Governance in a Digital Age and Wuhan’s Fight against the Coronavirus

Digital Age ◽

State Of Exception ◽

Economic Costs ◽

New Normal ◽

The People ◽

The City ◽

Shortly after hosting the Seventh CISM Military World Games, the city of Wuhan was hit by Covid-19, and thus became a centre of global attention. To protect the life and health of the people in Wuhan, China declared an all-out war to contain the virus. Using drastic measures that exacted high socio-economic costs, Wuhan was gradually restored to peace, vitality, and prosperity. In a city under lockdown, coordination, management, and governance at different levels were facilitated by information and communication technologies. This article examines the enhanced capabilities of individuals and institutions in a digital age to respond to crises, and the debates and ideological entanglements relating to the virus. It concludes with an anticipation of the ‘New Normal’ after the pandemic by responding to Giorgio Agamben’s views on the ‘state of exception’.

Techno-capital: Theorizing media and information literacy through information technology capabilities

New Media & Society ◽

10.1177/1461444820925800 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 146144482092580 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Jaewon Royce Choi ◽

Joseph Straubhaar ◽

Maria Skouras ◽

Soyoung Park ◽

Melissa Santillana ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Digital Literacy ◽

Participatory Culture ◽

Financial Capital ◽

Technological Capabilities ◽

Key Factor ◽

The City ◽

The increasing presence of advanced information and communication technologies (ICTs) across various fields of our lives has elevated the significance of individuals’ capability to utilize these ICTs substantially. Although scholars have underscored the importance of understanding such capabilities in terms of skills that are multidimensional, few empirical investigations are connected to sound theoretical backgrounds. Analyzing a survey administered to a random sample of adults in the City of Austin, this study empirically examines multiplicities of technological capabilities. Building on the literatures of Bourdieu’s theory of capital, digital literacy, field, and participatory culture, this study finds three sets of technological capabilities that constitute individuals’ “techno-capital.” Furthermore, we analyze the influences of cultural and economic/financial capital reflected by key socioeconomic predictors on the different levels of techno-capital. We find that acquiring basic technological capabilities is a key factor explaining advanced techno-capital, while effects of gender, race, education, and income also persist.

Analyzing the Role of Citizen Science in Modern Research - Advances in Knowledge Acquisition, Transfer, and Management ◽

Citizen Observatories as Advanced Learning Environments

10.4018/978-1-5225-0962-2.ch009 ◽

2017 ◽

pp. 192-212

Author(s):

Josep M. Mominó ◽

Jaume Piera ◽

Elena Jurado

Keyword(s):

Learning Environments ◽

Large Scale ◽

Diverse Range ◽

Science Projects ◽

The People ◽

Technological Platforms ◽

Citizen Observatories are the technological platforms where a diverse range of tools are developed, such as web portals, smartphone apps, electronic devices, that allow the development of citizen science projects, particularly those with the principal objective of large scale participation of the people, covering large geographical areas and long periods of time. These new observatories integrate the latest Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) to connect the citizens digitally, improve their observational capabilities and provide information flows. The concept of Citizen Observatories offers great possibilities as an educational experience, precisely due to the opportunities offered by the participation of the people, with different levels and roles and therefore, it is assumed in terms of active collaboration of the citizens, in shared processes of knowledge creation. This is especially clear when we pay attention to the complexity of the challenges education must face today, within the framework of a society of knowledge like ours.

Innovation in the ‘New Normal’ Interactions, the Urban Space, and the Low Touch Economy: The Case of Rio de Janeiro in the Context of the COVID-19 pandemic

International Journal of Social Science Studies ◽

10.11114/ijsss.v8i5.4900 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 8 (5) ◽

pp. 17

Author(s):

Diego Santos Vieira de Jesus ◽

Daniel Kamlot ◽

Veranise Jacubowski Correia Dubeux

Keyword(s):

Urban Space ◽

Rio De Janeiro ◽

New Normal ◽

Social And Emotional ◽

New Information ◽

Depressive Feelings ◽

The City

The aim of this paper is to examine how innovation was implemented in the city of Rio de Janeiro, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, regarding the “new normal” interactions, the urban space and the low touch economy. The main argument indicates that the use of new information and communication technologies to interact with others allowed people to develop social and emotional ties in the light of health precautions. Although many of these precautions were ignored by people using the urban space, some people made new uses of the open natural spaces in Rio de Janeiro to release anxiety and depressive feelings, but the city still faces problems regarding the privatization of public spaces. In the light of the development of the low touch economy, innovation was necessary for many companies to overcome obstacles such as broken relationships with customers, the instant drop in demand, the constraints in supply and production, the political instability and the cash-ﬂow/ﬁnancial constraints. These solutions included the improvement of the logistic process and alternative branding, the switch to a similar but digital/remote service and the creation of products for other needs of the existing clients.

