The development of IoT devices and AI capabilities has opened up countless applications across many aspects of life as discussed in class and found in the textbook.  The application of IoT networks in industry are found heavily in the Supply-Chain sector with technology that enables more efficient monitoring of the movement of goods, enabling buyers, suppliers, and logistics service provider to integrate their back-end platforms with each other (PYMNTS, 2019).  Additionally, with increased application of IoT in manufacturing, automated machines that already perform a large part of the labor required in manufacturing will be able to offer data collected through the manufacturing process to other devices in the network, making data collection easier and less necessary to be performed by human labor (Shepard, 2019).  This increased coordination potential allows for increased efficiency across the board in manufacturing, distribution, and resource acquisition, which in turn decreases cost and creates added value for the stake-holding parties of the supply chain.

While this increased efficiency is great for the corporation’s sustainability and economic benefit and the health of the industry, the introduction of technology that can replace human labor means less jobs in unskilled labor.  Simultaneously, the increased integration of IoT and AI into the workplace means skilled labor must acquire a new set of skills and new jobs will crop up to tend to the problems and advantages this technology brings with it.  As stated by Georgios Petropoulos in Shepard’s article, “initial labor displacement effects of jobs with routinized manual or cognitive skills, as in previous industrial revolutions, will be compensated for by the growth in non-routine jobs at the high and low end of the economy” (2019).  So while jobs will be replaced, there will simply be an increased demand for higher-skilled work in the same industry to take full advantage of this new technology, going further to prove that the IoT revolution will bring about increased human potential contrary to the belief that the IoT will enable laziness among the populace.

Sources:

https://www.mhlnews.com/labor-management/impact-ai-and-iot-manufacturing-job-market#close-olyticsmodal

https://www.pymnts.com/internet-of-things/2019/iot-impact-on-supply-chains-and-security/

As I was taking notes on Wednesday’s lecture about the Internet of Things (IoT), I began to see parallels between this class’s curriculum and content and that of my MGMT 301 class. In MGMT, we have been using Elon Musk’s enterprises and Mary Bara of General Motors to exemplify the characteristics and roles of different types of management and what it looks like when they are conducted successfully. Mary Bara had stated in a conference that the three biggest factors for success in the automotive industry going forward would automation, electrification, and connectivity. Elon Musk has already helped push the automotive industry toward electrification with the line of all electric vehicles, automation with their autopilot technology, and connectivity with features such as EVE, a control center for news, weather, and home systems monitoring. With the rapid development of IoT technology and applications, Tesla and the following wave of automotive electrification opens doors for countless uses and advantages of IoT technology across the board. Application of such technology is already present in homes with assistants like Alexa and Home, and appliances like Nest and Ring. In manufacturing, systems are engineered and set- up to coordinate seamless autonomy via communication between other systems within the facility’s network to ensure maximum manufacturing efficiency. Technological interconnectivity and programmability enables efficiency and provides the means for innovation across many aspects of our day-to-day life. With these possibilities there also come drawback such as increased potential for cybercriminals and a larger data cloud possessing more information and from more individuals. However, like many revolutions in the past, the revolution of the internet is not immune from the potentiality of averse effects. The American industrial revolution brought great manufacturing potential to the country and some other parts of the world, but it also allowed for the mass production of arms and military good during the second world war which would then be used to kill hundreds of thousands of people. It also brought about mass consumerism which has had its fair share of environmental impact. At the end of the lesson, Prof. Pursel asked if we think the evolution of the IoT will bring about an era of downturn in which technology further enables human laziness or of it would cause an era of enlightenment in which humans utilize optimized technological networks to increase our potential as a species. I am of the notion that humans will continue to evolve in culture and in our ability to utilize technology. If humans are to die out, it will much more likely be from overstimulation of the physical resources and capabilities at our disposal than it would be due to our failure to invent and innovate due to the ease at which trivial tasks can be completed by technological assistance.

Sources:
https://teslaapps.net/en/
https://www.tesla.com/autopilot
https://us.norton.com/internetsecurity-iot-5-predictions-for-the-future-of-iot.html

The common consensus concerning the social merits of social media and internet-based communication is that society is becoming more socially disconnected and less socially capable. CNBC makes a compelling argument that this ideology is in fact accurate, specifically in this article in which they detail statistics of how frequently millennials check phones when with friends and in general social media’s strong influence on its users (social media). While there is truth that phones in general draw people away from face-to-face social interaction, devices and social media don’t make individuals less socially capable. In fact, there’s solid evidence to prove the opposite.
In a report by Amanda Lenhart of Pew Research Center, there are included many interesting and comprehensive statistics drawn from a national survey of teens 13 to 17 years old detailing the ways in which teens prefer to interact based on gender, age, and device of preference. Chapter 3 of the report takes an in depth look at the importance video games hold in friendships for teens, stating that of the 72% of teens who play video games, more than half have met friends online. The report also finds that playing games with friends online makes teens feel more connected with friends. As there are 5 full length chapters in the report, there is ample evidence to support the notion that internet-based communication serves a vital role in building and maintaining relationships in teens. As for myself, I’ve witnesses my younger brother of 15 years spend countless nights talking to and playing games with his friends, both from school and the internet. About a month ago he and some of the friends he had met online went to a car show and spent the day together. Via apps like Discord and game console functionality like Xbox party chat, teens have found ways to stay connected and expand their social circles.
Previous to the popularization of internet-based communication as early as 20 years ago, teens typically stayed connected and involved with friends via face-to-face interaction at events and during extracurricular activities. Now a few decades later, teens are almost constantly capable of interacting with friends and have numerous means of making new friends that share their interests through social media such as Facebook and chat mediums such as Discord. Maybe the reason people check social media when with friends is because they aren’t with the right people, so perhaps instead of missing out on face-to-face interactions, people should make better use of online communication.

Sources:
Teens, Technology and Friendships

Teens, Technology and Friendships

Social media making millennials less social: Study
https://www.cnbc.com/2015/10/15/social-media-making-millennials-less-social-study.html