Mcluhan (1995) talked about technology advancements and the effects it has had on society in the chapter "Roads and Paper Routes," and technology has advanced exponentially over the years. According to Dr. Hans Moravec, "by 2020, a $1,000 personal computer will have the raw processing power of a human brain, and by 2050 (assuming a global population of 9 billion), $1,000 worth of computing power will equal the processing power of all human brains on earth" (Evans, 2009). People who do not have access to technology due to their geographic location or socioeconomic status will continue are left out of the modern economy and social discourse.
According to Michael Geist (2013), Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, "the government has failed to articulate a digital strategy aimed at solving these problems. Until that happens, it seems likely that the Canadian digital divide will continue to expand” (Geist, 2013, para 10). However, in an encouraging recent development, the CRTC declared that all Canadian residents are entitled to access voice and broadband internet services on fixed and mobile wireless networks and have created a $750 million fund to help make this become a reality (Jackson, 2016, para 3). Only time will tell if the political and corporate will similarly exists to make the “digital divide” a thing of the past.
The word “Canada” originates from the Iroquoian word kanata, meaning "settlement" or "village” (“Name of Canada, n.d.) So it only seems fitting that, in extending digital communications to the farthest reaches of the vast geography of the country - and thereby contracting McLuhanian space and time - that we truly fulfill our indigenous namesake.
REFERENCES
Barney, D. (2005). Communication Technology. Vancouver, British Columbia: UBC Press.
Canadian Internet Registration Authority. (2015) .CA Factbook. Retrieved on January 31, 2017 from https://cira.ca/factbook/2015/the-canadian-internet.htm
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. (2015). Communications Monitoring Report 2015: Canada's Communications System: An Overview for Citizens, Consumers, and Creator. Retrieved Feb 4, 2017 from http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/publications/reports/policymonitoring/2015/cmr2.htm
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. (2016). Submission to the Government of Canada’s Innovation Agenda. Retrieved on January 31, 2017 from http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/publications/reports/rp161221/rp161221.pdf
Dobby, C. (2011, April 16). CRTC faces hard truths about internet access in Canada’s north. Globe and Mail. Retrieved January 26, 2017 from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/crtc-faces-hard-truths-about-internet-access-in-canadas-north/article29597669/
Evans, D. (2009). Top 25 Technology Predictions. CISCO Internet Business Solutions Group. Retrieved February 5, 2017 from http://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en_us/about/ac79/docs/Top_25_Predictions_121409rev.pdf
Geist, M. (2013, April 9). Why Canada’s Digital Divide Persists. The Tyee. Retrieved February 5, 2017 from https://thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2013/04/09/Canada-Digital-Divide/
Howard, P., Busch, L. & Sheets, P. (2010.) Comparing Digital Divides: Internet Access and Social Inequality in Canada and the United States. Canadian Journal of Communication. Vol. 35, Issue 1. 109-128. Retrieved February 1, 2017 from http://libsecure.camosun.bc.ca:2077/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=c03d81aa-3a51-4253-8160-6307665e303e%40sessionmgr4010&vid=7&hid=4105
Jackson, E. (2016, December 22). CRTC declares high-speed Internet a basic service, creates $750-million fund. Financial Post. Retrieved February 5, 2017 from http://business.financialpost.com/fp-tech-desk/crtc-declares-high-speed-internet-a-basic-service-creates-750-million-fund?__lsa=a029-0522
Kloster, D. (2016, April 4) Telus: Boost for Internet speeds in Tofino, Ucluelet by end of 2016. The Times Colonist. Retrieved February 2, 2017 from http://www.timescolonist.com/business/telus-boost-for-internet-speeds-in-tofino-ucluelet-by-end-of-2016-1.2223556
Lorimer, R., Gasher, M., & Skinner, D. (2016). Mass communication in Canada (8th ed.). Don Mills, Ontario: Oxford University Press.
McLuhan, M. (1995). Chapter 10. Roads and paper routes. Understanding media: The extensions of man. New York: McGraw Hill.
