Cell phones †How have they changed us socially? Essay

After more than a century, the Polytechnic University of the Philippines continues to perform a significant role in nation-building and it remains steadfast in its resolve to participate in the national and global academic arena. The current university administration, with Dr. Emanuel C. De Guzman at the helm, strengthens and highlights even further the role of the University in the production of important knowledge, information and ideas as aptly reflected in the University’s vision of becoming an EPISTEMIC COMMUNITY. In this regard, the University adopts a clear, practical, and realizable University Research Agenda (URA) meant and calculated to (1) unify the direction and framework of the research activities of the University; (2) align the research efforts of the University with the thrust and priorities of the National government agencies, such as the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), the National Economic and Development Agency (NEDA), Commission on Higher Educ ation (CHED) and others; and (3) generate researches, scientific innovations, speculative and theoretical paradigms which are expected to drive economic, scientific, social, moral and technological development. The University Research Agenda is categorized into five general themes, to wit: (1) peace, security and poverty reduction; (2) accelerating infrastructure development; (3) competitive industry and entrepreneurship; (4) social and cultural development; and (5) conservation, protection and rehabilitation of the environment towards sustainable development. 1 PEACE, SECURITY AND POVERTY REDUCTION This research theme addresses three important national and global issues that mankind is squarely faced: peace, security and poverty. The University is  in the belief that these issues are interrelated—solving one means solving others. A. Peace and Security Studies Peace and security studies and researches are expected (1) understand the causes of armed conflicts, religious disagreements, cultural clashes, war, terrorism, genocide, human rights violations and others; (2) develop ways and devises to prevent and resolve identified peace and security problems; and ultimately (3) build peaceful and just communities, systems, and societies. Obviously, these types of studies require interdisciplinary approaches and expertise. Henceforth, researches with the following topics could meet the above expectations: (1) Understand the causes of armed conflicts, religious disagreements, cultural clashes, war, terrorism, genocide, human rights violations and others with focus or emphasis on: a. Political dynamics, b. Democratization, c. National and human security, d. Social Issues, e. Social Movements, f. Migration, g. International relations and trans-border issues, h. Internationalization, i. World politics, j. Ethnographic and ethnicity studies, k. Knowledge and Belief systems, l. Religion and Philosophy, m. Human growth and development, n. Other related topics. (2) Develop ways and devises to prevent and resolve identified peace and security problems, particularly on: a. Organizational communication, b. Development communication, c. Cross-cultural communication, d. Peace communication, e. Psycho-trauma and crisis intervention, f. Translation studies, g. Ethno-linguistics, h. Behavioral, psychosocial, psychological researches, i. Macroeconomics and globalization issues, and j. Other related topics. (3) Build peaceful and just communities, systems and societies, exploring: a. Access, equity and ethics, b. Globalization of education and cross cultural aspects, c. Institutional development, d. Women and children issues, e. Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual and Transsexual (LGBT) issues, f. Gender and development studies, and g. Other related topics. B. Poverty Reduction Studies The University works with the paradigm that the poverty issue is multi-dimensional and is driven by multifarious causes. Poverty studies therefore should cover the many facets of the causes and effects of poverty as well as the ways of addressing them. They should also be linked with peace and security concerns of localities, regions and countries. The studies should reveal the relationships of poverty to security, human rights, governance, lack of education, and limited access to social services for according to Kofi Annan, development cannot be enjoyed without security and security cannot be enjoyed without development. Roles and models on local resource and local actors mobilization, increasing productivity and creativity, community-driven development, and development partnerships between public and private sector should likewise be included among the focus of poverty studies. The following research topics are herein identified for poverty reduction according to different dimensio ns: Social, Political and Cultural Dimension Knowledge and Belief systems Social Welfare Local Government Studies Public-private partnership Public personnel management and development Marriage and Family Human development and social protection Quality of Life Fighting poverty with good governance Other related topics Educational Dimension Educational technology/Innovation and change Communication Technology Student support services Professional development and faculty support Quality assurance Curricular benchmarking Institutional development Policy studies Outcome-based education Inquiry-based education Promotion of full, decent and productive employment Transformative education Consumers’ Rights Teacher and student achievements Quality service Home-School-Community collaboration Employment impact Graduate tracer studies Economic Dimension National and local economic policies Growth and equity Local/community and distributive economics SMEs, cooperatives and social enterprise Food sufficiency and productivity Corporate social responsibility Supply chain management Micro-finance/micro lending strategies Employment ACCELERATING INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT Consistent with the National Government’s thrust, the University is determined to effect significant economic growth, human development and social protection through acceleration of