Online class 2

Sept 11 - Online investigation: GLOBALIZATION
When I was a kid the first computer I was exposed too was a small programmable computer that was available for check out at my local library. The DOS programming was difficult. The program was some type of war game. My first movie exposure to computers was War Games (1983), followed by TRON (1982). Then I remember watching the Terminator (1984).
My initial exposure to the computer age was a very negative experience. I assumed that computers would be the end of all mankind. The way I saw it we would either blow each other into nuclear oblivion, allow machines to take over and make man extinct, or go insane trying to enter all of those DOS commands. Fortunately mankind and technology has marched on and I could not imagine living without a computer. . According to a 2007 United States Census Bureau report 70 million Americans reported having one or more computers in their households (Bureau, 2008). I have five in my house. With the evolution of the internet, the computer was globalized. Today an estimated one billion people worldwide own a computer (Kanellos, 2004) and have internet access. So what are the pros and cons to the computer age?
Pros
The world is connected. Individuals, Nations and their economies, children, and even the environment have benefited from the computerization age. Nations can conduct financial business in minutes not weeks. Doctors and scientists can share valuable information and new research with each other in an instant. Children across the world can learn from each other through virtual classrooms. Natural and manmade disasters can be reported fast allowing for quick response. So, what could possibly be pessimistic about the computer age?
Cons
The world is connected. A simple glitch in one nation’s computerized financial system can create a worldwide disaster. On May 6, 2010 a trading glitch on Wall Street caused the Dow to plunge roughly 1,000 points (Money, 2010). This created a massive selloff and panic throughout the world.
Individuals have learned how to self diagnose and treat themselves by using the internet. More and more people are using search engines to find the answers to medical questions. According to M.D. Srini Pillay (a contributor to Psychology Today), “One of the greatest dangers of self diagnosis in psychological syndromes, is that you may miss a medical disease that masquerades as a psychiatric syndrome (Pillay, 2010).
Children are being affected by computer use. Author Jane Healy wrote in an article for The Technology Source and asks, “Are computers being used in age-appropriate ways? Do program designers take into account the developmental needs of children? Are teachers receiving sufficient technology training? Is "learning software" really what it purports to be, or is it simply "edutainment" that reinforces impulsive point-and-click behavior in the pursuit of a trivial goal?” (Jane Healy, 2000). Healy stresses that there is no replacement for the teacher in the classroom. Children still need to be able to think for themselves when solving problems.
Computers are having an impact on the environment as well. In a study conducted in 2007, researcher Simmone Fournier discovered that US landfills hold some 2 million used computer parts and that these parts contain harmful, mercury, lead, and cadmium (Fournier, 2007). Some countries recycle their computers but still have negative results. Fournier explains that countries who receive recycled computers use human labor with bare hands to remove toxic metal parts.
The computer age has benefits and drawbacks depending on your perspective. We may never know if the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. More research needs to be compiled and compared to make a true decision. In this authors opinion I feel that the benefits do outweigh the drawbacks but that is my ethos.
William M. Wood Jr.
September 11, 2010
Works Cited
Bureau, U. C. (2008). Computer and Internet Use in the United States: October 2007. Retrieved 9 10, 2010, from U.S. Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/population/www/socdemo/computer/2007.html
Fournier, S. (2007, 5 9). The Impact of Computers on the Environment. Retrieved 9 11, 2010, from UNU.EDU: http://update.unu.edu/archive/issue31_5.htm
Jane Healy, K. K. (2000, July). The Impact of Computers on Schools. Retrieved 9 11, 2010, from The Technology Source Archives at the University of North Carolina: http://technologysource.org/article/impact_of_computers_on_schools
Kanellos, M. (2004, 8 2). A billion PC users on the way. Retrieved 9 10, 2010, from CNET News: http://news.cnet.com/A-billion-PC-users-on-the-way/2100-1003_3-5290988.html
Money, C. (2010, 5 6). Glitches send Dow on wild ride. Retrieved 9 10, 2010, from CNN.com Market Report: http://money.cnn.com/2010/05/06/markets/markets_newyork/
Pillay, S. (2010, 5 3). Debunking Myths of the Mind. Retrieved 9 11, 2010, from Psychology Today: http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-dangers-self-diagnosis/201005/the-dangers-self-diagnosis