Overview
write a 4-6 page double spaced size 12 font essay that pulls from as much of the course material as possible.
Your prompt is as follows:
Prompt:
Throughout this course we have discussed both the merits and potential drawbacks of various technology. On the positive side, technology has allowed us to live longer, healthier lives with greater degrees of comfort and global access. On the negative side we have seen the rise of increasingly dangerous wars, global pandemics, environmental damage/climate change, artificial products, and other social drawbacks.
After viewing the materials from this course what are your thoughts on technological advancement? Do you believe that technological advancement is generally a process that benefits humanity, or do you view it as something that rather contributes to our suffering and environmental destruction? Or do you see it as a complex combination of these two things? Each lecture focuses on some positive and negative components of technological "advancement" for you to consider. If you need more evidence for the potential negatives associated with modern society especially consider the last two lectures--especially the material presented next week in the final mini-lecture on climate change, nuclear energy, artificial society, etc.
Ultimately, there is no right or wrong answer here because clearly the case could be made for either side. Some historians have pointed to the modern era as the era of mass stress, environmental destruction etc, while others choose to highlight the many ways in which we have become more accepting, healthier, happier, and more comfortable as a species. Your job here is to think about where you stand and more importantly, to find a variety of evidence over different time periods to support your answers. You should reference at least two different lectures/time periods that we covered in class (you can also use material from more than two periods). Think about the cultural changes -- "us and them"--those with power and those without and what technology has done for this divide. Think about global connectivity and the benefits and pitfalls of this. Think about technology's role in empire and the multifaceted legacy of empire/colonialism. On the other hand think about the role that medicine, agricultural advancements, and other scientific advancements have done for humans. There are many ways to look at this question, and you don't have to focus on all of these elements, these are just some ideas for entry points into this conversation!
Once again, for clarity, the "main" question you are answering is:
Do you believe that technological advancement is generally a process that benefits humanity, or do you view it as something that rather contributes to our suffering and environmental destruction? Or do you see it as a complex combination of these two things?
1. Page length--is the paper 4-6 pages long
2. Thesis--is it clear from the first paragraph what you are arguing/are you answering the main bold question from the prompt?
3. Arguments/evidence: Are you giving SPECIFIC arguments and Cited (in-text) evidence from the course to support your ideas? --Note-- to cite lectures you may use (Cahn, Lecture #, Slide #), OR (Cahn, Lecture #, YouTube timestamp); OR you may follow a style guide of your choice if you'd rather. You must use in-text citations in order for us to understand where and what specifically you are citing.
4. Evidence Diversity: Do you utilize examples from at least two different lectures/time periods?
5. Organization: Does each paragraph introduce a new sub-argument and related evidence? Do paragraphs flow well together? Ideally, you want to avoid abruptly transitioning from one major topic to the other, try to contextualize these transitions using the first sentence of your new paragraph.
6. Conclusion: Do you wrap up your arguments with a strong summary of your evidence and restatement of the thesis?