Innovation Backfires
- Eitan Rieger
- Sep 22
- 3 min read
The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions. We design to solve a problem, to make life easier, safer, or more productive. But human behavior in too many cases is harder to predict than reaction of molecules in a vile or fluid dynamics on an airfoil
Explosive Success
During his life Alfred Nobel, the inventor of Dynamite, worked endlessly to make Nitroglycerin safer to handle. From a volatile and unpredictable liquid form that caused the death of many of his workers including his only brother, to safe dynamite sticks and Ballistite — the smokeless that replaced black powder in all ballistic munitions.
But here’s the paradox. Since his later inventions ware now safer to transport and use, dynamite for example, spread rapidly into new domains — not just for blasting tunnels, but also for warfare. By solving one danger, Nobel inadvertently enabled another: a tool made so safe compared to its early versions, became one of destruction’s most effective agents.
Unsafe Users
A similar paradox takes place on the roads. As time goes by, cars are being loaded with variety of safety features — airbags, lane-assist, collision warnings, and crumple zones. These technologies save lives. But alas, This leads to what some researchers have documented “risk compensation”: when drivers feel safer, they often drive faster, brake later, or pay less attention.
One study found that drivers of larger, heavier vehicles (which feel more protective) tend to drive more aggressively. Another showed that collision-warning systems led some drivers to rely too much on the tech, increasing sudden hard braking events.
So while cars today are objectively safer than ever, human behavior adapts — sometimes in ways that offset those safety gains. The invention works, but its very success changes how we use it. One can say that that life cycle which is so deeply rooted in nature, the one that allows the new developments to thrive while older living forms not oppressing them, is something beyond the power of the human brain.
The Biological Seat belt
A true superpower against bacterial infections, which saved countless lives, was introduced in the mid 20th century in the form of Antibiotics (Like Penicillin was discovered by Scottish physician Alexander Fleming in 1928 when he observed that a mold called Penicillium notatum inhibited the growth of bacteria.) They save lives on a daily basis, as new iterations are being developed, Yet, just like safe cars, Antibiotics is regarded by many as a magic power that can be used without any consideration to each specific case. The sense of security it provides, leads to more trouble.
In humans: Over usage and wrong consumption; Many stop their treatment early once they “feel better,” leaving behind tougher bacteria that learn to resist. Others take antibiotics unnecessarily for viral infections like the common cold.
In livestock: Here the misuse is even more troubling. In industrial farming, antibiotics are often given not to cure disease, but to prevent animals from getting sick in overcrowded, unsanitary conditions — and to accelerate growth. This means bacteria in animals are constantly exposed to low doses, the perfect breeding ground for resistant strains that can jump to humans.
It’s not that antibiotics don’t work. They work too well at first, encouraging misuse and overuse until they gradually lose their power. Just as a driver trusts the car’s airbags, we have trusted antibiotics so blindly that we’ve forgotten their limits.
What This Means for Innovation
As an investigative creative technologist working at the intersection of design, prototyping, and multimedia, I find these stories deeply relevant. They remind us that every invention is a system: not just the object itself, but also how people will use it — and misuse it.
In many ways, the unpredictable behavior of people to new inventions, reactions that is generated by endless factors that is almost impossible to predict, reminds me who people perceive art and design works. This leads to some very interesting discussions and new ideas that are just as impossible to predict had those processes did not take place
Because in the end, innovation is never neutral. A safer explosive, a safer car, or a life-saving drug can all reshape society in ways their inventors never imagined. This is a very good lesson to anyone working on a radical invention with the potential to save lives. We often think that we are able to predict the future and human behavior. But too often the case is the exact opposite. High quality data that is gathered over time, combined with unbiased derived conclusions, is among the best tools available to us, for the creation of advancements which are more beneficial that harmful.
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