CS-101: Exploring Creative Computing

S Iyengar

Research and Discussion Projects

These projects are derived from the book “Understanding Computers in a Changing Society” by Deborah Morley, 6^th Edition, Cengage Publishing.

Each of these project/research will be taken by one pair of students. Pick your partner and your project asap and let me know. The projects will be assigned on FCFS. So let me know asap.

The projects are described below. Write a two page report after studying the topic, researching on the internet and in the real world (discussing with others is always welcome).

Your report should include your name, the class (CS-101), the date, and the title of your report – on the first page, followed by your two page summary of topic, what you learned through your research, and summary of your opinion and conclusion. The last page should list the references you have looked at and used to form your report.

Your word or pdf document should be submitted into the dropbox on D2L.

Due date:

Recycle or Trash? A great deal of obsolete computing equipment eventually ends up in a landfill, even though there may be alternative actions that could be taken instead.

For this project, research what options would be available to discard the following: (1) a 10-year-old computer that is no longer functioning, (2) a 4-year-old computer that still works but is too slow for your needs, and (3) a used-up toner cartridge for a laser printer. Check with your local schools and charitable organizations to see if they would accept any of these items. Check with at least one computer manufacturer and one recycling company to see if they would accept the computers, and, if so, what the procedure and cost would be. Check with at least one vendor selling recharged toner cartridges to see if it buys old cartridges or requires a trade-in with an order. Be sure to include any costs associated with the disposal options you found, as well as your recommendation for each disposal situation.

Toxic Devices: Mobile devices, and other hardware can contain a variety of toxic and hazardous materials. Is it ethical for manufacturers to continue to use hazardous materials in their products? What if a restriction on these compounds severely limited the types of electronic equipment that could be manufactured or significantly increased the price? Is it ethical for consumers to buy products that are made of hazardous materials or are not recyclable? What efforts should be made to recycle e-waste in the United States and who is ethically responsible for the cost—the manufacturers, the consumers, or the government? Should the government require the recycling of e-waste? Should it ban the exportation of e-waste?

For this project, form an opinion about the ethical ramifications of toxic devices and e-waste and be prepared write a short report addressing the points mentioned above.

Is E-Hording Bad for Us? With large amounts of storage available to us at a reasonable cost or even for free, many computers users today are sloppy about deleting e-mails, old photos, and other digital data that they may no longer want or need. The average worker alone sends and receives more than 100 e-mails per day and about 90 billion spam e-mails are sent each day. With that kind of volume, it’s hard for anyone to keep a clean Inbox. But should we try? Most workers are governed by policies regarding what e-mails and documents they are allowed to delete, but what about our personal documents? Is there anything wrong with saving everything in case it might be needed again? Or does having that much clutter create unnecessary stress and waste our time? If we have the necessary storage, are we prudent to keep everything in case we need it again? Or are we just lazy?

For this project - pick a side on this issue, form an opinion and gather supporting evidence, and write a report that addresses the points mentioned above.

Ergonomic Workspaces: Some aspects of an ergonomic workspace, such as a comfortable chair and non-glaring light, may feel good right from the beginning. Others, such as using an ergonomic keyboard or wrist rest, may take a little getting used to.

For this project, find at least one local store that has some type of ergonomic equipment— such as adjustable office chairs, desks with keyboard drawers, ergonomic keyboards, or notebook stands—on display that you can try out. Test each piece, adjusting it as needed, and evaluate how comfortable it seems. Next, evaluate your usual computer workspace. Are there any adjustments you should make or any new equipment you would need to acquire to make your workspace setup more comfortable? Make a note of any changes you could make for free, as well as a list of items you would need to purchase and the estimated cost. Prepare a short report of your findings to submit to your instructor.

For this project, select one type of robotic device on the market today—for instance, a robotic toy, vacuum cleaner, or lawn mower; a security or manufacturing robot; a robot used by the military or NASA; a robot used by law enforcement agencies; or a robotic personal assistant—and research it. Find out what the product does, what it costs, how it is powered and controlled, and if it can be reprogrammed. What are the advantages of the robotics part of the product? Do you think this is a worthwhile or beneficial product? At the conclusion of your research, prepare a two-page report of your findings and opinions.

For this project, visit at least one cloud storage web-site designed for backup and file exchange, and at least one site designed for digital photo sharing. You can try the sites listed above or use a search site to find alternative sites. Tour your selected sites to determine the features each service offers, the cost, the amount of storage space available, and the options for sending uploaded files to others. Do the sites password-protect your files, or are they available for anyone with an Internet connection to see? What are the benefits for using these types of storage services? Can you think of any drawbacks? Would you want to use any of the storage sites you visited? Why or why not? At the conclusion of this task, prepare a short report of your findings.

Emotion Recognition Software: An emerging application is emotion recognition software, which uses camera input to try to read people’s current emotion. The first expected application of such a system is for ATM machines because they already have cameras installed. Possibilities include changing the advertising display based on the customer’s emotional response to displayed advertising, and enlarging the screen text if the customer appears to be squinting. Is it ethical for businesses using emotion recognition software to read the emotions of citizens without their consent? Proponents of the technology argue that it is no different than when human tellers or store clerks interpret customers’ emotions and modify their treatment of the customer accordingly. Do you agree? Why or why not? Is this a worthy new technology or just a potential invasion of privacy? Would you object to using an ATM machine with emotion-recognition capabilities? Why or why not?

