Brief Overview/Summary of the
themes/topics addressed during the session
The topic covered this week was on
Information Communications Technology and its relevance to World Change – its uses,
impacts and potential.
Prof Shahi started out the lesson in his
usual way by introducing to us two apposite quotes which captured some of the
key ideas relevant to the topic. A quote by Arthur C. Clarke is a pertinent
observation of how any one thing which is advanced enough and so far ahead of
our time/existing mass-marketed technologies, would be “indistinguishable from magic”
to us. To me, the quote conveyed the idea about how vast the frontiers of
technologies are, that something we cannot begin to comprehend today can
nevertheless culminate in something functional in time.
The second quote was by John Naisbitt and it
basically poses the fundamental questions of what it means to be a human being –
whether it merely constituted the concept of our physical being and whether
this perspective has undergone any extension in light of the technological pervasiveness
and breakthroughs of the 21st century. Prof Shahi opines that, with
the rise of the internet and our ability to reach out and communicate with the
greater part of the world, our concept of ourselves as individuals has expanded
– there is a rise of a new consciousness among individuals, the idea that
everyone is part of a new global community and that we all have a
responsibility in the wider context of global issues.
The lesson then proceeded on a review of some
of the key components of ICT in the 21st century. Significantly,
there appears to be preparation for a move towards Web 3.0 from Web 2.0 which
we currently experience. The implication of this is the advent of an internet
that is not only interactive, but exists invisibly and is all-pervasive and omnipresent
in our lives.
Another key observation was how the advent
of mass media has changed the way we communicate and our expectations as global
consumers. In the past, the media was mainly utilised for the one-way dissemination
of ideas by a single entity to the masses. Today, individuals around the globe
are able to engage in interactive, two-way conversations. The demand for
information has increased and mass media has facilitated the greater sharing of
ideas and knowledge. The enabling of feedback and communication between the
population and the governing authorities of a country also allows for the
fine-tuning of policies and approaches, making the government of the day more
relevant in the eyes of its people and enabling the fostering of a more
cohesive society.
Other promising ICT technologies discussed
were that of gaming – how it holds great potential when used in education and
in helping soldiers coming out of brutal war to deal with post-traumatic stress
disorder, as well as its invaluableness in providing a platform for the
training of doctors; wireless technologies – the possibility of wireless
energies; cloud computing – its utility to pave the way forward for IT in
allowing the creation of capacity and addition of capabilities on the fly
without the need to invest in new physical infrastructure, training of personnel
or licensing of new software; and knowledge management – the concept of
synthesizing data to information to relevant knowledge and ultimately to beget
wisdom in its user.
Readings
In
reading one, it was highlighted that one of the misconceptions of how computers
can help learning stems from an insistence that the same skills that we have
been taught for the past century remain the most important and relevant in
today’s networked world. It was observed that there is a need for radically
different learning systems that tap into the potential that computers offer. In
his projects, Mitchel Resnik of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media
Lab showed how computer-enhanced learning can create meaningful change in the
lives of children, and points to the importance of the underlying philosophy of
learning as key to instituting reform.
It was
also recognised that although the internet can help to create true excellence
in business practices, technology alone will achieve nothing if the appropriate
managerial and organizational infrastructure and knowledge are not present. Soumitra
Dutta of INSEAD writes on how leadership and organisational excellence can have
a tremendous impact in creating business success using ICTs in the developing
world. Hence, it is important to keep in mind that managerial innovation is
essential to creating environments where ICT-enabled business models can
thrive.
In
reading 2, John Gage reflects on how ICTs could have a profound influence on
World Change. He notes that there are three fundamental technical changes in
ICTs which are responsible for the explosion in their use to promote economic
development – plummeting costs, expanding access to the network, and more
powerful human-to-machine interfaces. These developments are allowing for the
expansion in use of applications and devices as well as increased access to
network systems by those previously deprived of such. Instructive interface
metaphors also allows for new users to understand how to use these services
independently.
