Topic 12 - IT in Society
Give three examples of social networking
Chat rooms
Instant messaging
Forums
Blogs/microblogs
List three new and emerging technologies.
NFCs
UHDTV
AI
AR
VR
Robotics
Computer Assisted Translation
Holographic imaging
Holographic data storage
3D printing
Vision enhancement
Wearable Computing
Explain the three components of a data packet.
Header
Payload
Trailer
List the stages of the project life cycle.
Project initiation
Planning
Execution
Monitoring and control
Project close
List the stages of the system life cycle.
Analysis
Design
Development and testing
Implementation
Documentation
Evaluation
Maintenance
Define the term "electronic currency"
A payment method that occurs in a digital form.
Give one advantage and disadvantage of using NFC (Near Field Communication)
Advantages:
Wireless communication so no cabled connection is required
Fast method of data transfer
Present in many modern mobile devices so is becoming more universal
Does not require an internet connection
Does not require a pairing code.
Disadvantages:
Can be seen as less secure as user does not need to authenticate the pairing of devices
Users are concerned that the technology could be used to steal their data.
List 5 network protocols
Tunnelling
SSL
TLS
IPsec
BitTorrent
ICMP
ARP
InARP
DHCP
HTTP/S
FTP
SMTP
POP
IMAP
Telnet
SSH
Give two weaknesses of project management software.
Good quality project management software is a large financial investment, especially if it needs to be used by several users. This initial investment can deter some organisations from using the software.
Project management software is complex because it covers so many different aspects of project management.
Project managers need extensive training to use the software effectively and team members also need training to use the components that are relevant to their tasks.
The complexity of the software can also over complicate simple projects which could have been managed more effectively without the software.
Users can become too reliant on the software to remind them that tasks need to be completed. This can result in a task not being done until an alert pops up on someone’s screen telling them they’ve missed a deadline.
Online project management software will enable access for many users which is good for collaboration but it creates a risk that unauthorised users may access sensitive data that they shouldn’t have access to.
It’s therefore important to ensure that any access control is set up properly.
Explain the difference between parallel running and direct changeover.
Parallel running:
Parallel running is when a new system and old system are run at the same time. On an agreed date, the new system will become live but the old system will continue to run.
Data will need to be duplicated from the old system to the new system.
New data will need to be input into both systems and output will be produced from both systems.
This will continue until the organisation is confident that the new system is running satisfactorily.
Direct changeover:
Direct changeover is when a date is chosen for the old system to stop running and the new system to start running.
The systems do not run at the same time and there is a clear break from the old system to the new system.
Data will need to be transferred from the old system to the new system before the new system can be used.
Explain how a MOOC can be used in technology enhanced learning.
MOOC - Massive Open Online Courses
Course that are not limited to the number of people that can access them for free and are accessed on the web.
They often included filmed lectures and other resources, have forums which can be used to interact with other learners/teachers.
Explain how nanorobots are used in robotics.
Nanorobots are robots that have been scaled down to a microscopic size.
The ability to do this to robots could prove to be extremely useful in medical procedures.
It could be possible to put nanorobots into a human’s blood stream to track down and eliminate certain medical conditions.
They could also be used to perform internal surgery in places that are normally very challenging to reach for surgeons.
Nanorobots could revolutionise cancer treatment, by tracking down and destroying cancer cells in the body. This could save the lives of many people in the future.
Explain the process of triangulation.
A process called triangulation is used to find the location of a user.
The user will be in possession of a device, such as a mobile phone, that receives radio signals.
Each navigation satellite constantly beams radio waves that are sent toward earth.
A user’s device must pick up radio waves from at least three satellites and the GPS will then be able to pinpoint their location.
To create a critical path analysis you need to know what information?
The list of tasks
How long each task will take
Which tasks are dependent upon predecessors
Explain the difference between user documentation and technical documentation.
Technical - An overview of the structure of the system, how it was put together and how it works.
User - A user guide giving instructions to the user on how to use the software.
What are the six stages of data mining?
Business understanding
Data understanding
Data preparation
Data modelling
Evaluation
Deployment
Explain how holographic data storage could be used in relation to archiving data.
Large corporations often archive large amounts of data. This can often be to refer to in the future, or sometimes for legal reasons.
Data storage currently can take up a lot of space in a storage unit and to buy or rent the building space necessary to hold the large data storage units can be very expensive.
If the size of the data storage units could be greatly reduced, through using holographic data storage, this could potentially save large organisations a lot of money.
The CERN data centre, a large particle physics laboratory in Switzerland, generates 30 petabytes of data a year to be archived. They could definitely benefit from smaller data storage units.
