Discussion A: Important TechnologyMost jobs involve interaction with technology in some form. Police officers have computers in their squad cars, nurses enter your blood pressure and pulse into electr

Discussion A: Important Technology

Most jobs involve interaction with technology in some form. Police officers have computers in their squad cars, nurses enter your blood pressure and pulse into electronic files, and waitresses swipe credit cards at the table with smart phones. Twenty years ago, none of that was possible. Is there a profession in which some form of technology is not used?

Technological innovations continue to invade nearly every aspect of our lives. George Orwell‘s prediction of “ubiquitous surveillance” may have come true. Not only can you track someone’s whereabouts with multiple technologies. Additionally, to marketing researchers armed with powerful tracking technology, you are becoming what you buy. Profiles track a range of human habits, the website you search triggers border advertisements luring us into related websites and content. The purchases you make produce coupons specific to you and your purchase history. Some of these events might be beneficial to your wallet-but how might this technology raise concerns about how are online movements are being tracked and by whom?

Graphic Credit: Wikimedia Commons (2010, May 21). Map of television ownership [Infographic]. Retrieved from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Map_of_television_ownership.svg

As global is becoming increasingly local, human beings are able to view, review, and react to events happening in real time half way around the globe. In the United States, 90% of homes have televisions. Is technology a good measure of progress? You have discussed how technology changes the human experience. Work is a human endeavor that has been radically altered by helpful machines. From assembly lines to call centers, our work is tied to technology. Often, you are monitored by technology, number of customer interactions, emails sent, and keystrokes on the computer. Technology itself is work as anyone with an Information Technology department can attest.

We are more connected and dependent on our technology than ever before. In Week 2’s Reading, Thoreau chose to live at Walden Pond without any of the modern conveniences of his time for a while.

Do you think you could be completely disconnected from any type of modern technology? Would there be benefits to disconnecting? Is there a specific technology or gadget that you use in your personal life that you could not live without? Could you do your current job without technology? Why or why not?

• Return to the Week 1 Check Your Tech Home Technology Inventory document. Can you classify the technology you use into categories?
• Think of the many uses of technology presented this week and others you might know, especially those that track you in some way.
• Consider how your personal and professional perspectives might influence your attitudes about technology.
• Evaluate (by interviewing people or online searching) the types and extent of technology used in your profession.
• Determine how the use of technology is changing in your field of study.