The Fourth Industrial Revolution

The Fourth Industrial Revolution
Author: Klaus Schwab
Publisher: Crown Currency
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2017-01-03
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1524758876

World-renowned economist Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, explains that we have an opportunity to shape the fourth industrial revolu­tion, which will fundamentally alter how we live and work. Schwab argues that this revolution is different in scale, scope and complexity from any that have come before. Characterized by a range of new technologies that are fusing the physical, digital and biological worlds, the developments are affecting all disciplines, economies, industries and governments, and even challenging ideas about what it means to be human. Artificial intelligence is already all around us, from supercomputers, drones and virtual assistants to 3D printing, DNA sequencing, smart thermostats, wear­able sensors and microchips smaller than a grain of sand. But this is just the beginning: nanomaterials 200 times stronger than steel and a million times thinner than a strand of hair and the first transplant of a 3D printed liver are already in development. Imagine “smart factories” in which global systems of manu­facturing are coordinated virtually, or implantable mobile phones made of biosynthetic materials. The fourth industrial revolution, says Schwab, is more significant, and its ramifications more profound, than in any prior period of human history. He outlines the key technologies driving this revolution and discusses the major impacts expected on government, business, civil society and individu­als. Schwab also offers bold ideas on how to harness these changes and shape a better future—one in which technology empowers people rather than replaces them; progress serves society rather than disrupts it; and in which innovators respect moral and ethical boundaries rather than cross them. We all have the opportunity to contribute to developing new frame­works that advance progress.

The Age of Surveillance Capitalism

The Age of Surveillance Capitalism
Author: Shoshana Zuboff
Publisher: PublicAffairs
Total Pages: 683
Release: 2019-01-15
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1610395700

The challenges to humanity posed by the digital future, the first detailed examination of the unprecedented form of power called "surveillance capitalism," and the quest by powerful corporations to predict and control our behavior. In this masterwork of original thinking and research, Shoshana Zuboff provides startling insights into the phenomenon that she has named surveillance capitalism. The stakes could not be higher: a global architecture of behavior modification threatens human nature in the twenty-first century just as industrial capitalism disfigured the natural world in the twentieth. Zuboff vividly brings to life the consequences as surveillance capitalism advances from Silicon Valley into every economic sector. Vast wealth and power are accumulated in ominous new "behavioral futures markets," where predictions about our behavior are bought and sold, and the production of goods and services is subordinated to a new "means of behavioral modification." The threat has shifted from a totalitarian Big Brother state to a ubiquitous digital architecture: a "Big Other" operating in the interests of surveillance capital. Here is the crucible of an unprecedented form of power marked by extreme concentrations of knowledge and free from democratic oversight. Zuboff's comprehensive and moving analysis lays bare the threats to twenty-first century society: a controlled "hive" of total connection that seduces with promises of total certainty for maximum profit -- at the expense of democracy, freedom, and our human future. With little resistance from law or society, surveillance capitalism is on the verge of dominating the social order and shaping the digital future -- if we let it.

Evidence-Based Medicine and the Changing Nature of Health Care

Evidence-Based Medicine and the Changing Nature of Health Care
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 202
Release: 2008-09-06
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309113695

Drawing on the work of the Roundtable on Evidence-Based Medicine, the 2007 IOM Annual Meeting assessed some of the rapidly occurring changes in health care related to new diagnostic and treatment tools, emerging genetic insights, the developments in information technology, and healthcare costs, and discussed the need for a stronger focus on evidence to ensure that the promise of scientific discovery and technological innovation is efficiently captured to provide the right care for the right patient at the right time. As new discoveries continue to expand the universe of medical interventions, treatments, and methods of care, the need for a more systematic approach to evidence development and application becomes increasingly critical. Without better information about the effectiveness of different treatment options, the resulting uncertainty can lead to the delivery of services that may be unnecessary, unproven, or even harmful. Improving the evidence-base for medicine holds great potential to increase the quality and efficiency of medical care. The Annual Meeting, held on October 8, 2007, brought together many of the nation's leading authorities on various aspects of the issues - both challenges and opportunities - to present their perspectives and engage in discussion with the IOM membership.

The Role of Telehealth in an Evolving Health Care Environment

The Role of Telehealth in an Evolving Health Care Environment
Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 159
Release: 2012-12-20
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0309262011

