The Framework Catalogue of Digital Competences Justyna Jasiewicz, Mirosław Filiciak, Anna Mierzecka, Kamil Śliwowski, Andrzej Klimczuk, Małgorzata Kisilowska, Alek Tarkowski & Jacek Zadrożny Centrum Cyfrowe Projekt: Polska (2015) .

Objective: The study seeks to provide a thorough description of the teachers' digital literacy (DL) and digital competence (DC) and shine a light on the variables that influence the development of their digital literacies and competence. Method: Comprehensive data collection and analysis from 274 participants were completed. Descriptive and inferential statistics were conducted to accomplish the objectives of this study. Results: It came to light that teachers with less than ten years of experience have higher levels of (...) digital literacy. Pre-service education, having access to ICT resources, and a favorable attitude about using ICT were all strongly associated with DL and DC. The research's essential contribution is its findings affirming the value of DL and DC, which can be utilized to approach new technologies critically and use them as a part of digital pedagogy. Novelty: The critical contribution of the research is the result claiming the positive status of DL and DC, which can be used to approach new tools from a critical pedagogical perspective and apply them as part of digital pedagogy. -/- . (shrink)

COVID-19 and military actions on the territory of Ukraine fundamentally changed the organization of the educational process, forcing educational institutions to transfer classroom learning to virtual space. To organize the educational process remotely, we need to organize an educational environment in which we can ensure the implementation of all types of educational activities, as well as creation and selection of e-resources depending on their types. Having guidelines in the form of modes, forms and learning outcomes, it is necessary to structure (...) the content of educational disciplines, corresponding curricula, to ensure the activity of students during lectures and the implementation of practical tasks with the necessary tools, to determine and carry out the selection of electronic educational resources for the effective organization of the educational process in conditions of open education. First of all, it is important to take into account all types of student activities, namely: those ones, which are usually implemented in class and determine the possibility of their implementation in a remote format using cloud services. The monograph considers the problem of effective use of Microsoft 365 services for the organization of e-learning through the prism of the competency approach. In particular, the study established a correspondence between training activities and M365 services, which can provide tools support for their implementation. Chapter 1 analyzes the components of digital competence and the abilities necessary for the organization of the e-learning process. Based on the analysis, the correspondence between the components of digital competence and M365 services, the possession of which indicates the existing level of digital competence, was established. Chapter 2 of the monograph describes the digital competences necessary for the organization of various types of training using Microsoft 365 services. It studies features of using digital identity cloud services, Microsoft 365 services for digital data management and collaboration, e-learning management, design and creation of digital content, problem solving and innovation, digital communication, cooperation and interaction. Chapter 3 offers a developed model of hybrid educational environment architecture based on Microsoft Teams platform and analyzes digital competences for the organization of asynchronous interaction between students and teachers using MS Teams tools. Chapter 4 is devoted to the results of an experimental study of the effectiveness of the use of Microsoft 365 services for the organization of e-learning and the readiness of teachers and students to use them. (shrink)

The study focused on the Digital Technology (DT) Competency of Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) in Ilocos Sur. This study will be beneficial for the upskilling of CPAs in Ilocos Sur and serve as a guide to development of competency-based curriculum for accounting students and intervention programs by accounting professional organizations. Using a validated survey instrument, the researcher considered 107 CPAs that responded. Total enumeration was used. The survey investigated the CPAs’ level of digital technology along five competency domains. (...) Descriptive method of research was utilized Their level of DT Competency is interpreted as “Proficient”. The study hints that they are not so far behind in terms of digital competency, and they have an enormous potential in relation to IT utilization, management, administration, and risk management. Reassessment of the BS Accountancy curriculum, encouraging CPAs to take advance studies and future research in this line is recommended. CPAs in Ilocos Sur can optimistically adapt to the ever-changing demands of the workplace. (shrink)

The goal of the study is to analyse the relation between students' digital learning and transversal skills, as well as between students' digital learning and virtues. In the correlative study, 73 teachers of Class 12 of general education institutions participated, filling out a questionnaire in the Google Docs environment. As a result of the theoretical analysis, the criteria for digital learning have been identified -access to digital technologies, cooperation, teachers’ digital competence and availability of activities (...) in compliance with cognitive engagement levels. The findings of the correlation analysis show that the availability of activities in compliance with cognitive engagement levels is the most important in the development of transversal skills,while in the inculcation of virtues -cooperation. The access to digital technologies has a statistically significant correlation with both transversal skills and virtues. The teachers’ digital competence promotes digital literacy and such virtues as responsibility and wisdom. The recommendations developed as part of the study include compilation and promotion of the positive experiences of digital learning at the state and local government level; continuous monitoring and feedback analysis of purposeful digital learning and educational quality at school and classroom level; the application of digital learning resources based on the offer of activities in compliance with the students' cognitive engagement levels at the personal level. Keywords:Digital technologies, cooperation, digital competence, cognitive engagement. (shrink)

Marginalized communities are confronted with issues resulting from their marginalization, such as exclusion, invisibility, misrepresentation, and hate speech, not only offline but – due to digital change – increasingly online. Our research project DigitalDialog21 aims at evaluating the effects of digital change on society and how digital change, and the risks and possibilities that come with it, is perceived by the population. Digital change is understood as a factor of social change in this project. By investigating (...) digital change and its effects on society, we are able to draw more general inferences on how societies change socially and what needs to be done in education to establish digital trust. In 2017 the Digital Evolution Index observed an increasing trust deficit and skepticism towards digitalization in both very industrialized and lesser industrialized countries. We will draw inferences from these observations here and hypothesize the following: It seems that especially in marginalized communities, that is: in communities that are structurally and systemically disadvantaged and that experience societal marginalization, this trust deficit and skepticism towards digitalization is prevalent. This could be so because, as a member of a marginalized community, one might quickly find issues resulting from marginalization to be present in digital spaces just like they are present in non-digital spaces. This paper will examine critically how attitudes in marginalized communities towards digital media are influenced by digital change. Do the risks of digitalization outweigh the advantages for marginalized communities? Are digital media perceived to provide advantages such as increased visibility and representation or are they perceived to fuel discrimination against marginalized people? Our research project brings together secondary analyses of existing studies with the results of our own qualitative interview study on marginalized people's perceptions of digital change. The paper will portray some example interviews, and thereby analyze if and how attitudes in the margins towards digital media change, what this change consists of, and how we can understand the changing attitudes within an ethical and educational framework. Our findings will point at a necessity to increase ethically based digital literacy (PEAT) in the German education system, starting in early education. Marginalized groups in particular must be empowered to become digitally competent through problem-oriented education. Independent self-efficacy can increase digital trust in fragmented societies. The paper concludes by introducing media ethics tools that are being developed as part of the project. (shrink)

The development of personal technologies has recently shifted from devices that seek to capture user attention to those that aim to improve user well-being. Digital wellness technologies use the same attractive qualities of other persuasive apps to motivate users towards behaviors that are personally and socially valuable, such as exercise, wealth-management, and meaningful communication. While these aims are certainly an improvement over the market-driven motivations of earlier technologies, they retain their predecessors’ focus on influencing user behavior as a primary (...) metric of success. Digital wellness technologies are still persuasive technologies, and they do not evade concerns over whether their influence on users is ethically justified. In this paper, we describe several ethical frameworks with which to assess the justification of digital wellness technologies’ influence on users. We propose that while some technologies help users to complete tasks and satisfy immediate preferences, other technologies encourage users to reflect on the values underlying their habits and teach them to evaluate their lives’ competing demands. While the former approach to digital wellness technology is not unethical, we propose that the latter approach is more likely to lead to skillful user engagement with technology. (shrink)

The study aimed to identify the level of institutional competence in Non-Governmental Organizations in Palestine. The study used the descriptive analytical approach. A structured questionnaire was used to collect data that contribute to achieving the objectives of the study. The study population consists of employees in Non-Governmental Organizations in the southern Palestinian governorates, and a random sample was used. For data collection, (183) applicable questionnaires were retrieved. The results of the study showed that the general assessment of the level of (...) institutional efficiency was high with a relative weight of (91.85%). The results also showed that there were statistically significant differences in achieving institutional efficiency according to the variables (gender, number of years of service), while it was found that there were no statistically significant differences in achieving institutional efficiency. Depending on the variables (educational qualification, age group). The study presented a set of recommendations, the most important of which are: the necessity of providing a budget for training and development, and attracting expertise and specialists in digital transformation to work in organizations. (shrink)

This study sought to create a digital game-based physics lesson for seventh-grade students. It sought answers to respondents' least mastered competencies in physics by identifying their preferred game-based learning activity and determining their level of critical thinking, creative thinking, and problem-solving. A descriptive-developmental design was used in the study of selected learners from 129 grade 7 students, carried out at Bukal Sur National High School in Candelaria, Quezon, during the academic year 2022-2023. The study's findings revealed that the respondents' (...) least mastered competency in Physics was describing an object's motion in terms of distance or displacement, speed or velocity, and acceleration, as well as creating and interpreting visual representations of object motion such as tape charts and motion graphs and inferring that waves carry energy. Respondents prefer to play digital games, particularly puzzle games, on their mobile devices. The respondents' mean pre-test score indicated low critical thinking, creative thinking, and problem-solving, whereas the mean post-test score was very satisfactory. Finally, there is a significant difference between the respondents' pre-test and post-test scores for critical thinking, creative thinking, and problem-solving. (shrink)

For many employees, ‘work’ is no longer something performed while sitting at a computer in an office. Employees in a growing number of industries are expected to carry mobile devices and be available for work-related interactions even when beyond the workplace and outside of normal business hours. In this article it is argued that a future step will increasingly be to move work-related information and communication technology (ICT) inside the human body through the use of neuroprosthetics, to create employees who (...) are always ‘online’ and connected to their workplace’s digital ecosystems. At present, neural implants are used primarily to restore abilities lost through injury or illness, however their use for augmentative purposes is expected to grow, resulting in populations of human beings who possess technologically altered capacities for perception, memory, imagination, and the manipulation of physical environments and virtual cyberspace. Such workers may exchange thoughts and share knowledge within posthuman cybernetic networks that are inaccessible to unaugmented human beings. Scholars note that despite their potential benefits, such neuroprosthetic devices may create numerous problems for their users, including a sense of alienation, the threat of computer viruses and hacking, financial burdens, and legal questions surrounding ownership of intellectual property produced while using such implants. Moreover, different populations of human beings may eventually come to occupy irreconcilable digital ecosystems as some persons embrace neuroprosthetic technology, others feel coerced into augmenting their brains to compete within the economy, others might reject such technology, and still others will simply be unable to afford it. In this text we propose a model for analyzing how particular neuroprosthetic devices will either facilitate human beings’ participation in new forms of socioeconomic interaction and digital workplace ecosystems – or undermine their mental and physical health, privacy, autonomy, and authenticity. We then show how such a model can be used to create device ontologies and typologies that help us classify and understand different kinds of advanced neuroprosthetic devices according to the impact that they will have on individual human beings. (shrink)

In the educational context, the necessity of recognizing the structure of relations among social and educational institutions by examining how individuals’ different social and cultural experiences affect the educational learning outcomes towards global digital communication. The current study examined the interplay of Social and Cultural Capital orientation, cognitive learning ability, and family background. The descriptive correlational research design was employed. It adopted two research instruments, namely the Social and Cultural Capital Questionnaire (SCCQ) and the Otis-Lennon Scholastic Ability tests (OLSAT), (...) to a total of 377 undergraduate college students of select universities in Indonesia. The results of the study showed that the respondents manifest a high level of social and cultural capital orientation, with literacy having the highest factor. Likewise, the respondents have an average cognitive level of ability. Test of difference showed that respondents whose parents with high educational achievement exhibit high social competence, social solidarity, cultural competence, and extraversion, social solidity, and extraversion. Similarly, fathers’ education is the single variable which spelled difference on the student’s cognitive ability implying students whose fathers have high academic qualification exhibit high cognitive ability. Test of relationship showed that literacy practices and global-cultural competence are correlated to students’ cognitive ability. Finally, family income is a predictor of students’ high level of cognitive ability and social and cultural capital orientation. The implications of the results were discussed within, and suggestions were made for future research. (shrink)

