Is it Sustainable that we continue on our current path of Technological Development?
Let’s look at the effects of societies rate in technological development.
I will be discussing both the positive and negative impacts of trying to sustain our rate of new technology.
As a child, I spent school holiday afternoons binging shows on Cartoon Network. A favourite program was “The Jetsons” imagined flying cars, robot maids and other possibilities of a future filled with technology.
Whilst we may not have achieved many of the imagined digital developments in society suggested by The Jetsons, we have come a long way in advancing technological opportunities providing new methods of communication, education and more. Our developments have put futures at risks.
Will all our career opportunities be taken by AI? Are companies at risk by depending on AI that still has risks in the system?
Here is what the experts have found!
According to The American Sociological Association, the estimated percentage of jobs replaced by AI is greater than the true percentage (Dahlin, 2022). The below graph shows predictions by employees who had lost their jobs vs employees who had not lost their jobs. The blue dotted line is the true % displaying only 14% were replaced by AI.
Despite the true statistics being lower than participants of the study predicted, 14% of people being replaced by AI are still 14% of people who know longer gain an income.
Whilst this data seems alarming, Professor Gary Mortimer of Queensland University of Technology, shared with Yahoo!News in April, 2022, “We always believe that self-serve takes away jobs in a supermarket, but it doesn’t. All that’s happened is its dispersed roles from the front of the store into other areas of the store.”
According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Paul Zahra, chief executive of Australian Retailers Association confirmed the dispersement of staff and even suggested a growth in employment numbers across the retail industry.
Overall, as data suggests, the potential risks to society as a whole with the increase of Technological Development are being managed well. It is encouraging to sight large corporations are observing data of both production and people flow to promote and protect a sustainable future.
References
Drane, C., Vernon, L., & O’Shea, S. (2020). The impact of ‘learning at home’ on the educational outcomes of vulnerable children in Australia during the COVID-19 pandemic. National Centre for Student Equity in Higher Education, Curtin University. https://www.ncsehe.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/NCSEHE_V2_Final_literaturereview-learningathome-covid19-final_30042020.pdf
Middis, J. (2022, April 9). Are self-serve checkouts killing
jobs? Coles and Woolworths respond. Yahoo!News. https://au.news.yahoo.com/are-self-serve-checkouts-killing-jobs-coles-and-woolworths-respond-005407001.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAA5wcvpXCZmDqXAZKo-NtithsJuy_68zIajpI0iJJiBrEwX4JLJt6d7F5ege1J6zSMHk2oqBroKP4zxyIxgYRi8VKO9hJPjz0XvQ31l9oKADxD94xLFNRiizjyBb8BSMRGzKO8yj7r-h2kou_-MlrlOE2bo-TK1wGRG1nCRJ2ugB