Network strategies for the new economy

In this paper we argue that the pace and scale of development in the information and communication technology industries (ICT) has had and continues to have major effects on the industry economics and competitive dynamics generally. We maintain that the size of changes in demand and supply conditions is forcing companies to make significant changes in the way they conceive and implement their strategies. We decompose the ICT industries into four levels, technology standards, supply chains, physical platforms, and consumer networks. The nature of these technologies and their cost characteristics coupled with higher degrees of knowledge specialisation is impelling companies to radical revisions of their attitudes towards cooperation and co-evolution with suppliers and customers. Where interdependencies between customers are particularly strong, we anticipate the possibility of winner-takes-all strategies. In these circumstances industry risks become very high and there will be significant consequences for competitive markets

Network industries in the new economy

In this paper we discuss two propositions: the supply and demand of knowledge, and network externalities. We outline the characteristics that distinguish knowledge- intensive industries from the general run of manufacturing and service businesses. Knowledge intensity and knowledge specialisation has developed as markets and globalisation have grown, leading to progressive incentives to outsource and for industries to deconstruct. The outcome has been more intensive competition. The paper looks at what is potentially the most powerful economic mechanism: positive feedback, alternatively known as demand-side increasing returns, network effects, or network externalities. We present alternative demand curves that incorporate positive feedback and discuss their potential economic and strategic consequences. We argue that knowledge supply and demand, and the dynamics of network externalities create new situations for our traditional industrial economy such that new types of economies of scale are emerging and "winner takes all" strategies are having more influence. This is the first of a pair of papers. A second paper will take the argument further and look at the nature of firms' strategies in the new world, arguing that technology standards, technical platforms, consumer networks, and supply chain strategies are making a significant contribution to relevant strategies within the new economy

Linking glacial-interglacial states to multiple equilibria of climate

Glacial-Interglacial cycles are often described as an amplified global response of the climate to perturbations in solar radiation caused by oscillations of Earth's orbit. However, it remains unclear whether internal feedbacks are large enough to account for the radically different Glacial and Interglacial states. Here we provide support for an alternative view: Glacial-Interglacial states are multiple equilibria of the climate system which exist for the same external forcing. We show that such multiple equilibria resembling Glacial and Interglacial states can be found in a complex coupled General Circulation Model of the ocean-atmosphere-sea ice system. The multiple states are sustained by ice-albedo feedback modified by ocean heat transport and are not caused by the bi-stability of the ocean's overturning circulation. In addition, expansion/contraction of the Southern Hemisphere ice pack over regions of upwelling, regulating outgassing of CO$_2$ to the atmosphere, is the primary mechanism behind a large pCO$_2$ change between states

“Yes, Separation! No, Integration!” A Historical Analysis of Black Nationalist Groups Across the Decades: From the Civil Rights Era to the Contemporary Era

As tens of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets with the chants of “Black Lives Matter!” Or “hands up, don’t shoot” issues such as police brutality and institutional racism have once again been thrust into the national spotlight. The strength, longevity, and occasional violence associated with these protests have made Americans from all backgrounds aware of the demands of the protestors. Unsurprisingly, these recent protests, often concerned with issues of race and justice, have drawn comparisons to the powerful protests of the civil rights era. As a result of the success of the civil rights movement and leaders such as Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., the Black Power and Black nationalist movements took root in America hoping to unite the invigorated spirit of many African Americans. Like the civil rights era, the recent protests have had a radicalizing impact on some African Americans, as membership of contemporary Black nationalist groups has exploded in recent months. This paper examines four Black nationalist groups: the Black Panther Party (BPP) and the Republic of New Africa (RNA), both of which were a product of the civil rights era, as well as the New Black Panther Party (NBPP) and the Not F---ing Around Coalition (NFAC), two extremist groups that are leading the charge of the most radicalized African Americans in today’s society. Although the time-period in between the four groups stretches nearly 55 years, the core tenets of Black nationalism have stayed the same. While the four groups have clear differences in politics (from Marxism, to African socialism, to left-wing paramilitarism), ideology, and areas of influence, they all believe that the United States and its institutions are unreformably racist and the only way for Black people to become truly liberated is through the creation of an independent Black nation or, at the very least, self-determination for the Black citizenry in America

Northeastern News- Winter 1987

https://neiudc.neiu.edu/neiunews/1030/thumbnail.jp

NEIU News- Sep. 1986

https://neiudc.neiu.edu/neiunews/1029/thumbnail.jp