IGCSE ICT - Emerging Technologies (For The New Syllabus)
IGCSE ICT - Emerging Technologies (For The New Syllabus)
IGCSE ICT - Emerging Technologies (For The New Syllabus)
4:
Impact of Emerging Technologies
Learning objectives of this section:
#
Understand that new technologies can impact our lives for good and for bad.
Be able to describe some impacts that emerging technologies can have on everyday life.
New Technologies
Artificial Intelligence
(AI)
General Information:
# This is a computer science that is focused on creating computer systems that simulate
human intelligence.
# The term was first used in 1956 by a computer scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT) who was focused on trying to make computers behave like humans.
# AI is being developed in the following areas:
Game Playing -
Expert Systems - These are computers that have been programmed to make
decisions based on information they are given.
For example: Medical expert systems can diagnose patient's
illnesses based on symptoms entered.
Languages -
Robotics -
Accurate
prediction of
weather
Increased
leisure time
Robotic vacuum cleaners are becoming more and more popular. These
can detect walls and other objects in order to vacuum around
them.
People can leave them running whilst they enjoy extra spare time.
Safer
transport
Cars that can self-park already exist and it is predicted that cars
that drive themselves will be available soon. These could drastically
reduce road accidents.
Driverless trains already exist in some countries!
Increased
Personal
safety
Improved
medical care
Biometrics
General Information:
# Biometrics is where parts of a person's body are used for identification purposes.
Examples are shown in the table below:
Fingerprints -
Eye
recognition -
Eye scans analyse the iris which is the coloured ring that surrounds
the pupil.
Face
recognition -
Voice
recognition -
Pitch, tone and frequency of voices are unique and can be analysed
to identify people.
# All of these parts of the human body are unique from person to person and can be used
to authenticate identity.
Note:
Even identical twins have slightly different fingerprints and voices etc.
# Before biometric methods can be useful, people have to perform a process known as
'biometric enrolment'.
This is where body-part data such as fingerprints or voice patterns are captured and
stored within the system so that they can be used to identify the person later on.
Increased
building
security
Reduced car
theft
Cars already exist that use fingerprints to only unlock their doors or
start the engine for the fingerprint that is registered.
This means that the doors will not unlock for a print that is not
recognised and makes the car harder to steal.
More secure
mobile
phones
Mobile phones contain our lives. We used our phones for everything
from social media to shopping online. They need to be as secure as
possible in order to protect the valuable data that they contain.
Apple recently released an iPhone model that uses a fingerprint
reader to identify the true owner of the phone. It will not unlock for
a fingerprint that it does not recognise.
Robotics
General Information:
# Robots are used to perform a wide range of physical tasks.
Exploring extreme E.g. inside volcanoes, planets or the depths of the ocean.
environmentsNote: humans cannot visit these environments due to lack of oxygen
and high pressure / heat levels.
Repetitive
manufacturing
jobs -
Moving heavy
objects -
# Robots are increasingly being used in manufacturing due to their proven increase in
productivity.
Think about Robots can work 24/7 and never need to take breaks. They also do not
it!
require wages like humans do.
This means that robots can produce more at a lower cost.
If robots can carry out domestic chores, this frees up more time for
us to spend as we wish.
This could mean more time spent at work or for more enjoyable
activities such as socialising.
More efficient
manufacturing
This means that companies can make more products at less cost
and this means greater business profits.
Loss of jobs
Due to higher and cheaper productivity, robots are taking over the
manufacturing jobs that used to be carried out by humans.
This means that humans are missing out on employment on assembly
lines and factory work.
Safer working
environments
Robots can safely carry out tasks that are too dangerous for
humans.
For example: spraying cars with toxic paint, defusing bombs on
battlefields and search and rescue operations in buildings
destroyed by earthquakes.
Quantum Cryptography
General Information:
# Quantum cryptography (encryption) is an emerging technology that allows messages and
data to be sent with complete privacy.
Note:
Encryption is where digital data and files are scrambled so that only
authorised people are allowed to read it.
Unauthorised people attempting to read the data would see illegible nonsense
instead of the real information.
Completely
secure
communication
Completely
secure bank
transfers
Completely
secure
personal
information
(CAT)
General Information:
# CAT is where a human translator uses computer software to help in the translation
process.
CAT software can reduce the amount of time that the translation takes.
# Current CAT tools are not always 100% accurate. They need a human to check for errors.
# Examples of different types of CAT tools are shown in the table below:
Spell checkers -
Translation
memory software
-
software is Google
Translate - )
Spell checkers can quickly scan your word processed documents and
automatically find spelling errors.
Miss-spelt words can be quickly corrected to produce an error-free
document.
A more
multilingual
society
Quicker and
more
efficient
translations
(aka holograms)
General Information:
# This is a technique where images are made to appear three-dimensional and to actually
have depth.
# Holograms work by taking two regular two-dimensional images of the same object and
laying one on top of the other.
The two-dimentional images need to have been shot at different angles.
# Two different types of laser beams are used to record the two-dimensional images onto a
single photographic plate.
This creates one single image that incorporates the angles of the original
two-dimensional images. This produces a 3D effect.
# When viewing the image, human eyes see it from slightly different angles. The brain
combines them into a three-dimensional image.
Better movie
experiences
Greater data
storage
Virtual Reality
General Information:
# Virtual reality is where computers are used to create an artificial environment that users
can interact with as if it were real.
# Virtual reality is not really meant for gaming purposes. It is used for more serious
purposes such as:
Allowing architects to walk around a virtual version of their design (this gives a
better idea of what the finished building will look like)
Training soldiers in combat (flight simulation, battlefield simulation)
Training surgeons (virtual patients can be operated on to provide experience to
trainee surgeons).
# As they walk around the virtual environment users will experience things in a similar way to
the real world. For example:
Objects get smaller as you walk away from them (and bigger as you move closer)
The direction of sounds change as you move around
Objects in the virtual world appear the same dimensions as they would in the
real world (for example dogs are smaller than us but elephants are bigger).
# Equipment needed to create the virtual reality experience includes the following:
Eye Goggles -
Special Gloves -
The gloves detect your hand and finger movements which are
input into a computer and processed. As users touch or use items
in the virtual world, the computer can carry out these commands and
make them happen.
This allows the user to interact with the virtual world and perform
tasks such as moving objects or switching on lights etc.
Headphones -
Powerful
Computer -
# Virtual reality is still a developing technology and graphics produced are not very
realistic yet. However, experiences in the virtual environment can seem very real.
Larger and
stronger
buildings
Training in
dangerous
situations
More realistic
education
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