Social Impact of Technology, Georgian College

1. Technology will destroy
our planet
Prepared by: Matthew Cuggy

2. Humans and Violence
-Human beings have been using
their technology for violence since
the being.
-Homo Habilis was our first
ancestor to develop tools
-It did not take them look to
discover the use of tools for
violence.
-Home Erectus used a variety of
weapons for hunting. Such as:
Axes, Knives, and spears.

3. Humans and Violence Continued
 As humans evolved so did
our technology.
 So instead of hitting each
other with tools we made
from stone we killed each
other with metal weapons
and later on guns.
 Humans have fought for
many reasons over the
centuries;
Land, Religion, Pride, and
just for the sake of violence.
 All these violent acts require
resources to start and
resources to fix the damage.
 This way humans have
destroyed many natural
resources in the pursuit of
violence

4. War and Technology
 Technology does advance because of war and conflict
 An example of a technology that was developed because
of war is the microwave.
 However, a lot of the technology developed in war is
can’t be used in the common home, and some can and
have contributed to the hurting our planet.

5. The Atomic Bomb
 The atomic bomb was
developed in world war
2.
 Atomic bombs use the
energy of splitting
atoms to release
tremendous amounts of
energy.
 The first atomic bomb
was used on Hiroshima
in Japan in 1945.

6. The Atomc Bomb Continued
 Because of the atomic bomb’s high destructive power, it
destroyed landscapes (resouces and native
life), buildings, and humans.
 The real disaster of a nuclear device is not the intial
destruction but the radiation that comes after.
 The radioactive particles not only cause mutation and
disease in humans but in the animals and plants in the
surrounding area.
 If radiation enters into a water source, that water source
can become poisonous and lethal to the living creatures
that drink from it.
 In this was a nuclear weapon does not just kill it also
infects the land and water.

7. Nuclear Energy
 Nuclear energy is a good resource for power, however, it
carries with it a huge risk to our environment.
 A example of this is Chernobyl.
 Two nuclear reactors exploded and caused radiation to
destroy the surrounding environment.
 The site around Chernobyl will not be able to support life
for many years because of the radiation damaged
caused by the explosion.

8. Technology and the Environment
 As technology advances and is mass produced the amount
of raw resources needed increases as well
 As we continue to destroy different location for the
resources we damage the environment. Not to mention the
local wildlife that calls those locations home.

9. Technology and the Environment
Continued
 A major resource that humans use, and the environment
needs, is trees.
 Humans have already cut down over half of the worlds
rainforests for the resources.
 These rainforest are responsible for the creation of a lot
of our oxygen. So while we are destroying the
rainforests we are also destroying ourselves.

10. Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
 The automobile can be argued to be one of the best
inventions to date. It gets us from point A to point B in a
fast manner. Same with planes and Trains.
 However, the fossil fuels used in the performance of
these technologies is hurting our evironment.
 The amount of CO2 in the atmosphere has increased
with the amount of cars that are being used.
 This can cause harm to our planet by trapping ambient
heat within our atmosphere and warming the planet.
This could cause major environmental changes that most
of the organic life forms on our planet could not surive.

11. Cyborgs!!!
 With the rise in technology, humans are finding more
and more ways to improve themselves and the way we
do things.
 Ex. The Cochlear implant allows for deaf people to hear
in a way.
 People are allowing for more foreign equipment to be
implanted into their bodies.
 The end result…. Who knows? We could advance so that
we do not need resources to live or we could further
destroy the planet in search of resources or for the
simple pleasure of it.

12. Sources
 Atomic Bomb Museum (2006). Counting the Dead.
Retrieved from http://atomicbombmuseum.
org/3_health.shtml
 Flo (2011, January 26). Homo Habilis. Retrieved from
http://shadowness.com/Flo/homo-habilis
 Harris, W., Freudenrich, C., and Fuller, J. (2011). How an
Atomic Bomb Works. Retrieved from
http://www.howstuffworks.com/nuclear-bomb.htm
 Idea Hive (2012). Early Human Tools and Weapons.
Retreived from http://studyingsocieties.
wikispaces.com/Early+Human+Tools+and+Weapons

13. Sources Continued
 Lee, R. (2008, September). Bar fight illo. Retrieved at
http://www.lostateminor.com /2009/02/10/richard-lees-
bar-fight-illo/
 Raintree (2012, November 5). Rainforest Facts.
Retrieved from http://www.rain-tree.com/facts.htm
 World Nuclear Association (2012, April). Chernobyl
Accident 1986. Retrieved from http://www.world-
nuclear.org/info/chernobyl/inf07.html
 World’s Resources Institute (1999). CO2 emissions from
motor vehicles. Retrieved from
http://www.wri.org/publication/content/8468