drum machines changed the demands on musicians by intensifying our perception of rhythmic precision. similar trends can be observed in most disciplines; computers have clearly influenced the way we measure our own achievements. I predict that the onset of machine sentience will foster an upgrade in human memory and general mind function; we will be confronted with peers who, as a matter of course, remember everything they experience. this will simply prompt us to exercise the realms of our minds that we do not bother to access now, because our neighbors don't bother to access them either.
Machines will laugh at us, and we at
them. In time both sides will appreciate the humor involved.