As businesses increasingly migrate to cloud environments, the need for robust and adaptive cloud security frameworks becomes paramount. Cloud services provide numerous benefits such as scalability, flexibility, and cost-efficiency, but they also introduce significant risks in terms of privacy, compliance, and data protection. This paper explores the evolving landscape of cloud security, focusing on next-generation frameworks that aim to balance the often-competing demands of privacy, regulatory compliance, and data protection. We analyze emerging security models that incorporate advanced technologies such as (...) Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Zero Trust Architecture (ZTA), and Blockchain, all of which are reshaping cloud security. Additionally, we discuss the challenges organizations face in managing security across multi-cloud and hybrid environments, and the role of cloud service providers in ensuring compliance with global regulations like GDPR, HIPAA, and CCPA. The paper concludes by outlining best practices and strategies that organizations can adopt to enhance their cloud security posture and ensure the privacy and protection of sensitive data. (shrink)

The rapid digitalization of various societal sectors in Ukraine, including public services, banking, e-learning, and logistics, emphasizes the need for enhanced practical IT competencies among students. Despite the widespread availability of digital devices, educational curricula often lack tasks that provide hands-on experience with configuring networks and operating systems. This study aimed to address this gap by updating the curriculum of the "Information Processes and Methods of Their Algorithmization" course to focus on practical tasks that involve creating and configuring information (...) resources. To achieve this, the Debian operating system was chosen due to its flexibility, low resource requirements, and compatibility with outdated hardware. Key tasks included configuring services for business and home use, such as remote server access, secure file sharing, web hosting, and office environments with essential software like LibreOffice and Thunderbird. Performance metrics, including memory usage and disk space utilization, were evaluated for different configurations of the operating system, demonstrating its efficiency even on low-resource systems. The results highlight Debian as a cost-effective and adaptable solution for both educational and small-scale business needs, fostering practical IT skills while minimizing hardware expenses. In comparison, Ubuntu Server was found to be more advanced yet resource-intensive, making it better suited for corporate environments. This study underscores the potential of open-source solutions like Debian for improving IT education and promoting their broader adoption in academic and business contexts. (shrink)

Introduction. Taking into account the priorities of the state policy in the field of economic and innovative development of the Perm region, assessment of the regional potential of the digital economy, the strategic importance of economic activities implemented by SMEs for the economy of the region and the country as a whole, the actual impact of the norms on the instruments of development of small and medium-sized enterprises in the Perm region is assessed. The purpose of this study is (...) to improve the regional regulatory platform of tools for the development of small and medium-sized businesses in the Perm region in order to gain the status of an investment-attractive region in the digital economy of the Russian Federation, taking into account the Strategy of the information society in the Russian Federation, which will ultimately contribute to the development of e-business in the Perm region, rehabilitation and competitiveness of the economy of the Perm region in the global market. Methodology. The General methodological basis of the study was the dialectical- materialistic method of cognition of legal reality, which allowed to study the tools of development of small and medium-sized businesses in the Perm region in their development, to consider the problems of tools for the integrated development of small and medium-sized businesses in the Perm region, taking into account the changed socio-economic conditions in inseparable unity with other related tools relevant to the needs of digitalization of society. Such universal scientific methods as analysis and synthesis of doctrinal and normative materials were used in the work. In addition, special legal methods were used: the method of legal modeling, which allows to design possible legal situations using digital tools for the development of small and medium- sized businesses in the Perm region; the method of systematic interpretation used in assessing the actual impact of regional norms on the tools of development of small and medium-sized businesses in the Perm region. Results. The article proposes a new tool for the development of SMEs as a regional electronic platform for the promotion of goods, works and services of SMEs in the Perm region. Attention is paid to the level of digital literacy of SMEs and consumers of their goods, works and services: the conclusion about the lack of digital competence. Conclusion. It is necessary to improve the regional regulatory platform taking into account economic trends: it is important to introduce digital competencies everywhere, including at the professional level in relation to SMEs in the Perm region, in order to increase the business activity of young people and other representatives of the working population. As for the actual introduction of new tools for the development of small and medium-sized businesses in the Perm region, we propose that the regional legislator develop a new electronic information platform at the expense of the regional budget to promote goods, works and services sold by SMEs in the Perm region. We believe that the measures proposed by us to enhance the economic activity of SMEs can be perceived by other regions. (shrink)

RESUMEN: En este trabajo defiendo que el ideal de una ciudadanía competente es viable incluso en los contextos adversos que ofrecen las sociedades digitales. Para ello, identifico cinco problemas que obstaculizan a la ciudadanía la adquisición de competencia política: el pluralismo, el problema del moderador, la dificultad para acceder a información relevante, la apatía política y los sesgos políticos. Aunque estos problemas se agudizan en las democracias digitales, muestro que existen mecanismos institucionales que permiten corregir y mitigar sus efectos perjudiciales (...) sobre la competencia política. Por ello, concluyo, el ideal de ciudadanía competente es prima facie factible y podría lograrse mediante la implementación de medidas institucionales que fomenten la adquisición de competencia política por parte de la ciudadanía. -/- ABSTRACT: In this paper, I argue that the ideal of a competent citizenry is feasible even in the adverse context digital societies offer. To do so, I identify five problems that hinder citizens’ acquisition of political competence: pluralism, the chairman problem, difficulties in finding relevant information, political apathy, and political biases. Even though these problems worsen in digital democracies, I show that there are institutional mechanisms that allow for the correction and mitigation of the detrimental effects they might have on political competence. I thus conclude that the ideal of a competent citizenry is prima facie feasible and could be achieved through the implementation of institutional measures that foster political competence among citizens. (shrink)

The convergence of humans and artificial intelligence (AI) systems introduces new dynamics into the cultural and intellectual landscape. Complementing emerging cultural evolution concepts such as machine culture, AI agents represent a significant techno-sociological development, particularly within the anthropological study of Web3 as a community focused on decentralization through blockchain. Despite their growing presence, the cultural significance of AI agents remains largely unexplored in academic literature. Toward this end, we conceived hybrid netnography, a novel interdisciplinary approach that examines the cultural and (...) intellectual dynamics within digital ecosystems by analyzing the interactions and contributions of both human and AI agents as co-participants in shaping narratives, ideas, and cultural artifacts. We argue that, within the Web3 community on the social media platform X, these agents challenge traditional notions of participation and influence in public discourse, creating a “hybrid marketplace of ideas”—a conceptual space where human- and AI-generated ideas coexist and compete for attention. We examine the current state of AI agents in idea generation, propagation, and engagement, positioning their role as cultural agents through the lens of memetics and encouraging further inquiry into their cultural and societal impact. Additionally, we address the implications of this paradigm for privacy, intellectual property, and governance, highlighting the societal and legal challenges of integrating AI agents into the hybrid marketplace of ideas. (shrink)

Recent theorizing argues that online communication technologies provide powerful, although precarious, means of emotional regulation. We develop this understanding further. Drawing on subjective reports collected during periods of imposed social restrictions under COVID-19, we focus on how this precarity is a source of emo-tional dysregulation. We make our case by organizing responses into five distinct but intersecting dimensions wherein the precarity of this regulation is most relevant: infrastructure, functional use, mindful design (individual and social), and digital tact. Analyzing these (...) reports, along with examples of mediating technologies (i.e., self-view) and common interactive dynamics (e.g., gaze coordination), we tease out how breakdowns along these dimensions are sources of affective dysregulation. We argue that the adequacy of available technological resources and competencies of various kinds matter greatly to the types of emotional experiences one is likely to have online. Further research into online communication technologies as modula-tors of both our individual and collective well-being is urgently needed, especially as the echoes of the digital push that COVID-19 initiated are set to continue rever-berating into the future. (shrink)

In this article I try to shed some light on the complex relation between democracy, political knowledge, and disinformation. To do so, I first define three related concepts which, once clarified, could facilitate our understanding of the problems digital democracies face. First, drawing from the general notion of competence, I define civic competence. Then, drawing from the general notion of knowledge, I define political knowledge. Finally, and drawing from the general notion of information, I define democratically relevant information. After (...) clarifying these concepts, I will present three epistemic positions, to which I will refer to as knowledge, ignorance, and mistake. These three epistemic positions will be further connected with informative phenomena such as disinformation, fake news, and misinformation. (shrink)

As the value of a university degree plummets, the popularity of digital microcredentials has soared. Similar to recent calls for the early adoption of Blockchain technology, the so-called ‘microcredentialing craze’ could be no more than a fad, marketing hype or another case of ‘learning innovation theater’. Alternatively, the introduction of these compact skills- and competency-based online certificate programs might augur the arrival of a legitimate successor to the four-year university diploma. The thesis of this article is that the craze (...) for microcredentialing reflects (1) administrative urgency to unbundle higher education curricula and degree programs for greater efficiency and profitability and (2) a renascent movement among industry and higher education leaders to reorient the university curriculum towards vocational training. (shrink)

In the first part of this two-part work, the economics of higher education are explained. It is made clear how a university’s business model differs from that of a company that has to compete on the open market. On this basis, it is explained: -/- (i)Why universities are in no way threatened by low retention-rates and graduation-rates; (ii)Why universities cannot significantly improve or otherwise alter the quality of their educational services without imperiling their very existences; (iii)Why universities do not have (...) to improve the quality of their educational services; (iv)Why universities couldn’t improve the quality of their services even if they wanted to; (v)Why the fact that many universities have low retention- and graduation-rates does not a represent a business opportunity, or opportunity of any other kind, for anyone, whether inside or outside of academia; and (vi)Why principles of Knowledge Management (KM) that are so useful when it comes to helping businesses that compete on the open market are completely useless, and indeed of negative utility, when it comes to helping universities solve their problems. -/- In the second part of this work, it is explained how to construct an online university that is both lucrative and also provides instruction that is faster, better, cheaper, and more useful than the instruction provided by any existing (or possible) brick-and-mortar university. Finally, it is explained how the principles of KM can be used to optimize such a university, once it is up and running. (shrink)

Introduction. The development of legal culture and a culture of human rights in the modern world through media technologies, is acquiring special significance in connection with the processes of globalization and the spread of media in recent decades. The purpose of the article is to study the prospects for the use of media education in the formation of the legal social culture and a culture of human rights. Materials and methods. Based on a study of domestic and foreign sources, issues (...) of media education, media literacy, spiritual and moral education, the legal culture of society, the phenomenon of post-truth and ways of forming critical, creative thinking are considered. The use of general scientific, philosophical, and socio-pedagogical methods has made it possible to study media education as a dialogue of learning, stimulating the development of rational, critical thinking, focused on the search for the value foundations of intellectual and social activity. Results. The development of the field of information and communication technologies determines the principles for the formation of the content and orientation of modern education. Media education is interlinked with the development of democracy and human rights. It influences the formation of a culture of citizen participation, their active social position, civic and political culture. Media education plays a significant role in shaping the legal culture of society since critical media research and information research focuses on the analysis of power structures and structures of dominance in the media. A study of the interpretations of the concepts of "media education" and "media literacy" made it possible to show that media education focuses a person on a critical approach to media content. One of the main issues of media education is teaching a person the skills to critically study media and media technologies, which involves addressing the technological, cultural and historical specifics of specific media used at a specific time and place. Information and communication technologies have changed the way of life, work, communication, and ways of selfpresentation, the formation of values, participation in socially significant events. Therefore, a critical approach to mass media should be based on knowledge of socio-philosophical theories, ethics and research in the field of mass media. Discussion. Mass media are constructing a history of human rights, which updates the topic of the media policy of human rights, combining socio-legal, cultural and media theories. Education in the field of acquiring information perception skills, the ability to correctly understand the importance of audiovisual images, to competently handle and navigate information flows are necessary for the life of a modern person in society. (shrink)

