The future of the printed book in the era of technological advancement: an imperative for digital innovation and engagement

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rhoydah Nyambane

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to establish the place of the printed book in the era of technological advancement with the assumption that the print media is facing imminent death in the face of readily available and convenient online information. Also the paper aims to assess how the development of new technologies have affected the production, circulation and readership of the printed book, especially among the young generation. Design/methodology/approach Explanatory study was used with closed-ended approach to collect data from 50 students of the Technical University of Kenya and 5 key informant interviews with selected book publishers in Nairobi. The uses and gratification theory was used to explore the knowledge-seeking behavior among the respondents. Findings Findings showed that more than 80% of the respondents preferred the internet to the printed book, which, according to them, has no future in the face of technological advancement. Book publishers, on the other hand, felt that the printed book has a bright future among specific audiences who are committed to it, and especially those in the rural areas who have no access to the internet. While they agreed that the internet has posed a major challenge to the sales and readership of the printed book significantly, it is helping in marketing the printed book as opposed to killing it. New bookshops in Nairobi and modern libraries in high schools, tertiary institutions and universities demonstrate that the printed book is not dying soon. Research limitations/implications The researcher experienced challenges in data collection as the respondents were busy preparing for final examinations and hence many of them were not willing to spare time to fill the questionnaire. To solve this, the researcher had to spend more time to collect data as opposed to if the students were free and ready to participate in the study without any pressure. Practical implications The findings can be used as a basis for further research to widen the scope that can help bring a wider perspective to the topic. The results can also inform policy guidelines on the topic and also contribute to the body of knowledge. Social implications The topic touches on social phenomena that are affecting a number of young people and their information-seeking habits in the era of digital revolution. The way the young generation seek and use information should be of interest not only to academic staff but also to policymakers. Originality/value The paper is original based on primary data that was collected by the researcher from the respondents. It is backed by secondary data to bridge the gap between theory and practice.

2001 ◽  
Vol 95 (1) ◽  
pp. 58-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
Han-Jung Chen ◽  
Cheng-Loong Liang ◽  
Kang Lu

Object. Transthoracic endoscopic T2–3 sympathectomy is currently the treatment of choice for palmar hyperhidrosis. Compensatory sweating of the face, trunk, thigh, and sole of the foot was found in more than 50% of patients who underwent this procedure. The authors conducted this study to investigate the associated intraoperative changes in plantar skin temperature and postoperative plantar sweating. Methods. One hundred patients with palmar hyperhidrosis underwent bilateral transthoracic endoscopic T2–3 sympathectomy. There were 60 female and 40 male patients who ranged in age from 13 to 40 years (mean age 21.6 years). Characteristics studied included changes in palmar and plantar skin temperature measured intraoperatively, as well as pre- and postoperative changes in plantar sweating and sympathetic skin responses (SSRs). In 59 patients (59%) elevation of plantar temperature was demonstrated at the end of the surgical procedure. In this group, plantar sweating was found to be exacerbated in three patients (5%); plantar sweating was improved in 52 patients (88.1%); and no change was demonstrated in four patients (6.8%). In the other group of patients in whom no temperature change occurred, increased plantar sweating was demonstrated in three patients (7.3%); plantar sweating was improved in 20 patients (48.8%); and no change was shown in 18 patients (43.9%). The difference between temperature and sweating change was significant (p = 0.001). Compared with the presympathectomy rate, the rate of absent SSR also significantly increased after sympathectomy: from 20 to 76% after electrical stimulation and 36 to 64% after deep inspiration stimulation, respectively (p < 0.05). Conclusions. In contrast to compensatory sweating in other parts of the body after T2–3 sympathetomy, improvement in plantar sweating was shown in 72% and worsened symptoms in 6% of patients. The intraoperative plantar skin temperature change and perioperative SSR demonstrated a correlation between these changes.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrian St. Patrick Duncan

Purpose The purpose of this paper hinged on the concept of smart libraries and their development for the furtherance of information access, dissemination and information resources and services delivery in Caribbean libraries. Design/methodology/approach To conduct this research, the literature of smart libraries and technologically driven and their application in libraries were reviewed by examining existing literature on information and communication technologies and technology in libraries. Findings The literature highlighted that this technological advancement is not yet fully on stream in academic libraries of the Caribbean owing to the lack of financial, technological and organizational resources. It further outlined that certain aspects of library automation are fostered through the inclusion of technology. Research limitations/implications The limitation of this study is that only academic libraries of the Caribbean region were assessed. Other regions should be explored in future research. Originality/value The concept of smart libraries is an emerging issue with limited scope for scrutiny; a systematic and extensive review of recent research on smart in libraries is unavailable. This paper presents an overview of smart libraries or technologically driven libraries, its findings for potential research opportunities and development for academic libraries. In addition, it will build on the body of knowledge that is presently non-existent on smart libraries in the Caribbean.


