People communicate with a doctor through a smart home terminal at the Light of Internet Exposition of the fourth World Internet Conference in Wuzhen Mike Evans Buccaneers Jersey , Tongxiang City of east China's Zhejiang Province, Dec. 2, 2017. The expo, attracting 411 renowned internet enterprises from home and abroad, showcases the latest internet technologies and applications from around the world, highlighting artificial intelligence Jameis Winston Buccaneers Jersey , cloud computing, big data and other areas. (XinhuaLi Xin) WUZHEN, Zhejiang, Dec. 5 (Xinhua) -- The tucked-away river town of Wuzhen may not be an obvious site for the World Internet Conference, but the annual event shows that Internet connection is more important to modern life than location.
This year's conference, the fourth ever Jordan Whitehead Buccaneers Jersey , featured a vision for the future of the east China town's century-old wooden houses: retrofitting with "smart home" systems that bring breakfast first thing in the morning and hail driverless cars to take residents to work after the morning meal.
Mobile payment, facial recognition, shared bikes and omnipresent wifi have become a part of everyday life for residents in Wuzhen, which makes Luigi Gambardella, president of ChinaEU, a Brussels-based association that promotes communication between China and Europe Alex Cappa Buccaneers Jersey , wonder whether the technology can be copied in less developed regions.
World Bank statistics show that even among the poorest 20 percent of the world's population, nearly 70 percent have cellphones, meaning more households have access to the digital devices than to clean water, improved toilets or electricity.
In China, there are more than eight million online shops on Alibaba's e-commerce platform, 62 percent of which are small shops. The percentage of female shop owners is growing M.J. Stewart Buccaneers Jersey , and the disabled already account for one percent of e-shop owners.
Other corners of the world have also benefited from the "digital dividend."
In Kenya, remittance costs have been reduced by over 90 percent for migrant workers who send money back to their families in rural areas, thanks to digital payment systems. In India, the Aadhar biometric ID system has served more than one billion, especially poor people, while preventing corruption and waste Ronald Jones II Buccaneers Jersey , saving the government billions of dollars every year.
However, there are still a lot of people who are not able to benefit from the digital revolution.
Managing Director and World Bank Group Chief Administrative Officer, Shaolin Yang said there are six billion people without access to high-speed internet, and four billion of them don't have access to the internet at all.
"It is why here at this year's conference we must discuss how to bridge the digital divide," said Gambardella, who said China is capable of being a leader in this endeavor.
China leads the world in access to fiber optic broadband networks and boasts the largest 4G network. Its internet penetration has topped 72.5 percent.
Gambardella thinks that the Chinese government has efficient administration that leads to timely decision making.
"In China Carlton Davis Buccaneers Jersey , the government-led deployment of fiber-optic networks in rural areas is a best practice in the digital economy and should be introduced to other countries," he said. "The conference is a perfect platform for China to share its experience in bridging the digital divide."
In Mexico, the government is leading an internet reform that aims to reduce the costs for mobile communication and prices of information services.
"Our internet access rate has grown to 20 percent. In the meantime, 61 percent of mobile users have access to broadband, which was only 6 percent in 2011," said Miguel Angel Margain Vita Vea Buccaneers Jersey , Director General of the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property.
The unprecedented information revolution will be more meaningful when all people in the world can benefit from it, Yang added.
With our nation s healthcare infrastructure precariously perched in limbo it seems the physicians are bearing the brunt of these cuts. Physician reimbursement cuts have crippled many specialists while creating a potential shortage of care never before seen. Many physician practices have seen their once healthy bottom lines drop precipitously almost overnight. It has left them scrambling to find new revenue sources.
The increased availability in government contracts calling for medical services has reached an all time high. Until now finding federal, state, and local government bids for physician services has been an exercise in futility by and large. Many practices would openly admit to not seeking these federal, state, or local contracts in the past due to their perceived difficulties and a widely held belief among the industry that the government does not add revenue. After experiencing the newly implemented Medicare reimbursement cuts many practices are now singing a different tune.
Anytime you see an industry get hit with up to 35 cuts in their most profitable modalities it will create one of two scenarios Matt Gay Buccaneers Jersey , said Jim Ward, Vice President of Business Development for BidPrime, a leading resource for obtaining government bids, contracts, and RFPs. The groups that were prepared have expanded their scope of services to now incorporate finding worthwhile government bids and contracts to help offset losses. The groups that were not prepared are now being absorbed by hospital systems just to make ends meet. That second scenario was unimaginable just five years ago.