3 Philosophies

for the IoT Age

Introduction

Understanding the Internet of Things

via Great Scientific Thinkers
The Internet of Things (IoT) is one of the most exciting technology trends currently
emerging. It is also one of the most confusing and to some people one of the most
frightening. IoT consists of a growing global network of smart devices, ranging from
mobile phones to motor vehicles to domestic appliances to utilities meters and beyond.
Increasingly, these devices use application programming interfaces (APIs) to expose the
data they collect and transmit, for reuse in a variety of complementary applications.
This may seem simple enough but many individuals and organizations are left with
vague ideas about what this will actually entail in the real world. And they are left with
a lot of questions: How can all these connected devices interact efficiently? What are
the security risks of connecting all these devices to the Internet and exposing their inner
workings via APIs? Does IoT create new business opportunities and if so how do we
capitalize on these opportunities and mitigate any risks?
In terms of technology, business drivers and historical context, IoT is all-but
unprecedented. Certainly, it is different enough from what we already understand about
the World Wide Web and mobile networks that it requires a fundamentally different
way of thinking which, in turn, will drive completely different approaches to business
strategy and IT systems architecture. This eBook uses the ideas of three great thinkers to
provide an overview of the business opportunities and technical challenges of IoT.

Specifically, it uses the theories of historys greatest theoretical physicists to explain

the way enterprise IT has evolved in recent years. For each of these great thinkers, it
explores what they said, why this is applicable to IT and how organizations can use this
to benefit from IoT:
Isaac Newton
Albert Einstein
Niels Bohr

Copyright 2013 CA. All rights reserved. All trademarks, trade names, service marks and logos referenced herein belong to their
respective companies. This document is for your informational purposes only.

Isaac Newton
The absolute rules of Newtons physical world are reflected in on-premise IT architectures

Albert Einstein
The relativism of Einsteins universe is seen in IT systems that span the Web

Niels Bohr
The density and complexity of quantum mechanics is a lot like the Internet of Things

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9.8
Isaac Newton
(1642-1727)
The absolute rules of Newtons physical world are reflected
in on-premise IT architectures

2
m/s

What? 9.8
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

An absolute, predictable theory of the physical world, which works well at a day-to-day scale

Newton had a mechanistic, deterministic

worldview. He believed that, if we know
all the participants and forces in a
situation, we can always predict what is
going to happen.

Newtons theories provide a view of

the physical world that most people
feel comfortable with, since it is
based on the idea of a reality that is
orderly and predictable.

2
m/s

Newtonian physics is still taught in

high schools since it is fairly easy
to understand and generally works
within highly-controlled scenarios and
at an everyday-life scale.

Why? 9.8
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

Newtonian physics is reflected in SOA integrations that occur behind trusted boundaries

In terms of enterprise IT, these

controlled scenarios are similar
to on-premise networks where
multiple units are integrated within
organizational boundaries.

In environments like this,

interactions are usually limited to a
single datacenter with fast, reliable
connections between units and high
levels of predictability.

2
m/s

This Newtonian IT model holds

up in SOA environments or
partner integrations too, as long
as interactions take place behind
a trusted boundary and at small
distances.

How? 9.8
Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

For more complex scenarios, in physics and IT, we must go beyond the traditional approach

So, what do Newtons theories about

physics teach us about IoT? To
understand that, we have to be aware
of the limitations of these theories.

Test Newtons ideas in more

complex scenarios and they
start to break down. Similarly,
the traditional rules of IT stop
applying once trusted boundaries
are crossed.

2
m/s

The lesson here is that, to realize the

full universe of possibilities, you have
to step outside your comfort zone and
prepare for a more complex reality.

Learn More
API Tech Talk: The Internet of Things

9.8

Learn how to leverage the Internet of Things securely and efficiently

api.co/IoTvideo

2
m/s

e=mc

Albert Einstein
(1879-1955)
The relativism of Einsteins universe is seen in IT systems that span the Web

What? e=mc
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

A relativistic view of physics, which explains how the universe behaves at a large scale

Einsteins innovations had to do with

scale. Einstein turned Newtons world
upside down by looking at how the
physical universe works on a much larger
scale.

Viewed at a large enough scale,

time, space and everything else
become relative. Einsteins theories
demolish the comforting absolutes of
Newtonian physics.

In Einsteins universe, old certainties

disappear but new possibilities
emerge e.g. it turns out to be
theoretically possible for an object to
travel forward in time!

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Why?
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

Just as Einstein expanded physics, the Web has moved IT beyond the enterprise firewall

The difference between Newtons

absolute world and Einsteins
relative universe is the difference
between on-premise systems and
the Web.

The Web significantly increases

the scale of IT operations, so
old certainties disappear and
Einstein-style relativisms start to
take effect.

e=mc

On the Web, we cannot rely on

instantaneous execution or the levels of
reliability we have become accustomed
to. Transaction management is often
impossible.

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How?
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

In Web and mobile scenarios, Web APIs have replaced SOA as the key standard for integration

Consequently, many organizations

have found that their on-premise SOA
architectures cannot be applied to
integrations that needed to span the
Web.

e=mc

The Web services of the SOA era gave

way to a newer breed of integration
interface, designed to work at long
distances the Web API.

Web APIs based on Roy Fieldings

REST architectural style have
replaced Web services and SOA as
the fundamental building blocks of
enterprise IT.

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Learn More

e=mc

Webinar Recording: Your New Digital Business & APIs

Create a long-term competitive advantage by using APIs to facilitate
digital transformation
api.co/APIvideo

14

Niels Bohr
(1885-1962)
The density and complexity of quantum mechanics is a lot like the Internet of Things

What?
Niels Bohr (1885-1962)

A revolutionary approach to physics, which examines chaos and complexity at the atomic level

Just as Einstein turned Newtons world

upside down, Niels Bohrs theory of
quantum mechanics turned Einsteins
universe inside out.

