To know what you know, and what you do not know — this is knowledge. — Confucius

The accomplishments of the 20th century are revolutionising science and technology in the 21st. The rate and pace of technological advancements is following an exponential growth; the convergence of multiple-disciplines will lead to a significant impact on society. As the global economy continues to be driven by the new technological advancements, the stakeholders, policy and decision-makers of the future need to be educated about the social implication of technology at the local and global level so that they can guide society to the appropriate uses of technology, alert society to technological failures, and provide a vision to society in helping to solve societal problems in a wise and humane manner.

Technology and Society: Issues for the 21st century and beyond presents an array of readings that provide historical perspectives and introduce readers to new and emerging technologies and discuss their social implications. The text offers multifaceted perspectives and viewpoints to promote inquiry and includes such topics as history of technology, ethics and technology, energy, ecology, population, war and technology, health and technology, as well as technology of the future. The text also promotes active learning by using innovative learning tools and strategies such as flowcharts, web-based exercises, case studies and scenarios. Each section of the book is supported by a variety of features intended to supplement and compliment learning, critical analysis and social awareness.

Part one, ‘The History of Technology’, presents a diverse collection of views covering technological history, anthropology and the ethical development of technology. The diversity presented within this chapter encourages reader to try to clarify and sort out the many ways in which technology can be used and integrated into society. The section begins with a brief introduction, followed by an extensive timeline highlighting technology from its most primitive form to the most sophisticated.

The second part, ‘Ethics and Technology’, introduces ethics and its position within technological development. It confronts the need for ethical behaviour when developing, marketing and using technology. It is easy to forget that machines, no matter how sophisticated, and no matter how liberating in terms of the work they do for us, do not know the difference between right and wrong. Paul Alcorn discusses the relationship between ethics and technology. He defines technology, explains the evolution of technology and then explains the ethical choices correlated to technological development.

Kohlberg’s model of cognitive moral development is explained and correlated to ethical decision making. Trevino’s interactionist model explains the process of ethical decision making based on individual perception and situational variables.

Part three investigates the impact of technology on energy development and conservation. The chapters in this section provide a survey of renewable and non-renewable energy technologies and discuss the issues and challenges of economic growth within the domains of sustainable environment. The first chapter ‘Fossil Fuel Fundamentals’ provides a global perspective of fossil fuel resources and explores the issues of energy production and consumption, America’s dependence on fossil fuel, and the advantages and disadvantages of fossil fuels. The second chapter ‘Energy for a New Century’ presents a perspective on the new energy strategies for the 21st century. The third chapter ‘Immortal Waste’ provides an introduction to the problem of nuclear waste. The fourth chapter ‘Oil and Blood: The way to take over the world’ presents a historical perspective for the invasion of Iraq. The fifth chapter ‘Fuel Cell Technology and hydrogen Economy’ presents a review of fuel cell technology. The sixth chapter ‘The Hydrogen Experiment’ discusses Iceland’s migration towards a hydrogen society. Case Study 1 ‘Chernobyl’ discusses the reasons that led to the nuclear accident at Chernobyl. And Case Study 2 ‘Tasman Spirit Oil Spill’ discusses the impact of oil spill on the ecology of beaches in Karachi.

Part four, ‘Ecology’, provides an overview with three key points: (1) by defining ecology as the examination and effect of the mutual relationship between organisms and the environment, (2) by giving a brief historical US view regarding the environmental movement beginning from Earth Day 1970 and (3) by outlining world ecological issues according to risk. High risk finds include habitat destruction, global warming, ozone layer depletion, species extinction and biological diversity. Medium risk issues include herbicides and pesticides, surface water pollution, and airborne toxic substances. Lower risk ecological issues are oil spills, radioactive materials, and ground water pollution. A narrative summary of the high risk issues of habitat destruction, species extinction, global warming and ozone layer along with an economic view of ecology conclude the introduction.
 

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It is easy to forget that machines, no matter how sophisticated, and no matter how liberating in terms of the work they do for us, do not know the difference between right and wrong.
 

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Part five, ‘Population’, gives the readers a sense of population history, population escalation numbers and population theories so that the reader begins to have a sense of the numbers and meaning of the exponential growth patterns that we are now experiencing. The introduction also gives internet addresses for the current second by second population clock and projection numbers so that students can witness, in real time, the second by second changing population patterns and apply theories and patterns from these actual numbers.

Part six, ‘War and Technology’, looks at the way technology is used in war, the institutions which provide military technologies, and the people who use them. War has been a way to settle disputes for centuries. But with each passing year the wars seemed to last longer and cost more, almost to the point that the winner could hardly be distinguished from the loser. Technology has been seen by some as the way to end war; not just by agreeing that unleashing weapons of mass destruction would be wrong, but by using technology to ensure that once a war is started, it will end, and end quickly. Some nations see nothing improper in spending billions of dollars to perfect weapons systems and enriching corporate venders and deferring needed public projects in the process in order to develop a weapons system which will give them the edge.

Part seven, ‘Health and Technology’, encourages readers to analyse how daily living decisions can have negative effects on their health. For example, antibiotics may lack effectiveness because of the emergence of bacteria that is resistant to them. The buildings that people work and live in can cause serious illness due to the mold, monoxides, pesticides, ozone and radon contained in them. What about the food that is digested, does it really make individuals healthy and strong? Maybe it depends on how the food was manufactured. Are the foods that are eaten grown naturally or genetically? This part evaluates genetically modified foods and debates their safety. Should human clones exist? Both sides of this controversial issue are discussed in detail. Another controversial issue discussed is political and global responses to HIV and Aids.

Part eight, ‘Technology and the Third World’, presents an overview of the state and impact of technology in the developing world. ‘One Planet: Many Worlds’ provides a historical perspective on the developed and the developing countries, and the status of technology in the third world. ‘Income Gap Widens’ explores the economic disparity between the first and the third world. ‘China’s challenge to the United States and to the Earth’ compares China with United States in terms of population, oil consumption and carbon emissions, and examines the environmental cost of China’s economic growth. ‘N30 WTO Showdown’ discusses the implications of globalisation. ‘Pakistan: Karachi’s Informal Recycling Network’ provides an account of the efficient use of recycling in a developing country. ‘Sri Lanka: Technology and Agriculture, Tractor versus Buffalo’ examines the impact of replacing traditional animal power by modern tractors on the ecology and the environment of Sri Lanka. ‘Appropriate Technologies’ explores various technologies that could be used by the third world countries for developing the requisite infrastructures for promoting economic growth. ‘Harnessing the Wind’ discusses the use of wind power for satisfying the growing demand for power in Indonesia, Mexico, India and China.

Part nine, ‘Technology and the Future’, begins by crossing over the bridge into the 21st century and envisioning a preferred future. Specific case studies examine new technological applications that will affect the medical, military, and ecological aspects of our lives. The readings also focus on predictions of future developments. This part also explores specific technologies in information technology and medicine as well as the military and concludes by examining the progress of global future world development efforts and re-examining population growth estimates. These issues and their analysis relate to such technological issues of the future such as microprocessor miniaturisation, optical networks, gene alteration, nanotechnology, and artificial intelligence, along with pressing ethical and social issues of the 21st century.

One of the unique features of the book is the incorporation of flowcharts as logical, interactive maps that emphasise the problems, possible solutions and points of direction and significance of the chapters and case studies. Each chapter contains numerous data tables, statistics, list of websites, and images to supplement and enhance the content of the chapter material. The book concludes with commentaries from authors, describing their own views on how to interpret steps into the future. The book is a must read for technical and non-technical seekers of knowledge.