore it is not people who control things, but things which increasingly control people." She says she'll blog more about that connection later, but to show you a little how my mind works, I immediately thought of the song "The Modern Things" by Bjork. The first and last parts go as follows:

All the modern things
Like cars and such
Have always existed
They've just been waiting in a mountain
For the right moment
Listening to the irritating noises
Of dinosaurs and people
Dabbling outside

[...]

All the modern things
Have always existed
They've just been waiting
To come out
And multiply
And take over
It's their turn now...

The calm technology has been waiting, but it has agency and hates us. And, in the unsettling words of Bjork, "It's their turn now." We'd better watch out. Paranoid fantasy reminiscent of The Matrix and The Terminator? Sure. What an influence popular culture has. :-) Heh--I'm sure Galloway has something serious and intelligent to say about the connection, so I'll stay tuned to Purse Lip Square Jaw.