Full Description
This edition of "Annual Editions: Computers in Society" is a compilation of articles from public press sources as Technology Review, Communications of the ACM, and Training. It looks at the use of computers and the increasingly important roles they play in our lives. These selections examine the role computers play in our economy, our workplaces, our social institutions and explore the implications for social interaction and social values.
Contents
UNIT 1. Introduction 1. From Movable Type to Data Deluge, John Gehl and Suzanne Douglas, The World & I, January 1999 The authors discuss the societal transformation that began with the invention of the printing press in the fifteenth century and speculate on some potential consequences of the "digital revolution." 2. Whom to Protect and How?, Robert J. Blendon et al., Brookings Review, Winter 2001 "The United States," the authors say, "is now in the second stage of a major technological transformation" that is changing American life. Some people are calling for more federal government protection. 3. Five Things We Need to Know About Technological Change, Neil Postman, McGraw-Hill/Dushkin, 2003 Neil Postman, a well-known cultural critic, suggests that computer technology is too important to be left entirely to the technologists. "Embedded in every technology," he says, "is a powerful idea..." UNIT 2. The Economy 4. Beyond the Bar Code, Charlie Schmidt, Technology Review, March 2001 Charlie Schmidt explains how radio frequency identification tags may someday be able to track the location of "every single manufactured item" in real time. This will allow manufacturers to stay in sync with consumer demand, collect a wealth of data about individual consumer habits, and pose new challenges to privacy. 5. How You'll Pay, Evan I. Schwartz, Technology Review, December 2002/January 2003 Smart cards can now be used to store medical data, debit bank accounts, authenticate identity, and decrypt e-mail. The potential profits are enormous, but so are the hurdles. 6. You've Got Spam, Jonathan Krim, Washington Post National Weekly Edition, March 24--30, 2003 "Roughly 40 percent of all e-mail traffic in the United States is spam," according to Jonathan Krim. He explains how unsolicited messages find your computer and what the computer industry is doing to control this scourge. 7. Start-Up Finds Technology Slump Works in Its Favor, John Markoff, New York Times, March 24, 2003 This short piece showcases the ingenuity of one entrepreneur who sells software to block spam. 8. The Computer and the Dynamo, Brian Hayes, American Scientist, September/October 2001 Not long ago California suffered under rolling blackouts and startlingly high electric bills. Soon, Americans began hearing that the culprit was not deregulation and energy traders like Enron but, rather, the "gluttonous energy appetite of computers." This struck Brian Hayes as "quite remarkable." 9. Bringing Linux to the Masses, Fred Vogelstein, Fortune, February 3, 2003 Could the Linux operating system, long the province of geeks, emerge as a challenge to Microsoft Windows? UNIT 3. Work and the Workplace 10. Brain Circulation: How High-Skill Immigration Makes Everyone Better Off, AnnaLee Saxenian, Brookings Review, Winter 2002 Do immigrants displace native workers? Is the United States siphoning off talent from countries that can ill afford to lose it? This Berkeley professor argues that high-skill immigration is more complex than that. 11. The Perils of E-Mail, Nicholas Varchaver, Fortune, February 17, 2003 "Think of e-mail as the corporate equivalent of DNA evidence, the single hair left at the crime scene that turns the entire case." Several recent high-profile corporate scandals have hinged on e-mail, as Nicholas Varchaver reports. 12. The Great Prosperity Divide, Kevin Dobbs, Training, February 2000 "Two Americas" have emerged in the new economy. Kevin Dobbs shows how new technologies lead to wider social inequality and asks whether publicly funded training can help those who are being left behind in the new economy. 13. "You're Hired, Now Go Home", Jeanne L. Allert, Training & Development, March 2001 Because virtual companies lack a physical place, they have to rewrite a lot of rules or make up new ones in hiring employees. Drawing from experience, Jeanne Allert offers advice on "how to hire virtual workers and keep them connected." 14. Dealing With Tech Rage, Chris Wood, Maclean's, March 19, 2001 If you ever feel like hurling your computer out the window, you are not alone. Chris Wood explains how quirky software, e-mail overload, and other technology-related irritations can lead to rage or techno-stress. 15. They're Watching You, Sarah Boehle, Training, August 2000 A majority of U.S. firms record and review some form of employee communications, and the number is expanding rapidly. In this article, Sarah Boehle asks and answers the question, "What's behind this rush to Orwellian oversight?" 16. Security vs. Privacy, Jonathan A. Segal, HR Magazine, February 2002 In this first part of a two-part series, a lawyer advises employers about how to violate employee privacy within legal parameters. Here, Jonathan Segal offers guidance on how to design policies that give employers the right to "search" employees (including their electronic communications). 