The Social Impact of Computers

"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.