Capstone Outline:

1. Purpose of paper: To demonstrate that exponential technological growth is more

beneficial than detrimental.
2. Thesis: As a society, we are moving in the right direction when it comes to rapid
technological growth.
3. Introduction
4. History and Concepts
a. Moore’s Law
i. Extrapolating from Moore’s Law
1. created in the 60’s - predicts exponential growth
2. how founders at Intel, Microsoft, and Apple all applied this logic
to their companies and how to proceed into the future
ii. Proves thesis: Moore’s Law which is essential to understanding
technology’s exponential growth; detailed about the projections for the
future and if Moore’s Law could continue or happen again
b. Dematerialization
i. Dematerialization
1. “the decline over time in weight of the materials used”
2. whether dematerialization is correlated with wealth, whether or not
it is a good thing, consumer reaction, quality, and other factors
ii. Proves thesis: looking into the future of technology is crucial for the
paper, but so is the basis of what has caused these trends, as looking back
in history is just as important; provides an abundance of information on
both sides of the argument
c. Abundance
i. The New Era of Information Abundance
1. technology abundance, and its effects on higher-level learning
2. ways in which this information abundance will affect colleges
and universities → will ultimately force these institutions to
reform and adapt in order to still provide the learning students
need
ii. Proves thesis: provides a real-life example of this type of growth’s
benefits for the average person; ultimate consensus is that this growth is
beneficial for the common person or student
5. Transportation
a. Logistics of driverless cars
i. Transitioning to Driverless Cars
1. The young, physically or mentally impaired, and elderly people
who cannot drive a car will gain a lot more freedom
 2. reduce that number of casualties
3. energy revolution
ii. Proves thesis: Straightforward interpretation of the benefits of driverless
cars; uses logistics/statistics to demonstrate the necessity without question
b. Current production
i. The Future of the Transport Industry
1. advancement going on in every facet of transportation
2. discusses automated trucks, and even potential “drone air taxi[s]”,
and the possible implications of these innovations
ii. Proves thesis: Provides interpretation of this technological growth; article
ventures to say that most of this change would be for the better, and would
only serve to make the country more productive (won’t result in a loss of
human jobs/lack of human autonomy)
c. Recent developments
i. Self-Driving Cars
1. details the history and current advancements being made in the
field of autonomous vehicles, in all parts of the world
2. Asia and the United States are likely to make the biggest
contributions, and not too distant in the future
3. “Level 2” and “Level 3” systems
ii. Proves thesis: driverless cars are likely to become a reality in the not so
distant future; demonstrates how these cars are being developed in a way
that is safe, and the benefits far outweigh any negatives
6. Healthcare
a. Robotic surgery
i. The Case of Robot-Assisted Surgery
1. continued advancements in this field is making these minimally
invasive surgerys that much more minimal
2. Da Vinci systems
3. recovery time is less and success is higher; makes expenses worth
it
ii. Proves thesis: Discusses a very relevant issue to most people, includes the
benefits as well as the drawbacks, yet provides reasons why the
progress/improvement outweighs the potential cost
b. EMRs
i. Improving quality through effective implementation of information
technology in healthcare
1. more conventional and less controversial healthcare technological
advancement
2. EMR systems being implemented in hospitals and practices
 3. 95% of the comments about the EMRs were positive, and most
people in the experiment found that they increased patient safety
and saved time
ii. Proves thesis: demonstrates a process that is currently beginning to be
implemented, is moving in the right direction; highlights an
implementation of a new type of technology and the positive feedback and
statistics
7. Artificial Intelligence
a. Singularity
i. Will artificial intelligence ever become "superintelligent"
1. all about the pros and cons of artificial intelligence
2. idea of “singularity”, and the notion that technology and artificial
“superintelligence” will increase and improve so much that human
society will change dramatically
3. from “cancer” to “climate change”
ii. Proves thesis: artificial intelligence is a crucial part of technological
change → explicitly laid out the positives of this and why it is a good
thing; provides a (qualification/negatives) → another side to consider in
the paper
b. Watson/Benefits
i. Teaching Artificial Intelligence and Humanity
1. focus on the specific system of IBM’s Watson
2. explores the anxiety many people feel in regards to artificial
intelligence
3. contrast between anxiety and ambition
ii. Proves thesis: humans should not fear that robots could ever replace them,
as they will never have the distinct qualities that humanize people;
predicts that this change will not threaten humanity
8. Doesn’t Threaten Jobs
a. Workplace Automation
i. Why Are There Still So Many Jobs?
1. in-depth analysis into automation and its effect in the workforce
2. increase in technology and automation will better the current
workforce → technology will not replace jobs, but rather
complement them
3. automation will actually increase productivity enough that the
demand for goods and services will also increase
 ii. Proves thesis: disproves the idea that the improvement of technology and
automation will take over human jobs; it will not hurt humans in the
workforce, and even how it could aid them
9. Conclusion