SPECIFIC ISSUES IN

SCIENCE,TECHNOLOGY AND
SOCIETY
 THE INFORMATION AGE
(Gutenberg to Social Media)

The age of information is also as the age of computers, the digital

or digitized age, and the media age characterized by a transition
from the traditional industry to the age of information technology.
The economic stability of the world’s market also depends on the
well-rounded technology today. The digitized industry creates a
knowledge-based society surrounded by a high-tech global
economy that spans its influence on how the manufacturing and
services sectors operate efficiently and conveniently. This allows
the individuals to explore their personalized needs thereby
simplifying the procedure of making decisions for transactions and
simply lowering the cost for both the producers and the buyers.
According to von Baeyer, information is poised to replace matter as
a primary stuff of the universe. It will provide a new basic
framework for describing and predicting reality for the 21st
century. Being informed means literacy and no one is left behind
because of the knowledge gained from this.
The information age started when
the Gutenberg era was first
established by Johannes
Gutenberg, who was responsible
for shaping the nature of society
and its institutions throughout the
period and this is called the
Gutenberg principle.
 Pre-Gutenberg Era
information was captured laboriously and difficultly,
time was greatly consumed, books had to be read
comprehensively, and tablets were available but access
to information was restricted to a small elite group.
Transmission of knowledge at that time had to rely on
purely word-of-mouth channels and the form of
information that was prevalent was the story, the story
of others. Development was limited and society tended
to be dominated by tribal institutions, religious groups,
and feudal political systems and the institutions that
were well adapted to the use of narrations or hierarchy
as means of propagation of knowledge. Information
was accessible to all groups of people.
The introduction of printing press
created an impact and played a great role in the
development of society. It was credited being as a
catalyst for the Renaissance, the development of
science and creating pressure where power slips from
the hands of the monarch and religious orders and
become shared across the broader sections of the
society and until today it continues to play an active
role in shaping and operating the society today.
 Post-Gutenberg Era
the Internet and the World Wide Web in the 90’s marked the emergence of the modern world today. It was initially hailed by many as ushering in
a new democratic age that is driven by much greater access to information and technological advancement. While the Internet had a dramatic
impact, the revolutionary shifts did not occur because the WWW still conformed to the Gutenberg principle such as building a website,
accessing services, and publishing information that required money and technical expertise which still preserved the institutions rather than the
individuals. The reality of much greater access to information was not matched by the greater ability to publish it. Speed of access was limited
to the ability of the Internet to be a channel of all forms of media but it is restricted in its usage to text-based and transactional forms. E-
commerce has emerged as a major new web-based phenomenon. Broadband Internet access was made possible when video presentations and
research became readily available. Blogging and social networking made business, and call center communication became accessible in all parts
of the world. People’s life sharing and socialization through Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter also became a trend that made connections in all
parts of the world. YouTube, Flicker, and Google made the lives of people easier and more modernized because of their accessibility.
In effect, information can now flow between
people and all potential individuals for whom
Will it help us to maintain our traditions and
the information might be of relevance and
our sense of identity we have while dealing
great significance. This principle is called the
with these contrasting ideas of living
social information principle. This generates a
presented to us using this technology? What
very powerful disintermediating and
will happen to the values we have before, the
deinstitutionalizing effect in theory that the
individual values, the human and societal
institutions and practices that become the
values we have, and even to the moral and
foundation of society for many years may
spiritual values we have? This calls for a
disappear overnight because of the overflow
critical reflection.
of different ideas to people. How do we accept
this and consider this as part of development
or not?
THANK
YOU