He further envisaged how four technical advances, in particular,
hold much promise to aid development – peer-to-peer networks, precise local
spatial data systems, sensor fusion, and unique identity systems. Although the
foundations of these technologies stemmed from the innovations of the past,
they nevertheless provide new tools for change in the 21st century. At
the conclusion of his article, Gage emphasises the need to match educational
reform to the complex systems that have arisen through ICTs and suggests
several immediate, measurable actions to bring this to fruition (1. Completing the
job of ubiquitous connectivity and access; 2. Ask each linked location to
describe their local world; 3.form a local microcredit organization at the
linked location).
The
third reading considered how ICTs may be utilised to enable the achievement of
Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The article posits that effective
incorporation of ICTs into development should be founded on six axes: strategy,
regulatory framework, implementation, capacity development, partnerships, and
measurement.
Governments
need to develop a clear and coherent national ICT strategy document which acknowledges the relevance of ICT to its
citizens. There also needs to be a regulatory
framework which supports the implementation of the strategy and ICT
development-oriented policies should be specifically addressed. A multitaskholder
framework is also critical for the successful implementation of ICT policies and three principles govern this
framework – coordination to avoid duplication and to ensure coherence of different
policies), Integration (whether one policy is in line with existing general development
policies) and alignment (to ensure that implementation follows the originally established
objectives. As ICTs become more accessible, the need for a pool of skilled
technical individuals increases – governments should play a cognisant role to
facilitate such capacity development
through the provision of educational programmes and curricula. All relevant
stakeholders, apart from the government should also be actively involved in the
implementation of the country’s ICT strategy. Hence there is the need to
provide for appropriate mechanisms to facilitate the forming of such partnerships. Finally, it is essential that
progress may be traced in a very clear, concise and quantifiable manner, so
that projects can be fine-tuned and actions adjusted to facilitate the
accomplishment of original development goals.
The
fourth reading contemplates the development of a European green knowledge
society through a balanced application of ICT in the long term. Three key themes
underlie the paper:
First,
ICT is bringing about a fundamental shift in our economic and social lives –
there is a need to be ever more aware of human and social aspects as they
relate to ICT.
Second,
Europe has reached a tipping point in the transition to a knowledge economy and
moving forward, change has to be revolutionary, no longer evolutionary.
Third,
the issue of climate change is the most important challenge of our time and ICT
occupies a leading role in the fight against climate change, contributing to a
sustainable low-carbon economy.
Presentations (take-aways)
Daniel Sim – What if the Internet crashed
Should
the internet crash, we would definitely still be able to survive in the literal
sense of staying alive. However we would certainly not be able to function as per
how we are used to – our way of live will be rather disruptively affected.
Katty Lim – The role of ICT in sustainable
development
The
increasing interaction between people of less developed countries and the
developed world will not necessarily lead to Westernization of cultures in the less
developed world. Interaction is inherently a two-way process, what is
facilitated is a mingling and exchange of information and knowledge of one
another’s culture. This could lead towards the formation of a more unified
global culture. However, someone pointed out that this ‘global culture’ which
emerges might ultimately be ‘western culture’ after all, given the
pervasiveness of Western cultures in the world today.
Olanda Cherie Low – What augmented reality
means for retailers
With the
widespread adoption of augmented reality technologies in online shopping
platforms, there will be huge savings in cost for brands as they are able to dispense
with the need to maintain rental/overhead/staff costs. However, one negative implication
of such a trend is that consumers may be encouraged to do more of their
shopping online and this could promote consumerism and the consequential risk
of credit card debts, given the ease with which one is able to make purchases
online. Also, the issue of cyber security and credit card frauds becomes
pertinent.
Personal Ratings for Session
I would
rate this class a 9/10 for the breadth of coverage and the informative
discussions which Prof Shahi got the class engaged in.
No comments:
Post a Comment