CONTENT

1.Rubric
2. Introduction
3. Summary
4. Critique
5. Author’s Conclusive Words
 RUBRIC

R
“ apid technological change, through Thomas
Friedman’s optimistic lens”

In Thank You for Being Late, a work unlike anything he has attempted
before, Thomas L. Friedman exposes the tectonic movements that are reshaping
the world today and explains how to get the most out of them and cushion their
worst impacts. You will never look at the world the same way again after you read
this book: how you understand the news, the work you do, the education your kids
need, the investments your employer has to make, and the moral and geopolitical
choices our country has to navigate will all be refashioned by Friedman’s original
analysis.

“An
Optimist's Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations”

Friedman combines his breathless optimism and journalistic personal style with a

much more advanced critique of globalization than in his earlier books. He

emphasizes how the combination of technology and market-based policies

launched by Britain's Margaret Thatcher and USA President Ronald Reagan in the

1980's drove today's increasing acceleration of global change.

 INTRODUCTION
Friedman shows, the exponential increase in computing power defined by
Moore’s law has a lot to do with it. The year 2007 was a major inflection point:
the release of the iPhone, together with advances in silicon chips, software,
storage, sensors, and networking, created a new technology platform. Friedman
calls this platform “the supernova”―for it is an extraordinary release of energy
that is reshaping everything from how we hail a taxi to the fate of nations to our
most intimate relationships. It is c reating vast new opportunities for individuals
and small groups to save the world―or to destroy it.

The book is divided into four parts -

• Reflecting,
• Accelerating,
• Innovating
• Anchoring.
When a friend arrived late for lunch, Friedman said, "Thank You for Being Late",
as it gave him time to reflect, to listen to what was taking place around him and to
slow down the pace.
 SUMMARY

Chapter:-1
• Friedman reflects upon the speed of modern life. Not only is it fast, it is accelerating. Friedman began a
deeper understanding of this reality when he was forced to pause while waiting for a late breakfast
guest. When future guests were late allowing him additional pauses, he thanked them—hence the title
of the book. Friedman also relates how a pause led to a deep and meaningful connection with a parking
lot attendant that further opened his understanding of the accelerating world. In what areas does
Friedman highlight the impact of accelerating change in the world? What examples of accelerating
change are most evident in daily life?

Chapter :-2
• Friedman recalls 2007 as a vintage year in technology with several major technology products and
platforms being released almost simultaneously. People today are faced with exponential growth of
change in computing, globalization, and climate change. How does the exponential characteristic of
acceleration cause difficulty in comprehending the impact of that change? What is the best response to
the difficulties posed by accelerating change?

Chapter :-3
• The author details accelerating change in technological capability with an examination of Moore’s Law
playing out in processor speed along with similar accelerating change in complementary computing
components. Increased processing power has been accompanied by increases in sensor capability,
computer memory, efficiency of software, along with the bandwidth and mobility of networking. How
is this computational growth manifested in the Air Force?

Chapter :-4
• Friedman examines the power of the cloud which Friedman refers to as the supernova. How does the
cloud impact productivity in the Air Force? Friedman continues the chapter tracing the growth of
computing from the “Tabulating Era” to the “Programming Era” to the current “Cognitive Era”.
Friedman gives several illustrations of the impact of cognitive computing and the cloud on human
endeavors. How does cognitive computing impact Air Force operations?
Chapter :-5
• Friedman discusses a variety of flows of information. How do the variety of “flows” described by
Friedman contribute to an interconnected, globalized world? What will be the impact of “flow” between
interconnected devices? He posits that the utilization of “flows” going through a company will be a
growing measure of valuation. How will the Air Force’s utilization of “flows” be measured?

Chapter :-6
• Friedman examines climate change. He gives many illustrations to validate his thesis that climate
change is accelerating. How does the “rain room” described by the author illustrate the impact of
human activity on the climate?

