Essay On Technology In Australia

Robots can effect employment in a negative way,as said by the author Kelly “It may be hard to believe… 70 percent of today’s occupation will likewise be replaced by automation...even you will have your job taken away by machines”(Kelly Page.300), this quote comes to show the negative aspect of robots taking over the world in the near

Manufacturing has always been an essential job throughout the world, but ever since the introduction of robots and machines into factories around the globe, these lower class jobs have been declining in numbers. But is this decline bad? This decline is especially true in the assembly line jobs in the automotive industry. This decline in manufacturing class jobs began in the 1960s when General Motors introduced Unimate and had huge success (Norman). This ignited a huge influx of robots and new technologies to automate the processes of building cars. While president, Richard Nixon spoke about how investment in technology will improve the workplace. Opposite to Nixon’s speech, in the article “A World Without Work”, robots are portrayed to

Over the past century we have seen a number of technological achievements that have improved the living standards in Australia. With inventions ranging from the television to the affordable car, all these achievements have come together to make the modern country Australia which many call "the lucky country". There are three main technological advancements that were pivotal during post WW2 in making the country that we know today.

In today’s America, with robots on the rise, many people are feeling as if machines are threatening their jobs, and therefore their income, way of life, and basic stability. This is not an unreasonable fear. In 2013, Carl Frey and Michael Osborne with the University of Oxford predicted at as many as half the jobs in the United States could be automated within the next twenty years (Frey and Osborne). Even in the 1930s, economists such as John Maynard Keynes, the creator of Keynesian economics, predicted that technological developments could create economic climate that allows for a 15-hour work week with plenty of free time for the average American worker by the year 2030 (Thompson). The American workforce is shifting towards this prediction

In the field of education, there has also been a large increase in the use of technology. More and more colleges and universities are offering classes that are online and it is no longer unusual for students to take courses online. Some colleges even offer whole degrees that can be achieved solely online. Even in schools for younger students, there has been an increase in the use of technology. It is very common for students to be issued a tablet or an IPad for their classes (Ramey.)

90,000 jobs were developed in robotics but 300,000 workers lost jobs. New technologies affect workers need for training and more education. For instance, employees need to gain new skills constantly to keep up with the ever-changing technical world of work. Last, even though computer-engineering jobs are supposed to be one of the quickest expanding jobs, the total number of jobs available will be low in the future (Hodson & Sullivan, 2012). Of course, there are people gaining jobs due to technology.

It is apparent that there have been significant advances in technology over the past thirty years. In the 1987 the first mobile phone was launched, with only 4% Australians actually owning one compared to 98% in 20162. It’s no secret that technology forever growing phenomenon however, during the 1980s it was not part of youth’s daily life. Rather teenagers passed time by “…going out to coffee shops with friends or participating in sporting activities” in comparison,”…97% of youths were using the internet/ soggcial media in their everyday lives – their lifestyle, their productivity and the ways they interact with their family, friends, education and their workplaces”2..

Some of the key sectors in Australia is retail, fishing, education and training, construction and transport. In 2016, the retail market in Australia is currently in a downfall state with self-service checkouts taking over human workers due to them having a better return on investment whereas in the 1990s, it was a flourishing and rising employer due to the increases in the amount of shops being opened and because there were more spenders. This is shown by retail trades’ employment increase of approximately 18% from 1989-1999. Another example is in the transport sector; this sector is on the brink of being taken over by artificial intelligence (self-driving vehicles) within the next few years. Currently, there are already some cars on the road which are fully automated such as Google’s self-driving car which can drive relatively safely as shown in the many test trials for the car. Meanwhile, in the 1990s it was a fully manual service with human drivers driving the car; it was also a increasing employer (from 1989-1999 it increased

Not only is there internet, many companies also have intranet, which are a private information network within the company. The mix of telecommunicating and intranet increase communication and information knowledge between members of an organization to also increase productivity. Automation is the automatically controlled operation of a process, system, or equipment by mechanical or electronic devices. The two major reasons for automation is speed and better service. In some capital equipment items, Canada takes six to twelve months to make, where Japan takes six to twelve weeks. (Schwind, 2010, p. 10) This is a major challenge that Canada must face. The service factor is continuous. A machine is programed to do the same exact operation over and over to ensure quality and effectiveness, where as a human might make an error on one or more areas of the operation. Another challenge with technology and automation is cost. Machines are expensive and not all companies can afford the high-tech equipment, and therefore must rely on manual labour.

Disruptive technology brings about many opportunities for both innovation and productivity outputs, however it can also be a risk. It includes developments that create substantial change across the economy for most people and businesses, the impact of which causes significant costs to adjust to due to capital being made obsolete and workers becoming underutilised. Clayton Christensen is considered to be the world’s top expert on the concepts of disruption innovation and technology and according to him the ‘introduction of digital disruption offers a better alternative to the present approach for solving customer problems’. Digital disruption is redefining the norm, changing both markets and competitors around the world. Whilst it can be a positive change for

Automation and disruptive technologies will develop the economy and provide economic growth in the future, but not all individuals will benefit this change. The most effective way to embrace the technological changes in the future is by individuals investing in their own training and education. From past leanings, this has boosted incomes and the living standards. The effects of disruptive innovations and technologies has made businesses start to plan and the future progress that they offer and economic efficiencies it will provide. Disruptive technologies need to be at the centre of all innovation, creativity and advancement moving forward. They will assist in improving the living standards for many across the globe and allow us here in Australia

In a recent study(pdf), economists Daren Acemoglu of MIT and Pascual Restrepo of Boston University try to quantify how worried we should be about robots. They examine the impact of industrial automation on the US labor market from 1990 to 2007. They conclude that each additional robot reduced employment in a given commuting area by 3-6 workers, and lowered overall wages by 0.25-0.5%. (Kopf)

Over time our lives seem to have become more and more integrated with our technology. Some may say that this is a very bad thing because this change may result in the loss of jobs for millions of people. Jobs such as, cashiers, bankers, legal assistants, and maybe even taxi drivers. The future may appear bleak at first, but the truth of the matter is that robots taking over our simple and automatable jobs just mean that our jobs can evolve with the technology. A very similar thing happened during the industrial revolution when technologies were developed that massively increased the efficiency and yield of farming. This in turn led to a vast increase of food in the country which led to a lesser need for everyone to be a farmer. With a massive amount of food, former farm workers, and advanced technology, a business of mass production and manufacturing began. The loss of jobs due to technology led to a

Technology as a whole increases productivity and allows for humans to accomplish more tasks while using an equal or less amount of time and energy. Technology lessens the energy consumption of tasks in both the workforce and the daily activities of the common man. Communication has been affected greatly by technology and is now more accessible and powerful. Information is stored and retrieved at exponentially growing rates. Workers are now able to accomplish their tasks much faster. Technology does not make people lazy, it instead allows for them to complete more tasks and allows for them to be more productive individuals.

However, this study might help in determining improvement priority based on IT business value. It is likely that the automational might be the most prioritised business value, followed by informational and transformational. This can be seen from the Figure 19 that automational has the biggest number of companies in total of three lowest ranks of alignment maturity level. In order to improve automational business value, some studies (Mooney et al., 1996; Fox and Hietanen, 2007) suggest to utilise information technology as substitution of manual operation by labour. Indeed, they believe that this value might help in productivity improvements, labour savings and cost reductions.