Post 1 - Projective City (Tyler Currie: The Inevitibility of Automation)
The Inevitability of Automation
by Tyler Currie
In the rising age of the machine, automation is just on the horizon when it comes to job replacement, just as the industrial revolution had done decades earlier.
This is both good and bad, but the good outweighs the negative… after a while.
In the rising age of the machine, automation is just on the horizon when it comes to job replacement, just as the industrial revolution had done decades earlier.
This is both good and bad, but the good outweighs the negative… after a while.
It’ll be a bumpy ride at first. As companies make the shift
to replacing human workers with machines due to efficiency and price, the job
market will see massive losses. Many will become unemployed within the span of
months, and if our society Isn’t prepared for the shift, poverty could rudely
enter the lives of many.
But, if our government embraces automation, and some kind of
solution is proposed, the human species could be left with tons of luxury time
while machines do the work. Humans would be free to pursue art, literature,
travel- whatever they want, while the machines build our products.
Some say the solution is some sort of universal basic income, in which every citizen gets a fixed amount of ‘free’ money per month. Others say to abandon the idea of currency all together.
In our reading ‘Ontario in the Creative Age’, Martin and Florida emphasize the importance of “redesigning jobs to enhance their creative content’ (Martin, pp. 15) in order to make the jobs more effective. With automation on the rise, I couldn’t agree more.
Some say the solution is some sort of universal basic income, in which every citizen gets a fixed amount of ‘free’ money per month. Others say to abandon the idea of currency all together.
In our reading ‘Ontario in the Creative Age’, Martin and Florida emphasize the importance of “redesigning jobs to enhance their creative content’ (Martin, pp. 15) in order to make the jobs more effective. With automation on the rise, I couldn’t agree more.
Creativity is one of the only work forces where humans have
an advantage over machines. Humans can spot trends that seemingly randomly appear
out of the blue, and create art based on feelings that arise from the distinct
human experience.
Martin and Florida move on to point out that the “Japanese succeeded dramatically in enhancing the creative content of its traditionally routine-oriented physical occupations in the automotive industry through techniques such as quality circles, statistical training, and individual worker authority to stop production if necessary to attack quality problems” (Martin, pp. 15) proving that other nations are embracing the world of creativity, and merging it with work that is not traditionally creative. One must wonder if the implementation of creative, out-of-the-box processes are going to be the parachute that softens the landing of automation. If humans can gradually ween themselves off of labour while machines take over the jobs no one would do without financial compensation, perhaps we can avoid the initial rough few years of unemployment and confusion among the masses of workers.
In my opinion, automation is an inevitability. However, Canada needs to position themselves with some sort of safety net for its citizens, so we can embrace it with excitement, as opposed to worry.
Martin and Florida move on to point out that the “Japanese succeeded dramatically in enhancing the creative content of its traditionally routine-oriented physical occupations in the automotive industry through techniques such as quality circles, statistical training, and individual worker authority to stop production if necessary to attack quality problems” (Martin, pp. 15) proving that other nations are embracing the world of creativity, and merging it with work that is not traditionally creative. One must wonder if the implementation of creative, out-of-the-box processes are going to be the parachute that softens the landing of automation. If humans can gradually ween themselves off of labour while machines take over the jobs no one would do without financial compensation, perhaps we can avoid the initial rough few years of unemployment and confusion among the masses of workers.
In my opinion, automation is an inevitability. However, Canada needs to position themselves with some sort of safety net for its citizens, so we can embrace it with excitement, as opposed to worry.
Work Cited
Martin, Roger and Florida, Richard. “Ontario in the Creative
Age.” Martin Presperity Intitute, 2009. Web.
Hi Tyler,
ReplyDeleteIt is true that we are living in the rising age of the machine, automation shows a lot in our daily life. More and more companies use machines instead of human workers. Not only the companies but also this kind of phenomena can be found in our home. For example, the Robotic vacuum cleaner. It is the technology to help people do the cleaning. This type of innovation brings convenience to some aspect but may have undesirable results for others. Due to the appearance of a cleaning robot, it may put cleaners out of a job. That is to say, housekeepers’ work will be replaced by the floor-sweeping robot. However, this kind of machine may not give users real convenient, due to after using it for cleaning the floor, it needs to be cleaned for the next use. Therefore, some of the technology or machines put people out of work, but they may not really help people do the work.
Hey Tyler,
ReplyDeleteAfter reading your post it reminded me of the exact concept we discussed in my CS413 class, Posthuman Imaginaries. We read an article similar to "Ontario in the Creative Age" and discussed this possible implementation of a fully automated world and the takeover of all jobs. I agree with the points you present, humans are created with the ability to create, one thing automation can not replicate. This article also discussed the increased levels of leisure with human life and look at the benefits but also the implications. This adaption of life without work can cause peril for those who value work as their vocation, those who are not classically "creative" or instills their creativity in their work, and those we create for a career. Can too much leisure time result in laziness or a lack of drive rather than embrace the creativity? As a society who values technological innovation, will this increased automation send society against technology and resent it? The concept of an automated world is attractive but at what cost?