Information Technology for Integrated Health Systems: Positioning for the Future

Book Description

Health care in America is undergoing a period of profound and unprecedented change. The shapes, forms, and functions of our nation's health care organizations are being redefined. As a consequence, the old mainframe-based information systems that have been the administrative backbone of health care management are being rendered obsolete. Information Technology for Integrated Health Systems is a complete, thoroughly up-to-date guide for strategically rethinking and reengineering information management systems so organizations can meet the demands and challenges of today's turbulent, reform-minded health care marketplace.

In the past decade, the health care industry has witnessed a dramatic shift from the traditional stand-alone hospital to a new generation of smaller, affiliated facilities. The emergence of organizations such as outpatient clinics, imaging centers, physician networks, home health care agencies, and nursing homes has had a profound impact on information systems. This climate of change is forcing health care executives and professionals to reassess their approach and develop new information infrastructures that will be responsive to the system's changing requirements.

Information Technology for Integrated Health Systems offers practical advice on how health care organizations can apply new IT and IS strategies. The book thoroughly examines how IT and IS technology can help organizations achieve their business goals, and it explores the technology's long-term management. It discusses the emerging standards and offers numerous models that illustrate IT architecture, information flows, and organizational structures. Information Technology also enables health care executives to assess their strengths and anticipate future trends. It explores the human dimension of planning and implementationâincluding constructing the optimal IT organizational modelâand helps organizations deploy this new technology. Here is an invaluable guide that:

Includes an overview of the many historic changes that are occurring in the industry and explores the impact of new government mandates
Offers proven techniques for using information systems to increase effectiveness and productivity
Provides a complete framework for developing the business systems needed to meet changing organiza-tional needs
Supplies clear guidelines for planning and managing the information-gathering process

As health care organizations undergo profound change, the mainframe-based information systems that have long been the administrative backbone of health care management must adapt to the demands of a new era. Information Technology for Integrated Health Systems is an indispensable tool for professionals navigating the previously uncharted waters of the information management revolution.

Written by two of the most respected specialists in the field, Information Technology for Integrated Health Systems:

Illustrates how health care organizations can effectively use IS to create a more efficient and productive environment
Provides the necessary instruments to measure and evaluate the organization's current IS position, readiness for and ability to change
Offers a framework for low-cost, rapidly developed, adaptable, and effective business systems to meet complex and changing organizational needs
Includes proven implementation techniques for planning and managing information-gathering processes

Information Technology for Integrated Health Systems can help health care executives and planners develop and implement new IT and IS strategies. It covers standards, contains numerous models, and explores the human dimension of planning and implementation. This clear, concise guide shows how IT and IS technology can help health care organizations achieve their business goals.

Customer Reviews:

Good framework for developing strategy.......1999-01-06

I found this book very stimulating. It addresses many issues that need to be thought through and gives a good framework for developing information systems strategy in healthcare. I would recommended it for anyone new to healthcare. People already familiar with information systems and healthcare might find it too elementary.

What Will Be: How the New World of Information Will Change Our Lives

Average customer rating:

What can be not what will be
A book about OUR future.
Everyone needs to know What Will Be!
A vivid picture of what our future may be.
Wonderful book which sheds light on future of society.

What Will Be: How the New World of Information Will Change Our Lives
Michael L. Dertouzos , and Bill Gates
Manufacturer: HarperOne
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Unfinished Revolution: Human-Centered Computers and What They Can Do For Us
Introductory Concepts in Information Science (Asis Monograph Series)
Using Sources Effectively: Strengthening Your Writing and Avoiding Plagiarism
Jihad vs. McWorld: How Globalism and Tribalism Are Reshaping the World

ASIN: 0062515403
Release Date: 1998-02-17

Amazon.com

Many have predicted what emerging technology will mean for society. Michael Dertouzos, an Internet pioneer and Head of MIT's Laboratory for Computer Science, has been among the few who've been pretty much right so far. Now he reaches into the coming century to paint a compelling, rationally developed picture of what's ahead. Dertouzos' fluid freedom from the pollyanna-ism or paranoia that afflict so many of his contemporaries brings to his visions the ring of both conviction and plausibility--and excitement as well. His crystal explanations and fascinating examples are irresistible. The result is a book as enjoyable as it is important.

