CSC 480 Chapter 1

Slides prepared by Cyndi Chie and Sarah Frye A Gift of Fire A Gift of Fire Third edition Third edition Sara Baase Sara Baase Chapter 1: Unwrapping the Gift What We Will Cover What We Will Cover • Rapid Pace of Change • New Developments and Dramatic Impacts • Issues and Themes • Ethics Rapid Pace of Change Rapid Pace of Change • 1940s: The first computer is built • 1956: First hard-disk drive weighed a ton and stored five megabytes • 1991: Space shuttle had a one-megahertz computer • 2006: Pocket devices hold a terabyte (one trillion bytes) of data • 2006: Automobiles can have 100-megahertz computers Rapid Pace of Change: Rapid Pace of Change: Discussion Question Discussion Question • What devices are now computerized that were not originally? Think back 10, 20, 50 years ago. New Developments New Developments Blogs (Word made up from ‘web log’): • Began as outlets for amateurs who want to express ideas or creativity • Appealing because present personal views, are funny and creative, and present a quirky perspective on current events New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) Blogs (cont.): • Now used as alternatives to mainstream news and for business public relations • Popular blogs have 100,000 to 500,000 readers per day and can peak at several million views per day New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) Video Sharing: • Rise of amateur videos on the web • Boom of websites like Youtube and Myspace • Many videos on the web can infringe copyrights owned by entertainment companies New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) Cell Phones: • Can now be used for travel, last minute planning, taking pictures and downloading music • Talking on cell phones while driving is a problem • Cell phones can interfere with solitude, quiet and concentration • Cameras in cell phones and privacy issues New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) Social Networking: • First online social networking site was www.classmates.com in 1995 • Myspace, founded in 2003 had roughly 100 million member profiles by 2006 • Facebook was started at Harvard as an online version of student directories New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) Collaboration: • Wikipedia, the online, collaborative encyclopedia • Open Directory Project (ODP) • Collaboration between scientists in different states or countries • Watch-dogs on the Web New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) E-commerce and Free Stuff: • Free stuff on the web: email, books, newspapers, games, etc. • www.Amazon.com started in 1994 and 10 years later annual sales reached $8.5 billion • TV show episodes are available to view on the Web New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) Artificial Intelligence (AI), Robotics, and Motion: • AI suited to narrow, specialized skills • Robotic devices often special-purpose devices, and may require AI to function • Motion sensing devices are used to give robots the ability to walk, trigger airbags in a crash and cushion laptops when dropped New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) Tools for Disabled People: • Restoration of abilities, productivity and independence • Screen readers and scanners • Speech recognition • Prosthetics and motion sensors New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) What’s Next? • Medical records on chips attached to medical bracelets • Biological and computer sciences will combine new ways to insert micro- processors or controlled devices on human bodies New Developments (cont.) New Developments (cont.) Discussion Question Discussion Question • What changes and new developments do you expect in the next 50 years? • How will life be different than it is today? Issues and Themes Issues and Themes Issues: • Unemployment • Alienation and customer service • Crime • Loss of privacy • Errors Issues and Themes (cont.) Issues and Themes (cont.) Themes: • Old problems in a new context: crime, pornography, violent fiction • Adapting to new technology: thinking in a new way • Varied sources of solutions to problems: natural part of change and life Issues and Themes (cont.) Issues and Themes (cont.) Themes (cont.): • Global reach of net: ease of communication with distant countries • Trade-offs and controversy: increasing security means reducing convenience • Difference between personal choices, business policies, and law Ethics Ethics What is Ethics: • Study of what it means to “do the right thing” • Assumes people are rational and make free choices • Rules to follow in our interactions and our actions that affect others Ethics (cont.) Ethics (cont.) Ethical Views: • Deontological • Utilitarianism • Natural rights • No simple answers – Do organizations (businesses) have ethics? Ethics (cont.) Ethics (cont.) Important Distinctions: • Right, wrong and okay • Negative rights (liberties) – The right to act without interference • Positive rights (claim-rights) – An obligation of some people to provide certain things for others Ethics (cont.) Ethics (cont.) Important Distinctions (cont.): • Difference between wrong and harm • Personal preference and ethics • Law and Ethics Ethics Ethics Discussion Question Discussion Question • Can you think of examples of liberties (negative rights) and claim-rights (positive rights) that are at opposition to each other?