1. Societal Issues
Week 3

2. Advantages of Computer Technology
Reaches of technology allow more people/businesses to move to small cities and still profit
Net can “conquer distance” - education, entertainment, information
People anywhere can communicate
Communication can be anonymous to avoid embarrassment

3. Negative Effects On-line shopping - Hurts local community vibrancy
Isolation- Reduce face to face gathering
Downplays importance of community
Addiction to cyberspace

4. Other causes of declining social relationships
Modern transportation and communications
encourage increased mobility
Changes in family patterns
later marriage, more divorce, working mothers
Television
Less free time to spend with family

5. Workplace Vs. Time How has the workspace changed over time?
What has changed and why?

6. Changes in the Workplace Location Over Time
Farming
Industry
What about the Nature of work?

7. Why do we work? Survival Needs Career Social development
Sense of accomplishment

8. Information have and have nots: the Access Issue
Access to information may give some people a large advantage over those without access
Social and economic division - leads to violence and political disruption
Human costs - joblessness, wasted potential, and poverty

9. Principals of Universal Access
Everyone must have a place to go to gain access
Hardware and software easy to use
fits the needs of all users - disabled
Simple training in effective use of tools
Pricing must be affordable for everyone
Access to full range of features

10. Solutions
Reduction of prices will lead to spread of technology to all social classes
Spread of “rental” facilities
like washing machines and copy machines
Training needs decrease due to common user interfaces, GUI
Donations/recycle

11. Methods to obtain universal access
Force reduced rates for poor
Government subsidies, paid by taxes
Tax information providers
Tax and communication providers
Government programs to pay for computers in public areas

12. Criticisms
Other technologies have not caused big problems between classes
education crucial for success of individual
Mandatory taxes - inequitable, inefficient, and unnecessary
Low access rates can be budgeted if a valued priority in life - like TV, driving

13. Loss of Skills and Judgement
Computer technology encourages certain uses because it makes things easier
IE: Spell checker
Concentration on features instead of underlying knowledge
Encourages mental laziness

14. Writing, Thinking, and Memory
I have a spelling checker.
It came with my PC.
It plainly marks four my revue,
Miss steaks aye can knot sea.
Eye ran this poem threw it,
I’m sure your pleased too no.
It’s letter perfect in it’s weigh,
My checker tolled me sew.

15. Loss of Job Skills
Dependence upon computer technology to perform work functions
Drawing or drafting
Dictation
Machinist
Deskilling of Labor?
Loss of Jobs?

16. Political Freedom Government Control
Increases government's ability to amass information - monitor movements
Restricts uses that contribute to freedom
Aids desirable law enforcement
Enforce oppressive or stupid laws
Carry out illegal activities against people

17. Political Freedom Continued...
Government Control
Protect and increase their own power
Ban uses of technology such as encryption
Some countries use censorship and ban transmission
Audio

18. Neo-Luddites People who oppose all technological progress
Views are tied to a particular way of life for people
Burned factories in response to industrial revolution

19. Specific Criticisms - Computers...
Cause massive unemployment and deskilling of jobs
Manufacture needs
Cause social inequity and disintegration
Separate humans from nature
Destroy the environment
Are dehumanizing - lead to isolation

20. Specific Criticisms - Computers...
Benefit big business
Benefit government
Used in schools will thwart development of social skills, human values, intellectual skills
Do little to solve real human problems

21. Intelligent Machines The “Forbin” Project Terminator example
Battlestar “G”

22. Social Computing
Facebook
Twitter
Texting
SMS
Privacy??