The Social Impact of Computers - Softcover

Rosenberg, Richard S.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0125971303 ISBN 13: 9780125971300

Publisher: Academic Press, 1992

Synopsis

"The Social Impact of Computers" is a guide to the social implications of current and future applications of computers. Among the basic themes presented are: the changing nature of work in response to technological innovation as well as the threat to jobs; personal freedom in the machine age as manifested by challenges to privacy, dignity and work; the relationship between advances in computer and communication technology and the possibility of increased centralization of authority; the emergence and influence of artificial intelligence and its role in decision-making, especially in military applications; the growing importance of information as both a means to improve productivity and as a commodity in its own right; the hidden influence of computers as microprocessors are embedded in a myriad of products and the diffusion of the personal computers at work, at home, in schools, and elsewhere. The book also discusses a number of issues that have not been treated in sufficient depth in a single source. These include: popular attitudes towards computers; recent advances in robotics and industrial automation; military applications of computers; computers and the home; the emerging information society; videotext systems; office automation; computers and telecommunications; computer impact on working conditions; patents and copyright issues; computer crime; privacy issues; information technology in the political process; the influence of the department of defense in computer science research and education; international competition; women and computing, and ethics and professionalism in computing.

About this title

About the Author

Richard Rosenberg is an Associate Professor of Computer Science at the University of British Columbia. He uses computers regularly, and thinks and teaches about their impact.

Edition details

• Publisher: Academic Press
• Publication date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0125971303
• ISBN 13: 9780125971300
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 398