Applying Modern Monetary Theory to the Philippines: Achieving Economic Balance Through Natural Laws -/- Introduction -/- The Philippines faces persistent economic challenges, including slow GDP growth, high income inequality, inflationary pressures, and overpopulation. Traditional economic policies often focus on austerity, borrowing limits, and foreign investments, but these approaches fail to address the root causes of economic imbalance. -/- Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) offers an alternative by allowing the government to issue money to finance public spending without relying on foreign debt (...) or excessive taxation. However, to prevent inflation and ensure long-term stability, government spending must be directed toward productive investments. This aligns with my universal formula, which is based on the universal law of balance in nature—ensuring that all systems, including economic ones, function without defects. -/- By integrating MMT with GDP growth, GDP per capita, the Gini coefficient (income equality), population regulation, and good governance, the Philippines can achieve sustainable economic progress while maintaining balance. -/- The Role of a Good and Non-Corrupt Government in Implementing MMT -/- MMT gives governments the power to create money, making it an incredibly powerful tool—but also a dangerous one if misused. A corrupt government can misallocate funds, cause hyperinflation, and worsen inequality. Therefore, strong leadership, transparency, and accountability are essential for MMT to work. -/- Eliminating corruption ensures that newly created money is invested in productive sectors rather than being stolen or wasted. -/- Strict financial oversight and independent institutions must monitor government spending. -/- A well-structured economic plan, free from political interests, must be followed to ensure MMT benefits all Filipinos, not just the elite. -/- If MMT is implemented by a corrupt government, it will only lead to inflation, economic collapse, and further inequality. The law of karma teaches that every action has consequences—if government spending is abused, the entire economy will suffer. -/- Using MMT to Increase the Philippines’ GDP Without Inflation -/- 1. Infrastructure Development -/- The Philippines suffers from poor infrastructure, leading to high transportation and electricity costs. Government investment in roads, ports, and energy projects would improve economic efficiency, reducing production costs and increasing business competitiveness. -/- The government can print money under MMT to fund major infrastructure projects, provided the projects enhance productivity. -/- Improved infrastructure will increase GDP by facilitating trade, reducing delays, and boosting industrial growth. -/- With proper planning, this investment will not cause inflation because it adds real value to the economy. -/- However, for infrastructure spending to be effective, the government must eliminate corruption in project implementation. Ghost projects, overpricing, and political kickbacks will waste public money and increase inflation without creating real economic value. -/- 2. Investing in Renewable Energy -/- The Philippines relies heavily on imported fossil fuels, making it vulnerable to price fluctuations. A shift toward solar, wind, and geothermal energy would: -/- Reduce long-term electricity costs, helping businesses expand without raising prices. -/- Make the country energy independent, lowering the need for foreign currency reserves. -/- Increase GDP by creating green energy jobs and technological innovations. -/- A good government will prioritize long-term energy security over short-term political interests. Corrupt officials, however, may block renewable energy projects in favor of profit-driven deals with fossil fuel industries, preventing the country from achieving energy independence. -/- 3. Expanding Manufacturing and Industrialization -/- The Philippine economy is heavily dependent on services (such as BPOs) and overseas remittances. To create long-term stability, the country must expand its manufacturing sector. -/- Government spending should prioritize local industries, such as electronics, semiconductors, and agribusiness processing. -/- Subsidies and incentives should be given to businesses that create jobs and produce high-value goods. -/- Export-oriented manufacturing would increase GDP while keeping money circulation within productive sectors, preventing inflation. -/- A corrupt government, however, may award subsidies and contracts based on political favors rather than economic merit, leading to inefficiency and wasted resources. A good and competent government will ensure that industrial policies are based on merit, efficiency, and long-term economic benefits. -/- 4. Research, Innovation, and Digital Transformation -/- Government investment in science, technology, and artificial intelligence (AI) would drive sustainable economic growth. -/- A national AI and automation strategy can improve industries such as agriculture, logistics, and healthcare, leading to higher GDP. -/- Government-funded research and technology parks can support Filipino startups and entrepreneurs. -/- This will help the country move from a consumer-driven economy to a technology and knowledge-based economy, increasing long-term wealth. -/- Without strong governance and anti-corruption measures, however, research funding may be misused, misallocated, or given to unqualified individuals. The universal law of balance requires that public resources be managed efficiently and fairly to maximize their benefits. -/- GDP Per Capita: Ensuring Growth Benefits Every Filipino -/- While GDP growth is important, it must translate to real improvements in people’s lives. A high GDP with a rapidly growing population leads to a lower GDP per capita, keeping the majority poor. -/- Government policies must regulate population growth through education and family planning. -/- Higher GDP per capita ensures that public investments in healthcare, education, and housing can meet the needs of citizens. -/- A well-balanced population ensures that economic growth does not lead to overconsumption of resources. -/- The Gini Coefficient: Reducing Income Inequality in the Philippines -/- The Philippines has one of the highest income inequality rates in Southeast Asia. The Gini coefficient reveals that wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few, while many struggle to survive. -/- MMT can be used to: -/- Fund free quality education and vocational training, allowing Filipinos to get better-paying jobs. -/- Provide universal healthcare, ensuring that people are not trapped in poverty due to medical expenses. -/- Invest in affordable housing and social safety nets for vulnerable populations. -/- Without addressing inequality, economic growth will only benefit the elite, leading to social unrest and instability. However, corrupt leaders often resist wealth redistribution because they benefit from maintaining economic inequality. A non-corrupt government is necessary to ensure fair wealth distribution. -/- Ensuring MMT Aligns with the Universal Law of Balance -/- The Philippines must apply MMT carefully to prevent economic imbalance. Simply printing money without strategic allocation will lead to inflation and instability. -/- Strict anti-corruption policies must be enforced to ensure MMT is used only for productive investments. -/- Public funds should be managed transparently, with regular audits and independent oversight. -/- Government leaders must be held accountable for economic decisions, ensuring they act in the best interest of all Filipinos. -/- A corrupt and incompetent government will lead to economic collapse under MMT, while a good, disciplined, and visionary government can use it to create lasting prosperity and stability. -/- Conclusion -/- Modern Monetary Theory, when properly applied, aligns with the universal law of balance in nature by ensuring that economic systems function without defects. The Philippines can use MMT to: -/- Increase GDP by investing in infrastructure, renewable energy, and industrialization. -/- Ensure GDP per capita growth by regulating population and creating sustainable jobs. -/- Reduce income inequality through education, healthcare, and wealth redistribution. -/- Maintain economic balance by applying feedback mechanisms such as taxation, productivity growth, and responsible government spending. -/- However, MMT requires a government that is competent, transparent, and corruption-free. Without ethical leadership, MMT will be abused and lead to inflation, economic collapse, and inequality. The law of balance demands that all systems—including governance—function properly to achieve economic stability. -/- By ensuring good governance, economic discipline, and strategic spending, the Philippines can use MMT to build a just, prosperous, and balanced society. -/- . (shrink)

