The Weightless World: Strategies for Managing the Digital Economy [Paperback]

Diane Coyle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2, 1999 | Series: Obex Series

The Weightless World is the first book to map an economic world that has been turned upside down by digital technology and global business. How will our careers, businesses, and governments change in a world where bytes are the only currency and where the goods that shape our lives--global financial transactions, computer code, and cyberspace commerce--literally have no weight? Addressing such problems as economic inequity and unemployment, Diane Coyle calls on individuals and governments to develop a new politics of weightlessness so that the economic benefits can be shared fairly. She proposes the creation of a radical center as the way to a new era of human creativity and economic prosperity.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Coyle, who is the economics editor for Britain's The Independent, has already garnered praise for this book in England, where it was published last year. Certainly, credit must be given to anyone who is able to acknowledge performance artist Laurie Anderson and Fed chairman Alan Greenspan on the same page. Coyle cites Greenspan for the term "weightless." It refers to the fact that new materials and miniaturization have led to outputs with increased economic value but decreased physical tonnage. Coyle prefers the term because it can also be used in reference to the so-called knowledge economy as well as the entertainment and service industries. She analyzes the impact of this growing "weightless" economy on how we define and measure work and output, asks how industries will have to be restructured and how new jobs can be created, and emphasizes the increased importance of education. She also considers government's role in responding to these economic changes and suggests that cities are the form of government best suited and best positioned to meet the challenge. David Rouse --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

"This is a wonderfully refreshing read. You've heard the standardstories—the gee-whiz optimism of the technophiles, the pessimism of theneo-luddites. Coyle offers something completely different. Each chapteroffers a novel, often unsettling perspective about the future. For sure shewill turn out to be wrong about some things—but no matter. This is one ofthose rare books that force your thoughts out of their usual grooves." Paul Krugman, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, authorof Pop Internationalism and The Age of Diminished Expectations

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Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: The MIT Press (July 2, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0262531666
• ISBN-13: 978-0262531665
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,135,437 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Read!, June 1, 2001

By 

Rolf Dobelli "getAbstract" (Switzerland) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Weightless World: Strategies for Managing the Digital Economy (Paperback)

U.S. Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan originated using "weightless" to describe computer-powered information technology. Diane Coyle employs his metaphor to explain that the European world is afflicted with unemployment and insecurity because of the evolution from industrial output to weightlessness. Her view of the new technology's international economic impact is distinctly European/British. She paints her strategy for managing the digital economy with a colorful but broad brush: better education, international ethical standards, governmental flexibility, liberalism. Her writing features quirky phrases, challenging sentence structure, and a few British spellings. Coyle includes surprising anecdotes and sparkling quotes from diverse sources - a valuable lexicon for further reading. We [...] recommend this book to those with an eclectic, liberal, literate, European view of the difference between the U.S. economic experience and that of the rest of the world. Such a reader will be delighted here.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An interesting read about the future, December 4, 1999

By 

Amrit Tiwana "www.bus.iastate.edu/tiwana" (Decatur, Georgia, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Weightless World: Strategies for Managing the Digital Economy (Paperback)

An interesting read about the future, provocative optimism, and predictive anticipation for the future. Academic researchers will, however, find a missing link---that to theory. But, for the most part, well worth a quick read. The author shows the trees in a world where too many of us care about the trees.