Many blame technology for their health problems. Some say watching too much technology is bad for you. Then some others say too much smartphone use is too bad for you socially. I agree with that one. Also, some even say smartphones cause cancer. Technology and health: Can they exist?
So you think all technology is bad for you? Ever hear of Fitbit, Garmin, NIke+Fuel Brand and other products. They track your steps. They also monitor your heart rates and count your calories, among other things. Just think, ten years ago, you had to go to a doctor to find these things out. Furthermore, technology improves relations and communication with health care workers. Back in the day, health advice was simply Monday-Friday, 9-5. But now, we can text, instant message, and e-mail someone anytime. Usually, you’ll get a response anytime.
So do you ever look up health issues through Google? If you did, then you’re answering your own question. You can look at symptoms, and even diagnose yourself at times. However, get a doctor to confirm it. Not only that, the healthcare industry has amazing devices they put in the body these days. They even have face and head transplants. Do you think we could have that without 21st century technology? In fact, here are 17 healthcare items we have due to the modern tech boom.
Technology can even help you stop disease before it gets started. For instance, movie star Angelina Jolie found out she had had a high risk or getting breast cancer. Immediately, she got a?mastectomy. So she tried to stop it before a potential diagnosis. There are other ways technology can help. In our Boston computer repair shop, we’ve heard of ?There are too many to name here. Yes, technology can also cause harm. Too much social media interaction and not enough exercise leads to problems. So technology and health: Can they exist?
So Apple built a $5 billion facility in Silicon Valley. Does that mean Silicon Valley is heading for a second golden age? However, this is not the case. In fact, I have to ask: Is Silicon Valley dying?
I know that sounds strange, and even disrespectful. Everyone who is in IT service owes a huge debt to Silicon Valley, right? That’s true, but those days could be numbering? I ask this because San Jose’s economy had it’s worst August since the Great Recession. So far in 2017, the Silicon Valley area economy didn’t grow. Unemployment remains at a low 3.5 percent. However, people are leaving Silicon Valley, which means the labor force is leaving.
Not only are workers leaving, whole companies are either leaving or building franchises elsewhere. For example, don’t expect Amazon’s second headquarters to be in Silicon Valley. Here are some cities that came up: Pittsburgh, Dallas, Atlanta, Chicago, Seattle. Notice San Jose isn’t even in this conversation. Probably because many workers won’t be there. Charts show the labor force is the lowest it’s been in almost 10 years. It’s not the tech companies. The Apple’s, Amazon’s, and Facebook’s are in a golden age. So maybe it’s the location that’s the problem. Is Silicon Valley dying?
Let’s look at why Silicon Valley may be dying. First of all, the cost of living is ridiculous! People who make six-digit figures struggle to make ends meet. It’s not just rent, either. I read stories where a cup of coffee cost $8.00. How would you like to pay eight dollars for a cup of coffee? Me either. Also, Silicon Valley isn’t the only candy store in town. Seattle is a tech boom town. So is Boston/Cambridge, Raliegh/Durham, NC, and Austin, TX. If you wanted to be a tech billionaire or king, you had to go to Silicon Valley. Not so much anymore. Don’t even get me started on the political tensions between Washington and Silicon Valley. How is anybody going to get any work done when both sides are trying to tell them how to think? Would you work in Silicon Valley in 2017?
Will Verizon cut off rural customers? Some reports say so. Some reports also say Verizon will cut off rural services as early as October 17, 2017.
They say it’s because rural customers use lots of data while roaming away from the Verizon wireless network. Furthermore, their ‘primary place of use’ is outside Verizon’s area. So far, they told over 8,000 customers in 13 states they were losing service. Apparently, Verizon cuts off rural customers because it’s cheaper. They’re not the only ones, nor is it the first time. Back in June 2017, Verizon cut off rural customers for using too much data in rural regions.
So this means those who Verizon dumps will have less than a month make do elsewhere. But there is a problem. Many in rural areas chose Verizon because it has vast coverage plans. It could be difficult to find small phone companies with such great coverage. Economics is hardly a factor. Rural and urban income are about the same. However, this follows Verizon’s almost stereotypical pattern. In January 2017: Verizon gave those using over 200GB of data a month a choice. That choice was to lower their data use or look for another Internet provider.
Now I know what the small print says. They can change rules ant terms at anytime. But I don’t think any customer, let alone 8,000 of them, expect to be kicked to the curb so coldly. I know what many of you may say, “It’s just business…Life isn’t fair”. Try telling that to the rural customers whose about to lose their internet and phone, and don’t know where to turn. I know Verizon has a business to run and need to conserve cost. But what about the cost of public opinion? Do they really think the American people will see it that way? Verizon has Yahoo now.They also need to keep perception in mind, like all of us in IT support do. Because from where I stand, this move makes Verizon look like misers. I guess you can’t impress everyone all the time. But will this change your perception of Verizon?
Yesterday was Labor Day. It’s a day we remember the sacrifice and hard work of the American laborer. But the holiday brings sadness too, especially in these 2010s. Because it seems many young Americans gave up on the American Dream. So let’s talk young people, the American dream and technology.