Shifting Dynamics of Contention in the Digital Age

10.1093/oso/9780190887261.001.0001 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jun Liu

Keyword(s):

Mobile Communication ◽

Digital Age ◽

Chinese Society ◽

Internet Users ◽

Communicative Practice ◽

Political Contention ◽

Everyday Resistance

Over the past decades, waves of political contention involving the use of information and communication technologies have swept across the globe. The phenomenon stimulates the scholarship on digital communication technologies and contentious collective action to thrive as an exciting, relevant, but highly fragmentary and contested field with disciplinary boundaries. To advance the interdisciplinary understanding, Shifting Dynamics of Contention in the Digital Age outlines a communication-centered framework that articulates the intricate relationship between technology, communication, and contention. It further prods us to engage more critically with existing theories from communication, sociology, and political science on digital technologies and political movements. Given the theoretical endeavor, Shifting Dynamics of Contention in the Digital Age systematically explores, for the first time, the influence of mobile technology on political contention in China, the country with the world’s largest number of mobile and Internet users. Using first-hand in-depth interview and fieldwork data, it tracks the strategic choice of mobile phones as repertoires of contention, illustrates the effective mobilization of mobile communication on the basis of its strong and reciprocal social ties, and identifies the communicative practice of forwarding officially alleged “rumors” as a form of everyday resistance. Through this ground-breaking study, Shifting Dynamics of Contention in the Digital Age presents a nuanced portrayal of an emerging dynamics of contention—both its strengths and limitations—through the embedding of mobile communication into Chinese society and politics.

Enhancing the roles of information and communication technologies in doctoral research processes

International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education ◽

10.1186/s41239-020-00212-3 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Sarah J. Stein ◽

Kwong Nui Sim

Keyword(s):

Thematic Analysis ◽

Research Process ◽

Formal Learning ◽

Doctoral Study ◽

Ict Skills ◽

Doctoral Research ◽

The People ◽

Information And Communication

Abstract While information and communication technologies (ICT) are prominent in educational practices at most levels of formal learning, there is relatively little known about the skills and understandings that underlie their effective and efficient use in research higher degree settings. This project aimed to identify doctoral supervisors’ and students’ perceptions of their roles in using ICT. Data were gathered through participative drawing and individual discussion sessions. Participants included 11 students and two supervisors from two New Zealand universities. Focus of the thematic analysis was on the views expressed by students about their ideas, practices and beliefs, in relation to their drawings. The major finding was that individuals hold assumptions and expectations about ICT and their use; they make judgements and take action based on those expectations and assumptions. Knowing about ICT and knowing about research processes separately form only part of the work of doctoral study. Just as supervision cannot be considered independently of the research project and the student involved, ICT skills and the use of ICT cannot be considered in the absence of the people and the project. What is more important in terms of facilitating the doctoral research process is students getting their “flow” right. This indicates a need to provide explicit support to enable students to embed ICT within their own research processes.

Coworking, the Sharing Economy, and the City: Which Role for the ‘Coworking Entrepreneur’?

Urban Science ◽

10.3390/urbansci2030083 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 2 (3) ◽

pp. 83 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Giacomo Durante ◽

Margherita Turvani

Keyword(s):

Organizational Factors ◽

Sharing Economy ◽

Internal Factors ◽

Entrepreneurial Action ◽

Coworking Spaces ◽

Set Up ◽

The City

Sharing economy platforms enabled by information and communication technologies (ICTs) are facilitating the diffusion of collaborative workplaces. Coworking spaces are emerging as a distinctive phenomenon in this context, not only fostering knowledge transfer and facilitating innovation, but also affecting the urban and socio-economic fabric contributing to urban regeneration processes at both the local scale and the city scale. Although the positive impacts of coworking on the urban environment are documented, there is still little or no evidence of the economic viability of coworking businesses, and a “coworking bubble” has been evoked. Given the lack of data, a national survey was set up of Italian coworking businesses, aimed at assessing the relevance of internal organizational factors (size, occupancy, profitability, services provided) for the sustainability of coworking businesses. By presenting the results of the survey, we argue that the sustainability and viability of the coworking model is highly dependent on internal factors, strictly related to the entrepreneurial action of coworking managers.