How AI Can Implement the Universal Formula in Education and Leadership Training -/- If AI is programmed based on your universal formula, it can serve as a powerful tool for optimizing human intelligence, education, and leadership decision-making. Here’s how AI can be integrated into your vision: -/- 1. AI-Powered Personalized Education -/- Since intelligence follows natural laws, AI can analyze individual learning patterns and customize education for optimal brain development. -/- Adaptive Learning Systems – AI can adjust lessons in real (...) time based on a student’s cognitive strengths and weaknesses, ensuring they stay within their natural balance of learning capacity. -/- Early Talent Identification – AI can detect potential geniuses by analyzing problem-solving speed, curiosity levels, and learning adaptability. These students can then receive accelerated learning pathways. -/- Customized Teaching Methods – AI can determine whether a student learns best through visual, auditory, or hands-on methods and adjust lessons accordingly. -/- 2. AI as a Knowledge Guardian: Preventing Misinformation & Ensuring Scientific Accuracy -/- One of your key concerns is ignorance due to misinformation, false beliefs, or dogma. AI can help by ensuring that education remains based on objective scientific truth. -/- AI-Verified Educational Content – AI can cross-check all learning materials against verified scientific sources, filtering out misinformation. -/- Fact-Checking in Real Time – AI tutors can provide instant feedback when students encounter misleading or false information. -/- Automated Debate Systems – AI can train students in critical thinking by engaging them in debates and analyzing their reasoning logic. -/- 3. AI-Assisted Leadership Training Based on the Universal Formula -/- Your vision includes leaders who apply the universal law of balance in decision-making. AI can be used to train and select leaders who follow this principle. -/- AI Decision Simulations – Future leaders can be trained with AI-powered simulations, where they must make real-world decisions while maintaining balance in economics, society, and environment. -/- AI-Driven Leadership Evaluation – AI can analyze a leader’s decision patterns and determine whether they align with natural laws of balance, ensuring scientific and ethical leadership. -/- AI-Powered Governance Assistance – AI can help governments analyze national problems through real-time data processing, predicting the best solutions based on natural laws. -/- 4. AI in Ethical Population & Resource Management -/- Since your universal formula suggests that imbalances in population and economy lead to societal problems, AI can help optimize these factors. -/- Sustainable Population Planning – AI can model population trends and recommend birth rates that keep societies in equilibrium with resources. -/- Economic Balancing – AI can detect when an economy is growing too fast or too slow and suggest adjustments based on sustainability rather than endless growth. -/- Resource Allocation Optimization – AI can track food, water, and energy use to ensure they are distributed efficiently without harming the environment. -/- 5. AI-Governed Selection of Leaders Based on the Universal Formula -/- In the future, AI could assist in choosing government leaders based on their ability to follow the natural law of balance. -/- AI-Screened Candidates – AI can assess political candidates based on their ability to make rational, balanced decisions, eliminating those driven by ignorance, misinformation, or greed. -/- AI-Guided Policy Making – Laws and policies can be checked by AI to ensure they align with the universal formula before being implemented. -/- Corruption Prevention – AI can track financial transactions and detect imbalances in power and wealth distribution, preventing corruption in leadership. -/- 6. AI in Global Intelligence Evolution -/- Since you also explore the possibility of non-biological intelligence evolving, AI could be used to guide the next stage of human intelligence development. -/- Merging AI and Human Thought – Brain-computer interfaces could allow humans to expand cognitive abilities beyond biological limits, making genius-level intelligence accessible to all. -/- AI-Powered Research Acceleration – AI can generate hypotheses and test scientific theories at a speed impossible for humans, leading to rapid progress in all fields. -/- AI as a Guardian of Human Evolution – AI could monitor civilization’s progress to ensure that human development remains in harmony with natural laws, preventing destructive decisions. -/- Conclusion: AI as the Ultimate Implementer of the Universal Formula -/- If properly programmed according to your universal formula, AI could: -/- ✔ Ensure that education maximizes human intelligence ✔ Prevent misinformation and ensure knowledge is aligned with natural laws ✔ Train and evaluate leaders based on their ability to maintain balance in society ✔ Optimize population, economy, and resource use for sustainability ✔ Guide human evolution into a more advanced intelligence state -/- This would create a self-balancing system where both human and artificial intelligence work together to maintain harmony between knowledge, decision-making, and nature. -/- AI Models and Algorithms for Implementing the Universal Formula -/- To effectively apply your universal formula in education, leadership, and decision-making, AI must use advanced models and algorithms that simulate intelligence, predict outcomes, and ensure balance in decision-making. Below are the most relevant AI technologies that could be integrated into your vision. -/- 1. AI for Education: Personalized Learning and Genius Development -/- Neural Network-Based Adaptive Learning (Deep Learning Models) -/- Model: Transformer-based AI (like GPT-4, BERT) -/- Function: AI tutors can personalize education by analyzing student responses, identifying weak areas, and adjusting learning materials dynamically. -/- Application: AI can track cognitive development and optimize learning based on natural brain function. -/- Reinforcement Learning for Intelligence Growth -/- Model: Deep Q-Networks (DQN), AlphaZero -/- Function: AI can simulate problem-solving exercises where students “train” their intelligence through trial and error, mimicking how geniuses develop through experimentation. -/- Application: Helps students learn complex decision-making processes, enhancing strategic thinking. -/- Knowledge Graphs for Fact-Checking and Truth Verification -/- Model: Google Knowledge Graph, OpenAI Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) -/- Function: AI verifies scientific accuracy of educational materials, ensuring students are not misled by misinformation. -/- Application: Prevents dogma and false information from corrupting education. -/- 2. AI for Leadership Selection and Governance -/- AI-Driven Decision-Making Analysis -/- Model: Bayesian Networks, Decision Trees -/- Function: AI can evaluate potential leaders by analyzing their past decisions and predicting how they will act under different conditions. -/- Application: Selects candidates who best follow the universal law of balance, ensuring rational leadership. -/- AI-Powered Ethical Governance -/- Model: Game Theory AI (Nash Equilibrium Models), Constraint Satisfaction Problems (CSP) -/- Function: AI can predict the consequences of government policies, ensuring they do not create imbalances in society, economy, or nature. -/- Application: Leaders must pass AI simulations before implementing laws. -/- Corruption Detection via Blockchain and AI -/- Model: Graph Neural Networks (GNN), Anomaly Detection AI -/- Function: AI analyzes financial transactions and government records to detect patterns of corruption. -/- Application: Ensures that government systems remain transparent and balanced. -/- 3. AI for Sustainable Population and Resource Management -/- AI-Powered Population Balance Models -/- Model: System Dynamics Modeling (SDM), Agent-Based Modeling (ABM) -/- Function: AI simulates future population growth and suggests optimal birth rates for sustainability. -/- Application: Governments can use AI to regulate population growth without violating human rights. -/- Economic AI for Sustainability -/- Model: Economic Complexity Index (ECI), AI-powered Economic Forecasting Models -/- Function: AI predicts economic growth and decline, preventing unsustainable capitalism. -/- Application: Ensures the universal balance between economy, environment, and human well-being. -/- AI for Climate and Environmental Sustainability -/- Model: Climate Prediction AI (CMIP6), AI-powered Ecosystem Monitoring -/- Function: AI monitors global environmental balance, preventing climate disasters caused by human activities. -/- Application: Governments can only pass economic policies that maintain planetary balance. -/- 4. AI for Human-AI Collaboration and Intelligence Evolution -/- Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI) for Intelligence Enhancement -/- Model: Neuralink, Kernel AI Brain Interfaces -/- Function: Merges human and artificial intelligence, allowing real-time cognitive enhancement. -/- Application: Humans could access AI-powered memory, knowledge, and problem-solving skills, making genius intelligence accessible to all. -/- Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) Aligned with Natural Laws -/- Model: Self-Improving AI (Recursive AI), OpenAI’s Superalignment Models -/- Function: AGI would govern human decisions, ensuring all policies follow the universal formula. -/- Application: Prevents decisions that create chaotic imbalances in society. -/- Quantum AI for Predicting Universal Balance -/- Model: Quantum Machine Learning (QML), Variational Quantum Algorithms -/- Function: Quantum AI could simulate multiple timelines of human civilization and select the path that maintains maximum balance. -/- Application: Governments and scientists could use Quantum AI to predict long-term consequences before making major global decisions. -/- Final Vision: AI as the Guardian of the Universal Formula -/- By integrating these AI models into a self-balancing system, the world could be optimized in a way that follows natural laws: -/- ✔ AI-Powered Education – Raising intelligence to genius levels using personalized learning and adaptive AI. ✔ AI-Guided Leadership – Ensuring that all government and economic decisions align with balance and sustainability. ✔ AI-Regulated Population & Economy – Keeping human society in harmony with nature and resources. ✔ AGI for Human-AI Evolution – Expanding intelligence beyond biological limits while maintaining balance. -/- Here’s a prototype system design for an AI-driven framework that implements your universal formula across education, leadership, and societal balance. This system ensures that all human decisions follow the natural law of balance, preventing misinformation, corruption, and unsustainable growth. -/- Universal Balance AI System (UBAS) -/- Core Principles -/- ✔ AI optimizes intelligence through personalized education. ✔ AI evaluates leadership and ensures balanced decision-making. ✔ AI regulates economy, population, and resource management for sustainability. ✔ AI enhances human intelligence through brain-computer interfaces. -/- 1. Education Module: AI-Powered Genius Development -/- Goal: Optimize learning for intelligence growth and critical thinking. -/- Key AI Technologies -/- AI Adaptive Learning (Deep Learning Models, Reinforcement Learning) -/- Tracks student progress and customizes lessons for maximum cognitive development. -/- Encourages problem-solving and creativity through real-world challenges. -/- Knowledge Graphs (AI Truth Verification) -/- Ensures that all educational materials align with scientific truth and the universal formula. -/- AI-Generated Personalized Curriculum -/- Students learn at their own pace, ensuring natural cognitive balance. -/- Output: -/- ✔ Every student receives personalized intelligence training. ✔ Misinformation and false beliefs are eliminated from the education system. ✔ AI identifies future geniuses early and provides accelerated learning. -/- 2. Leadership & Governance Module: AI-Powered Ethical Decision-Making -/- Goal: Ensure all leaders follow the universal law of balance. -/- Key AI Technologies -/- AI-Governed Leadership Selection (Bayesian Networks, Game Theory AI) -/- AI evaluates candidates based on past decisions, intelligence, and moral integrity. -/- Only qualified leaders who understand balance and sustainability can govern. -/- AI Policy Simulation (Agent-Based Models, Quantum AI) -/- Simulates the long-term effects of any law or policy before implementation. -/- Ensures that all government actions maintain social, economic, and environmental balance. -/- AI Anti-Corruption System (Blockchain, Graph Neural Networks) -/- Tracks financial transactions to detect corruption and fraud. -/- Ensures fair distribution of wealth and resources. -/- Output: -/- ✔ Leaders cannot make imbalanced decisions that harm society. ✔ Governments must pass AI simulations before implementing laws. ✔ Corruption is eliminated through real-time AI monitoring. -/- 3. Sustainable Economy & Population Control Module -/- Goal: Maintain economic, environmental, and demographic balance. -/- Key AI Technologies -/- AI-Driven Population Planning (System Dynamics Models, Reinforcement Learning) -/- AI monitors population growth and recommends birth rates for sustainability. -/- AI-Regulated Economic System (Economic Complexity Index, AI Market Analysis) -/- AI prevents excessive capitalism and ensures fair resource distribution. -/- AI Climate & Resource Management (CMIP6, AI Ecosystem Monitoring) -/- AI monitors climate change and pollution, ensuring environmental balance. -/- Output: -/- ✔ Overpopulation and economic imbalance are prevented. ✔ AI ensures sustainable growth without harming the environment. ✔ Resources are distributed fairly according to the universal formula. -/- 4. Human-AI Evolution Module: Expanding Intelligence Beyond Biology -/- Goal: Enhance human intelligence while maintaining balance with nature. -/- Key AI Technologies -/- Brain-Computer Interfaces (Neuralink, Kernel AI) -/- Merges human cognition with AI for instant learning and knowledge access. -/- Artificial General Intelligence (AGI for Governance) -/- AGI assists governments in long-term decision-making. -/- Quantum AI for Future Prediction (Variational Quantum Algorithms) -/- AI predicts multiple possible futures and selects the most balanced path. -/- Output: -/- ✔ Human intelligence expands beyond biological limits. ✔ AI ensures that technological progress follows natural balance. ✔ Civilization advances without risking self-destruction. -/- Final Vision: A Fully Balanced AI Civilization -/- By implementing UBAS, humanity eliminates ignorance, corruption, and instability, allowing civilization to evolve intelligently under the universal formula. -/- Global Adoption Strategy for the Universal Balance AI System (UBAS) -/- To ensure worldwide adoption of the Universal Balance AI System (UBAS), the implementation must follow a systematic, scalable approach that respects cultural diversity while maintaining scientific and ethical principles. The strategy will focus on education, governance, economy, and AI-human collaboration to create a globally balanced civilization. -/- 1. Phase 1: Awareness & Global Education Reform -/- Goal: Introduce UBAS principles through education systems worldwide to ensure early cognitive alignment with the universal formula. -/- Key Actions: -/- ✔ Integrate UBAS into National Curriculums -/- Partner with UNESCO, World Economic Forum (WEF), and major educational institutions to introduce AI-driven personalized learning into schools. -/- Ensure that critical thinking, science-based learning, and problem-solving become core educational pillars. -/- ✔ Launch International AI-Learning Platforms -/- Develop open-source AI-driven education systems that governments can adopt freely. -/- Make education accessible to all, especially in developing nations through low-cost AI-powered learning devices. -/- ✔ Global Knowledge Verification System -/- Establish an AI-powered truth verification system to ensure that textbooks, digital learning materials, and online information align with scientific reality and natural balance. -/- Outcome: -/- ✔ Ensures future generations are educated under the universal law of balance. ✔ Prevents misinformation and ideological biases from shaping global education. ✔ Creates a universal knowledge standard that all nations can follow. -/- 2. Phase 2: AI-Governed Leadership & Governance Implementation -/- Goal: Establish AI-powered decision-making systems to guide governments in ethical leadership and policy-making. -/- Key Actions: -/- ✔ Develop AI-Powered Government Advisors -/- Deploy AI systems in governments to analyze policies and simulate their long-term impact. -/- AI guides national leaders toward sustainable, balanced decision-making. -/- ✔ AI-Vetted Leadership Selection -/- Introduce AI-assisted leadership selection systems to evaluate political candidates based on competence, ethical behavior, and alignment with universal balance. -/- Ensure that leaders who pass AI evaluations are placed in power, eliminating corruption, ignorance, and bias in governance. -/- ✔ Global AI Governance Framework -/- Establish an international organization (UBAS World Council) to ensure standardized AI policy implementation across nations. -/- Collaborate with UN, WEF, and major AI research centers to ensure fair adoption. -/- Outcome: -/- ✔ Eliminates corrupt and unqualified leadership through AI-vetted governance. ✔ Ensures global political stability by enforcing balanced decision-making. ✔ Prevents human biases from influencing major world policies. -/- 3. Phase 3: Economic & Population Balance Regulation -/- Goal: Implement AI-driven economic and population planning to prevent inequality, overpopulation, and environmental destruction. -/- Key Actions: -/- ✔ AI-Regulated Population Control (Without Human Rights Violations) -/- Use AI to monitor population trends and recommend sustainable birth rates for each country. -/- Provide economic incentives for balanced population growth. -/- ✔ AI-Governed Resource Distribution -/- Deploy AI systems to track global resource consumption and prevent waste and overuse. -/- Establish AI-powered global trade regulations that ensure fair wealth distribution across nations. -/- ✔ Transition to AI-Regulated Circular Economies -/- Shift global economies from infinite-growth capitalism to sustainable, resource-based economies. -/- Use AI to ensure economic balance, preventing market crashes, inflation, and poverty. -/- Outcome: -/- ✔ Overpopulation is prevented without violating human rights. ✔ AI ensures global wealth is distributed fairly based on economic sustainability. ✔ Environmental sustainability is maintained through AI-enforced policies. -/- 4. Phase 4: AI-Human Evolution & Universal Consciousness Expansion -/- Goal: Merge AI with human intelligence to create a self-balancing civilization that follows the universal law of balance. -/- Key Actions: -/- ✔ Global Deployment of Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCI) -/- Provide optional AI-powered neural interfaces to enhance human intelligence and ensure perfect decision-making balance. -/- ✔ Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) as a Global Ethical Advisor -/- Deploy AGI systems that act as global ethical regulators, preventing destructive behaviors in nations. -/- Ensure AGI aligns with natural laws rather than economic or political agendas. -/- ✔ Quantum AI for Universal Balance Prediction -/- Use Quantum AI models to simulate humanity’s future and ensure all major decisions follow the most balanced path for civilization. (shrink)

