Can new technology deliver for everyone?

Is the Developing World benefiting from the new advances?

The internet has changed the way we do business and entertain ourselves. Now there's a whole new wave of gadgets and technologies being developed.

Next week in Las Vegas the world's top technology companies will be displaying their latest wares at the Consumer Electronics Show. But is technology advancing too quickly?

What gadgets do you want to see developed?

How have computers changed your life? Will the new technologies make for a better world or will it help the few?
Are you looking forward or going to the Show?

http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread.jspa?threadID=5097&&edition=2&ttl=20070103230454

Computers are awesome! I feel like I'm a cyborg I'm so connected to technology these days, now all I need is a bio-brain-computer-implant-interface so I can be connected to the internet 24/7, whenever I feel the need to eat some knowledge! My god I'm DOWN with that!

Honestly though, advances in technology are allowing us to become more and more connected to eachother, and perhaps one day I will indeed have the privalage of accessing the internet directly with a brain implant! *crosses fingers*

OOOHhhhh yeaahH!! Where is the borg when you need them!? LOL!

I do think that the internet is up there as one of the most significant advances we have ever made. Although it didn't take us long to grow accustomed to it, it is truly amazing when u think about it.

Can new technology deliver for everyone?

"Everyone" covers a lot of territory, Sam, so I'm gonna' have to say NO.

Will the new technologies make for a better world or will it help the few?

Almost every new tool that's ever been invented only helped a very few people of the world for generations, maybe longer. New computers in Somalia right now is not likely to help anyone! Ditto for the billions of people who don't even have electricity or telephone service ....or even sanitary sewer systems, for that matter.

To dream of the computer and the Internet as being something of a savior for the people of the world is not much more than an idealists fantasy. I'd guess that a sanitary sewer system and adequate schools might be higher on the list of things to do first.

Baron Max

yeah true that Baron

What gadgets do you want to see developed?

Life positive gadgets.

That is technology which is:

1. Non-toxic.
2. Quiet.
3. Small.
4. Light weight.
5. Energy efficient.

The internal combustion engine is the first thing thats got to go, followed by the incandescent light bulb.

Computers?
Look for flash drives and cheaper LCD screens. Its almost as good now as it ever needs to be.

I think technology may deliver for people who are intelligent enough to use it.

Is technology developing too quickly? Yeah, I'd say so! It is very scary, but also very exciting. Increasingly, we're seeing new advances in technology that literally change the world. And these advances are only going to keep happening quicker and quicker, changing the world over and over again. It's not just that we're treading uncharted territory--we've always been doing that. But we're doing it so damn fast, and technology is so damn pervasive! Nobody knows what's going to happen. Nobody can even make a good guess as to what is going to happen. History is useless as far as that is concerned. So yeah, scary and exciting.

What gadgets would I like to see?

Maybe some specs that shine images directly into the retina to get rid of the need for a monitor. I'm pretty sure that's being worked on.

A device which produces clean drinking water from streams or whatever water source.

A 3.5 inch hard drive with a capacity of 37.5 Terabytes. Actually, I think Seagate is planning on unveiling that in a few years or so. link (http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72387-0.html).

I think technology may deliver for people who are intelligent enough to use it.

And the rest fall by the wayside, huh? How different and/or better is that to the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer?

Baron Max

[QUOTE=samcdkey;1252601]Can new technology deliver for everyone? I would put the question like "can technology deliver"? I would say NO.

The internet has changed the way we do business and entertain ourselves. Now there's a whole new wave of gadgets and technologies being developed. You are not going to eat, breath, etc. gadgets. "Communication"/Entertainment mainly with/via gadgets becomes more and more pathetic ersatz of existence.

A device which produces clean drinking water from streams or whatever water source.Somebody brings this up every couple of months and I keep screaming: They already invented that! It's called a watercone. Basically a personal solar still that produces one liter of distilled water per day. You can put anything in it, perhaps even raw sewage but certainly polluted river water or gutter water. They're solid plastic, can be made in China or Indonesia and sold for a profit at $5 apiece. Bill Gates could give one to everybody in the entire Third World.

Technology? How about the fact that entire nations can build telephone networks without having to clear-cut a forest for the telephone poles? How about the fact that the working poor in places like China and India are buying TV sets?

The poverty in the Third World is primarily due to the combination of corrupt leadership and the tribalism that prevents the people from uniting to install democratic governments. Technology is not going to solve that problem.

Yes, technology is capable of benefiting everyone.

Yes, the "Developing World" is benefiting, though not as much as it could be.

Technology isn't necessarily advancing too quickly. If people fail to develop a greater understanding of the responsibility that can come with certain technological developments, that's a separate issue.

