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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 The Pros and Cons of


2 Automation
3 Prepared by:
4 Gordon R. Bland Jr.
5 University of Old Dominion

6 Computer Science
7 April 20, 2009

8 Copyright © <2009> by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.


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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 Introduction

2 This document will cover the background, ethics, pros, and cons of automation in the workplace, household, and
3 leisure activities.

4 Notice to users

5 Laws and regulations


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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 Interpretations

2 Current interpretations can beaccessed at the following URL:


3 http://standards.ieee.org/reading/ieee/interp/
4 index.html.

5 Patents

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7 subject matter covered by patent rights. By publication of this, no position is taken with
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17 Participants

18 At the time this draft was completed, the participants were:

19 1. Gordon R. Bland Jr.

iv
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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 1. Introduction

2 2. Current Automation.........................................................................................................1
3 2.1 Economic Effects.......................................................................................................1
4 2.1.1 Negative Effects..................................................................................................1
5 2.1.2 Positive Effects...................................................................................................2

6 3. Future Workplace.............................................................................................................3
7 3.1 The Future Factory....................................................................................................3

8 4. Future Home Life............................................................................................................4


9 4.1 The Future Home.......................................................................................................4

10 5. Future Leisure Activities..................................................................................................5


11 5.1 The Future of Leisure................................................................................................5
12 5.1.1 Human Interaction..............................................................................................5

13 6. Ethics of Automation.......................................................................................................6
14 6.1 Profit..........................................................................................................................6
15 6.2 Morals........................................................................................................................6

16 7. Annex B...........................................................................................................................6

v
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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 The Pros and Cons of Automation


2 1. Introduction

3 As time progresses, improvements in technology are inevitable, and one day, more
4 automation will be possible. The human worker will no longer need to exist in order to do
5 physical labor, but instead, the work of humans will exist to only research new ways to
6 create robots to do new tasks for society. Not only will humans not be needed to work the
7 same “back-breaking” jobs as they are today, but they will not even be necessary to raise
8 their very own children. One day every aspect of life will have the possibility of
9 automation—the workplace, home life, and even the assistants to leisure activities.

10 2. Current Automation

11 Shortly after computers were created and the potential of such technology was more fully
12 utilized, automation, the spawn of computers, started to change the workplace.
13 Automation made tasks simpler for workers while also producing more consistent
14 products in factories. As a result, production took less time and profit increased while
15 putting less strain on the worker. Jobs were however altered which lead to a shift in the
16 skills necessary for workers to still be of use to companies.

17 2.1 Economic Effects

18 With the increase of technology use in the workplace, humans have become obsolete for some jobs.
19 Modern day automation has completely eliminated some production jobs whilst it has created jobs in new
20 fields. With the freedom from mundane tasks because of automation, more creative tasks and jobs opened
21 up. The jobs that are lost to machines then create new jobs for workers. Where a manual task was lost to a
22 machine, jobs in design, manufacturing, and maintenance of the new machine may be created.

23 2.1.1Negative Effects

24 Computers along with automation have caused a decrease in jobs that once required
25 many workers. Factory lines have now replaced workers with robots that are more
26 efficient and less costly. What once required hundreds of workers to produce, automated
27 factories may employee only a handful of workers to produce the products. These
28 workers no longer produce the product, but instead they manage the machines and
29 monitor their production. Due to the destruction of some jobs and the evolution of others,
30 a change in required skills for workers is becoming more and more important. At one
31 time, a secretary may have been required to write in shorthand, whilst now, secretaries
32 are typically required to type on a computer at an established minimum speed.
33 2.1.1.1Job Destruction

34 As early as the 1800s, jobs have been lost to machines. A group of people known as the
35 Luddites destroyed weaving looms in fear of loss of jobs in textile factories [B1]. Once
36 again in the 1950s and 1960s, machines scared the human workforce.

