Week 13

This week is the last lesson of our TWC, which comprises three web report presentations. The topics which were discussed today were on healthy living, language and communication, and the internet, which is my group's project.

The web report on healthy living was particularly relevant to all of us. After all, healthy living is an essential aspect of general life. The session on sleep drew my attention as it is apparent that young adults these days, especially those in tertiary education, have issues with getting regular and timely sleep. Personally, I belong to that category. The impacts of lack of sleep were brought up. It is definitely worth putting in the effort to get proper rest, but frankly, it is still unlikely to happen. For me, the main reason for not getting enough sleep is the presence of readily assessible internet connection which poses as huge distraction to me. Pertinently, the group mentioned how we need to use technology optimally to improve our lives instead of allowing it to be a hazard.

The second presentation dealt with language and communication, which was actually a topic that is similar to one of the individual oral presentation that was presented before. The same issue was mentioned - the potential of a universal translator. The main question that was raised was whether if a universal translator would preserve or erode culture and language. Several interesting ideas surfaced during the discussion. I would have to agree with the general consensus that it would preserve language as it allows one to retain their own language and still be able to communicate with people speaking a language that is from a whole other world.

My group's presentation was about the different aspects of impacts the internet  has brought about to the world. We felt that this is a topic worth exploring as the incorporation of the internet into our modern lives has caused it to be an indispenable tool. The internet has not only impacted our lifestyle, but also has several very valid political, ethical and social issues. In the political arena, the internet has aided Obama in winning the election. Considering the ethical aspects, our team has also identified the proliferation of pornography on the internet. For more information, our website is situated at: http://www.wix.com/twcwiw/webbedintheweb

This 13 weeks has been an enriching experience and the wealth of knowledge and insights gained from this course have been immense. Although the workload was not light, especially the stress and uncertainty in writing the review paper. It definitely would be beneficial for us as undergraduates to learn the skills of writing a professional paper which requires in-depth research and analysis. I am sure all of us have take away plenty from the course.

With that, this is my last post for TWC.

-ZhiShu of G22

Week 12

We had the group presentation for their web reports today. This was our 2nd last lesson and also a lesson that is conducted almost entirely by our fellow classmates. There were 4 issues covered today namely Urban Planning, Cryonics, Architecture and music.

The project on urban planning was relevant to us as it was a case study of singapore. It was interesting to note the selection of the project despite the team was made up entirely of international students. The  main issue that they tackled was on the land scarcity in Singapore and how urban planning can be a solution to that problem. However, we also saw how urban planning can contribute into building a sustainable model of consumption. There were serveral interesting concepts brought up to tackle those issues such as the hanging garden and the SMART building. They also highlighted the point that the Singapore Government has already showed signs of moving towards such an approach. One example is the construction of "the pinnacle".

The project on cryonics was an intriguing topic as they explored the idea of prolonging life through the use of liquid nitrogen. Even though the possibility of such a technology succeeding at the current moment is small, the prospect of living way into the future was one worth discussing. I agree with the group's view that people should be free to make their own personal choice, so long as they are given information from both sides. As long as cryonics can be controlled in a manner which does not pose as a threat to future generations, it should be an accepted technology when it becomes feasible.

The project on architecture was a somewhat similar issue to urban planning but approached differently.

The last group presented on music and how how ICT has caused a dramatic shift in the field of distribution. Piracy was the most prominent issue in their presentation and again, it is extremely relevant to almost anyone who uses the internet as downloading and uploading data have become part and parcel of our lives. I particularly liked their view that the problem of file sharing should not be seen as a problem but as an element in the music industry.

On the whole, this 4 projects provided us with a lot of refreshing new information in our ever changing world. I would rate this lesson 8/10.

Week 11

Today’s lesson topic is “Technology Assessment and Forecasting; Developing a Framework for
Understanding What Comes Next”, which is also the last formal lesson for the course. This topic is special in a way as it is least heavy in content and is one that does not deal with specific types of technology and its impacts but rather techniques to assess technology and forecasting the key areas of opportunities of the future.

We started off the lesson with a quote by Charles Kettering, “My interest is in the future because I am going to spend the rest of my life there.” I guess it is simple but not something that people realise and put into practice often. What I gain from that statement is that there will be rewards for the people who put thought and effort into planning and forecasting the future as it gives them an advantage over the people who do not. This is also reflected in the African proverb: “Tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today”.

Some other ideas that were discussed in class were the drivers for the technology assessment and forecasting. One point brought up was the need to gain an understanding of what kinds of changes a new technological innovation might bring, economically, socially, ethically and environmentally. The ability to assess the potential of a technology and to forecast the future needs of society can is extremely important not only in the corporate world, but also for governments to make appropriate policies. Another interesting point brought up in one of the videos shown is that strategies fail because people get the future wrong. The key to staying ahead of competition is to discover shifts that competitors don’t see.

