The phrase: "the world is flat" can be interpreted in many ways. Basically what Friedman means by "flat" is "linked." The falling of trade and political barriers and technical advances have made it possible to do business, instantaneously with billions of other people around the world. It has allowed for parts of the world, which had previously been cut off, like China and India, to successfully compete in the world market. Thus, the playing field is being leveled, and no one nation has an advantage. Friedman could also refer to a "flat world" in a metaphorical sense. In a spherical earth you cannot see around the world and cannot recognize the opportunities far from where you live. If the world were flat you could see it all. There …show more content…
Soon after, the World Wide Web was created as a system for organizing and linking documents so they could be viewed over the internet. Individuals could post their digital content so it could be accessed by almost anyone from any part of the globe. The commercial web browser was kicked off by Netscape. Netscape was a huge flattening force for many reasons. The Netscape browser not only brought the internet alive but also made it accessible to everyone. Individuals immediately found themselves hooked with anybody's website on the internet, and in no time, they were able to interact and be in touch with virtually anyone. Work flow software: In the late 90s, an abundance of application software hit the marketplace. The rise of this work flow software was a quiet revolution that took place with few people knowing about it. When it was finally made more public, its impact was overwhelming. This software enabled more people in more places to design, manage, and collaborate on business data in real time. This software could shape things, design things, create things, sell things, buy things, and keep track of things. It carried out transmission protocols and standards which allowed for businesses to work together to accomplish a common task. This contributed to the flattening of the world as more and more people were able to interact with this type of software. Uploading: Uploading harnesses the power of communities and
In the 1990’s, an invention was created that is now used in everyday life, The World Wide Web also known as the WWW. In the year of 1990, Tim Berners-Lee created the World Wide Web.It was invented in the United States and was later released to the public in 1991. The World Wide Web has become very important and people could not imagine a life without it. Overall, the World Wide Web has become very important to the world (Tim Berners-Lee).
In Friedman’s “It’s a Flat World, After All”, Friedman in a trip Bangalore, India accidentally “encountered the flattening of the world”. The following paper will analyze “It’s a Flat World, After All” and the flattening of the world. To conclude the paper I will summarize my thoughts on the flattening of the world.
The Internet influenced the United States more than anything else in the 20th century. The Internet first technically started in 1969, when the U.S. Defense Department’s Advanced Research Projects Agency or ARPA connected networks at the University of California and the Stanford Research Institute (SRI). From there, just three years later the creation of the Email was born by Ray Tomlinson of BBN. With many other novelties of the Internet coming soon after, such as the Domain Name System (DNS) establishing .edu and .com, and the first web browser, World Wide Web by CERN. As the Internet flourished in the late 1990s it became more usable to the public and soon became routine to use, making great changes in society. The Internet was integrated
Speaker Thomas Friedman is speaking at MIT, which is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. “He is an American journalist specializing in foreign affairs, global trade, the Middle East, globalization, and environmental issues. “ (Daniel H. Pink) He is talking about the basis on what the book is about and how he understood this new phenomenon. The book is titled “The World Is Flat”. This title is referring to “the global economic playing field being leveled.” This is a tremendous achievement that all started with Christopher Columbus discovering North America in 1492. This was the first development of the globalization of the world, which today has taken over economies all over the world. This advancement of technology has led to “accidently making Beijing, Bangalore and Bethesda next-door neighbors”. Mr. Friedman then references in chapter one of his book about all of the encounters he had in India that led him to the conclusion, “The World Is Flat”.
In this chapter, Thomas Friedman looks at how cultures and societies will have to deal with and adapt to the changes that globalization brings to the way of doing business. It affects whole companies and individuals. He gives the perception of the world is flattening by comparing the Industrial Revolution to the IT Revolution that is happening right now. The flattening process was identified by Karl Marx and Frederich Engels in the Communist Manifesto, published in 1848. Marx’s writings about capitalism state “the inexorable march of technology and capital to remove all barriers, boundaries, frictions, and restraints to global commerce (Friedman 234).”
1. “But Friedman’s image of a flat earth is profoundly misleading – a view of the world from a seat in business class. Flatness is another way of describing the transnational search by companies for cheap labor, an image that misses the pervasiveness of global inequality and the fact that much of the developing world remains mired in poverty and misery. It also misses the importance of the global geopolitical hierarchy, which guarantees the provision of stability, property rights, and other international public goods. The rise of China and India is less about flatness than it is about dramatic upheavals in the mountains and valleys of the global geopolitical map”
he World Is Flat is Friedman’s explanation of the brave new world facing us. A world that is growing at a rapid pace never seen before in history. Friedman believes that flattening of the world has happened as a result of occurrence of a series of events which he outlines as ten flattening factors. The low-cost computers, dot com bubble, standardized file format, excess laying of optic fibres, outsourcing and offshoring are some of them. This phenomena has the potential to change all of our theories of economies, politics and jobs. It will increase competition and require not only an emphasis on new skills sets, but a much more self-reliant, creative and innovative mind-set.
