CHAPTER 1

Perspective of the ICT Revolution

The greatest concern in the ICT revolution is, will the ICT revolution still continuing especially with the widespread skepticism especially with regards to 3G mobile telephony and how many chips per person will there be in 2010.

What ICT applications are embedded in our normal environments and the applications of bioinformatics?

Bioinformatics refers the field of science in which biology, computer science, and information technology merge into a single discipline. It the use of computers, laboratory robots and software to create, manage and interpret massive sets of complex biological data.

Components of a systems theory:
Understanding General Systems Theory

This theory was developed by biologist Ludwig von Bertalanffy in 1936. He felt the need for a theory to guide research in several disciplines because he saw striking parallels among them. His hunch was that if multiple disciplines focused their research & theory development efforts, they would be able to identify laws & principles which would apply to many systems. This would allow scholars & scientists to make sense of system characteristics such as wholeness, differentiation, order, equifinality, progression & others. With a common framework, scientists could better communicate their findings with each other & build upon each other's work. He believed that over time, what was discovered would come to be applicable to life in general.

More than 50 years later, the work in understanding systems has evolved to the point that we incorporate many of the concepts into our everyday language. We speak of a health care system, a family system, body systems, information systems, banking systems, political systems, hospitality system, etc. One of the reasons we do this is because the amount of knowledge & information available has increased tremendously during this time period. We cannot know all there is to know. We seek some way of ordering what we encounter to avoid being overloaded with information. We focus in on small areas of knowledge rather than trying to comprehend the whole.

Whether we like it or not, hotels and restaurants are enmeshed in many systems. It is to our benefit to gain some basic understanding of how systems work. We can more effectively cater for guests, families and communities when we do understand. We can more effectively bring about desired changes in our workplace if we are able to step back & consider how best to accomplish this within our workplace system.

Definition:
Defined as an "entity which can maintain some organization in the face of change from within or without." or "a set of objects or elements in interaction to achieve a specific goal."

Function:
The function of any system is to convert or process energy, information, or materials into a product or outcome for use within the system, or outside of the system (the environment) or both. Indeed, if a system is to survive, it must save some of the outcome or product to maintain the system.