The key takeaway for me is to avoid being trapped in the present.  One way to progress is to imagine how everything would work out the way I want it to be. There is also a strategic advantage if we know how to work back from the future rather than working forward from the present. I feel that this is a rather complex idea and deserves more discussion. My understanding of that is to focus on what you want to achieve and find ways to reach there, rather than just trying to progress without the end in mind.

Rating for lesson: 7/10

- Zhishu of G22

Week 10

This week's topic is on Emerging Technology and World Change. The major distinction for this week's lesson is that it is one where scope is wider than usual and the presenters can virtually choose an article on any emerging technology. The discussion that we had today were on multiple emerging and seemingly inconceivable technologies to a lay person.

Reading 4 covers 10 technologies that can signicantly impact the world. What interests me in reading 4 is the point that technology is just 1 discipline in leading a more rewarding life. We have to holistically consider other disciplines such as psychology, spirituality and religion, which tends to be overlooked. Another point that the author brought is that each technology holds both a potential for beneficial  and also for abuse. One very good example is nuclear energy.

A quote by George Bernard Shaw:

“ You see things; and you say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were; and I say, ‘Why not?’” I guess such an attitude is not commonly inherent in most people. This is why there are more followers than innovators.

We also discussed the drivers of the development of emerging and future and technologies. I learnt that there it can be either market driven or technology driven. The former referring to unmet market opporunity and need and the latter referring to new insights and discoveries leading to previously unimagined needs. Another key driver is the mass media and advertising where the perceptions of need is influenced. An interested idea that was introduced to us by Prof Shahi is the confluence of the 4 "smarts" in order to make an emerging technology sucesssful. The 4 "smarts" refer to people, ideas, money and alliances. A combination of all these 4 factors is necessary to make an innovation work. The concept of marketing vs sales was also brought up where marketing is a "pull" strategy to make people want the product and sales is a "push" strategy to bring the product to the consumers.

The bulk of the lesson was mainly on the different kinds of emerging technologies and what kinds of possibilities it present. Technologies such as claytronics(mutating matter), plastics replacing silicon in electronics and wireless energy transmission almost seem magical and inconceivable. However the fact is that these technologies are currently being developed and have shown to work. Ultimately, change management and the implementation process is the determinant in the feasibility of such a technology.

A key takeaway from this lesson would be derived from a quote by Kahli Gibran: "There is a space between man's imagination and man's attainment that may only be traversed by his longing." What that means to me is that anything is possible, as long as one dares to dream and has the desire and thirst to achieve his dream. Many of the technologies we use in our everyday lives would seem impossible if we brought it back in time. And those those that we see now as impossible such as time travelling could very well be possible one day.

Personal rating for the session - 8/10 for its interesting content.

-ZhiShu of G22

Week 9

In this week’s lesson, we were introduced to the issue of energy and world change, which I feel is an issue that is pertinent to virtually anyone as we are currently living in a world faced with an energy crisis. The issue of fossil fuels and alternative energy sources has been much discussed in the recent years.  We discussed the drivers for global energy change, the key considerations in the energy landscape and policy tools for facilitating change to a green economy.

An interesting idea that was brought up during the lesson was the fact that Singapore have nearly zero capability to produce its own energy due to a lack of natural resource. Prof Shahi suggested that we should be spending more effort to look into solar and tidal energy sources as Singapore has the suitable environment for it. Furthermore, in one of the oral presentations, osmotic energy was also introduced and was identified as being suitable for Singapore due to our coastal surroundings. It is evident from all this information that a lot can be developed further for the energy industry in Singapore.

Another interesting point that was mentioned was that renewable energy source was actually the primary source of energy some 300 years ago. Only 150 years ago, the human race discovered coal and other forms of fossil fuels, began burning them and eventually leading to our reliance on it today. Even though it is a much more efficient source of energy, looking at the bigger picture, it does not make sense that we are burning a valuable resource that took millions of years to produce which could be used in many other applications.

The key takeaway today was that there is a rising global energy consumption which is inevitable due to economic progression. As such, there is a dire need for sustainability in the realm of energy. In addition, fossil fuels also have an impact on the environment in contributing to carbon emission. We must be open to new technologies and approaches to increase efficiency and reduce pollution in order to overcome the energy crisis.

I guess an issue that I felt deserved further discussion was whether we should focus our effort on one promising alternative energy source or continue to diversify our choices. In the oral presentations, many different energy technologies such as osmotic pressure, algae and nuclear fusion was brought up. With so many choices, should we eliminate those we deem less effective and expand on those we believe to have a better future?

