CHOOSE TO SHINE

Is it possible to read minds? The technology is proven and it is becoming increasingly more accurate. If your thoughts are no longer safe inside of your head, how can you protect your privacy? What if employers could automatically sense when their employees are not paying attention? What if ads could be targeted based on our moods or momentary cravings? Can you imagine a court system being able and even allowed to read the thoughts of defendants? The public would have a field day if candidates for public office had their innermost thinking exposed for general consumption. Might teachers receive instant feedback about how much their students are absorbing? How might this technology affect security if the TSA scanned the thoughts of every passenger while screening at airports and border crossings? We would live in a goldfish bowl, an open book.

Earlier this year, two states enacted neural data privacy laws. Colorado and California passed legislation to prevent companies from storing and selling biological and neural data without your proactive “opt-in” consent. The Minnesota Legislature also considered a bill to introduce civil and even criminal penalties for violating neurodata privacy rights.

While this technology can be life changing for people who suffer physical challenges, it can also enhance virtual reality by using our thoughts to interface with computer devices. Introspective Market Research recently published a report showing the overall market for neuroscience last year was 43.5 billion dollars. They expect it to grow to 71 billion dollars by 2032.

We have already explored brain interface devices in this space, such as the N1 chip (see “Choose to Shine” November 2019). Now that this type of technology is becoming available, our society must grapple with the implications.

Most of us grew up with a sense that our thoughts are private and innocuous. They are nobody else’s business unless we give voice to them. It can feel like a violation of our independence and solitude to know that the contents of our minds can be revealed. Still, aren’t thoughts relatively harmless?

The Torah addresses this clearly with mitzvos like the Tenth Commandment, Lo Sachmod (Do not covet).  The gemara in Avoda Zara (20b) forbids men to entertain thoughts during the day which will lead to impurity at night. We are all familiar with the verse in Shema, read twice daily, “Do not follow your heart and your eyes after which you are led astray.” Sinful thoughts can easily become the precursor to sinful actions.

The story of Chanuka is a battle for the minds of the Jewish people. Unlike other wars in our history such as Purim, where the threat was physical, the goal of the Syrian Greek king Antiochus IV was to turn us away from learning Torah and practicing its mitzvos. They sought to turn us secular, to attend their stadiums and theaters, to study their philosophy, and to worship their many gods. The persecution was enacted only to divert the minds of the Jews from Torah-centric beliefs to ways of thinking which were in direct conflict with religious traditions passed down from father to son for generations.

The Maccabees began a revolt against the oppressors not to preserve life, but to continue our way of life. Shabbos observance, circumcision, and studying Torah were all outlawed. It was only due to the sacrifices made by a tiny group of idealists to go up against the mightiest armies in the world that, with HaShem’s help, our Torah way of life was preserved.

The environment today is inundated with messaging that is antithetical to Torah ideals. Radio, TV, and newspapers made the first inroads to influence society en masse. With the introduction of the internet and world wide web, that sphere and speed of influence grew exponentially. This allowed the rise of social media platforms, where anyone can amass large followings, practically unfettered by oversight. What chance do our children have if they are exposed to the lowest common denominator in the streets and even at home? It is our sacred duty to take a stand for the way of life that we have learned in the Torah, and to become the best representatives for true Torah thoughts and actions. Happy Chanuka!