a college degree in 2025/2026/2027 ... don't

Christopher Weeks wrote:

Inge Leonora-den Ouden wrote:AI doesn't have hands!

Yet.

Even if it does, there is no way it will be successful at hands-on things. My husband has been repairing & renovating homes for 40 years and EVERY job is different. Plumbing & electrical aren't always found in the expected places; older homes are a Frankenstein of repairs done over 80 years with different materials; studs aren't always 16" apart. Does Ai know what's on the other side of a wall? Does it know to find a roof leak by imagining "what if I was water, where would I run down to before actually dripping?" and see where there's a bump that throws it off the expected path? (and do that backwards, actually)
Can Ai climb a ladder and determine what kind of small animal is making that kind of hole and where it's living and how to catch it and repair the hole with the appropriate material that *that* animal can't chew through but not until the babies have left and nothing is living in there anymore? Can it make suggestions to a customer that enhance accessibility for their disabled teenage daughter to start doing things for herself and be helped with some things while having privacy and independence at the same time as well as redecorating for her in a culturally hip way because we see she wants to grow up and her parents are still treating her like a child, so we give sensitive suggestions that make them feel like they're the decision makers even though we're winking to the girl on the side and she's smiling and everyone is happier? No, it can't.
I'm just getting started!
Ai ain't human, and will never replace some things.

What I'm afraid of is the quality-bar being lowered. It seems many people believe Ai can equal or outperform humans in many areas. Customers sometimes look up their problems on YouTube or Google, and think they have the answers when they call us. They tell us what they need or want. Then my husband starts rattling off why that solution won't work for them, or is not the best idea. Some contractors or handymen would just do what they ask, possibly taking a lot of money for a sub-par job. Sometimes they think they "need a whole new" thing for $3000 and my husband says, "Well you can get one if you want but I can fix this one for $300." There are usually options, with pros and cons, and the answer might be different for different people. We almost never walk into a job and just do what the customer says. We can't help brainstorming with them and working as a team with them, and 99% of the time it is appreciated.

Ai will cause people to settle for "good enough" or mediocre, and without interaction with experienced humans, people will not get the best jobs done or get what is truly best for them.
That may happen, because people won't know that's what they're getting, but it will be a sad day.
That's what I mean by the quality bar being lowered.
Robots will seem to be helping but will cause us to live like robots because they are simply not human and can't interact like humans.

True that AI is going to lower standards in some ways. Although AI's relative mediocrity is at least better than a bad plumber or bad other expert, and definitely cheaper! Someone I know has been avoiding needing to call electricians, because the AI tells her how to fix things herself and asks the right questions in ways that are helpful.

It has been rolling around in my head that history is defined not by human effort but by human laziness. There are two ways to be lazy (at least). One goes along these lines generally speaking: to work in the office or the factory or wheresoever, all day long, doing little that is really, tangibly valuable and the work being of questionable consequences, and getting tired nonetheless, and then to come home, flop on the couch, snap at your children, and eat a microwaved TV dinner.

The other way is to be grateful for the gifts of nature, grateful for your ancestors and friends and family, and enjoy the gifts that come to you freely from the earth and from your relations, the best you can.

Both involve laziness and work. The first one involves a good work ethic, where you work hard then get tired and can't muster the energy for what is truly important in life. The second requires that one not be afraid of enjoyment. But because so many people are in a state of perpetual inner turmoil, feelings of insufficiency, and self judgement, they choose the former rather than the latter.

Kim Wills wrote:

Christopher Weeks wrote:

Inge Leonora-den Ouden wrote:AI doesn't have hands!

Yet.

Even if it does, there is no way it will be successful at hands-on things. My husband has been repairing & renovating homes for 40 years and EVERY job is different.

Kim, I agree 100%.
I am retired from being a contractor with decades of remodels, new construction and maintenance work.
I have 4 sons all having their own companies doing this. They each already have over 2 decades of experience, (and still call me a lot for ideas.  I think to just keep my mind sharp. lol)  Each of them will search the net and uses AI to a certain point just to be sure they are looking at all to options for the job.  I have  people asking me for advice from time to time also.  Many of them have already searched for answers on the net and then get really confused.  That is where hands on experience comes into play.

