Working with my wife who is a pediatric nurse practioner and other health care folks, it's much more than information. It's as simple as a toothbrush, a water filter, antiseptic and a sterile band aid. It maybe having to be carried down a rocky mountain for miles to reach a road It is having a trusted person to help It might be a subsidized micro-pharmacy when there is no trust in the government.
The need is just that basic in many cases tom tom abeles > Date: Tue, 12 Aug 2008 11:16:59 -0400 > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > To: [email protected] > Subject: Re: [DDN] The Digital Divide and Human Health > > It's an interesting lens to look through. From the link you provided: > > "‘Value’ means something of perceived use, to the Stakeholder > <http://www.gilb.com/community/tiki-view_tracker_item.php?itemId=112&show=view&offset=0&reloff=0&status=opc&trackerId=5&sort_mode=f_20_desc>; > > they need it, they want it, they are willing to sacrifice Resources > <http://www.gilb.com/community/tiki-view_tracker_item.php?itemId=116&show=view&offset=0&reloff=11&status=opc&trackerId=5&sort_mode=f_20_desc> > > to get it, they will be unhappy if it is late or lower in power than > their expectations." > > Let's put that in the context of the digital divide. Based on that > definition alone, we could solve a lot of world problems - but the issue > at hand in the context of the digital divide is that sometimes people do > not see that they 'need' it, or they don't 'want' it, and thus are not > willing to sacrifice 'resources' to get it, etc. With the socioeconomic > divide that is a constant part of digital divide discussion, we got the > poorly planned OLPC - where the focus was on the scant resources due to > the socioeconomic divide. That is a marketer's approach, and while we > can learn from marketers we should also learn what not to do from marketers. > > Solutions to digital divide issues, as Cindy again mentioned in a part > of this discussion I just received, is about *people*. Everything > technology does should provide 'value'. Yet 'value' is a messy thing - > what I value highly - such as silence, solitude and a morning surrounded > by nature - is something that others may not value. I may value a > discussion about the digital divide and human health, but others may not. > > That train of thought leads me to wonder where the Doctors and Nurses > are in this discussion. Perhaps that is a symptom of the problem. > Medical administrators are as infamous in the context of patient > happiness as educational administrators are in the context of education > (no slights intended, it is a perception of which I speak). Where are > the hands on people? We have the teachers here for education - and what > a number! > > Maybe we should all pass this along to physicians and nurses we know and > get them talking about it. They are, after all, a part of the solutions > we wish to discuss. > > But back to value. Does an iPod add value? Some say yes - the market > says yes. The iPhone? Some say yes. The OLPC? Some say yes. These are > some of the best marketed devices out there - and that's all well and > good - but what the first two did was simplified needs of consumers. The > latter, no one can really say. Why? The digital divide is not *just* a > marketplace. It isn't a bazaar. It's about access to information. It's > about the Amazon Kindle without DRM and the ability to share books > without getting one's underwear sued off. It's about dealing with > differences in perception on technology in different cultures, races, > languages and abilities. > > It's about people being equal - thus the 'digital *divide*'. It's about > techno-segregation, where people without access have to ride in the back > of the bus - but unlike a bus, they cannot sit in the wrong place to > make their point. Is the answer to redlining the inverse of redlining, > or rather the removal of redlines? (Redlining reference: > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redlining ) > > And how does this really impact the digital divide and human health? > Indeed, this is a deep topic... > > Bakr Al-Tamimi wrote: > > I would like to address the question : How to measure success? > > > > Professor Tom Gilb is an authority on this, as he specializes in > > "Competitive Engineering" which takes questions like how to quantify > > quality? How to measure a value, or even an emotion (love for example)! > > > > He has been a member of the ACM since the dawn of computing industry, and > > he has authorized an engineering and planning language called PLANGUAGE. > > > > You can read more here: > > http://www.gilb.com/community/tiki-view_blog.php?blogId=2 > > > > Regards > > Bakr Al-Tamimi > > > > > -- > Taran Rampersad > Presently in: San Fernando, Trinidad > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > http://www.knowprose.com > http://www.your2ndplace.com > > Pictures: http://www.flickr.com/photos/knowprose/ > > "Criticize by creating." — Michelangelo > "The present is theirs; the future, for which I really worked, is mine." - > Nikola Tesla > > _______________________________________________ > DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list > [email protected] > http://digitaldivide.net/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide > To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE > in the body of the message. _________________________________________________________________ Get more from your digital life. Find out how. http://www.windowslive.com/default.html?ocid=TXT_TAGLM_WL_Home2_082008 _______________________________________________ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list [email protected] http://digitaldivide.net/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