17. Searching for Answers, Jonathan A. Segal, HR Magazine, March 2002 In this second part of a two-part article, Jonathan Segal tells employers how to be "circumspect" and to respect employees' privacy rights when implementing the right to search. UNIT 4. Computers, People, and Social Participation 18. Is That a Computer in Your Pants?, Jesse Walker, Reason, April 2003 "We're entering a world in which the complexity of devices and the system of interconnecting devices is beyond our capability to easily understand," says veteran tech observer Howard Rheinhold in this interview with Reason. 19. Do Cheaters Ever Prosper? Just Ask Them, Peter Wayner, New York Times, March 27, 2003 "One lesson the game industry learned the hard way," says Peter Wayner, "is that dedicated cheats will rewrite software to give themselves an advantage." 20. Why Women Avoid Computer Science, Paul De Palma, Communications of the ACM, June 2001 In this essay, Paul De Palma criticizes the view that women avoid computer science because of "math anxiety." He argues, rather, that women "embrace" mathematics and that computer science programs would attract more women if they were more like math. 21. Cyber-Stars, Black Issues in Higher Education, February 28, 2002 This special report profiles 10 African Americans who are "making history in the arena of information technology." These individuals are making major contributions in a wide range of academic fields as well as working to help disadvantaged minorities succeed in the digital revolution. 22. The World According to Google, Steven Levy, Newsweek, December 16, 2002 When a company name, "Google," becomes a transitive verb, "to google someone" in just a few short years, you know that something big is happening. UNIT 5. Societal Institutions: Law and Politics 23. Bad Documents Can Kill You, Valli Baldassano and Roy Speed, Across the Board, September/October 2001 Increasingly, companies that become targets of legal actions find that "Exhibit A against them is their own employees' written correspondence ... and in more and more cases, the starring role is played by e-mail." In this article, a former prosecutor and an expert on business writing offer advice on the do's and don'ts of e-mail and how to legally prevent bad documents. 24. The Digital Dilemma, Randall Davis, Communications of the ACM, February 2001 Intellectual property laws, policies, and practices reflect a careful balancing of public good and private interests that is threatened by the changing information infrastructure. Focusing on publication, copyright, and licensing issues, Randall Davis identifies the origins and possible solutions to this emerging dilemma. 25. The Control of Ideas, George Scialabba, The American Prospect, January 28, 2002 George Scialabba, in his review of two books, offers a rebuttal to arguments favoring strong intellectual property protections. "A specter is haunting culture," he says, "the specter of intellectual-property law." 26. Democracy in an IT-Framed Society, Ake Gronlund, Communications of the ACM, January 2001 The January 2001 issue of the CACM featured several articles on electronic democracy. Here, guest editor Ake Gronlund gives readers an overview of the subject and highlights various authors' contributions to understanding e-democracy in the areas of formal politics, administration, and civil society. 27. Should Democracy Online Be Quick, Strong, or Thin?, Joachim Astrom, Communications of the ACM, January 2001 In this article, Joachim Astrom outlines three models of democracy. Each model embodies different ideals and implies different interpretations of what an electronic manifestation of government by the people might look like. 28. As Goes Software..., The Economist, April 14, 2001 The institutional structure of the Internet may help solve some of the regulatory issues that networked computers raise. 29. Governing the Internet, Zoe Baird, Foreign Affairs, November/December 2002 "A reliance on markets and self-policing has failed to address ... the important interests of Internet users such as privacy protection, security, and access to diverse content," says Zoe Baird. It is necessary for governments to step in. UNIT 6. Risk and Security 30. Homeland Insecurity, Charles C. Mann, The Atlantic Monthly, September 2002 Charles Mann learns from computer security expert Bruce Schneier that "the trick is to remember that technology can't save you." 31. Are You the Weak Link?, Kevin D. Mitnick, Harvard Business Review, April 2003 Kevin Mitnick spent 5 years in federal prison for computer crimes. He says that in the rush to invest in ever more sophisticated security technologies, companies have "neglected the weakest link: employees." 32. Code Red for the Web, Carolyn Meinel, Scientific American, October 2001 In July 2001, "more than 359,000 servers were infected with the Code Red Worm in less than 14 hours." Carolyn Meinel explains how the worm was spread and the damage it caused. She also reports on more virulent plagues in the making and the possibilities of future cyberwars and their potential consequences. 