Introduction
Quoting Marchetti, Ausubel states, “Successful societies are learning systems” (Ausubel, 1995). Organized social learning and the development of our society caused increased technological progress. Since 1400, the number of technological and scientific discoveries has dramatically increased (Appendix A). In the twentieth century, it continued its growth. It was the time of scientific and technological advances that significantly improved our living but at the same time caused environmental problems, as the creation of the internal combustion engine became one of the major reasons of the outpouring of greenhouse gases. In the twenty-first century, we have something to do with them.
Nowadays, it is almost impossible to control technological progress. Scientists and engineers continue to design new inventions that not only have a positive impact and significantly ease people’s lives but also harm the environment. The current era is the time of global climate changes, deforestation, air and water pollution, overuse of resources, etc. All of these negatively influence the world and human heath. In these latter days, people become aware of environmental protection and start to concentrate on inventions that could improve the situation. Technological progress could not be stopped but could be changed.
The aim of this paper is to give an overview of the current relations between technological progress, mechanical devices, and the environment and to analyze their impacts and solutions. The research is based on the qualitative academic studies and the conducted survey. The methodology is described. The findings of the study are analyzed and discussed. The paper gives recommendations for further studies. The conclusion and statement of the results are made.
Literature Review
There are some studies that discuss the current and potential influence of various modern inventions on the environment. Zhang et al. considered the area of nanotechnologies that play a key role in the future of science and technics and revealed its impact on the environment (Appendix B). They state, “Nanoparticles have higher surface areas than the bulk materials which can cause more damage to the human body and environment compared to the bulk particles” (Zhang et al., 2011, 2). Thus, nanotechnologies do not bring only benefits but are rather harmful. For instance, nowadays one of the key problems is the nanoparticle analysis method. Lack of information about size, shape, chemical structure, and life cycle stages makes it more difficult to detect the nanoparticles in the air and, hence, to protect the environment. Furthermore, synthesis of nanoparticles requires high-energy demands. The U.S. Department of Commerce carried out several types of research aimed to investigate the relations between the tidal energy devices and the marine environment, their environmental stressors and receptors. The research focused on all aspects of the relations and analyzed every stressor (static, dynamic, chemical effects, etc.) and every receptor (physical environment, fish migratory, etc.). The results showed that, for instance, they significantly affect the migration of fish (Appendix C). About 80% participants of the research stated that the research helped them to increase “their understanding of the potential environmental impacts of tidal energy development” (Polagye et al., 130).
The results of the previous studies undoubtedly proved that technological devices negatively influence the environment. However, it is mostly the outcome of their imperfection or understudy. Most of them also influence the environment in a positive way. For example, nanotechnologies are used for environmental monitoring and its protection. According to Zhang et al., nanotechnologies allowed to design one of the best and sensitive radiation detectors, which was aimed to detect a nuclear leak at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (Zhang et al., 2011, 2). They also help to monitor air pollution and make industrial processes cleaner and more efficient. Using of nanotechnologies allows reducing waste materials, improving the quality of air, soils, and water, removing greenhouse gases, etc. Various mechanical inventions allow access to renewal energy sources as the wind, and, as Jaber states that as wind turbines fuel-free, “there are no environmental risks or degradation from the exploration, extraction, transport, shipment, processing or disposal of fuel” (Jaber, 2013, 252).
Furthermore, the designing of new technological devices helps to protect the environment and to improve it. Electrified vehicles could reduce air pollution, and aquaponic systems that “combine the farming of fish, typically freshwater, with the cultivation of plants” provides a more environmentally sustainable way of producing food (Van Woensel & Archer, 2015, 15). At the same time, new technological devices are not the only way to save the environment. Grover investigated the connection between “advanced” knowledge and reducing future greenhouse gases emission. He aimed to prove the hypothesis according to which pollution abatement could be achieved without specific technologies and advanced knowledge but due to proper using of previous knowledge and technologies. Grover based his research on the previous technological change processes that led to a reduction of SO2 emissions among electric power plants and the analysis of “the responses for all affected units over all reported years from 1996 – 2005” (Grover, 2012, 15). He found that the hypothesis was relevant. His results are included in Appendix D.
Methodology
The purpose of the paper was to describe the current impact of technology and various mechanical devices on the environment. It aimed to analyze the possible ways they would help to save the environment in future. The paper was based on reviewing and analysis of the previous studies of reliable authors and on the carried survey. The studies dealt with the problems of the relationship between technological progress and the environment and its possible solutions. The methodology included a statement of the problem, its description, reviewing of the related literature, and survey carried out among mechanical engineering students. The analysis of the results and conclusions will be made later.
