Trapped In the Net (ebook)

Argumento de Trapped In the Net (ebook)

"This is a major work of synthesis and insight that will prove invaluable not only to scholars and students but also to policymakers, large-system designers, and others concerned with the role of computers in society. Rochlin has mastered an amazingly broad body of literature, grasped its deeper implications, and presented his results in a highly readable form, well peppered with anecdote and narrative. He has also, and most importantly, hit upon the most important characteristic of the society-wide electronics infrastructures now being put into place: that such systems are socio-technical in nature and cannot be understood as mere hardware and/or software."--Paul N. Edwards, Author of The Closed World: Computers and the Politics of Discourse

"In Trapped in the Net, an insightful and painstakingly documented book, [Rochlin] explores the changes already wrought by computers and networking in areas as diverse as financial markets, air travel, nuclear power plants, corporate management and the military."--Lawrence Hunter, The New York Times Book Review

"Trapped in the Net covers not only the military, but also financial markets, aviation and business. In all cases, humans working inside organizations become helpless just when the systems they use encounter the unexpected and start behaving idiotically. This is a fascinating and well-argued book. . . . The references are good, and certainly prove that Rochlin is not a lone voice with a cynical message."--Harold Thimbleby, New Scientist

Winner of the 1999 Don K. Price Award, Science, Technology and Environmental Politics Section of the American Political Science Association
One of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 1997

".[C]omputerization is leading us into pretty dire straits. In financial markets, warp-speed automated trading creates opportunities for fraud and moves us further away from a stable investment climate. In the office, computers promise efficiency, but bring fragmented knowledge and reduced autonomy to workers. There's worse news. Pilots in the 'glass cockpits' of modern airplanes have too much data to interpret, and nuclear power plant operators are less likely to have an intuitive feel for things going wrong 'on the floor'. Most sobering of all is the discussion of automation and the military."--Publishers Weekly

"[Rochlin's] straightforward argument should be apparent to those managing and promoting increasing computerization: that greater dependence on computers implies greater disaster when they fail. . . . Rochlin ends with an exploration of the new cyberized military and continues to pinpoint the unintended consequences that computer enthusiasts rarely think about, but should."--Booklist0Preface xi
Acknowledgments xv
1 Introduction 3
Prologue 3
Enter the Computer 5
Compliance and Control 7
The Structure of the Argument 11
The Structure of the Book 13
2 Autogamous Technology 15
Introduction 15
A Brief Historical Essay 16
Operating Systems 23
The Dynamics of Growth 29
The Hegemony of Design 32
3 Networks of Connectivity: Webs of Dependence 35
Introduction 35
From Anarchy to Networks 38
The Interconnected Office 46
Conclusion 48
4 Taylorism Redux? 51
Introduction 51
The Search for Managerial Control 53
The Deskilling Controversy 61
Expertise Lost 67
Heterogeneous Systems 69
Conclusion 71
5 Computer Trading 74
Introduction 74
Markets and Exchanges 76
Automating Markets 82
Conclusion 88
6 Jacking into the Market 91
The Demise of Barings P L C 91
Trading in Cyberspace 94
Global Markets 99
Conclusion 105
Epilogue 106
7 Expert Operators and Critical Tasks 108
Having the Bubble 108
Pilot Error 112
The Glass Cockpit 115
Air Traffic Control 119
Industrial and Other Operations 123
The Computer in the Loop 125
Conclusion 128
8 Smart Weapons, Smart Soldiers 131
Introduction 131
Industrial War 132
Techno-Industrial War 135
The Postwar Transition 137
Quantity versus Quality 140
Trading Tooth for Tail 144
Conclusion 147
9 Unfriendly Fire 150
Introduction 150
A "Reasonable Choice of Disaster" 152
The USS Stark 154
Tragedy over the Persian Gulf 156
Conclusion 166
10 The Logistics of Techno-War 169
Introduction 169
The Gulf War 171
Redefining Effectiveness 182
Computers and the Transformation of War 184
11 C³I in Cyberspace
Introduction 188
The Ways and Means of Modern Warfare 191
Moving toward Cyberspace 199
The Virtual Battlefield 202
Conclusion 207
12 Invisible Idiots 210
Introduction 210
Standardization and Slack 212
Virtual Organizations in a Real World 214
Conclusion 216
Notes 219
Bibliography 265
Index 285