In 1996, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) released its report Telemedicine: A Guide to Assessing Telecommunications for Health Care. In that report, the IOM Committee on Evaluating Clinical Applications of Telemedicine found telemedicine is similar in most respects to other technologies for which better evidence of effectiveness is also being demanded. Telemedicine, however, has some special characteristics-shared with information technologies generally-that warrant particular notice from evaluators and decision makers. Since that time, attention to telehealth has continued to grow in both the public and private sectors. Peer-reviewed journals and professional societies are devoted to telehealth, the federal government provides grant funding to promote the use of telehealth, and the private technology industry continues to develop new applications for telehealth. However, barriers remain to the use of telehealth modalities, including issues related to reimbursement, licensure, workforce, and costs. Also, some areas of telehealth have developed a stronger evidence base than others. The Health Resources and Service Administration (HRSA) sponsored the IOM in holding a workshop in Washington, DC, on August 8-9 2012, to examine how the use of telehealth technology can fit into the U.S. health care system. HRSA asked the IOM to focus on the potential for telehealth to serve geographically isolated individuals and extend the reach of scarce resources while also emphasizing the quality and value in the delivery of health care services. This workshop summary discusses the evolution of telehealth since 1996, including the increasing role of the private sector, policies that have promoted or delayed the use of telehealth, and consumer acceptance of telehealth. The Role of Telehealth in an Evolving Health Care Environment: Workshop Summary discusses the current evidence base for telehealth, including available data and gaps in data; discuss how technological developments, including mobile telehealth, electronic intensive care units, remote monitoring, social networking, and wearable devices, in conjunction with the push for electronic health records, is changing the delivery of health care in rural and urban environments. This report also summarizes actions that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) can undertake to further the use of telehealth to improve health care outcomes while controlling costs in the current health care environment.

The Russian Revolution

The Russian Revolution
Author: Sean McMeekin
Publisher: Basic Books
Total Pages: 496
Release: 2017-05-30
Genre: History
ISBN: 046509497X

From an award-winning scholar comes this definitive, single-volume history that illuminates the tensions and transformations of the Russian Revolution. ​ In The Russian Revolution, acclaimed historian Sean McMeekin traces the events which ended Romanov rule, ushered the Bolsheviks into power, and introduced Communism to the world. Between 1917 and 1922, Russia underwent a complete and irreversible transformation. Taking advantage of the collapse of the Tsarist regime in the middle of World War I, the Bolsheviks staged a hostile takeover of the Russian Imperial Army, promoting mutinies and mass desertions of men in order to fulfill Lenin's program of turning the "imperialist war" into civil war. By the time the Bolsheviks had snuffed out the last resistance five years later, over 20 million people had died, and the Russian economy had collapsed so completely that Communism had to be temporarily abandoned. Still, Bolshevik rule was secure, owing to the new regime's monopoly on force, enabled by illicit arms deals signed with capitalist neighbors such as Germany and Sweden who sought to benefit-politically and economically-from the revolutionary chaos in Russia. Drawing on scores of previously untapped files from Russian archives and a range of other repositories in Europe, Turkey, and the United States, McMeekin delivers exciting, groundbreaking research about this turbulent era. The first comprehensive history of these momentous events in two decades, The Russian Revolution combines cutting-edge scholarship and a fast-paced narrative to shed new light on one of the most significant turning points of the twentieth century.

The Institutional Revolution

The Institutional Revolution
Author: Douglas W. Allen
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 282
Release: 2011-10-25
Genre: History
ISBN: 0226014762

Few events in the history of humanity rival the Industrial Revolution. Following its onset in eighteenth-century Britain, sweeping changes in agriculture, manufacturing, transportation, and technology began to gain unstoppable momentum throughout Europe, North America, and eventually much of the world—with profound effects on socioeconomic and cultural conditions. In The Institutional Revolution, Douglas W. Allen offers a thought-provoking account of another, quieter revolution that took place at the end of the eighteenth century and allowed for the full exploitation of the many new technological innovations. Fundamental to this shift were dramatic changes in institutions, or the rules that govern society, which reflected significant improvements in the ability to measure performance—whether of government officials, laborers, or naval officers—thereby reducing the role of nature and the hazards of variance in daily affairs. Along the way, Allen provides readers with a fascinating explanation of the critical roles played by seemingly bizarre institutions, from dueling to the purchase of one’s rank in the British Army. Engagingly written, The Institutional Revolution traces the dramatic shift from premodern institutions based on patronage, purchase, and personal ties toward modern institutions based on standardization, merit, and wage labor—a shift which was crucial to the explosive economic growth of the Industrial Revolution.

Rhizosphere Revolution

Rhizosphere Revolution
Author: Dhirendra Kumar
Publisher: CRC Press
Total Pages: 475
Release: 2024-12-06
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1040269796

This book analyses the complexities of the rhizosphere ecosystem and discusses the role of insect pheromones in shaping soil health and vermicompost production. It details the mechanisms of insect pheromone communication, their impact on soil microbial communities, and their potential applications in sustainable agriculture and vermicompost production. The subject matter in this book also discusses: The Underground Symphony Pheromones in Pest Control The Sentient Soil Hypothesis Bio-Engineered Insect Allies The Global Impact of Rhizosphere Revolution Print edition not for sale in South Asia (India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan or Bhutan)

The Second Information Revolution

The Second Information Revolution
Author: Gerald W. BROCK
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 337
Release: 2009-06-30
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0674028791

