MOD 2 Project
Storyboard Text
- Slow down! One phenomenon that is particularly interesting is how we can shift the way we view technologies and their impacts. As Edgerton writes in his novel The Shock of the Old, “Thinking about the use of things, rather than of technology, connects us directly with the world we know rather than the strange world in which ‘technology’ lives”. His words reflect the idea that when we focus on the “use-based” analysis of technologies, it can radically change our timelines of history and technological progress. A notable example includes the fact that steam power (known to be characteristic of the industrial revolution in the 1800s) was actually more important in the 1900s when we focus on the actual use of it in society. This shift in perspective is important because when looking around today, what you may view as important or crucial may be deemed insignificant in the future. Therefore, we must understand that the technologies we view as simple now, held much greater power to past civilizations offering the necessary resources of the time.This same logic is applied in Postman’s “5 Things We Need to Know About Technological Change” as he notes that technologies can often attain a mythic status, being perceived as natural and unchangeable. Idolization of technology can be dangerous and a critical awareness of its impact is key. For example, when we celebrate online shopping, the innovation of the mail-order catalog goes missing. When analyzing the past civilizations, you may commonly forget about certain technologies that came before the modern ones you use today. Aim to consider the alternatives that presented themselves in history, and it will help you understand how people navigated life without modern day technology
- Without these technologies though I would feel lost in today’s society.
- Exactly! The last thing I would like you to note is that technology is a social construct. The adoption or resistance of technology will always reflect the social norms, cultural preferences, and perceptions of the time period. Social needs and demands also play a large role in the history of technologies. Altogether, society and technology work in a feedback loop: as technology is adopted, it reshapes social structures and behaviors, eventually influencing technological development. Therefore, you must consider the fact that some technologies simply were not necessary yet because of the time period. Social norms and demands did not require certain technologies that are required in modern day society.
- I just feel that there are some technologies that I could not live without. My phone - I idolize it! I am confident it is the most revolutionary technology of all time - nothing has come close in history.
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