Listening Report: Why Are There Still So Many Jobs?

Why Are There Still So Many Jobs?
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Why Are There Still So Many Jobs?
Summary
David Autor starts his talk by narrating historical inventions that were thought to replace human labor and how those predictions were wrong. He uses the concept of O-ring, that he uses figuratively to show that there is room for humans in a technology dominated society where they may seem unimportant, but the machines cannot do without them. He describes how the technology has enabled the world to be more productive and support its growing population. Additionally, he points out that most jobs that people work on today were not there few decades and centuries ago and they have been made possible by technology. Autor also points out that some of the jobs we are afraid of losing are probably not as good as we think of them. He uses the analogy of several countries and how their wealth has translated into varying degrees of happiness amongst its people; Norway, US and Saudi Arabia. He points out that as a society we should focus on strengthening our institutions like schools to remain competitive with technology rather than fighting it.
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