As an up and coming international management consultant, the idea of the world being flat is an interesting topic. Thomas Friedman, who is one of the leading faces of the “world being flat perspective”, is an extremely well acclaimed author on many topics. Especially on globalization and economic areas. His way of thinking and presentation of the facts are clearly defined and well laid out. This idea of the world being flat explains that the global economic playing field has now been leveled out, and that no one person or group has a distinct advantage over others.
America isn’t the country it was in the 1970’s or even the country it was in the early 2000’s. The world in general is a never ending changing cycle that every person in this world either has to learn how to develop and grow with it or you’ll be the gap at the bottom explains Thomas Friedman in The World is Flat. For some, especially here in the Yakima Valley that is based on a lot of families who work in the agricultural business college may not even be achievable for them due to financial reasons. This is because we have a very wide gap at the bottom and not enough funding to be able to give every single person a chance to be able to achieve some sort of degree or certificate. The free two-year college program is a great way to be able to
The world is flat by Thomas Freidman is a very debatable book that is focused around how the world is becoming flat. Thomas uses the metaphor the world is flat to explain how the global competitive field is being leveled. He first realizes this on his trip to Bangalore, India. On his trip he is followed by a discovery channel crew and he interviews Indian businessmen and women working for American companies. He discover that they can communicate with there partners around the world by video conferencing this is where he began his own theory of how the world became flat. After his journey to India we travel to other flattening countries like China, Japan, and of course he investigates our own country and explains to the reader why the U.S.
The World Wide Web was formed in the 90s forever changing the world. Since the invention of the World Wide Web information has been at a person’s fingertips and within seconds information can be found. In the year 1998 the first MP3 player was created because of this invention people were able to listen to music on the go with ease. In 1992 the first text message was sent. Since the text message was invented communication changed like never before.
Thomas Friedman says that today’s world is flat meaning that all businesses are playing on the same paying field and no business has an advantage over the other since all can expand into global market. Some of the characteristics of a flat world include, open communication through the modern form of communication from social media to teleconferencing, lack of geographical barriers. Another characteristic mentioned by Friedman of a flat world is that it offers people a chance to collaborate and share regardless of their cultural background, education and language they speak. Some of the challenges that they pose is change and adaptation, many people are reluctant to change. There are those who would want to remain to the traditional ways of
Thomas Friedman mentions that world is growing flatter. When he says that world is flat, he means that world is becoming more economically fair and levelling opportunities and wealth among all the nations. With easy access to information and availability of opportunities irrespective of one’s locations is providing for people from many different countries with an equal chance to succeed economically.
In 330 BC, Aristotle scientifically proved the world was not flat, but spherical. It was not until the 17th century (more than a thousand years later) does the idea receive global acceptance. Also, before the 19th century, lung cancer was an extremely rare disease. However after the popularization of the cigarette through mass marketing and propaganda, more than 150,000 American citizens are expected to die from lung cancer in 2016; cigarettes remain the leading cause of cancer in the United States. These are two examples of social ignorance. Ignorance by definition is the lack of awareness, and it most often has a negative (sometimes deadly) impact on society. Mankind’s ability to be cognitively aware is the key trait where our intellect creates a profound gap between humans and the other natural species on our planet. Cogitation and life for humanity tend to relate hand in hand, and the importance of awareness is survival. To continue living is to survive and to accumulate more experiences. Life is all about existing, and this process is supported by the importance of awareness. In this sense all humans are connected by the need to survive. This statement is true for our ecosystem as well. Our planet is alive, and has displayed warning signs of decay. Global capitalism and greed have prohibited the free exchange of information and people remain unaware of the implications neglecting our bio-sphere has. With great awareness comes
The phrase: "the world is flat" can be interpreted in many ways. Basically what Friedman means by "flat" is "linked." The falling of trade and political barriers and technical advances have made it possible to do business, instantaneously with billions of other people around the world. It has allowed for parts of the world, which had previously been cut off, like China and India, to successfully compete in the world market. Thus, the playing field is being leveled, and no one nation has an advantage. Friedman could also refer to a "flat world" in a metaphorical sense. In a spherical earth you cannot see around the world and cannot recognize the opportunities far from where you live. If the world were flat you could see it all. There