Suchergebnisse

The information society is an engine of growth, but it must be kept on track if it is to serve wider social and environmental goals. While ICTs can foster resource efficiency they may also feed environmentally damaging consumption – paradoxically, the information society could be less sustainable than the industrial society. At the same time, the digital economy's 24‐hour treadmill is increasing the pressure on individuals, families and societies. To achieve environmental and social equilibrium, should we simply adapt to the demands of the information society, or do we need to rethink our economic and social priorities?

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) have featured strongly in all the recent national foresight studies. This paper documents some of the common trends that emerge from a comparison of these different studies and attempts to draw some strategic conclusions. The first section charts their relative importance. The main trends identified in the national foresight studies are then discussed by main technological areas in turn: software, components and peripherals, advanced telecommunications and telematics applications. Finally, the third part of the paper, strong interactions that ICTs have with other technological disciplines is considered, especially in relation to new materials, nanostructures and bioinformatics.