discussion 3541

Using Technology to Improve the Future

As addressed in the readings, technology has the potential to both solve global social problems and make them worse. For example, technological devices that can interact with the environment have the potential to reduce world hunger by helping to increase food production in developing countries. However, some technological advancements—such as weapons of war and automated assembly lines—can threaten life through armed conflict, and pollution of the environment can increase poverty by eliminating jobs.

Do advancements in technology pose any direct and/or indirect threats to the global environment? Choose one advancement and provide two examples of direct or indirect threats in your explanation.

Review the posts of your classmates and respond to at least one other post, offering a substantive comment on that classmate’s position on the issue(s).

Discussion Rubric

You can choose this alternate topic if you care to do so:

I would be remiss if we didn’t discuss the coronavirus. This is a topic we have been hearing about all term.

Here is a short video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTYfke545vI.

Do you think we are in danger? This is not to help spread panic, but information.

Separate how would you answer this students

Keyana Kirnon

RE: Week 8 | Discussion

Hello class,

After watching this video, I did learn a lot when it comes to what our bodies are doing when they are fighting off viruses. When we have a fever or runny nose, which are all symptoms of the Coronavirus it’s just our body trying to fight off the foreign presence in our body. As our core temperature rises it’s making it uncomfortable for the invader to stay and the mucus in our body makes it harder for the virus to attach to other cells to multiple. All the signs of the Coronavirus are like the common cold so it can be hard to detect without tests. In this video a 132 people have died from the virus, as of today the toll has reached 3,000 and 80,000 affected. I do think the United States is in danger of the virus spreading further here. According to the video our body has a good chance of fighting the virus off and many of the deaths effect people who have compromise immune systems, the elderly, and young children whose systems have not developed. This is still sad and scary but with 40,000 people dying of the flu just last year puts this into perspective more. If we take care of our health and keep our hands from our face we have a good chance of not contracting the virus.

https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/coronavirus-outbreak-death-toll-infections-latest-news-updates-2020-02-25/?intcid=CNI-00-10aaa3a

Raeshunn Williams

RE: Week 8 | Discussion

As we read in our text and other reading assignments, advancement in technology can have both direct and indirect threats to the global environment. Technology can make life easier and more comfortable for us if it is used properly. (1) short-term benefits from technology can have long-term negative consequences; (2) there can be unanticipated consequences of using technology; (3) the use of some types of technology in certain situations can be inappropriate; and (4) there are many problems that technology cannot solve.

One of the advancements that I felt that had direct threats was factory farming. This technology is a classic example of unanticipated consequences. The intentions were good, but it backfired. The techniques used in factory farming was cruel to animals. Because these animals were raised in dark and tight spaces, it breathes diseases, that caused them to become ill. These viruses then spread from animal to animal, the abundant amount of antibiotics then, was used to treat these diseases. Also, the overuse of antibiotics was intended to promote growth in food animals that caused humans to get sick when consumed. An article written by the New England Journal of Medicine found that antibiotic-resistant bacteria were widespread in meats and poultry sold, was found in consumers’ intestines. Because of this, many foodborne illnesses will not respond to the usual treatments and that some may be resistant to all current drugs available to treat it. This use of technology is a direct threat to animals and an indirect threat to humans through food consumption.