What effects do science and technology have on industry and politics?

Science and Technology primarily affect industry through:

1) Opportunities to create new or better products (increasing revenue and job opportunities), and through

2) Opportunities to increase automation and efficiency (reducing cost and staffing and increasing speed of delivery.)

Science and Technology primarily affect politics through:

1) Expanding the dialog between politicians and constituents through various internet communication technologies (polling, electronic forums, blogging, town meetings, government websites releasing everything from statistics to General Budget Office critiques to information on new bills, etc.) and

2) Potential improvements (with occasional hiccups) in automation to improve efficiency in voting and vote-counting.