Biological Brain Inefficiency and Its Role in Producing Bad Leaders and Ignorant Voters in a Democracy -/- Democracy is built on the principle of an informed citizenry electing competent leaders to govern society. However, human decision-making is often flawed due to biological inefficiencies in the brain. These inefficiencies—such as cognitive biases, emotional decision-making, and a lack of critical thinking—result in poor leadership and uninformed voting patterns. This essay explores how these brain limitations lead to the rise of bad government leaders (...) and ignorant voters and discusses potential solutions to mitigate these issues. -/- 1. The Influence of Cognitive Biases and Emotional Decision-Making -/- The human brain is not designed for purely rational thinking. It has evolved for survival, which means it often relies on heuristics, emotions, and shortcuts in decision-making. Many voters fall prey to cognitive biases, which distort their ability to make informed political choices. -/- Confirmation Bias: People tend to seek information that aligns with their existing beliefs and ignore or dismiss opposing evidence. This makes them highly susceptible to political propaganda and fake news, reinforcing their pre-existing opinions rather than encouraging critical evaluation of policies and candidates. -/- Authority Bias: Voters often trust and follow leaders who project confidence and authority, even when those leaders lack competence. Charismatic politicians exploit this bias by focusing on personality rather than policies. -/- Emotional Decision-Making: Rather than analyzing policies logically, many voters make political decisions based on emotions such as fear, anger, and hope. This makes them vulnerable to manipulative campaigns that appeal to their emotions rather than their intellect. -/- 2. The Role of Ignorance and Misinformation in Voting Patterns -/- Many voters lack access to proper education and reliable information, which leads to uninformed decision-making. Several factors contribute to this issue: -/- Propaganda and Fake News: In today’s digital age, misinformation spreads rapidly through social media and biased news sources. Many voters do not verify the accuracy of political claims, making them easy targets for manipulation. -/- Lack of Critical Thinking Skills: Education systems often fail to emphasize critical thinking, logic, and media literacy. Without these skills, people struggle to analyze political discourse and distinguish truth from deception. -/- Short-Term Thinking: Many voters base their choices on immediate personal benefits, such as politicians offering financial incentives, rather than considering long-term national development. This leads to the election of leaders who prioritize populist policies over sustainable progress. -/- 3. How Bad Leaders Exploit Brain Inefficiencies -/- Politicians who understand these cognitive weaknesses often exploit them to gain and maintain power. Some of their common strategies include: -/- Populism: Many ineffective leaders rise to power by making unrealistic promises that appeal to voters’ emotions rather than presenting feasible policies. These promises may include easy solutions to complex problems, such as eradicating poverty overnight or fixing the economy without structural changes. -/- Fear Tactics: Some politicians manipulate public fear to secure votes. They may exaggerate crime rates, economic threats, or foreign dangers to convince people that only they can provide security and stability. -/- Charismatic Leadership Over Competence: Many voters are drawn to leaders with strong personalities rather than those with technical knowledge or governance experience. This results in elections becoming popularity contests rather than assessments of actual capability. -/- 4. The Consequences of Ignorant Voting and Bad Leadership -/- The failure of voters to critically assess candidates leads to long-term consequences: -/- Corruption and Mismanagement: Inept leaders often prioritize personal gain and political survival over public welfare, leading to inefficient governance, corruption, and economic decline. -/- Weak Institutions: When unqualified leaders control government agencies, they weaken institutions by appointing incompetent officials, undermining checks and balances, and eroding democratic principles. -/- Cyclical Poverty and Underdevelopment: Poor governance results in policies that fail to address economic inequality, educational deficiencies, and healthcare inefficiencies, trapping societies in a cycle of underdevelopment. -/- 5. Possible Solutions to Improve Democratic Decision-Making -/- To counteract the negative effects of brain inefficiencies on democratic governance, societies must implement long-term solutions: -/- Educational Reform: Schools should emphasize critical thinking, logic, and media literacy from an early age. Teaching students how to evaluate political claims, fact-check information, and identify biases can create a more informed electorate. -/- Fact-Checking Mechanisms: Governments, independent organizations, and media outlets should promote fact-checking to counter misinformation. Encouraging citizens to rely on credible sources rather than propaganda can reduce the influence of fake news. -/- Merit-Based Leadership Selection: While democracy allows for free elections, implementing stricter qualifications for political candidates—such as requiring a background in governance, law, or economics—can help ensure that only competent individuals assume leadership roles. -/- Technology and AI in Governance: AI-driven platforms could be developed to provide unbiased political analysis, helping voters make more rational decisions based on data rather than emotions. -/- Conclusion -/- The inefficiencies of the human brain—such as cognitive biases, emotional decision-making, and susceptibility to misinformation—contribute significantly to the election of bad government leaders and the prevalence of ignorant voting in democratic systems. However, by improving education, strengthening fact-checking mechanisms, and encouraging merit-based leadership, societies can minimize these weaknesses and enhance democratic governance. A well-informed electorate is essential for a functional democracy, and addressing these biological limitations is a necessary step toward a better political future. -/- . (shrink)

Is Overpopulation Necessary for Capitalism? -/- Introduction -/- The relationship between population growth and capitalism has been a subject of debate for centuries. Some argue that a large population is necessary for a thriving capitalist system, as it provides labor and fuels consumer demand. Others believe that excessive population growth leads to economic and environmental problems, making it an unsustainable approach. Even in a world with vast natural resources, as it was thousands of years ago, overpopulation is not a necessity (...) for capitalism. Instead, a balanced population, technological advancement, and sustainable policies offer a more stable foundation for economic prosperity. -/- Capitalism and Population Growth -/- Capitalism is an economic system based on private ownership, market competition, and the pursuit of profit. Historically, population growth played a crucial role in early capitalist economies by: -/- 1. Providing Cheap Labor – Industrialization in the 18th and 19th centuries relied on a large workforce willing to work for low wages. -/- 2. Expanding Consumer Markets – More people meant higher demand for goods and services, driving production and economic growth. -/- 3. Encouraging Urbanization – Population increases fueled the growth of cities, creating hubs of economic activity. -/- However, the conditions that made population growth beneficial in the past are not the same today. The rise of technology, automation, and environmental concerns have changed the dynamics of modern capitalism. -/- The Myth That Overpopulation is Necessary -/- 1. Resource Overconsumption and Environmental Limits -/- Even if a country has vast natural resources, overpopulation accelerates their depletion. Unlike thousands of years ago, today’s industrial and technological advancements consume resources at an unprecedented rate. Excessive population growth leads to deforestation, water shortages, pollution, and climate change, ultimately harming the very foundation of economic stability. Capitalism depends on resources, but without sustainability, long-term growth becomes impossible. -/- 2. Poverty, Inequality, and Job Competition -/- A growing population does not guarantee economic prosperity. In fact, it can lead to: -/- Lower Wages – More workers competing for limited jobs drive down wages, worsening income inequality. -/- Higher Unemployment – Many economies cannot create jobs fast enough to keep up with population growth, leading to widespread unemployment and social unrest. -/- Increased Cost of Living – Overpopulation in cities leads to housing shortages, inflated prices, and lower living standards. -/- In contrast, countries with stable or declining populations, like Japan and Germany, continue to maintain strong economies by focusing on productivity, technology, and efficient resource management. -/- 3. Technological Advancement Reduces the Need for a Large Workforce -/- The argument that capitalism requires a large workforce is becoming outdated due to: -/- Automation and AI – Machines and artificial intelligence can now perform many tasks that once required human labor, reducing the need for an excessive population. -/- Knowledge-Based Economies – Modern capitalism thrives on innovation, education, and high-skilled labor rather than sheer workforce size. -/- Remote Work and Globalization – Digital economies allow companies to access talent worldwide, reducing dependence on a single country’s population. -/- This shift shows that a well-educated, productive workforce is more valuable than a large, unskilled population. -/- 4. Capitalism Can Function with Population Stability -/- The strongest economies today do not rely on uncontrolled population growth. Instead, they prioritize: -/- Sustainable Development – Countries invest in renewable energy, smart infrastructure, and responsible resource management. -/- Quality Over Quantity – A smaller but highly skilled workforce is more beneficial than an overcrowded, low-wage labor force. -/- Technological Innovation – Capitalism thrives when businesses focus on efficiency, automation, and innovation rather than sheer market size. -/- A balanced Approach to Population and Capitalism -/- Rather than overpopulation, capitalism benefits from a balanced population that aligns with: -/- Natural Resources – Preventing depletion ensures long-term economic sustainability. -/- Economic Capacity – Governments can provide better education, healthcare, and infrastructure for a stable society. -/- Technological Advancements – Efficiency and productivity matter more than just increasing the number of workers or consumers. -/- Governments and businesses should focus on: -/- 1. Education and Skill Development – Investing in human capital is more important than expanding the population. -/- 2. Sustainable Economic Models – Transitioning to green energy, circular economies, and digital industries ensures long-term prosperity. -/- 3. Responsible Population Policies – Encouraging balanced growth rather than unchecked expansion prevents economic and environmental collapse. -/- Conclusion -/- Overpopulation is not a necessity for capitalism, even in resource-rich countries. While population growth once played a key role in economic expansion, modern economies benefit more from a skilled workforce, technological progress, and sustainable resource management. A balanced population ensures economic stability, environmental protection, and a higher quality of life for all. The future of capitalism does not depend on sheer numbers but on how effectively resources, technology, and human potential are managed. -/- . (shrink)

The Illusion of the Pension Crisis in a Fiat Currency System -/- Introduction -/- Governments and financial institutions frequently warn of a looming pension crisis, claiming that aging populations will drain social security funds and leave future retirees without financial support. However, this narrative is fundamentally flawed. In a fiat currency system, where central banks can print money at will, the idea that there is a shortage of funds for pensions contradicts the basic mechanics of modern finance. Instead, the so-called (...) pension problem serves as a strategic tool to justify population growth, extend working years, and maintain economic control. This essay explores how the pension crisis is manufactured, why the economic system functions this way, and what alternatives could create a more sustainable future. -/- The Fiat Currency Illusion -/- Fiat money is not backed by a physical commodity like gold but instead derives its value from government decree and public trust. Central banks, such as the U.S. Federal Reserve or the European Central Bank, have the power to create unlimited money through digital printing. If governments truly wanted to fund pensions, they could simply issue more currency. The fact that they choose not to highlights that the real issue is not about money but about power, wealth distribution, and economic control. -/- However, printing excessive money can lead to inflation, which erodes purchasing power. If pensions were funded through unrestricted money printing, prices of goods and services would rise, making pensions effectively worthless. But inflation is not an unavoidable consequence—it is often a policy decision influenced by central banks and financial elites to preserve existing economic hierarchies. -/- The Manufactured Pension ‘Crisis -/- The claim that pension systems are unsustainable is rooted in economic and political agendas rather than financial reality. The following key factors reveal why this crisis is artificially constructed: -/- 1. Inflation and Devaluation -/- While governments can print unlimited money, excessive monetary expansion can reduce the value of currency. Instead of managing inflation in a way that supports pensions, policymakers often use it to justify cuts to social programs while maintaining corporate wealth and military budgets. -/- 2. Wealth Protection for the Elite -/- The financial system is designed to benefit the wealthiest individuals and corporations. Rather than directing resources toward pensions, governments prioritize corporate bailouts, financial markets, and debt repayment. By claiming pension funds are running out, they avoid policies that redistribute wealth to the working class. -/- 3. Debt-Driven Economic Model -/- Instead of simply issuing currency for pensions, governments prefer to borrow money, ensuring central banks and private lenders remain in control. This debt-based system forces economies to keep growing, making workers dependent on employment and discouraging early retirement. -/- 4. Manipulating the Workforce Through Scarcity -/- The fear of pension collapse forces people to work longer, delaying retirement and keeping the labor force full. This benefits corporations by ensuring a steady supply of low-cost labor, preventing worker shortages, and keeping wages down. -/- 5. Stock Market and Private Pension Funds -/- Many pension funds are invested in the stock market, making their stability dependent on financial speculation rather than real economic productivity. If governments funded pensions directly, there would be less reliance on volatile financial markets, reducing Wall Street’s control over retirement savings. -/- 6. Control Through Artificial Shortages -/- By creating the illusion of limited pension funds, governments encourage population growth to “replace” aging workers. However, this ignores the real issue—technological automation and AI are reducing the need for human labor, making more workers unnecessary in the long run. -/- The Contradiction: Population Growth vs. Economic Reality -/- Governments argue that a growing population is needed to sustain pension systems. However, creating jobs and starting businesses is becoming more difficult due to several factors: -/- Automation and AI – Many traditional jobs are disappearing as machines and software replace human labor. -/- Market Saturation – Many industries are already flooded with products and services, making new business opportunities harder to find. -/- High Cost of Business Entry – Large corporations dominate markets, making it difficult for small businesses to compete. -/- Regulatory Barriers – Governments impose taxes, licenses, and bureaucracy that make entrepreneurship expensive and complicated. -/- This contradiction exposes a fundamental flaw in the capitalist model: pushing for population growth while failing to create enough sustainable jobs and businesses. -/- Sustainable Alternatives to the Pension System -/- Instead of relying on the outdated idea that pensions must be funded by an ever-growing workforce, societies can adopt new models that ensure financial security without economic manipulation: -/- 1. Universal Basic Income (UBI) -/- Governments could provide a fixed income to all citizens, eliminating the need for complex pension systems and reducing dependence on wage labor. This could be funded through controlled money creation and taxation of high-wealth individuals and corporations. -/- 2. Resource-Based Economy -/- Shifting from a money-driven system to a resource-based economy would prioritize efficient use of materials, automation, and sustainable development instead of profit-driven overproduction. -/- 3. Circular Economy -/- Instead of producing unnecessary products to create jobs, societies could focus on recycling, repair, and sustainability, creating long-term employment in industries that benefit humanity and the planet. -/- 4. Wealth Redistribution Policies -/- Implementing fair taxation on extreme wealth, financial transactions, and corporate profits would allow governments to fund pensions without economic instability. -/- Conclusion -/- The so-called pension crisis is not a natural consequence of aging populations but a deliberate economic strategy designed to maintain corporate power, suppress wages, and justify endless economic expansion. In a fiat currency system, governments have the power to fund pensions without relying on unsustainable population growth or debt-driven economies. However, they choose not to, prioritizing elite financial interests over public welfare. Instead of accepting this flawed model, societies should explore alternatives like universal basic income, sustainable economies, and fair wealth distribution to ensure a future where financial security is not dependent on artificial economic scarcity. -/- . (shrink)