Handbook of Research on Faculty Development for Digital Teaching and Learning - Advances in Educational Technologies and Instructional Design ◽

E-Transformation in Higher Education and What It Coerces for the Faculty

10.4018/978-1-5225-8476-6.ch018 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 355-378

Author(s):

Ela Akgün-Özbek ◽

Ali Ekrem Özkul

Keyword(s):

Higher Education ◽

Faculty Development ◽

Teaching And Learning ◽

Digital Age ◽

Development Programs ◽

Global Trends ◽

The Impact

With the phenomenal developments in information and communication technologies, higher education has been facing an unprecedented challenge that affects all the stakeholders. Faculty is no exception. The authors synthesize the demographic, economic, and pedagogical factors that lead to a paradigm shift in higher education and the global trends in digital technologies that impel digital transformation in higher education. They then provide a snapshot of how higher education institutions respond to this challenge and change, and the impact of these factors on the roles and competencies of faculty that need to be covered in faculty development initiatives in the digital age. Finally, examples of faculty development programs and initiatives that address the digital competencies of faculty are provided along with a summary of faculty development models for teaching and learning in the digital age.

Requirements Engineering in the ICT4D Domain

Computer Engineering ◽

10.4018/978-1-61350-456-7.ch201 ◽

2012 ◽

pp. 187-200

Author(s):

Kristina Pitula ◽

Daniel Sinnig ◽

Thiruvengadam Radhakrishnan

Keyword(s):

Rural Communities ◽

Software Development ◽

Requirements Engineering ◽

Rural Areas ◽

Local Population ◽

Social Contexts ◽

The People ◽

Information And Communication

Requirements engineering is an important stage in any software development. It is more so in the case of software development for social development projects in rural areas of the developing countries. ICT4D which stands for “Information and Communication Technologies for Development” is gaining more and more attention as computing is more widely affordable. This article is concerned with requirements engineering in the ICT4D domain. In many developing counties, a significant effort is being put into providing people in rural areas with access to digital content and services by using Information and Communication Technologies. Unfortunately most ICT4D projects pursue a top-down development model which is driven by the technology available and not by the very needs and social problems of the people living in rural communities (Frohlich et al., 2009). Existing technologies are often applied in a non-inclusive manner with respect to the local population, without sufficient adaptation or re-invention, and often without regard for user’s needs and their social contexts.

ICT, CoLs, CoPs, and Virtual Communities

End-User Computing ◽

10.4018/978-1-59904-945-8.ch007 ◽

2008 ◽

pp. 71-77

Author(s):

Antonio Cartelli

Keyword(s):

Virtual Communities ◽

Community Organization ◽

The Internet ◽

Online Information ◽

The Individual ◽

Knowledge Strategies ◽

Every day, information and communication technologies (ICT) are extending their influence on knowing and transmitting knowledge. They act on humankind at different levels: the individual, the society, and the community/organization. The Internet more than other instruments in the past is changing human customs and knowledge strategies mostly due to the online information systems developed during last few years.

Marketing the mCity

Information Communication Technologies and City Marketing ◽

10.4018/978-1-60566-134-6.ch014 ◽

2011 ◽

pp. 295-321 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Anette Hallin

Keyword(s):

City Marketing ◽

Contemporary Media ◽

Dialogic Process ◽

The Mind ◽

Receiver Model ◽

Marketing Material ◽

The City

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) cannot only be used practically in marketing efforts, but also as symbols, due to the images and associations they provoke of for example modernity and speed. The marketing of a city through the use of ICT-images however, also involve risks, as ICTs among certain people also bring about negative associations. Therefore, marketers need to be aware of what happens with the marketing material after it has been developed and sent out. The main argument of this chapter is that sense making emerges through a dialogic process. By analyzing semiotically a marketing leaflet for the Stockholm-based ICT-project mCity, and two ads for Nokia phones that appeared in Europe at about the same time as mCity, this chapter challenges the traditional cybernetic sender-receiver model of communication, and proposes that when the sender has sent the message, the message becomes a speaker on its own, interacting with the listener through a dialogic process set in the mind of the lis ener. When understanding this, marketers should benchmark the use of ICTs in other contemporary media in order to ensure the success aimed for with the city marketing material using ICT-imager.