Society and Technology: Issues and Trends

Globalization

Current economic trends are towards globalization of markets, convergence of currencies and consequent alignment in social policies (Zarsky, 1997). For developed nations, international economic union is one way to grow their markets.

However, economic union creates greater interdependence and homogeneity while the global economy is still fragile. Temporary problems, often due to natural causes, which affect key economic indicators such as interest rates, can lead to massive outflows of capital. Developing countries are particularly vulnerable to such effects.

In particular, strategies based on economic, not geographic, principles do not tend to empower local populations. Rather, they can lead to a sense of helplessness that the local voice cannot be heard or does not influence events.

The Internet and (separately) the World Wide Web (WWW) are powerful forces in the growth of globalization. A consideration of the economic forces behind globalization indicates that the result is homogeneity of geography and of cultures. Market forces act to eliminate the differences between peoples and societies, not to enhance diversity. How can the Internet and access to information in general act as a force for change, particularly in developing nations, to enhance diversity?

At worst, the Internet has no government, no legal system, economic policy or elected representation. At best, it is controlled by voluntary organizations such as the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and a mix of private enterprise and public service to implement address and domain name allocation.

Capitalist market forces are driving the rush towards globalization (Greider, 1997, p. 11) As a force for economic change and development; the Internet has many of the characteristics of these market forces. There is little government of the Internet and it does advance under its own momentum.

In order to establish a true global market, legal and regulatory frameworks are needed. However, at present, there is little or no government on the Internet and the Web is held together by a loose consortium of corporations held together by techno-centric 'geek' factors. I believe that if the Internet is to become established as a real force in the global economy, it will have to adopt some form of governance over all or part of its domain.

Bandwidth is becoming thought of as a commodity, to be bought and sold, aggregated and the costs involved to be offset against the potential benefits of information (Cavanaugh, 1998).

Bandwidth is generally more limited in developing countries than in developed nations. Many developing countries have less bandwidth for the entire nation than commercial Internet providers do. In PNG, the bandwidth for the commercial service introduced in 1996 was only 256Kbps. Between 1996 and 1998, the University of Technology in PNG operated its entire Internet and email service over a 9.6Kbps analogue leased line.

Low bandwidth connections may preclude access to some services, limiting the access to potentially valuable information. How can you build a so-called "knowledge economy" when your infrastructure lacks the capacity to communicate effectively with all your people?

Literacy and Computer Literacy

Adult literacy is a major barrier to the uptake of Information Technology in the developing world. There is a significant challenge here for Human-Computer Interaction (HCI): to be able to design and create interfaces to complex systems for use by illiterate or low-literate peoples.

The Cybertracker project (www.cybertracker.co.za) involves the use of mobile computers for use by bush trackers to record the movements of wild animals. One of the designers of this system spent time in the bush with native trackers, learning some of their craft and sharing their experiences. The development of this system demonstrates truly participatory design.

Intuitive iconic interfaces have great application here. Reading skills and comprehension of pictures are separate (Fordham, 1995). Simple icons and pictures can convey information of direct relevance to users. Complex information can be communicated by referring to ideas already introduced. The approach of eliciting requirements described by Pimenta and Faust (Pimenta, 1997) has a lot to offer in this regard since it emphasizes both mutual learning and a language-centred style.

In Papua New Guinea, spoken or written English may be a second or even third language. Rural schools often use local languages first, and then introduce English at provincial or national high school levels. The COMNET project is working to introduce communication and translation of simple texts at an early stage in education. The system uses simple pictures accompanied first by text in the child's own language and then by text in other languages.

Primitive peoples can also be educated. Negroponte cites Sheik Yamani's observations on the differences between primitive and uneducated peoples:

"The answer was simply that primitive people were not uneducated at all, they simply used different means to convey their knowledge from generation to generation, within a supportive and tightly knit social fabric. By contrast, he explained, an uneducated person is the product of a modern society whose fabric has unraveled and whose system is not supportive."

-Sheik Yamani, cited in Negroponte (1995)

Primitive peoples do have their own cultures, societies and abstract thoughts. To support people and empower them with technology, we simply cannot eliminate our differences. We must understand their minds through observation of the customs, traditions and methods that have been handed down, often over centuries.

Literacy is a major problem in trying to establish a technological foundation in developing nations. How can you use a computer if you cannot read? The answer appears to be to provide entertaining and useful content and to rely on incidental learning by children to acquire basic computing skills (Mitra, 2000).

