...The History of Information Technology March 2010 Draft version to appear in the Annual Review of Information Science and Technology, Vol. 45, 2011 Thomas Haigh thaigh@computer.org University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee Thomas Haigh The History of Information Technology – ARIST Draft 2 In many scholarly fields the new entrant must work carefully to discover a gap in the existing literature. When writing a doctoral dissertation on the novels of Nabokov or the plays of Sophocles, clearing intellectual space for new construction can be as difficult as finding space to erect a new building in central London. A search ensues for an untapped archive, an unrecognized nuance, or a theoretical framework able to demolish a sufficiently large body of existing work. The history of information technology is not such a field. From the viewpoint of historians it is more like Chicago in the mid-nineteenth century (Cronon, 1991). Building space is plentiful. Natural resources are plentiful. Capital, infrastructure, and manpower are not. Boosters argue for its “natural advantages” and promise that one day a mighty settlement will rise there. Speculative development is proceeding rapidly and unevenly. But right now the settlers seem a little eccentric and the humble structures they have erected lack the scale and elegance of those in better developed regions. Development is uneven and streets fail to connect. The native inhabitants have their ideas about how things should be done, which sometimes...
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... a branch of philosophical ethics established by Luciano Floridi. Computer ethics is a very important topic in computer applications. The importance of computer ethics increased through the 1990s. With the growth of the Internet, privacy issues as well as concerns regarding computing technologies such as spyware and web browser cookies have called into question ethical behavior in technology. Identifying issues Identifying ethical issues as they arise, as well as defining how to deal with them, has traditionally been problematic in computer ethics. Some have argued against the idea of computer ethics as a whole. However, Collins and Miller proposed a method of identifying issues in computer ethics in their Paramedic Ethics model. The model is a data-centered view of judging ethical issues, involving the gathering, analysis, negotiation, and judging of data about the issue. In solving problems relating to ethical issues, Davis proposed a unique problem-solving method. In Davis's model, the ethical problem is stated, facts are checked, and a list of options is generated by considering relevant factors relating to the problem. The actual action taken is influenced by specific ethical standards. Some questions in computer ethics There are a number of questions that are frequently discussed under the rubric of computer ethics. One set of issues deal with some of the new ethical dilemmas that have emerged, or...
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...first used in the automobile industry of the 1940's to describe the increase use of automatic controls and devices with in the production line. Although not introduced formally until the 1940's, automation wasn't something new. It was the culmination of mans scientific achievements, bringing into light a new way of working with the world. Automation began to be more of a topic starting in the industrial revolution. With the increase of the world population new ways were needed to help produce more food and consumer goods in an ever more optimized way. The great minds at the time quickly began developing methods and technology that would decrease the use of in labor and increase production along with quality. This was beginning of mass...
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...and seventies produced a culture heavily focused on science, mathematics, technology, industrialization, war, and also a counterculture movement focused on pop culture, self-expression, sex, drugs, and crime. In each of Thomas Pynchon’s writings, representations of these key environmental, social, political, and cultural forces that define these eras are evident. Pynchon began his collegiate career studying engineering physics at Cornell University. Although he did not complete this degree, Pynchon was heavily interested in science and technology. His first job out of school was with Boeing Aircraft Corporation in which he was a technical writer and found inspiration for many of his works (Pynchon 3). Science was not only interesting to Pynchon; it was an interest of the culture of the sixties and seventies. The expansion of the space program in the sixties as well as the voyager programs of the seventies placed heavy emphasis on space and exploration. Emphasis on technological advancement and the increased use of mathematics also became prominent interests in these eras, which led to a common theme to many of Pynchon’s works. Pynchon’s first novel V., published in 1963, was a “whimsical, cynically absurd tale of a middle-aged Englishman’s search for “V.,” an elusive supernatural adventuress appearing in various guises at critical periods in European history (Pynchon 3). This complex story offers many references to science and civilization post both world wars. The emphasis...
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...this writer uses many scientific and image-proven facts to get this point across. The article is broken down into the following categories, and is able to give evidence for each topic: 1960’s Technology, Time Frame, Photographic evidence analysis, Astronauts on wires, footage we weren’t meant to see, and so on. If you like reading articles that make you question your once strong beliefs, take a gander! Moon Hoax News – Moon hoax News is a blog dedicated to covering the latest in the hoax’ news over the years. Running since 2007, this site is dedicated to these beliefs. This site encouarges readers to delve into their own investigations of the hoax. Covering current issues about the Obama administration to modern day UFO spottings, this blog’s range of topics will keep you browsing. The Conspiracy Behind The Apollo Space Mission – This basic article written by Greg Scott, from the archives of articlebase.com, throws out the obvious (and not so obvious questions to those who are new to the topic) questions such as: Is there a breeze on the Moon? What Happened to the Stars? Keeping it simple, Greg states that it is only fair to be equally critical to both sides of the argument, and “like most conspiracy theorists, proponents of the hoax theory use lots of faulty evidence and misleading pseudo-science.” World History Blog – The World History Blog covers it all from the beginning (by all, we mean history.) A great source for any historical data or questions, this particular...