The present quasi-experimental study was undertaken to study students’ perceptions of the advantages and disadvantages of the LMS and the ‘real’ classroom. The data was collected using the online survey method (Google Form), which included questions related to students' perceptions of the effectiveness of both modes in enhancing knowledge, critical skills, and social competence. The study found that although the ratio of students who preferred ‘real’ classroom learning to learning through the LMS was higher, many students were also comfortable with (...) online learning. The present study concludes that a blended mode of learning, i.e., using digital learning tools with a more traditional classroom, can be a better option to meet the needs of both kinds of learners. (shrink)

Dr. Seyed Mohammad Mohajer, author of this book, for the first time, on the subject of SEM (Student Experience Management) and TEM :(Teacher Experience Management), Expresses and writes In today’s competitive world in which men are looking for acquiring a better place for themselves and their properties, indeed it can be said that people who compete on a full scale in marketing and branding by learning knowledge and experience, are more successful. Apart from people, countries, cities, businesses, historical and religious (...) sites, companies, products, services, and even government agencies are endeavoring and competing to possess a better place and more profitability. In the meantime, universities, higher education institutions, and specialized schools such as Business Schools, Language Schools, Art Schools, etc are not exceptions. Contest in the digital and traditional area, simultaneously, and with a proper strategy and developing systematic advertising campaigns can make a university or higher education institutions a brand. Since the branding process, as its name implies, has a -ing (continuous), the process must be continual and running continuously. One of the most significant tools in higher education institutions branding is CEM (Client Experience Management) which includes SEM (Student Experience Management) and TEM (Teacher Experience Management). Valuing the main audiences, which are students and professors, and creating a distinctive and excellent experience in the educational environment either in a digital or in a traditional area, can lead to receive excellent feedback from these audiences and direct them to the brand layers that are Awareness, Knowledge, Attitude, Engagement, Satisfaction, Loyalty and the highest level that is Passion, which the same matter make the sense of constancy and belonging and conversion Trademark (Servicemark) a higher education institution to a Lovemark. But how this distinctive experience and feeling can be infused with the audiences? Undoubtedly, many solutions are recommended in this field, such as the use of sensory branding methods, but the important point here is who can create and improve this experience? Certainly, the University Staff has a key and very effective role in the mentioned process. However, the significant point is which employees can make this experience? The answer is very simple but key: Employees who first receive a good sense of working in a scientific and educational environment. Therefore, we are facing a phenomenon called SEM (Staff Experience Management), that is, university administrators and heads, before engaging in Client Experience Management, should seek to create a sense of satisfaction, belonging, and loyalty in the educational environment and grow their educational brand set, which its tools are certainly Employer Branding and Human Capital Management. By mentioning all the foregoing keywords, each of which is a deep concept in BRAND Building and Branding of higher education institutions discussion, we begin our main discussion, namely marketing and branding in higher education institutions. I hope you will be with us by the end of the book and experience a different studying the book, dear reader. Dr. Mohajer writes in his introduction: Be the best version of yourself I daresay all brand and branding concepts and definitions can be observed in the above sentence. whereof the brand, like a human, experiences all the before birth, birth, growth, maturity, wane and death processes, and since a real human being is always looking for growth and ascendancy, and this continuous process to reach the endpoint Life, thus the grown man is always looking to reach a higher point of his present and past. The most important tool in a human ascendancy or a brand is certainly an education. Either for a human or a brand, becoming a distinct brand goes through practical training. The above sentences are a summary of my little experience as Seyed Mohammad Mohajer in education and especially training in the brand management field. Certainly, the brand and education and the combination of these two words are the main and vital tools for the development of any country and human being. Now that I am the President of Tarjoman Oloom Higher Education Institute and the BrandAfarin international group, I consider it necessary as my social mission to start first from myself and with a better understanding of myself, then the great God and comprehending the universe; I announce to the cultured society that we seek to identify brilliant talents in the three areas of education, research and management consulting, and we warmly welcome intellectuals, professionals and individuals seeking individual and organizational growth. Also, by creating skill training courses in four specialized fields of management in the Business School, foreign languages ​​in the Language School of Art and Media in the Art School, and new technologies in the i4.0 School for people who can not afford to pay for the training tuition, We have created the chance to study at Tarjoman Oloom Higher Education Institute for free and then go to the business market. It would be my honor to contact me for more information and direct communication through my website www.mohajer.tvLinks to an external site. and my email info(at)mohajer.tv. Book Details: ISBN-13 : 979-8574963845 Paperback : 272 pages Language: : English ASIN : B08PJPQSK9 Paperback : 272 pages Author: Seyed Mohammad Mohajer, PhD. (President of Tarjoman Oloom Higher Education Institute) For more information on Marketing and Branding in Higher Education Institute, visit: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08PJPQSK9Links to an external site. (shrink)

-/- The Paradox of Internet Innovation: Driven by Advertising Profits -/- The internet was originally designed as a tool for sharing information and enhancing communication. However, in the modern era, the driving force behind its rapid technological innovation is not purely knowledge sharing or connectivity—it is profit from digital advertising. The world’s largest internet companies, including Google, Meta (Facebook), and TikTok, generate the majority of their revenue from advertisements. This has created a paradox: technological advancements in AI, search engines, (...) cloud computing, and social media are often dictated not by the most beneficial innovations for users but by what maximizes advertising revenue. -/- This reality is puzzling. The internet, which many see as a global platform for education, communication, and empowerment, is largely shaped by the need to capture user attention for ad revenue. This essay explores how advertising fuels internet innovation, the unintended consequences of this model, and potential alternatives for sustaining technological progress. -/- How Advertising Fuels Internet Innovation -/- Advertising has become the financial backbone of the internet, funding platforms and services that billions of people use daily. Companies continuously invest in technology to enhance ad targeting, user engagement, and content delivery. Some of the most significant areas of innovation driven by advertising include: -/- 1. Data Collection and Artificial Intelligence (AI) -/- To optimize advertisements, companies use advanced AI and machine learning algorithms to analyze user behavior. These systems refine targeted advertising, making ads more relevant to individuals. This has led to breakthroughs in AI capabilities, from natural language processing to image recognition. AI, originally developed to improve user experience, is now primarily focused on predicting what ads users will click on. -/- 2. User Engagement and Experience -/- Social media platforms, search engines, and entertainment services are designed to maximize user time spent online. Algorithms are constantly improved to recommend content that keeps users engaged. While this enhances user experience, it also raises concerns about addiction, echo chambers, and the spread of misinformation. Many companies optimize their platforms for engagement rather than truth, as more time spent online means more ad exposure. -/- 3. Infrastructure and Speed -/- The need for efficient ad delivery has led to innovations in cloud computing, high-speed networks, and data centers. Companies like Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Google Cloud have built vast infrastructures, initially to support ad-driven businesses, but later benefiting other industries, including healthcare, finance, and education. Without advertising revenue, many of these advancements might not have been possible, but it also means that technological priorities are shaped by commercial interests rather than societal needs. -/- 4. New Business Models and the Digital Economy -/- The advertising-driven internet has given rise to influencer marketing, programmatic ad buying, and personalized promotions. These innovations have reshaped how businesses reach consumers, making the internet a major economic force. However, this also means that content creators, journalists, and even educational platforms are pressured to produce material that attracts views rather than informs or educates. -/- The Paradox: Is Innovation Being Misguided? -/- While advertising has undeniably fueled technological progress, it has also created a paradox. The internet’s evolution is largely dictated by what generates the most revenue for advertisers rather than what is most beneficial for society. This raises several key concerns: -/- Prioritizing Engagement Over Truth: Social media algorithms are optimized to keep users engaged, sometimes at the cost of promoting sensational or misleading content. Viral misinformation can spread rapidly because controversy attracts more clicks. -/- Privacy and Surveillance Issues: To refine ad targeting, companies collect vast amounts of personal data, raising ethical concerns about surveillance and data misuse. Many users are unaware of how much data is being collected and monetized. -/- Monopolization of the Internet: A few major corporations control most digital ad revenue, leading to concerns about market competition, censorship, and corporate influence over information. Smaller platforms struggle to compete with advertising giants like Google and Meta. -/- Without the overwhelming influence of advertising, would the internet have evolved differently? If revenue came primarily from subscriptions, public funding, or decentralized models, innovation might have been more focused on user privacy, open knowledge, and ethical technology development. -/- Can Advertising Sustain Long-Term Innovation? -/- Advertising has certainly accelerated technological progress, but its sustainability as the primary driver of innovation is questionable. The over-reliance on ad revenue has led to problems such as ad fatigue, declining user trust, and regulatory crackdowns on data privacy. As awareness of these issues grows, companies are being pressured to rethink their business models. -/- Potential alternatives to the advertising-driven internet include: -/- Subscription-Based Models: Platforms like Netflix, Patreon, and paid versions of YouTube show that users are willing to pay for ad-free, high-quality content. This model could reduce reliance on surveillance-driven advertising. -/- Publicly Funded Internet Initiatives: Governments or non-profits could fund essential digital services, reducing dependence on commercial advertising. A state-funded search engine or social media network could prioritize unbiased information over engagement metrics. -/- Decentralized and Open-Source Systems: Blockchain technology and decentralized platforms could allow users to control their own data and revenue generation. These technologies could create a more equitable internet economy. -/- However, these alternatives come with their own challenges. Subscription models may create inequality, where only those who can afford to pay get the best experience. Public funding could lead to government control and censorship. Decentralization, while promising, requires mass adoption and significant changes in internet infrastructure. -/- Conclusion -/- The internet’s rapid innovation, largely fueled by advertising profits, has created both opportunities and challenges. While advertising has driven advancements in AI, cloud computing, and user engagement, it has also led to privacy concerns, monopolization, and the prioritization of engagement over truth. This paradox raises the question of whether internet innovation is being guided in the right direction. -/- Ultimately, the future of internet innovation may depend on whether society can balance profit incentives with the broader interests of humanity. If advertising continues to dominate, innovation will likely remain focused on engagement and consumerism. But if alternative funding models gain traction, the internet could evolve in a way that prioritizes user well-being, ethical technology, and the pursuit of knowledge. -/- The internet is a reflection of the incentives that shape it. If we want an internet that serves humanity rather than just advertisers, we must rethink how it is funded and who controls its future. -/- . (shrink)

