Information Technology

Globalization of Technology: International Perspectives

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The World is in the Throes of a Technological Revolution that differs from the periodic waves of technical change that have marked the progress of industrial society since its origins 200 years ago. A shift is occurring in the sociotechnological paradigm that underlies our current sophisticated industrial structure. This old paradigm consists of the mass production of essentially standardized goods in ever-larger units; an emphasis on quantitative goals for production, requiring ever higher inputs of capital, energy, and raw materials to produce more and more; and little attention to environmental impact, resource use, and conservation issues. In contrast, the new paradigm taking shape is identified with an emphasis on quality and diversification of products and processes, diffusion of small but highly productive units that rely on new technologies and are linked to a process of decentralization of production, adoption of process and product choices requiring far less energy and materials input per unit of output, and a greater awareness of the need to preserve the quality of local and global environments. Thus, we are in a period of transition between two epochs, a time comparable to the industrial revolution, when the steam engine was introduced and coal was the emerging energy source. Then, as now, there was widespread fear of the future, a fear derived from the difficulty of even imagining the range of opportunities that an ongoing revolution brings in terms of new activities and related jobs.

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Publisher

: ., 1988

Collation

1-225

Language

English

ISBN/ISSN

0-309-59578-9

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NONE

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Edition

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Subject(s)

Globalization of Technology: International Perspec

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