TWC Lesson 2: Technology, Society and Global Dominance; Technology and Human Development

Brief Overview/Summary:
The first half of the lesson covered the theme of Technology, Society and Global Dominance. We discussed about the different forms of global dominance (e.g. in the areas of economic, politics, culture and Military) and what traits the countries which had at one point in time taken over leadership in any one area, embodied. For instance, nations which perform exceptionally well on the international stage - deemed "rising stars" - generally display qualities of optimism, having an open perspective, being hungry and keen to emulate the success of others and being willing to invest in new, feasible ideas. On the other hand, nations which declined - deemed "falling stars" - were revealed to have adopted a closed perspective, became pessimistic and stopped innovating and learning from others. Instead they closed their doors to the outside world, thinking they were more than self-sufficient. An example was made of China which withdrew from interactions with the global community at a time when it was a dominant superpower. Other countries soon superseded it in terms of development and wealth.

We also covered the topic of European colonialism and its impact/legacy, exploring how, from the perspective of the colonized countries, Columbus Day actually marked the massacre of thousands of indigenous peoples. In reality, genocide was a central factor in the establishment of the United States.
We also covered the importance of innovation, especially in times of recession. At a time when companies are preoccupied with cost-cutting measures, businesses which seek also to check the boxes of planning ahead for the future through innovation and drawing lessons from past experiences were the ones which displayed stellar performances post-recession.

Lastly, we briefly discussed about cultural dominance in today's world - how Western culture continues to pervade and dominate most societies (in terms of the food we eat, the way we dress, media coverage), while at the same time, there is an undeniable rise of an alternative Korean pop culture in many Asian societies.

In the second half of the lesson, technology and its link to human development as well as consequent impact on world change was the theme of discussion.

Using the HDI as an indicator of development, it was shown how the European colonial countries managed to pull ahead in terms of wealth and population health status, whereas countries which had been colonized languished in low levels of development and poverty for most of the same period. This provided further statistical proof of the negative implications of colonial rule and supported the argument postulated in the article by Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed on the detrimental impacts of the colonial holocaust. 

There were a total of 5 individual class presentations today which covered topics from the rise of China, the advent of revolutionary translation applications supportable on smartphones, the role of technology in early childhood programs, gene selection as well as a presentation exploring the "dark side of technology". 


Interesting Observations and Ideas:
What was definitely intriguing for me in this class, was learning about the perspective presented by the paper on The Colonial Holocaust and its Legacy. Like Prof Shahi, I had always regarded Columbus to be a revolutionary figure, a 'hero' for having brought about beneficial 'civilization' and human development in the third-world countries he colonized. Never would I have imagined the extent of terror and suppression that had been inflicted upon the indigenous populations of the colonized nations. It is horrifying to have read about the graphic accounts of torture and oppression which the aboriginals endured under colonial rule. Also, the article throws up enlightenment on the reasons for diverging trajectories of development between first and third-world nations. I learned that one reason third-world nations had struggled, and still are struggling, to advance, is due to the destruction of original culture and (in some places) established economical and political structures of the countries during the period of colonization which subsequently enslaved them to dependence on the West. 

Another interesting observation which I gained from today's lesson was how we have come to be absolutely dependent on our smartphones. This is the reason why the applications market, which is supported by the smartphone operating system platforms of the IOS and Android, is flourishing with newer and more innovative app functions sprouting up every day. Our smartphones have indeed become indispensable in our daily lives.
Just last weekend, this observation was reinforced for me when I was involved in an SMU Gourmet Club Food Trail event, which involved participants having to guess specific food places from clues given and to make their way to each location to partake in games to win points. The winning team had to complete all stations within the shortest amount of time possible without the use of taxis/cars (only public transport was permitted). In order to make smart guesses to identify the respective food places and to get to their destinations in the quickest time possible, every group utilized Google as well as travel apps (such as Google Maps etc.) to facilitate the process. It got me thinking that should I make it a rule that smartphones were disallowed, every team would be severely incapacitated and every group would probably take twice the amount of time to complete the food trail challenge than they had in fact taken, with the help of applications on their smartphones. 