2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 115-123
Author(s):  
A. Igibayeva ◽  
◽  
D. Erbolatuly ◽  
G. Turarova ◽  
◽  
...  

The development of the modern world is very complex and rapid, and the process is characterized by high rates of development of information and communication technologies. The Internet space is a means of searching and obtaining information, as well as a medium for communication, virtual interaction, and has a significant impact on the formation of stereotypes of behavior of the young generation, as well as ideals, spiritual values, personal and social worldview. The article identifies the positive aspects of the development of cyberspace by young people, and also notes the threats and barriers to cyber socialization for modern youth. The necessity of conducting psychological and pedagogical research on cyber socialization is actualized, a conclusion is made about the use of new technologies for the purpose of positive cyber socialization of the younger generation.


2019 ◽  
Vol 43 (5) ◽  
pp. 799-817 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan-Damir Anic ◽  
Jelena Budak ◽  
Edo Rajh ◽  
Vedran Recher ◽  
Vatroslav Skare ◽  
...  

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between individual and societal determinants of online privacy concern (OPC) and behavioral intention of internet users. The study also aims to assess the degree of reciprocity between consumers’ perceived benefits of using the internet and their OPC in the context of their decision-making process in the online environment. Design/methodology/approach The study proposes comprehensive model for analysis of antecedents and consequences of OPC. Empirical analysis is performed using the PLS–SEM approach on a representative sample of 2,060 internet users. Findings The findings show that computer anxiety and perceived quality of regulatory framework are significant antecedents of OPC, while traditional values and inclinations toward security, family and social order; and social trust are not. Furthermore, the study reveals that perceived benefits of using the internet are the predominant factor explaining the intention to share personal information and adopt new technologies, while OPC dominates in explanation of protective behavior. Research limitations/implications Although the authors tested an extended model, there might be other individual characteristics driving the level of OPC. This research covers just one country and further replications should be conducted to confirm findings in diverse socio-economic contexts. It is impossible to capture the real behavior with survey data, and experimental studies may be needed to verify the research model. Practical implications Managers should work toward maximizing perceived benefits of consumers’ online interaction with the company, while at the same time being transparent about the gathered data and their intended purpose. Considering the latter, companies should clearly communicate their compliance with the emerging new data protection regulation. Originality/value New extended model is developed and empirically tested, consolidating current different streams of research into one conceptual model.


Author(s):  
Paul Haacke

From the invention of skyscrapers and airplanes to the development of the nuclear bomb, ideas about the modern increasingly revolved around vertiginous images of elevation and decline and new technologies of mobility and terror from above. In The Vertical Imagination and the Crisis of Transatlantic Modernism, Paul Haacke examines this turn by focusing on discourses of aspiration, catastrophe, and power in major works of European and American literature as well as film, architecture, and intellectual and cultural history. This wide-ranging and pointed study begins with canonical fiction by Franz Kafka, Virginia Woolf, James Joyce, and John Dos Passos, as well as poetry by Guillaume Apollinaire, Hart Crane, and Aimé Césaire, before moving to critical reflections on the rise of New York City by architects and writers from Le Corbusier to Simone de Beauvoir, the films of Alfred Hitchcock and theories of cinematic space and time, and postwar novels by Kurt Vonnegut, Thomas Pynchon, and Leslie Marmon Silko, among many other examples. In tracing the rise and fall of modernist discourse over the course of the long twentieth century, this book shows how visions of vertical ascension turned from established ideas about nature, the body, and religion to growing anxieties about aesthetic distinction, technological advancement, and American capitalism and empire. It argues that spectacles of height and flight became symbols and icons of ambition as well as indexes of power, and thus that the vertical transformation of modernity was both material and imagined, taking place at the same time through the rapidly expanding built environment and shifting ideological constructions of “high” and “low.”


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rajeesh Kumar N.V. ◽  
Arun M. ◽  
Baraneetharan E. ◽  
Stanly Jaya Prakash J. ◽  
Kanchana A. ◽  
...  

