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Since it became widely available for public use in the early 1990s, the Internet has proven to be amazingly useful for facilitating communication, distributing information, and sharing knowledge. Human society has already been changed by the Internet, and as new technologies develop, even more opportunities will be available to people online. However, some people have concerns about technology and privacy, the availability of new technology to everyone, and whether information shown on the web might influence people or cultures in a negative way. This book looks at the role that the Internet and computer technologies play in society, and considers some of the questions that are raised by its development

The internet has been a major revolution in enhancing the accessibility of information and goods to the public challenging well-established healthcare practices. The Internet Pharmacy is now an integral part of these searches giving enhanced access to medicines to the public. It has become a global multibillion dollar market and brings with it threats and opportunities which could not have been foreseen. A Rogue Internet Pharmacy is a very real threat to the patient and healthcare professional. Of serious concern is the increase in distribution of counterfeit medicines through these sites. The EU is currently preparing legislation to regulate Internet Pharmacy Services to protect patients. ; peer-reviewed

As we begin a new century, the astonishing spread of nationally and internationally accessible computer-based communication networks has touched the imagination of people everywhere. Suddenly, the Internet is in everyday parlance, featured in talk shows, in special business ""technology"" sections of major newspapers, and on the covers of national magazines. If the Internet is a new world of social behavior it is also a new world for those who study social behavior. This volume is a compendium of essays and research reports representing how researchers are thinking about the social processes o

ABSTRACT. The territorial integrity of nations is often taken as the premise for a functioning, unifying national identity. Yet, the economic and technological developments of recent decades have made it necessary to question this assumption. It can no longer be taken for granted that the people who identify with a given nation inhabit the same space, nor can it be assumed that cultural homogenisation takes place at the level of the nation through mass media. When the Internet appeared, many social scientists and commentators predicted that it would threaten the cultural integrity of nations; that the non‐territorial character of the Internet would lead to fragmentation and unprecedented cultural differentiation, making it difficult, eventually impossible, to uphold a collective sense of national identity based on shared images, representations, myths and so on. Although it is too early to draw any conclusions regarding the long‐term effects of the Internet, experiences so far suggest that such predictions were mistaken. In fact, nations thrive in cyberspace, and the Internet has in the space of only a few years become a key technology for keeping nations (and other abstract communities) together. Nations which have lost their territory (such as Afrikaner‐led South Africa), nations which are for political reasons dispersed (such as Tamil Sri Lanka or Kurdistan), nations with large temporary overseas diasporas (such as Scandinavian countries, with their large communities in Spain during winter), or nations where many citizens work abroad temporarily or permanently (such as India or Caribbean island‐states), appear in many sites on the Internet – from online newspapers and magazines to semi‐official information sites and 'virtual community' homepages. In a 'global era' of movement and deterritorialisation, the Internet is used to strengthen, rather than weaken, national identities.

In this book, Samuel Greengard offers a guided tour through this emerging world and how it will change the way we live and work. Greengard explains that the Internet of Things (IoT) is still in its early stages. Smart phones, cloud computing, RFID (radio-frequency identification) technology, sensors, and miniaturization are converging to make possible a new generation of embedded and immersive technology. Greengard traces the origins of the IoT from the early days of personal computers and the Internet and examines how it creates the conceptual and practical framework for a connected world. He explores the industrial Internet and machine-to-machine communication, the basis for smart manufacturing and end-to-end supply chain visibility; the growing array of smart consumer devices and services—from Fitbit fitness wristbands to mobile apps for banking; the practical and technical challenges of building the IoT; and the risks of a connected world, including a widening digital divide and threats to privacy and security.

"This book offers a comprehensive overview of recent research on the internet, emphasizing its spatial dimensions, geospatial applications, and the numerous social and geographic implications such as the digital divide and the mobile internet. Written by leading scholars in the field, the book sheds light on the origins and the multiple facets of the internet. It addresses the various definitions of cyberspace and the rise of the World Wide Web, draws upon the media theory, as well as explores the physical infrastructure such as the global skein of fibre optics networks and broadband connectivity. Several economic dimensions, such as e-commerce, e-tailing, e-finance, e-government, and e-tourism are also explored. Apart from its most common uses such as Google Earth, social media like Twitter, and neogeography, this volume also presents internet's novel uses for ethnographic research and the study of digital diasporas. Illustrated with numerous graphics, maps and charts, the book will best serve as supplementary reading for academics, researchers, and as a professional handbook for policy makers involved in communications, media, retailing, and economic development"--

"Nothing seems more far removed from the visceral, bodily experience of emotions than the cold, rational technology of the Internet. But as this collection shows, the internet and emotions intersect in interesting and surprising ways. Internet and Emotions is the fruit of an interdisciplinary collaboration of scholars from the sociology of emotions and communication and media studies. It features theoretical and empirical chapters from international researchers who investigate a wide range of issues concerning the sociology of emotions in the context of new media. The book fills a substantial gap in the social research of digital technology, and examines whether the internet invokes emotional states differently from other media and unmediated situations, how emotions are mobilized and internalized into online practices, and how the social definitions of emotions are changing with the emergence of the internet. It explores a wide range of behaviors and emotions from love to mourning, anger, resentment and sadness. What happens to our emotional life in a mediated, disembodied environment, without the bodily element of physical co-presence to set off emotional exchanges? Are there qualitatively new kinds of emotional exchanges taking place on the internet? These are only some of the questions explored in the chapters of this book, with quite surprising answers"--

