Technological Evolution

 This week, we were asked to watch 5 videos about technological evolution. 


The first video we watched recapped the evolution of technology from the stone age up to current day. It was interesting to see the origins of certain things, but I was shocked when it said speech synthesis was invented in 1796! It was invented by Wolfgang von Kempelen, who also invented the hoax chess playing machine, the Turk. The machine is still limited in what it can say, but it’s still amazing that this type of technology was around in the 16th century! Voice synthesis plays a huge part in some people's lives, Stephen Hawking being a perfect example. Voice synthesis is also key to the “Vocaloid” genre of music, where the singers are all computer programs. It’s truly amazing that this technology has been in development for so long and has gone so far!


The second video we watched was a 2 parter about the evolution of media literacy. Part one explained that Platos, a Greek Philosopher, believed that writing your thoughts down only led to readers misinterpreting them. Education remained expensive so when Christianity became a worldwide religion, most people couldn’t read and depended on their priest to interpret the bible for them. After Martin Luther rewrote the bible into the German Vernacular, leading up to the Reformation, more people were able to read the bible for themselves. When the newspaper and the penny press became the main spread of news, journalists started dramatising their stories, faking interviews and jumping to conclusions in order to make their newspaper more popular, leading to more advertisers taking interest in the paper and the publisher making more money. This meant that people now had to learn how to tell apart the truth from a dramatized version of what happened. The second part of the video talked about moral panics, which is when people are afraid of what a certain media might be communicating and if it goes with or against their morals. Two specific reactions to moral panics are mentioned, protectionism, meaning wanting to get rid of the media so that no one can see it, and defencism, which is making fun of or actively disliking a media and claiming that the media you like or grew up with is better. There’s also now online media literacy, which is as important now as it ever has been with fake news and disinformation around every online corner.


The fourth video discussed the future of jobs after the Covid-19 Pandemic. The video contained some really interesting stats, such as how 85 million jobs are set to be replaced by machines, while 97 million new jobs will emerge over the next few years. Companies are planning to retrain, or “re-skill” 70% of their workforce, and while that seems like a huge task, it takes only 2 weeks to five months to re-skill on average. Most workers will be able to transition into their new roles before they’re even retrained. The video frames the pandemic as a perfect opportunity to prepare people for future job roles and begin the transition to the “jobs of tomorrow,” which I personally agree with.


The last video we watched really baffled me. It felt like information overload, and most of the dialogue doesn’t really make sense. It explains the 4 main elements of the “intelligent world 2030,” new connectivity (5G Technology), new computing (advances in computer technology), new platform (a collection of “industry experience” for “industry innovation”) and new ecosystem (SAPO-based collaborative ecosystem used for customer oriented commercial solutions) I really don’t understand this video or it’s meaning, unless it’s meant as a conceptual video for a Huawei campaign? 


All in all, I found the videos really interesting and I learned a lot. The last video just really confused me in terms of it’s meaning.


Image by Geralt from Pixabay



References:

“Technology Evolution | 100,000 BC - 2020” by WatchMedia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJM3yuIDDPQ

“Nachbau des Kempelenschen Sprechapparats” by Deutsches Museum: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIjkzZGe2I8

“History of Media Literacy, Part 1: Crash Course Media Literacy #2” by CrashCourse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXf0F4GYzWQ

“History of Media Literacy, Part 2: Crash Course Media Literacy #3” by CrashCourse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iUjvNtgWAs

“What will the future of jobs be like?” by World Economic Forum: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH1fFdjzJAw

“Digital Transformation in 2030” by Huawei Enterprise Europe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=APhSAIeqLkQ

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