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Introduction
Introduction
Technology has many benefits and drawbacks. Technology can be extremely damaging to the planet in the form of air, soil, water, even light and noise pollution, however it can also be used wisely in ways that can create impressive and positive impacts for humans, society, and even nature.
The important distinctions are how we use technology, and what we do with those materials when a piece of technology is no longer needed, fails, or breaks.
Dangers of Technology
Dangers of Technology
Addiction & Over-Reliance
Addiction & Over-Reliance
AI
AI
Some people seem to consider AI to be "smart" or even self aware, and this can lead to assumptions about how it works. This in turn can be dangerous in that people may grow to rely on it too heavily, while it develops more problems over time.
These problems can include:
Hallucinations in the AI
"Lying" and attempting to cover up the "lies"
General dishonesty, usually while appearing totally confident
Going rogue - for example therapy-focused chat bots that try to convince people to kill themselves, or that engage in inappropriate conversations with minors.
Companies firing seasoned workers for AI that is poorly trained and inevitably develops "dementia" over time.
Over-Reliance on Cars
Over-Reliance on Cars
As car-ownership continues to grow around the world, so does the air pollution, noise pollution, light pollution, and congestion problems that they bring with them. Most communities were built long before the invention of cars, meaning that their streets are far too narrow, for such large vehicles, so more cars and trucks means less space for the people who live in those communities, which leads to more accidents and other causes of death.
Energy Use & Pollution
Energy Use & Pollution
Mining
Mining
Mining uses a significant amount of energy, in addition to contributing to air, soil, and water pollution.
Threats to Privacy
Threats to Privacy
Not only can we accidentally give away data that makes it easier for scammers, criminals, and stalkers to take advantage of us via apps and social media, but shady corporations, untrustworthy governments, and other groups can college data about us and use it or sell it to the highest bidder.
Solutions
Solutions
Reduce
Reduce
First consider if you genuinely need technology for tasks or activities. Things like language learning apps can be fun, but books are often better quality and provide more in-depth learning opportunities. Does your swale project actually need an industrial-sized digger, or could you take a little longer to dig, while also preserving delicate roots of local trees and save the emissions that would have been spent getting the digger to and from your site as well as the running emissions?
Instead of owning many devices, can you cut back to one device that performs multiple duties. For example a tablet that holds all your books, games, and that you can use for work or school, vs an entire gaming PC if you wouldn't need that much processing power.
Reuse
Reuse
Instead of buying new technology, seek our your options for resold and refurbished technology. A brand new car instantly looses a massive percent of it's value the moment it is driven from the sales lot, but second hand cars can significantly save both money and resources.
Organizations
Organizations
The following are directories to organizations, companies, and networks working to recycle various types of technology. Some include educations programs or other work related to improving society and our relationship with technologies.
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Google Sites
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