Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
FIGURE 1.2
The Amish carefully evaluate new technologies, choosing those that enhance
family and community solidarity.
(AP photo/
The Indianapolis Star and News,
Mike Fender)
The Amish understand that the adoption of a new technology can affect the way
people relate to each other (Figure 1.2). Amish bishops meet twice a year to discuss mat-
ters of importance to the church, including whether any new technologies should be
allowed. Their discussion about a new technology is driven by the question, “Does it
bring us together, or draw us apart?” You can visit an “Old Order” Amish home and
find a gas barbecue on the front porch but no telephone inside, because they believe gas
barbecues bring people together while telephones interfere with face-to-face conversa-
tions [6].
New technologies are adopted to solve problems, but they often create problems,
too. The automobile has given people the ability to travel where they want, when they
want. On the other hand, millions of people spend an hour or more each day stuck in
traffic commuting between home and work. Refrigerators make it possible for us to keep
food fresh for long periods of time. We save time because we don't have to go grocery
shopping every day. Unfortunately, Freon leaking from refrigerators has contributed to
the depletion of the ozone layer that protects us from harmful ultraviolet rays. New
communication technologies have made it possible for us to get access to news and
entertainment from around the world. However, the same technologies have enabled
major software companies to move thousands of jobs to India, China, and Vietnam,
putting downward pressure on the salaries of computer programmers in the United
States [7].
We may not be able to prevent a new technology from being invented, but we
do have control over whether to adopt it. Nuclear power is a case in point. Nuclear
power plants create electricity without producing carbon dioxide emissions, but they
also produce radioactive waste products that must be safely stored for 100,000 years.