I would like to see the development of better spacecraft. Preferably some that actually shield astronauts from radiation and provide more consistent artificial gravity, two of the things making a journey to Mars improbable. Something enabling us to reach distant solar systems would be nice, too. Possibly something utilizing the quantum phenomena that bypass spatial separation, though I do not foresee anything of that nature developing soon.

Since I have literally never lived without a computer, they cannot have really changed my life.

It can go either way. Technology is fully capable of helping the many, but if the few see a way to make a great deal of money by hoarding technological advancements, I have no doubt they will try.

CES is always great.

http://search.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/search/results.pl?tab=av&q=africa%20mobile&recipe=all&scope=all&edition=d

Can new technology benefit everyone? No however it is starting to benafit the developing world.

The X0-1 or $100 laptop is an inexpensave laptop to be distributed to the children of developing countries like Thiland or Lybia by the one laptop per child scheme. The makers of this laptop have even thouht about selling them on ebay for $200 and then using the profit to donate one to a developing country.

w ww.theregister.co.uk/2006/08/01/olpc_orders/

The technology makes it possible to get more megabytes faster but the technology cannot evaluate the quality of the information. How is the user supposed to know how important or accurate the information is.

The computers today are still von Neumann machines just like the were 50 years ago but I can't tell you a single place on the internet that does a good job of explaining how one works because I haven't seen one yet. The best explanation I have seen in print is in Chapter 10 of The Art of Electronics by Horowitz and Hill. Curiously that book never uses the term von Neumann machine. Transistors still work the same way they did 50 years ago. The manufacturing process just makes it possible to put more in a smaller space at lower cost.

Now computers are symbol manipulating machines but they don't understand a damn thing and artificial intelligence is a bunch of crap.

People in real space can still pass good info to people that they want and spread BS via the internet.

psik

What gadgets do you want to see developed?

i would like to see a home food inventory taken then what is needed is transmitted by the web to the manufacturers.
the resulting products would be delivered to your house.

as our world gets more pressed for space this idea will eventually become a reality.

i would like to see a home food inventory taken then what is needed is transmitted by the web to the manufacturers.
the resulting products would be delivered to your house. as our world gets more pressed for space this idea will eventually become a reality.

We can do that now! There are several home delivery services, plus some of the larger groceries, that provide exactly what you've described.

I actually tried one of the services for a while and was quite happy with the service. My problem was the "minimum order $$" amount ...I might run out of some things, but not all things, so if I needed only a small order, it would cost $$$.

Baron Max

When a highly contagious virus is engineered and released to render half the human population sterile, science will have made its greatest contribution to Earth and mankind. Poverty, conflict, environmental degradation, and many of our greatest collective problems have a solution in drastic human population reduction.

Hypewaders:
When a highly contagious virus is engineered and released to render half the human population sterile, science will have made its greatest contribution to Earth and mankind. Poverty, conflict, environmental degradation, and many of our greatest collective problems have a solution in drastic human population reduction.

Well, Hypewaders, will you be the first to step up and help save the planet by removing your own penis or vagina? Or will you commit to not having children?

I would say, start a war, anyone willing to pick up a gun and be uncivilized shall be the only ones going to the war, no draft.... kinda like... Iraq!? OH YEAH, I just hope a draft doesn't come out of it...

..., and many of our greatest collective problems have a solution in drastic human population reduction.

We and the Iraqi terrorists are doing that very thing in Iraq right now, yet you bitch n' moan about it on the other forums ....why? What's with the change of heart?

Baron Max

Once they start figuring out how to manufacture carbon nano-tubes in mass quantity it will be a revolution similar to that when steel was first discovered.

Skyscrapers will be much much taller and stronger, we will be able to build space elevators for very efficient travel to space, as well as COUNTLESS other applications.

It will truly be a world changing event.

Sci-Phenomena: "Well, Hypewaders, will you ... commit to not having children?"

Absolutely.

Baron Max: "We and the Iraqi terrorists are doing that very thing in Iraq right now"

We're sterilizing ourselves? I had no idea. References, please.

"yet you bitch n' moan about it on the other forums ....why?"

That's odd... I don't remember ever complaining about sterilization.

Oh, you mean organized killing Baron? No, that's uncouth.

Hey Hypewaders, there is only one problem with your no children scheme, when you become an old, you and the rest of anyone who commits to having no children will end up in care centers,and/or on government wellfare...

there really is no "sollution" to this "problem"

Perhaps it would be a good idea to copy china, one kid per couple. Two if you can pay lots of taxes.

But then you have another problem, everyone would want to have boys since they pass on the family name.... but maybe thats only a chinese way of thinking....

"there is only one problem with your no children scheme, when you become an old, you and the rest of anyone who commits to having no children will end up in care centers,and/or on government wellfare..."

That would be an economic hiccup in the grand scheme. Human overpopulation is a vastly bigger problem.

