Chris Dancy: All wired up and ready to go?
The gadget guru bills himself as 'the most connected human on earth'. Up to 700 computer systems are monitoring his every move…
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Feel like you’re behind the times? That the world is moving at an ever faster pace, and that you’ve been left behind? After losing his job, Dancy was in just this position, which is when he turned to the “quantified self” movement.
The what now?
The growing reliance on “apps” and gadgets to track our vital statistics, basically. Dancy’s kit includes a Google Glass headset giving him constant internet access; a Memoto camera, which takes a photo every 30 seconds; a Pebble watch, sending him updates from his two smartphones; a Fitbit Flex, which monitors his movement and sleep; a Blue HR heart rate monitor; and a LumoBack posture sensor which gives him a little buzz if he slouches. Even his dogs are monitored through the app Tagg.
And what did he do before he became a cyborg?
Growing up, he says he tracked his every personal detail obsessively, from his height to his finances. But it was when he was made redundant from his job in IT that he was motivated to get to grips with how the industry was changing. One thing led to another...
What’s it done for him?
Given him a complete body upgrade, it seems. “I’ve lost 100lb and learned to meditate,” he told the website Mashable. “I’m much more aware of how I respond to life and take steps to adjust to my environment. I’ve also formed better habits thanks to the feedback I’m getting.”
And isn’t he a little concerned?
Any sensible soul would surely find something sinister in all this, including Dancy himself. “I feel empowered, but a bit scared by the looming future of connected humans that can’t handle Facebook, much less a relationship with their life data,” he said. “I do think it’s urgent that people look at the data they are creating and giving away.”
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