...How Technology and Automation Affect Employment, the Economy, and You By Cody Ferenchak March 16th 2015 Automation is definitely a topic of concern in almost all of today’s industries. Especially for those in the service industry. Automation is making the processes used in the product and service industry less labor intensive and more productive. Over the last three decades manufacturing companies in the industrialized world have seen what great change automation is bringing to the world in terms of production. Assembly lines in the automotive industry are faster than ever. Electronics such as the iPhone are being constructed in just minutes due to hands of automated robotics. Upgrading to automated technology is becoming more and more accepted. Companies are spending much time and resources on implementing the use of automated labor to cope with the increasing competition from non-industrialized countries whose production costs are much lower. Where there were once hundreds of thousand of laborers filling factories assembling the everyday technological, textile, and household products we use today; are now machines that require no hourly wage, only monthly to sometimes yearly maintenance, up-keep and energy costs. The world of industry we are currently living in has changed. From labor-intensive production, to capital-intensive automation. Not only are we focusing on the tangible side of production, also the many intangible service industries are experiencing change. There...
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...The Past Impact on the Expected Future Society or people always bring up the question “what if” in practical situations. Especially in society today when hindsight plays such a large role in the world. The Science Fiction genre gives society an outlet to see how some large issues affecting society and the world today could unfold in the future. Isaac Amisov wrote about how robots or robotic like being could exist in the future. For example what if robots could replace people in the real world. Jonathan Mostow addressed this in his film Surrogate, where people live their lives through an idealized android version of themselves, an android that is customizable and completely replaces all human interaction in society. While robots becoming common existence in the world are one topic ablaze through conversation in the world, there are numerous more topics just as popular. Many others will be touched upon in this paper because science fiction is a channel in which people can speculate about the future and how people will impact it. Science fiction is a form of time travel where the mind and imagination can travel into the future and catch a glimpse of what life might me be in the near or far future. While the far future speculations are often romanticized with amazing technology and alien life, the near future is often peppered with a crumbling dystopian society. A future in which the world suffered through a cataclysmic event and society is held together by barely a thread....
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...jobs from us humans? Why is this so? Jobs are becoming increasingly obsolete due to the fact that now, the job can be done by a computer. Now, when you go to the grocery store, there are self-checkout registers in which you, the consumer, do the work while the cashier’s job becomes less aggravating. Also, in the medical field, there are many operations and procedures that can now be calculated with certain technology. Moreover, in the engineering world, jobs are becoming deleted because of computers. Go back a few decades in time and try to imagine calculating something without a calculator. At an alarming rate, technology is decreasing our jobs at a very alarming rate. At this pace, in the future, all work will eventually be carried out by robots and computers. Keywords: technology, jobs, computer, calculate, work Technology and Jobs “The U.S. economy hit an important milestone last week: Gross domestic product, the sum of all goods and services produced in the country, returned to pre-recession levels. But the gains were made with millions fewer workers. Part of the reason is technology, as computers and machines continue to replace humans.” You must ask yourself whether or not technology may possibly be taking away multiple jobs from us humans. Why is this so? Jobs are becoming increasingly obsolete due to the fact that now, the job can be done by a computer. Now, when you go to the grocery store, there is self-checkout registers in which you, the consumer, do the work while...
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...dirty energy Alternative Annual Report 2011 Contents Introduction Coal BHP Billiton in Colombia: Destroying communities for coal BHP Billiton in Indonesia: Going for Deadly Coal in Indonesia BHP Billiton in Australia: When too much in uence is never enough BHP Billiton Australia: Coal mine workers ght back - Queensland BHP Billiton Australia: BHP battle with farmers - New South Wales Oil and Gas and Greenhouse Gases BHP Billiton globally: Re-carbonising instead of decarbonising BHP Billiton in Australia: Hero or destroyer? Uranium BHP Billiton in Australia: “Wanti” uranium – leave it BHP Billiton in Australia: Irradiating the future BHP Billiton in Indonesia: Mining for REDD a false solution to climate change Solutions? Less mining, more reuse and recycling? Moving into rare earths? Footnotes BHP Global mining operations – dirty energy investments 1 3 4 7 8 10 10 11 12 13 15 18 19 20 22 Introduction “More than 30 million people were displaced in 2010 by environmental and weather-related disasters across Asia, experts have warned, and the problem is only likely to grow worse as climate change exacerbates such problems. Tens of millions more people are likely to be similarly displaced in the future by the effects of climate change, including rising sea levels, floods, droughts and reduced agricultural productivity. Such people are likely to migrate in regions across Asia, and governments must start to prepare for the problems this will create.” – Asian Development...
