Analysis of Mobile and Internet Network Coverage: Propagation of Electromagnetic Waves and Concept of Digital Divide in Burundi

Mobile and Internet network coverage plays an important role in digital transformation and the exploitation of new services. The evolution of mobile networks from the first generation (1G) to the 5th generation is still a long process. 2G networks have developed the messaging service, which complements the already operational voice service. 2G technology has rapidly progressed to the third generation (3G), incorporating multimedia data transmission techniques. It then progressed to fourth generation (4G) and LTE (Long Term Evolution), increasing the transmission speed to improve 3G. Currently, developed countries have already moved to 5G. In developing countries, including Burundi, a member of the East African Community (ECA) where more than 80% are connected to 2G technologies, 40% are connected to the 3G network and 25% to the 4G network and are not yet connected to the 5G network and then still a process. The objective of this article is to analyze the coverage of 2G, 3G and 4G networks in Burundi. This analysis will make it possible to identify possible deficits in order to reduce the digital divide between connected urban areas and remote rural areas. Furthermore, this analysis will draw the attention of decision-makers to the need to deploy networks and coverage to allow the population to access mobile and Internet services and thus enable the digitalization of the population. Finally, this article shows the level of coverage, the digital divide and an overview of the deployment of base stations (BTS) throughout the country to promote the transformation and digital inclusion of services.

Bridging Digital Divide for English Learners at Chinese Secondary Schools

This article reviews the concept of digital divide and particularly discusses the digital divide among K-12 students in rural and urban China,as well as the e-learning strategies initiated by the Chinese government that were designed to minimize this digital divide in China.This article concludes by explaining the issue of skills on effective e-learning and correspondingly making suggestions for English teachers in K-12 schools in China.

Digital Divide of Internet: Model Analysis and Policy Exploration-A Comparison among China, America and Russia

A new analytical model is proposed and constructedin this paper through studying the two-stage courseand the marginal replication cost of informationproducts. The economic nature of digital divide isuncovered and that is of the economic value and theallotment styles of information and knowledge. Basedon the proposed model and taken China, Americaand Russia as examples, the empirical analyses areflexibly made and policy explanations for bridgingthe divide are given.

Assessing the Digital Divide Status of the Jordanian Telecentre

This study investigates the status of digital divide amongst Jordanian Telecentres. The objective of this study is to analyze the impact of the perceived usefulness, the perceived ease-of-use and the facilitating conditions on the behavioral intention of employees. In addition, the study investigates the effect of the three mentioned factors on the user acceptance while the behavioral intention on the user acceptance is used as a mediating factor. The proposed research model was validated by distributing 150 survey questionnaires to the Telecentres in Jordan. Structural equation modeling (SEM) technique was used to analyze the results. One of the main limitations of this study is that the results cannot be universal since the study was limited to Jordan. Similar study needs to be conducted in different courtiers to either support or negate our results.

The Formation Logic of the Digital Divide and Feasible Ways to Cross It:An Access-Based Analysis

How enterprises overcome the digital divide in a digital economy is a topic related to efficiency and fairness.The formation of the digital divide has showcased a certain level of objectivity and is also influenced by the characteristics of enterprises themselves.Based on the model that expands the information and communication technology(ICT)access,concept,we explored the digital divide’s formation logic of the digital divide and feasible ways to cross it.Our findings shed light on its formation logic,which includes elements of the subjective will of enterprises to transform,the fear of transformation,the dependence on development paths,and the cost of using digital technology,all of which have contributed to disparities in enterprises’motivational access.In addition,differences in the construction of digital infrastructure,financial strengths,business models,and heterogeneity in cluster networks have led to differences in enterprises’material access.The absorptive capacity of enterprises has affected their skill access,while the management capability influences the application access of enterprises.We also found that crossing the digital divide requires the joint efforts of governments,markets,and enterprises in the four access dimensions.

