This week, my son had knee surgery.  It made me remember my knee surgery from three years ago … And, it reminded me about what technology makes possible.

Before my knee surgery, I wasn't enjoying the prospect of the needles, the knock-out drugs, the cutting, or the recovery process.  Frankly, I was scared.

 

 

History is littered with tales of once-rare resources made plentiful by innovation. The reason is pretty straightforward … scarcity is often contextual.

Imagine a giant orange tree packed with fruit. If you pluck all the oranges from the lower branches, you are effectively out of accessible fruit. From that limited perspective, oranges are now scarce. But once someone invents a piece of technology called a ladder, the problem is solved.

Here is a picture from inside my knee (unlike years ago, they didn't have to rip me open to gain access for the picture or the repair). Less damage, less time, less drugs, less recovery.

 

 

Bottom-Line: I walked over 2,500 steps the day after the surgery.  This time, my son and I had a burger on the way home from his surgery.

Whether it is minimally invasive surgical instruments, or linking big data and elastic computing … Technology is a resource-liberating mechanism. It can make the 'once scarce' the 'now abundant' (or 'readily accessible') … and a lot less painful.

Pretty Cool!