So first, this is e-waste:
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| Image Source: Travel News Nepal |
E-what?
E-waste is the accumulation of electronic waste. Electronic waste contains a lot of harmful chemicals from electronics such as monitors, LCD televisions, and portable DVD player screens.
Although e-waste is not comprised of strictly computers - it is the fastest growing municipal waste stream in America. E-waste represents only 2% of America's trash in landfills, but it equals about 70% of overall toxic waste.
Do we have other options?
Well, most of the electronics thrown away as e-waste are not even "waste!" Rather they are electronic parts that are recyclable, marketable, and that could simply be reused for other purposes. Sadly, only 12.5% of e-waste is currently being recycled.
Okay, so what am I getting at?
Sustainability tools implemented with deep learning technologies may use computational hardware that may eventually go to waste. Although I doubt these tools are mass produced (as they are still being developed), they can still contribute to e-waste. However, because a lot of money, research, and time is involved in A.I. tool development, I do not believe hardware used would be readily (if I may) junk-able.
But will this make humans "junk-able?"
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| Image Source: Thought Catalog |
There are many in fear of A.I. becoming so smart that they eventually take over the world. Man being unable to stand on the same advanced A.I. intellectual level, might become extinct. So much for sustainability, right?
Another risk is that the development of A.I. machines will eventually put people out of jobs. If a machine can do it better, why hire at all? This is another potential con.
So how does this relate?
Well, the development of artificial intelligence may be,
"...one small step for man, but one giant leap for mankind."
-Neil Armstrong (first man on the moon)
The development of A.I. even simply (though not really simple) as a sustainability tool, is one of the first steps towards real A.I. (the kind that can do everything without human assistance). Essentially, this development can lead to greater development and such is sometimes frowned upon as the future of A.I. development looks dark to some.
However, the successful making of real A.I. is yet far from reach and research is being watched and supervised carefully (by Google and people like Elon Musk).
The End
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| Image Source: Reaction gifs |
Let's connect the dots. We learned in my past posts:
- A.I. can help do things that humans have yet to achieve. (Examples include both the GFW map tool and the geography tool being developed by Wenwen Li.Both of these tools with A.I. implementations still in progress.)
- A.I. is now less expensive than it used to be (thanks to GPUs), although it still isn't exactly cheap.
- A.I. uses computational hardware that can harm the Earth (as e-waste is a problem that is predicted to keep growing by 8% every year.) However, these technologies are still in progress, thus the waste is nil until successful research is made.
- A.I. poses a threat to mankind because it has been predicted to replace humans in jobs and superiority.
- A.I. can help in areas that need sustainability solutions - like deforestation and terrain prediction.
I believe it is important to know the pros and cons about something before fully utilizing it. There can be negative results with no knowledge, and knowledge is power. I hope I was able to inform you about the pros and cons of using A.I. for sustainability.
Whether you agree it is good to use or not is not the point to my posts. As long as you are aware and learned something, I have done my job.
What to do with that knowledge - the rest, lies with you.
What to do with that knowledge - the rest, lies with you.
