Collateral Damage

Abstract

Every new technology has social side effects. Most are unintentional. Massive social changes accompanied the Industrial Revolution. The Information Revolution is likely to set off equally wide-sweeping changes in society. Notable changes are the appearance of new media for communication, the use of “big data” in decision-making and the spread of automation. Rapid increases in the numbers of new patents imply that technology is changing faster than ever. Numerous trends imply that western societies are changing very rapidly as a result. Side effects of automation, for instance, have contributed to the loss of many jobs and to increasing social isolation.

And what shoulder, and what art,

Could twist the sinews of thy heart?

And when thy heart began to beat,

What dread hand? and what dread feet?¹