Technology on the World Stage PDF

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How the world uses technology differently....

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Technology on the World Stage Sunday, January 28, 2018 3:52 PM

Impact of Tools of Modern Technology Social Media Tools  Social media enables people to connect and exchange ideas o Bring together people facing similar problems to fight for social change  Ex: #BlackLivesMatter  Technology brought to light an important social issue o Started a national discussion  Motivates people to vote o Ex: Thousands of Irish came back to Ireland from abroad to vote "yes" in support of same-sex marriage. Encouraging each other w/ a Twitter feed #HomeToVote  Social media tools are also providing a level of instant connection and information distribution that is reshaping the world  Knowing how to use and critically evaluate social media will be an important skill now and in the future Crisis-Mapping Tool  Ushahidi: crisis-mapping tool that collects information from emails, text messages, blog posts, and tweets and then maps them, instantly making the information publicly available o It has let anyone w/ a phone find locations w/ clean water and food after a tsunami in Japan Global Issues Health Care  With newer scientific visualization tools, scientists are developing antibodies for flu viruses and HIV  Retinal prosthetics are an example of global health concerns being addressed w/ technology  Sheila Nirenberg of Cornell University is working on a microchip that can replace the function of the retina, translating incoming light into the electrical pulses the brain needs for vision  Technology is playing a part in providing a solution to concussion injuries The Environment  Thought: Every cell phone in the world had built-in atmospheric sensors. Then millions of points of air and water quality data can be constantly acquired, which could alert scientists to new trends in the environment  Ex: Internet-connected water sprinklers checks the weather forecasts so it won't use water when rain is coming the next day The Digital Divide  Digital divide: gap in the levels of internet access and the availability of technical tools in different regions of the world  The Digital Divide presents us from using all the minds on the planet to solve the planet's problems

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The Next Einstein Initiative (NEI) plans to focus resources on the talented mathematical minds of Africa Cambridge professor Neil Turok founded African Institute for Mathematical (AIMS) to bring together the brightest young minds across Africa with the best lecturers in the world

Technology Impacts How We Think  In the late 20th century, a common trend was to think about what to buy next or perhaps what to watch or listen to next  A more and more web applications began to appear that allowed each individual to become a "creator" of the web, a new king or Internet came into being  Nicknamed Web 2.0, has new features and functionality that allowed users to contribute content easily and to be easily connected to each other o Fostered a dramatic shift across the world, from consuming to having the ability to volunteer and collaborate on projects  Author Clay Shirky created the term cognitive surplus to mean the combination of leisure time and the tools to be creative  Modern theories of motivation show that what pushes people to apply their free time in altruistic causes, for no money, is the excitement of autonomy, mastery, and purpose  Autonomy: the freedom to work without constant direction and control  Mastery: the feeling of confidence and excitement from seeing your own skills progress  Purpose: the understanding that you are working for something larger than yourself Connecting Through Music  Blend.io is a site that allows people to exchange the songs they have written as well as the electronic data and settings they used to create the song  People can explore different musical styles and techniques  Blend is a publishing house, distributing and selling its users digital music for them through all major music outlets Connecting Through Business  Kickstarter helps us connect by supporting other people's dreams allowing people to post their ideas for community projects, games, and inventions and to ask for funding directly  Donors are given rewards for different levels of pledges o This style of generating capital is to start a business is known as crowdfunding, asking for small donations from a large number of people, often using the Internet  Business ideas are not the only projects benefitting from crowdfunding o GoFundMe allows people in need to crowdfund to raise money for things like medical bills or tuition Technology Impacts How We Consume Marketing  Quick Response (QR) codes let any piece of print host a direct link to online information and video content  Shoppers are often using so called location-aware price comparison tools, programs that take advantage of the GPS chip in smartphones to know your location  Techy shoppers can get "mobile coupons" delivered to their cell phones  Crowdsourcing: checking in with the voice of the crowd

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Consumers are using apps like ScanLife to check people's verdicts on the quality of items o Companies are using the input to improve their products and services

Access Versus Ownership  With ZipCar, it allows hundreds of thousand of people to use shared cars o The app allows you to open the car you have reserved, and away you drive  Call a Bike is a bike-sharing program in Germany o Simply call the phone number printed on the bike and it texts you a code to unlock the bike  Swap.com helps people trade books, clothes, and videogames w/ one another using the power of peer-to-peer connections  Collaborative consumption implies that we are joining together as a group to use a specific product more efficiently...