Man and Machine: the shifting dynamic of the 4th and 5th Industrial Revolutions

by Praba Naidoo

Each industrial revolution has brought with it phenomenal changes in terms of the use of sophisticated machinery to make our work easier and faster. During the first three Industrial Revolutions, as humans we had little or no idea that robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) would become a part of our lifestyle.

With the accelerated development in AI, the internet of things, robotics, augmented reality, and virtual reality, concepts associated with the 4^th Industrial Revolution (4IR) - are words we are all familiar with. Libraries world-wide are increasingly deploying robots and AI for varied reasons, resulting in the dynamic change in the evolution of our jobs. As librarians, we need to focus on reskilling and embracing new training opportunities in order to thrive in our jobs, and to address the challenges we are faced with.

Technologies of 4IR have made it possible for us to shop online, book airfares and

hotel/Air/BnB accommodation, pay our bills, book a ride such as Bolt Taxi or Uber, utilise health applications (apps) that enable us to track the number of steps we have taken in a day, or to track our calorie intake and the like.              

Blockchain is an ingenious invention whereby information is distributed without being copied.  Blockchain, best known for digital currency Bitcoin, brings supply chain management thinking into all kinds

of activities that libraries undertake. Blockchain’s financial applications makes it possible to use blockchain-based currencies like bitcoin to purchase library materials such as databases with the potential to eliminate exchange rate problems between libraries and publishers.

In our continent Africa, some countries have yet to enjoy the benefits of the 2^nd Industrial Revolution such as electricity. And talking about electricity, with our continuous load-shedding from Eskom, would smart grids instead of a centralised grid be the answer to our problems? A smart grid will ensure a regular, sustainable electricity supply, with fewer losses and greater reliability and security.

Some differences between ‘Man’ and Machine:

Are the services and trajectories of humanity being obscured by the power of 4IR and its economic benefits? There is a great sense of concern that 4IR is taking humans out of work, increasing our already elevated unemployment situation and creating a grim future for the next generation. The answer to these problems may be addressed in the imminent 5^th Industrial Revolution.

What are some of the changes we would like to see in the next Industrial Revolution – 5^th Industrial Revolution?

• Would we like a world that is better than just being one that is more productive, more efficient and makes more financial profit?
• Would climate change, sustainable living and saving our environment be considered?
• Step in space with affordable space travel
• Are we ready for driverless cars?

References:

1. Smart Grids: http://www.sustainable.org.za/userfiles/final%20macro%20smart%20grids%20lr.pdf  (Accessed 03/03/2020)
2. Smart Electricity Grids: https://setis.ec.europa.eu/system/files/Technology_Information_Sheet_Smart_Grids.pdf  (Accessed 03/03/2020)
3. Library Future Reimagined for the Fourth Industrial Revolution: UJ case study, Presented by: Christina Nomathamsanqa Mafumana, LIASA Conference 01 October 2019
4. What is Blockchain Technology: https://blockgeeks.com/guides/what-is-blockchain-technology/

Just PAWS for a moment!

By: Praba Naidoo

During the first two weeks in November, I felt terribly swamped and overwhelmed. Let me start from the beginning, I was leaving for a vacation and I was physically sick. The Library Marketing team and I had to put the final touches to the Library Newsletter, I had this blog to write, some urgent tasks to attend to, pack for my vacation, that endless “to-do” list and my body was just letting me down. I decided to hit that PAUSE button for a moment and spent the time listening to some music.

This segues into my second PAWS. During my visit to the Gerstein Science Information Centre at the University of Toronto I was told about their “PAWS for a study break” programme. 

The Gerstein library staff noticed increased levels of student stress and anxiety amongst medical students, whilst providing them with research assistance. Gerstein decided to implement the animal-assisted therapy (AAT) programme. This basically gave the students a break from their studying during the exam period by them having several sessions with a therapy dog. According to the staff the AAT programme was well received and positive.

Florence Nightingale was one of the first well-known healthcare professionals to observe the positive influences of small animals on her chronically ill patients. This was as early as 1860. Since then the benefits from exposure to AAT, both psychological and physical have been well documented. However, there is little clinical evidence that supports the impact AAT has on patients in the long term.

The use of furrier activity has become widespread in hospital waiting rooms, assistance with physical therapy, to help patients cope with trauma, mental health disorders, support to prisoner health and comfort in disaster areas.