Book Description

Michael Dertouzos has been an insightful commentator and an active participant in the creation of the Information Age.Now, in What Will Be, he offers a thought-provoking and entertaining vision of the world of the next decade -- and of the next century. Dertouzos examines the impact that the following new technologies and challenges will have on our lives as the Information Revolution progresses:

all the music, film and text ever produced will be available on-demand in our own homes
your "bodynet" will let you make phone calls, check email and pay bills as you walk down the street
advances in telecommunication will radically alter the role of face-to-face contact in our lives
global disparities in infrastructure will widen the gap between rich and poor
surgical mini-robots and online care will change the practice of medicine as we know it.

Detailed, accessible and visionary, What Will Be is essential for Information Age revolutionaries and technological neophytes alike.

Customer Reviews:

What can be not what will be.......2003-03-19

What will be, by Michael Dertouzos, is indeed an interesting read despite his lack of support for his thesis. By the nature of the title and subtitle, the reader is teased with a possible glimpse into our technological future. Perhaps the book should have been titled, What can be. How the new world of information can change our lives. The largest stumbling block toward accepting the title and premise is Deertouzos' careful avoidance of information technology venture capitalism, marketing, and legal environments that determine what actually is designed, manufactured and marketed. If an author infers that technology will actually happen, then they are obligated to explain when and how momentous longstanding roadblocks will be removed. Of course these issues are discussed but in a highly speculative and vague manner. On a positive note, the section What is Wrong with Technology is very clear and makes the book worth reading. I recommend this book. Despite content sprinkled with lofty assertions, Dertouszos prepares the reader for technological issues which will continue to revolutionize our world.

A book about OUR future........2001-10-23

In the early 1980s, Dr. Dertouzos boldly predicted a place where people could freely exchange information and services using a personal computer. Today this place is widely known as the Internet. Dr. Dertouzos, head of the MIT Lab for Computer Science, uses this book to share more of his ideas and predictions of "What Will Be" in the future.
His book, without getting too technical, explains how society will be changed by a new revolution he calls the Information Marketplace. His examples of new networked technologies that will simplify our lives opened my eyes and got me excited about what lies ahead in the future. His idea of a 'Bodynet,' a personal mobile network which enables you to make phone calls, watch the news, and mingle with strangers as you stroll down the block is realistic. But other ideas, such as a database that keeps track of your clean clothes in your closet to help you decide what to wear seems farfetched and even useless.
Overall I was satisfied with the content of Dr. Dertouzos' book. It was clear and concise and provided some humorous examples of how the new technologies will be used. I would recommend this book to anyone that has an interest in how technology will shape society's future.

Everyone needs to know What Will Be!.......2001-07-07

I didn't know anything about Michael Dertouzos prior to discovering and reading this book. It's a presentation of a man's visions of our world's digital future. However, he is not just any man. Dertouzos has been director of the MIT Computer Science Lab for several decades, and has been a leading party in many discoveries and innovations that took place in MIT, or with collaboration to it. He has for many years been a most active participant in the evolution of computers, networks and the Internet itself, thus being the most suitable one to try to envision a picture of our networked world as it will be in the near future.

Dertouzos presents quite interesting aspects about how our future will be shaped by all networked electronic equipment, be they computers, TVs, or mobile devices. He shows how more and more uses of the Net will gradually evolve, uses that most of us have not even imagined possible. He calls the Internet a global "Information Marketplace", since he shows how it will grow to include all human activities, not necessarily linked to computers as we know them today.

The only hitch I can find in Dertouzos's reasoning, is the time he is talking about. While he says that most of the innovations he talks about will start showing up and rapidly evolve in the next 10 to 20 years, I believe that this time is short. My opinion is, it will take quite some more time for all of Dertouzos's dreams and aspirations to come to life and full use.

I wouldn't like to reveal anything more about what's mentioned in this book. I'm not a good summary-writer, so I wouldn't want to spoil your experience of learning What Will Be!

