Madison Shelton
9/8/09
Univ. 2350
Sandra Lee
Movie Review
I watched a technology based show titled “Hot Technology: Cool Science.” This show was on a channel called UCTV, and it was hosted by John Fowler from KTVU TV. The show interviewed four doctors from Berkeley Lab, but I will solely use information I gathered from Doctor Kathy Yelik, Director of National Energy Research Computer Laboratory at Berkeley Lab. Her topic was the helpfulness of computers, but the problems they see with energy efficiency.
Dr. Yelik described the scientific uses of computers, which are solving problems too big, too small, too fast, too slow, or too expensive to do in the lab. One of her topics in the interview was computer simulation. Simulation is the imitation of a real event, or weather in the case of this interview. Dr. Yelik described how predicting the weather starts by simulating the past. The data starts about 100 years prior, and can predict weather hundreds of years to the future. Simulation is extremely important to our society because it will prepare our future for what did and can come again. This is a significant example of technology because it will help our world improve conditions. For example, global warming is seen through simulations, and because of them we are trying to improve our emissions.
Undoubtedly, this show was in favor of technology and would coin it as a good thing. Of coarse with good comes bad, and Yelik describes the conflicts with simulation and computers. The problem with computers, she stated, is all the heat dissipated out of them. Yelik states computers were not designed for energy efficiency. Her solution? She suggested the idea that in the future, computers use I Pod and cell phone processors. These will consume less energy and produce almost the same results as a regular computer.
No one would argue that computers have not helped society. They are a huge technological innovation, and have helped out humanity...