Personal rating for this lesson would be 7.5/10. We found ourselves rushing for time at the end of the lesson.

Week 7

This week's topic is The BioBusiness Revolution 2: Agriculture and the Environment: Past, Present, Future. It is a continuation of last week's lesson on biobusiness, however we turn our focus to agriculture and environment, exploring into biotechnologies such as GM food, industrial enzymes and biofuel.

The lesson started with 2 videos. The first video depicts humans as parasites of the earth. Interestingly, it struck me that absurd as it sounded, it is actually true. Humans kill off other species and deplete the world's resources for its own basic and even luxurious use. Which other species on earth does that? The 2nd video, which is actually the more pertinent one to this lesson, provided a quick and insightful overview on how biotech can alleviate pressing issues of the world such as sustainability in food supply and in our energy needs. For example, biotech crops enables agriculture to be more efficient in order to meet the needs of an increasing population as it can increase yield and produce more nutritious food. Biofuel can produced by converting food crops into ethanol. Such a a source of energy is renewable and clean.

Another observation during the lesson was the european's way of colour coding biotech. Red for human, blue for marine, green for agriculture and environment and white for industrial. Honestly, I do not see the practicality of such labelling. One of the key things that l learnt is that most agricultural businesses are valley opportunities and biotech provides a way to bring it up to the summit. A related idea to this is the farmer to a farmist, where the farmer who is one of low educational status and work the traditional way while the farmist is one that has the know-hows and knowledge which can be applied to farming to increase its efficiency and to go up the value chain. Norman Borlaug's video talks about the green revolution about 4 decades and how improved seeds and fertilisers increase yield then. Today, biotech must fill this role. However, both biotech and green revolution cannot be useful without the proper policies put in place by world leaders.

Another issue I came to learn about today was US made the ruling there is no need to label GM food, reason being if the nutrient content was stated as per typical food products, there is no need to differentiate between the 2. As such, many of the food products that we ignorantly consume today are GM foods. For example, I realised that yakult and beer are all GM food which I have been consuming on a regular basis.

A key takeaway from this lesson can be taken from reading 4(Ending world hunger by Norman Borlaug) - the world already has the technogical know-hows and resources to alleviate world hunger. However, all these technology would not help those in extreme poverty and hunger if the proper change management is not in place. Governments and world leaders with the will and proper policies in place can make a world of difference for this people.

My rating for this lesson would be 8/10. I learnt many things which I did not know about.

-Zhishu of G22

Week 6

This lesson talks about the biobusiness revolution. BioBusiness is a commercial activity based on an understand of the sciences and life science processes. There are several different areas of opportunities in BioBusiness such as Biomedical, Agri-veterinary and environmental. Contrary to what I used to believe as a highly specialised field, it actually encompasses a large variety of industries.

BioBusiness constitutes a large proportion of the world's economic activity - 25% of the global GDP. It is interesting to note that it also constitutes 40% of the labour force. In other words, many biobusinesses are still very inefficient and low on the value chain. This is due to the high amount of people still engaging in low wage subsistence farming in developing country. Another interesting issue is that although the US is the most advanced country today, its citizens face a healthcare problem. Although US spending on healthcare is an astounding 52% of global expenditure on healthcare, it is being treated commercialised product in order to maximise profit. As a result, many Amercians do not have ready access to health facilities. To make matters worse, 1/3 of the American adults are obese which directly and indirectly cause amount of people with diseases to be higher.

An issue brought up which is also mentioned in reading 1, is the shift from disease management to wellness management. Disease management is the process of stabilize and even improve the condition of someone already who has a disease. Wellness management is the prevention of diseases. In other words, for the healthy to stay healthy, emphasizing health promotion and quality of life.


It is ironic that while people are getting increasingly educated and affluent, the ability to have better healthcare facilities and the knowledge to stay healthy increases but reality is that health is deteoriating.(as in the case of americans)

My key takeaway for this lesson is realising how vast the biobusiness industry is and how the advancement in biotechnology enables the the medical field and even field of sustainable energy source to be stretched further.

A controversial issue that was discussed is the process of cloning. Definitely ethical dilemmas will arise but I feel there would be a future in this technology. As Prof Shahi pertinently brought up the comparison of IVF. 30 years ago churches heavily opposed IVF as it represents a notion of playing god. However, if the human mind has evolved to a point where such medical technology has been created to practically benefit mankind, I see no reason why such processes are to be denied. Of course, proper measures and policies have to be in place to manage the possible repercussions from prcocesses such as cloning.

Personal rating for this lesson would be 8/10. I prefer the pace of the lesson when there is only one main topic to focus on.

-Zhishu of G22