Submission deadline: 19 November 2021
Publication: May/June 2022
With the rapid developments and proliferations of the IoT, cyber-physical systems, AI, and autonomous and mobility technologies, cyber (virtual) space and physical (real) space are converging. Such advancements in information and communication technology (ICT) have brought progress in industrial automations and economic growth. As things, people, and
devices are increasingly connected, another digital revolution that focuses on human and environmental needs is underway. Having its origin in Japan, Society 5.0 attempts to bring social and environmental concerns into the midst of a digital society. Conceptually, Society 5.0 is defined as “a human-centered (smart) society that balances economic advancement with the resolution of social problems by a system that highly integrates cyberspace and physical space.” For a human-centered society, technologies can contribute significant values to many fields, such as mobility, healthcare and caregiving, manufacturing and infrastructures, food and agriculture, energy and climate, and disaster prevention. Broadly, the issues addressed correspond and align with the agenda for Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.
What would a human-centered society be like with the convergence of virtual and physical spaces? How can we address the economic and social problems facing society by leveraging digital technology and practices? How can IT and AI contribute to sustainability, equity, and economic development? What types of partnerships between government, citizens, and public and private sectors would be needed to achieve the goals of a human-centered society? How would society react to “hyperautomation” where automation uses technology to automate tasks that once required humans?
This special issue of IT Professional seeks to present an overview of the problems addressed in Society 5.0 and showcase recent applications of IT towards a human-centered society. We invite articles that present recent advances, perspectives, and use cases in this area. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Technologies for addressing social challenges, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace, and justice
- Use of technology in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) established by the United Nations
- Adoption and implementations of human-centered technologies
- Impacts of convergence of virtual and physical spaces to citizens
- Impact of fostering innovation to regulatory policies, transparency, and related ethical issues
- Centralized vs. decentralized governance
- Economic – for-profit – models in a human-centered society
- Partnership models between public and private agencies
- Best practices for managing hyperautomation
- Professional challenges and the future of human labor
- Role of individuals, industry, regulatory bodies, and government in a hyperautomated society
- Human-centric approaches in the use of technology in the fields of healthcare and caregiving, food and agriculture, disaster prevention, climate change, and green economies
Submission Guidelines
Only submissions that describe previously unpublished, original, state-of-the-art research and that are not currently under review by a conference or another journal will be considered. Extended versions of conference papers must be at least 30 percent different from the original conference works. Feature articles should be no longer than 4,200 words and have no more than 20 references (with tables and figures counting as 300 words each). For author guidelines, see the Author Information page. All manuscripts must be submitted to ScholarOne Manuscripts by the deadline in order to be considered. Submissions are subject to peer review on both technical merit and relevance to IT Pro’s readership. Articles should be understandable by a broad audience of computer science and engineering professionals, avoiding unnecessary theory, mathematics, jargon, or abstract concepts. Figures and tables should be placed in the appropriate location within the template, ideally in files that are 300 dpi or higher using the dimensions defined in the document template.
Questions?
Please direct any correspondence before submission to the guest editors at it3-2022@computer.org.
Guest Editors:
- Kincho H Law, Stanford University, USA
- Charalampos Z. Patrikakis, University of West Attica, Greece
- Linda Wilbanks, Towson University, USA