Thanks to inexpensive computers and data communications, the speed and volume of human communication are exponentially greater than they were even a quarter-century ago. Not since the advent of the telephone and telegraph in the nineteenth century has information technology changed daily life so radically. We are in the midst of what Gerald Brock calls a second information revolution. Brock traces the complex history of this revolution, from its roots in World War II through the bursting bubble of the Internet economy. As he explains, the revolution sprang from an interdependent series of technological advances, entrepreneurial innovations, and changes to public policy. Innovations in radar, computers, and electronic components for defense projects translated into rapid expansion in the private sector, but some opportunities were blocked by regulatory policies. The contentious political effort to accommodate new technology while protecting beneficiaries of the earlier regulated monopoly eventually resulted in a regulatory structure that facilitated the explosive growth in data communications. Brock synthesizes these complex factors into a readable economic history of the wholesale transformation of the way we exchange and process information. Table of Contents: Acknowledgments Abbreviations 1. Introduction The Promise of Regulation Conceptual Framework 2. The First Information Revolution The Development of Telegraph Services The Telephone and State Regulation Radio and Federal Regulation 3. Technological Origins of the Second Information Revolution, 1940-1950 Radar The Transistor Electronic Digital Computers 4. The SAGE Project I. THE SEPARATE WORLDS OF COMPUTERS AND COMMUNICATIONS, 1950-1968 5. The Early Semiconductor Industry The Creation of a Competitive Market Innovation and the Integrated Circuit Falling Prices, Rising Output 6. The Early Commercial Computer Industry Vacuum-Tube and Transistor Computers The System/360 and IBM Dominance Alternatives to IBM Computers 7. The Regulated Monopoly Telephone Industry Antitrust and the 1956 Consent Decree Microwave Technology and Potential Long Distance Competition Central Office Switches Terminal Equipment II. BOUNDARY DISPUTES AND LIMITED COMPETITION, 1969-1984 8. Data Communications Packet-Switching and the Arpanet Network Protocols and Interconnection Local Area Networks and Ethernet 9. From Mainframes to Microprocessors Intel and the Microprocessor Personal Computers and Workstations 10. The Computer-Communications Boundary Computer-Assisted Messages: Communications or Data Processing? Smart Terminals: Teletypewriters or Computers? Interconnection of Customer-Owned Equipment with the Telephone Network The Deregulation of Terminal Equipment The Deregulation of Enhanced Services 11. Fringe Competition in Long Distance Telephone Service Competition in Specialized Services Competition in Switched Services The Transition to Optical Fiber 12. Divestiture and Access Charges The Divestiture Access Charges The Enhanced Service Provider Exemption III. INTERCONNECTED COMPETITION AND INTEGRATED SERVICES, 1985-2002 13. Mobile Telephones and Spectrum Reform Early Land Mobile Telephones Cellular Spectrum Allocation Cellular Licensing Problems Spectrum Institutional Reform PCS and Auctions 14. Local Competition and the Telecommunications Act of 1996 Competitive Access Providers Interconnection: CAP to CLEC The Telecommunications Act of 1996 Implementation of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 15. The Internet and the World Wide Web The Commercial Internet and Backbone Interconnection The Development of the Web The New Economy Financial Boom and Bust Real Growth in Telecommunication and Price Benefits 16. Conclusion Technological Progress and Policy Evolution The Process of Institutional Change Final Comment References Index Reviews of this book: The Second Information Revolution is important reading for anyone who needs to understand the functioning of American telecommunications, either to be able to analyse today's financial markets or to understand or influence public policy in this area. --Wendy M. Grossman, Times Higher Education Supplement [UK] Reviews of this book: Brock traces a phenomenon he refers to as the 'second information revolution.' According to Brock, there have been two times in history when information technology has dramatically changed daily life. The first 'information revolution' occurred with the advent of the telephone and telegraph, which made communication less expensive and more readily available. The second information revolution is currently in progress...A concise, thorough, and well-written history of the transformation in exchanging and processing of information. --K. A. Coombs, Choice

The MiFID Revolution

The MiFID Revolution
Author: Jean-Pierre Casey
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 244
Release: 2009-10-08
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9781139475822

The Market in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID) is nothing short of a revolution. Introduced on 1 November 2007, it will have a profound, long-term impact on Europe's securities markets. It will see banks operating as exchanges for certain activities, offering alternative execution services that more closely resemble the structure of over-the-counter markets, and will lead to the decentralisation of order execution in an array of venues previously governed by concentration rules. Crucially, MiFID will also have a profound impact on the organisation and business strategies of investment firms, exchanges, asset managers and other financial markets intermediaries. Until now, analysis has focused on the directive's short term implementation issues. This book focuses on the long term strategic implications associated with MiFID, and will be essential reading for anybody who recognises that their firm will need to make constant dynamic readjustments in order to remain competitive in this challenging new environment.

A Sustainable Revolution

A Sustainable Revolution
Author: Idiano D’Adamo
Publisher: MDPI
Total Pages: 368
Release: 2020-12-14
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 3039364553

The parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) attained the Paris Agreement to tackle climate change and to strengthen the actions required for a sustainable transition towards an environmentally friendly future. This transition will involve holistic approaches and multifaceted societal shifts, requiring answers and collaboration between private, public, and academic sectors. This book gathers together contributions which study the transition towards a more sustainable future, involving and identifying the development and implications of more sustainable alternatives, in collaboration with all relevant stakeholders (e.g. communities, firms, policy makers, researchers, etc.), to achieve this transition. The approaches proposed are all concerned with a common perspective: imaging our globe with a greener picture, built upon a transversal sustainable revolution to clean up the Earth.