6
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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 In the 1950s and 1960s, automation was once again attacked. John F. Kennedy along with
2 labor groups claimed the increasing unemployment was a result of the more efficient
3 machines taking jobs of workers [B1]. A quote from a Times article in 1961 read,
4 “Throughout industry, the trend has been to bigger production with a smaller work force.
5 In the highly automated chemical industry, the number of production jobs has fallen 3%
6 since 1956 while output has soared 27%,” [B2]. In Illinois, 315,000 were unemployed in
7 1961. According to Robert Johnson, the State Labor Director during that year, most of the
8 unemployed were resultants of automation. [B2] Pennsylvania’s Congressman Elmer J.
9 Holland said, “One of the greatest problems with automation is not the worker who is
10 fired, but the worker who is not hired,” [B2].
11 2.1.1.2Outsourcing of Jobs

12 In more recent times, unemployment has been blamed on outsourcing of jobs; however,
13 some disagree. During a Global Media Summit sponsored by Rockwell Automation
14 (www.rockwellautomation.com), Milwaukee, Dan Miklovic stated, “Recent studies show
15 that manufacturing jobs are declining everywhere,” [B3]. According to an article by Wes
16 Iversen in 2004, U.S. manufacturing jobs declined by more than 11 percent from 1994-
17 2004. This may be true, but jobs could have been lost for a multitude of reasons.
18 2.1.2Positive Effects

19 Computers mark a point of economic stability where tasks that are seen as a burden for
20 humans have been eliminated. This has allowed more time for creative and intellectual
21 thinking, which is not a necessity for life. New industries have been created for the
22 production of computers and the machines that automate tasks. In factories, robots have
23 replaced the human worker that can make mistakes. The cheaper robot saves companies
24 money as well as produces higher quality products more efficiently.
25 2.1.2.1Job Creation

26 Jobs for computer and machine repair have been created from the widespread use in
27 industry. Computer repairmen have replaced the once needed job of typewriter
28 repairmen. Factories now employee workers to repair machines that produce products as
29 well as people to monitor the machines in various aspects of production. In 1961, it was
30 recognized that the loss of jobs to automation would result in an increase in the service
31 industry [B2].

32 While many jobs have been lost to machines, 309.9 million from 1993-2002, 327.7
33 million new jobs were created during that same time period [B1]. While that gave a net
34 increase of 17.8 million jobs, during 2004 to 2014, the BLS projects that there will be
35 another net increase of 18.9 million jobs with roughly half being seasonal jobs [B1].

36 As seen from statistics, it is apparent that jobs are continually created in place of ones lost
37 as a part of an ever-evolving need for jobs due to new skill sets required from new
38 technology. It is easy to attack technology when it comes to unemployment as economists
39 lack imagination to see the new jobs that will be created [B1]. Technology when utilized
40 correctly simply alters jobs and the paths they take. An example of this is during World
41 War II, rooms full of workers sat at typewriters creating letters for government purposes.
42 With computers, a few workers can replace what was once a large workforce, whilst new

7
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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 jobs are created to manufacture the computers, printers, and database servers. Workers
2 are also required to fix these machines.

3 3. Future Workplace

4 In section 1.1.2.1, it was found that jobs, even though destroyed, new ones are created in
5 environments where automation has replaced the bulk of physical labor per say. Though
6 automation exists, humans are still required to create build new machines for automation
7 and workers must exist to fix and maintain said machines. In the future, it is very easily
8 foreseeable that robots of some sort may replace these jobs.

9 3.1 The Future Factory

10 In the not so distant future, a factory may operate in this way:

11 1. Resources are collected by robots that work more efficiently than a human worker
12 by not wasting any potential material and working in the environment with less of
13 a “presence.”

14 2. Resources are gathered from the site and are then loaded, driven, and unloaded by
15 a team of robotic workers. No more safety concerns for human workers are
16 needed as at most, the human worker is simply monitoring the robots “just in
17 case” something were to go wrong. (Maintenance is done by a special team of
18 robotic workers)

19 3. Robotic workers produce the desired items at the factory from start to finish.
20 Products are produced that have fewer mistakes, use fewer resources, and fail at
21 lower rates.

