As machines become smarter, what use is knowledge then?

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In this society, it’s not just practical knowledge that needs to be learned; if we rely solely on knowledge and memorization, we have already lost. In 1997, Deep Blue developed by IBM in the United States defeated Garry Kasparov, the world’s top chess player at that time. Some people said chess was too simple, and then in March or April 2016, the intelligent program AlphaGo developed by Google defeated Lee Sedol 4-1. With the intelligence of machines and the information age, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for us to surpass their storage capabilities and intelligence. Everything we need in terms of language and history is available online; we don’t even need to memorize anything. Then what’s the point of learning knowledge? With mathematics, physics, and artificial intelligence, there’s no need to do calculations; translation software is becoming increasingly advanced, so there’s really no need to learn foreign languages either. What’s the use of education anyway! What’s the use of education? Yes! What’s the point of educating it anyway? The reason we study education is that when we see a flock of birds flying in the sky, we might say: \"The setting sun and the solitary duck fly together; the autumn waters merge with the sky in one hue.\" Instead of: Ugh, it’s all birds. When we go on a trip to the Gobi Desert and move slowly on camels, we silently recite in our hearts: A single plume rises in the desert; the sun sets over the vast river. Instead of shouting: Oh my God! It’s all sand; go back! Education is not merely about imparting knowledge; it is also about improving one’s moral character and enhancing our sensitivity to life, so that we can better understand ourselves and continue to improve. When we pursue fame and wealth, we lose our true selves, become impetuous, and increasingly fail to know what we should do. Everyone else is taking the postgraduate entrance exam, so I should take it too. Dad wants me to go abroad, and Mom is a bit worried. What do you think? Should I go or not? I studied economics at the undergraduate level and environmental engineering at the master’s level. What kind of job should I take after graduation? What should I do in the future? This sense of confusion has become a common phenomenon; after studying for so many years and reading so many books, people still don’t know what to do. This is the greatest flaw and tragedy of education. We are known as an ancient civilization of great strength, a nation that values education. Throughout thousands of years of hardships, our spirit has never been broken, and we have managed to rise again time and time again despite countless disasters – all because we place great importance on education and respect our teachers and the principles of learning. Since the origins of our culture, Confucius, this great educator, has been regarded as the spiritual totem of our culture. Even in the toughest times and most difficult periods, there have always been people who did not give up on education; they would pick it up again, cleanse it, and restore it to its place on our sacred altar. Once we said that studying was useless and that knowledge did not correlate with wealth, which led to a restless atmosphere in society. Yet everything can be restless except for education. What is education? Education is the bottom line of a society’s conscience, a pure land for the human soul, the foundation upon which a nation is built, and the basis for a strong country. What’s the use of education? Education helps us individuals to understand ourselves and helps our nation to understand itself; only then can we take control of our own destinies and create a better future. The ultimate purpose of education is to establish principles for the world, to secure a meaningful life for people, to carry forward the knowledge passed down by ancient sages, and to bring peace to all generations. Why should we study education? It is to cultivate the mind. Education enables one to express oneself fluently; its purpose is to enrich oneself, to let knowledge become one’s soul rather than a tool – not for exams, not for reputation, not for high scores, not for showing off, but solely for the cultivation of the mind. I wrote this article with great care. Although it seems to have nothing to do with software technology, I believe it constitutes the foundation of learning any technical skill. Please do not dismiss my view right away; after reading it carefully, those who disagree with me are welcome to leave comments for discussion. I hope that as people focus on mastering technical skills, the works they create will have depth and soul, and that they will not lose their fundamental values. Thank you all!