Free Custom «Tech and Society» Essay Paper

Technology and globalization of the society is taking their toll on the world at an exceptional rate. Numerous books address globalization issues and how the emerging technology has made the world free for all. The playing field has been made fair and plane for both the developed and the developing countries of the world. New players such as China and India have entered into the competitive market which was originally dominated by the European countries and America.

According to Ruth Schwartz Cowan, examining technology in terms of technological system is very vital. This is because she believes that people live in an industrialized society and it is important, therefore, to understand the five technological systems that advanced in the nineteenth century such the telegraph, petroleum, telephone, railroad and the electric systems (Cowan, 1999). This finally helps explain what differentiates the industrial societies from earlier societies since people have become more rather than less dependent on technology. According to Lande’s analysis both geographical and cultural factors are some of the contributors of the fine workings of production and power that led to technological advancement in Europe, China, Arabic nations, among others. It is the tool that enhanced social and economic organization found in the world economy’s industrial core. Lande’s accounts on the Eurasian civilization of nations like Europe, China, and Islam and he affirm that technological advancement has contributed to China becoming well laid out in numerous aspects.

 

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As the knowledge revolution takes hold, the societies and the smartest organizations are the ones that are likely to benefit because humans become capable of achieving measurable improvements in human performance in numerous sectors (Bradford DeLong, 1998). This is because globalization has become one of the most contested phenomena amongst numerous societies in the past decades. It presents numerous problems to the US since other nations will be able to invent weapons of mass destruction and this can be a threat to the US. Technology also allows personalized instructions to a large number of students and can make the engineering students become more effective in their undertakings. Knowledge revolution is ascendance of an irreversible shift in the global state of mind that is fundamentally engrossed from the ancient times through the current breakthrough of science. Technological determinism is more or less a prediction and it helps understand the communications revolution as a tool that is unlikely to affects the society. However, the linguistic determinist or critiques saw it as a tool for restricting the society from doing other thing as it used to be in the past. Technological determinists see technology as an enabler and a tool that directly limit human’s way of thinking but it allows for the possibility to adapt and evolve.

The views of both Langdon and Joy Bill in regards to technology control are somewhat similar in the sense that societies with widening wealth and power are likely to exploit others and cause chronic conflicts. It should be controlled to create a sense of common good to all societies. This should be done in the best interest of all the nations to ensure that other nations without wealth catch up with wealthy nations through embracing technology. Both Judy Wajcman and Langdon Winner view technology as neutral, however, Judy Wajcman addresses numerous questions such as whether technology is male dominated since it demands some masculinity traits. Langdon Winner on the other hands argues that men gravitates science and technology. In this case, Judy believes that technology is understood as “masculine culture”.

Photography has really benefitted as a result of technological advancement by making the art of film-making more accessible. Democratization of photography or filmmaking is simply making decent quality digital camcorders that are posted on numerous websites to be viewed by many. This is achievable through websites such as You Tube that provides global exposure. Richard Sclove through his ideas provides almost hidden truth about technology and its effects and functions upon mankind. Sclove finds it vital to embrace technology since it helps us understand some ideas that will keep ideals and hopes humane, but, not allowing our inventions to override our human morals. He does this by elaborating the idea of polypotency in numerous angles. Sunstein explains how on-line efforts of numerous people through blogs have been helpful to companies, schools, governments, and individuals in amassing accurate knowledge that is ever-growing. For example, he describes the manner in which Wikipedia has provided a lot of information from politics and business to science fiction to help in the amassing knowledge.

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In the novel The World is Flat, the modern Magellan admits that he is tired, “I am Exhausted just writing about all this”. The meaning of flatness in the novel is the metaphor of the whole journey of great leveling that is going on, driven by technological knowhow and software that enables people from different countries to collaborate and compete on a whole new scale that is generally essential trend globally (Friedman, 2005). For example wireless mobility is such a “mobile me” upheaval that has its full flattening effect by ensuring people that they are freed and are capable of working and communicating everywhere.

The first is the 1989 fall of Berlin Wall that enabled the world to be viewed as one single market. But later on in 1995, came the Web browser that connected a new digital world, which as a result led to standard, Web-based software appliances that spawned whole new business strategies and other businesses such as eBay. Thereafter, the “open-software movement” followed which afterwards opened up new customs for grass-roots voluntary collaboration between IBM and Big giants like Microsoft. This collaboration led to many changes in the international business arena since many people were in a position to carry out transactions efficiently. Thereafter Friedman came up with the idea of in-sourcing whereby international companies such as the UPS are using in the daily management of various basic functions for an international company to enable it focus on its area of specialization such as that of designing products. Or in case one sends his computer or laptop to Toshiba to be repaired, UPS actually repairs the computer in its own UPS-run workshop that basically is dedicated to do so. For those who use Google, Friedman sees a trend he refers to as “in-forming,” or utilizing the web in order to build individual’s supply of information, self-governing niche communities, and entertainment. David Edgerton believes that technological advancement is likely to create a bright future. He however, argues against the inexorable, hubristic and gullible celebration of the new and when one reads The Shock of the Old, it is a pleasure and a salutary corrective. David Edgerton's book argues that 20th-century technologies are fundamentally unbalanced and focuses only on invention over use.

In summary, it is evident that the flat world is advantageous since it ensures that everyone has the same prospect and that no individual or country has advantage over the others in business matters. This ensures that most countries are reasonably empowered hence reducing reliance on other countries (Friedman, 2005).