Collaboration vs. Competition

To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them?
(William Shakespeare from Hamlet 3/1)

Executive Summary:
As mankind drives to develop more powerful technologies we increase our collective potential and productivity. But many times technology replaces people, and eliminates jobs. The people who do jobs that sit at the boundary of technological replacement have two choices: accept obsolescence, or acquire new skills which have not been mastered by technology.

Does understanding UDL provide insights into ways that society can help people evolve and adapt more quickly to technological change? How can we use our understanding of cognitive processes to ensure mankind is collaborating with technology, rather than competing with it? How much of the "complexity" of the modern world is really just a result of poorly designed interfaces between people and technology?

Detailed Discussion:
As we develop technologies to assist or replace people in the workforce, what are we doing to redefine the role of people in society? As we interact with them more and more, how do we describe the role of computers and technology in society? How do we make sure that people are still useful and relevant? What do we do with the ones who are not?

I do not see this as an obscure, "science-fictiony" philosophical quandary. I think it's a relevant and pressing issue for our society; our economic dominance has been driven by the ability to increase per capita productivity through the use of technology.

We are becoming much better at understanding the unique differences that define children, and how UDL can be used to adapt pedagogy to match a child's strengths and minimize the obstacles posed by their weaknesses. But what happens to those kids when they grow up? Do the limitations they have as a child disappear when they turn 18.

In order to maintain their relevance as technology advances, adults will need to continuously retrain themselves. In what ways can the lessons from UDL be projected beyond the K-12 environment and into the workplace to help our labor force benefit from increased productivity instead of allowing it to be replaced by technology?