The Story of Technology: How We Got Here and What the Future Holds

by Daniel M. Gerstein

At the end of the day, mitigating dual-use concerns comes down to managing risk. As all technologies have the potential to be used for useful practical applications as well as for nefarious purposes, a framework and tools for managing these risks are necessary and are provided by laws, policies, regulations, and standards. It is also interesting to consider whether the seven experiments of concern could be adapted and might have applications in other fields beyond biology as limits in technologies such as artificial intelligence are considered. More on how technologies are “managed” will be discussed in a later chapter. At times, dual use has been regarded from an unhealthy perspective. If one says something is dual use, the antenna goes up with immediate suspicion that a technology could be dangerous, perhaps even something to be avoided. But that is not always the case. The use of GPS technology provides such an example. GPS was originally designed for navigation of military assets and for controlling long-range weapon systems and other smart weapons. The same technology now forms the backbone of numerous civilian applications, such as navigation in all forms of transportation including aircraft, ships and automobiles. This simple example serves to illustrate that dual-use technology does not refer to something that is inherently bad or dangerous but, rather, that the use case—whether it is used for the betterment of society or for malicious purposes—should become the de...