Bridging The Digital Divide
Information Rich, Information Poor - Digital divide
At the beginning of the last century, the brilliant Indian mathematician Ramanujan showed by example that great riches can come from coupling an individual's innate talent - his was a truly remarkable one - with a small tool set. In his case, it took a single volume: G.S. Carr's Synopsis of Elementary Results in Pure Mathematics. Using the book, the young Ramanujan taught himself math and by the time he was 19, he had already begun to do groundbreaking work in number theory.
Today, we can do much the same thing for children by giving them their own simple tool: a laptop. Laptop will not only be something to own and feel empowered by, it will also be portable and a tool for collaboration. Students will be able to access thousands of textbooks electronically and learn how to program, one of the best ways to "learn how to learn". And when students attach cameras, microphones, and printers, the basic laptop will become a foundation for innovation, a tool in tune with their different interests and talents.
But the present situation, more than 80% of people in the world have never even heard a dial tone, let alone surfed the Web. And the gap between the information haves and have-nots is widening. This is the digital divide. And it has become quite essential to bridge this much widening gap.
The accessibility of rural areas to the Internet is a test of the digital divide. But nowadays there are different ways to eliminate the digital divide in rural areas like Power line communication, Broadband Wireless (WiFi), proprietary and upcoming WiMAX systems, Communications satellite with two-way access to the Internet, The Simputer, a handheld computer intended for the masses of India and other developing countries developed at IISc Bangalore, and MIT Media Lab's $100 laptop, intended to be purchased by education ministries and distributed to poor children world wide.
But there exists few barriers like the cost, and the connectivity. Some technological improvements are also required. And any technology which aims to bridge this divide should be universally and cheaply accessible. The price can be brought down by large consumption (Moore’s Law) but the consumption volume increases only when we have a low price.
Does it seem like a Paradox to you? May not be, but it needs constant focus and concerned efforts towards developing technical and technological Solutions for “Bridging The Digital Divide”.
At the beginning of the last century, the brilliant Indian mathematician Ramanujan showed by example that great riches can come from coupling an individual's innate talent - his was a truly remarkable one - with a small tool set. In his case, it took a single volume: G.S. Carr's Synopsis of Elementary Results in Pure Mathematics. Using the book, the young Ramanujan taught himself math and by the time he was 19, he had already begun to do groundbreaking work in number theory.
Today, we can do much the same thing for children by giving them their own simple tool: a laptop. Laptop will not only be something to own and feel empowered by, it will also be portable and a tool for collaboration. Students will be able to access thousands of textbooks electronically and learn how to program, one of the best ways to "learn how to learn". And when students attach cameras, microphones, and printers, the basic laptop will become a foundation for innovation, a tool in tune with their different interests and talents.
But the present situation, more than 80% of people in the world have never even heard a dial tone, let alone surfed the Web. And the gap between the information haves and have-nots is widening. This is the digital divide. And it has become quite essential to bridge this much widening gap.
The accessibility of rural areas to the Internet is a test of the digital divide. But nowadays there are different ways to eliminate the digital divide in rural areas like Power line communication, Broadband Wireless (WiFi), proprietary and upcoming WiMAX systems, Communications satellite with two-way access to the Internet, The Simputer, a handheld computer intended for the masses of India and other developing countries developed at IISc Bangalore, and MIT Media Lab's $100 laptop, intended to be purchased by education ministries and distributed to poor children world wide.
But there exists few barriers like the cost, and the connectivity. Some technological improvements are also required. And any technology which aims to bridge this divide should be universally and cheaply accessible. The price can be brought down by large consumption (Moore’s Law) but the consumption volume increases only when we have a low price.
Does it seem like a Paradox to you? May not be, but it needs constant focus and concerned efforts towards developing technical and technological Solutions for “Bridging The Digital Divide”.
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