Digital Divide in Relation to Differently Abled Community in Sri Lanka

The developments in the field of Information and Communication Technology （ICT） in the country has rapidly happen after year 2009 .Government has developed many programs and initiations to develop ICT in the country after three decades of war was ended up. As a result disabled community can make many opportunities to use the ICT and at the same time create a gap, which is commonly referred to as Disability Digital Divide. The purpose of this study was to examine empirically the current status of adoption of ICT and in turn the digital divide resulting from which in the disability community in Sri Lanka and the factors affecting this behavior. A questionnaire and Interviewed based survey （n = 107） was carried out to collect the data from the disabled people who used ICT in the Colombo, Gampaha, and Kaluthara district. An empirical model was developed to show the relationship between the level of adoption of 10 basic, intermediate, and advanced ICT facilities and a number of factors to reflect the WWW, Smart phones, and Computer usage aspects of disabled community. Based on the Innovatiotr---Diffusion Theory, the status of Digital Divide of a disabled community was specified by means of an Index. The results show that this community did not become innovators or early-adopters of ICT by adopting WWW or computer related technologies but was mostly confined to the smart phone related facilities. The results from this study highlight that the income of a disabled person, awareness about the information and technology, interest of new technology usage, social and cultural background of a person, use of English language in day-to-day life give a significant impact on the adoption oflCT by the disabled community.

Probing into Solutions to Digital Divide:China's Perspective

Since we have entered the informational epoch, the general application of information technology originates various kinds of effects that are divided into positive part and negative part, which the research of digital divide in the disabled group is raised under this background.In modern society, the disabled is an absolutely weak group which confronts the circumstance that is hard to adapt to when they face up with the impact in informational era for their physical or psychological disabilities. Strictly speaking, the issue of digital divide in the disabled group is part of the negative effect which is brought in by information technology. Meanwhile, it is a branch of digital divide issue. But the concern and solution for the digital divide issue embody a government's attitude and deed towards the new problem in the informational epoch, meanwhile they show esteem to the human rights and social equity in the new era.This article first describes and discusses the digital divide issue of the disabled group in China. Then, it focuses on the solutions or actions that Chinese local governments take towards the issue. Finally, it introduces Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act as a reference to China from the legislative perspective.

Innovation in the Public Sector in the Start-up Nation:Challenges of Technology,Bureaucracy,and Digital Divide

Innovation provides opportunities to all countries,as advancement in technology and globalization of economic markets encourage global competition and increase the role of governments in gaining a strategic competitive advantage while boosting economic growth and productivity.According to the OECD,innovation can make a difference in addressing developmental challenges and providing catalyst for countries to accelerate business processes and practices that improve public service efficiency.The public sector plays a significant role in modern economies and innovation is a necessary condition for improving government services to the public and creating a competitive economy.Israel is known as the“start-up nation”,but innovation policies and strategies relating to the public sector are less developed than those of business innovation due to lack of innovation culture,digital divide,and bureaucracy.The research examines innovation in the public sector in Israel compared to other OECD countries.It is argued that despite the enormous influence of high-tech and start-ups on the economy and gross of national product,the flourishing technology sector has not contributed to other sectors of the economy and the performance of the public service lags behind the private sector in terms of innovation and efficiency.The research concludes that implementing Israel’s success in business innovation into the public sector requires long-run strategic investments and public policies to increase the supply and quality of human capital and infrastructure.The goal should be to narrow digital divide with other developed countries and advance the technological capabilities and productivity of the public service.

Framing and Reframing the Digital Divide Policy in Taiwan： Consensus and Conflict