So yesterday in Boston, near our computer service shop, they had a march. Fast food workers went on strike. They demanded a wage increase to $15. But what does technology have to do with this? Well, other cities and states did raise the minimum wage. What did some fast food chains do? They fired all the workers, then replaced them with robots. Because in their eyes, robots are cheaper than human beings. I know that sounds awful, but that’s how many business owners and managers think nowadays.
However, at least these fast food workers have some belief in the American dream. According to one poll, only 42% of 18-29 years olds have a favorable view of capitalism. That’s an all-time low. In fact, 33% say they outright prefer socialism/communism. That’s disturbing. ?What is wrong with young people, the American dream and technology? ?I think history and circumstance have huge roles to play.
In 2017, the average college graduate was born between 1994-1995. They were in elementary school when 9/11 happened. Imagine how traumatizing that must have been for a first or second grader. So your childhood is already full of fear and anxiety. Then, when you’re in junior high, the Great Recession starts. You see parents, neighbors, and friends lose their jobs, houses, cars, etc. So now you’re in high school and college. You look for a part time job. Sorry. Somebody with a Masters degree or a parent feeding their three kids needs that job more than you. So you get no work at all.
Go to college, the Baby Boomers say. You do. You graduate. Everybody is so proud. But it takes you a year to find a job. Meanwhile, you’re $100,000+ in student loan debt. Your job is in Silicon Valley, or Seattle, or Boston, or New York City, or Washington, DC. You know how high rent is up there? Jobs in your hometown are scarce, or non-existent. Nobody wants to rent to you, so you’re stuck in daddy’s basement. No woman wants to date a jobless person living in the basement. But speaking of technology, you have your adult film websites. So what do you care what women think, but that’s another subject for another time.
So do you see how this just breeds hopelessness? You see why so many young adults are turning to socialism and hating capitalism? What can we do to bring back young people, the American dream and technology together again?
So China installs and uses more robots than any nation on Earth. In fact, take other leading robot nations like the US, South Korea and Japan. They use only half the number of robots that China does. Also, by 2019, they say China’s robot revolution will double. But notice this doesn’t impact China’s wages, or so they say. However, it will mess up the world’s economy before too long.
I get it. Robots often do the job better than humans. Furthermore, I get that robots don’t give you incompetence or attitude problems the way humans do. But economists say, and I agree, they will mess up your domestic economy. We can thank the Made in China 2025 mandate for this rising robot culture. Because they believe by letting robots take over the factory lines, that will fill in the gap of aging workers. They’re buying more robots and putting them in sectors like food, electronics, logistics, even law enforcement. They hope the robot economy will reach $11 billion a year by 2020.
So how will this doom the economy? Well, more nations are in demand for robots. So if more companies get them, they’ll follow suit and kick human workers to the curb. China is the world’s second biggest economy. That means they’re one of the major players on the global economic stage. I guess one could say, “As China goes, so goes the nation”. Then if the trend goes global, that means more global people sitting at home, depending on governments just to survive. Because, you know, robots have their jobs now. Think about the strain that will put on the world. How else will China’s robot revolution doom the global economy?
Tristan Harris is a rising star not only in the tech world, but on the public speaking stage. He gives TED talks?and goes on TV. He also warns of what technology can lead to. Let’s look at the attention economy, technology, and Tristan Harris.
Harris explains the attention economy as a race to build attention. For example, the more attention you get, the better off you are. He says there are three major tech companies that build attention: Google, Facebook and Apple. In order to get Facebook likes, you need to get people’s attention. When things get shared the most, it is bound to get people’s attention. If you want You Tube subscribers, then you need to get people’s attention.
Harris talks about the 2016 election, and how Trump used the attention economy to win. Look at how some of his shocking tweets got attention. But he’s not the only one. There are celebrities like Amber Rose. Amber Rose doesn’t sing, act, rap, dance, tell jokes, write books, run for office, teach, or anything like this. In fact, she got famous by getting people’s attention, and uses technology to do so. She does this by saying shocking things, wearing shocking clothes, and dating other celebs. I’m not necessarily picking on Rose. Over the years, how many celebrities made themselves famous by using the attention economy, and used technology to do it?
But Tristan Harris offers solutions. One is to recognize this problem and take responsibility. You see fake news. Then it’s your responsibility to avoid it, and tell others this is fake news. I find myself doing that with celebrity death hoaxes. Yesterday, I found myself doing that at our Boston computer service shop. The second thing to do for tech companies like Google, Facebook and Apple to recognize the human mind. Even adult, highly educated minds are like sponges. Sponges will digest whatever people and things put in them. So he calls on Silicon Valley to be more careful of what they feed our brains. Basically, Harris says it’s a team effort. I slightly disagree. It’s an individual choice to decide what gets your attention. If we, not Silicon Valley, dominated the attention economy, and decided what got our attention, wouldn’t Silicon Valley, Hollywood, and Washington get the message?
