Text 1: Technology historian Dr. Julia Myers studies automation anxiety. "Every major technological shift prompted fears of mass unemployment—textile mills, assembly lines, computers," Myers writes. "Yet employment adapted. Historical pattern suggests current AI fears are similarly exaggerated."
Text 2: AI researcher Dr. Samuel Park sees current technology differently. "Unlike previous tools, AI can perform cognitive tasks," Park argues. "When machines can learn and adapt across domains, the historical precedent of labor market adjustment may not apply."
What does Park suggest is categorically different about AI compared to previous technologies?
That AI exists as a technology
That AI can perform flexible cognitive work, not just defined physical tasks
That AI was invented more recently
That AI has received media attention
Correct Answer: B
Choice B is the correct answer. Park distinguishes AI as performing "cognitive tasks" that can "learn and adapt across domains." Previous technologies automated specific physical or routine tasks; AI's flexibility is novel.
- Evidence: Park: AI can "learn and adapt across domains."
- Reasoning: Previous automation had fixed capabilities; AI's are dynamic.
- Conclusion: Cognitive flexibility distinguishes AI from historical precedents.
Choice A is incorrect because existence isn't the distinction. Choice C is incorrect because recency alone doesn't matter. Choice D is incorrect because media attention isn't Park's point.