We are proud to live in a digital world where our ability to communicate trumps everything else. The internet of things has made anything available anywhere and anytime. This easy access to information and proximity to a smart device to communicate with has resulted in a race to be the first to share. This has resulted in information over kill with its natural its side effects too. According to Google, our attention span has reduced to just 8 seconds. Look who’s complaining. The need of the hour is quicker, faster and crispier. That 90’s boy band Boy Zone, may not be writing their famous song ‘It’s only words, words are all I have, to take your heart away’ if they were to be around today. No girl would wait for them to complete all their words. Some dude with few emoticons would have done the trick.

But wait. Is it the genius of the modern man that has led to our ability to communicate crisply and quickly? Or as always, did we just reinvent the wheel? Maybe a look at the history and evolution of communication could help. Let’s go back in time. I meant way back – about 30000 years back.

What might have prompted our ancestors, the Homo sapiens to do those cave paintings? Was it a natural urge or the sheer need to communicate? Or who knows, it could have been plain boredom that made them express themselves on those pre-historic rocks. Whatever be the reason, I bet they would not have known then, that those vague looking art form would pave the way to more complex and advanced forms of communications that would eventually help humans becoming the most dominant species in this planet. 

Over the next tens of thousands of years our ability to communicate got better and better. From a simple carving on a rock to represent a thought (Petroglyphs) to using symbols to represent a concept, object, activity, place or an event (Pictograms) early humans graduated to using graphical symbols that represent an idea (ideograms). These symbols then became words

With newer words emerged newer languages. With this plethora of options we figured out different reasons to communicate - Partly because we had to, but mostly because we simply could. In the modern world, communications softwares and social networking sites gave us the platform to communicate and evolve as a species. The big words like SMAC and IOT ensured we don’t run out of excuses not to communicate as well.

As with most things, we evolve to a point of achieving the ultimate efficiency only to realize that the better way of doing anything is how it was done several thousand years ago. Our ability to communicate evolved to a point where we ran out of the right words to express our admiration. Talk about irony. 

So what if words failed us. Creativity and efficiency didn't.  Several emotions and expressions were condensed into a simple 4 letter word. Yes, Facebook took efficiency and effectiveness of communication to a whole new level that you can't help but 'Like' it.  

Today we are in the age of Emoji's and emoticons. While the Like button helped us say it in a word where we used to use a sentence earlier, then emoji's took communication to its crispiest best. Why say even a word when you can communicate without one. Texting without a text. As annoying as it may be, these little emoticons and emoji's have often bailed us out when our vocabulary failed us. 

Modern humans have evolved to a point where we don’t need words to communicate. Pictures and images that we call emojis do it just as well. Just as it did 30000 years ago.

Somewhere deep down the earth a fossilized rock with a little smiley carved out by our pre historic ancestor is waiting to be unearthed. A smiley that would instantly connect with us to say “Whatsap buddy, so finally you have evolved”. In a moment of sheer admiration we will run out of words but still communicate our respect just the same by clicking a Like button to this pre historic emoticon. After all we finally figured out a way to say it better, just as our ancestors did.

Somewhere far away, i could hear the wonderful voice of Ronan Keating singing the chart buster song from the movie Noting Hill, You say it best, when you say nothing at all.

And the Bee Gees singing their original

Smile an everlasting smileA smile can bring you near to meDon't ever let me find you gone'Cause that would bring a tear to me

Don’t worry Bee Gees, as long as the smileys last the smile won’t go away.