INTERNET OF THINGS AS A SYSTEMIC FACTOR OF INTEGRATION OF PHYSICAL, DIGITAL AND VIRTUAL HUMAN ENVIRONMENT

The article analyses the role of the Internet of Things as an integrator of techno-physico-biological changes in human environment. The grounds for the definition of a “smart” thing are specified, and the field of the meanings of the notion “thing” in the information society is identified. Particular attention is drawn to the system of direct benefits and hidden threats, generated by the Internet of Things in the aspect of changing the parameters of human life, mentality, identification, and socialization. In the author’s opinion, the philosophical research of the Internet of Things has the potential for substantiating the criteria of the relationship between a human being and things, traditional and “smart”, as well as the conditions and opportunities for human advancement in the environment of the Internet of Things.