Discovery · Systems Project 12
Technology and People
Everything it gave us, everything it cost, and who got left out.
Student PIN:
Try It — How Did People Do It Before?
Pick five things you did this week using a screen. For each one, work out how somebody would have done the same thing thirty years ago.
| What I did | How it was done before | Which was better? |
|---|---|---|
Was there one where the old way was actually better in some respect? Which, and how?
Ask Somebody Who Was There
Find an adult and ask them one question: what is something you miss that technology replaced?
Write down what they said, even if you disagree with it.
They said:
Learn It — Everything Has a Price
New technology does not simply add things. It swaps one set of problems for another.
| Technology | What it gave | What it cost |
|---|---|---|
| The car | Go anywhere, quickly | Traffic, accidents, dirty air |
| The mobile phone | Reach anybody from anywhere | Never being unreachable yourself |
| The washing machine | Hours of every week given back | Machines to buy, power to run them |
That swap is a . Judging a technology means looking at both sides, not just the side being advertised.
Four that changed things recently
Artificial Intelligence
that finds patterns and makes predictions. Mobile phonesA computer, camera, map, and telephone in one pocketVoice assistantsMachines you talk to instead of type at3D printersMake a physical object from a fileArtificial intelligenceSoftwarethat finds patterns and makes predictions
You Have Been Building One of These
Artificial Intelligence is not one thing. At its simplest it means a machine using information to decide what to do next.
Your robot reads a , compares it against a , and picks an action. That is the same shape as the thing everyone is arguing about — just small enough that you can see all of it.
Who does it work for?
means designing so that as many people as possible can actually use the thing.
A design that only works for some people is not finished.
Built for Some, Useful to Everyone
Dropped kerbs at road crossings were built for wheelchairs. They are now used by prams, suitcases, delivery trolleys, and anybody on crutches.
Subtitles were built for deaf viewers. Most people watching a video on a noisy bus use them too.
Designing for the people who are usually left out tends to make the thing better for everybody.
Do It — Weigh It Up
1. Pick one and find out about it
Choose one: mobile phones, voice assistants, 3D printers, or artificial intelligence.
| Question | What I found out |
|---|---|
| I chose | |
| Roughly when did it arrive? | |
| What did people do before it? | |
| Who benefits most from it? | |
| One thing it made worse | |
| Something surprising I learnt |
2. Two lists and a middle
As a group, fill in all three columns. The middle is the interesting one — things that are good and bad at the same time.
Good about technology
Both at once
Bad about technology
Pick one thing from the middle and explain how it manages to be both.
Why is it worth knowing the bad side of something you like using?
3. Find a task somebody cannot do
Think of an everyday task and somebody who would find it hard or impossible — because of sight, hearing, movement, memory, height, strength, or language.
| The task | Who finds it hard, and why |
|---|---|
⚠ Ask, Do Not Assume
It is easy to guess wrong about what somebody actually needs. Real designers ask the person first, and then keep asking while they build.
4. Invent something for it
Design a device or a change that would let that person do the task themselves. Draw it and label the parts.
Your invention, drawn and labelled
| Question | My answer |
|---|---|
| What it is called | |
| What it does | |
| Which of the six robot parts does it use? | |
| Could it be built today? |
Who else — not the person you designed it for — would end up using it?
5. Share and improve
Show your invention to another group. Ask them one question: what did I not think of?
They said:
6. Check your own robot
Your robot is a piece of technology too. Turn the same questions on it.
| Question | My answer |
|---|---|
| Who could not use my robot as it is now? | |
| What would I change so they could? | |
| Does it need a screen, or could it beep and buzz instead? |
7. Ten years ahead
Make one prediction about how technology will have changed things by the time you leave school.
Date this page. It will be worth reading again later.
Score It — Checkpoint
Keep accessibility in mind when you judge who a design works for.
Name the trade-off
| Technology | What it gives | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Video calls | ||
| Online maps | ||
| A robot that does a job |
Accessible or not?
| A design that… | Accessible? |
|---|---|
| Only shows information as colour | |
| Has both a beep and a flashing light | |
| Needs both hands at once to operate | |
| Can be used by voice or by button |
Can you do it again?
Think about it
Dropped kerbs and subtitles were built for a few people and ended up used by nearly everyone. Why do you think that keeps happening?
Your robot decides what to do by reading a sensor and comparing it to a number. Is that intelligence? Where would you draw the line?
Somebody invents something genuinely useful that also causes real harm. Whose job is it to think about the harm — the inventor, the people using it, or somebody else?
Next
You have thought about technology and the people who use it. The last two projects are about the people you build it with.
In Systems Project 13 — Goals and Roles, your team decides what it is actually trying to do, and who does what.
When you are finished, press the button to turn in your work and save a copy.
KIPR · Botball Explorer · Discovery