Again, it was a matter of scale. Bohr

believed Einsteins theories were
insufficient to explain physics at
very small atomic and molecular
distances.

Bohrs highly complex theory states

that the universe is fundamentally
chaotic and unpredictable a thencontroversial view that has since been
scientifically demonstrated.

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Why?
Niels Bohr (1885-1962)

Bohrs quantum theories prepare us for the atomization and density of IoT-based integration

The difference between the Web

and IoT is similar to that between
relativity and quantum mechanics, in
terms of scale, complexity and most
importantly density.

The Web is estimated to consist of

several billion connected devices,
most of which have relatively broad
functionality.

IoT will multiply this number, adding

many billions more devices, which will
often have a small range of highlyspecialized functionality.

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How?
Niels Bohr (1885-1962)

The quantum chaos of IoT will require a renewed focus on API security and management

Clearly, IoT represents a much denser,

more atomized space than the
conventional Web. Therefore, IoT will
require an entirely new approach.

This will apply to business strategy

and security but will have its
most fundamental impact at an
architectural level, particularly in
regards to API-based integration.

IoT integrations will need to take

account of the context: billions
of diverse, specialized devices
communicating locally and globally,
often with limited connectivity.

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Learn More
API Tech Talk: Designing APIs for the Internet of
Things
Design APIs that are ready for the age of connected smart devices
api.co/IoTdesign

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Lessons Learned

What This Means for Your Business

So what does all this mean in practice? The history of theoretical physics provides a
useful analogy for changes in enterprise architecture but what does this really mean
for businesses as we enter the IoT age? Why should business managers care about
the architectural changes required by IoT? Well, the facts are the Internet of Things
is coming, it represents a massive business opportunity and capitalizing upon this
opportunity will require a truly novel approach to the way enterprise IT systems are
deployed and integrated.
Each leap in theoretical physics has represented an entirely new set of possibilities
about what we can potentially do and achieve in the physical world. Likewise, the
Internet of Things opens up a massive range of possibilities for what is possible in the
online realm. And just as the remarkable possibilities opened up by quantum mechanics
are now being applied in all manner of technologies (e.g. semiconductors, lasers, MRI
scanners), the Internet of Things is presenting very real and genuinely practical business
opportunities right now.
Businesses should not make the mistake of assuming this quantum leap (so to speak)
represents an entirely new sector and that it will not impact their ability to compete.
Remember, a leap in theoretical physics doesnt create a new universe it just expands
our understanding of what is possible within the one we already live in. Likewise, IoT
is going to be highly disruptive to existing industries. We are already seeing IoT-style
connectivity becoming a major differentiator in the automotive sector, for example.

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This is happening across industry sectors. Our utilities meters are already connected
and it seems likely this connectivity will move further into our homes, with Google and
Apple both making major smart home plays. So, for example, the kind of diagnostic
functionality common in connected cars is likely to become ubiquitous in domestic
appliances. And as wearable devices become more common, there will be little or no
theoretical limit to the number of things people can connect and interact with.
Figuring out where a specific business fits into the Internet of Things might not be the
biggest challenge facing program managers in coming years. The innovations of IoT are
likely to start arriving thick and fast. Businesses will be forced to act quickly to remain
competitive and being quick to market with IoT could mean the difference between
success and failure. In this context, adapting to an Internet with fundamentally new
architectural requirements is likely to represent a significant challenge on the road to
executing innovative business strategies.

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Conclusion

API Strategy & Management for IoT

The Internet of Things seems set to revolutionize industries across sectors. APIs will be
at the center of all this allowing devices to connect and enabling developers to create
applications that add value to this connectivity. The good news is that opportunities
presented by the Web and mobile devices have led many enterprises to get a head
start on implementing APIs. The bad news is that as we have seen the architectural
requirements for IoT APIs will be significantly different from those associated with the
Web and mobile networks.
Business managers should not view this architectural challenge as a mere technical
detail. Failure to address this particular detail will not only impact competitiveness, it
could be truly catastrophic. The quantum architecture of IoT introduces billions of new
places where connectivity could fail, performance could bottleneck and security could be
breached. Preventing these failures, bottlenecks and breaches could be literally a matter
of life and death there are already people with smart pacemakers implanted in their
bodies, for example.
Many of the organizations that have launched Web and mobile API programs
have deployed API Management infrastructure to address the associated security
and performance issues. This same API Management technology also helps these
organizations to be quick to market with APIs and client applications built upon these
APIs by providing functionality for interface composition and developer enablement. In
the highly complex and competitive context of IoT, this technology will prove to be more
critically important than ever.

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CA Technologies offers the markets top API security and management solutions. CAs
API Gateway technology delivers the widest available range of leading-edge functionality
for interface composition, military-grade security, IAM, performance optimization,
lifecycle management, developer engagement and protocol adaptation. To learn more
about how CA can help you secure and manage your IoT APIs, visit:

ca.com/api

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About CA
Technologies
CA Technologies provides IT management solutions that help customers
manage and secure complex environments to support agile business
services. Organizations leverage CA software to accelerate innovation,
transform infrastructure and secure data and identities. CA is committed
to ensuring its customers achieve their desired outcomes and expected
business value.

Learn More
ca.com/api

Copyright 2013 CA. All rights reserved. All trademarks, trade names, service marks and logos referenced herein belong to their
respective companies. This document is for your informational purposes only.