Abstract

Perhaps there has been a time when men in all cultures handled rather similar objects, which demanded similar skills and were used for the same sort of tasks. Seen in today’s perspective -when technological developments are rapidly and enormously increasing the differences among societies – this egalitarian view sounds absurd and naive. Countries have been mainly categorized in terms of their technological stage, in spite of their natural resources, their territories, their people or their cultures. Because of technology, the world has been divided into the First and the Third. The expansion of the use of computer technology poses serious problems for developing nations, and makes us reconsider the idea that technology is always a synonym for progress. The modern way of living of the consumer society – a model originated in the First World – forces the adoption of a unique model on both developed and developing countries. This model jeopardizes or, in most cases, destroys the possibility of generating differing technological alternatives, according to the cultural, social and economic parameters of a given context.

• Rejane Spitz, Pontif’icia Universidade Catolica do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Full text p.161-166