22 4. A team of robotic workers packages the products and ships them straight to the
23 person who ordered the product online.

24 Automation in this manner would allow humans to spend their time not worrying about
25 the mundane tasks of everyday living. In the past, a human may be required to hunt for
26 food just to survive, but in 2009, hunting is generally a leisure activity for enjoyment.
27 Though it can still feed a family, it is no longer necessary. In much the same way humans
28 will have the opportunity to avoid physical labor to the extent that was once required and
29 instead spend time developing one’s mind.

30 A human worker will at most be required to think of new techniques to implement the
31 machines, design new products, and oversee the machines in the factories. No matter how
32 automated society is, innovation will always lie within the human’s realm of thinking and
33 not the machines. A logical circuit simply does not [yet] have the possibility of
34 innovating. Overseeing the machines will most likely occur too no matter how failsafe
35 the robotic workers are. It is only natural that humans will want to make sure nothing
36 goes wrong.

8
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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 4. Future Home Life

2 With the ever-increasing workload for households, a robotic maid would free up much
3 time to alleviate people of the mundane tasks of marinating a household. After a long
4 days work, nothing more pleasant than coming to a house that requires no more work
5 could exist. In the future, work may be minimal whilst learning and relaxing may take up
6 the majority of a person’s time, but still, more time would exist to do things that are
7 pleasurable if maintenance to the house was no longer necessary by human hands.

8 4.1 The Future Home

9 The future household may implement robotic workers in this manner:

10 1. Groceries and other various required items for daily life are ordered online by
11 human or robotic worker depending on the item and delivered straight to the
12 house. The robotic workers of the house may then unpack the shipped item[s].

13 2. Food will be prepared by a robotic worker and served to the family. Meals may
14 then be specially prepared on a per-person basis

15 3. A robotic staff consisting of maids, grounds keepers, and maintenance crews will
16 keep the house in top physical shape both aesthetically and structurally.

17 4. Children may be watched by a robotic childcare worker 24 hours a day so that the
18 parents are not required or simply on occasions where a babysitter is requested.

19 Though points 1 through 3 are easy to assume the general public’s acceptance, point 4
20 raises an ethics issue. If humans reproduce, should they be held accountable to raise that
21 child if robotic workers can do the job as well? If they were in fact able to raise the child
22 safely, would there be lasting effects of being raised by robots? The general public will
23 most likely never accept a robot as a babysitter for a child even if Asimov’s first law were
24 never broken (a robot may not injure a human being, or, through inaction, allow a human
25 being to come to harm) [B4].

26 Furthermore, a child raised by a robot may also grow up to display the characteristics of a
27 feral child. Traian Caldarar, a feral child raised by dogs, was separated from his family
28 for three years and was found once again at age seven [B5]. When found, he walked with
29 “the bandy gait of a chimpanzee” and seemed to have lost sense of some characteristics
30 of modern society [B5]. Instead of sleeping onto of his bed, he now slept under the bed,
31 and became very motivated by food [B5]. Feral children like Traian are not completely
32 unusual and there are in fact studies devoted to these cases [B6]. A robot programmed to
33 follow characteristic of a human may not cause the same effects on a child; however,
34 without emotion [coming from the caretaker robot], the child may learn to lack emotion
35 too.

36 5. Future Leisure Activities

37 Currently, every leisure activity involves interactions with humans in some aspect, but
38 with advancements in automation, this may no longer be necessary. In instances of sports,
39 referees make the calls, but even with current technology in 2009, they could almost be
9
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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 eradicated completely. In other activities such as travel, a human at some point must
2 handle travel information, even if you get tickets online. Airplanes currently have
3 complex automation built into them, but pilots are still there. In the future, a person may
4 want to enjoy a leisure activity and never have to deal with a person in order to do so.

5 5.1 The Future of Leisure

6 Future leisure activities may be handled in this way:

7 1. No need for human interaction to gather travel information—an Internet


8 connection may be the only requirement for the next vacation.