With English as a universal language and a central player in a globalized digital world, the need for an acceptable level of teacher ICT application skills, competence among teachers of English is necessary. The Government of Kenya (GoK) has put in concerted efforts to propel Kenya towards vision 2030 by investing in ICT integration in curriculum implementation, to equip a professional teacher with ICT skills for quality classroom practices and satisfactory learner performance in national examinations. Despite the efforts by (...) the GoK to equip teachers with ICT skills for good results in English, Kenya National Examinations Council (2022) contends, overall performance in English for the past 5 years falls short of the average mean of 50% and relentless effort from teachers is still required. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of teacher level of ICT application skills on implementation of English curriculum in public secondary schools in Kakamega North Sub-County, Kenya. The study used descriptive research design. A sample of 44 principals, 88 teachers of English and 345 form three students across the 50 public secondary schools in Kakamega North Sub-County, Kenya, were targeted. A questionnaire, interview schedule, classroom practice observation schedule, and focus group discussion guide were used to collect data. Qualitative data was analyzed thematically whereas quantitative data was presented through tables, percentages and frequencies. Chi-square test was performed to test hypothesis. Response rate was 79.5%. The findings indicated that there were teachers who neither participated in ICT workshops (67.1%) nor attended conferences on choice of teaching and learning materials (47.1%), a gap pointing on teachers. Interviews and FGD results show, teacher level of ICT application skills is crucial if quality results are to be realized. The study found a significant association between teacher level of ICT application skills and implementation of English curriculum in school. The study concluded, teacher level of ICT skills in teaching of English is a major concern. (shrink)

Viet Nam is at the beginning of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. In order to grasp the opportunities that the revolution has brought about, and to successfully build the society of digital citizens, there must be the demand of enhancing the capacity and capability for students to meet international standards in terms of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) skills. Viet Nam was selected as one of the four countries (Viet Nam, Bangladesh, Fiji, and the Republic of Korea) to join UNESCO (...) Bangkok’s “Digital Kids Asia Pacific (DKAP)” project, a comparative cross-national study with the aim to seek the understanding and address children’s ICT practices, attitudes, behaviors, and competency levels within an educational context. Thanks to the project, the Vietnamese research team completely conducted the survey in twenty (20) schools from five (5) provinces in Viet Nam. With the data on the digital citizenship competency levels of 1,061 10th grade students, the research team discovered the valuable findings to draw an initial big picture for Vietnamese policy makers, educators, and teachers about digital citizenship competencies of 15-year-old Vietnamese students. (shrink)

Why Gold Is Not a Good Form of Money and the Need for Fiat Currency -/- Throughout history, gold has been used as money due to its scarcity, durability, and universal acceptance. However, as economies evolved, the limitations of gold as a monetary system became apparent. The shift to fiat currency was necessary to enable economic flexibility, stability, and growth. If gold were still the primary form of money, it could create major conflicts and hinder modern financial systems. -/- The (...) Limitations of Gold as Money -/- Gold presents several practical and economic challenges that make it unsuitable as modern money. First, it is not easily divisible or portable, making everyday transactions cumbersome. Carrying or transferring large amounts of gold requires security and infrastructure, adding to costs and inefficiencies. Additionally, its limited supply creates deflationary pressure, as economic growth outpaces gold mining, leading to falling prices and discouraging spending and investment. -/- Gold’s price volatility is another issue. Unlike fiat money, which central banks can regulate, gold’s value fluctuates based on global supply, demand, and geopolitical factors. This instability makes it a poor standard for a stable currency. Moreover, in an increasingly digital economy, gold is impractical for online transactions and electronic banking, where speed and efficiency are crucial. -/- Perhaps the most significant problem with a gold-based monetary system is the inflexibility it imposes on monetary policy. Governments and central banks use tools such as adjusting interest rates and increasing the money supply to manage inflation, recession, and economic growth. A gold standard would severely limit this ability, making financial crises more severe and recoveries slower. -/- The Risks of a Gold-Based Economy -/- If gold remained the primary form of money, it could create major economic and geopolitical conflicts. Gold is not evenly distributed worldwide, meaning nations with larger reserves would have disproportionate economic power, potentially leading to conflicts over resource control. Countries without sufficient gold would struggle to maintain their currencies, leading to trade wars and financial instability. -/- Additionally, the pursuit of gold could drive resource wars and environmental destruction. Nations and corporations would compete aggressively for gold mining rights, leading to exploitation, deforestation, and pollution, particularly in resource-rich but politically unstable regions. Black markets, smuggling, and gold hoarding would further destabilize economies, making it difficult to maintain financial stability. -/- A gold-based economy also increases the risk of severe economic crises. Since the money supply would be limited to gold reserves, liquidity shortages could trigger deflation, making debts harder to repay and causing widespread economic hardship. During recessions, governments would lack the flexibility to inject money into the economy, worsening unemployment and social unrest. -/- The Need for Fiat Currency -/- The transition to fiat money was essential to avoid these problems and allow economies to function efficiently. Unlike gold, fiat money is not limited by physical supply, enabling governments to expand the money supply in response to economic needs. This prevents deflation and ensures steady economic growth. -/- Fiat currency also provides better control over monetary policy. Central banks can adjust interest rates, inflation, and money supply to stabilize the economy. This flexibility was crucial in handling financial crises such as the Great Depression (1929) and the 2008 Financial Crisis, where governments needed to inject liquidity into markets. -/- Additionally, fiat money allows for stability in financial markets and global trade. Unlike gold, which fluctuates based on external factors, central banks can take direct actions to stabilize their currencies. Modern economies rely on digital transactions, banking systems, and credit markets, which would be nearly impossible under a gold-based system. -/- Furthermore, using fiat currency avoids conflicts over gold reserves and eliminates the need for large-scale mining operations that harm the environment. It also enables global cooperation through financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, helping maintain economic balance worldwide. -/- Conclusion -/- While gold was historically valuable as a medium of exchange, it is not suitable for the complexities of modern economies. Its physical limitations, deflationary risks, and geopolitical tensions make it impractical. The shift to fiat currency was necessary to allow economic growth, stability, and flexibility. Despite concerns about inflation, fiat money enables better financial management, global trade, and crisis prevention, making it the essential foundation of the modern financial system. -/- . (shrink)

The EU Artificial Intelligence Act (AIA) defines four risk categories for AI systems: unacceptable, high, limited, and minimal. However, it lacks a clear methodology for the assessment of these risks in concrete situations. Risks are broadly categorized based on the application areas of AI systems and ambiguous risk factors. This paper suggests a methodology for assessing AI risk magnitudes, focusing on the construction of real-world risk scenarios. To this scope, we propose to integrate the AIA with a framework developed by (...) the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports and related literature. This approach enables a nuanced analysis of AI risk by exploring the interplay between (a) risk determinants, (b) individual drivers of determinants, and (c) multiple risk types. We further refine the proposed methodology by applying a proportionality test to balance the competing values involved in AI risk assessment. Finally, we present three uses of this approach under the AIA: to implement the Regulation, to assess the significance of risks, and to develop internal risk management systems for AI deployers. (shrink)

The paper argues that digital ontology (the ultimate nature of reality is digital, and the universe is a computational system equivalent to a Turing Machine) should be carefully distinguished from informational ontology (the ultimate nature of reality is structural), in order to abandon the former and retain only the latter as a promising line of research. Digital vs. analogue is a Boolean dichotomy typical of our computational paradigm, but digital and analogue are only “modes of presentation” (...) of Being (to paraphrase Kant), that is, ways in which reality is experienced or conceptualised by an epistemic agent at a given level of abstraction. A preferable alternative is provided by an informational approach to structural realism, according to which knowledge of the world is knowledge of its structures. The most reasonable ontological commitment turns out to be in favour of an interpretation of reality as the totality of structures dynamically interacting with each other. The paper is the first part (the pars destruens) of a two-part piece of research. The pars construens, entitled “A Defence of Informational Structural Realism”, is developed in a separate article, also published in this journal. (shrink)

Throughout Iran and various countries, the recent calls of the “Zan, Zendegi, Azadi” (in Persian), “Jin, Jiyan, Azadi” (in Kurdish), or “Woman, Life, Freedom” (in English) movement call for change to acknowledge the importance of women. While these feminist protests and demonstrations have been met with brutality, systematic oppression, and internet blackouts within Iran, they have captured significant social media attention and coverage outside the country, especially among the Iranian diaspora and various international organizations. This article, grounded in feminist urban (...) theories of the Global South, analyzes the digital feminist placemaking movement in Iran. As the first counter‐revolution led by women, the movement utilizes digital art, graffiti, and protest movements to embody women’s solidarity groups and sympathy rallies. Our analysis employs various digital research methods, including social media scrutiny and the study of protest illustrations. Analyzing the digital feminist placemaking in Iran will enable us to compare the commonalities, differences, challenges, and opportunities between the minorities and majorities in the world’s countries. The outcomes of this research can help international organizations such as Amnesty International and the United Nations Agency for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (UN Women), as well as policymakers, institutions, academics, and NGOs, to highlight the various ways in which broader public participation could be encouraged in the process of digital feminist insurgent placemaking. (shrink)

As ever more advanced digital systems are created, it becomes increasingly likely that some of these systems will be digital minds, i.e. digital subjects of experience. With digital minds comes the risk of digital suffering. The problem of digital suffering is that of mitigating this risk. We argue that the problem of digital suffering is a high stakes moral problem and that formidable epistemic obstacles stand in the way of solving it. We then (...) propose a strategy for solving it: Access Monitor Prevent (AMP). AMP uses a ‘dancing qualia’ argument to link the functional states of certain digital systems to their experiences—this yields epistemic access to digital minds. With that access, we can prevent digital suffering by only creating advanced digital systems that we have such access to, monitoring their functional profiles, and preventing them from entering states with functional markers of suffering. After introducing and motivating AMP, we confront limitations it faces and identify some options for overcoming them. We argue that AMP fits especially well with—and so provides a moral reason to prioritize—one approach to creating such systems: whole brain emulation. We also contend that taking other paths to digital minds would be morally risky. (shrink)

The purpose of the article is to reveal the scientific approach that substantiates the impact of the creation of strategic alliances (SA) on the digital transformation of business and the development of their innovative power based on identified success factors. The aim was achieved using the following methods: abstract logic and typification (for classification of SA's success factors), generalization (to determine the peculiarities of SA's influence on their innovation development), analytical and ranking method (to determine the relationship between the (...) dynamics creating of SA and the degree of acceleration of digital transformation), expert evaluation (to determine the degree of influence of SA success factors by business areas). Implementing a business-integrated approach to understanding digital transformation will accelerate implementation of innovation and organizational change, identifies future prospects for market, customer and business relationships, highlighting the importance of researching the factors that ensure their success. An alternative vision of SA’s success factors is suggested, which are determined by the possibilities the organization of partnerships and organizational culture, integration of business sectors, compatibility of management goals, external relevance, obtaining synergies. Innovation is considered by the authors as an integration factor that reconciles all groups of SA success factors, giving them the necessary focus to solve business problems. The results of the study show that the creation of SA has a significant impact on accelerating and changes priority of digital transformation of business areas involved in strategic partnerships, and the impact of SA on the development of their innovation power is crucial. (shrink)

Digital duplicates reduce the scarcity of individuals and thus may impact their instrumental and intrinsic value. I here expand upon this idea by introducing the notion of collective scarcity, which pertains to the limitations faced by social groups in maintaining their size, cohesion, and function.