"there really is no "sollution" to this "problem" "

Sure there is. Fewer human pregnancies.

"Perhaps it would be a good idea to copy china, one kid per couple. Two if you can pay lots of taxes."

I agree. Ideally there should be qualifications to produce even one.

"everyone would want to have boys since they pass on the family name"

Possibly, and I do think that ego, and unacceptance of mortality is a part of the desire for children.

Well just consider the computer and what it has done.

The internet brings what is essentially the Library of Congress in to the bedroom of 'everyone' who can afford one; and that price keeps lowering each year. This means the sons/daughters of the very poor have an near equal chance to improve their lot in life thru education.

The computer is also the reason Walmart and other superstores like OfficeMax, etc can offer such low prices. It makes possible keeping track of larger and larger variety and quantities which allow lower prices for the very people who need to save money.

Those are two nice benefits of technology; and that is just the computer.
Then there is medicine; life/pain saving drugs and diagnostic machines.

Technology is why people have adult lives that are twice as long as those of just a few hundred years ago.

Not bad I'd say.

The internet brings what is essentially the Library of Congress in to the bedroom of 'everyone' who can afford one;
The internet brings much more porn into bedrooom than stuff from the library of congress. Besides, the internet is not going to read&understand that stuff instead of you. Your mind is as limited capacitywise as it was 30 years ago. 1000000 acceleration of the info delivery have changed pretty much nothing cardinally. More than that, people read less and less, remember even less than that (not speaking about connecting remembered patterns). What we are turning into are seach engines, keybord extensions, zombies with messy mixture of the unconnected, constantly changing, info-pieces in their heads. Now imagine such a zombie on an unihabitable island, need I tell more...



and that price keeps lowering each year. This means the sons/daughters of the very poor have an near equal chance to improve their lot in life thru education.

BS.

Economics 101. Contrary to the government&corporation sponsored fair tales about "all what you need is education" to improve your lot, it's an obvious nonsense. Education has nothing to do (directly) with your income. Supply and demand on people with certain set of skills decides all the incomes (for working horses, obviously) in the world. There are lots of finely educated Ph.D.s (just an example)? Fine, let's find out what is the minimum salary they will be willing to work for. They are willing to work for free, just for the heck of it? Excellent, but the space in the lab is limited anyway. Luckily, neighboring McD is hiring too.

Sure, on the personal level, a daughter of poor can get "educated" and push a son of a lower middle class man away from the trough. However, on the global scale, "education" (whatever it means these days) will not change a squat. Except, maybe, having restrooms cleaned by really, really well educated folks.



Technology is why people have adult lives that are twice as long as those of just a few hundred years ago.

Let's just wait for a few hundreds years more to count, if we will have anybody/anything to count then.

It will surely benefit the rich.

It will surely benefit the rich.Everything benefits the rich. - Why do you think they finance the politicians?

Here is an exapmple where science started decades ago is currently being used to understand climate, and may someday save not only all humankind, but all life on the earth.

einstein.stanford.edu/content/story_of_gpb/gpbsty8

Nobody was considering global warming when the Gravity Probe B project started.Now through better satellite tracking, it is helping understand the ocean currents and polar ice melting. This is before the actual data from the experiment is analized.

Some have said the money should not have been spent because General Relativity has already been proven, but this test will either validate or falsify many other theories. See this thread on PhysicsForums.

physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=104694

Have a nice day or not whichever you prefer.

Here is an exapmple where science started decades ago is currently being used to understand climate, and may someday save not only all humankind, but all life on the earth.

einstein.stanford.edu/content/story_of_gpb/gpbsty8

Nobody was considering global warming when the Gravity Probe B project started.Now through better satellite tracking, it is helping understand the ocean currents and polar ice melting. This is before the actual data from the experiment is analized.

Some have said the money should not have been spent because General Relativity has already been proven, but this test will either validate or falsify many other theories. See this thread on PhysicsForums.

physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=104694

Have a nice day or not whichever you prefer.
I've thought that my senses is all what's needed to verify warming. OK, it's warming, now what? Nobody wants to stop eating out, watching big screen TVs or do "push-paper-around" kind of a job, etc.. Oh, lemme guess, braniacs will save us so we could enjoy big Macs forever and ever. That belief is called cornucopia, it's nothing bun belief. I know many "braniacs" currently "saving" humanity, I wouldn't trust $5 to most of them, not speaking of the world. The belief in the infinity of the human genius needs to be closely examined before using it as a crutch for status quo.