Chapter :-7
• Friedman addresses two questions: are things getting too fast, and how do we adapt? Friedman gives
several examples of how the pace of technological change has affected him. How have you experienced
these changes? The author also writes about policies not keeping up with change. What Air Force
policies are falling behind the pace of change?

Chapter :-8
• The author examines the nature of work in the context of accelerating change. Friedman writes that
people will need to continuously change and adapt, a process he calls “dynamic stability” to keep a job.
He also writes that entrepreneurial thinking will be required at all levels. Further, he describes new
platforms for learning that involve intelligent assistants and include innovative solutions such as micro-
degrees. These allow broader access to specialized education. How can the Air Force adapt from the
model of Airmen finding jobs to allow Airmen to invent a job? How does “dynamic stability” manifest
in a successful Air Force career? How will the Air Force best give room for entrepreneurial thinking?
How could these strategies be incorporated into Professional Military Education?

Chapter :-9
• Friedman defines the post-post cold war era of international relations. International relations and
geopolitical stability are deeply impacted by accelerating change. Friedman points out several
challenges to productive international relationships. While accelerations may benefit nations, they also
bring additional stresses. How does the “age of accelerations” make it more difficult to revive a failing
state? What roles do “super-empowered” individuals play in the ”age of accelerations”? An
international relations strategy Friedman recommended is “amplify, deter, and degrade” or ADD. What
does the Air Force offer in an effort to ”amplify” as defined by Friedman?
Chapter:-10
• Friedman describes natural systems as an extended metaphor for how political and social systems
could better adapt to accelerating change. Friedman wrote that the most adaptive systems will
intentionally choose to mimic “Mother Nature’s killer apps for producing resilience and propulsion.”
How do the five “killer apps” he lists apply to the Air Force?

Chapter:-11
• Discusses moral aspects of the increased scalability of individual behavior brought about by
accelerating change. Technology, especially, has leveraged the power of the individual to be much
greater than the past. What should be the place of the liberal arts in today’s STEM focused education?

Chapter :-12
• Friedman focused on finding and creating an eye of calm in the storm of change. Friedman illustrated
such calm with an example of community in his hometown. As accelerating change threatens to
overwhelm our ability to keep up with today’s events, where is there room to learn from the past? How
can we best learn from past? How does the Air Force’s present sense of community compare with its
sense of community in the past?

Chapter :-13
• Examines the impact of accelerating change on the role of diversity in society. Friedman wrote that
America is becoming a minority-majority country. How will the ideals of e pluribus unum be
championed in the midst of accelerating changes?

Chapter :-14
• Friedman wrote that we need collaboration and trust to continue the pace of accelerated innovation.
Personal interaction still underlies all the advances made by humanity. How are some ways to
overcome forces that impose isolation and bring people together for durable communities?
 CRITIQUE

As enthralled users of new communications devices, we are all attuned to the

transformative power of technological innovation. But what does this
phenomenon really signify?

Didn’t earlier generations also experience innovations and dislocations as

ruptures? For more than a decade, New York Times journalist Thomas Friedman
has been raising his hand to offer emphatic answers to these difficult questions.

As in his earlier writings, he again insists in “Thank You for Being Late: An
Optimist’s Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations” that the present and the
future are different from the past, especially in how rapidly and significantly
things change.

And as his subtitle suggests, he is remarkably sanguine about what this might
portend.
 Authors Last Words

Today's technological revolutions are vast enough to be termed beyond "the

cloud" to his description as "the supernova".

He correctly cites the lag in social and political innovations which must now be
overcome by such units as OTA, still copied in many other countries but shut
down in the USA in 1996. Many obsolete political parties, health and educational
systems, tax and trade policies need overhauling today, as Friedman describes.

To restore lost trust in current institutions, Friedman ends with recalling his

childhood in Minnesota with its inclusive humanity and the community

responsibility of its civic and business leaders in such innovative groups as The

Itasca Project.

I recall being an early presenter at their first meeting at Lake Itasca along with

radical economist Michael Harrington who explored the roots of poverty and

exclusion in the US economy which burst forth in our 2016 elections.