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...Moral Implications (Geraldy) 13 10. References 15 1. Introduction Nanotechnology is an ambiguous term used for a technology that allows for the creation and manipulation of molecular size materials. These materials can be assembled, rearranged and even controlled to offer human interaction in the microscopic world. The intended use of this advanced technological science has a wide range of applications in medical science, material construction, and military application. The minimization allows it to be able to penetrate and manipulate areas that were never possible in the past. It is the next big technology that permeates all areas of science to help advance human problems and obstacles in society. The power in creating robots that can be commanded to manipulate things at the atomic level, such as delivery drugs, eliminating cancer, anti-bacterial clothing, and military weaponry. The advancement of medical treatment is better targeted with the use of nanotechnology by allowing doctors to specifically diagnose, analyze and treat the illness. Building material have also benefitted by being designed with nanotechnology to resist and prevent the decay of materials offering longer material life. Nanotechnology can have negative environmental effects, by being released into the air without anybody’s...
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...economic impact of technology and innovation, and urbanization. Recent reports have assessed job creation, resource productivity, cities of the future, and the impact of the Internet. MGI is led by McKinsey & Company directors Richard Dobbs and James Manyika. Yougang Chen, Michael Chui, Susan Lund, and Jaana Remes serve as MGI principals. Project teams are led by a group of senior fellows and include consultants from McKinsey’s offices around the world. These teams draw on McKinsey’s global network of partners and industry and management experts. In addition, leading economists, including Nobel laureates, act as research advisers. The partners of McKinsey & Company fund MGI’s research; it is not commissioned by any business, government, or other institution. For further information about MGI and to download reports, please visit www.mckinsey.com/mgi....
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...Intelligence for the Twenty-First Century ALAN DUPONT Strategic discourse over the past decade has been dominated by a debate over the nature of future warfare and whether or not there is a ‘revolution in military affairs’ (RMA). Supporters contend that developments in military technology, especially precision guidance and high-speed data processing, in conjunction with advances in doctrine and strategy, will fundamentally transform the way in which future wars will be fought and privilege RMAcapable forces in the contest to achieve battlefield dominance.1 Sceptics, on the other hand, regard the RMA as being more evolutionary than revolutionary, and argue that many of the technical advances associated with the RMA do not necessarily presage a paradigm shift in warfare.2 However, all agree that timely, accurate and useable intelligence will be critical to the successful conduct of war in the twenty-first century, perhaps more so than in any previous era. It is surprising, therefore, how little academic attention has been devoted to the changes that are taking place in the technology, management and integration of the intelligence systems that will underpin any RMA. It is the contention of this article that the transformation of intelligence architectures, particularly in the West, is no less profound than that of the weapons, platforms and warfighting systems they are designed to support and enhance. Moreover, the cumulative weight of the changes in prospect will redefine the...