Key Take-away Points:
1. Innovation is crucial to the continued development and advancement of the individual/business/country. One had to emulate the qualities of openness to new ideas, willingness to invest in innovation/research and development, to be receptive towards learning from others and to have an open perspective in order to be a 'rising star'. Whereas, if history is any indication, to be contented with the status quo and to withdraw from the exchange of ideas with and learning from others would likely signal an ultimate decline of the country (the 'falling star' situation).

2. The disparity in levels of development between countries can largely be explained by the phenomenon of colonization and profound difference in consequences it had on the colonizing countries and the colonized nations. The colonial masters largely benefited in terms of increased wealth, the spread of its culture and growth of its population, while the impacts on culture, population and economies of the colonized countries were largely deleterious. 


Issues for further discussion:
1. How has the advent of the smartphone and mobile data access impacted our daily lives? How has it changed the way we perceived the way we do things/our relationships etc.?

2. Is the use of technology in genome selection an example of human advancement or an indication of an erosion in our progress and development as a human race? This is as the concept of gene selection for an unborn child goes against the notion of natural selection. Does this newfangled technology herald a marked change in our values and mindsets? What likely consequences does this development present for the future of mankind and the world we live in?


Personal Rating for the Class:
I would rate this class an 8/10 for the broad scope of discussion we managed to cover in class and for all the interesting insights and observations thrown up in the coverage of the lesson.

TWC Lesson One

Brief overview
This week's theme covered the historical evolution of mankind and societies generally. The readings provided an insight into how technological development in society may be attributed to a variety of factors and the reasons for the disparity in levels of advancement between societies.
Amongst the various reasons promulgated are that given of innate biological differences, geographical location and climate, as well as the explanation that because the Europeans first possessed the "guns, nastiest germs and steel", this allowed their conquest over the Africans and Aboriginals.

Interesting observations and ideas
It was interesting to reflect and consider the reasons behind the existent disparity in material wealth and development between societies in today's context. I had never really gave it much thought previously, and had not realized the extent of the existence and practices of Aboriginal people in our modern world.
It was especially enlightening reading Jared Diamond's writings on his perception of the Africans of Papua New Guinea - how he believed them to actually be more intelligent, alert, expressive and adept at handling situations which reflect brain functions, than Westerners are. This challenges ingrained preconceptions that many harbour towards Africans - a mindset steeped in racial prejudices - that Africans are somehow of an inferior species to "White people".
It was also an eye-opener to read and learn about how man, in the industrialized states at least, got to the current level of development and standard of living, from a time when they were mere hunter-gatherers. This occurred gradually throughout history, through discovery of agriculture and later on, the occurrence of the Neolithic revolution which saw widespread domestication of animals (which greatly expanded the options for food and clothing).

Key take-away points
1. Technology is not merely the study of internet technology and electronics, but encompasses the entire concept of how mankind goes about his daily lives - the tools we use, the processes we invent, etc.

2. There is no one certain and uncontroversial answer to the question Yali posed to Jared Diamond, which he muses about in his book 'Guns, Germs and Steel', "why have some people/societies been able to generate so much technology and wealth while others remain relatively backward?". A combination of factors may have brought about the existential state of affairs in disparate levels of development. Certainly, this existential state of affairs cannot be solely attributed to any intrinsic or extrinsic biological differences. Hence this challenges any justification for the conception of Africans/Aboriginals being an inferior race to White people.

3. From the reading on the development of science and technology in the Middle East, I realize that often, it may not be a matter of intelligence or capabilities which determine a society's state of technological advancement, rather it could be traced to a simple ill-perceived decision which ultimately set the stage for defeat and conquest in the industrialization race.

Personal rating on session

On a scale of 0 to 10, I would rate the class an 8. There was a wide coverage of issues relating to the question of the disparity in technological advancement between societies. The use of video clips also broke up the monotony of the lesson and made it more interesting.