User:Mmexemm

I am a female student living in Los Angeles and am currently enrolled in CIS2 at DeAnza College

GRAND CHALLENGES: PROVIDING ACCESS TO CLEAN DRINKING WATER

With advances in technology, addressing the world's water crisis is becoming somewhat of a solvable problem. Scientists and activists are pooling their resources with a goal of providing sanitary and safe drinking water to the roughly 1.1 billion people that lack regular access to it. With such an eclectic variety of technologies in development, it will be interesting to see where technology will lead us in this effort.

1. Introductions and Society
BEST Source: 20 Basic rules for digital citizenship

Essentially, this graphic displays how to behave, tips to remember, rules to live by and general do's and dont's when it comes to interacting with others on the internet. The internet is a community in itself; something many of its user's forget when dealing with others online. This helpful guide is extremely useful for all of those who are members of the internet community and will assist in making the internet a more peaceful, productive and respectful place to interact with one another.

Computers – how they have changed our lives

This article contains a variety of key points in relation to how computers work, set trends, learn from themselves and shape our lives. The author argues that as a result of computers we now have the ability to access limitless amounts of information at the click of a mouse, to receive an education online and to work from wherever we choose in the world. Computers have had a positive impact on the medical field, businesses, entrepreneurs and educators as well.

How do computers affect society?

This author of this article addresses the benefits and detriments of computers, how our lives have been shaped and effected by them and which facets of society have been the most impacted by their use. Computers and the internet are evolving so rapidly that it is sometimes difficult to pinpoint where humans stand in relation to their growth but the author provides a well rounded assessment of past, present and future impacts computers have and might have on society as a whole.

2. Privacy and Freedom of Speech
Fourth Amendment

This article states how the Fourth Amendment has been utilized and applied throughout the rapid evolution of technology. It references several specific cases in which the amendment has been enforced in new ways than before. Prior to the invention of the internet, the fourth amendment was primarily used in relation to property rights but with all of the recent advances in technology, the amendment is now being applied to individual privacy rights.

Encryption

This site delves into the ins and outs of encryption; what it use, who uses it and how it applies to technology. It has become so prolific in society today that courts have ruled that computer code is to be protected under the First Amendment.

BEST Source: Censorship

This article provides readers with an in depth view of how censorship is being applied to computers and the internet. The also explains how large of an issue censorship is across the globe and how difficult it is to control on the internet. Several predictions about the fate of censorship on the internet are made as well.

3. Intellectual Property
Copyright

This is a government website that provides clear definitions in relation to all things copyrighting. Copyrights are, in essence, used to protect an individual's intellectual property. This is a very useful resource for anyone wishing to expand their copyright knowledge.

Fair Use

This article explains the rules, laws and guidelines when it comes to using, distributing or re-purposing other people's intellectual property as your own. Many specific example are sited to provide a clear picture of what is and is not allowed. The author also introduces the Creative Commons, a project that enables creators to set limitations and allow for public use when it comes to their own intellectual property.

BEST Source: Free Sources

This is just a specific example of a site that allows users to use millions of images for personal use without penalty due to their lack of copyrighting. Sites like this are beginning to pop up more frequently as the demand for free and usable resources grows along with the progression of the internet.

4. Crime
BEST Source: 10 Most Common Internet Crimes

This is a comprehensive list of the ten most common internet crimes and the penalties that are associated with them. Ranging from child pornography to identity theft, this article covers the crimes that effect internet users most frequently. Some crimes even intertwine with one another while others are crimes that few even realize are capable of being carried out digitally.

Identity Theft

Identity theft tops the list of cyber crimes around the globe. This article delves into the ways in which information can be stolen, who is generally responsible and what is done with the information after its stolen. The author then goes on to discuss various preventative measures that internet users can use to prevent their identity from being stolen.

Pentagon Cyber Security Breach

This is a specified example of a large scale, very serious security breach at the Pentagon. The criminal was a 23 year old Cornell University graduated student who promptly admitted that he planted a virus into the Pentagon's ARPANET research system, paralyzing 6,000 computers.

5. Employment, Education and Entertainment
BEST Source: Distance Learning

This article covers all of the essentials when it comes to distance learning. It starts out explaining what distance learning is, lists the pros and cons of it and the impact its had on education, students and instructors. The article wraps up with various solutions to the listed problems with distance learning.

MOOCs

The author of this article provides an in depth look at what MOOCs are, who uses this service and what MOOCs entail. The article also breaks down specific demographics of users and how successful (or unsuccessful) the open online courses are. This source is great because it refeences a fair amount of data and statistics.

Internships

This article describes what an essential role internships play in providing practical and applicable first hand experience in any given profession. The author argues that they allow you to gain knowledge and get hands on experience in practically any field. The article also talks about how some internships pay while some are not but regardless of payment, all internships are useful for resumes.

