Understanding Technology Assessment
The purpose of this report are intend to describe WHAT is Technology Assessment, HOW it was evolved, and justifications on WHY there's needs for Technology Assessment. The report briefly covers the definition of the major Technology Assessment paradigms, and attempt to analyze the differences between Eijndhoven and J. Schot/A. Rip's views on Constructive Technology Assessment (CTA) paradigm. Four major technology assessment tools and methods will also be introduced together with its useful applications and limitations.The last section of the report deals with how different engineering disciplines incorporate technology assessment into their decision-making processes with real examples from today's engineering world. The section finishes with judgments on how far are we in incorporating CTA into decision-making processes, and what's the future holds for current technology assessment paradigms.Why do we need technology assessment? Why technology assessment is considered to be an essential part of today's modern engineering activity and technological development? Because being an engineer we are not only engineering the technology but we are also engineering the society
For example the popular use of the mobile phones, the society could only adapt to its use as quickly as possible (otherwise there is a fear that he/she might be fallen behind in society's pace), even though there are still debates on whether the radiation emitted by the mobile phones have negative effects to human cells. The Strategic nich management can be use in place to stimulate technology improvement through the learning processes, while Demand Articulation is a process that attempts to uncover any unseen social demands on the new technology. Through that CTA is intend to improve the alignment between technological and social developments [6]. Translation of science into policy often is a politically complex activity that requires profound knowledge on relevant issues. * Computer System / IT SectorsIn the computer system and IT industries, decision makers are mainly concerned of the technical and economic factors involved in a project. Perhaps we should first ask "is it appropriate to impose the Western ideology and model of thinking to all countries and cultures in the world?" Understanding the culture should be the first move when attempting to introduce a model to a foreign culture, it is not a valid assumption to make "if such model works in one culture, it will ultimately work in the other one". The legislature is, in theory, a forum of representative laymen - certainly laymen in the context of science and technology. In both PTA and CTA paradigms the emphasis are on the social processes that may influence the technological development and eventually pose impacts on society rather than on the production of authoritative technology assessment reports. Through the exchange of ideas between only the experts, they are free of other social interferences. Therefore design engineers generally adopt "quick time to market" solution, provided that all safety and compatibility standards are met. The keywords behind the whole IT and software industries are: efficiency, automation, accuracy, and consistency. These tools and methods are considered to be suitable for Classical TA applications where the focuses are on the prediction of future technologies. For example, the largest civil engineering project in human history is currently into its second stage in China, where a hydroelectric dam will be built across the Yang-Xi River, the longest river in China. From the above examples regardless of the engineering disciplines, economic factors are always on the higher priority list of decision-maker's consideration.
Common topics in this essay:
Technology Assessment,
Computer System,
Schot Rip,
PTA CTA,
Conclusions Today's,
Yang-Xi River,
Sectors Due,
US$3 PCCW's,
Assessment Paradigms,
United Congress,
technology assessment,
technological development,
decision-making processes,
assessment paradigm,
cta paradigm,
technology assessment paradigm,
social cultural,
engineering disciplines,
public technology assessment,
public technology,
office technology assessment,
economic factors,
tools methods,
constructive technology assessment,
assessment technology assessment,
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