Lesson 6, Exciting times !!

In today's class of TWC, we discussed a rather interesting and extremely significant topic - BioBusiness. 

I always knew BioBusiness was related to sustainability and was a small futuristic idea. Little did I know that it had spread to so many regions and fields and had such a huge impact. 

So what is BioBusiness? It is commercial activities based on understanding life sciences and life science presences. Some of the major areas it is predominant are biomedical, Agri-veterinary and environmental/industrial. BioBusiness already constitutes over 25% of global GDP and employs some 40% of the world’s labor force.

Through discussions on BioBusiness, we understood that this was a revolutionary step in innovations and inventions. Because this could easily change the way we run everything. One major example Prof gave us was through a video, which showed the future of healthcare, where everything would be run by touch screen technology, making it more interactive (as we discussed in session 5- ICT and world change). Imagine if you didn't have to waste time standing in those long lines and filling all those forms to see a doctor for 5 minutes. But instead, you could just video chat with your Doc, have messages remind you to take your medicine, know the dosage of the medicine, etc. That really was an impressive video. Prof then asked us how many of agreed that this could happen in the next ten years. 

            Even though most of the class said 20 years. I did raise my hand for 10 years because I do believe that our inventions and innovations are growing faster than we can imagine. Technology is adapting our everyday lifestyle as we head towards a technological driven era, where we would cut down costs, save space and time and definitely be more eco friendly. Following the rate we are going at, I can imagine us living in a world completely run by technology, no paper, no human labour, no extra materials etc.

In relation to this video of futuristic technology, I also did manage to find a similar video about the future of glass. The link is : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYL9n4hVdg4 .

This is a must watch video as it highlights the future of touch technology. The only way I believe this is extremely feasible is because I think of it like this, 

What we thought was impossible 10 years back, is happening now. 

So why can't we dream of a bright and innovative future? 

Other interesting discussions included our detailed discussion on healthcare, its past, present and future. 

We understood how earlier, disease were more infectious disease, like diarrhea, respiratory, etc in the 90's. But now as we are headed towards 2020, diseases are tending to be more of chronic origin, like heart diseases and depression. Changes such as these have driven technological innovation over the years, and hence we can't deny the role of ICT in healthcare. 

Apart this, we also focused on nutraceuticals, i.e. food that have drug like properties, but supplement the benefits. This lead us to discuss genetically modifies food, its pros and cons. Also stem cell research and genetically engineered issues and body parts. This lead to an evaluation based on the ethical implications of all this type of research. 

The key takeaways that I had from this session was that BioBusiness is growing at an exceeding rate, and its use cannot be denied. It could potentially solve all our problems, and lead us into a new era. 

However, keeping in mind the first lesson, we must remember that every thing has its pros and cons, and we must forget the cons. Those being that if this type of research reached the wrong hands, it could lead to disaster and hence the right balance must be sought out in the BioBusiness industry.

I did find this weeks class interesting and informative. I am aware that next week's session is going to be an extension of this topic, and I am eagerly awaiting that session to gain a more holistic approach to the topic. Like Prof said, "We are living in in exciting times!" and I do hope we make the most of that.

Its time for us to embrace the change, rather than restrict it.

Ratings: 8/10

Waiting for the viral to hit again : )

The Borderless World With ICT

Can you imagine waking up and not checking your whatsapp messages, or playing music in the shower or opening your laptop to check your Facebook updates? Have you ever thought of a day where technology would be absent? How your life would be? 

....Well I did, through the course of my TWC class in this weeks session of ICT and world change.

Without technology, life would still be possible just not as effective. As we began this weeks session, we immersed ourselves in the thoughts about technology. Our world, all around run by this simple, yet magical tool. We studied the past, present and future of technology. Right from the very first form of communication, which was word of mouth and drums to current day social networking giants like Facebook and Twitter. Life has changed rapidly, and this has only happened due to the rapid increase and constant development and improvement of technology. 

On further discussion, we understood that technology changes from person to person. If you're a free thinker, the limits extend much further as you believe you are God yourself. You are a creator, and that helps you exceed all boundaries to make your invention work. How does religion limit technology?

This doesn't mean that if you are religious, you cannot create technology of your own. This only goes to say that people working within a religious framework are limited in their thinking and push only their thoughts through. This was a perspective offered to us by Prof. which I originally found quite flawed. However, on further thinking and pondering, I understood where he was coming from and completely agreed with him. 

Technology has affected many different areas over the years. Below given is a short summary of tree of the areas we discussed, which I found most relevant and interesting.  

1.) Mass Media: This was the type of media that reaches out to a large group of people, which began with drums and word of mouth (one to one) and moved on to interactive media such as Facebook (many to many). We also understood now that the next step for media would be a more interactive and invisible medium which controls everything. 