This paper explores key policy issues of national information and communication technology development to identify the gap between the heterogeneity in issues pertaining to the ＂digital divide＂. How this issue is cast often as a problem to be solved in recent years. On the public policy front, a series of reports issued by Taiwan Residents policymakers were endeavored to address universal services and digital divide issues. Government also has taken various steps to mitigate the disparity in opportunities to access the Internet （e.g., ＂e-Taiwan＂ for broadband services, ＂M-Taiwan＂ for broadband infrastructure and heterogeneous network services, and ＂i-Taiwan＂ for ubiquitous networks and digital convergence by Taiwan＇s Cabinet）. However, when policymakers worked to craft solutions to the pressing societal concern, they found lots of policy agendas need to redefine to foster greater understanding and enlighten practice for policy going forward. An examination of conflicting narratives within policy has been conducted, which identified not only the earlier debates were framed, but also key agendas of the most studied and empirical data used among them. The article attempts to examine the topic from a longitudinal perspective by using sets of documents revealed a tendency over time to explore how particular the agendas and debates of ＂digital divide＂ were framed. The study traced back to policy debates from cultural, economic, educational, and political perspectives at various Internet diffusion stages. The results provide useful insights into the study and discussion on new convergence policy making implications.

Profiling the digital divide of the elderly based on Internet big data:evidence from China

The integrated development of population aging and digital information age has brought an insurmountable“digital divide”to the elderly.We propose a method to profile the digital divide of the elderly by text mining,Baidu index and principal component analysis.The top ten scenarios related to the digital divide of the elderly are extracted,which are mobile,payment,phone,QR code,technology,WeChat,Alipay,cash,insurance and medical.The attention distribution of different scenarios in major cities in China was investigated and classified.The results suggest that the health code,social media,and online insurance need higher policy attention to promote narrow digital divide measure.And an inconsistency between netizens'attention and news reports makes Internet search behaviors have the potential to be a real-time supplement to narrow the digital divide among the elderly.The problem states of different cities reflect spatial heterogeneity and temporal asynchrony.The proposed method timely tracks the scenarios of the elderly's digital divide,providing effective insights and references to policy making and services and products improvement,and also providing suggestions for optimizing the development of“Internet+”aging.

Bridging the Digital Divide

She never thought the countryside scene could be so interesting. ＂The ancient farmers＇ houses of these Zhuang minority groups have threefloors--the first is for raising animals like pigs and hens, the second is for people and the third is for storing grain and corn.

Does digitalization mitigate regional inequalities?Evidence from China

Regional inequality significantly influences sustainable development and human well-being.In China,there exists pronounced regional disparities in economic and digital advancements;however,scant research delves into the interplay between them.By analyzing the economic development and digitalization gaps at regional and city levels in China,extending the original Cobb-Douglas production function,this study aims to evaluate the impact of digitalization on China's regional inequality using seemingly unrelated regression.The results indicate a greater emphasis on digital inequality compared to economic disparity,with variable coefficients of 0.59 for GDP per capita and 0.92 for the digitalization index over the past four years.However,GDP per capita demonstrates higher spatial concentration than digitalization.Notably,both disparities have shown a gradual reduction in recent years.The southeastern region of the Hu Huanyong Line exhibits superior levels and rates of economic and digital advancement in contrast to the northwestern region.While digitalization propels economic growth,it yields a nuanced impact on achieving balanced regional development,encompassing both positive and negative facets.Our study highlights that the marginal utility of advancing digitalization is more pronounced in less developed regions,but only if the government invests in the digital infrastructure and education in these areas.This study's methodology can be utilized for subsequent research,and our findings hold the potential to the government's regional investment and policy-making.

Digital Payment Systems in Urban Media Landscapes:The Evolution and Impact of Apple Pay on Urban Life and Consumer Behavior

This study examines the transformative impact of Apple Pay on urban landscapes and socioeconomic frameworks,with a particular focus on spending patterns and retail dynamics in metropolitan areas.By evaluating the adoption levels,the technological support,and the social impact of Apple Pay,the study shows that the service is both a catalyst for the development of digital payment and a sign of an increasing social gap.Although it has rapidly transformed Retail Enterprises and supported the construction of smart cities,especially in major world cities such as New York,London,and Tokyo,the work has brought out notable digital divides.Although Apple Pay,with more than 75%of iPhone users and 9,000 banks in 60 world areas and regions,has impacts that are not the same across urban populations,the study shows that while large format retailers have effectively adopted Apple Pay for value-added services to consumers and enhanced payment efficiency,small businesses encounter significant barriers in implementation.Additionally,the technology leverages smartphone usage and banking relationships,which does not address considerable urban population demographics and deeper issues of technology exclusion and inequality in the contemporary city.Such results call for attaining a just society’s technological advancement for efficiencies while still catering to all groups of urban dwellers.

