QUESTION ONE
Technology is changing every aspect of our being. Reading Nancy Abrams’ and Joel Primack’s The New Universe and the Human Future offers the readership something to ponder about. The descriptions open the mind to reflect on a new world that every human being should work to protect. The content and teaching of the book are a rare gem. Nancy and Joel present a challenge for the human race to start thinking in a scientific but realistic manner with respect to preservation of the planet. They maintain that the human race is perfectly qualified to take on this challenge to fruition. Unlike much authorship, Nancy and Joel encourage the rest of humanity to be forward thinkers in their presentation. They advocate for an out of the box thinking despite the elementary manner in which they present their ideas.
The book’s focus on discoveries related to astronomy astoundingly changes the way we view our world. Religion teaches that the earth was created not so long ago. Scientists, on the other hand, preach a different kind of gospel. Scientists have constantly maintained that the earth is just but an average planet where there is nothing special in respect to the position it holds. How does one determine which of these schools of thought is correct? This argument is made on the basis that scientists and religious believers are operating within mental images of the universe that are known to be scientifically incorrect. If we examine the escalating global disaster including religiously substantiated brutality, the rapid overexploitation of planetary resources, unpredictable climate changes, economic fluctuations and so forth, then we can only conclude that science and religion do vary a lot and are causing the disharmony witnessed.
The discoveries of the 20th and 21st centuries are influencing our ways of life. We work day to day using high-tech, fast-paced world. Most people consider the computerized world somewhat magical. The discoveries in astronomy do not have great meaning in our daily lives. Many associates of astronomical discoveries sources of inspirations to children (Abrams and Nancy 20-21). Most do understand the relevancy and connection between occurrences in distant planets and what is happening on planet earth. No one can blame; astronomical science is complex. Most books written about are certainly too complex for lay persons. Scientists have argued for a scientifically proven link between our lack of common cosmology and our escalating problems. With little or no coherent, significant context, humanity is not likely to start addressing global issues together. This is associated with the lack of transnationally shared, the common perception of the cosmos, such as a mythic-quality narrative of its origins and as well as ours. If we had this picture known as equally actual for all of us—we humans would perceive shared nuisances in an exclusively new light, and we would almost undoubtedly address them. Transitioning from this point to the perceived our world’s problem from a universal point of view is what this book is about.
The book helps us to come to terms with our place in a dynamic, evolving universe where measurement of time is done regarding billions of years as well as nanoseconds. The discoveries that can measure the distance across great galaxy clusters and the nucleus of an atom are certainly astounding. The current cosmology endows us with concepts that we have to have to be thinking in, and acting for, particularly in the long term. Such discoveries help us understand our importance in the universe in totality. One of a terrifying difficulties facing planet earth today is the growing population using high-tech, advanced weapons to enforce aggressively their regional conflicts and constrict religious beliefs in the entire world. This leaves us with people who think global but act locally. The book considers this backward thinking. It instead encourages widened thinking before undertaking any actions that have global impacts. Put differently, to act in a wise manner on the global platform, there is a need for us think cosmically.
QUESTION TWO
Gore is a difficult author to read. He is no open book. In Future, Gore seems consistent in his obsession for the environment, the power of the technology, above a democratically governed world. He also advocates for an informed people for the elective posts is controlled by the voters. Here we examine on the cultural and scientific changes that Gore focuses and, more importantly, link them changes in human perception of the world and humanity in general.
Gore judiciously puts together the current trends in economics, geo-politics, demographic changes, and discoveries in medicine as well as the environment. He asserts that all these aspects, together, on a wider scale, act in ways view of us can barely begin to imagine. For instance, many economies around the globe are experiencing the worst economic crises since the infamous Great Depression. Every region is struggling with enormous challenges associated with the decelerating economies, particularly in developed countries; coupled with growing global credit crunch. The negative impacts on the economy are shared across regions in areas of export, falling asset markets, reducing credit for consumption and capital investment.
These impacts have had a trickle-down effect in increased unemployment and under employment, higher levels of poverty and challenges in meeting the Subjective Global Development Goals. In addition to that, different regions experience certain financial problems unique to the location and prevailing circumstances. A range of actions has been put in place by regional commissions to address these challenges in collaboration with the afflicted governments. In addition to that, specific remedies only address specific problems, some key areas call for joint initiatives among regional commissions aimed at addressing the main aspects of the financial crisis including the bankruptcy of banks and a decline in value of assets. What lesson can learn from such a socio-economic and cultural change? The world is dynamic and humanity a like.
The other astounding change of that Gore identifies is a loss of political and economic heft by America in the world as well as the declining democracy. The establishment of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) bank is a testimony to that. It exhibits a long-awaited change of gourds from 'soft power' from the Western, Europe, and Asia to developing economies. This shows weighty shift financial and economic matters around the globe courtesy of the BRICS. The BRICS control nearly about 25% of global GDP. These countries weighed the economic gains of forming one bank in the global economic arena against the giant Western and European economic blocks before making such huge decision.
QUESTION THREE
This world as we know is heading towards a more virtual era, where everything we need to know is under the palm of our hands. We have many devices such as smart phones, tablets, computers, which give us access to an infinite amount of information. This virtual life style we are becoming accustomed to introduced us to social media.
An increasing amount of interaction is being built between known and unknown users from all around the world. Social networks such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and even tumbler have become an everyday routine of our daily lives. In this modern society, all these social media websites have brought about a significant amount of impact in many of us. It has really influenced its users on how to conduct their lives. Social media has led to an increase in suicidal rates, cyber bullying, fraud, harassments, and much more. If social media isn’t regulated, it will soon lead to the destruction of humanity. Technology has left no boundaries and has given a significant amount of free speech to anyone.
An unregulated technology poses significant challenges which need the users’ attention. There are high possibilities creations of bogus accounts by people with malicious intentions because, without regulations, anybody can create an account without necessarily using their names for various reasons including fake popularity, sending of malware as well as cyber bullying. In the wake of unprecedented cyber bullying, social media regulation appears to an excellent choice because it will ensure the protection of the users, particularly children. Children are extremely vulnerable to the potential social evils of technology.
QUESTION FOUR
Redesigning the structure as well as the implementation of social restructuring can lead to considerable cost reduction as well as efficiency improvement. Various areas can benefit from social restructuring. Here we focus the developing and developed economies, and they can befit from social restructuring.
The emerging countries perceive social restricting as a chance and a positive development because the process tends to augment their economic activity, employment, and wealth. The occurrence, nonetheless, tends to raise the significative issues to those countries as it reinforces societal, regional and environmental changes that are not always entirely controlled (Sykora 71-80).
Developed nations have conventionally had a different opinion as they perceive growing international trade and international competition detrimental to their economic advantage employment and general living conditions.
Work Cited
Abrams, Nancy Ellen, and Joel R. Primack Primack. The new universe and the human future: How a shared cosmology could transform the world. Yale University Press, 2011.
Gore, Albert. The future. New York, NY, USA: Random House, 2013.
Sykora, Ludek. "Economic and social restructuring and gentrification in Prague." Acta Facultatis Rerum Naturalium Universitatis Comenianae (Geographica) 37 (1996): 71-81.
Siemens, George. "Connectivism: A learning theory for the digital age." (2014).