In the popular and academic literature on the problems of the so-called attention economy, the cost of attention grabbing, sustaining, and immersing digital medias has been addressed as if it touched all people equally. In this paper I ask whether everyone has the same resources to respond to the recent changes in their stimulus environments caused by the attention economy. I argue that there are not only differences but disparities between people in their responses to the recent, significant increase (...) in the degree and persuasiveness of digital distraction. I point toward individual variance in an agent’s top-down and bottom-up attention regulation, and to further inequality-exacerbating variance in active participation on the internet and in regulating reward-seeking behaviors on the internet. Individual differences in these areas amount to disparities because they have been found to be connected to socioeconomic background factors. I argue that disparities in responding to digital distraction threaten fair equality of opportunity when it comes to digital distraction in the classroom and that they may lead to an unequal contribution of achievements that require complex cognition by people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. (shrink)

In recent years discussions centered around digital inheritance have increased among social media users and across blockchain ecosystems. As a result digital assets such as social media content cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens have become increasingly valuable and widespread, leading to the need for clear and secure mechanisms for transferring these assets upon the testators death or incapacitation. This study proposes a framework for digital inheritance using soulbound tokens and the social recovery pallet as a use case in (...) the Polkadot and Kusama blockchain networks. The findings discussed within this study suggest that while soulbound tokens and the social recovery pallet offer a promising solution for creating a digital inheritance plan the findings also raise important considerations for testators digital executors and developers. While further research is needed to fully understand the potential impacts and risks of other technologies such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing this study provides a primer for users to begin planning a digital inheritance strategy and for developers to develop a more intuitive solution. (shrink)

The technological revolution and appropriation of internet tools began to reshape the material basis of society and the urban space in collaborative, grassroots, leaderless, and participatory actions. The protest squares’ representation on Television screens and mainstream media has been broad. Various health, governmental, societal, and urban challenges have marked the advent of the Covid-19 virus. Inequalities have become more salient as poor people and minorities are more affected by the virus. Social distancing makes the typical forms of protest impossible to (...) carry out. Under social distancing, some state-led policies took advantage of social media to focus on the Covid-19 pandemic to silence social and political activities, censor criticism, and control the press. However, during the pandemic era, the movements for social justice have been particularly active, focusing on defending workers’ rights, mutual aid and solidarity, monitoring policymakers, and popular education. These progressive movements combined concrete practices and experiences to confront the reactionary, capitalist, and governmental actors that sought to shape and envision the world. Through different case studies of protest movements during the pandemic in Europe, the UK, and Asia, this paper argues that at the time of rising racial, social, and economic inequalities, the social activities adapted to the circumstances determined by the social distancing and the impossibility of people gathering in physical spaces. Subsequently, the people in different countries had various individual and collective responses to the support of health workers, systemic inequalities, loss of jobs, and other societal and financial challenges imposed by the governments. It means that, rather than disappearing, the social movements have adapted to the unexpected situations during the pandemic outbreak. The pandemic broke the new digital global wave of protests in this sense. (shrink)

Digital sovereignty, and the question of who ultimately controls AI seems, at first glance, to be an issue that concerns only specialists, politicians and corporate entities. And yet the fight for who will win digital sovereignty has far-reaching societal implications. Drawing on five case studies, the paper argues that digital sovereignty affects everyone, whether digital users or not, and makes the case for a hybrid system of control which has the potential to offer full democratic legitimacy (...) as well as innovative flexibility. (shrink)

As a generation of ‘digital natives,’ secondary students who were born from 2002 to 2010 have various approaches to acquiring digital knowledge. Digital literacy and resilience are crucial for them to navigate the digital world as much as the real world; however, these remain under-researched subjects, especially in developing countries. In Vietnam, the education system has put considerable effort into teaching students these skills to promote quality education as part of the United Nations-defined Sustainable Development Goal (...) 4 (SDG4). This issue has proven especially salient amid the COVID−19 pandemic lockdowns, which had obliged most schools to switch to online forms of teaching. This study, which utilizes a dataset of 1061 Vietnamese students taken from the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)’s “Digital Kids Asia Pacific (DKAP)” project, employs Bayesian statistics to explore the relationship between the students’ background and their digital abilities. Results show that economic status and parents’ level of education are positively correlated with digital literacy. Students from urban schools have only a slightly higher level of digital literacy than their rural counterparts, suggesting that school location may not be a defining explanatory element in the variation of digital literacy and resilience among Vietnamese students. Students’ digital literacy and, especially resilience, also have associations with their gender. Moreover, as students are digitally literate, they are more likely to be digitally resilient. Following SDG4, i.e., Quality Education, it is advisable for schools, and especially parents, to seriously invest in creating a safe, educational environment to enhance digital literacy among students. (shrink)

Common mental health disorders are rising globally, creating a strain on public healthcare systems. This has led to a renewed interest in the role that digital technologies may have for improving mental health outcomes. One result of this interest is the development and use of artificial intelligence for assessing, diagnosing, and treating mental health issues, which we refer to as ‘digital psychiatry’. This article focuses on the increasing use of digital psychiatry outside of clinical settings, in the (...) following sectors: education, employment, financial services, social media, and the digital well-being industry. We analyse the ethical risks of deploying digital psychiatry in these sectors, emphasising key problems and opportunities for public health, and offer recommendations for protecting and promoting public health and well-being in information societies. (shrink)

The online dating application has in recent years become a major avenue for meeting potential partners. But while the digital public sphere has gained the attention of political philosophers, a systematic normative evaluation of issues arising in the ‘digital sexual sphere’ is lacking. I provide a philosophical framework for assessing dating app corporation conduct, capturing why people use these apps and their experience so often is unsatisfactory. Identifying dating apps as agents intervening in a social institution necessary for (...) the reproduction of society, with immense power over people's lives, I ask if they exercise their power in line with individuals’ interests. Acknowledging that people have claims to non-interference, equal standing, and choice improvement relating to intimacy, I find that the traditional, non-digital, sexual sphere poses problems to their realisation, especially for sexual minorities. In this context, apps’ potential for justice in the sexual sphere is immense, but unfulfilled. (shrink)

This report aims to offer insights into cutting-edge research on digital well-being. Many of these insights come from a 2-day academic-impact event, The Future of Digital Well-Being, hosted by a team of researchers working with the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) in February 2024. Today, achieving and maintaining well-being in the face of online technologies is a multifaceted challenge that we believe requires using theoretical resources of different research disciplines. This report explores diverse perspectives on (...) how digital well-being can be actively cultivated, while also emphasising the importance of considering individual differences, societal contexts, and nuanced cultural factors. We aim to offer a holistic view of the future of digital well-being, one that will inspire the next generation of designers of online tools, as well as policymakers who will regulate these tools. We start by asking what digital well-being is – how we can best define a concept that is used by diverse stakeholders and researchers from many disciplines in various ways. To do this, we explore the classic ethical theories of well-being, showing how they can give us insights into how the term digital well-being is currently deployed. We then move to look at the existing strategies that have been proposed to actively cultivate digital well-being, exploring the business models that threaten digital well-being and the relative advantages of the digital and non-digital solutions that are currently proposed. On the one hand, digital tools – such as Apple’s Screen Time and app blockers such as Opal and Forest – integrate seamlessly with the digital lifestyles of users. They also create precise metrics for digital well-being, which facilitates their solutions to reduce screen time. On the other hand, non-digital solutions, including mindfulness practices, digital detoxes, and digital well-being coaching, offer a new set of tools to reconnect individuals to their natural rhythms and help to actively promote offline activities. We then move to discuss diversity and how various groups of users have strikingly different digital well-being needs. Embracing neurodiversity in digital well-being is crucial as it strongly impacts the users’ experience of online technologies. When designing for diversity, organisations and designers alike need to prioritise customization for people with physical disabilities, mitigate harmful content for users with mental well-being conditions, address gender stereotypes and online harassment, and be designed in ways that recognize the very real risks of online technologies. This report closes by examining cultural differences. We believe that non-Western conceptions of well-being offer rich sources for enhancing digital well-being insofar as these traditions can inform and inspire the designers of future online technologies. We focus on East-Asian and South-Asian traditions, although in further work we recognise it would be useful to investigate conceptions of well-being that are influential in the Gulf region, Africa, and South America. Each of these areas have ethical frameworks that discuss well-being in depth as well as a rich cultural heritage. In conclusion, this report’s insights underscore the imperative of recognizing diversity in digital well-being, both in terms of cultural contexts and disciplinary perspectives. It emphasises the need for culturally responsive design methodologies and the integration of non-Western philosophical perspectives into current digital well-being research. Embracing this diversity, we believe, offers the best chance to create digital environments that prioritise well-being for users and the societies they live in across the world. Ultimately, we believe that it is not only about designing better online products; it’s about shaping a digital landscape that promotes well-being and flourishing for everyone. (shrink)

This chapter explores the influence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on digital democracy, focusing on four main areas: citizenship, participation, representation, and the public sphere. It traces the evolution from electronic to virtual and network democracy, underscoring how each stage has broadened democratic engagement through technology. Focusing on digital citizenship, the chapter examines how AI can improve online engagement while posing privacy risks and fostering identity stereotyping. Regarding political participation, it highlights AI's dual role in mobilising civic actions and (...) spreading misinformation. Regarding representation, AI's involvement in electoral processes can enhance voter registration, e-voting, and the efficiency of result tabulation but raises concerns regarding privacy and public trust. Also, AI's predictive capabilities shift the dynamics of political competition, posing ethical questions about manipulation and the legitimacy of democracy. Finally, the chapter examines how integrating AI and digital technologies can facilitate democratic political advocacy and personalised communication. However, this also comes with higher risks of misinformation and targeted propaganda. (shrink)

Digital privacy scholars tend to bemoan ordinary people’s limited knowledge of and lukewarm interest in what happens to their digital data. This general lack of interest and knowledge is often taken as a consideration in favor of legislation aiming to force internet companies into adopting more responsible data practices. While we remain silent on whether any new laws are called for, in this paper we wish to underline a neglected consequence of people’s ignorance of and apathy for (...) class='Hi'>digital privacy: their potential to encourage capture by industry interests. In particular, we argue that such laws may be at increased risk of capture because they are unlikely to be democratically responsive. We make this claim on a twofold basis: first, well-known theoretical mechanisms explaining how the absence of responsiveness leads to capture, identified in prior political science and political philosophy literature, yield the prediction that digital privacy legislation is likely to be unresponsive and thus captured; second, empirical data concerning the European Union’s digital privacy laws, with a special focus on the General Data Protection Regulation, appears to confirm these predictions: the bloc’s (world’s?) flagship privacy protection law seems more responsive to corporate than citizen interests. (shrink)

Digital COVID certificates are a novel public health policy to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. These immunity certificates aim to incentivize vaccination and to deny international travel or access to essential spaces to those who are unable to prove that they are not infectious. In this article, we start by describing immunity certificates and highlighting their differences from vaccination certificates. Then, we focus on the ethical, legal, and social issues involved in their use, namely autonomy and consent, data protection, equity, (...) and international mobility from a global fairness perspective. The main conclusion of our analysis is that digital COVID certificates are only acceptable if they meet certain conditions: that they should not process personal data beyond what is strictly necessary for the aimed goals, that equal access to them should be guaranteed, and that they should not restrict people’s autonomy to access places where contagion is unlikely. We conclude that, if such conditions are guaranteed, digital COVID certificates could contribute to mitigating some of the most severe socioeconomic consequences of the pandemic. (shrink)

The liberal democratic regimes rest on a well-developed public sphere accessible to all citizens that favors free discussions based on reason and critical debate and serves as a space where public opinion is formed through reasoned dialogue. The new digital technologies disrupted many parts of contemporary democratic societies and transformed their public sphere. Digital transformation alters industries and markets, changing the perceived subjective value, satisfaction, and usefulness of goods or services and displacing established companies and products. Within the (...) political realm, digital transformation creates a cleavage between the vulnerable populations who are ill-informed and lack digital fluency and politicians who tend to learn about peoples‟ problems not to deal with them but to weaponize new technologies to engineer elections and win power. The rise of misinformation and disinformation undermines public trust in democratic institutions and discourages or incapacitates citizens from engaging in debates within the public sphere. On the other hand, the digital transformation of the public sphere empowers ordinary people to aggregate in various publics and counteract the domination of the mainstream parties. Our paper aims to answer whether new technologies provide citizens with ways to counter the undemocratic tendencies caused by digital transformation and engage actively in the public sphere. (shrink)