A vivid picture of what our future may be........1999-07-27

Dr. Dertouzos has given us all much to think about in this book. There isn't a person in the world who won't be impacted by the great changes that may occur. Everyone should read this book and then figure out how you want to be changed. It will be a better future for all of us if we take active roles in the Information Marketplace.

Wonderful book which sheds light on future of society........1998-08-29

This book provides some wonderful examples of what society will be like in the future.

Customer Reviews:

fighting the good fight.......2002-01-01

Crawford & Gorman's book has been nothing but an
inspiration to me. I am an LIS graduate student
and these two librarians are heroes.
They utterly DEMOLISH the feasiblity/desirability
of "All digital libraries" and make solid arguements
for real, existing libraries.

These guys simply just ROCK.
Read William F. Birdsall also, to get a Cannuck
perspective on the same issue.

I dislike Crawford's non-sequitors about
"socialism" but beyond that, every
progressive librarian should read them

LONG LIVE LIBRARIANSHIP!

Not to be taken too seriously.......2000-07-24

The subtitle of this book gives you an idea of its tone - overdramatic to the point of silliness. It's hard to take Crawford and Gorman's points seriously amid references to straw men such as 'technojunkies,' 'enemies of the library' and 'suicidal librarians.' The authors do make some intriguing arguments to defend their sensible (if conservative) view of libraries of the future, though their style of writing makes them seem more reactionary than they actually are. I found aspects of this book interesting and useful, but it's far from the best book I've read on the subject.

Best Library Book of the decade.......2000-01-22

What they didn't teach you in school. Clear thoughs on the future of libraries, rather than hype and blue sky. If you only read one book on libraries, read this one or his newest, Being Analog. If you haven't read either, you are not well informed on the subject. Hint: Professors from Schools of Information Science hate them.

boring, pedantic, whiney, a waste of time and money.......1999-09-17

Crawford and Gorman. Gorman and Crawford. Two minds are usually better than one, but in this case, all that is amplified are biases and egos. Contrary to their self-inflated view of themselves, their whiney opinions have zero impact on library practices or the future of libraries.

Sure sure, Crawford, for example, works for the RLG; and Gorman, well, Gorman is Gorman, so his opinions and thoughts must be worth paying attention to.

Puhleeze....

Book Description

Summary: With contributions from some of the world's leading authorities, this publication considers the future of the book in the digital age. As more books are published than ever before, this timely publication addresses a range of critically important themes relating to the book - including the present and future for publishing, libraries, literacy and learning in the information society. Key Features: 1. Chapters by leading experts in the field of publishing studies and information science 2. A broad range of perspectives on key issues such as print on demand and digital publishing 3. Contributions from around the world 4. Edited by two leading experts on the book and its future The Editors: Dr Bill Cope has been a Director of Common Ground Publishing since 1984. Common Ground runs a number of annual conferences in education, management and the humanities. He is a former academic working in a number of Australian universities, and a First Assistant Secretary in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and Director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs. Angus Phillips is Director of the Oxford International Centre for Publishing Studies and Head of the Publishing Department at Oxford Brookes University. Readership: The book will be of interest to publishers, librarians, academics, authors and all those interested in the issues surrounding the survival of the printed book in a digital age. It will also be useful for students and scholars of publishing and the history of the book. Contents: If it isn't on the internet, it doesn't exist (Mark Perlman) Plus ça change . print on demand reverts book publishing to its pre-industrial beginnings (Manfred H. Breede) Where is the value in publishing? The Internet and the publishing value chain (Angus Phillips) Venues for vanity: methods and means of self-published books (Christopher Kular) Towards understanding patterns of book consumption in Europe (Mihael Kovac and Mojca Kovac Sebart) The future of reading as a cultural behaviour in a multi-channel media environment (Hillel Nossek and Hanna Adoni) Bookselling culture and consumer behaviour (Audrey Laing and Jo Royle) Diversity, or is it all the same? Book consumption on the Internet in Sweden (Ann Steiner) New voices in the new millennium (David H. Lynn) Reviving the oral tradition: the evolution of audiobooks (Jennifer Cavender and Jennifer Hootman) Are you being served? Librarianship past, present and future (Maureen Brunsdale and Jennifer Hootman) Access, convergence and print on demand: the library dimension (John Feather) New text technologies, globalization and the future of the book (Bill Cope and Mary Kalantzis) A whiff of tobacco smoke on the page (Mark Woodhouse)

