Nine Rules for Evaluating New Technology
In 1987, Wendell Berry wrote an essay called Why I Am Not Going to Buy a Computer. In it, he outlined his standards for adopting new technology in his work.
- The new tool should be cheaper than the one it replaces.
- It should be at least as small in scale as the one it replaces.
- It should do work that is clearly and demonstrably better than the one it replaces.
- It should use less energy than the one it replaces.
- If possible, it should use some form of solar energy, such as that of the body.
- It should be repairable by a person of ordinary intelligence, provided that he or she has the necessary tools.
- It should be purchasable and repairable as near to home as possible.
- It should come from a small, privately owned shop or store that will take it back for maintenance and repair.
- It should not replace or disrupt anything good that already exists, and this includes family and community relationships.
The whole essay is worth a read, especially now as contemporary society is struggling to evaluate and find the proper balance for technologies like social media, smartphones, and LLMs. (via the honest broker)
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When the last drought was on in California, I took my lawn out and bought a tank to use greywater and a bunch of other stuff to help save water. Sometime after that, I had a casual conversation with someone I met who worked for the state government who had been dispatched to my area to try to stop some local businesses from exploiting local water resources. She informed me that private use of water for small to medium gardens is largely insignificant when compared to the use of these businesses, and that it's very profitable for them.
I'm not saying I'm unhappy that I tore my lawn out, I'd do it again. But I do feel pretty stupid when I see private jets flying over my head every day.
I feel like this is similar to “carbon footprints”. I can do a lot to reduce my individual greenhouse gas emissions (and try to, but like cheese a little too much), but my efforts are insignificant compared to industrial scale emissions baked into our society and economy.
I absolutely loved The Unsettling of American Agriculture, having grown up in the depths of late-20th-century industrial agriculture. But the moment Wendell Berry doubled down on a wife being better than a computer, he lost me, and I haven't looked back.
This list would have prevented him from ever buying an automobile, though.
I’m trying to apply these “rules” to normal simple inventions. Some to me are nonsense.
I’ve used a hand drill for small projects. But an electric drill costs more uses more energy but saves wear on my body.
I think there's value here in considering the "humanity" of new technologies but I also think this can slip into curmudgeonly conservatism quickly as well.
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