6. Grand Challenges
Can Robots be Creative?'

This is a TED talk given by Gil Weinberg. It addresses the age old question of whether or not artificial intelligence is possible of creating artificial creativity. This video also explains that the brain functions in a similar manner to computers; synapse connections power human thought while algorithms power computer thought.

BEST Source: Engineering Clean Water

This site is comprised of 5 innovations that are attempting to bring sanitary and safe drinking water to much of the developing world. Varying methods are implored to convert contaminated water into potable water, but all appear to be accessible, affordable and promising. All of the water purifiers on the list are smaller scale and specified to certain areas of the globe.

Desalinating the World's Water

This article is, in contrast to the previous article, attempting to solve the world's water crisis on a much larger scale using forward osmosis, a low-energy osmotically-driven desalination process. Many countries are already using such technologies. The process of converting water with a high salt content (ocean water/other) into potable drinking water uses 75-80 percent less energy than existing desalination systems and can be used on a much larger scale than most available systems already on the market.

7. Evaluating and Controlling Technology
Machine Intelligence

This is an resource for expanding one's knowledge on all things machine intelligence. The site references over 2,000 examples of machine intelligence, provides a clear and concise definition and explanation of machine intelligence and explains how machine intelligence is currently being applied and by which companies in a wide variety of ways.

Automation

This article states in a clear way what automation is. It also provides the reader with excellent examples of automation that are being used in society today and the impact it has had on efficiency. The article also provides graphs to further understand how useful automation can be.

BEST Source: Digital Divide

This article addresses the disparities at play when it comes to the expansion and accessibility of the internet in various societies. The author states that developing countries don't have adequate access to the internet in comparison to more affluent societies. The article then argues that this technology should be available to everyone regardless of their socioeconomic status.

8. Risks, Failures and Responsibilities
Failures

This article talks about a number of major tech failures. One very detrimental failure was the FBI's virtual case file. Many systems and lives were impacted as a result of this failure. The article touches upon how exactly the technologies failed in each case and goes on to explain what could done to prevent such failures from occurring again.

Dependence

This is a great, well rounded article on both the benefits and consequences of how dependent we are on technology in society as a whole. The argues that many great advancement have been made in a variety of fields thanks to technology, for it has literally saved lives. He then goes on to say that he himself cant imagine not having his phone in his pocket at all time for fear of missing out on something; an unhealthy consequence for sure. Its definitely a double edged sword.

BEST Source: Consequences

This is a great article that lists 25 negative effects of technology. Being that its a relatively large list, its very comprehensive. Isolation, lack of social skills, obesity, pollution, neurosis and depression are some of the sections that stood out to me most. Its a relatively depressing article but definitely worth the read.

9. Anytime, Anywhere
Digital Technology is Ruining Music

The author of this article argues that while technology has incited great advancements in the majority of the  entertainment industries, music is one industry that has been negatively impacted by these advancements. Film and online media are of better quality and availability than ever but the more digital the music industry becomes, the more high-quality sound has suffered.

The Digital Free Ride

This article talks about how technology has destroyed the market for films, music and print. With music piracy sites such as The Pirate Bay, YouTube providing users with clips, episodes and full films, and websites such as The Huffington Post simply regurgitating previously published news articles, the hard copy market is rapidly dying. Because of the accessibility of all of this free media, there simply isnt enough income being generated to keep hard-copy businesses afloat.

BEST Source: Designing Social Media that Drives Real Change

Wael Ghonim gave this talk to address the current shortcomings and potential positive influence social media can have on the internet. He brings up five current problems plaguing socials media which included how quickly people become angry and defensive, how user's typically stick to there own ideas and understandings when searching/communicating and most importantly, how much emphasis is placed upon broadcasting rather than truly understanding. Everyone seems to be talking at each other and not with eac hother on the internet today, and in this talk, he provides some examples and suggestions on how that could be changed.

10. Technology Advances, Social Trends
BEST Source: Is Technology Making us Smarter?

This article argues that technology possess the potential to change the way human beings think and completely revolutionize education in years to come. The author cites many examples relating to the case he makes for technology playing a pivotal role in making human beings smarter. He then goes on to talk about how much technology has done for educational accessibility, and what the future might hold in this arena.

3D Printing

This article explains what 3D printing is and touches upon the potential this relatively new technology has to be extremely impactful. The author goes on to list a wide variety of example of what 3D printing can actually print and how those objects might positively effect society. The most exciting potential outcome of the invention of 3D printing is in a field known as bioprinting, which the author speaks about in length.

The Future of Tracking Litter

The app called Litterati uses geo-tagging to provide insight to areas in the world that are experiencing problems with liter. User's can take pictures to log and keep track of what litter is being found and properly disposed of which is great as both a motivational tool and as an informative tool. In tracking what litter and waste is found, it illuminates what litter is most common in any given area, shedding light on the problem as a whole.