Topic 1: The Digital Divide

This week you read The Digital Divide is Still Leaving Americans Behind by Jessica Goodman.

The Digital Divide is Still Leaving Americans Behind (web page)

Discussion:

The digital divide, a term coined many years ago, still exists today. It is surprising to some that the divide still exists in the United States.

Question #1:

Do you believe that having Internet access, as the author suggests, is not a convenience or luxury, but a human right? List one benefit that closing the digital divide might provide (e.g. economic growth).

Topic 2: Open World

This week you watched Four Principles for the Open World by Don Tapscott.

Discussion:

Tapscott believes that social media is becoming social production and that the Internet is a global supercomputer--every time people upload content to this supercomputer, it becomes more powerful as the new content becomes part of a global collective...a new means of production in the making. Tapscott believes that tapping into this supercomputer will allow us to innovate in ways that were not previously possible.

Don Tapscott: Four Principles of the Open World (Ted Talk video) Note:Don Tapscott coined the term "Digital Divide" (Ted Talk video)

Question #1:

Locate one example that supports Tapscott's Four Principles (Collaboration, Transparency, Sharing, and Empowerment) and share this example with your classmates (justify and support your answer).