Prehistoric man hunted and gathered food, modern man hunts and gathers information.

Because we can’t get the information we want or think we need fast enough, we’re constantly looking for new ways to speed things up. The irony is nearly all the answers we’re looking for are now just a few key strokes away; or we can simply ask Alexa for help finding what we’re looking for.

It’s this voice-activated information technology that really separates us from our knuckle-dragging ancestors. The ability to ask and instantly get whatever information we’re searching for is a remarkable leap forward. Like so many other Baby Boomers, I’m still getting used to the idea of googling for information. For instance, getting step-by-step directions for everyday things like replacing a leaking valve stem in the bathroom faucet, or making fresh pizza dough. It’s amazing technology that’s getting better and faster, saving time and money.

Growing up in the 1960s, I remember watching the original “Star Trek” on television. Every week Captain Kirk and the Starship Enterprise crew went where “no man has gone before.” What’s funny is the Apollo 11 mission that landed the first men on the moon came on July 20, 1969 – a month after the final episode of Star Trek aired. I know, because I googled it.

There was also a Hanna-Barbera cartoon set in the future called “The Jetsons.” Remember? In the cartoon everybody zipped around in a flying car. Rosey, the family’s robot maid, cooked the meals and cleaned the Jetsons’ house that was high in the sky. The year 2020 was far off in the future. If you had asked me back then what I thought the world would be like today, I would have probably said we’d be driving flying cars and have robots to mow the lawn. Me, or none of my friends, would have said we’d be worried about global warming, income inequity, tick-borne illnesses, nuclear security, terrorism or something called, COVID-19.

In the 1960s, if anyone suggested we’d have to pay every month to watch television, buy drinking water in plastic bottles, carry expensive smart telephones around with us and worry about someone bringing a loaded gun into a school we would have said, you’re crazy!

Well, we’ve come a long ways over the last 50 years. All things considered, we probably have a lot more of everything today. Much, much more than we ever dreamed of. This brings to mind something Mr. Spock said: “After a time, you may find that having is not so pleasing a thing after all as wanting. It is not logical, but is often true.”

It’s hard to argue against logic like that.

Phil Di Vece earned a B.A. in journalism studies from Colorado State University and an M.A. in journalism at the University of South Florida. He is the author of three Wiscasset books and is a frequent news contributor to the Wiscasset Newspaper and Boothbay Register. He resides in Wiscasset. Contact him at pdivece@roadrunner.com