# Faster, Better, Cheaper By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2023-06-13 Computers have been an increasingly part of human life. Within business, it is often the case that when computers can do something faster, better, and cheaper than a human, the organization automates the function. Given the organizational focus on efficiency, this heuristic makes sense. However, a computer could simulate a human life, or all human life, faster, better, and cheaper. A simulation could be built that shows how people go to school, get a job, buy increasingly expensive houses until they downsize, experience increasing medical expenses, and then die. A computer could go through this iteration in seconds rather than 90 years. A computer could optimize decisions instead of being burdened by the irrationality of humans. A computer could catalog each decision more thoroughly than any human could. Lastly, a human could program this for a fraction of what it costs to live a life, and this could iterate billions of times with only marginal cost increases. In short, the computer could simulate living life faster, better (in some respects), and cheaper than in reality. And yet, it would seem absurd to want to relegate life to a computer simulation. Humans have a great capacity for joy. When burdened by work, joy is found in leisure. When not overburdened by work, much joy is discovered through the creative exploration of accomplishing something that adds value to the world. Doing things faster, better, and cheaper would undoubtedly contribute to the wealth of a few. Let’s hope it doesn’t also contribute to the drudgery and despair of the many. Happy computing! #### Related Items [[Simulation Modeling]] [[The Human Condition]] [[Joy]] [[Efficiency]] [[Computers]] [[Life]] [[Work]]