Sunday, February 20, 2011

How Technology is Changing the World

Photo cred: CNN
It's fairly obvious to say technology is changing the world. Ten years ago no one knew what "Facebook" or "Twitter" were, yet now we can't imagine life without them. And although these are great tools for reconnecting with old friends and making new ones, more and more people are discovering the greater impact social networking sites can have. In these past few weeks the crisis in Egypt proved that the internet is for more than grass-root campaigns to get Betty White on SNL. In fact, it can start a revolution. Initially sparked by one man, Wael Ghonim, the revolution grew mainly because of the use of social networking sites. Social networking sites have also played significant roles in the revolutions in Tunisia and Libya. The role of the internet in the Middle East is summed up well in this video from CBS News. The true question is: what will the internet spark next?

This week we also saw the astounding development of technology when IBM's computer Watson competed on Jeopardy--and won. In light of this, there has been a lot of discussion about not only how computers can take over jobs previously held by humans, but about how far we are from computers becoming more intelligent than humans. Watson is not perfect; in fact, it made a number of mistakes. But it is still an amazing feat that will have countless advantages in the future. For instance, Watson can be used in the healthcare industry. Here's a great video about the experience and Watson's future:



Technology was also addressed in President Obama's State of the Union address. He spoke about the need for technology in order for the United States to remain competitive in today's world. Obama has repeatedly stated that training in technology is essential in the education system today. This week he even met with some of the industry's biggest leaders to speak about how technology can impact job creation. So in a world where technology already plays a huge role in our lives, how will it affect us next?
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2 comments:

  1. MeganFebruary 21, 2011 at 7:03 PM

    Sarah, I think this is a really really interesting topic to discuss! Especially within the context of the revolutions in Egypt and now in Libya and Bahrain. I read somewhere on the internet, someone say that "The internet is our news station and we are the anchors." I think that the riots and protests going on now and in the past few weeks certainly show how technology has impacted the way in which information is spread.

    I am interested to hear your thoughts about the amount of control the government should have over the internet. In Egypt there was huge outrage when the government "turned off" the internet; and there has been similar legislation proposed in the United States--to have a button, or switch, in the White House which would effectively "turn off" the internet. Personally I find this idea very dangerous, but I am interested in hearing your opinions? Great blog post, by the way!!

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  2. Sarah ZimmermanFebruary 21, 2011 at 7:48 PM

    Thanks! I definitely think there should be no restrictions on internet freedoms. I actually just read an article about this topic, and I thought it was pretty interesting. Here's the link.

    http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2011/02/clinton-on-internet-freedom-living-by-the-standards-we-hold-the-world-to/71297/

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