The successful cloning of the lamb Dolly in February set off a spate of anxious questions. Many of them concerned the ethics of cloning, but another set asked about the unanticipated consequences of this technology. Each of these questions speaks to the uncertainty inherent in the development of new technologies. And the true answer to each is, We don't know.
Unanticipated consequences are a feature of change, both technological and natural.
Acknowledging our limited ability to foresee repercussions is a first step in dealing with them. Edward Tenner has a radical perspective on the phenomenon. As an example, he offers power door locks, which increase drivers sense of security. Complexity refers to the many different components in a real system and the interconnections between them. When we model a system, trying to predict what will occur, we necessarily neglect many components and even more so, their interrelations.