The Fourth industrial
revolution
Name : Mhamed sobhy Abdelrazek
Section : 6
Seat : 144
Abstract :
The fourth industrial revolution, a term coined by Klaus Schwab, founder and
executive chairman of the World Economic Forum, describes a world where
individuals move between digital domains and offline reality with the use of
connected technology to enable and manage their lives. (Miller 2015, 3) The first
industrial revolution changed our lives and economy from an agrarian and
handicraft economy to one dominated by industry and machine manufacturing.
Oil and electricity facilitated mass production in the second industrial revolution.
In the third industrial revolution, information technology was used to automate
production. Although each industrial revolution is often considered a separate
event, together they can be better understood as a series of events building upon
innovations of the previous revolution and leading to more advanced forms of
production. This article discusses the major features of the four industrial
revolutions, the opportunities of the fourth industrial revolution, and the
challenges of the fourth industrial revolution.
Introduction
The speed and measure of the changes coming about by the fourth industrial
revolution are not to be ignored. These changes will bring about shifts in power,
shifts in wealth, and knowledge. Only in being knowledgeable about these
changes and the speed in which this is occurring can we ensure that advances in
knowledge and technology reach all and benefit all. The first industrial revolution
started in 1760 with the invention of the steam engine. The steam engine allowed
the transition from farming and feudal society to the new manufacturing process.
This transition included the use of coal as the main energy while trains were the
main means of transportation. Textile and steel were the dominant industries in
terms of employment, value of output, and capital invested. The second industrial
revolution began in 1900 with the invention of the internal combustion engine.
This led to an era of rapid industrialization using oil and electricity to power mass
production. The third industrial revolution started in 1960 and was characterized
with the implementation of electronics and information technology to automate
production. Under the old ways, making things involved screwing or welding lots
of parts together. The fourth industrial revolution now involves computer
generated product design and three dimensional (3D) printing, which can create
solids object by building up successive layers of materials .
Opportunities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution :
There are similarities between four industrial revolutions and the five ages of
civilization: the hunter and gather age, the agricultural age, the industrial age, the
information worker age, and the emerging age of wisdom. Therefore, we may
infer the opportunities of the fourth industrial revolution through the
characteristics of these five ages of civilization presented by Steven Covey in his
book 8th Habit. (2011, 12-17) First, the productivity of each subsequent age goes
up fifty times over the preceding age. Consider for example, the increase in
productivity of the industrial age over the agricultural age. Second, each
subsequent age destroys many of the jobs of the preceding age. The information
age is replacing the jobs created by the industrial age. Much of losses in our
industrial age jobs have less to do with government policy and free trade
agreements than they do with dramatic shift in our economy to the knowledge
worker. Third, in the first three ages of civilization manual workers produced
most goods and services with their body, but in the last two ages, knowledge
workers produce most goods and services with their mind. Knowledge workers
are the link to a company's other investments. They provide focus, creativity, and
leverage in using those investments to achieve the organization’s objectives more
efficiently. In other words, knowledge is an integral part of total management and
cuts across functional boundaries. The main assets and primary drivers of the
industrial age were machines and capital. People were necessary but replaceable.
The management style of the industrial age simply does not work in the new
economy. Management focused on motivating employees to perform the physical
labor needed to produce the products and services. In the fourth industrial age,
the challenge now is how companies can motivate their knowledge workers to
release their human potential.
Challenges of the Fourth Industrial Revolution:
“We stand on the brink of a technological revolution that will fundamentally alter
the way we live, work, and relate to one another. In its scale, scope, and
complexity, the transformation will be unlike anything humankind has
experienced before. We do not yet know just how it will unfold, but one thing is
clear: the response to it must be integrated and comprehensive, involving all
stakeholders of the global polity, from the public and private sectors to academic
and civil society.” (Schwab 2015) This paragraph gives us some idea of the
challenges surrounding the fourth industrial revolution. The enormity of the
challenges and the breadth required of the response are reinforced by Peters.
(2017, 28) .
The evolution of global industries in the fourth industrial revolution is both
exciting and scary. Life will change with the 3D printing, the IoT, and the fusion of
technologies. The fourth industrial revolution can raise income levels by allowing
entrepreneurs to "run" with their new ideas. It will improve the quality of life for
many people around the world. (Jee 2017, 255-256) Consumers are likely to gain
the most from the fourth industrial revolution. “[T]echnological innovation will
also lead to a supply-side miracle, with long-term gains in efficiency and
productivity. Transportation and communication costs will drop, logistics and
global supply chains will become more effective, and the cost of trade will
diminish, all of which will open new markets and drive economic growth.”