The Semantic Web: A Guide to the Future of XML, Web Services, and Knowledge Management

Average customer rating:

Too high-level and dated to be very useful
Good from a management point of view, lacking on the technical side
low signal to noise
A Review of The Semantic Web
Makes Semantic Technologies Understandable

The Semantic Web: A Guide to the Future of XML, Web Services, and Knowledge Management
Michael C. Daconta , Leo J. Obrst , and Kevin B. Smith
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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A Semantic Web Primer (Cooperative Information Systems)
Owl: Representing Information Using the Web Ontology Language
Spinning the Semantic Web: Bringing the World Wide Web to Its Full Potential
Practical RDF
Ontological Engineering: with examples from the areas of Knowledge Management, e-Commerce and the Semantic Web. First Edition (Advanced Information and Knowledge Processing)

ASIN: 0471432571

Book Description

" The Semantic Web is an extension of the current Web in which information is given well-defined meaning, better enabling computers and people to work in cooperation."
—Tim Berners-Lee, Scientific American, May 2001

This authoritative guide shows how the Semantic Web works technically and how businesses can utilize it to gain a competitive advantage
Explains what taxonomies and ontologies are as well as their importance in constructing the Semantic Web
Companion Web site includes further updates as the framework develops and links to related sites

Customer Reviews:

Too high-level and dated to be very useful.......2006-05-21

The book throws around all of the right buzzwords: ontologies, XML, KIF, taxonomies, metadata, etc. However, it never even properly defines these terms or organizes the information. If you already understand what the semantic web is, the book makes perfect sense but you don't learn anything new. If you don't already understand what the semantic web is, you won't be able to make sense of the author's high level descriptions and diagrams and you won't learn anything either. You can go to Wikipedia and probably get better explanations of most of the terminology. For example the Wikipedia definition of ontology from a computer science perspective is : "In computer science, an ontology is a data model that represents a domain and is used to reason about the objects in that domain and the relations between them." Why can't the author just SAY that??? Instead he wanders all over the map with a kind of philosophical musing about ontologies, and then proceeds to dissect a human resources ontology without ever properly defining why this model is useful in terms of the semantic web and what makes this model an ontology in the first place. The whole book is like this.
The only reason I give it three stars is that there is useful albeit poorly organized information in here, and if you do know what the semantic web is and you have to present the information to management you can use the individual pieces of the book to probably stitch together a pretty good introductory presentation ... providing you already know what you are doing.
However, I really recommend the book "The Semantic Web Primer" instead. It is more technical and better organized with much clearer explanations.

Good from a management point of view, lacking on the technical side.......2005-09-30

This book can be a good general introduction to semantic web technologies, to get an idea about how they can be useful inside your organization. The starting and ending chapters are rather good in this respect.
But unfortunately the middle chapters, which try to explain the technical side in more detail, are somehow confused and hard to understand, maybe incomplete. The part about RDF is not bad and can give you some useful info, but things get worse when you get to topic maps and ontologies. Maybe this wasn't the main purpose of the book, but it's a waste of pages and reading time anyway.

So, when you finish reading it, you can be excited about the topic and have nice ideas for implementing those technologies in your work/life, but you still are left clueless regarding HOW you should actually do it.

It should also be noted that the book is becoming a little dated now: new technologies like OWL are more mature now, than what it describes. Not the authors' fault, of course.

low signal to noise.......2005-08-26

Painstakingly, in a literal sense, read from cover to cover without learning much about semantic description and search (more pedestrian XML technologies, eg, XPath were covered well). Some of it, eg, on Topic Maps, is impenetrable. Very light on interesting and compelling usage and how-to of the more ambitious, semantic technologies that are the reason most would buy a book of this title.

And so, unfortunately, I agree with the negative assessments already given here: little practical information for implementers and on the contrary, the considerable time spent in attempts to decipher will not be justified, in my experience, with their pay off in knowledge that is useful or memorable.