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...occupation’s probability of computerisation, wages and educational attainment. According to our estimates, about 47 percent of total US employment is at risk. We further provide evidence that wages and educational attainment exhibit a strong negative relationship with an occupation’s probability of computerisation. Keywords: Occupational Choice, Technological Change, Wage Inequality, Employment, Skill Demand JEL Classification: E24, J24, J31, J62, O33. We thank the Oxford University Engineering Sciences Department and the Oxford Martin Programme on the Impacts of Future Technology for hosting the “Machines and Employment” Workshop. We are indebted to Stuart Armstrong, Nick Bostrom, Eris Chinellato, Mark Cummins, Daniel Dewey, David Dorn, Alex Flint, Claudia Goldin, John Muellbauer, Vincent Mueller, Paul Newman, Seán Ó hÉigeartaigh, Anders Sandberg, Murray Shanahan, and Keith Woolcock for their excellent suggestions. † Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 1PT, United Kingdom, carl.frey@oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk. ‡ Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX1 3PJ, United Kingdom, mosb@robots.ox.ac.uk. ∗ 1 I. I NTRODUCTION In this paper, we address the question: how susceptible are jobs to computerisation?...
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...Philosophy and Design Pieter E. Vermaas • Peter Kroes Andrew Light • Steven A. Moore Philosophy and Design From Engineering to Architecture Pieter E. Vermaas Delft University of Technology Delft the Netherlands Andrew Light University of Washington Seattle USA Peter Kroes Delft University of Technology Delft the Netherlands Steven A. Moore University of Texas Austin USA ISBN 978-1-4020-6590-3 e-ISBN 978-1-4020-6591-0 Library of Congress Control Number: 2007937486 © 2008 Springer Science + Business Media B.V. No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher, with the exception of any material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. Printed on acid-free paper. 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 springer.com Contents List of Contributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Design in Engineering and Architecture: Towards an Integrated Philosophical Understanding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Peter Kroes, Andrew Light, Steven A. Moore, and Pieter E. Vermaas Part I Engineering Design ix 1 Design, Use, and the Physical and Intentional Aspects of Technical Artifacts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ...
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...merging their materials with overall news flow. When a newsbreak is completely used up, and the reader is still interested in it, it becomes possible to fill the vacant space with excogitation, and sometimes to make everything up from scratch. And thus pseudonews are born - materials that replicate the style of information resources, but they differ from the real news by satirical content. The graduation thesis is devoted to pseudonews in the modern media space. In the framework of this thesis web sites and printed sources with pseudonews content, which are located in the U.S., Europe and Belarus are analyzed. The applicability of the graduation thesis is determined on the one hand, by constantly presenting interest in news, and, on the other hand, by growing needs in humor and satire. There is...
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...NOTE: This PDF document has a handy set of “bookmarks” for it, which are accessible by pressing the Bookmarks tab on the left side of this window. ***************************************************** We are the last. The last generation to be unaugmented. The last generation to be intellectually alone. The last generation to be limited by our bodies. We are the first. The first generation to be augmented. The first generation to be intellectually together. The first generation to be limited only by our imaginations. We stand both before and after, balancing on the razor edge of the Event Horizon of the Singularity. That this sublime juxtapositional tautology has gone unnoticed until now is itself remarkable. We're so exquisitely privileged to be living in this time, to be born right on the precipice of the greatest paradigm shift in human history, the only thing that approaches the importance of that reality is finding like minds that realize the same, and being able to make some connection with them. If these books have influenced you the same way that they have us, we invite your contact at the email addresses listed below. Enjoy, Michael Beight, piman_314@yahoo.com Steven Reddell, cronyx@gmail.com Here are some new links that we’ve found interesting: KurzweilAI.net News articles, essays, and discussion on the latest topics in technology and accelerating intelligence. SingInst.org The Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence: think tank devoted to increasing...
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...Kyle Jordan Estanislao TREDTWO C37 2/17/2015 The Clutches of Sin Sin as we all know is formally defined as the infraction against the word of God. With every sinful act we commit, it is like we are distancing ourselves from God. Despite this, it seems that nobody could still stay away from the clutches of sin. Nobody is perfect. We live in an imperfect world filled with temptations and bad influences. Unfortunately no matter how hard we try to stay away and fight off these negative inducements, eventually we would succumb to the pull of sin. As my father always quotes from the bible “The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. Due to this, people have this common notion in mind that if everybody eventually turns out to be a sinner, then why bother trying so hard not to be one. These people would then rationalize that it is ok to sin because God is super forgiving and that by confessing our sins, everything would be ok. It is as if by simply telling someone of one’s bad deeds, it would magically erase all the damages done because of one’s sinful acts. What they don’t realize is that as described in the lecture, sin is a spiral that enslaves us, making us addicted to it. Every time we commit a sin, it opens us to a possibility that we would keep repeating them until it now harms our major social and personal relations. Sin doesn’t just affect oneself, it also affects the people around us. Every time we commit a sin, more likely than not, someone would be negatively...
