This chapter was quite interesting actually and brought some value to my reading, if you read my chapter 1 you would know what I'm talking about. This chapter was incredibly long, so this blog is going to be incredibly long in which I'm going to talk about each and every Flattener. 233 pages is a little much huh Friedman?
1) Fall of the Berlin Wall - 11/9/89
Friedman talks about this event having "flattened alternatives to free-market capitalism", but I think it really symbolized the concept of the world being a single market. Not different geographic policies, but global policy. After the fall, or how Friedman likes to say 11/9, I believe ideas and knowledge were able to flow more freely, especially things like economic policy.
2) Netscape Went Public! - 8/9/95
I actually never really was a big fan of Netscape, always have been an AOL guy. Anyways Friedman talks about two big phases in this technology (Internet and World Wide Web) and how they came together to connect people globally. First phase Apple-PC-Windows phase which let people interact on a network, like an intranet. The second phase, Internet-email-browser phase let people work with anyone who had the same kind of technology.
3) Work Flow What - Mid 90's
This is described as the quiet revolution that no one knew what was happening. Sneaky, sneaky. This helped people collaborate within and between businesses and continents. It sped the processes up a lot quicker then before. Things like XML, HTML, HTTP helped get rid of all that techno babble stuff and allowed everyone to speak the same. This basically gave everyone the same software to use, I thought this flattener kind of sucked and was boring.
4) Uploading
I believe this by far was one of the coolest technologies so far, allowing people to put information on the web. Wiki is the new resource of information whether people don't give it credit or not. We wouldn't be doing this blog if it wasn't for uploading (Which would of been nice j/k). This definitely helps the basic human need to participate in an activity and to be heard.
5) Outsourcing
This is one of the top issues of today, almost every class I have been in has dealt with this issue. There are way to many variables when dealing with this matter like jobs, GDP, exploiting, and etc. so I'm not going to get into this. But I do have to say, if you look back at the millennium incident it was pretty funny, everyone was a bunch of fools. India should be grateful for our paranoia.
6) Offshoring
This is when a company moves not just a specific task, but a factory to another country. The biggest reason for this is cheaper labor, resources, less trade barriers, and fewer taxes. We finally were able to bust into the Chinese expansion once they joined the WTO in 2001, but I still don't think they comply with international law. Their government has to much control.
7) Supply-Chaining
When you think of supply chaining you think of Wal-Mart. As Friedman says Wal-Mart the worlds biggest retail company that makes nothing. They basically create value by moving horizontally through the organization between customers, retailers, suppliers. Wal-Mart is great for customers because they keep prices low, but their employees suffer bad wages. I only go there for their breakfast sausage patties, there amazing.
8) Insourcing
I was actually very interested in this flattener because I have a Toshiba laptop. I had no clue if your laptop broke you were able to drop it off at an UPS shop and they'll fix it in a timely manner. You would think Toshiba would promote this, especially since they had trouble taking to long to repair things. The little man can actually make it in the world today, but I would think the smaller company would just end up becoming a subsidiary of the larger one.
9) In-Forming
The self empowered researcher, where would any of us be without Google, Yahoo!, or Wiki. I know I wouldn't be anywhere this far in school if I just had to use textbooks. Just being able to search for information on whatever subject you want, entertainment, food, school. This does empower an individual and I believe is one of the biggest flatteners. Friedman has a point that it does expose our privacy and theft, but technology is coming out more and more each day to protect us from Internet theft, sexual predators, or hackers.
10) Arnold and the steroids
Steroids are the helping hand, they beef up and strengthen other flatteners. Things like digital, mobile, or personal devices. The VoIP thing was probably the coolest thing in this flattener. It was great with the students who did the IT in the news presentation and pranked Chili's with this device, I just want to know what telephone companies are going to do once this revolutionizes telecommunications.
6) Offshoring
This is when a company moves not just a specific task, but a factory to another country. The biggest reason for this is cheaper labor, resources, less trade barriers, and fewer taxes. We finally were able to bust into the Chinese expansion once they joined the WTO in 2001, but I still don't think they comply with international law. Their government has to much control.
7) Supply-Chaining
When you think of supply chaining you think of Wal-Mart. As Friedman says Wal-Mart the worlds biggest retail company that makes nothing. They basically create value by moving horizontally through the organization between customers, retailers, suppliers. Wal-Mart is great for customers because they keep prices low, but their employees suffer bad wages. I only go there for their breakfast sausage patties, there amazing.
8) Insourcing
I was actually very interested in this flattener because I have a Toshiba laptop. I had no clue if your laptop broke you were able to drop it off at an UPS shop and they'll fix it in a timely manner. You would think Toshiba would promote this, especially since they had trouble taking to long to repair things. The little man can actually make it in the world today, but I would think the smaller company would just end up becoming a subsidiary of the larger one.
9) In-Forming
The self empowered researcher, where would any of us be without Google, Yahoo!, or Wiki. I know I wouldn't be anywhere this far in school if I just had to use textbooks. Just being able to search for information on whatever subject you want, entertainment, food, school. This does empower an individual and I believe is one of the biggest flatteners. Friedman has a point that it does expose our privacy and theft, but technology is coming out more and more each day to protect us from Internet theft, sexual predators, or hackers.
10) Arnold and the steroids
Steroids are the helping hand, they beef up and strengthen other flatteners. Things like digital, mobile, or personal devices. The VoIP thing was probably the coolest thing in this flattener. It was great with the students who did the IT in the news presentation and pranked Chili's with this device, I just want to know what telephone companies are going to do once this revolutionizes telecommunications.
No comments:
Post a Comment