For this project, form an opinion about the ethical ramifications of emotion recognition systems write a short paper expressing your opinion.

Should Unlicensed Drivers Be Allowed to Use Self-Driving Cars? Self-driving cars are getting closer to becoming a reality. While currently in the testing stage, consumer products could be on the market soon. In anticipation, states are beginning to determine regulations for these vehicles. One of the biggest questions is whether or not a licensed driver will be required to be in the vehicle. One could argue that a human driver isn’t necessary once self-driving cars are declared safe and legal and not requiring one would create one new benefit—the ability of unlicensed drivers (such as visually-impaired individuals and underage children) to be safely and legally transported without the use of a licensed driver. But should these individuals be allowed to use self-driving cars? Will we ever be certain enough that autonomous cars are safe to eliminate the need for a human being to be available to take control of the car if needed? Is it discrimination if unlicensed individuals aren’t allowed to use these cars? If a licensed driver is required, what if that individual is intoxicated or under the influence of drugs—should that be illegal even if the car is driving? Should autonomous cars be allowed to run errands alone, such as picking up a pizza or parking the car after the passengers get out? Would you feel comfortable being driven by an autonomous car? Why or why not?

Pick a side on this issue, form an opinion and gather supporting evidence, and defend your position in a 2 page report.

Online Travel Planning and booking travel arrangements online is a very popular Internet activity today and there are a number of sites that can be used.

For this project, review two popular travel sites, such as Expedia.com and Travelocity.com, to see what services they offer and how easy it is to locate the information needed to plan and book a flight via those sites. Select a destination and use one of the sites to obtain a quote for a particular flight on a particular day. Next, go to the Web site for the airline of the flight and use the site to obtain a quote for the same flight. Is there a difference in price or flight availability?

Could you make a reservation online through both sites? Would you feel comfortable booking an entire vacation yourself online, or are there services that a travel agent could provide that you feel would be beneficial? Do you think these sites are most appropriate for making business travel plans or vacation plans, or are they suited to both? At the conclusion of your research, prepare a two-page report of your findings.

Paid Bloggers: Blogs are traditionally online personal journals where the blogger expresses his or her opinion on desired topics. Unlike professional journalists, bloggers typically post because they want to, not because they have been hired to do so. However bloggers are increasingly being paid or “sponsored” to blog. Is this ethical? If a blogger is paid to post his or her honest opinion about a product or service, does that lessen the credibility of that post? Does it change your opinion if the blogger reveals that it is a sponsored blog? If you based a purchase on a review posted in a blog that you later found out was sponsored, would you feel misled? How, if at all, do sponsored posts affect the blogosphere as a whole?

For this project, form an opinion about the ethical ramifications of paid blogging and write a two page report expressing your opinion.

Gossip Sites: A recent trend on college campuses today is the use of campus gossip sites, where students can post campus-related news, rumors, and basic gossip. These sites were originally set up to promote free speech and to allow participants to publish comments anonymously without repercussions from school administrators, professors, and other officials. However, they are now being used to post vicious comments about others. What do you think of campus gossip sites? Is it ethical to post a rumor about another individual on these sites? How would you feel if you read a posting about yourself on a gossip site? School administrators cannot regulate the content because the sites are not sponsored or run by the college, and federal law prohibits Web hosts from being liable for the content posted by its users. Is this ethical? What if a posting leads to a criminal act, such as a rape, murder, or suicide? Who, if anyone, should be held responsible?

For this project, form an opinion about the ethical ramifications of gossip Web sites and write a two page report expressing your opinion.

Online Education: The amount of distance learning available through the Internet and World Wide Web has exploded in the last couple of years. A few years ago, it was possible to take an occasional course online—now, an entire college degree can be earned online.

For this project, look into the online education options available at your school and two other colleges or universities. Compare and contrast the programs in general, including whether or not the institution is accredited, the types of courses available online, whether or not an entire certificate or degree can be earned online, and the required fees. Next, select one online course and research it more closely. Find out how the course works in an online format—including whether or not any face-to-face class time is required, whether assignments and exams are submitted online, which software programs are required, and other course requirements—and determine if you would be interested in taking that course. Write a two page report on your research and opinion.

Net Neutrality and Your ISP: The term net neutrality refers to the equality of data as it is transferred over the Internet. For instance, the data from an individual and the data from Microsoft are treated the same. A recent controversy surrounding the cable giant Comcast brought up the possibility of ISPs interfering with the delivery of Internet data. According to complaints by customers, Comcast has been blocking the use of P2P sites like BitTorrent to download movies, music, and other large files. Comcast, like most ISPs, includes a statement in its terms of service that allows it to use tools to “efficiently manage its networks” in order to prevent those customers using a higher than normal level of bandwidth from interfering with the access of other customers. However, the Comcast issue was considered by many to be a blatant net neutrality issue—blocking access to multimedia from sources other than its own cable sources. Do you think the actions taken by Comcast were ethical? Does an ISP have a right to block selected Internet traffic? Why or why not? Was there a more ethical way Comcast could have handled the problem of some users consuming a higher than normal level of bandwidth?

For this project, form an opinion about the ethical ramifications of ISPs blocking selected Internet traffic and write a two page report.