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...Chapter 1 Structure and Functions of a Computer "Hardware: the parts of a computer that can be kicked." ~ Jeff Pesis After completing this chapter, you will be able to: 1. Explain the importance of computer literacy. 2. Define the term computer. 3. Identify the components of a computer. 4. Compare the uses of various types of: input devices, output devices, and storage devices. 5. Describe categories of computers and their uses. Structure and Functions of a Computer 1 1.0 Introduction A computer is an electronic machine designed for the storage and processing of data. The machinery is called hardware, and this highly sophisticated equipment needs equally sophisticated programs (called software) to become a working computer system. Modern society has come to depend very heavily on the use of computer systems. Banks, businesses, government departments, industries, shops, people at home and school all rely on computer to play a vital role in their daily activities. These activities are centered on information. In business, the computer system has been used a lot and replaced filing cabinets as means of storing information, and clerical workers as a means of processing it. By storing and processing information on a computer system, these businesses can function more quickly and efficiently, because information can be found and collated much faster. Discovery Learning: A computer was also called a data processor. Why? 1.1 Major Parts and Functions A Computer is...
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...welfare of their accomplice. A clever prosecutor makes the following offer to each. “You may choose to confess or remain silent. If you confess and your accomplice remains silent I will drop all charges against you and use your testimony to ensure that your accomplice does serious time. Likewise, if your accomplice confesses while you remain silent, they will go free while you do the time. If you both confess I get two convictions, but I'll see to it that you both get early parole. If you both remain silent, I'll have to settle for token sentences on firearms possession charges. If you wish to confess, you must leave a note with the jailer before my return tomorrow morning.” The “dilemma” faced by the prisoners here is that, whatever the other does, each is better off confessing than remaining silent. But the outcome obtained when both confess is worse for each than the outcome they would have obtained had both remained silent. A common view is that the puzzle illustrates a conflict between individual and group rationality. A group whose members pursue rational self-interest may all end up worse off than a group whose members act contrary to rational self-interest. More generally, if the payoffs are not assumed to represent self-interest, a group whose members rationally pursue any goals may all meet less success than if they had not rationally pursued their goals individually. A closely...
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...Under “Western Eyes”: The Personal Odyssey of Huang Fei-Hong in Once upon a Time in China by Tony Williams Rather than being read in exclusively postmodernist terms, Tsui Hark’s series Once upon a Time in China may be understood as a new version of a Hong Kong cinematic discourse involving historical “interflow.” It deals with dispersion, China’s relationship to the outside world, and strategic forms of reintegration designed to strengthen national identity. In Sammo Hung’s Wong Fei Hung Ji Saam (West Territory Mighty Lion/Once upon a Time in China and America, 1997), Master Huang Fei-hong (Jet Li Linjie) travels to the Wild West to visit an American branch of the Po Chi Lam Clinic set up by his student Sol. During the journey, he bangs his head against a rock in a turbulent stream and loses his memory. He is rescued by a friendly tribe of Indians. Moments before we see Huang again, an Indian emerges from a tepee proudly announcing the birth of a child. When Huang recovers, he stumbles around in the Indian camp wearing an Indian costume, and his loose unbraided hair is flowing like an Indian’s. After using his martial arts prowess to defeat a hostile Indian, who ironically mouths racist American platitudes against the outsider—”His clothing is different, his skin color is different, his speech is different”—Huang is adopted into the tribe and given the name “Yellow.” Before this, he attempts to remember events of the recent past. But his vague recollections...
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