The internationally recognized "NMC Horizon Report" series and regional "NMC Technology Outlooks" are part of the NMC Horizon Project, a comprehensive research venture established in 2002 that identifies and describes emerging technologies likely to have a large impact over the coming five years in education around the globe. This volume, the "NMC…

"The NMC Horizon Report" series is the most visible outcome of the New Media Consortium. (NMC) Horizon Project, an ongoing research effort established in 2002 that identifies and describes emerging technologies likely to have a large impact on teaching, learning, research, or creative expression within education around the globe. This volume, "The…

Technology upgrades are an inevitable part of dealing with any man-made invention utilized for productive gain. One key technology used for productive gain within a firm is enterprise software, specifically a firm's Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. After the adoption of an ERP system, an organization is perpetually faced with the…

Information technology (IT) professionals face markedly different kinds of challenges in developing countries from the ones in developed countries. Based on the research literature and our fourteen years of fieldwork in Iringa, Tanzania, we have identified eight groups of technical characteristics of IT work that significantly affect the work of…

Examines ethical considerations involved in the transfer of appropriate information technology to less developed countries. Approaches to technology are considered; two philosophical frameworks for studying ethical considerations are discussed, i.e., the Kantian approach and the utilitarian perspective by John Stuart Mill; and integration of the…

Identifies concepts relevant to technology transfer as a subject of study, including technological developments or modifications, and social, political, economic, personal, and cultural barriers to transfer. Describes issues such as appropriate technology and timing of innovations. (SK)

Aspects of developing countries that may make computer-integrated manufacturing inappropriate include (1) inadequate infrastructure; (2) lack of capital; (3) policies regarding use of local products; (4) many small and medium-sized businesses; and (5) management practices. Higher productivity depends more on skilled management and workers and more…

The author describes the 1987 exchange program "Women and Appropriate Technology." The program concentrated on appropriate technology in relation to rural women. She also describes a pilot appropriate technology project carried out in Kenya that involved the construction of three community buildings (a laundry and two bathrooms). (CH)

Argues that the underdevelopment of national information sectors is a major factor acting against developing nations and lists a number of problems for which developing nations must provide effective solutions if their respective information sectors are to support national development. An agenda of activities for the 1990s to address this…

Examines the role of information managers in the transfer of complex technologies. The discussion covers the need for reliable information to assist with the selection of appropriate technologies and market evaluation, to assess the effects of government policies and cultural differences, and to establish training objectives. (19 references)…

Discusses worldwide efforts to use technology as a distance learning tool, particularly in less-developed countries. Topics include telecommunications and transfer of knowledge, including subject matter, pedagogy employed, and use of appropriate technology; and examples of three projects currently underway in less-developed countries to help…

Discussion of the use of appropriate educational media and technology in developing countries focuses on conditions in Zimbabwe. Poverty as a cultural factor is examined, transferring technology from one country to another is discussed, and the need for skilled and trained personnel is emphasized. (LRW)

Virtual Reality (VR) is a new medium which allows total stimulation of one's senses through human/computer interfaces. VR has applications in training simulators, nano-science, medicine, entertainment, electronic technology, and manufacturing. This paper focuses on some current and potential problems of virtual reality and virtual environments…

Describes the nature of technology. Summarizes the claims of the anti-technologists, such as Marcuse and Ellul, and the moderate pro-technologists, such as Ferkiss, Mesthene, Brooks and Bowers, National Academy of Engineering, Norman, and Weizenbaum. Provides 79 references. (YP)

Discusses how the lack of information infrastructures supporting scientific and technical research hampers attempts to transfer certain information technologies, such as online database searching, to developing nations. It is argued that laserdisk information storage technologies, such as CD-ROM, conform more closely to the prevailing conditions…