In his book, being digital, Nicholas Negroponte discusses how technology affects the world around us, particularly our daily lives. Throughout the book, Negroponte predicts how he views different media and technologies will develop in the future and continue to change our lives for the better.
After reading the chapters and doing some research on who Negroponte is and what his background entails, I found that whether or not any of his predictions from being digital came true, he still believes in the work he has done and where the world is heading in his mind. An example of this is his non-profit organization One Laptop per Child, which he founded in 2005. The organization aims to give children in poor and underdeveloped countries the opportunity of using a computer where they can learn just as children in the United States do. Negroponte believes that this will help eliminate poverty around the world and that every child will grow and learn equally, with the same opportunities.
It is very clear from his work that Negroponte's view of a digital world is optimistic. As he writes in the epilogue of being digital, "the digital age cannot be denied or stopped. It has four very powerful qualities that will result in its ultimate triumph: decentralizing, globalizing, harmonizing and empowering" (229). This notion that Negroponte ends with in his book is the basis of the One Laptop per Child organization. By giving children equality in the digital world, the organization is breaking down barriers between countries and providing common grounds for future generations to empower themselves through technology.
A clip from the Colbert Report shows Negroponte discussing One Laptop per Child and how it is going to connect people around the world:
One Laptop per Child website:
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