Part One, "The Information and Communication Revolution," argues that three modern information and communication revolutions have occurred during the last century and a half, and presents an overview of the historical impacts that the information and communication technologies developed during the first two revolutions have had on humankind's activities and institutions, on international affairs and on the international system. It next identifies and analyzes several of the more important information and communication technologies that are part of the present information and communication revolution. Then, it provides different views on the debate about whether the changes that are occurring and may be expected to occur are significant enough to be deemed a revolution. Parts Two and Three, "Business, Commerce, and Services," and "Government and the Military," examine the impacts that the technologies of the third modern information and communication revolution are having and are likely to have on specific areas of human interactions. Areas of inquiry include the impact of new information and communication technologies on business, commerce, services, the government, and the military. The objective of Parts Two and Three is to assess the impacts that the technological advances identified in Part One are having and are likely to have on specific areas of human interaction over the next twenty years. In Part four, "International Affairs," projections are developed about the ways that the information and communication technologies identified earlier are being and might be assimilated and diffused by different state and non-state actors. Part Four also presents views about the ways in which international actors and the international system are changing and may most likely change as a result of advances in information and communication technologies.

Part one: the information and communication revolution. "Welcome to the revolution" / Thomas A. Stewart -- "Historical impacts of information technologies: an overview" / David S. Alberts, Daniel S. Papp, Alissa Tuyahov -- "The technologies of the information revolution" / Daniel S. Papp, David S. Alberts, W. Thomas Kemp III -- "What information society?" / Frank Webster -- "Alone together: will being wired set us free?" / Andrew Kupfer -- "Reality check" / Joel Achenbach ; Part two: business, commerce, and services. "The coming electronic commerce (R)evolution" / Robert L. Segal -- "Electronic commerce: implications of the internet for business practice and strategy" / Ajit Kambil -- "Banking and cyberspace: the new promised land" / Joanna Smith Bers -- "Silicon summit: will technology affect the news? Executive summary" / Radio and Television News Directors Foundation -- "Medical informatics" / Enrico Coiera -- "School reform in the information age" / Howard D. Mehlinger -- "Universities in the digital age" / John Seely Brown, Paul Duguid ; Part three: government and the military. "Telecommunications and democracy" / The Benton Foundation -- "Freedom and censorship in the emerging electronic environment" / Martin Fogelman -- "Cyberpower" / Peter Huber -- "Congress, information technology, and the use of force" / Jeffrey Record -- "The media's impact on international affairs, then and now" / Johanna Neuman -- "Warfare in the information age" / Bruce D. Berkowitz ; Part four: international affairs. "Telecommunications and the changing geographics of knowledge transmission in the late 20th century" / Barney Warf -- "Technology, change, and the emerging international order" / James Robinson -- "Connecting developing countries to the information technology revolution" / Jean-Francois Rischard -- "Little engines that could: computing in small energetic countries" / J. L. Dedrick, S. E. Goodman, and K. L. Kraemer -- "The impacts of the information age on international actors and the international system" / Daniel S. Papp, Davis S. Alberts.