To be fair, part of the problem, from what I gather by its absense in the book, is that the W3C semantic web technologies are not even attempting to solve any part of the ultimate problem of semantic analysis: natural language understanding. Instead the highest goal in this presentation is the /manual/ cataloging of /whole/ documents (and emails, customer questions, etc).

A Review of The Semantic Web.......2005-03-08

Different people will not agree on exactly how to define all concepts.
As a result there will be ontological mismatchs across parts of the
web designed by different people. In conventional logic if even one
inconsistency exists it will be possible to draw all conclusions and
their contradictions! It is not explained how they will prevent this
from happening.

Makes Semantic Technologies Understandable.......2004-12-02

This book is well written and comprehensive. It clearly explains highly complex subject matter. I refer to it constantly.

Information and the Future: A Handbook of Sources and Strategies

Average customer rating:

Information and the Future: A Handbook of Sources and Strategies
Alice Chambers Wygant , and Oliver W. Markley
Manufacturer: Greenwood Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0313248133

Book Description

The data continually being generated in the current"information explosion" offer a seemingly inexhaustible resource, which--by its very size and complexity--can present a formidable obstacle to researchers. As data sources proliferate, it is becoming clear that methods of searching are as important as access to sources. Combining the expertise of reference librarians with the knowledge of futures researchers, this new handbook offers access to a wide range of information sources and spells out methods for quickly and systematically gathering specifically targeted data.

Electronic Day Trading 101 (Wiley Online Trading for a Living)

Average customer rating:

A Pile of Doo Doo
No substance, a waste of paper
Ripped off!!
Not much substance, lots of filler !
almost worthless for someone trying to start out

Electronic Day Trading 101 (Wiley Online Trading for a Living)
Sunny J. Harris
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Trading 101: How to Trade Like a Pro
The Electronic Day Trader: Successful Strategies for On-line Trading
A Beginner's Guide to Day Trading Online
Getting Started in Trading (Getting Started in...)
Trading 102: Getting Down to Business

ASIN: 0471362107

Book Description

By now, you've probably heard lots of stories about the thousands of individuals worldwide who, armed with little more than their PCs, are making a killing day trading stocks online. Could electronic day trading be your ticket to financial independence? Here's your chance to find out.

Written by Sunny J. Harris, a successful electronic trader and one of today's most respected trading educators, Electronic Day Trading 101 is a complete step-by-step introduction to online day trading--what it is, how it works, and how to get started in business for yourself--and succeed. Requiring no prior stock market or electronic investing experience, it covers all the basics, from stock market fundamentals and essential trading terminology to sophisticated techniques for evaluating your trading performance. With dozens of illustrations and real-life examples, Harris fills you in on what you need to know about trading hardware and software, selecting an online broker or ECN, opening a trading account, developing a trading system that's right for you, trading from home or from a trading salon, performing fundamental and technical analysis, and researching stocks online.

Drawing upon her two decades of experience as head of her own trading firm, Harris provides expert coaching on the all-important business aspects of running a thriving electronic trading practice. She provides invaluable tips on goal setting, maintaining discipline, managing your time, budgeting, good record keeping, and taxes. She also helps you to understand the psychological barriers that often keep people from succeeding as traders, and tells you how to overcome them.

Electronic Day Trading 101 is an indispensable springboard for anyone considering taking the leap into online trading.

A top trading guru tells you everything you need to know about getting started as an online day trader.

"Sunny Harris has created a most comprehensive road map for guiding one into the exciting world of 'Direct Access Electronic Trading.' Very informative, realistic, and helpful. A 'must read'." - Harvey Houtkin, CEO, All-Tech Investment Group Author of Secrets of the SOES Bandit

"If you're going to start trading, start here. And, if you don't know a Level 2 screen from a Short List, then don't go further without reading this book. Sunny Harris has put together a great resource that will save you time and work, and added common sense that could only come from a successful, experienced trader." - Perry Kaufman, author of Trading Systems

Customer Reviews:

A Pile of Doo Doo.......2003-02-06

This is the WORST BOOK EVER! Sunny Harris should be ashamed of herself - or at least Locked Up!