The paper is a collection of empirical data. The data were retrieved from the academic resources and gained during the survey. A number of resources were six. All the resources are reliable as they were written by scholars or government departments and published in academic journals or presented at conferences. Five papers were written within the last five years. One paper was published near twenty years ago, but it was used for presentation the data gained through previous centuries.
All the studies mentioned in this paper were retrieved from the Internet. They were publicly accessible and did not require the permission to use them. The sampling strategy was based on finding the articles about technological progress and retrieving the empirical data about its impact on the environment. The sample group consisted of 20 mechanical engineering students. The study is limited to the number of analyzed resources and the number of survey participants. Two quantitative methods used in the study were the survey and the analysis of the empirical data.
Findings & Implications (Analysis, Results, Discussion)
The analysis of the previous studies and the survey brought the following results.
First, technological inventions surely have a negative impact on the environment, but they also influence it positively, and most of this negativity is the result of understudy and imperfection that could be improved.
Second, new technological devices are not the only one solution to the environmental pollution. It is also important to have advanced knowledge and understanding of the problem. Then, the old mechanical devices could be used properly and for the sake of the environment.
Last, the results of the survey showed that future mechanical engineers understand the problem of environmental pollution and need for new cleaner ways of technologies and manufacturing processes. At the same time, half of the surveys think that modern devices are already protecting the environment. Other ways of the possible help were also mentioned.
The significance of the obtained results is the summary of several existing papers and opinions of professionals and the opinion of future professionals, students. If mechanical devices aim to save the environment, future mechanical engineers should understand this aim. Future mechanical devices are their future projects. Thus, They need to now current standings, and the paper provides some of them.
The study could become a basis for future research. It can be extended and improved in several ways including sample data and sample groups.
Conclusion
The paper was aimed to overview and to discuss the relations between technical devices and the environment. The major sources of information were the previous studies and the survey carried among mechanical engineering students. The literature review highlighted some environmental conflicts that appear in the age of technological progress, overviewed the positive side of the problem, and described some possible solutions that were offered by previous research workers. The survey showed that 80% of surveyed students understood the role mechanical engineer plays in solving the problem. They named such popular solutions as electrification, nanotechnologies, less energetic consumptions, and saving the natural resources. Nobody said that he or she had no answer.
The recommendations for further studies include an increase in the number of analyzed papers and surveyed people. It is important both to expand the number of participants within the sample group and to vary the groups. The deeper analysis of the modern technical inventions and their positive impact on the environment could be held. The number of questions could be increased. Statistical quantitative methods could be included. The data could be used for the construction of various graphs.
Reflection Essay
The topic of my project was related to the theme of how mechanical devices could possibly help to save the environment. During the investigation, I studied the modern problems of the environment and their reasons, learned the positive and negative impacts of technological progress, read and analyzed several studies related to the theme, and carried out a small survey.
Through research, I gained additional insights into the problem of the environmental pollution and its possible solutions. I knew about this problem even before I started the study because it is a very actual theme nowadays. However, my knowledge was rather elusive. Now the project is over, I got some information and specified my knowledge but still feel like I have a lot more to learn. Actually, it is true, as the problem of protecting the environment has not been studied well enough yet. My major sources of the information were the academic studies that were publicly available on the Internet and the survey I held among twenty mechanical engineering students. Besides new knowledge, I learned to manage my time in order to complete the paper on schedule and improved my writing skills summarizing and analyzing the information.
The first part of the project required working in groups. It was a great experience because working in groups ease the work and at the same time claims trust, communication, and interaction. It is important to divide the task into parts and to work together in equal measure. Now the group work is ended, and I can say that I significantly improved my group operating skills.
During the study, I faced a number of difficulties. First, even if the topic of the project sounds easy, it required a lot of groundwork. I had spent a lot of time looking for the reliable literature I was going to review. Second, I experienced some difficulties during the survey. I had the only question to ask, but some students told me that they do not want to participate and think about the problem. Thus, I spent a lot of additional time to find twenty persons who were open to talking to me. I overcame both of my major problems and completed my project.