Effect of Digital Economy Development on Rural-Urban Income Disparity: Evidence from China

Promoting income equality between urban and rural residents is one of the main goals of China’s social progress and economic development.It is also a necessary means to achieve“common prosperity.”Digital economy can effectively promote economic development,the adjustment of industry structure and industry upgrading,as well as increase the disposable income of urban and rural residents,which is theoretically beneficial to rural-urban income disparity.An empirical analysis is conducted based on the data of 30 provinces,municipalities,and autonomous regions in China from 2013 to 2020.The findings demonstrate that the growth of digital economy helps lessen rural-urban income disparity and has a significant effect in East China and North China.

A Study of Digital Disconnection Among Older Adults in the Internet Age

With internet and smartphone usage increasing every year,seniors are being exposed to digital media,either actively or passively.To better integrate into the information society for the elderly,efforts are also needed to clarify the causes of their digital disconnection and develop appropriate solutions.In this study,semi-structured interviews are utilized to investigate the self-adjustment and external intervention of the elderly in the age of digital media and to explore the ways,causes,and effects of digital disconnection of the elderly.The focus issue of this study is to clarify the subjective and objective factors of digital disconnection,especially cognitive problems,group influences,and technological access barriers in the elderly population concerning digital devices and the Internet.

Design of Digital Hybrid Chaotic Sequence Generator

The feasibility of the hybrid chaotic sequences as the spreading codes in code divided multiple access(CDMA) system is analyzed. The design and realization of the digital hybrid chaotic sequence generator by very high speed integrated circuit hardware description language(VHDL) are described. A valid hazard canceledl method is presented. Computer simulations show that the stable digital sequence waveforms can be produced. The correlations of the digital hybrid chaotic sequences are compared with those of m-sequences. The results show that the correlations of the digital hybrid chaotic sequences are almost as good as those of m-sequences. The works in this paper explored a road for the practical applications of chaos.

银发数字鸿沟:影响因素、类型及跨越之策

助力老年人跨越数字鸿沟,事关民生。通过半结构访谈发现,银发数字鸿沟存在机能、安全、支持和意愿四个影响因素,其外在表现为不同程度的技能沟。通过问卷调查,采用聚类分析法,归纳出老年人智能手机运用基本类型和每一类型的主要特点,确定游离型、激进型、谨慎型为银发数字鸿沟的三个基本类型,其分别揭示了银发数字鸿沟的程度之深、跨越之险及跨越之难。在此基础上,提出推进数字安全教育、老年学习团队活动、互联网无障碍改造及居委教育资源下沉等四项建议,以优化老年数字教育,促进老年人融入数字社会。

促进数字包容:数智图书馆的新使命

信息技术的发展就如一把“双刃剑”,在推动人类社会进步发展的同时,也使数字鸿沟问题日益凸显。公共图书馆是数字包容强有力的推动者,文章基于公共图书馆的属性特征与优势,指出公共图书馆在数智化转型过程中可以从拓宽服务适用人群、提升读者信息素养、推动资源平台建设、开拓服务新形态等方面为促进数字包容做出贡献。

农村老年人社会工作中数字鸿沟问题分析

随着人口老龄化与数字技术的发展,在农村老年人中出现了数字鸿沟问题,农村老年群体逐渐成为数字社会中的弱势群体。当前,农村老年人主要存在认知偏差、日常生活不便、数字素养低等问题,其根源在于农村老年人自我效能感低、缺乏人际支持以及忽视了对该群体的数字教育。基于增能理论,社会工作从个人、人际和社会政策三个层面分析,通过重塑农村老年人的认知、为其构建社会支持网络、落实农村老年人数字教育政策,以此化解数字鸿沟困局,助力农村老年人平等共享时代发展红利。