infrastructure development. Undoubtedly, infrastructure development is one of the major priorities of the national government as it is clearly and concretely outlined in the recent National Economic and Development Authority agenda. The University, in support to the government’s efforts, undertakes to provide the country with research-based studies, scientific and engineering innovations that would enable both the government and private sectors in hastening infrastructure development. The University identified the following areas and topics to concentrate on: Hard Infrastructures and Software Infrastructures. Hard Infrastructureswhich are meant to support the drivers of economic growth such as tourism, agriculture, industry, energy and others, specifically: Urban and Rural Housing Transportation and Structural Engineering Energy Related Infrastructure (e.g. power sources, upgrade of existing power plants, etc.) Transportation technology Energy conservation facilities Flood control and management Irrigation systems Resettlement frameworks for informal settlers Water treatment facilities Transport policy studies Other related topics Software Infrastructureswhich are meant to provide the necessary services for human development and social protection such education, health, information technology and others specifically: E-governance Software development and theory Transaction processing systems Management Information Systems/Reporting Systems Distance Teaching Systems and Institutions E-Learning and related technology development Internet and web applications development Data engineering and Ubiquitous computing Knowledge management Mobile computing systems Computer Aided Instructions Network security and issues IT-Enabled Services COMPETITIVE INDUSTRY AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP The University recognizes the country’s need to strengthen the competitiveness of its industries particularly those which are driving the nation forward in terms of economic growth such as tourism, agriculture, skilled manpower in ICT and language proficiency, retail, exports, investments and banking. Furthermore, PUP is one with the National Government in its objective of assuring rapid and sustained growth for the country. In view of this, the University with its various academic and research arms, identify important research topics and areas which could be explored to reveal important trends, issues and challenges confronting these industries; and to discover devices and ways to address these challenges. The following research topics are hereunder identified: Market for Agriculture Industry Cooperative Management Resource Management Quality Management Medium and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Executive/Enterprises Information Systems Industry needs analysis Human resource management practices and issues Management studies (Cooperative management, resource management, quality management) Work values Macro and micro economics Investments and banking systems and operations Enhancing competitiveness of industry and services Intelligent agents in Ecommerce Management and organization Tourism and Hospitality Management National and Local Economic Policy research (NEDA, LGU projects, DTI) Another related facet of this research theme is entrepreneurship. Along this line, the University hereunder identified the following research topics and areas: Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Studies Development Projects Livelihood Business Development and Innovations Product Development Incubation and commercialization Business generation E-Business researches/ E-commerce SOCIAL AND CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT Culture and society are linked to each other. Generally, culture is an important element of social development. The University, with its strong Academic/ Research Centers and Institutes pertaining to cultural and social studies, is bent to support the national government in the: (1) creation of intellectual potential; (2) building of human capital; (3) popularization of culture, arts and heritage; (4) forging social integration; (5) promotion of national identity through local and national historiography; (6) prevention of social pathologies; (7) initiation and establishment of cooperation; (8) advancement and promotion of national solidarity and patrimony; and (9) reduction of disproportions of personal development of citizens as a form of social advancement. The following research topics are identified in order to direct the University research activities along the line of cultural and  social development: Philosophical Studies Sociological Studies Historiography Literature, Performing Arts, Visual Arts, Folk Arts Heritage studies/ Intangible cultural heritage/Heritage conservation Popular culture Filipino worldview Media in the ASEAN Filipino culture Communication and society Media laws and ethics Communication technology Media literacy Media usage and effects Information campaign and evaluation, AD/PR principles and case studies Human growth and development studies Sexuality and health-risk behaviors Organizational behavior, multiple intelligences, giftedness and learning disabilities Technology-mediated, language learning and teaching, Philippine languages, translation studies, ethnolinguistics, registers CONSERVATION, PROTECTION AND REHABILITATION OF THE ENVIRONMENT TOWARDS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT Conservation, protection and rehabilitation of the environment is a significant factor in the maintenance of community`s sustainability. It includes the sustainable use and management of the natural resources such as water, natural energy, air, wildlife and minerals. The University recognizes this as a very important element of national development. The following research areas and topics have been identified to generate knowledge to supplement the existing body of works regarding the management, care, use and exploitation of the natural resources: Climate change mitigation Climate change adaptation Disaster management, preparedness and monitoring Energy conservation Environmental conservation and preservation Environment protection and stewardship Urban ecology Global warming