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Originally uploaded by tmonkey.
In the wake of the deadly tsunamis (I'm sure newspapers have banned that lede...or not), a seemingly opposing set of stories emerge: those concerned with how we could use technology to prevent the massive loss of life (namely SMS), and those that highlight the necessity of "low-tech" solutions (because of the inherent poverty of the stricken areas), whether it be the use of elephants to clear rubble (above) or the prescient wisdom of sea gypsies.
What is interesting to me about this is the confluence of a) human poverty in a region that also b) produces and uses cheap and advanced technology (witness the prevalence of texting and SMS is Southeast Asia and the Philippines). I wonder what these areas will look like in the next few years, with all this foreign aid now pouring in under the pretense of humanitarian relief. Is there such thing as altruism?
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