Objective. This article examines whether there are differences in men's & women's use of the Internet & whether any such gender gaps have changed in recent years. Methods. We use data from several surveys during the period 1997-2001 to show trends in Internet usage & to estimate regression models of Internet usage that control for individuals' socioeconomic characteristics. Results. Women were significantly less likely than men to use the Internet at all in the mid-1990s, but this gender gap in being online disappeared by 2000. However, once online, women remain less frequent & less intense users of the Internet. Conclusions. There is little reason for concern about sex inequalities in Internet access & usage now, but gender differences in frequency & intensity of Internet usage remain. 2 Tables, 25 References. Adapted from the source document.

The issues surrounding assisted suicide and euthanasia are now being debated in a new forum, the Internet. Death-NET, the creation of two activists from Canada and the US, provides up-to-date information on court cases and legislation concerning these topics. In Canada, the federal government appears reluctant to bring the issues to a vote in the House of Commons, but John Hofsess, one of DeathNET's founders, says politicians won't be able to duck them forever.

In der Praxis der Umweltpädagogik spielen Internetanwendungen derzeit noch eine untergeordnete Rolle. Das Internet wird dabei in wachsendem Masse als Präsentationsmedium genutzt. Für umweltpädagogische Anwendungen fehlen Internetkonzepte, bei denen Lernende selbst online recherchieren oder eigene Untersuchungsergebnisse gestalterisch im Netz umsetzen oder das Netz als einen kulturpolitischen Handlungsraum für lokale umweltpolitische Aktionen nutzen. Die Lernumgebung Internet erfordert von den Lehrenden neben Know how über Hardware und Softwareprogramme insgesamt ein anderes Lehrverständnis, das auf Begleitung und Orientierungshilfe ausgerichtet sein muss. Der Beitrag skizziert zunächst den aktuellen Stand der Umweltbildung im Internet (Präsentation, Information, Kommunikation), untersucht dann die Anforderungen an eine computerunterstützte Lernumgebung, verweist auf zu erwartende didaktisch-methodische Probleme und diskutiert abschliessend innovative Beispiele für die Umweltbildung im Internet. Forschungsmethode: anwendungsorientiert. (BIBB2)

The Internet Bubble, published during the information technology bull market, argued that Internet stocks were overvalued. The article discusses the role of investors in one of the largest speculative run ups of the history, discussing how the bubble occurred & some of the effects of its demise. 7 References. Adapted from the source document.

Undeniably widespread and powerful as it is, the Internet is not almighty: it can reach as high as the skies (cloud computing), but it cannot escape competition. Yet, safeguarding competition in 'the network of networks' is not without challenges: not only are competitive processes in platform-based industries complex, so is competition law analysis. The latter is often challenged by the difficulties in predicting the outcome of competition, in particular in terms of innovation. Do the specific competition law issues in a digital environment presuppose a reconsideration of competition law concepts and their application? Can current competition law tools be adjusted to the rush pace of dynamic industries? To what extent could competition law be supplemented by regulation - is the latter a foe or rather an ally? This book provides an analysis of recent developments in the most relevant competition law cases in a digital environment on both sides of the Atlantic (the EU and the US) and assesses platform competition issues from a legal as well as an economic point of view.

The rise of the internet has had a marked effect on how we view political power. Around the turn of the millennium, the nation-state as a political factor seemed to be in retreat, and was described as being "under siege". Giving individuals instant and affordable access to vast amounts of information, the Internet "has collapsed the world, transcending and blurring political boundaries." As everyday lives have been perceived as being significantly transformed by the Internet, so, too, were traditional concepts of territoriality and state sovereignty. It was even claimed that "[t]he new technologies encourage noninstitutional, shifting networks over the fixed bureaucratic hierarchies that are the hallmark of the single-voiced sovereign state." However, while there is no doubt "that significant deterritorialisation has taken place in human affairs, territory remains a crucial factor for many key aspects of humankind's social, economic and especially political structures." In our near future, the pre-eminence of the state will thus very likely continue to outrange that of non-state actors, but states today will find it much more difficult to maintain their accustomed degree of control. The information revolution has, in fact, triggered a considerable diffusion of power among a broad variety of different state and non-state actors. In such an environment, "[p]olitical leaders will enjoy fewer degrees of freedom before they must respond to events, and then they will have to share the stage with more actors." The present paper looks at one of the most relevant fields reflecting the ongoing power shifts between state and non-state actors. This field – really a collection of different processes or regimes – is most commonly referred to as "internet governance." Essentially, internet governance deals with the management of the global resources that effectively make up the Internet. Perhaps one of the most significant features of this field is the multistakeholder concept, which has been instrumental in bestowing legitimacy on a number of different actors and institutional arrangements that are key to the functioning of the global internet.