Peng's Home work

1. Introduction
Science and technology brings huge transformation to several aspects of the world. Since the first and second industrial revolution from the 18th to the19th century, productivity had been increased tremendously via the application of mechanical installation. Economic application of electricity rapidly expedites the industrialization all over the world. The third revolution, happened in the late 19th, is also known as information revolution, or digital age. It developed automation that allowed labor’s working environment more comfortable. Moreover, innovations during this period made the communication among people more convenient. Science and technology may affect other aspects as well, for instance, culture, life style, and health and education. Actually, when benefit has been brought by the development of science and technology, disadvantages also occurred at the same time.

The aim of this essay is to describe the effect that caused by technology focusing on three different aspects, environment, culture and the quality of life. In each part, both advantage and disadvantage will be described separately.

2. The impact of first industrial revolution
From the 18th to mid-20th century, industrial revolution, the major changes in agriculture and social sciences. Creativity rapidly accelerates the development of human.

Innovation is basic of human development. During the industrial revolution the appearance of new machines brings many benefits to human life. It has an unimaginative influence to human’s daily life. For instance, in eighteenth century, Jethro Tull who is a British, improve the seed drill (a device for sowing seeds effectively) increasing the productivity on agriculture liberating the labor from the field to work in the new industrial factories. Labor from rural place to urban, it provides labor with more conveniences in their daily life. The development in market leads to assemble goods people have more convenience to transaction for their vital commodity.

The development not only made changes in technical innovation but also in social sciences. Take economics for example, in the 18th century, Adam smith’s The Wealth of Nations developed the new economic theory. His classical political economic theory “invisible hand (the theory of production, distribution and exchange of goods in a market)” is the basic theory, which the contemporary economists have held.

The technology development frees the farmer from the land work to mill. To help them get high level life quality. The new theory makes the development social science, the new policy lead to the efficient allocation of scarce resources.

3. the impact of second industrial revolution

In second industrial revolution the chemical industries, electrical industries and automotive industries had a gradually growth. But the major affection of the electric age was society and culture.

The application of electrical equipment reduces the distance between people lead to increase of information transmission speed. Marshall McLuhan analyzed that the social and cultural impact of the electric age, made a special view that is “global village”. This had major impact on the communication and educational theory.

4. The negative impact on environment and culture

Although quick development benefits people, it also brings many harmful affect on human. Especially, environment and culture be harmfully influenced by quick development.

The use of steam power consumes substantial coal and the appearance of internal combustion engines during industrial revolution had almost destroyed the environment. To conflagrate fossil fuel causes critical air pollution. The emission of harmful gas such as, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide had been damaged mankind. For instance, in 1952, pollutants from factories and home fireplaces mixed with air condensation killed at least 4,000 people in London over the course of several days.

The transport industry had a large change, the appearance of railway were allocated production factors effectively. Whilst it also enhanced communicate between mankind. Efficient allocation of resources accelerated the industrialization. The ship industrial expends the European activity area from inshore to the other continents.

The demand of cheap labor force during the industrial development promoted the slave trade to the peak in the late 18 century. Europeans relied on advanced weapons and shipping technology making the largest number of Africa residents become slave. Ronald Segal (1995) assumed that there were about 12 million Africans were transport to the Americas from the 16th to the 19th centuries. This kind of events almost destroyed the culture of Africa.

We are in digital age (also be known as information age), the development of internet and computer leads to people absorb mass information. People surfing on the internet they acquiesce in spam. For instance, someone suffer the bomb of junk mail and the junk advertisement. Furthermore, the abundant pornographies and violence pictures on website lead to harmful influence on the psychology of teen-agers.

Tremendous development produce the enormous impair on nature and culture. The emission of noxious gas has been killed thousands of life. Avarice and depredation has injured innocent life. The psychology problem is filled in this age.

5. Summary

Human’s innovative capability makes lots changes of life. Industrial revolution brings some negative impact on environmental and culture. However it brings lots of benefits to mankind.

Indeed, innovation brings convince to our life broaden human knowledge reduce the distance between every one increase the productivity.
It is hard to balance the positive and negative influence with the development.
Technology development results in many aspects of human life and social science. It brings harmful influence on nature world furthermore, social science development coupled with technological development. With the quick development human need to concern the negative effect. To extinct the influence on natural and culture. Avoid damaging the nature and culture, moreover, human can be developed staidly.











Reference:

Air and water pollution, History made every day http://www.history.com/states.do?action=detail&state=Air%20and%20Water%20Pollution&contentType=State_Generic&contentId=58534&parentId=earth
Industrial revolution,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_Revolution#Name_history

Ronald Segal (1995). The Black Diaspora: Five Centuries of the Black Experience Outside Africa. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. p. 4. ISBN 0-374-11396-3. "It is now estimated that 11,863,000 slaves were shipped across the Atlantic. [Note in original: Paul E. Lovejoy, "The Impact of the Atlantic Slave Trade on Africa: A Review of the Literature," in Journal of African History 30 (1989), p. 368.] ... It is widely conceded that further revisions are more likely to be upward than downward."

Marshall McLuhan (1964) Understanding Media, P. 13