References
Ausubel, Jesse H. (1995). Technical progress and climatic change. Energy Policy, 23 (4/5), 411-416. Web. Retrieved from http://phe.rockefeller.edu/tech_prog/
Grover, D. (2012). The “advancedness” of knowledge in pollution-saving technological change with a qualitative application to SO2 cap and trade. Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy, Working paper №118. Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, Working paper №100. PDF. Retrieved from http://www.cccep.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/WP100-pollution-saving-technological-change-so2-cap-and-trade.pdf
Jaber, S. (2013). Environmental impacts of wind energy. Journal of Clean Energy Technologies, 1(3), 251-254. Retrieved from http://www.jocet.org/papers/057-J30009.pdf
Polagye, B., Van Cleve, B., Copping, A., & Kirkendall, K. (Ed.). (2011). Environmental effects of tidal energy development. (U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA Tech. Memo. F/SPO-116). PDF. Retrieved from https://depts.washington.edu/nnmrec/workshop/docs/workshop_report_low_res.pdf
Van Woensel, L., & Archer, G. (2015). Ten technologies that could change our lives: Potential impacts and policy implications. European Parliamentary Research Service. Retrieved from http://www.europarl.europa.eu/EPRS/EPRS_IDAN_527417_ten_trends_to_change_your_life.pdf
Zhang, B., Misak, H., Dhanasekaran, P. S., Kalla, D., & Asmatulu, R. (2011). Proceedings of the 2011 Midwest Section Conference of the American Society for Engineering Education: Environmental Impacts of Nanotechnology and Its Products. Retrieved from https://www.asee.org/documents/sections/midwest/2011/ASEE-MIDWEST_0030_c25dbf.pdf
Appendix A
Figure 1. Decadal number of scientific and technological discoveries, 1400- 1900.
Adapted from Ausubel, Jesse H. (1995). Technical Progress and Climatic Change. Energy Policy 23 (4/5), 411-416. Web. Retrieved from http://phe.rockefeller.edu/tech_prog/
Appendix B
Figure 2. A detailed sorting of nanoparticles existing in the environments.
Adapted from Zhang, B., Misak, H., Dhanasekaran, P. S., Kalla, D., & Asmatulu, R. (2011). Proceedings of the 2011 Midwest Section Conference of the American Society for Engineering Education: Environmental Impacts of Nanotechnology and Its Products. Retrieved from https://www.asee.org/documents/sections/midwest/2011/ASEE-MIDWEST_0030_c25dbf.pdf
Appendix C
Figure 3. Sample receptor matrix components.
Adapt from Polagye, B., Van Cleve, B., Copping, A., & Kirkendall, K. (Ed.). (2011). Environmental Effects of Tidal Energy Development. (U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA Tech. Memo. F/SPO-116). PDF. Retrieved from https://depts.washington.edu/nnmrec/workshop/docs/workshop_report_low_res.pdf
Figure 4. Receptor matrix: Fish: Migratory – pilot-scale deployment
Adapt from Polagye, B., Van Cleve, B., Copping, A., & Kirkendall, K. (Ed.). (2011). Environmental Effects of Tidal Energy Development. (U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA Tech. Memo. F/SPO-116). PDF. Retrieved from https://depts.washington.edu/nnmrec/workshop/docs/workshop_report_low_res.pdf
Appendix D
Notes:
FKR – Frontier Knowledge Requirement
1. This involved shifting the unit’s emission reduction obligation to a different unit under the operator’s control. The emission reduction requirement could be reassigned to a unit with a lower compliance cost for example (CAAA 1990: 2593 – 2594).
2. Same as ‘designate Phase II unit(s) as substitution unit(s)’, except instead of controlling unit emissions directly using a ‘qualifying‘ technology the operator transferred the emission reduction obligation to a unit employing a qualifying technology.
3. Under a Phase 1 extension plan a plant operator was allowed to extend the compliance deadline for a unit by up to two years provided that the operator held valid allowances for all emissions from the unit during the two years and that the operator either employed a ‘qualifying Phase 1 technology’ or transferred the emission reduction obligation for the unit to a unit employing a qualifying Phase 1 technology. A qualifying Phase 1 technology is ‘a technological system of continuous emission reduction which achieves a 90 per cent reduction in emissions of sulphur dioxide from the emissions that would have resulted from the use of fuels which were not subject to treatment prior to combustion’ (CAAA 1990: 2588).
4. For each ton of SO2 emissions an operator avoided through energy conservation measures, the EPA awarded an equivalent number of emission allowances.
Adapted from Grover, D. (2012, November). The “advancedness” of knowledge in pollution-saving technological change with a qualitative application to SO2 cap and trade. Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy, Working paper №118. Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, Working paper №100. PDF. Retrieved from http://www.cccep.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/WP100-pollution-saving-technological-change-so2-cap-and-trade.pdf
Appendix D
How could mechanical devices help to save the environment? (20 participants)
They are already doing it – 10 participants – 50%
It depends on the abilities and ideas of mechanical engineers – 16 participants – 80%
Mechanical devices provide more efficient use of natural resources – 10 participants – 50%
Mechanical devices become less energy-consuming – 10 participants – 50%
Nanotechnologies – 8 participants – 40%
Electrification – 8 participants – 40%
Other – 4 participants – 20%
Cannot say - 0
Note: multiple answers were allowed.