University libraries globally have been experimenting with therapy dogs as a means to engage students and provide a more supportive environment during exam time. Some of the qualitative feedback from students indicated expressions of happiness, relaxation, a connection with the dogs. With some students interactions with pets was a new experience.  

AAT could be beneficial to our students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). We are approaching a new academic year in January 2018. Attending university is stressful and, consequently, mental and emotional support systems play a crucial role in fostering student well-being. Not only do students have considerable academic pressures to cope with, but they are often living away from home for the first time and integrating into new social groups. For our newly registered students, many will have to learn to cope with leaving home and living in residences. The transition from high school to a tertiary institution can also be difficult to cope with.

The human-animal bond could have a positive effect on reducing the effects of stress, anxiety, homesickness and loneliness. Hence, interactions with dogs can modify stress and positively affect the mood amongst our students.  

Could our friends with PAWs be able to promote retention and student satisfaction amongst all of our students at UKZN? Should we PAWs for a moment at UKZN?

References:

Bell, A. 2013. Paws for a Study Break: Running an Animal-Assisted Therapy Program at the Gerstein Science Information Centre. Partnership: the Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research, 8.

Matuszek, S. 2010. Animal-facilitated therapy in various patient populations: systematic literature review. Holistic Nursing Practice, 24(4), 187-203. 

To “E” or not to “E”, that is the question?

By: Praba Naidoo

What I have always enjoyed most about reading is that a good book keeps me involved and engaged. I relish a great novel that takes me to some far off place or a profound biography that enables me to completely understand the life of the person I am reading about. But most of all the smell of a new book is pleasantly intoxicating and the very act of physically turning the page of a book is in itself the greatest delight.

We all know that technological advances have made our lives easier than ever before. We have embraced these advances and sometimes ponder on what our lives would have been like without them. The idea or decision to move to “E” is worth investigating.

The question about e-books is not whether they will surpass print, but what is the readers’ actual preference? As you know the classic paper/print book is a written or printed work of fiction or nonfiction and is usually on sheets of paper which are bound together within covers. According to Hawkins (2000) an “e-book is the contents of a book made available in an electronic form.”

The examples above are different formats/mediums that enable one to read a book. Now does the format really matter? Or does one format actually enhance your understanding of the subject matter?

What’s the latest buzz around the e-book versus the print book debate? Let us start by looking at some of the advantages and disadvantages of the print book and the e-book.

For one, print books are easily obtainable from various bookstores at our malls and at our universities. Print books can be easily transported and they don’t normally cause significant strain to the eyes. And what about those lovely picture, photo and coffee table books? A coffee table book is intended to sit on a coffee table where guests sit and are entertained, inspiring conservation or alleviating boredom.

Can the Amazon’s kindle, Jinke’s Hanlin reader, or the Sony’s eReader series have the same aesthetic appeal?

Another important factor to bear in mind is that the print books don’t need electricity to work. They can be read anywhere with sufficient light and are perfect travelling     companions for exactly this reason.

E-books also have some useful advantages, and this is after    taking into consideration one already has an e-book reader. 

 They are easily readable and most e-book readers offer zoom functions, font resizing, and built in lighting where external lighting conditions essentially become meaningless and allow you to read whenever and wherever you like.

The great function of an e-book is that they are amazingly portable and you are able to carry multiple books on one device. How exciting it is to be able to carry a copy of Tolstoy’s “Anna Karenina”, Melville’s “Moby Dick”, Bessie Head’s “Maru” and a range of your university prescribed set books on this single device?

Taking our environment into account, e-books are most definitely more environmentally friendly, hence allowing us to save our trees. Disposing of an old e-book is simple and   costless, as the reader just deletes it.

Let us now consider the obvious disadvantages of print and e-books.

Print books are bulky and heavy. Carrying our university books around campus can cause tremendous strain on our backs. Packing a range of recreational reading matter when going on holiday can take up much space in our luggage.

The disadvantages of e-books are that they are obviously useless without an e-reader. Then there is that question about battery life to consider. And what about those nasty software bugs in the reader that can cause it to freeze up? You could also lose all of your books if you lose or damage your e-reader.

I am still undecided on what format will actually suit me. Would I prefer to curl up with a screen instead of a print book? What are your thoughts?

References.

Hawkins, D. T. 2000. Electronic books: a major publishing revolution. Online 24(4): 14-28. http://libres.curtin.edu.au/libres12n2/ebooks.htm (Accessed 30 August 2012).