No substance, a waste of paper.......2001-09-26

The book starts with 112 pages of very basic information, information for the totally clueless newbie. If you have more than 3 months of investment experience or if you've read 2 beginner daytrading books or if you've surfed investment sites the last 3 months, you won't learn anything new here. The next 200 pages are references, website addresses, and stuff that belongs in a phone directory. Page 189 to page 313 is a listing of NASDAQ stocks!?!?!? All it shows is the ticker symbol, company name and which sector the company belongs to. NOTHING ELSE!!! I would have rated it zero stars if Amazon.com had such a rating. This book is all bun and no burger, I read my copy at the library (313 pages in half an hour). Leave this PoS on the shelf!!!!!

Ripped off!!.......2000-10-19

I couldn't believe that I bought this crap. I didn't learn anything from this book. It has so little content. Most of the book is an appendix listing the stocks on the Nasdaq. This is most likely an attempt to make money from the day trading craze. I bought this because of the last few glowing recommendations but they must have been paid to write it. DON'T BUY THIS BOOK. There are better ones out there that provides better details on day trading.

Not much substance, lots of filler !.......2000-10-09

This book is 350 pages but all of the relevant information could be squeezed into 1/3 that amount. I got 1/3 of the way into reading the book when I realized that the rest of the book is all appendices. Approximately 127 pages of the book are names and the corresponding symbols of Nasdaq listed companies. This might have been helpful before the Internet, but now it is a waste of space. It does give some basic information for the begginer who has no idea about day trading, however if you base the price on relevant information, in my opinion, the price should be under 10 dollars. If you have a little knowledge about day trading, you will not get much more info from reading this book. If you have no knowledge about daytrading, you might want to look around first, in my opinion,you can do allot better.

almost worthless for someone trying to start out.......2000-05-05

I am a new investor buying stocks I believe will grow within the next couple years. I enjoy both fundamental and technical analysis (again I am a newbie at this too) but I was interested in doing a little more aggressive trading such as short-term or day-trading.

This book is WORTHLESS. It will only wet your appetite but to pay ... for this is a ripoff. Please DO NOT WASTE your hard earned money on this book. She pads this thing with the listing of EVERY Nasdaq listed stock and loads of other junk. It is insulting. There are less than 100 pages of info that actually tell the reader anything and that didn't even tell me much. This isn't a 101 course or an overview. This is a "class description" found in a college enrollment catalog stretched out over 342 worthless pages.

I returned it the next day (read it in about 2 hours) and purchased Toni Turner's "A Beginner's Guide to Day-Trading." I have not read it yet so I cannot recommend it to anyone.

Book Description

This collection of thought-provoking essays challenges librarians to consider the future of the profession, particularly as it relates to the Web, the library as place, delivering services to the desktop, certification, and the future of professional associations.

Customer Reviews:

do we still need librarians?.......2005-08-06

The predominant theme of this book seems to be uncertainty. The Web has shaken many professions, and library science is one of these. A rather sleepy discipline that has been used to centralised control of databases has been jolted into stress. Not the least because search engines are now most people's first resource for finding information.

The essays speculate as to possible ways the profession could go. But there is an optimistic note. If information becomes universally available and pervasive, then there might be a greater need for those who understand how to look for trusted data, and how to navigate the Web in an intelligent manner that a search engine cannot yet aspire to.

It should be said, in passing, that the issues in the book are not confined to US or Canadian libraries. They apply to any library.

Plus, ironically enough, it has been noted that when libraries install free internet computers, that these are often the most popular items to the public.

The End of Privacy: How Total Surveillance Is Becoming a Reality

Average customer rating:

Prof Needs Some Schooling
Simply the best
Lucid, well researched, and scary
some good information but...
I never really knew why I was uneasy until...

The End of Privacy: How Total Surveillance Is Becoming a Reality
Reg Whitaker
Manufacturer: New Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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The Transparent Society: Will Technology Force Us to Choose Between Privacy and Freedom?
On the Social Contract (Dover Thrift Edtions)
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ASIN: 1565845692

Amazon.com

The End of Privacy is a book about power--more specifically, it discusses surveillance as a powerful mechanism of social control. Philosophers such as Jeremy Bentham and Michel Foucault developed the concept of the "panopticon," an ideal prison where compliance with rules is guaranteed through complete and inescapable surveillance. Applying the principles involved to real-world examples that trace the development of surveillance technologies from Second World War military intelligence to the electronic data-veillance of the information revolution, Whitaker provides a thorough analysis of how our society may be gradually approaching panopticism.

