Session 5 - ICT: The Present and more

Brief Overview/Summary of the themes/topics addressed during the session

In this session, we moved to a topic that is more personal and relevant to our lives. ICT  (Information and Communication Technologies) has played such a big role in our lives and has become very essential for our every day use. We looked at how changes in technology have applied in different sectors. And more importantly, we questioned the future advancements. This is important because by being aware of the direction of change, one will have advantage over others who are unaware.

Interesting Observations and Ideas (ideas and concepts that captured your attention)

The discussion of Web 3.0 was touched briefly on previous sessions. Yet, in this session, we managed to dive into it. This idea still continues to amaze me because I feel that Web 3.0 would really change our lives. By integrating the Internet into our daily lives such that it is present all around us, would simply make all our lives so much more convenient and connected.

Professor Shahi mentioned that Web 3.0 would be “less visible, but more present”. It was difficult for me to imagine such a thing when what I have now (a portable smartphone, a portable laptop and an iPad) already seemed to make technology so present and integrated in my life.  This article “Connected Living: The Next Big Thing After Facebook”, painted the possible future of Web 3.0. By making more devices automated and even more interconnected through the use of the Internet and technology, would make our lives easier than it already is.

Although there are repercussions (i.e. the over-reliance on the Internet, people becoming lazier, etc.), the fact that we do not need to worry about the minor details of life means that we have more time and more space to do more, to advance even further. The increase in interconnectivity would mean that we would be closer to our friends, our families, and even to strangers who can be our potential friends.

This whole concept of Web 3.0 would definitely change our way of living. However, there is the question of how big the impact of Web 3.0 would be. Can everyone live this way? Will those in the developing countries receive a major “upgrade” of lifestyle due to Web 3.0? Will the poor get to enjoy these changes? I want to believe that the answer is a “yes” for all the questions above.

However, I cannot help but feel that those who are progressing slower will always retain that status, that is, unless they innovate something big that affects the whole world. Because as the advanced countries advance and teach those left behind, the advanced countries are still progressing. At this rate, those left behind will be able to catch up, but may not overtake or be at the same position as the advanced societies. But, there is also the argument of “advantage of being backwards”, in which being backwards confer the benefit of the avoidance of risks during innovation.

Key Take Away Points (the 2 or 3 key messages from the session that you intend to keep in mind going forward)

One message that I felt is important is the fact that we have yet to capture the full potential of the ICT and Knowledge revolution. At first, I thought that it was rather strange to say that we haven’t reached the full potential of ICT – I mean I thought the majority of us are already quite tech-savvy and we have already used advanced technology in many areas of work. But, it turns out there is actually much more to be expected.

We live in a generation where we have only just begun to take up technology. Though the vast population has access to ICT, there are still many who have not even had the chance to enjoy it. With the continual rapid advancement of ICT, there are still potential to explore and possibilities to uncover.

One example would be the possibility for all to be equal, in the sense of the access to information and knowledge, as well as the basic necessities of life. Technology has the potential to achieve this. This article “After the Internet” asks two questions, which I found really applicable to this course. Basically, it questions whether our future world would contain technology that can benefit everyone on the planet, such that it helps everyone to attain success.

It is interesting that this would relate back to Yali’s question, and even goes beyond his question. Because, the answer would be to innovate to the extent of a more connected world, where everyone across the globe is connected somehow, and has access to information. I believe, it is only through this, that backward societies will stand a chance to advance substantially and possibly become even better than advanced societies. And this would be what I think the untouched potential of ICT can achieve.

Another message that I was intrigued by was the usefulness of Social Networking sites. Living in the generation where Social Networking sites are so common, I have never considered life without them in the past. It was pointed out that these sites give people the power to “see connections that are hidden in the real world”. And this was a new perspective for me that I have never thought about.

From this, we can see again, that there is significant progress from real life social networking to the social networking sites, and that this progress has opened up the world greatly. Though we stand to lose some form of privacy, but we are able to reach out further, and to all the way across the globe. I think this is important in building a world that gives equal chances to all to progress.

Issues for Further Discussion (stuff you wish had been considered or given more air-time in class – and why)

I felt that topic on cloud computing could have been further discussed. I always wondered how cloud computing supply so much storage space, such that it seems as if there were unlimited amount of data that can be stored. Furthermore, from the above discussions about ICT and the future Web 3.0, I believe cloud computing has the potential to shape a world that is paperless, with everything stored in the cloud. And I wanted to hear more of others’ opinions about this issue. 

Personal Ratings for Session (how you would rate the session on a scale of 0 to 10. Feel free to be as subjective as you like in your assessment)

Initially, this session did not trigger much interest in me because I did not feel that learning about the present was anything new or captivating. Yet, after much reflection, I was mind-blown by all the possibilities that technology can give. If we have yet to uncover all the potential of ICT, this would mean that there is still more to come and more to expect. I think it would really be fascinating to see an entirely digitalised world. The five classmates who presented also broaden my mind a lot about existing and future technology. I believe that this was a really informative session. I would give a rating of 9 out of 10.