The Pace of Change
When Disruption is a Good Thing
The world is changing at an alarming pace. Buckminster Fuller’s “The Knowledge Doubling Curve” showed that until 1900, human knowledge doubled approximately every 100 years. By the end of World War II, human knowledge doubled every 25 years. Now, knowledge doubles every 12 hours and continues to accelerate.
Just think of music alone. LP’s came out in 1948, 8-tracks in 1964, cassettes 1973, CDs 1984, MP3s and Napster 1999, iTunes 200. Now, with Spotify, Apple and Deezer as the top three streaming services with Amazon and YouTube now providing paid services, the industry continues to change at a rapid pace.
Metal coin currency has been around since 1000 BC. Paper currency originated in 806 AD. The electronic currency trend started in 1946, and now cryptocurrencies, which started in 2009, continue to grow because of the invention of Blockchain, allowing these altcoins to flourish.
Driving is another area that has been the same since cars replaced the horse and cart with Karl Benz’s 1885 patent. The days of the American dream where everyone owns their own vehicle is being replaced with ride share, cars-on-demand and Uber/Lyft options. UberCab, now Uber, started in 2009 and in 10 years has disrupted our entire thought process on transportation. Autonomous driving vehicles are further shaking things up.
Drones, which means any unmanned aerial vehicle, were first used in Austria in 1839 when balloons filled with explosives were used to attack Venice. Although not the most successful strategy, with the change in technology, the Federal Aviation Administration issued its first commercial drone permit in 2006. Drones are now changing business models for so many industries from Amazon and grocery delivery to a quadcopter developed to carry passengers.
Virtual reality is another industry that is going far beyond gaming to provide virtual trainings so that doctors can watch an actual surgery, see the patient’s charts and be able to speak with the surgeon during the procedure from anywhere in the world. Virtual reality and simulators can train pilots, firefighters, police and so many other professions with a “hands-on” experience they would never get in a classroom.
Artificial Intelligence is the next revolution. The Chinese government uses over 200 million surveillance cameras that compute facial recognition to track their citizens’ movements, to eventually establish a social credit system (SCS). The SCS will rate the trustworthiness of almost all their 1.4 billion citizens using things such as a persons’ debt, spending habits and even social interactions. The U.S. is not immune with over half of its citizens in facial recognition databases.
Our world is changing rapidly and for business owners, it is difficult to keep up. Join the Greater Palm Bay Chamber of Commerce on October 18 for the Space Coast Symposium to hear expert panelists discuss these various disruptors in industry. Hear about cutting-edge technology and its impact on everyone’s future.
Space Coast Symposium
Oct. 18, 8:30 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Viera Holiday Inn Convention Center, 8298 N. Wickham Road
Cost: $40
Nancy Peltonen serves as President/CEO with The Greater Palm Bay Chamber of Commerce. She currently serves on committees for the Economic Development Commission of Florida’s Space Coast, Palm Bay Maker Faire Committee, and State Small Business Expo Partner, and still finds time to volunteer with many local organizations and travel the world. Nancy’s accolades include 2017 Community Excellence Award, 2016 Business Acceleration Summit Heart of the Community Award, 2013 Woman of Excellence, 2011 & 2014 Woman of the Year for the American Business Women’s Association Space Coast Express Network.
Read more articles in our DIGITAL MAGAZINE.
Map It
