Hello all. It’s been far too long since I’ve dropped by to say hello and ramble incessantly. Err, I mean contribute.
Since there are plenty of mainstream topics to read about on the Net (i.e. who’s having babies where, whose team is doing well in a certain soccer tournament, whose widdle feewings got hurt by a columnist, etc.), I’ll insert a small alternative (and way less newsworthy) topic, mainly to go on the record for predicting something I hope never happens.
Every day there are stories in the news that involve technology. Not as the subject, just a part of the story. Take the recent activities of our pals in Iran. It’s newsworthy because of the ramifications to our world if they do indeed achieve nuclear capabilities (and rightfully so). But what is at the source of this controversy? Technology. As in who has it and who is doing what to advance it for their own gains or for humanity in general.
The world has always been “led” (for lack of a better word) by those who had technical ability on their side. Look at any battle or war before the Industrial Revolution. There were many components to a successful military (lots of troops, smart leaders), but what gave people the edge? Yup. Whether it was a Trojan horse or gunpowder or communications, that’s it. And technology tends to spread. Ancient Rome had more engineering marvels than is easy to comprehend, which made living there seem indeed like Heaven on Earth. And where did many of their advances come from? Do a little reading and you’ll find the impetus to move armies across water did more for bridge technology than just wanting to cross a river to get across town.
So lets fast forward to the 20th century. On the whole, the US was easily the world leader in technological advances. We had the first airplanes, computers, the list goes on. We raced the Soviets to the moon mainly to establish our pre-eminence as THE technological superpower. The Space Race, one could argue, was the biggest physical battleground of the Cold War. So we were doing alright.
Now, present day. There is a very big misconception that we are still the world leader in technology. Enlightened people know that we aren’t, that we compete on a global stage, and lately we’re not very successful. One of the biggest historical areas of hi-tech is aerospace and aeronautics. Advances here have (and probably will continue) to rapidly spread across other technical disciplines. The computer you are reading this on would (in all likelihood) not exist were it not for trying to make computers smaller and reliable for airplanes/spacecraft. Sure it would’ve come along eventually, but certainly not have had the financial resources to get started/advance as quickly as it did.
Where am I going with this? A myriad of reports have been hitting the market that basically say the US is no longer the world leader in this field and has very little hope of even staying in the game. Read this and this and this (an opinion piece but on the right track) and see what the future could hold. I hope we make a rebound; I don’t see it soon.
Consider this: you remember the big port “scandal” a couple of months ago, with having foreign interests control our ports? That story greatly overshadowed a deal that was signed with UAE to fund and build a commercial spaceport. These events happened literally within days of each other. Please note that one of the big supporters is Space Adventures Ltd, which is an AMERICAN company based in Va. The American spirit of building a business is alive and well; what will happen when it is alive and well overseas, being funded by aggressive American businesses? It won’t be tomorrow and I sincerely hope I’m wrong; I think that we are going to have to get used to being mediocre in an arena we can’t afford to slack in.
So maybe it is appropriate I’ve chosen to write this after we showed how plain we can be in the World Cup. Air and space technologies will start to be led by other cultures and people. Things like missiles. And spaceships (China seems to be on the right track). Let’s pray some other folks don’t choose to put things on the tips of those missiles (that they bought in a free market) that make pretty mushroom clouds. I’m trying not to sound like an alarmist, but is it possible that we are at the precipice of a tech downfall?
Sarge
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2 comments:
This is another, and honestly the greatest reason, that the immigration issue needs to be fixed. And no, I'm not talking about immigration of Mexicans being banned. There needs to be a system for allowing and tracking hundreds of thousands of immigrants that should come into the US to help us regain our technical superiority. After all, they were immigrants who led development of nuclear weapons and the space program - winning two wars for us. Americans have never been the leaders on our own, and insuring fewer immigrants through limited H1B visas will insure a more diminished presence in global technology. Our egos will kill us.
I think this is a good lesson in linear development over a simple timeline. We have led the world and in doing so become the most powerful country in both military and financial matters…the 800 pound gorilla. Other countries have modeled themselves on key aspects of the U.S. in political, financial, and technological fields in order to mimic our successes. Doesn’t it follow then that as we come to a place of relative complacency, where seeking peace at all costs trumps security and technological advance, in other words; the beginning of our perigee on the power scale, other countries who have been traveling in our wake but on the same path will become the preeminent powers, still on their technological apogees or even their peaks?
In simpler terms, in a race, if you’re not the front runner, the only view you get is the other guy’s ass.
Great post Sarge, and I do indeed hope you’re wrong.
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