Explain the difference between bandwidth and bit rate.
Bandwidth:
The range of frequencies available for a communication method which determines the transmission rate.
Bit rate:
The rate at which bits can be transferred in data transmission.
Define a work breakdown structure (WBS).
To help manage those tasks, a hierarchical decomposition of the project can be created as a work breakdown structure.
A WBS forms a hierarchical diagram with tasks allocated to sub-tasks or project phases.
In a software development project, the project might be broken down into the phases of a development life cycle such as:
Explain incremental prototyping.
This type of prototyping takes an iterative approach in that requirements are specified, an initial prototype is developed, the prototype is reviewed and then requirements are clarified and the prototype is improved based on feedback.
Each prototype will build upon the previous one and include more functionality until a final product is built.
At each stage, only clearly understood requirements are developed.
Each prototype can be functional and if required can be used by the client until the next iteration of the prototype is ready.
This means that the end users may request enhanced or new features that they discover they require as the prototypes are being developed, features they wouldn’t have envisaged at the initial requirements specification stage.
Explain the impact in relation to monitoring and surveillance.
Many police authorities around the world use it to monitor possible criminal activity and to locate criminals when crimes have been committed.
One example of its use in this wy is to combine facial recognition software with CCTV footage. Often a criminal will try and flee an area or a country if they believe they will be caught. This could involve them making a journey using a train or an aeroplane. Train stations and airports often have a lot of CCTV footage available. This footage could be scanned using facial recognition software to see whether the criminal has passed through the train station or the airport.
This type of technology could also be useful in finding a missing person. The police could analyse the CCTV footage in certain areas with facial recognition technology to see if the last known location for the missing person can be detected.
Explain the environmental issues relating to new and emerging technologies.
Whilst emerging technologies can be used to create many positive impacts on our lives, there is always the issue they can cause for our environment.
The more we use and rely on technology, the more power consumption we will create. This will increase the level of emissions created in order to continue to power all out technology.
Despite the environmental issues that the power consumption of technology can create, some of these emerging technologies can be used to aid our environment.
AI can be used to monitor current trends and patterns in our environment and predict future trends. This can help identify information that could be useful to governments, so they can prepare for natural disasters and adverse weather possibilities.
It could also be used by industries, such as farming, so that they can create the best conditions for their crop growth.
There will always be the added issue of e-waste from people throwing away technology in favour of new technology.
This discarded technology often ends up being disposed of in landfill, where harmful metals from the technology can leach into the soil and infiltrate water supplies.
Governments around the world are trying to encourage the recycling of technology to limit the issue created with this kind of disposal.
Name the four stages that can be used to identify a risk that could cause a disaster.
Risk analysis
Perpetrator analysis
Risk testing
Quantifying the risk
What is carried out in the monitoring and control stage of the project life cycle?
Throughout the execution of the project, the project manager must monitor the progress and control what is happening.
The project manager will be responsible for ensuring tasks are completed on time and rescheduling any tasks if there are delays.
The project manager will need to monitor the performance of team members to ensure they are carrying out their agreed roles effectively.
The project manager will need to monitor expenditure and compare it against the budget to ensure that overspends don’t occur and keep a close eye on the scope of the project to make sure it doesn’t extend beyond its agreed boundaries.
Objectives will be regularly reviewed to ensure that the project is meeting its original objectives.
There should be regular project review meetings where key stakeholders can discuss the progress of the project.
At times, the project plan will need to be adjusted, so there is regular iteration between the execution, monitoring and control and planning phases.
Give two advantages and two disadvantages of using the waterfall method in software development.
Advantages:
Each stage is completed before moving onto the next stage making management of the project more structured and controllable
It’s a simple model to understand and use because each stage is distinctly separate from the other stages
It works well for projects where the requirements are clearly understood and are unlikely to change
The process followed and the resulting software are well documented, meaning new team members can get up to speed very quickly
The client and project team work to a set timescale and a set budget which removes a lot of uncertainty from projects
The requirements are clearly set from the beginning of the project and are used to measure the project’s success when it is completed.
Disadvantages:
The customer only sees the product at the end of the project
It’s hard to measure progress within each stage because the milestones are just the beginning and end of each stage
It doesn’t work well for complex projects where the requirements cover a large variety of aspects and aren’t clearly understood by everyone involved
Projects can take longer to deliver than other methods because of the emphasis on planning and documentation
Client involvement is limited to set times within the project which can lead to requirements not being met to the client’s expectation
The model doesn’t accommodate changes to requirements.