Ater reading the module notes and all supplemental materials, respond to following:
•What arguments can be made in favor of prolonging life? .
•What arguments can be made against it?.
•Just because we have the technology, should it be used? Where is the line drawn?.
•Should there be regulation? To what extent?.
Support your position using appropriate sources that are properly cited. Your paper should be 1-2 pages in length (not including title and reference
pages). It must be formatted according to APA standards [PDF, File Size 131 KB], 6th edition, including title and reference pages.
MODULE NOTES:
________________________________________
When discussing technology and the environment, the conversation can become heated. We have discussed the many advantages and benefits of
technological advancement, yet, there are negative consequences to technology as well. Most notably, the destruction of the natural environment
resulting from the introduction of industrial technologies is the main point of contention. Consider this: in the United States alone, approximately
twenty-five percent of the world’s resources are consumed, yet the U.S. has only about five percent of the world’s population!
This module introduces you to topics that may be controversial. Topics such as energy and the environment and medical technology require a lot of
discussion and are difficult to introduce without bias. It is important for each of you to accept, before responding to some of the discussions, that
we are all different individuals with our own opinions. Let’s do our best to support our discussions with facts.
The news today is filled with discussions of global warming and its relationship to human activity. If we were to review the short history of reports
from the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), we would see a slow progression toward certainty. Early reports suggested that warming
could be occurring and that there was a chance that human industrial activity was related to the warming trends. This progressed through several
reports, culminating in the most recent (pre-scandal) report, which asserted that warming was occurring and it was one hundred percent certain that
human activity has increased the severity of the trends. There are many critics on every side of this debate; however, the data requires review, as
the process of warming itself is clearly evident, even more evident than in the last IPCC report. Currently, most of the debate has shifted to the
cause, rather than the presence of, warming.
How does this relate to technology? When you consider the Industrial Revolution, you see that methods of labor changed significantly from hand-
produced artisan work to mass-produced products made with machines, machines that were powered by easy access to cheap energy from available sources:
Middle Eastern oil and American coal. What little understanding we’ve demonstrated! While unrestricted use of fossil fuels exploded with the
Industrial Revolution, we made more goods than ever before available for more people, while at the same time permanently changing the environment in
which we live. Consider the scares of the past few decades: acid rain, global warming, smog-choked cities, dead lakes, and more. The availability of
goods not only increased the appetite for goods, but also enabled a population explosion, which boosted the demand further. After all, agriculture was
industrialized as well. Was it all worth it? It’s always a point to discuss. While we have permanently changed the world and ecosystems surrounding
us, quality of life and personal wealth are higher than they have ever been. Isn’t it likely that with a better understanding of the consequences,
technological solutions can be found?
Alongside monumental changes in industrialization, there have been great strides in medical treatments and biological improvements. There was a time
not long ago when low birth weight children (under five pounds) had a reduced chance of survival, and almost no newborn under three pounds survived.
That is not true today, as there are significant means available to ensure survival of these and even lower weight newborns. Another medical
technology discussion centers on the effects medicine and medical treatments have had on extending life. Our current social security system, for
example, was designed around an assumption that most potential recipients would not survive to an age to collect, a foregone conclusion today. Of
course, even more divisive are the trends in prenatal diagnosis and treatment, or even reproduction in itself. What are the limits? Should there be
limits?
Food issues are not to be forgotten. Today there are large movements to get back to ‘natural’ foods. Much of the world’s grains today are from
genetically modified strains, which have allowed us to feed our population of more than seven billion people, a number projected to increase to over
eleven billion by 2050. Can we continue to feed this population with our current resources, or will new resources be required? Can natural foods
deliver the same quantities?
Now that you are familiar with the perhaps unintended consequences that come with technology, we are going to discuss the greatest environmental
threats. Think about your own actions when you review the material in this module. Do you contribute to the environmental threats, or do you take
action to prevent them?
Now that you are familiar with the perhaps unintended consequences that come with technology, we are going to discuss the greatest environmental
threats. Think about your own actions when you review the material in this module. Do you contribute to the environmental threats, or do you take
action to prevent them?
Read:
Required
• Module Notes: Technological Change and The Environment (above)
• Huo, H., Lei, Y., Zhang, Q., Zhao, L., & He, K. (2012). China’s coke industry: Recent policies, technology shift, and implication for energy
and the environment. Energy Policy, 51, 397-404.
• Fedoroff, Nina. ‘Can We Trust Monsanto With Our Food?’. Scientificamerican.com. N.p., 2015. Web. 11 Sept. 2015.
View:
Required
• Module 3 PowerPoint [PPTX, File Size 169 MB]. This presentation includes both audio and a transcript of the audio.
• Design | e2: China—from red to green? [Video, File 25:58 Minutes]. (2006). In Films On Demand. (you can google this)
This video includes transcripts and is closed-captioned.
• TedTalks: Susan Solomon—the promise of research with stem cells [Video, File 14:54 Minutes]. (2012). In Films On Demand.
This video includes transcripts and is closed-captioned. (you can google this)
