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Machines taking over jobs

  • Thread starter Thread starter Q
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Q

Q

Lifer
Seems like machines are a future 'problem' of taking human jobs. With majority of cars now built by machines for example, that is so many less people with jobs.

Take a look at this for example (thx to Patt for the vid, saw it in another thread). Now even though these are only 2 examples, it seems inevitable that computers/machines are going to take away tons and tons of jobs in the future. Heck, just look at newspapers/magazines. Newspaper companies are having a lot of trouble these days, one in Seattle even shut down and went online only.

Kinda worrisome.

edit: after re-reading my post, it was worded poorly, but I think you all know what I mean.

edit2: http://www.usatoday.com/money/...spapers-downturn_N.htm
 
They've already taken tons of jobs.

Watch How It's Made sometime, and look around Google Image Search for "old assembly line workers."

You could once have huge rooms full of people doing mundane tasks, now done by machine. That frees up workers to potentially do:
- Other mundane tasks not so easily done by machines.
- Encourage them to go to college and get better jobs, perhaps designing machines to do those other "not so easily done" tasks. 😀


So much of what we use every day is possible because of automation. Instead of tying up so many people doing simple things, we can gain the productivity of the machines plus productivity of the other available labor.

 
A machine could do my job.. in fact I think AutoCAD, which makes the blueprints I work with, probably has a feature that does exactly what I do but nobody at my work has discovered it yet.
 
Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
So get a job fixing the machines...or programming them.
Click to expand...

There's only so many of those jobs available, and definitely fewer than there are out of work workers who've been replaced by the machines.

I figure it'll go either one of two ways:

A) Everything is automated leading to goods being free and everyone lives happily ever after in some kind of socialist utopia.. I'm not holding my breath for this one

or

B) Everything is automated leading to incredible profits for the owners of everything since they no longer have to pay anyone to make anything. Everyone else is fucked.
 
Unemployment may be up in the short term, but overall isn't employment way higher than it was in the days before mechanization? So what happens if machines take ALL the jobs? With no one earning money, who will buy the products the machines are making? With automation so commonplace, why aren't we already seeing the devastating effects of an idle workforce?
 
Originally posted by: Quintox
Seems like machines are a future 'problem' of taking human jobs. With majority of cars now built by machines for example, that is so many less people with jobs.

Take a look at this for example (thx to Patt for the vid, saw it in another thread). Now even though these are only 2 examples, it seems inevitable that computers/machines are going to take away tons and tons of jobs in the future. Heck, just look at newspapers/magazines. Newspaper companies are having a lot of trouble these days, one in Seattle even shut down and went online only.

Kinda worrisome.

edit: after re-reading my post, it was worded poorly, but I think you all know what I mean.
Click to expand...

Welcome to the 1830's. Machines taking over old jobs is a good thing. Those people can then get training in new jobs, and everyone is more productive.
 
They take away the very low paid hard labour jobs but replace them with high paying jobs.

ex: instead of needing 10 monkeys from India doing some repetitious task for 0.15/hour you have 2 engineers making 30/hour maintaining those machines and making sure they're running. Even higher paying jobs are then available for the company that makes the machines.

Basically it cuts out the really crappy low paying jobs but adds more good jobs, in a way. Not exactly 100% a good thing as a crappy job is better then none, but at same time at least from a company perspective it increases quality and overall worker happiness.

Now if we found a way to automate tech support, India is completely screwed royally. And think that's not far off... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ivk8Ez9pwCU
 
Originally posted by: So
Originally posted by: Quintox
Seems like machines are a future 'problem' of taking human jobs. With majority of cars now built by machines for example, that is so many less people with jobs.

Take a look at this for example (thx to Patt for the vid, saw it in another thread). Now even though these are only 2 examples, it seems inevitable that computers/machines are going to take away tons and tons of jobs in the future. Heck, just look at newspapers/magazines. Newspaper companies are having a lot of trouble these days, one in Seattle even shut down and went online only.

Kinda worrisome.

edit: after re-reading my post, it was worded poorly, but I think you all know what I mean.
Click to expand...

Welcome to the 1830's. Machines taking over old jobs is a good thing. Those people can then get training in new jobs, and everyone is more productive.
Click to expand...

But what new jobs?
 
Originally posted by: mxyzptlk
B) Everything is automated leading to incredible profits for the owners of everything since they no longer have to pay anyone to make anything. Everyone else is fucked.
Click to expand...
But who will buy said end products?
 
Automation has been "taking our jobs" for over a century. (maybe more)

First, humans pulled plows for other humans...then they enlisted animals to do that work for them...eliminating one human from the process...

Then, along came steam engines to do the work of the animals...then fossil fuel-and electric powered motors...now robots and computers...

Skynet is just around the corner.

(How about a nice game of chess?)
 
I think they mean service jobs honestly.. So either you're a wealthy professional or some kind of servant to the wealthy professionals.

Sounds great if you're a wealthy professional..
 
Originally posted by: Quintox
Originally posted by: So
Originally posted by: Quintox
Seems like machines are a future 'problem' of taking human jobs. With majority of cars now built by machines for example, that is so many less people with jobs.

Take a look at this for example (thx to Patt for the vid, saw it in another thread). Now even though these are only 2 examples, it seems inevitable that computers/machines are going to take away tons and tons of jobs in the future. Heck, just look at newspapers/magazines. Newspaper companies are having a lot of trouble these days, one in Seattle even shut down and went online only.

Kinda worrisome.

edit: after re-reading my post, it was worded poorly, but I think you all know what I mean.
Click to expand...

Welcome to the 1830's. Machines taking over old jobs is a good thing. Those people can then get training in new jobs, and everyone is more productive.
Click to expand...

But what new jobs?
Click to expand...


Someone needs to maintain those machines.

Best of all, it requires someone who actually knows what they're doing, so that rules out outsourced resources.
 
Originally posted by: IGBT
..the bots create ET and engineering jobs. they all need to be maintained and calibrated.
Click to expand...
What if someone creates a robot to maintain and calibrate other robots?

Oh noes!!!1
 
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