33. Networking the Infrastructure, Wade Roush, Technology Review, December 2001 Several federal agencies and private industry partnerships are working to improve warning systems and reduce threats posed by terrorism. In this article, Wade Roush gives us an overview of developing innovations that will lead to intelligent cities that can better protect critical infrastructures. 34. Will Spyware Work?, Kevin Hogan, Technology Review, December 2001 The United States has the world's most sophisticated intelligence-gathering technologies, yet it "failed to discover a band of terrorists that plotted within its borders." Kevin Hogan explains the limits of electronic surveillance. State-of-the-art spyware can be stymied by "embarassingly primitive" countermeasures, and technologies such as FBI Carnivore programs may not solve these problems. 35. The Shock of the Old, Edward Tenner, Technology Review, December 2001 Edward Tenner discusses the September 11, 2001, attacks in the context of other historical events. He argues that the focus on new technology as both a source of vulnerability and an answer to problems can go too far. Rather, we should concentrate on improving tacit knowledge and developing a better understanding of terrorists and their neighbors. 36. Data Extinction, Claire Tristram, Technology Review, October 2002 Underscoring the point that technology has limitations, Claire Tristram explains that documents created by obsolete digital equipment are inaccessible. UNIT 7. International Perspectives and Issues 37. Immigration and the Global IT Workforce, Lawrence A. West and Walter A. Bogumil, Communications of the ACM, July 2001 There is a worldwide shortage of information technology (IT) workers. Wealthy nations offer attractive incentives to lure IT specialists from other countries, but this strategy can exacerbate IT labor shortages in disadvantaged parts of the world. Therefore, IT may contribute to a "pervasive gap in the wealth-creation potential between nations." 38. Wiring the Wilderness in Alaska and the Yukon, Seymour E. Goodman, James B. Gottstein, and Diane S. Goodman, Communications of the ACM, June 2001 In theory, wireless technologies have advanced to where Internet access could become available to isolated parts of the world. The authors consider communities in Alaska and the Yukon and discuss technical, political, social, and cost factors in providing Internet access to remote villages. 39. The Quiet Revolution, Suelette Dreyfus, The UNESCO Courier, March 2001 In many nations, human rights groups are learning the art of encryption. Other computer applications are allowing organizations to track abuses with scientific rigor. Such developments are subtly changing the balance of power between repressive governments and the human rights groups that watch them. 40. Dot Com for Dictators, Shanthi Kalathil, Foreign Policy, March/April 2003 According to Shanthi Kalathil, "Many authoritarian regimes have realized that adapting to the information age means relinquishing a measure of control." 41. ACM's Computing Professionals Face New Challenges, Ben Shneiderman, Communications of the ACM, February 2002 In light of September 11, 2001, a computer scientist challenges technologists to help find terrorism solutions that avoid sacrificing valued liberties. Ben Shneiderman encourages colleagues to work toward preventing terrorism, strengthening communities, broadening participation, and reducing global inequities. UNIT 8. Philosophical Frontiers 42. Humanoid Robots, Rodney Brooks, Communications of the ACM, March 2002 "The future promises lots of robots in our everyday lives." Many of them may look and behave like people. Rodney Brooks gives us a brief overview of robot history as well as current and future developments in humanoid robotics. 43. The Real Scientific Hero of 1953, Steven Strogatz, New York Times, March 4, 2003 March 2003 was the 50th anniversary of the concept of a computer experiment, the idea that nature may be understood by running simulations on a computer. Real progress in many areas of medicine "will require a melding of both great discoveries of 1953," the other being the structure of DNA. 44. The Race to Computerise Biology, The Economist, December 14--20, 2002 "Wet lab processes that took weeks to complete are giving way to digital research done in silico." This marriage is called "bioinformatics." Though powerful drugs are the promise, the danger "is that it is seductively easy for bioligists to rely on ... computers and to ignore the scientific grind of hypothesis and proof." 45. Kurzweil vs. Dertouzos, Ray Kurzweil and Michael Dertouzos, Technology Review, January/February 2001 Two renowned commentators on the social implications of technology contribute to the debate about whether some kinds of knowledge are too dangerous to pursue. Both agree that we cannot judge where new technologies are headed. 46. Hyperculture Stress: How Fast Times Are Transforming America, Stephen Bertman, Vital Speeches of the Day, January 15, 1999 Modern technologies accelerate the pace of life, inducing speed-driven stress and altering the fundamental nature of existence argues Stephen Bertman.