Sugata Mitra conducted two experiments in incidental learning of computer skills amongst subjects with only rudimentary education and limited knowledge of English. In one, a computer with a touch-screen was installed in a hole in the wall in a New Delhi slum to allow access by street children. In another, a computer system was introduced at the roadside in rural India, without announcement or instruction. Mitra discovered that learning of computer skills occurred in an incidental fashion and suggests that the natural curiosity of children is an important motivator for acquiring such skills.

Many researchers have used a "Wizard of Oz" technique in experimental design to allow highly sophisticated activities to be performed by a less-skilled user e.g., Good (1984). Such a technique is finding practical use in villages in India where villagers pass requests for information to a mobile technician. Some time later, the technician returns with answers to the queries culled from browsing of the Internet. In this scenario, the skilled individual acts as a filter of information to engage with the higher technology and must provide and explain the information to the clients in a form that they can understand.

The Simputer initiative (PicoPeta, 2001) aims to bridge the digital divide by providing a simple user interface based on sight, touch and sound. Resembling a PDA, the powerful hand-held computer provides users with low education a way to engage with the digital world. Such a resource is intended to be shared among a number of owners. The stumbling block to the widespread introduction of such a device appears to be the lack of investor support for the target markets - the rural poor of India (Srinivasan, 2002).

Donor Issues

The players in the business of foreign aid are those such as national governments. Some of those players are: the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Trade Organization (WTO), Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), global extra-national government organizations under the auspices of the United Nations and regional forums such as the Commonwealth, Asia-Pacific Economic Consortium (APEC) and Association of South-East Asian nations (ASEAN). There is no shortage of power brokers in the economic world.

Donor agencies offer overseas aid to tackle global poverty and promote sustainable development. Large-scale funding initiated by governments appears to be out of fashion. Government-sponsored donations are falling amongst OECD nations. Non-government organizations and private sources account for increasing amounts of funding. In Papua New Guinea, the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) is increasing the amount of "tied aid" - funding committed to specific projects that must be matched by national government funds. All donor organizations are becoming more concerned about the need for positive evaluation of sponsored projects.

Donor funding can be a boon and a curse to a developing nation. Aid given in the form of loans will incur the burden of debt servicing. Unless real benefits are achieved using the funding, this will lead to a negative flow of funds. However, aid tied to specific projects must be done in a way to make those projects sustainable.

For example, donor funding to acquire computers for education may provide the initial capital, but no recurrent funding for training or maintenance. Such a project may fail when the full burden of support falls on the recipient.

Developmental aid given to develop a nation should benefit that nation more than it does the donor. It is common to hear tales of "boomerang" aid where money given to one country is used to purchase goods and services from the donor nation.

Donor aid can only provide for the first generation. Technical aid should be devoted towards training the next generation of planners and staff. The goal of any expatriates contracted to a developing nation should be to train their own replacements.

Technological Issues

The devices that we take for granted when interacting with personal computers - system units, storage devices, mouse, screen and keyboard - are actually fragile and prone to failure in an adverse environment. The breakdown of equipment causes intense frustration, particularly amongst those learning computer skills for the first time.

Difficult environmental conditions put up barriers to high-capacity, low-cost, reliable telecommunications. Sabotage of telecommunications or power equipment can occur during disputes over land ownership and royalty payments from public utilities to landowners. The infrastructure of a developing country may not have extra capacity or backup systems to take account of network failures. The uptake of technology will be limited unless personal computer manufacturers achieve significantly higher reliability in an uncontrolled environment.

Supply of electrical power is a problem, particularly to rural areas. In PNG, the domestic supply voltage is 240V AC on average, not nominal. Over-voltages, brownouts and blackouts are common. The infrastructure does not extend to rural areas, forcing them to fall back on generators, solar power or batteries. Much of the rural population is without any source of electrical power. The inadequate power infrastructure is a major barrier to foreign investment in many nations.

Even a technology as simple as reliable electric lighting can be a major advance. In many societies based on intensive agriculture, daylight hours are spent laboring. Solid-state lighting projects have been proposed and initial field-trials conducted to demonstrate how low-power lighting can be achieved without conventional electricity supply (Halliday, 2001). Clockwork radios and even laptops have been developed to provide advanced technology based on more primitive power sources.

It is clear from the environmental situation that information technology deployed in harsh environments cannot be of the same form as that installed in clean, air-conditioned, westernized offices. Hardware manufacturers should work to improve robustness and reliability of equipment, and to reduce power requirements or make the use of renewable or alternative sources a viable alternative to mains power.