SOCIETY & GLOBAL DOMINANCE
We started the class with technology and global dominance. First, we tried to understand what does it mean to dominate? Could global dominance equate to a country with economic & military power? And how does one increases its economic power? As the discussion progressed, one could see the interdependent relationships of power and technology and what a huge role technology plays, as demonstrated in Guns, Steel and Germs. We see societies advance and grow through technological advances ( example: improved farming methods/manufacturing knowledge- more goods - more transactions - increased standards of living - increased power) and some lagging behind (China when they closed their doors - I studied this in History class and at that point in time, I couldn't really relate to the impact of closing their doors). The discussion of the Shahi organizational behaviour model further supported this view and was really quite telling. Taking bubble tea for an example, old players of bubble tea have simply become irrelevant and stagnant as new players of bubble tea come in and tried to 'recreate' bubble tea and dominate the market. The dominant players of bubble tea (Each-A-Cup) in Singapore needed to need up their game by having an open perspective and increasing R&D(new flavours and such) when other popular bubble tea chains came in from Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Using the chart, we can identify potential rising stars and falling stars and avoid similar mistakes or learn from them.
Technology has always been apparent in our lives even in the beginning of time as people began to scour materials and create tools - this is the most primitive technology. To start off our second session (technology & human development), we were asked to think about whether change or development came first since human development is all about maximising opportunities and harnessing your potential. I suppose it goes hand in hand. One drives the other - without changes in the World, one is unable to develop and find new and better ways of doing things.
I loved the Hans Rosling video 'The Joy of Statistics' 200 countries 200 years in 4 minutes. It was fascinating to see how different societies have flourished (or not). Most societies started off at the same stage 'Poor & Unhealthy' and some managed to climb to the desired region of 'Rich & Healthy'. It would be interesting to study in depth the reasons behind this.
One startling statement made by the Prof in class was how criminal it was that poverty still exists in these advanced times. Given the vast improvement in technologies today and the amount of wealth developed countries have, it seems criminal that societies where children starve and are uneducated exist. They have no opportunity to escape the vicious cycle that is poverty. I suppose a lot of it has to do with government and the policies in place (corruption?), without the right policies, children are still going to starve and their only job opportunities without a proper education is probably a minimum wage job at a sweatshop. Even with all the advanced technologies available in the world, human nature is still in control.
I would rate the session 7/10. It felt a little rushed towards the end but was still really thought provoking. I enjoyed every oral presentation (especially the one on using drones in warfare) and learned something new from my classmates. Casslyn talked about the decline of America and the rise of China. China is the next big thing but I think another classmate brought up a valid point - China has a lot of problems to address, yes, it will be the next super power but what about the huge disparity in income distribution, some rural areas remain severely backwards and pollution is a key issue in China. I guess, what remains is only a matter of time for China to be the new boss.
