The Hindrance of Breakthrough Technology
by Dennis L. Feucht
Innovatia Laboratories
Scientific and technological breakthroughs are not always unconditionally
good. A wildly successful invention or theory sows the seeds for massive
misdirection and stagnation. While accepting the obvious good of a breakthrough,
be wary of its long-term ill effects. Some examples from outside electronics
will illustrate this before applying it to our own field of endeavors.
A Lesson Of Success From Medicine
When antibiotics were found to have amazing curative powers over infectious
diseases, the medical industry climbed on that bandwagon, and other prospective
approaches to health maintenance fell by the wayside. This one-track mentality
in medicine has become increasingly evident. AMA-pharmaceutical medicine,
while still holding the high ground of political power, is being challenged
in a variety of ways, both from alternative approaches to health care and
from within, as practicing doctors become increasingly exasperated with
what has become of their trade. Concurrently, medical training is degenerating
into which pills to give for which ailments. Pills may be wonderful at times,
but they are certainly not the be-all and end-all of health care.
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