EG1471:Writing assignment 1 (Topic 1)

       People resist new technology because of inconvenience, danger, and the risk of unemployment. Four new types of technology that are commonly resisted by people are solar energy, nuclear power, biotechnology, and information technology. People resist using solar energy because the storage of solar energy is inconvenient and a storage system is unaffordable. Besides, cloudy weather, darkness and location may interrupt the storage of solar energy. Hence, the availability of solar energy is not widespread all over the world. That is why most people prefer using fossil fuel to using solar energy. People also resist nuclear power because it is dangerous though nuclear power can produce a large quantity of energy with a tiny amount of mass, the fusion reaction is hard to control and not safe enough. Residents living near the fusion reactors are afraid of radioactivity, which may cause cancer. Safety issues are also behind people’s resistance to buying and eating genetically modified food. Scientists have proved that several kinds of genetically modified foods are harmful to human health. The New England Journal of Medicine reports a strong and reliable connection between trans fat consumption and Coronary Heart Disease (CHD), concluding that “On a per calorie basis, trans fat appears to increase the risk of CHD more than any other macronutrient, conferring a substantially increased risk at low levels of consumption” (Mozaffarian, Katan, Ascherio, Stampfer, & Willett, 2006). The fear of joblessness also makes people resist technology. Knowledge-based systems, decision support systems and groupware may improve operational efficiency; however, people resist using information technology because it may make them jobless. In conclusion, people resist new technology as it may be inconvenient, harmful, or bad for people’s jobs.
References
Mozaffarian, D., Katan, M. B., Ascherio, A.,Stampfer, M. J ., & Willett, W. C. (2006, April). Trans fatty acids and Cardiovascular Disease. New England Journal of Medicine, 354(15), 1601–1613.