Courses

Information Society and 4th Industrial Revolution

General

Course Contents

1. Introduction, goals, brief history of humanity. Social development and technology. Industrial Revolution. 1st era of machines- Muscular strength. 2nd age of machines-mental power.
2. From the 1st to the 4th industrial revolution, stages, and stations. The information society.
3. What is the effect of the industrial revolution on humanity? How much better is our world and why?
4. Clarification of terms: Fordism, neo-Fordism, modernity, postmodernity.
5. Examples of technological advances. The capabilities of machines threaten the human field of action.
6. Moore’s law, the power of exponential improvement in the digital world. Big Data.
7. Digitization and its effects on the economy. The “free” business model. The limits of innovation. Artificial and human intelligence. Examples of fields of conflict and superiority.
8. Computer abundance. Productivity, labor, GDP from a new digital perspective! Digital assets. Copyright.
9. Digital gap. New inequalities in the information society. Skills, work-capital, and wages. The future of work. Effects of abundance and inequality. Technological unemployment. Globalization.
10. Network Effects. The market of the type “the winner gets it all”. Normal distribution and Power Low distribution.
11. Acting together with the machines. What do computers not know how to do? Educating people. Changes in education.
12. Concerns about the political adaptations of societies. Education, Investment incentives, research, financing, infrastructure, taxation.
13. Suggestions-discussion for the future. Negative income tax. Peer economy and artificial intelligence. Risks and natural limits.

Educational Goals

The aim of the course is to equip the student with the necessary knowledge and stimuli, to understand the basic parameters, dimensions of the modern socio-economic environment, the globalized information society. The course is interdisciplinary, will not be heavily involved in specialization and analysis of concepts, but is an overview of all the latest developments in science and technology (especially IT) and how these developments affect the social and economic development. Reference will be made to several phenomena, such as Moore’s law, which will give the necessary sense of historical continuity of scientific progress. The aim of the course is for students to understand the big picture, the overall social, scientific, and economic context in which they will be called to develop and act as scientists, professionals, and people. They will learn about the changes that are already visible in the workplace and the challenges posed by automation and the challenge of artificial intelligence.
Upon successful completion of the course the student will be able to:
• Understands key features of modern technological developments that define the information society.
• Knows and can describe basic phenomena and laws that distinguish the operation of individual areas of social and scientific phenomena.
• Distinguishes the basic directions that technological and scientific research has taken and the stakes that arise for the evolution of societies.
• Develop critical ability in relation to the general social, economic, and professional environment.

General Skills

Research, analysis and synthesis of data and information
Literature review
Adaptation to new situations
Working in an interdisciplinary environment
Respect for diversity and multiculturalism
Respect for the natural environment
Exercise criticism and self-criticism
Demonstration of social, professional, and moral responsibility and sensitivity to gender issues
Promoting free, creative, and inductive thinking
Teamwork – distribution and delegation of responsibilities

Teaching Methods

Lectures, Project assignments, Projected presentations, E-mail communication, Interactive teaching, online synchronous and asynchronous teaching platform (moodle).

Students Evaluation

Assessment Language: English / Greek
The final grade of the course is formed by 100% by the grade of the theoretical part. The grade of the theoretical part is formed by a written final examination.
1. The written final examination of the theoretical part may include multiple choice questions, solving problems of application of the acquired knowledge, short answer questions, essay development questions, comparative evaluation of theory elements
2. Optional work by the form of project will be given to those students who wish to specialize, study and present issues that interest them. Her participation in the final grade will cover 30%

Recommended Bibliography

[41955675]: The wonderful age of new technology, Brynjolfsson Eric, McAfee Andrew
[50658376]: The New Digital Age, Eric Schmidt, Jared Cohen
[16078]: Connected, N. CHRISTAKIS, J. FOWLER
[86055966]:21 lessons for the 21st century, Yuval Noah Harari