9 2. Vehicles to travel destinations will be driven by computer.

10 3. Referees for sports will be computerized.

11 4. Casinos will no longer be necessary—a few friends at a house could play another
12 group of people via online in poker for example. Interaction between players
13 would still exist to retain the enjoyable human interaction without the travel
14 expenses.

15 5. Personal robotic servants may wait on people.

16 6. Bars will add the option of a robotic bartender.


17 5.1.1Human Interaction

18 Though automation can work well in many respects, leisure will see minimal effects.
19 Because leisure typically is based upon enjoyable human interactions, robotic workers
20 will only replace few aspects. Many aspects that may be altered will simply be increases
21 in technology; however, activities will remain very much the same. Services such as
22 “online poker” already exist and small changes to the software used could fulfill the
23 dream of not traveling to casinos ever again to partake in gambling. Changes to the
24 software would heavily rely on adding human interaction between players in order to
25 give the same sense social atmosphere however.

26 In sports, automation may not be wanted at all. Referees have become one of the most
27 hated and loved aspects of the games. With human error and judgment, the game is not as
28 easily predictable and typically more entertainment is gained. Personal robot servants on
29 vacation would however typically bring great enjoyment and even perhaps a robotic
30 bartender, but a computer-controlled airplane may bother others. Much of the leisure
31 activity future will be determined based on the human feelings towards less human
32 interaction.

33 6. Ethics of Automation

34 Computers were first created to make tasks easier. Complex mathematical equations were
35 made simpler through the use of algorithms based on Boolean algebra, whilst mundane
36 tasks of filing information could be automated. No longer was a person required to have

10
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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 tangible materials to work with such as files, but instead databases allowed massive
2 amounts of information to be stored in a smaller footprint.

3 6.1 Profit

4 Computers were originally created to make tasks simpler. In doing so, they proved to be
5 more efficient and mistakes were less. Because of this, companies have discovered that
6 automation can create a better product with fewer defects as the human element is absent
7 and production time is shortened. With more products being produced with fewer
8 workers, profit margins increased. From a company perspective, it was a no brainer to
9 move towards automation and remove the weak link—humans.

10 6.2 Morals

11 The drawback to automating companies is the removal of human workers from their jobs.
12 Being human, morals come into play when a worker loses a job and they may not be able
13 to support their children anymore. A “happy medium” must be reached sometimes in
14 order to increase profit margins without ruining the worker’s lives.

15 In cases of childcare, automation may not prove to be a solution as the “human touch” is
16 necessary. Likewise, artistic creation will still require abstract thought where a machine
17 will never fully replace people. Humans will always need to have true human interaction
18 and computers will never fill that kind of perfect imperfection.

19 7. Annex B

20 [B1] Baase, Sara. Gift of Fire. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall PTR, 2007.

21 Chapter 6: Work

22 [B2] "THE AUTOMATION JOBLESS - TIME." TIME.com. 24 Feb. 1961. 08 Feb. 2009

23 <http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,828815,00.html>.

24 [B3] "Outsourcing Not the Culprit in Manufacturing Job Loss | News |." Automation
25 World. Jan. 2004. 08

26 Feb. 2009 <http://www.automationworld.com/news-414>.

27 [B4] "Asimov's Laws." Android World. 14 Apr. 2009


28 <http://www.androidworld.com/prod22.htm>.

29 [B5] "FeralChildren.com | Traian Caldarar, the Romanian Dog Boy." FeralChildren.com.


30 15 Apr. 2009

31 <http://www.feralchildren.com/en/showchild.php?ch=traian>.

32 [B6] "FeralChildren.com." FeralChildren.com | Feral children: isolated, confined, wild


33 and wolf children.

11
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IEEE P<The Pros and Cons of Automation>, <April 20> <2009>

1 15 Apr. 2009 <http://www.feralchildren.com/en/children.php?tp=0>.

12
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