Dennis Barrow wrote:

Kim Wills wrote:

Christopher Weeks wrote:

Inge Leonora-den Ouden wrote:AI doesn't have hands!

Yet.

Even if it does, there is no way it will be successful at hands-on things. My husband has been repairing & renovating homes for 40 years and EVERY job is different.

Kim, I agree 100%.
I am retired from being a contractor with decades of remodels, new construction and maintenance work.
I have 4 sons all having their own companies doing this. They each already have over 2 decades of experience, (and still call me a lot for ideas.  I think to just keep my mind sharp. lol)  Each of them will search the net and uses AI to a certain point just to be sure they are looking at all to options for the job.  I have  people asking me for advice from time to time also.  Many of them have already searched for answers on the net and then get really confused.  That is where hands on experience comes into play.

Wow, that's great that your sons are following in your footsteps! My husband still calls the retired old-timers who taught him when he wonders about something. His mind was made for troubleshooting and puzzle-solving, but even still, when there are several options on something tricky he won't commit to a solution until he runs it by someone else (even me; I've been working with him 10+ years). And there we have another thing Ai can't do; toss ideas back & forth while *being there*. I've used ChatGPT for a few things and it always acts like it has the solution, or I do, but then when I add a bit more info it's like, "oh well, now that you mentioned that..." Hopefully your son's Ai experiences are better than mine, lol!

M Ljin wrote:True that AI is going to lower standards in some ways. Although AI's relative mediocrity is at least better than a bad plumber or bad other expert, and definitely cheaper! Someone I know has been avoiding needing to call electricians, because the AI tells her how to fix things herself and asks the right questions in ways that are helpful.

It has been rolling around in my head that history is defined not by human effort but by human laziness. There are two ways to be lazy (at least). One goes along these lines generally speaking: to work in the office or the factory or wheresoever, all day long, doing little that is really, tangibly valuable and the work being of questionable consequences, and getting tired nonetheless, and then to come home, flop on the couch, snap at your children, and eat a microwaved TV dinner.

The other way is to be grateful for the gifts of nature, grateful for your ancestors and friends and family, and enjoy the gifts that come to you freely from the earth and from your relations, the best you can.

Both involve laziness and work. The first one involves a good work ethic, where you work hard then get tired and can't muster the energy for what is truly important in life. The second requires that one not be afraid of enjoyment. But because so many people are in a state of perpetual inner turmoil, feelings of insufficiency, and self judgement, they choose the former rather than the latter.

I'm glad your friend is smart enough to do some work herself. At least she's the one actually doing it and taking the responsibility for it. I'm sure she knows her own house by now, but I gotta say, my husband and I have seen some crappy electrical work done on houses where things were wired backwards or downright dangerously; not as expected at all. I am cringing but I will tell myself your friend is very intelligent, careful, and is doing just fine!

As for your last point about the 2 types of lifestyles and not being afraid of enjoyment, and being in inner turmoil, with self-judgment & insufficiency.... wow, did you hit the nail on the head for me! That sentence is exactly what I have been discovering about myself lately. I have not been stuck in your first description because I never did fit into it, so I've been a wanderer as far as finances & jobs (always worked or was in school, but changing & searching a lot). I am now learning things about myself at midlife, and after some enormous challenges the past few years I need to shed the expectations I had for myself (feeling pressure from parents & society) and stop the guilt, and the "shoulds", and the "I don't deserve to relax until I've done X, Y, and Z". After a few deaths in the family my life is changing, which includes me finally owning my dad's "hunting cabin" which is a one room house on 50+ acres. Life is changing, and I am changing into exactly what you described in your second description. Really, your description is so perfect!

(Don't get me wrong; I've always been happy and joyful and I make myself crack up with laughter at myself, but at the same time there has always been a droning guilt and judgment in the background, telling me I'm not doing life "right")