Use technology to restore balance in life: Pico Iyer

Author Pico Iyer believes humans are trying to live at the speed of light, which is not sustainable as one runs the risk of becoming machines in doing so.
Iyer, a British writer of Indian origin, said people need to find ways to restore sanity and balance in their lives and technology can actually be an enabler for that purpose.
"We are trying to live at the speed of light, I don't think the humans can live at a speed determined by machines without becoming machines themselves," Iyer said, while delivering the keynote address at the Jaipur Literature Festival which began here today.

Iyer said more than digital devices, it is the inability of people to make good use of them, which is aggravating the problem. We need that technological fix very quickly, he said.
"The devices are there, they are not creating the problems, it is our inability to make wise use of those devices. So the solution is in our hands...I'm excited what technology has given us, but we have not matured enough to make the best use of it," he said.
Iyer has written two novels and has ten books of non- fiction to his credit. His work has been translated into 23 languages.

Recounting his experiences as a globally popular traveler, Iyer said he always desired to go to Iran and Japan when he was young.

"My travelling life concluded when I travelled to Iran. Iran and Japan were the places I desired to go to ever since my childhood days. Iran was more glamorous than I had anticipated," he said.
About the UK's transformation over the last few decades, Iyer said the country has changed for better.
"There couldn't have been a more dreaded place on the earth. Now its capital London is a magnet for youth. London is surging into the 22nd century and is the ultimate global city," he said.