[i习作temp] 0910AW 个人习作 issue88 by GA-row stephenK [复制链接]

乡亲们跟我上
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电梯直达

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发表于 2009-8-3 13:09:45 |只看该作者 |倒序浏览

TOPIC: ISSUE88 - "Technologies not only influence but actually determine social customs and ethics."
WORDS: 610
TIME: 00:45:00
DATE: 2009-8-2 20:06:00

Along with the significant technological revolution during the last century, our generation has also witnessed the influential social change. While I fundamentally agree with the assertion that technology could deeply influence the social customs and ethics, it is somewhat radical to claim that technology could determine them.
Throughout the history of civilization, in every significant change in social customs, we could find some signs of technologic factor. Human customs are influenced by the environment which they live in. The original intent of technology is to improve the human environment and free us from manual work. In this way technology cast a pivotal impact on human custom. For examples, before Industrialization Revolution, all the heavy jobs like transporting bucks of stones, cutting big trees and manufacturing steels are mostly done by hands. For purely physical factors, woman could not take such jobs. As a result, they were in a relatively inferior social status compared with male. Such situation changed significantly after Industrialization Revolution because machines began replacing human in such exhausting jobs. When it comes to intelligent work, female perform equally good as male do, or even better. Under such circumstance, female's status began to challenge the male several thousand years’ domination. The existence of feminists best demonstrates such social custom change. Besides, with the progress in transportation and the popularity of private automobiles, people could move from one place to another in an amazing short instance. Such change renders middle class moving to suburbs for a healthier and more leisure life. Several decades before, everybody would like to live in the downtown of big cities like New York and Chicago. Such custom revolution significantly changes the distribution of people.
Besides, technology also exerts an important impact on the human ethics. Ethics intrinsically are a set of moral standards shared by the majority of social members. Technology could influence those standards gradually during a long time period. A convincing example should be the invention of condom. During the history of all the civilizations, sexual relationship has been the most controversial issue and forbidden to discuss in public. Causal sexual relationship before marriage was regarded as moral degeneration and even would be sentenced to death. In 1950s, an American scientist invented condom which directly lead to the sexual liberty in the modern time. Social tolerance for sex has risen dramatically. People began to discuss sex publicly and enjoy more freedom to have sex with lovers before marriage. Such change in ethics could be attributed to the invention and new technology.

However, it is too arbitrary to use the verb "determine" for the speaker. Social customs and ethics form during a very long history. Many factors are involves in this long process such as politic, history and religion. Though technology is undoubtedly an important and indispensible factor, it could not determine those criterions alone. In fact, the progress of technology is constrained by the customs and ethics. Some ethical taboos are forbidden to touch even for those brilliant scientists. For examples, although clone technology is a promising direction in a technical way, no scientists are allowed to implement related research because it will pose a huge challenge to the current moral ethical system. Correspondingly, researches that interests society are invested considerable resources by society so that such technology could improve in a faster pace. As a conclusion, it is the customs and ethics that finally determine the development of the technology, rather than the reverse statements as the speaker suggests.
To sum up, technology does exert an important influence on the social customs and ethnics; however, talking about determination, it is more reasonable to say human determines machines rather than the reverse conclusion.

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Neptune2010
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沙发

发表于 2009-8-6 19:51:00 |只看该作者

Along with the significant technological revolution during the last century, our generation has also witnessed the influential social change. While I fundamentally agree with the assertion that technology could deeply influence the social customs and ethics, it is somewhat radical to claim that technology could determine them.

Throughout the history of civilization, in every significant change in social customs, we could find some signs of technologic factor. Human customs are influenced by the environment which they live in. The original intent of technology is to improve the human environment and free us from manual work. In this way technology cast a pivotal impact on human custom. For examples, before Industrialization Revolution, all the heavy jobs like transporting bucks of stones, cutting big trees and manufacturing steels are mostly done by hands. For purely physical factors, woman could not take such jobs. As a result, they were in a relatively inferior social status compared with male. Such situation changed significantly after Industrialization Revolution because machines began replacing human in such exhausting jobs. When it comes to intelligent work, female perform equally good as male do, or even better. Under such circumstance, female's status began to challenge the male several thousand years’ domination. The existence of feminists best demonstrates such social custom change. Besides, with the progress in transportation and the popularity of private automobiles, people could move from one place to another in an amazing short instance. Such change renders middle class moving to suburbs for a healthier and more leisure life. Several decades before, everybody would like to live in the downtown of big cities like New York and Chicago. Such custom revolution significantly changes the distribution of people.（文章所说的change是指influence还是determine？要界定一下）

Besides, technology also exerts an important impact on the human ethics. Ethics intrinsically are a set of moral standards shared by the majority of social members. Technology could influence those standards gradually during a long time period. A convincing example should be the invention of condom. During the history of all the civilizations, sexual relationship has been the most controversial issue and forbidden to discuss in public. Causal sexual relationship before marriage was regarded as moral degeneration and even would be sentenced to death. In 1950s, an American scientist invented condom which directly lead to the sexual liberty in the modern time. （第一、避孕套应该不是主导因素。第二，如果这样说，那么就应该是determine了）Social tolerance for sex has risen dramatically. People began to discuss sex publicly and enjoy more freedom to have sex with lovers before marriage. Such change in ethics could be attributed to the invention and new technology.（还是老问题，influence还是determine？）

However, it is too arbitrary to use the verb "determine" for the speaker. Social customs and ethics form during a very long history. Many factors are involves in this long process such as politic, history and religion. Though technology is undoubtedly an important and indispensible factor, it could not determine those criterions alone. In fact, the progress of technology is constrained by the customs and ethics. Some ethical taboos are forbidden to touch even for those brilliant scientists. For examples, although clone technology is a promising direction in a technical way, no scientists are allowed to implement related research because it will pose a huge challenge to the current moral ethical system. Correspondingly, researches that interests society are invested considerable resources by society so that such technology could improve in a faster pace. As a conclusion, it is the customs and ethics that finally determine the development of the technology, rather than the reverse statements as the speaker suggests.（I can argue by saying: just because technology on cloning can undermine ethnics, people fear and forbid in the first place。个人观点，这个问题要看怎么说，毕竟谁也不知道未来的道德是怎样的）

To sum up, technology does exert an important influence on the social customs and ethnics; however, talking about determination, it is more reasonable to say human determines machines rather than the reverse conclusion.

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