Technology, Science, Society
David Maurer
Issue date: 8/20/08 Section: Opinion
The driving force for innovation has shifted from the study of individual things to the methodical analysis of copies. The growing need to analyze large amounts of data, removes individuals from the knowledge obtained through experimentation. With the arrival of computers, the ability to gather, store, and process data has increased drastically. Society moves farther from its roots in knowledge and understanding.
Learning was altered by the physical discoveries of the 17th Century, which form the heart of both history and physics (engrng.pitt.edu). The pondering of individual things has been lost to experimental science, where results are collected from copies of a situation with single variations. To learn new things from the same copies, there is an increasing demand for more accurate data collection and analysis. In recording data from the collisions within particle accelerators, scientists use chains of computers to collect terabytes of data for each collision (NSF). After processing these mountains of data, new theories and conclusions are extrapolated through computer.
At Kettering, every student at some point utilizes or derives conclusions from studying copies created to represent the whole. As accuracy increases, copies show results that are more varied, so the number of possible answers multiplies. This increases the need for tediously long calculations. To save time, tools are used to do the work. (ece.vt.edu) In physics and chemistry, digital devices are almost a necessity for any reasonable data collection. In sociology, complex equations are derived directly from population samples to represent statistical trends for the whole. To clarify language and simplify assignments, written work is more often done via PC than by hand. Increased computer use has improved communications, allowing many people to share data and increase productivity. However, this connectivity can also create a dependence on it, as people start to rely on answers from "somewhere else" (ece.vt.edu2). As an educational tool, combining snippets of knowledge from across the world reduces the language barrier. The combination provides knowledge and "intelligence" that could never be obtained individually, since the group is smarter than the smartest individual (247wallst). Unfortunately, the actual comprehension lags behind the knowledge available, so individuals are less able to make use of it. The perfect sharing of knowledge would include not just good, but bad and private information as well. Simple misunderstandings can mislead large groups who expect it to be correct. Yet this free-flow of knowledge allows for advancement beyond what was possible before. So in order to prevent misunderstandings from the data available, proxies should be created to prevent misinformation. However, thorough proxies would further suppress the accomplishments of individuals. Radical new ideas, as deviating from established knowledge, would be considered misinformation and be suppressed.
Learning was altered by the physical discoveries of the 17th Century, which form the heart of both history and physics (engrng.pitt.edu). The pondering of individual things has been lost to experimental science, where results are collected from copies of a situation with single variations. To learn new things from the same copies, there is an increasing demand for more accurate data collection and analysis. In recording data from the collisions within particle accelerators, scientists use chains of computers to collect terabytes of data for each collision (NSF). After processing these mountains of data, new theories and conclusions are extrapolated through computer.
At Kettering, every student at some point utilizes or derives conclusions from studying copies created to represent the whole. As accuracy increases, copies show results that are more varied, so the number of possible answers multiplies. This increases the need for tediously long calculations. To save time, tools are used to do the work. (ece.vt.edu) In physics and chemistry, digital devices are almost a necessity for any reasonable data collection. In sociology, complex equations are derived directly from population samples to represent statistical trends for the whole. To clarify language and simplify assignments, written work is more often done via PC than by hand. Increased computer use has improved communications, allowing many people to share data and increase productivity. However, this connectivity can also create a dependence on it, as people start to rely on answers from "somewhere else" (ece.vt.edu2). As an educational tool, combining snippets of knowledge from across the world reduces the language barrier. The combination provides knowledge and "intelligence" that could never be obtained individually, since the group is smarter than the smartest individual (247wallst). Unfortunately, the actual comprehension lags behind the knowledge available, so individuals are less able to make use of it. The perfect sharing of knowledge would include not just good, but bad and private information as well. Simple misunderstandings can mislead large groups who expect it to be correct. Yet this free-flow of knowledge allows for advancement beyond what was possible before. So in order to prevent misunderstandings from the data available, proxies should be created to prevent misinformation. However, thorough proxies would further suppress the accomplishments of individuals. Radical new ideas, as deviating from established knowledge, would be considered misinformation and be suppressed.
Be the first to comment on this story