2.) WEB:  The invention of the world wide web in the 90's was perhaps one of the biggest steps for mankind. This "worldwide web" helped man connect over sees and oceans and access information from various sources. The web bridged the physical distance between people over different continents and connected many new relationships. Also used as the largest source of business through e-markitng and online shopping. The most talked about phenomena is now about moving from web 2.0 to 3.0, i.e. start thinking of futuristic approaches where devices will react with other devices. 

3.) Social Networking: This involves connection of millions of networks around the world. The social networking sites are help expose real world networks and no longer leave them invisible. It is making the world a smaller place, and creating a more aware and integrated global community. Pages like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube not only provide entertainment and recreational activities, but also hemp spread awareness about a variety of important topics. 

Apart from the other three, we also discussed about futuristic areas of technology such as cloud technology, interactive telecommunications, wireless technology, etc. 

And just when we though Technology was the saving factor, Prof. asked us if there were any drawbacks. And most of us were stunned. As we all had never really thought about the disadvantages of technology. Through class discussion however, we started understanding a whole new side to technology. ICT is still limited in many fields. We fail to see the scope of ICT in so many fields. Why aren't we using ICT to alleviate poverty, or in healthcare, establishing e-learning help in democracies?

It is because the opportunity hasn't come up or that people are too ignorant. We must use ICT to create a borderless world. 

From Hunters to Industrialists, we are now moving to a technological driven movement and the Knowledge Revolution. Once we are able to capture the full potential of ICT, we will be able to educate people, spread knowledge and enjoy many other benefits. 

However, there are risks we may consider such as security concerns, invasion of privacy, identity theft and exposure to corrupting influences. 

This class of  TWC, was the closest we got to the name of the class :P We really did understand how technology does affect world change so powerfully and directly. We also understood the importance of moving towards an invisible and interactive world of technology which will act as a medium to solve all our problems. 

I particularly enjoyed this weeks session and do hope we get the opportunity to discuss this topic in further depth. Also try and focus more on how technology can be used as a necessity instead of a luxury. 

Ratings :9/10

Waiting for the Viral to hit again :)

Change with Change. Lesson 4

"If everyone consumed as much as the average Singaporean and U.S. Resident, the world's oil reserve would be depleted in 9 years."

Wow!  Thats the first word that came into my mind. It was with this quote that Prof. began Session 4. Today's class was going to be about the Drivers of World Change. I was pretty lost for a minute in the quote. Imagine if we all did consume that much oil? But then again, are we entitled to believe that only US and Singapore are responsible for this?

As Prof. mentioned, its time people started waking up and realizing that its time to stop playing the blame game and start taking equal responsibility of your surroundings and your actions. For a second I felt bad, because I was one of these people who always blamed the developed nations for the damage and believed that it was them who should be the solution. I never realized that all of us are equally responsible and must do our part because "we are them".

Moving on to the content of class, it was mainly based on the drivers of world change. These are factors that bring about a direct change in the world. We understood that there are various different types of drivers- environmental, scientific, social, commercial and many more. Prof. says he likes to quote dead people :D but truth being told, I can't disagree more on how much sense those quotes make. One particular quote I enjoyed was by Charles Darwin, 

"The fittest in not the strongest, its about who can adapt to change." Just another perk about TWC class; it breaks any stereotypical notions you may have. Through discussions, we all did agree that in this ever changing world, its most important to be adaptable to change, in order to survive. 

We also looked closely at Total Quality Management (TQM) and disruptive change (an irreversible change) as trying to understand the difference between an evolutionary and a revolutionary change. The trick is to keep evolving and changing revolutionary, as it prepares you for change. 

In session 4B, Prof. told us that we can chose to be Eagles. Ostriches or Dodo's, which basically means we can either chose to be 

1.) alert, aware and grab opportunities (eagle)

2.) lost, confused and try to catch up (ostrich)

3.) be indifferent and perish (dodo)

This session was focusing more on Change Management and Change Leadership. We discussed the difference between a manager and a leader. I could relate very well to a description one of my classmates pointed out- Managers follow given paths, but Leaders explore into the unknown and leave behind paths to follow. And that was the most concise way to put it. Who can be a leader then? 

Anyone :) Thats the beauty of it. Through a very interesting video, called "Leadership from Dancing", we understood how being the first one to take a chance isn't that difficult as it is to be the first follower. As it is by this first follower that one goes from being a loner to a leader.

Sometimes, its hard to be the person to create a change. Its never well accepted and finding support for it can be hard. But the greatest of leaders took risks, failed, and then found their way to be the greatest leaders of change. Steve Jobs is the greatest example which was also further enforced by one of my classmates through her individual oral presentation. 

The most important thing that I learnt from this class is to be adaptable to change. This very well applies not only to communities around the world to help sustain their every sources, but also to complains to stay on top and stay innovative. 

