Consider how Congress has declared their intention to force Google, Facebook and others to disclose who pays for political ads on their platforms. This is already the norm for TV, radio and print.
5. “All history is relevant, but the history of technology is the most relevant.”
The motivating force behind this “law” was how the Cold War “led to the buildup of nuclear weapons and the missiles to deliver them anywhere on Earth. That led to the development of a war-proof communication system: the internet.”
Yes, nuclear weapons were (are) mildly relevant. The potential destruction of civilization as we know it is worth noting. But the new truth is that is that it would be hard to make a case that anything in our world is more relevant than technological advancement. The impact is too strong and the circle of influence too wide.
6. “Technology is a very human activity.”
The Wall Street Journal article noted how Apple Inc. Chief Executive Tim Cook, in a 2017 commencement speech at MIT, said: “Technology is capable of doing great things. But it doesn’t want to do great things — it doesn’t want anything.” The point? That despite its power, “how we use technology is up to us.”
Yes. But let’s let the final word be Kranzberg’s:
“Many of our technology-related problems arise because of the unforeseen consequences when apparently benign technologies are employed on a massive scale.”
Again, yes. As in a “tower of Babel” scale.
And we know how that turned out.
This article on the laws of technology originally appeared here.
![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://churchleaders.com/ministry-tech-leaders/4645-six-laws-technology-james-emery-white.html&media=https://churchleaders.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/laws-of-technology.jpg&description=There is a fascinating article in the Wall Street Journal titled "The Six Laws of Technology Everyone Should Know." It is based on the writings of Melvin Kranzberg, a professor of the history of technology at Georgia Institute of Technology.){kind=link}