Technology from the Western Industrialized Countries - Essay Example

Introduction.

Technology is one of the most significant change agents in the world. Most of the change is good, at least, at first, however, in the long run, the bigger picture looks different. There are always advantages and disadvantages. In some cases the disadvantages outweighing the advantages. The world as we know it today has changed in terms of culture over the years, native tribes have changed into capitalists, and means of production have changed from egalitarian to commercialized economies. This paper will shed more light on the impacts of technology, some being good, while at the same time, other impacts being negative. The paper will respond to class discussions and readings on how technology can be used to solve problems in the western industrialized countries and how at the same time, technology can cause problems and leave societies worse off.

Discussion.

One of the most notable examples of how technology from the western industrialized countries can impact other egalitarian cultures is the introduction of the snowmobile in the artic. Pelto was an anthropologist; he studied a native community that lived north of Finland, Known as the Skolt Lapps. This was a reindeers herding community that used reindeers for transport. At the same time, they also slaughtered the reindeers to meet. The hide and skin from the reindeer were used to make clothes and shoes. They transported the reindeers to a local market, three days trip where they would sell the reindeers and use the money to buy soap, sugar, and other household items (Pelto 97). Everything about the Skolt Lapps culture revolved around the Reindeers. Even at their weddings, they gave presents in the form of a reindeer tooth and hide. The primary possession that these families had was the reindeers. An average family had around 72 reindeers. Pelto, an anthropologist, observed the people from this tribe before the Snowmobiles got introduced in the community. For around one decade, he kept on going back to the village to observe the effects of the adoption of the new technology.

At first, when the snowmobile was introduced, Reindeers were used for transport. It took around three days of traveling using the reindeers to reach the point where they sold and bought items in the town. However, when the first snowmobile was introduced, it only took five hours to go to the local town, purchase the items, and come back. Member of the community saw the need to have a snowmobile; it was very fast-moving through the snow and had a lot of power. It could not be compared to reindeer transportation. Owning a snowmobile in the community became a thing of prestige. More members of the community bought the snowmobile, and they even got more use to the snowmobile, they could be used to herd the reindeers more easily. They made everything move so fast within this village (Pelto 32). For instance, they could slaughter a reindeer, and take the products to the local town within the same day and make a sale. As time went by, every single member of this Skolt Lapps community had a snowmobile within their household. It became a necessary tool to have within their households.

The snowmobile had tangible merits, but one thing that the Skolt Lapps failed to recognize is that there are long term consequences of adopting new technology. Skolt Lapps only focused on a few merits, such as fast transportation, more power, and herding. One thing that happened with the adoption of snowmobiles is that there was increased noise pollution. The snowmobile made a lot of noise while traveling, and this scared the reindeers. Most of them run away towards the forests; the noise scared the reindeers such that the rate at which they were fertilizing and giving birth declined. The snowmobiles used gasoline, which means that there was environmental pollution, which also affected the reproduction of reindeers. The reindeer population declined such that an average family only had around twelve of them. It was also evident that the reindeer's had ulcers from the noise being brought by the snowmobiles.

The economy of Skolt Lapps changed from the economy that depends on Reindeers to an economy that depends on money. The culture changed from that that revolved around the reindeer's, to a culture that depended on money. The people of Skolt Lapps did not have other natural resources apart from reindeers that could help them raise money (Pelto 34). They became dependent on government funds; the community went from being a resourceful community to a poor community. Members of the community became indebted, and the atmosphere surrounding the village changed completely. All of these negative consequences were experienced within the community because they adopted snowmobiles, a simple technology but ruined their way of life. Every area of their culture was changed, and today, they are no longer native people, they have been changed into capitalists, and almost none of them own a reindeer.

From a personal point of view, this is a community that did not have any control over the impact of the new technology. A simple technology as a snowmobile changed the subsistence of the Lapps. Nothing much could have been done by the people of the village to prevent this change because they wanted to try a new technology that made things to be much easier. The government could have made policies on how such technology would be adopted in the village, putting into consideration the impact that the snowmobiles will have on the ecosystem of the area. Western countries have taken such technology to many places around the world.

But in most cases, the impact of innovation in the third world is not the same as the impact of technology in western industrialized countries. Societies are different, and the cultures are also different, technology responds differently, it does not mean that because an innovation worked well in one culture, the same innovation will work well in other cultures. The same snowmobiles were introduced to the United States of America and Canada before they were introduced in Finland, but the effects were not the same. Most Americans were using snowmobiles during winter and just for fun. They were not being used for commercial purposes. The same happened to the introduction of guns, in the United States, people own guns just for security purposes, but when the same guns are brought to native communities in Africa, they were used for cattle rustling. Insecurity increased to the point that even the police were becoming the victims. The culture of a place will go a long way in determining the impact of an innovation.

In discussion one, technology can either solve a problem or worsen the same. Discussion one claims that western industrialized nations have benefited more from modern technology and innovation than other third world countries (Pelto 32). The discussion also claims that the Lapps community in Finland could not have avoided adopting the technology because they were in need. Could the Skolt Lapps have adopted the new technology without the negative consequences? Adopting the snowmobiles meant adopting the positive and negative effects of the technology. Even though it was efficient, it also meant that the people had to begin purchasing gasoline and depend on external help as opposed to how independent they were before the introduction of the snowmobiles.

Discussion two had a similar idea, the discussion begins by saying that technology is great, it makes it easier to attain basic needs, but at the same time, the environment becomes the victim. The discussion claims that the Skolt Lapps could not refuse the new technology that would make their life easier because they only looked at the positive impacts. This discussion suggests that reducing the supply runs to the market would have reduced the impact. Discussion three also shared a similar view on snowmobiles. It would be challenging to avoid snowmobiles because of the immediate benefits that were promised. It was impossible to look at the negative consequences at the moment. The discussions made it clear that the Skolt Lapps couldn't avoid adopting the new technology, they only looked at the short term benefits, and they could never have imagined that the Snowmobiles could ruin their community ("A-12037 Due on July 21st, 6 PM"). The discussions are also clear that there is no way that they could have adopted the positive side of the snowmobiles without adopting the negative. No previous research had been done about the impact of such innovation to a native community living in the arctic.

Conclusion.

Technology and innovation have changed societies; in most cases, innovation upgrades the communities of the places where it was invented, because, during the invention process, the culture of the people was put into consideration. When the same technology is adopted in a different culture, it is not guaranteed that similar results will be realized. Maybe that is the reason innovation and technology from western industrialized countries do not always work for the benefit of the third world countries.