(Schwab 2015)
In addition to the threat of massive job displacement under the ongoing fourth
industrial revolution, there are a variety of challenges, such as cybersecurity,
hacking, risk assessment, and others. (Lambert 2017) A higher level of alert is
raised up when our lives become extensively connected to various devices, from
our cell phones, cars, and light switches to our home security cameras, and smart
speakers. One of the biggest trends in 2018 Consumer Electronics Show is that
everything is connected and there is no going back. (Goode 2018) Having
everything attached to everything else in the IoT is going to monumentally
increase the vulnerabilities present in any given network. With more knobs,
connections and burden of connectivity, systems are going to have to be more
secure. The fourth industrial revolution calls for greater cybersecurity. Companies
will need to map their networks, assessing the risk and critical factors relating to
security. Such an assessment should examine accessibility to systems, such as
possible threats from internal sources, from disgruntled employees to internal
human error, and external sources including hackers and cyber terrorists. Further,
companies must assess risk and determine if these risks will be accepted,
reduced, shared via insurance or other vehicles, or rejected. Risks can be from
both intentional and unintentional sources. If your house lights turn on via your
computer, but you have lost the wireless connection to your house, you may be
living in the dark. Unintentional sources of risk can include error s promulgated by
company employees or nature itself such as storms causing disruptions in
connectivity. Individuals too should assess their risks, just as companies will. It
may come that the Internet will have more information about individuals than the
family, friends, and colleagues of the individuals. Certainly, the ability of data to
be processed and the speed in which it can be done surpasses the ability and
speed of individuals. It is necessary to examine the value of processes and assets,
from machinery to intellectual property, ensuring that there is insurance, security
measures and that any vulnerability is sufficiently identified. When we consider
the changing nature of security threats - from employees connecting personal
devices to company networks to brute force attacks from hackers - the situation is
further complicated. The sophistication in risk identification and neutralization
has to change with it.
While data can be lost or stolen by employees, either inadvertently or
intentionally, the biggest attacks in recent years have been external malicious
attacks, collectively or commonly referred to as hacking. These could be hacking
to move money around, such as when Russian hackers stole $10 million from
Citibank customer accounts, Internet terrorism, such as the $2 million damages
caused to WeaKnees.com over a six week botnet attack, Internet pump-and-
dump fraud where hackers take advantage of manipulating stock prices, or
software piracy which is estimated to cost over $50 billion a year. (Romney and
Steinbart 2017, 159-167) The fourth industrial revolution is more than just
technology-driven change. Rather, it is powered with disruptive innovation to
positively impact our core industries and sectors, such as education, health and
business. In education, with the previous industrial revolutions, the focus of
education changed. With the first industrial revolution, education was focused on
standard modes of learning, such as the McGuffey reader. With move toward
mass production in the second industrial revolution and standardized testing.
Education is service oriented and with the move into the third industrial
revolution we come to see students under a customer learning model. Now in the
fourth industrial revolution, technologies really blur the lines between physical,
digital and biological spheres. Disruptive innovation makes its way into higher
education in which it redefines the conventional ways universities deliver their
content to students. New modes of curriculum and teaching arise, and the focus
changes from modes of teach to modes of learning. Alternative curriculums are
being constantly developed. Disruptive innovation also reshapes how businesses
operate. Thinking has really moved outside of the box. New markets are created
and new products are defined. Netflix is competing with traditional television.
Taxis must compete against Uber and Lyft. These offered similar product offered
to customers in new ways. You could watch your shows from your home or get a
ride somewhere. With the Airbnb alternative overnight accommodations are
competing against traditional hotels and motels. (Jules 2017)
Conclusion
We have recently entered the dawn of the fourth industrial evolution, in which it
differs in speed, scale, complexity, and transformative power compared to
previous revolutions. This article has examined the opportunities and challenges
that are likely to arise as a result of the fourth industrial revolution. As industrial
revolutions have moved from the mechanization of production in the first
industrial revolution, to the mass production in the second, and then to the
automation of production in third, the standards of living for most people around
the world have greatly improved. Undoubtedly, the capability of advancing
technology coming forth from the latest industrial revolution has the potential to
make even bigger and greater improvements on every aspect of our lives changes
than the first three industrial revolutions summed together. On the other hand,
there are a variety of challenges stemming from the fourth industrial revolution
to overcome. From income inequality to cybersecurity, the benefits of the fourth
industrial revolution have obstacles that must be harnessed, directed and
overcome, such as income inequality, cybersecurity, and ethical dilemmas.
Technology and advancements in science drive transformation around the world.
They create ripple effects on societies, institutions, and economies. They will
transform the ways in which we live, work, and interact with one another.
Understanding these new technologies and their disruption potential is critical for
all nations and especially developing countries. The fourth industrial revolution
may affect society and economy in a variety of ways. (Prisecaru 2016) First, a
large portion of people around the world are likely to use social-media platforms
to connect, learn, and change information. Second, a variety of innovative
producers and competitors will have easy access to digital platforms of marketing,
sales, and distribution, thereby improving the quality and price of goods and
services. Third, consumers will be more and more involved in the production and
distribution chains. The main effects of this revolution on the business
environment are the impact it will have on consumer expectations, product
quality, the move toward collaborative innovation, and innovations in
organizational forms
