Technology Strikes Back

Automobiles play a major role in today's society. Almost every American owns at least one motorized transportation vehicle. Some say they make our lives better by reaching places faster than before. Others say they are a harmful to the environment. Have they made our society better or worse? They may be fast, but do we as humans want our environment to suffer because of time. Face it, cars pollute. And they release destructive chemicals into the air. Air pollution can threaten the health of many subjects in the environment including human beings.

Why do we drive? Can't we just walk instead or just ride bikes. Life would be a whole lot different if we didn't have cars. It would take forever to get to work, school, and to meet up with friends. An upside though is that we would have less air pollution, so our air would be healthier to breathe in.

Although many countries have developed technological solutions, such as low-sulphur fuels, three-way catalytic converters, and unleaded petroleum, Moriarty and Honnery argue otherwise. Moriarty and Honnery claim that finding a technological solution for automobile pollution is not possible. Instead, the human population will have to find alternative transportation solutions. They state that the public will have to make sociological alterations, such as walking or cycling to places, or in some cases, using more energy-efficient public transportation modes, as they will benefit the atmosphere more than technological fixes

On the same note, the energy revolution spoken of above brings forth another advance in the ongoing global climate situation. The nature of the Kyoto Protocol calls for nations to increase research and eventually semi-convert their energy usage to accommodate for cleaner energy. Products such as solar power, wind power, biomass, geothermal power, and hydropower are now widely being studying to create processes that use less coal, oil, and natural gas in production. Altogether the results have

On the road, big truck and fast cars are seen and are pretty cool. Some don't see a cool vehicle they see a nuisance to the environment. Self driving cars can eliminate pollutants in multiple ways. On the road cars are constantly stopping and going. Wheather at a stoplight or a traffic jam, cars waist the energy that they produce, causing harm to the environment. It is guessed that the difference between a human driving car compared to an automated car stopping at intersections would cut down on air pollution by 20-50% (Larabell). With normal cars, people are constantly crushing the gas pedal and stopping frequently. With driverless cars, the computer regulates the amount of stopping and going, along energy saving systems while stopped. With just the addition of self driving cars we could cut down tremendously on harmful gases. It would make it easier to make the world we live in greener. While saving emissions at intersections is helpful to the environment, so is reducing the overall number of cars on the road. The sheer number of cars on the road affects the environment we live in. It might not matter how efficient some cars are if there are still many more putting out harmful emissions.With the rise in driverless cars, regular cars will be pushed off the road, and allow for more ride sharing. It is estimated by the Earth Institute at Columbia University that

Once families could afford two cars because of the lowering price, many women could now drive. African Americans could now drive as well; putting them at the wheel gave them new respect. The car also enables people to make a decision to go somewhere and leave immediately, no more waiting for a bus or a train. Cars gave Americans the freedom to move to other cities and start new lives. Although some people say that cars are dangerous because of accidents, there are many accidents involving trains, planes, and buses as well. Some may continue with “Cars are polluting the environment,” But other forms of transportation pollute just as much as

In our real lives, the society usually improves through science. In the article “Cars and Their Enemies” wrote by James Q. Wilson, he talks about how cars bring people conveniences and improve the society. He also states that car makes people’s lives freer and more pleasurable (Wilson ). As everybody know, the United States is a country on wheels, especially in Southern California. Cars are very important for a person who lives in the suburbs of Southern California, students need them to go to school, ladies need it to go to the mall, and guys need it to go to gym. Otherwise, people will have to limit the chooses of their house. Moreover, Wilson also mentions that people always love to choose transportation based on individual instead of social preferences. In other words, cars provide convenient living and option to people, and this is what science brings to people. We should support and respect science instead of adopt a hostile attitude towards science because of what it did to

One change that has to be made in industries is to burn less fossil fuels, reducing greenhouse gases. According to James E. Hansen, in the article, “Climate Change is Here - And Worse Than We Thought” he says, “ We can solve the challenge of climate change with a gradually rising fee on carbon

During the time that humans have been living on earth the environment has evolved especially the way we have treated it. Now that we have found a large variation of energy sources we have effected it even more.

The burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil, and deforestation over the last 200 years has caused the concentrations of heat-trapping "greenhouse gases" to increase significantly in our atmosphere. These gases prevent heat from escaping to space. Greenhouse gases are necessary in our lives as they help in keeping the planet 's surface warmer than it would otherwise be. But, as the concentrations of these gases continue to increase in the atmosphere, the Earth 's temperature is climbing above past levels (USEPA, 2014).

Technology has brought many luxuries to people. The invention of the automobile has brought convenience to everyday living. People use their vehicles to commute to work, school, home, and other events. Some people cannot even imagine living life without the use of an automobile. People have different tastes in the type of automobile that they drive; the automotive industry has made several different ways to commute. The car and the sports utility vehicle seem to be the most common types. The sports utility vehicle is inferior to the car.

Being lazy is a great thing because so much time is saved. Time may be saved, but in exchange, the environment gets destroyed instead. Driving a car to work may be faster, but it also destroys the environment so much faster. Biking to the store serves the same purpose and it saves the environment greatly. Cars are a huge contributor to global warming. Cars and trucks combined are responsible for one-fifth of all US emissions. They release about 24 pounds of carbon dioxide and other global warming gases for every gallon of gas used (Union of Concerned Scientists). About five pounds of those gases come from production, extraction, and delivery of gasoline. More than 19 pounds are released per gallon from a car's tailpipe (Union of Concerned Scientists). 1.2 billion cubic yards of polluted air is from manufacture. Painting and coating cars produces 40 million pounds of air releases and 24 million pounds of hazardous waste a year. A car's lifetime produces 1.3 billion cubic yard of polluted air and scatters 40 pounds of worn tire particles, brake debris, and worn road surface into the atmosphere (Bike to Work Day). Pollutants released a year add up to over 12,140 lbs for cars and 17,000 for light trucks. Some of those pollutants are carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and nitrogen oxides (Bike to Work Day). By choosing to bike or walk instead of drive, the amount of gases and waste contributing to global warming, drops drastically. Choosing to drive instead of taking a greener form of transportation is a great threat to the environment.

We as a society have reached one of the most crucial time periods in the history of our world. Due to the way we have used the resources on this earth we have created a situation in which our climate is drastically changing. The burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil has caused gases like carbon dioxide to become trapped in the atmosphere causing a natural greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect has caused the earth’s average temperature to rise and has resulted in arctic glaciers melting. These glaciers had gases trapped inside them that are now being released into the atmosphere further raising the earth's temperature. Due to the way we are polluting our air we have caused global warming. This global warming has caused stronger natural disasters such as hurricanes and wildfires putting our society in more danger than ever before.

There is no doubt that technology has advanced tremendously in the last half-century. Technology has provided extraordinary improvements to our world; being an endless source of entertainment and nonstop communication anywhere at any time. But are these technological advancements a good thing? The youth of today are constantly immersed in these technological advancements whether through cell phones, gaming systems, or laptops. As technology continues to advance it is negatively affecting our health, communication skills, and the education of youth.

Wilson argues that without cars, we would have to live very close together in apartments and row houses so that we could walk to public transportation depots. He also says that we would miss seeing the beaches and the countryside except for an occasional glimpse from a bus or train window. We would have city upon city. Still, the car haters tell us that with the use of bikes and public transportation we will have less pollution, noise and our energy is used more efficiently. Well what about the benefits? Wilson states "The automobile is more flexible, more punctual, supplies greater comfort, provides for carrying more parcels, creates more privacy, enables one to select fellow passengers, and, for distances over a mile or more, requires less travel time" (308). So to those that reject the notion of an automobile, Wilson says, "The car does exist, and has powerfully affected the living, working, and social spaces of America" (304).