Name of Canada. (n.d.) In Wikipedia. Retrieved February 5, 2017 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Name_of_Canada
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. (2001). Understanding the Digital Divide. Retrieved January 30, 2017 from https://www.oecd.org/sti/1888451.pdf
Stingl, A. (2015). Digital Divide (sociology). Research Starters: Sociology (Online Edition). Retrieved February 1, 2017 from http://libsecure.camosun.bc.ca:2068/eds/detail/detail?vid=1&sid=11daae56-ffea-4c95-a505-1d96d9b5e3e1%40 sessionmgr101&hid=119&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#AN=89185428&db=ers
According to Michael Geist (2013), Canada Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa, "the government has failed to articulate a digital strategy aimed at solving these problems. Until that happens, it seems likely that the Canadian digital divide will continue to expand” (Geist, 2013, para 10). However, in an encouraging recent development, the CRTC declared that all Canadian residents are entitled to access voice and broadband internet services on fixed and mobile wireless networks and have created a $750 million fund to help make this become a reality (Jackson, 2016, para 3). Only time will tell if the political and corporate will similarly exists to make the “digital divide” a thing of the past.
The word “Canada” originates from the Iroquoian word kanata, meaning "settlement" or "village” (“Name of Canada, n.d.) So it only seems fitting that, in extending digital communications to the farthest reaches of the vast geography of the country - and thereby contracting McLuhanian space and time - that we truly fulfill our indigenous namesake.
REFERENCES
Barney, D. (2005). Communication Technology. Vancouver, British Columbia: UBC Press.
Canadian Internet Registration Authority. (2015) .CA Factbook. Retrieved on January 31, 2017 from https://cira.ca/factbook/2015/the-canadian-internet.htm
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. (2015). Communications Monitoring Report 2015: Canada's Communications System: An Overview for Citizens, Consumers, and Creator. Retrieved Feb 4, 2017 from http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/publications/reports/policymonitoring/2015/cmr2.htm
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. (2016). Submission to the Government of Canada’s Innovation Agenda. Retrieved on January 31, 2017 from http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/publications/reports/rp161221/rp161221.pdf
Dobby, C. (2011, April 16). CRTC faces hard truths about internet access in Canada’s north. Globe and Mail. Retrieved January 26, 2017 from http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/crtc-faces-hard-truths-about-internet-access-in-canadas-north/article29597669/
Evans, D. (2009). Top 25 Technology Predictions. CISCO Internet Business Solutions Group. Retrieved February 5, 2017 from http://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en_us/about/ac79/docs/Top_25_Predictions_121409rev.pdf
Geist, M. (2013, April 9). Why Canada’s Digital Divide Persists. The Tyee. Retrieved February 5, 2017 from https://thetyee.ca/Mediacheck/2013/04/09/Canada-Digital-Divide/
Howard, P., Busch, L. & Sheets, P. (2010.) Comparing Digital Divides: Internet Access and Social Inequality in Canada and the United States. Canadian Journal of Communication. Vol. 35, Issue 1. 109-128. Retrieved February 1, 2017 from http://libsecure.camosun.bc.ca:2077/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=c03d81aa-3a51-4253-8160-6307665e303e%40sessionmgr4010&vid=7&hid=4105
Jackson, E. (2016, December 22). CRTC declares high-speed Internet a basic service, creates $750-million fund. Financial Post. Retrieved February 5, 2017 from http://business.financialpost.com/fp-tech-desk/crtc-declares-high-speed-internet-a-basic-service-creates-750-million-fund?__lsa=a029-0522
Kloster, D. (2016, April 4) Telus: Boost for Internet speeds in Tofino, Ucluelet by end of 2016. The Times Colonist. Retrieved February 2, 2017 from http://www.timescolonist.com/business/telus-boost-for-internet-speeds-in-tofino-ucluelet-by-end-of-2016-1.2223556
Lorimer, R., Gasher, M., & Skinner, D. (2016). Mass communication in Canada (8th ed.). Don Mills, Ontario: Oxford University Press.
McLuhan, M. (1995). Chapter 10. Roads and paper routes. Understanding media: The extensions of man. New York: McGraw Hill.
Name of Canada. (n.d.) In Wikipedia. Retrieved February 5, 2017 from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Name_of_Canada
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. (2001). Understanding the Digital Divide. Retrieved January 30, 2017 from https://www.oecd.org/sti/1888451.pdf
Stingl, A. (2015). Digital Divide (sociology). Research Starters: Sociology (Online Edition). Retrieved February 1, 2017 from http://libsecure.camosun.bc.ca:2068/eds/detail/detail?vid=1&sid=11daae56-ffea-4c95-a505-1d96d9b5e3e1%40 sessionmgr101&hid=119&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmU%3d#AN=89185428&db=ers