by Adrian Tay

Created on: October 30, 2007

The reins on technology has been cut loose; the constant introduction of 'lastest' technology only serves to widen the digital gap we see in the modern times. As we race towards an even more technologically advanced future, it is inevitable that certain groups or communities would be left behind to trod along the trails of our blazing pursuit. However, this should not serve as a means to judge on the correctness of society or whether or not technology does good or bad to mankind. This should purely be an observation that may at most, warrant an improvement in the diffusion of technology from areas of a 'high-tech' status to those we see as 'backward'.

Since the time of the Industrial Revolution, there has been an immeasurable change in the field of science and technology, culminating in a supposedly unfair distribution of 'high-tech' goods and services all over the world. As we carry on in our quest for more illusive forms of technology (nanotechnology, bioinformatics, nuclear technology, etc. just to name a few), we must constantly remind ourselves that the faster we run towards our goals, the faster people at the back of the group fall off, and more people would end up left behind.

The digital divide is just a small part of the entire technological rift that is constantly widening, with a stronger focus on computerized technology. It is evident that developed nations are very much interconnected with the introduction of the Internet in recent times, and that less developed nations, like those in the African states or Latin America, are facing a problem in getting hooked onto this virtual network.

Primarily, the reason cited for such problems usually include a lack of infrastructure, which also is brought about by a lack of government fundings to built up a decent network size of computers. The next issue we should also focus our attention on is the lack of proper formal education in these regions. The Internet is built upon a community of people who speak mostly English (not forgetting that other languages like French, Spanish, Chinese, etc. do have their own websites), and that people in the lesser developed regions may face problems in understanding these languages if there is a lack of formal education. This again, can be credited to the lack of funding in education. In short, as long as these nations do not make an effort to catch up with those who are working hard to hasten their speed, the divide will only widen in the future.

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