9 Humanity’s Reactions to the Uses and Effects of Technology

Overview: Optimism and Pessimism

Myths and legends tell of technology threatening the gods, or God, and humans suffering for their efforts. The legend of Prometheus tells of a Titan who, among other efforts to aid humanity, stole fire from the gods of Olympus. The technology enabled humans to survive at night or in cold weather, and to cook food. This theft of technology so angered Zeus that Prometheus was tied to a rock, and each day an eagle came and devoured his liver. (As an aside, Prometheus may be considered the progenitor of another, still rampant aspect of technology: theft).

Ranna, K. (2020, January 20). “The promethean curse: Is technology harming us or liberating us?” The Medium. https://medium.com/swlh/the-promethean-curse-is-technology-harming-us-or-liberating-us-777724f51ede)

According to Adrienne Mayor, a historian of science at Stanford University, the earliest themes of artificial intelligence, robots and self-moving objects appear in the work of ancient Greek poets Hesiod and Homer, who were alive somewhere between 750 and 650 B.C.

Shashkevich, A. (2019, February 28) “Stanford researcher examines earliest concepts of artificial intelligence, robots in ancient myths” Stanford News https://news.stanford.edu/2019/02/28/ancient-myths-reveal-early-fantasies-artificial-life/

…the earliest themes of artificial intelligence, robots and self-moving objects appear in the work of ancient Greek poets Hesiod and Homer, who were alive somewhere between 750 and 650 B.C.

In the biblical story of the Tower of Babel, humans attempt to use technology to build a structure intended to reach heaven. God thwarts this effort by disrupting humans’ communication technology, in this case the ability to speak with and understand each other.

(Sawday J. (2007) “The fortunes of babel: Technology, history, and genesis” 11:1–9. In: Killeen K., Forshaw P.J. (eds) The Word and the World. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230206472_11)

Such tales are not limited to the Western world. According to Jennifer Bourne, “Similar myths and stories are to be found in China too, where aspirations for advanced robots also appeared thousands of years ago. In a tale that appears in the Taoist text “Liezi,” which is attributed to the 5th-century BCE philosopher Lie Yukou, a technician named Yan Shi made a humanlike robot that could dance and sing and even dared to flirt with the king’s concubines. The king, angry and fearful, ordered the robot to be dismantled.”

Bourne, J (2021). “The ancient imagination behind China’s AI ambition.” Noema https://www.noemamag.com/the-ancient-imagination-behind-chinas-ai-ambition/

Technological Determinism

Technological Determinism is the theory that technology drives human society. The American economist and sociologist Thorstein Veblen (1857-1929), is credited with naming the concept. There are abundant examples that support the theory. Some, such as the invention of writing, are so fundamental and ancient to civilization as to be, to paraphrase determinist Marshal McLuhan, like water to a fish. It is so much a part of humanity that altering its impact is no longer possible.

Other technologies are more recent, and seem to be within humanity’s ability to make corrections. After centuries of developing and using certain technologies to produce electrical and mechanical power, we have realized that those technologies have caused significant harm. While we are unwilling to give up their benefits, we are working to enhance older technologies, such as wind and solar, to reduce or eliminate harmful effects. We can see, then, that the current debates about AI, its uses and effects falls clearly into Technological Determinism. Debates about AI and ethics, privacy, surveillance, and so forth, are debates about the future of society.

The internet has obviously changed society, but it was society that had the needs for which the technology could be adapted. There are scholars who disagree with the notion of Technological Determinism, arguing that society, in fact, develops and deploys technology, or, at the least, that there is an interaction between the two. The history of the internet might illustrate this. As we know, the internet came about in the late 1960s because of two different societal demands in the United States. The military was looking for ways to protect and restore its communications systems in the event of a nuclear attack. Scientists were seeking a way to expand computer capacity, especially to take advantage of mainframe computers at other locations that were otherwise idle, such as at night. Once the basics of the technology were demonstrated, capabilities (e-mail, bulletin boards, hypertext, graphical interfaces, and on and on). The internet has obviously changed society, but it was society that had the needs for which the technology could be adapted.

