Technology and World Change

Session 2 

Brief Overview

In today’s session, we learnt about how technology has impacted the world. How some nations achieve and perform better in certain areas as compared to others. Furthermore, the different attributes and traits that are adopted to do well – the rising star or the falling star. And it was truly a fulfilling session with the presentations by the few individuals.

Interesting Observations and Ideas

I learnt that one reason that contributes to the dominance of one entity over another was innovation and invention where the latter is the subset of the former. Citing the article “Innovation In The Reset World”, brainstorming for novel ideas and products is imperative in order to remain relevant in the near future. One has to be far-sighted and have a vision that lies way ahead to lead in the long run. The article also mentioned that the optimal time for expansion was during a recession during which most companies choose to adopt restructuring and cost-cutting measures. The minority that utilizes this period of recession as a challenge and motivation to push their boundaries find themselves successful after recession. The few minorities would spend their resources acquiring cheap goods and sourcing for fresh talents that are aplenty after the recession. By investing in all these, they are essentially investing in their future. These attitudes help many companies become “breakout stars” and leaders in their respective areas.

Another interesting observation would be the ideology of the rising star and falling star. On one hand, rising stars are motivated and hungry to acquire new knowledge and strive to achieve excellence. They are risk-takers and invest a lot in the future especially when it comes to new ideas. On the other hand, falling stars refer to those who are “trapped in their bubble”. They are very closed to acquiring new perspectives and ideas and are usually not keen in learning. They usually believe in the notion that “if it ain’t broke, doesn’t fix it”. This rigid system usually sets nations apart because they are not able to keep up with times and often realize that they lose out as compared to those who continually strive to improve themselves.

Key Takeaways

The Human Development Index (HDI) measures the development of a nation by combining different indicators such as life expectancy, educational attainment and standard of living. It may be a good reference for the measurement of social and economic development however; it is not a comprehensive gauge because there are much more to human life than just the above-mentioned factors.

Some disadvantages of the HDI are:

1.     It does not take into account the well-being, happiness, political freedom of its people which are generally difficult to compute.

2.     Does not show the distribution of wealth and so it is an inaccurate measure of the monetary well-being of its people.

3.     Does not reflect any short-term changes as it only shows the long-term changes of the different components being measured.

Issues for Further Discussion (Presentation)

What if everyone in the world was equipped with a smartphone with access to a data connection?

Data connection could refer to the access to the Internet even without Wi-Fi.  Majority of the people today possess a smart phone with data connection and it is already a norm. What truly amazes me in this discussion was the availability of data connection as well as the phone application that was introduced in the video. With the phone application, it could help revolutionize the way we communicate with people, especially those from other countries and where we possess a language barrier. We could learn so much more about other cultures by interacting with locals themselves, learn by spending a day in their shoes without the fear of not knowing how to communicate and getting lost in translation. This could really bring people closer together.

Can the role of teachers be replaced by technology in later stages of education?

Technology can improve and aid in the learning stages of a child by exposing them to a vast network of information. With the introduction of the Internet, it has evidently eased the way we source for much of our materials we use today. We learn about the latest events that have happened on the other side of the globe in an instant to learning about why other cultures behave this way as opposed to others and this will definitely broaden our perspective.

However, even with the many advantages to technology, I do not think the role of a teacher can ever be replaced by any mean.  In today’s context, a teacher is no longer a figure that imparts knowledge alone. They are now a mentor, a friend and a parent. Other than just imparting knowledge, they now impart skills that prepare for us the future. To be more exact, the soft skills such as perseverance, independence, responsibility and so on and so forth. All of which, I believe, can only be taught through face-to-face interaction and actual communication between student and teacher.  

Personal Ratings

I would rate this lesson an 8 because of the amount of things we have covered in the lesson. I especially enjoyed all the individual presentations because you get to understand different perspectives and learn something new like the phone application. Also, the questions that were posed really were thought provoking and make you think about the everyday things we take for granted. What if our teachers really were replaced by technologically advance computers? 

Technology and World Change

Session 1 

Brief Overview

The very first lesson of Technology and World Change was kicked start with a round of introductions about ourselves and also shared on how each of us perceived technology. It was a fruitful sharing session because you are able to see how technology is multifaceted that you cannot interpret technology just based on your reasons alone. I feel that technology is an integral part of our lives and is something we cannot do without. Technology is, as others have pointed out, a double-edged sword. It can be used both for good and for bad. For example, on one hand, technology could aid as a tool that brings people across the globe closer together through instant messaging tools such as Skype. On the other, people could be so engaged with their phones that they neglect the physical contact with one another thus driving people further apart.

Shortly after, we started things proper with a video on Guns, Germs and Steel by Jared Diamond. Through the video as well as the other articles recommended to us, we dived into the deeper questions that surround technology and the change it has brought upon the world. How do two different countries become so unequal? What are the factors that have contributed to the rise and fall of different civilizations?

Interesting Observations and Ideas

One interesting observation that truly piqued my curiosity was how technology evolved in the Middle Eastern world and how the advanced really quickly but soon plateaued. The Muslim Scholars were well advanced in a myriad of fields from mathematics to medicine. But why did it plateau off? The professor then mentioned about religion. Religion first served as a stimulus for the pursuit of further knowledge and learning but it later transformed and became an inhibitor for such pursuit of knowledge.

The professor also challenged us to think about the future of the human race. Would we be facing obesity pandemic? Would there be more cases of anorexia? I feel that healthcare is greatly linked to the future of the human race when it comes to the problem of obesity. In our society, the choices we make are what shape the future. Being in a proactive country like Singapore, there are certain measures in place to curb with this urban problem such as offering healthier choices as food stalls, disallowing schools to sell soft drinks and other unhealthy snacks or even to walkathons organized by community centres to encourage a healthier lifestyle. Hence, where the rest of the world experiences an increase in childhood obesity, Singapore sees a decline.

Key Takeaways

One key takeaway from this session was when the professor said that it was important to Stay Hungry, for the pursuit of knowledge. When you are motivated and challenged to acquire more knowledge, you would naturally want to learn more and that is how we can improve in society. This not applies to the advancements technology alone but in all aspects of the world such that we can all benefit from it.

Another learning point from this session was how the world is ever changing. With the “ Shift Happens” video in mind, it is clearly evident that change is happening even as you read this sentence. It shows how things are so different comparing then and now and how the dynamics of society are changing too. For example, how China will soon be the largest English-Speaking country in the world.

Issues for Further Discussion

Maybe we could have considered the ethical issues behind certain technology advancements such as cloning or genetically modified foods just to name a few. It would have been great to shed some light on these areas and maybe some reasons could be thought as to why some advancements in technologies in one field is greater than others.

Personal Ratings

I would rate the session at about 6 because it being the first lesson, it would take some time getting used to the rigour and expectations of the class. I will definitely make an effort to participate more actively in class. Hopefully, that would make the sessions in the coming months more fruitful and engaging.