If the brainiacs are smart then they are working on a virus to kill all of the dumb people. :splat:

psik

I've thought that my senses is all what's needed to verify warming. OK, it's warming, now what? Nobody wants to stop eating out, watching big screen TVs or do "push-paper-around" kind of a job, etc.. Oh, lemme guess, braniacs will save us so we could enjoy big Macs forever and ever. That belief is called cornucopia, it's nothing bun belief. I know many "braniacs" currently "saving" humanity, I wouldn't trust $5 to most of them, not speaking of the world. The belief in the infinity of the human genius needs to be closely examined before using it as a crutch for status quo.

Dixonmassey,

The debate isn't over whether the earth is warming or not. The earth has been warming since the end of the last ice age. The question is whether mankind is going to tip the scales and cause a runaway greenhouse effect. I believe nobody knows at this point. Not even the brainiacs.

The spinoff technology from this experiment will help us understand climate change, and if it turns out we are at risk, maybe the citizens of earth will take the appropriate action. This technology may help in understanding what actions are appropriate.

Even if we aren't at risk, this technology will help forecast weather patterns and predict with greater accuracy the path of hurricanes.

If the dumbdasses that don't pay attention and refuse to heed the warnings suffer, then they are responsible for their own fate.

I think it was that well known brainiac Albert Einstein that said " The fate of mankind will be such as mankind deserves."

as you ramble on through life
whatever be your goal
keep your eye on the donut
and not the hole

post title: Yes, in some ways, the technology is rushing ahead too fast.

Can new technology deliver for everyone?

Is the Developing World benefiting from the new advances?

The internet has changed the way we do business and entertain ourselves. Now there's a whole new wave of gadgets and technologies being developed.

Next week in Las Vegas the world's top technology companies will be displaying their latest wares at the Consumer Electronics Show. But is technology advancing too quickly?

What gadgets do you want to see developed?

How have computers changed your life? Will the new technologies make for a better world or will it help the few?
Are you looking forward or going to the Show?

http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread.jspa?threadID=5097&&edition=2&ttl=20070103230454

Yes, new technology can deliver for everybody, as long as it is controlled by people other than by the greedy corporations.

See the DVD documentary, "The Corporation" to understand better to what I am referring.

And certainly don't trust power-hungry globalist/socialist institutions such as The World Bank or the IMF.

I really like the many things that computers can do, but I despise MP3 players, that often play little actual music other than Rap-is-crap. Why would I want a little toy computer, when I have a real computer? Those MP3 players are pricy, have expensive accessories, and generally don't come with hardly any music. And they don't work by themselves, but require a real computer to load them.

I don't like PDAs either, because they are stripped down computers that don't run standard software, but special PDA versions of software. So instead of a fancy PDA, I bought a fancy graphing calculator, because I want to study math more. And it has a very useful BASIC editor built right in. What a bummer though, that the editor can't handle a "variable" (file) much larger than 30K. It's tricky to split my bloated, feature-laden programs into separate files and get all the parameters to pass through automatically, to make it seem as if all one big program.

post title: post title: Human overpopulation is becoming more and more a discredited theory.

"there is only one problem with your no children scheme, when you become an old, you and the rest of anyone who commits to having no children will end up in care centers,and/or on government wellfare..."

That would be an economic hiccup in the grand scheme. Human overpopulation is a vastly bigger problem.

Yeah, the "problem" is the anti-natalists who claim that some people are somehow unnecessary or expendable.

"there really is no "sollution" to this "problem" "

Sure there is. Fewer human pregnancies.

More pregnancies, because more people would be glad to live, and most everybody expects to have or ends up having their precious darling babies.

"Perhaps it would be a good idea to copy china, one kid per couple. Two if you can pay lots of taxes."

I agree. Ideally there should be qualifications to produce even one.

How about God's qualifications. Get married first. If only "perfect" people had children, then humans would have gone extinct long ago.

"everyone would want to have boys since they pass on the family name"

Possibly, and I do think that ego, and unacceptance of mortality is a part of the desire for children.

Well have both boys and girls then. I hardly think that "unacceptance" of mortality would be the reason that most people have children. What about "returning the favor?" Isn't it selfish to get to come to life, and then slam the door on future generations? Don't we "repay" our parents for raising us, by having children ourselves? Shouldn't there be more people to come to life, to worship God and populate heaven?

"Shouldn't there be more people to come to life, to worship God and populate heaven?"

Eeeeew. Just how many worshippers would it take to satisfy your vain god?

yes

"Shouldn't there be more people to come to life, to worship God and populate heaven?"

Eeeeew. Just how many worshippers would it take to satisfy your vain god?

Uh, but the people who come to life, even if mainly for that reason, benefit as a result.

Talk about biting the hand that feeds you? Why object if it benefits you or people like you?

One of the things so great about God, is just how huge a human family he allows/commands/causes us to become. When God promised Abraham decendents so numerous as to be practically as uncountable as the grains of sand on the seashore, or the stars in the sky, surely people don't think God was merely joking?