The Technological Fix: Solving ProblemsIn 1965, Alvin Weinberg, the longtime Director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, argued that an orientation to technological fixes could address future social problems. Weinberg suggested that using “big science,” such as the Apollo moon landing project could be used to solve important problems.

(Johnston, S. (2018). “Alvin weinberg and the promotion of the technological fix,” Technology and Culture, 59(3), 620–651).

Today, advocates argue that technology can be used to solve such problems as climate change, hunger, and homelessness. The rapid development of vaccines to fight against Covid-19 represents evidence that technological fixes are, in fact, often possible.

Within the context of AI, problems of automobile safety, education, and speed of manufacturing can be solved with that technology. However, illustrating that technology isn’t value-free, what some see as a problem to be solved, others see as a threat to society. Facial recognition can be said to help prevent crimes, but others would argue it leads to a surveillance, national security state.

Technophobia

Throughout history some societies, or elements of societies, have opposed the introduction or use of technologies. A technology may be seen as a threat to a “way of life.” More commonly, the technology is seen as threat to order or authority (authoritarian governments blocking internet access), to traditions of religion or social behavior (such as the Amish rejection of powered vehicles), or a real fear of harm (such as opposition to the construction of nuclear power plants).

Oscar Handlin argues that during the 18th and 19th century rise of industrialization attitudes towards technology were generally positive. He notes that authors such as Edward Bellamy saw the continuing growth and improvement in factories as leading to greater prosperity for all. According to Handlin, a growing separation between science and the general public led to public mistrust of science, and thus, technology.

(Handlin, O. (1965). Science and Technology in Popular Culture. Daedalus, 94(1), 156–170. https://www.jstor.org/stable/20026900)

“Indeed, a deep underlying distrust of science runs through the accepted attitudes of people in the most advanced nations. Paradoxically, the bubbling retorts, the sparkling wires and the mysterious dials are often regarded as the source of a grave threat. Their white-coated manipulators, in the popular image, have ominously seized a power which they may use to injure mankind.” (p 160)

A term commonly applied to such opponents of technology is “Luddite,” named for Ned Ludd, an early 19th century leader of a group of textile workers who opposed the introduction of new technologies in that industry.

Indeed, a deep underlying distrust of science runs through the accepted attitudes of people in the most advanced nations. In common parlance, the term “Luddite” means someone who is anti-technology, or maybe, just not adept at using technology. Historically, however, the Luddite  movement was a reaction born of industrial accidents and dangerous machines, poor working conditions, and the fact that there were no unions to represent worker interests during England’s initial period of industrialization. The Luddites did not hate technology; they only channeled their anger toward machine-breaking because it had nowhere else to go.

(Cherry, M. A. (2021, January 15). The future encyclopedia of luddism. https://Thereader.Mitpress.Mit.Edu/the-Future-Encyclopedia-of-Luddism/. https://thereader.mitpress.mit.edu/the-future-encyclopedia-of-luddism/)

In contemporary times opposition to technology may not be total, but, rather, to its location. Often referred to as “nimbyism,” (not in my backyard), such opposition may manifest against a factory or power plant, a road, or to airport flight paths. A very recent example is the destruction of 5G wireless antenna sites and threats to engineers and technicians  in various countries by those who believed the radio transmissions were causing or spreading the Covid 19 virus.

Must it be One or the Other?

Wired, founded in 1993, has chronicled the rise and fall of optimistic and pessimistic views of technology, with a lean towards the optimistic, and even “gee whiz” cheering. Recently, the new editor, Gideon Lichfield, wrote, “Both the optimist and pessimist views of tech miss the point. The lesson of the last 30-odd years is not that we were wrong to think tech could make the world a better place. Rather, it’s that we were wrong to think tech itself was the solution—and that we’d now be equally wrong to treat tech as the problem.

It’s not only possible, but normal, for a technology to do both good and harm at the same time. A hype cycle that makes quick billionaires and leaves a trail of failed companies in its wake may also lay the groundwork for a lasting structural shift (exhibit A: the first dotcom bust). An online platform that creates community and has helped citizens oust dictators (Facebook) can also trap people in conformism and groupthink and become a tool for oppression.” (“Welcome to the New Wired,” e-mail message, January 4, 2022.)