CRITERIA C

Criteria C
The main stakeholders of the grid system would perhaps be Google, GE, the potential consumers, the technicians that have worked to create it and electric companies that provide electricity to homes in the community. (http://www.oe.energy.gov/smartgrid.htm)
The introduction of the grid would affect the society to a great extent. While on one hand the introduction of several new features gives the consumer a wider choice and more desirable results, on the other hand, it perhaps widens the gap between man and machine as it is very hard to keep up with the pace of technology. This could lead to loss of trust in technology. There is also another major issue brought up here. Is this gadget as reliable as its predecessor? Will a common man who has an average knowledge of gadgetry be able to ‘communicate’ with the grid or will it just be too complicated? It can be argued that with these new features, the new grid is in fact more reliable as it gives several more options to chose from and is safer but it could also be too complex to be understood by the public. In 2003, the grid was described by some as a bit ‘too smart’ as just its automation caused several nuclear stations to shut down. (http://www.worldchanging.com/archives/003671.html) Also, the price of the grid is much higher than that of its forerunner. This not only means that the businesses are perhaps putting in too much money into this project and this money could be used for other more important issues, but the selling price might make the grid out of reach of an average person, hence bringing in the issue of equality of access. (http://ezinearticles.com/?Are-Smart-Grids-the-Wave-of-the-Future?&id=1419720)