Thanks to dramatic technological advances, surveillance monitoring can now provide nearly global coverage, exposing the everyday lives of ordinary people--in the workplace, at school, on the Internet, everywhere--to serve public, private, and prurient interests. Today, Whitaker notes, private-information brokers amass databases for an innumerable variety of commercial purposes--from credit reporting to mass marketing. Vast amounts of detailed personal information, including seemingly useless minutiae, end up in corporate hands. Orwell's monolithic Big Brother has fragmented into a myriad of Little Brothers, which add up to a powerful system with little or no accountability. Who, Whitaker asks, watches the watchers? --Tim Hogan

Book Description

Now in paperback, a sobering look at the threats to privacy posed by the new information technologies. Called "one of the best books yet written on the new information age" by Kirkus Reviews and now available in paperback, The End of Privacy shows how vast amounts of personal information are moving into corporate hands. Once there, this data can be combined and used to develop electronic profiles of individuals and groups that are potentially far more detailed, and far more intrusive, than the files built up in the past by state police and security agencies. Reg Whitaker shows that private e-mail can be read; employers can monitor workers' every move throughout the work day; and the U.S. Treasury can track every detail of personal and business finances. He goes on to demonstrate that we are even more vulnerable as consumers. From the familiar--bar-coding, credit and debit cards, online purchases--to the seemingly sci---"smart cards" that encode medical and criminal records, and security scans that read DNA--The End of Privacy reveals how ordinary citizens are losing control of the information about them that is available to anyone who can pay for it.

Customer Reviews:

Prof Needs Some Schooling.......2001-01-08

The book was very thought provoking. However, there seemed to be some factual errors when discussing intelligence-related topics that he might have cleared up with a little homework. It amazes me that so little is actually being published on this topic when it will dramatically (and irrevocably?) alter our own sense of who we are and how we fit into society.

Simply the best.......2000-06-10

I think Reg Whitaker did an excellent job in descriving how our privacy can be infringed on a daily basis. The best part is the second chapter, where he explains that the digitalization and the creation of databases are the main 2 causes of "the end of privacy"

Lucid, well researched, and scary.......2000-02-20

I bought this book because an author I have read who was recommended on a online news site also recommended Reg Whitaker. I was amazed to see that everything I had learned by reading a novel, "Transfer" by Jerry Furland was for real. I am getting a serious case of the shakes here. I thought "Transfer" was just another book about near term events that may or may not be accurate. Not anymore. I am convinced. Read this book. Get smart about where we are headed. Tell your friends and colleagues too.

some good information but..........2000-02-04

Mr. Whitaker has done a fine job of increasing my awareness of surveillance and how it can affect my every day life. I have become more careful about the information that I disclose and to whom I disclose it. While computers and computerization are a large part of the surveillance industry, I felt that more time could have been spent on other types of privacy theft and less on cyber voyerism. Overall, I believe that the book served its purpose, assisting me in my professional and private life. Again, I believe too much ink was spent on the computer aspect of surveillance.

I never really knew why I was uneasy until..........2000-01-26

I save a lot of money using coupons, I always fill out and return warranty cards. I have found myself the recipient of mail I did not solicit and offers that seem to exhibit more about me than I am comfortable with. It seems almost like rape. What amazes me is that Mr. Whitaker (is this a guy thing?) seems to believe it will all be okay-that we won't end up like Winston Smith in 1984, because the power of government is "de-centralizing and power is shifting to the "market". Well, I never get invited to the Whitehouse, and Presidents don't take vacations in my home, or play golf with my husband (Art-my husband-is a scratch golfer-I'd like to see that actually). I don't like what is happening, I cannot answer for anyone else. It is frightening to have Mr. Whitaker state that this seems to be an issue of little concern. I beg to differ. Maybe I'm no Claire Wolfe but I can sure tell my friends to read this book and see what they think. I bet they feel like I do. I'll be telling them to check out Jerry Furland's "Transfer" too.

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