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The Digital Divide Destroys Promise and Enforces Bias
An inherent intellectual promise can be left to wither before it blossoms, and this is all because of the digital divide.
Technology is truly the key to an amazing future where diseases will be cured, new products will be created, jobs and manufacturing will exist in novel forms, and our entire lifestyles worldwide will realize a New World with AI at the center of it. While this appears to be a world of wonder and promise, it also underscores areas that are being forgotten, misunderstood, or biased against it.
Specifically, I am speaking about those who live in underserved areas where technology is a luxury not afforded to those communities and, in fact, may be restricted on purpose. It sounds nefarious, I know, but it exists.
We must contend with the digital divide, the gap between the haves and the have-nots regarding technology and telecommunication. This divide may exist regarding access to computers, smartphones, the Internet, digital libraries, or even the ability to use the new search engines and ChatGPT, Claude, or other AI aids to research or engage in online learning.
If we stymie learning in any group, what are we doing? A TV ad used to say, “A brain is a terrible thing to waste.” Not providing access to communities with little to no funding wastes all of those…
