3 Questions. 3 Hints. 3 Answers.
August 18, 2015
1. Where might we increasingly see “technological unemployment” due to minimum-wage increases?
Hint:
Answer: a big push to more than double minimum wage may force McDonalds and other restaurants to trade in the human touch for the technological touch, in order to retain profits and customers. Technology may be more efficient across the board but many patrons, nonetheless, enjoy going to restaurants for human interaction, the characteristics of which a robot has yet to master. However, if given the choice between having a restaurant thrive and having it close its doors due to insurmountable expenses, technology might be the way to go. Read more here.
2. What triple “P” technology was recently approved by the FDA?
Hint:
Answer: printed prescription pills may be the next big thing. Spritam, a 3-D printed anti-epileptic drug that was just given the green-light by the FDA, may soon be followed by other drugs. 3-D printing of prescription medications allows for customizable efficiency — the pills, as part of the personalized medicine movement, can be individually tailored to meet a particular patient’s needs. On the efficiency side, there is also talk of patients eventually being able to print medications from home, however, given the potential for abuse, effective legal frameworks will have to be put in place before this happens. Read the details here.
3. Once again, this technology emphasizes that knowledge is power:
Hint:
Answer: sometimes it takes a big name (think Angelina Jolie) to raise greater awareness of a life-saving or life-enhancing technology. Recently, renown scientist Eric Topol had his entire genome sequenced which revealed he carries the variant for two major diseases, one being a metabolic muscle disease and the other causing excessive iron absorption. Owning this kind of information is priceless — from family planning to lifestyle-changes — it is a worthwhile investment, for those who can afford it. The hope for many is that the price of whole genome sequencing will keep going down so that the average person can take advantage of the opportunity afforded by this technology. Read the story here.