Purpose Many investigations are going on in monitoring, contact tracing, predicting and diagnosing the COVID-19 disease and many virologists are urgently seeking to create a vaccine as early as possible. Even though there is no specific treatment for the pandemic disease, the world is now struggling to control the spread by implementing the lockdown worldwide and giving awareness to the people to wear masks and use sanitizers. The new technologies, including the Internet of things (IoT), are gaining global attention towards the increasing technical support in health-care systems, particularly in predicting, detecting, preventing and monitoring of most of the infectious diseases. Similarly, it also helps in fighting against COVID-19 by monitoring, contract tracing and detecting the COVID-19 pandemic by connection with the IoT-based smart solutions. IoT is the interconnected Web of smart devices, sensors, actuators and data, which are collected in the raw form and transmitted through the internet. The purpose of this paper is to propose the concept to detect and monitor the asymptotic patients using IoT-based sensors. Design/methodology/approach In recent days, the surge of the COVID-19 contagion has infected all over the world and it has ruined our day-to-day life. The extraordinary eruption of this pandemic virus placed the World Health Organization (WHO) in a hazardous position. The impact of this contagious virus and scarcity among the people has forced the world to get into complete lockdown, as the number of laboratory-confirmed cases is increasing in millions all over the world as per the records of the government. Findings COVID-19 patients are either symptomatic or asymptotic. Symptomatic patients have symptoms such as fever, cough and difficulty in breathing. But patients are also asymptotic, which is very difficult to detect and monitor by isolating them. Originality/value Asymptotic patients are very hazardous because without knowing that they are infected, they might spread the infection to others, also asymptotic patients might be having very serious lung damage. So, earlier prediction and monitoring of asymptotic patients are mandatory to save their life and prevent them from spreading.


2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 305-322
Author(s):  
Richard C. Hoffman ◽  
Wayne H. Decker ◽  
Frank Shipper

Synopsis This case illustrates the rationale for adopting employee ownership, and difficulties in implementing employee empowerment beyond investment. In the beginning it focuses on why Jerry Pritchett, one of the co-founders of Pritchett Controls, decided to convert it to an employee-owned company. In the body of the case, it details the efforts of the company to operate under its new ownership structure in an increasingly competitive environment. Although Pritchett established employee owners, only selected High Performance Work Systems (HPWS) practices have been implemented. The issue that reader must grapple with is whether other HPWS practices should be adopted or not. Research methodology Primary data were collected by interviewing eight managers including the current and former CEO at two of the firm’s three locations. Secondary data were used to supplement industry and competitive information. Relevant courses and levels Human resources courses, especially those that focus on strategic human resource management, organizational development, and how high performance organizations can be built, would be most appropriate for this case. Theoretical bases The primary theoretical foundations for this submission are shared entrepreneurship and HPWS. Knowledge of leadership, employee ownership, human resources, corporate governance, organizational culture and strategy would also be helpful in analyzing this case.


2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (8) ◽  
pp. 627-640
Author(s):  
Paul Lyons ◽  
Randall Bandura

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the ways a manager in a coaching role may influence employees to embrace a learning orientation based upon the growth mindset. Conceptual in nature, this paper uses recent research, interpretations, explanations and suggestions to propose how manager-as-coach can informally and formally apply basic interventions to assist employee learning and change. Design/methodology/approach Based upon a review of relevant literature of theory and practice using several search tools, the authors have isolated a few critical areas to explore to include role of the coach, performance appraisal – the stimulus for manager-as-coach interaction with an employee, feedback orientation and environment, the growth mindset and learning orientation and the dynamics of self-regulated learning. Information from these areas is integrated to inform practitioners of approaches to take in a manager-as-coach role. Findings Included for each of the main segments presented are specific, practitioner “Commitment advice/action agendas” for manager-as-coach to stimulate and guide employee learning. These agendas contribute sound, practical information to the body of information concerned with manager-as-coach. Originality/value A contribution this work makes is to propose how learning orientation and the growth mindset are intertwined to the extent they assist the manager-as-coach supply the motivational support for employee learning. The resultant learning may lead to one or more of: improved work performance, individual development, attitudes toward learning and increased employee commitment or engagement.


2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirjam Jessica Curno

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to lay out some of the more complex issues arising in the area of publication ethics. The impact of electronic publishing and electronic information is a main focus of the paper. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws in particular upon the work of the Committee on Publication Ethics including illustrative cases discussed at the forum, guidelines and discussion documents. Findings – Three areas are highlighted to stimulate discussion around challenges of publication ethics in the digital era. These are the role of the internet in facilitating misconduct, the issue of confidentiality in publishing and how incentives in research assessments drive author behavior. Originality/value – The paper brings together a variety of issues discussed under the broader umbrella of electronic information and new technologies in publishing.


Author(s):  
Katarzyna Borawska-Kalbarczyk

The article presents selected aspects of the process of cognitive functioning of the users of contemporary technologies and the Internet, with special consideration of the negative effects of being immersed in the digital culture. The introduction synthetically characterizes the digital world, focusing on the most active users of the virtual space. In the body of the text, the author analyzes the negative effects of an individual’s functioning in the Internet space, especially those related to the change in the way of information acquisition and processing. The conclusions refer to implementing educational postulates connected with helping students develop the culture of behavior in the virtual space, involving as major elements the ability to distance oneself from digital media, to engage in deep reflection, and to organize and sort the acquired information. These skills are treated as crucial, ensuring the rational use of digital technologies. Focusing educational activities on the formation of youths’ media competence offers them an opportunity of fuller intellectual development, the sense of security in the context of expansion of the media, and active participation in the information society by structuring the available information and the knowledge constructed on its basis.


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