The presentations of the week were interesting and fascinating. I particularly enjoyed the presentation about how flight changed the world. 

Ratings: 8/10

Waiting for the Viral to hit again :)

Time To be Sustainable. Lesson 3

I think this picture perfectly describes our TWC class, Session 3. 
The topic in discussion for today's lesson was Sustainable development and Industrial Revolution. We also discussed a bit about technology and innovation management. However, I found session 3A more intriguing. 
         Sustainable development is the ability to develop to meet the current generations needs, but without risking the future generations ability to generate for their requirements. But as the picture suggests, we are very far away from what we should be practicing religiously. However, trends are changing. In this fast developing age, people are beginning to understand that they can no longer develop without being sustainable, otherwise we all will perish. 
       Through discussions and assigned readings we understood how the EU has been implementing sustainability related policies for a long time now (since 1996), as they have understood the seriousness of the issue. Another important point to note was that all these policy changes were taking place in the manufacturing and production wings of industries, as this is where it is most needed. 
Sustainable Development is a wide umbrella, with many different areas under it. The one we were more interested in was sustainable development in industrial revolution. It is obligatory that these two go hand in hand with each other, if we are looking to develop our nations. 

       After watching, The Story of Things, we understood the failure of the linear process and how it cannot be practiced anymore. We need to move towards cyclic production, which will allow constant reuse and recycle of materials and processes, which makes us significantly more productive and efficient. 

Industrial revolution (IR) is a growing process. However, everything has its side effects; and the externalities (effect on third parties) caused by IR may be too destructive and irreplaceable. We also discussed how sustainability was never even given a second thought earlier and people were indifferent towards the outcome of their activities. 

Our greed is destroying our planet faster than we can ever imagine.

So what do we do? Whats the solution?
There is an increasing awareness about this problem, especially among the developed countries (Eg: EU). The trick is to move towards sustainable innovating. Instead of waiting to solving a problem once it exists, prevent the problem from even happening. 
     The second half session 3, Prof. focused on how complains are changing their ways of working to stay on top. Major of these ideas, were sustainable ideas and approach which will not only help them achieve Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR),  but also remain dominant in the markets. 

"The trick is doing something else" - Tom Peters (Management Guru)

We further discussed, with the help of Profs. landscape model for technology the different positions a company can take on. 
Summit:  High barriers, low competition, very innovative. 
Valley: Low barriers, high competition. 
Cloud: Future opportunities which haven't taken place yet. 

I understood how companies like Apple had managed to stay on top because they got innovative at the right times. Every time it looked like they were going to fall, they would invent something new. 

This world can be run by the 4 S's. 
Smart People
Smart Ideas
Smart Money
Smart Partnerships. 

The presentations of this week were rather interesting. The ones that caught my attention the most were "The Venus project" and Solar energy. It was interesting to understand how sustainable energy, though very convenient and helpful, still has a long way to go and needs a lot of improvement and development. 

What I like the best about my TWC classes are the different perspectives you get from different people after each class. You are not forced to think of any concept in one direction only; there is so much scope for each topic, which always leaves you wanting more. 
I really did enjoy this week's class, and do hope that we have more future discussions on sustainability. 

Ratings: 9/10

Waiting for the viral to hit again :)

Individual Topical Review Report Outline

Topic: Pneumatic underground waste collection and future scope.

Summary 

This paper is about the technology of pneumatic underground waste collection systems and its growing future scope. This includes the study of how this technology works, its invention, current position and future possibilities and development, including the advantages and disadvantages, evaluating the feasibility of such systems in today's day and time. 

Why I chose this Topic? 

Domestic and industrial waste is the single largest cause for most of the issues today, ranging from lack of disposable area to generation of harmful diseases from this stacking garbage, a solution is vital. Transporting and disposal of garbage is a huge procedure which takes up time, space and energy. Pneumatic underground waste collection could be the solution to reduce the time and energy spent on transporting and safely disposing these heaps of garbage. This mechanism can also prove to create larger free spaces and lesser spread of diseases and hence should be supported and enhances till it can be made extremely efficient. 

Background/ Past

This section will explore the past of garbage collection in olden times and study of other systems used. Also we will be introduced to a background on pneumatic waste collection systems, its invention, etc.

Also highlighting effective systems that were used in earlier established kingdoms. 

Present Use

Where is this used today?

How does it work?

How effective is it (facts) ?

Future scope 

This section will explore the future of this technology and its effectiveness to replace the current systems and be an effective collection source that will be very stable and sustainable.

Implications

This section is to highlight the implications of his technology on the various sections of society and areas, such as social, political, business and trade, environmental and economical. The implications on the government and public will also be discussed. 

Evaluation

After discussing the advantages and disadvantages of this system, a valid and just evaluation will be carried out to determine the feasibility of this project. 

Conclusion/ Bibliography