There’s been a lot of discussion about AI on here recently, and I thought I’d share how I/we make use of new technology to help with disability.
First things first, statistically speaking the majority of people that use AI aren’t disabled. This is the case with most technology, unless it was made specifically for disabled people (like those devices that open jars for you, and even then I wonder if they’re actually mostly used by disabled people).
But, I often see some people idly say things like “then how did disabled people manage before this technology existed??” (AI, smartphones, delivery services, you name it)
Well, we adopt technology because it helps make things a little bit easier, even if it doesn’t cure us.
Let’s take writing email, but it could be anything. On some days you still have to write email even if you’re not having a good day. And because they don’t know you’re disabled, you have to make it look good and normal. AI saves up energy on those days so that we can do something else, i.e. it doesn’t take a spoon if you saw my last post.
This frees up effort and lets me do another thing during the day.
Same thing with grocery shopping. How would I have “coped” before delivery services? (Mine is handled by the grocery chain themselves). you’d have to wait for someone in your family to have the time to do grocery shopping for you or take you shopping, and you’d need 3 days afterwards to finish recovering from that trip. You wouldn’t know exactly when they could get them for you and you’d have to plan your entire week around that one monthly trip. Getting my groceries delivered still takes up energy cause I have to put them away, but less than if I had to go myself.
Say an average person can do 10 tasks a day and a disabled person can do 5. If New tech makes one of those tasks half the work, the average person is saving 5% of their daily energy but the disabled person is saving 10%. Its a simplification but every ounce of energy saved is more beneficial to the people with less energy.
Also grocery delivery is way more energy efficient on the whole. It eliminates a significant amount of travel distance because a truck goes in a loop where a dozen or more personal vehicles would travel from their homes and back again. Everyone should be getting their groceries delivered.
Delivery is assured by the postal service (I think they set up a specific branch for it) and costs like 3$. It can actually be free now on some days. It’s just so much more convenient even for abled people especially because you know how much your cart costs before you pay, and it saves on gas. I’ve been doing it for years because I didn’t have a drivers license for a long time but it’s so convenient that I wouldn’t go back anyways lol
I appreciate this is american centric but I dont really think this charts everywhere, I know personally i’ve always walked to get my groceries and most people I know do this as well - granted this is still useful for everyone to have as an option but I would disagree that its the most energy efficient if planned around correctly (which american cities clearly are not)
Walking for groceries only works for urban people (low distance) who live alone (low amount). Everyone else needs car or delivery.
alternatively, hiking backpack and walking - high density housing is more efficient in all regards.
In terms of sustainability it might be better today to forego grocery stores entirely and have deliveries assured by electric, commercial drones. The “store” itself (now a warehouse) could be supplied by rail directly, also electric.
Apparently in logistics the last kilometer of delivery is the most expensive, and stores still need to be supplied - usually by truck. This could also reduce traffic in the city-center, narrow european streets.
I think this is honestly better solved thru higher density residential units (taller) and more frequent, less car centric commercial units within short walking distance.
This makes everyone’s lifes easier, even people who need deliveries as they have to go shorter distances and can be serviced by other vehicles like bicycles.