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...Health Care in the Early 1960s Rosemary A. Stevens, Ph.D. My topic, health care in the early 1960s, has a double set of meanings for me. I am a historian, and the 1960s are now "history," ripe for new interpretations. Yet I was also an immigrant to the United States in 1961, fresh from working as an administrator in the British National Health Service. The period immediately before the Medicare legislation in 1965 shines in my memory with the vividness of new impressions: those of a young health care student trying to make sense of the U. S. health care system, and indeed, of the United States. The health care system and the United States as a society stand, in many ways, as proxy for each other, now as then: The whole tells you much about the part, and the part about the whole. In the early 1960s, health care was already a massive enterprise. By the late 1950s, hospitals employed far more people than the steel industry, the automobile industry, and interstate railroads. One of every eight Americans was admitted annually as an inpatient (Somers and Somers, 1961). To study health care, with all its contradictions and complexities, in the 1960s as in the present, is to explore the character and ambiguities of the United States itself, that vast, brash, divided yet curiously hopeful Nation. On the face of it, the United States was a country blessed by plenty in the 1960s, with hospitals and professionals that were the envy of the world. Among the marvels of modern hospitals that...
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...government networks of local to global scope, linked by a broad array of electronic, wireless, and optical networking technologies. The Internet carries an extensive range of information resources and services, such as the inter-linked hypertext documents and applications of the World Wide Web (WWW), electronic mail, Usenet newsgroups, telephony, and peer-to-peer networks for file sharing. Although the Internet protocol suite has been used by academia and the military industrial complex since the early 1980s, rapid adoption of its use was driven by events of the late 1980s and 1990s such as more powerful and affordable computers, the advent of fiber optics, the popularization of HTTP and the Web browser, and a push towards opening the technology to commerce. Internet use grew rapidly in the West from the mid-1990s and from the late 1990s in the developing world. In the 21 years since 1995, Internet use has grown 100-times to reach over one third of the world population,[1][2] leading to its services and technologies being incorporated into virtually every aspect of contemporary life. The impact of the Internet has been so immense that it has been referred to as the "8th continent".[3][4] The origins of the Internet date back to research and development commissioned by the United States government, the United Kingdom government and the government of France in the 1960s to build robust, fault-tolerant communication via computer networks.[5][6][7][8] This work led to the primary precursor...
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...Today there are over 7.2 billion people on our planet and that number is increasing at an alarming rate. With advances in modern technology our population numbers have seen tremendous results. Doctors today are much more capable of preventing still born and infant deaths and have even made outstanding progress in in-vitro fertilization and other fertility drugs; giving many women the chance to carry children of their own where it would otherwise be deemed impossible if done so naturally. On the other end of the spectrum, doctors are now able to prolong life adding nearly 30 years to our life expectancy. With the human population expected to reach 8 billion people by 2024, can our planet actually sustain that many people? During the Industrial Revolution in the eighteenth century, population numbers began to rise hitting the 1 billion mark in the early 1800’s and has spiraled from there; hitting 2 billion in 1927, 3 billion in 1960, 4 billion 14 years later (1927), 13 years later in 1987 reaching 5 billion, 12 years after we were at 6 billion in 1999, and recently in 2011 we reached the 7 billion mark ("World population," n.d.). We as the human race are reproducing and staying alive much longer and with no sign of it slowing down any time soon. During the 20th century alone, the population of the earth has grown from 1.65 billion to 6 billion people. In 1970, there were roughly half as many people in the world as there are today. ("World population," n.d.). The Peoples Republic...
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...Franko Modigliani was born in 1918 in Rome. He spent his childhood in Italy and finished Rome University with the degree of Doctor of Laws, in the same year he left Italy because of his Jewish origins and Antifascistic views. Firstly, he moved to France with his wives family and then moved to USA. He was an instructor of economics and statistics At Columbia University and Bard College from 1942 to 1944. In 1944 he also got degree of Doctor of social sciences at New School for Social Research. He defended his thesis for Doctor degree on the topic of “Liquidity Preference and the Theory of Interest and Money”, and was teaching there for a three years. This work was the first publication of Modigliani in English and, in his opinion, it was one of his main achievements. In 1946, he became a naturalized citizen of United states of America. After 1948 he joined University of Illinois, then Carnegie University (1950-1960), and North-Eastern University (1960-1962) afterwards. Since 1962, as a professor of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he continued he continued his researches in the field of Macroeconomics that he started before, especially Theory of Cash cylces. During these years, he begins study international financial and billing systems, consequences and methods of fighting with inflation, stabilization policy in open economies. Most widely known works of Modigliani was his works in various areas of finance. 1) Personal Finance Paul Samuelson once said: "Franco Modigliani...
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...Syllabus INTA 3301: International Political Economy Spring 2013 Class meets MWF 1:05-1:55, Instructional Center 109 Instructor: Michael Murphree Sam Nunn School of International Affairs 137 Habersham Building Email: michael.murphree@gatech.edu Office Hours: Monday 2:00-3:00, 137 Habersham, or by appointment TA: Kathleen Thompson Email: kthompson136@gatech.edu Political economy is the study of the role of government, politics and collective human behavior in shaping economic outcomes. This exciting field is both old and new. Political economy predates both political science and economics but only reemerged as a distinct field in the 1960s and 70s. It is concerned with understanding how political forces (broadly defined) shape and are shaped by economic ones (broadly defined). There are many research and policy-relevant questions addressed in this field: 1. What is globalization and is it really good for everyone? 2. Is free trade really the only “appropriate” means for international exchange? 3. Why are some countries or regions rich while others struggle? 4. How did the global casino of high finance emerge and what is its purpose? 5. Is economic performance the root of power or power the root of economic performance? 6. What should be the role of government in the economy? 7. Is there a best practice for government economic policy or are there many workable practices? 8. Why has Asia seemed to perform so well over the last...
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...Introduction Organizational behavior is the study of the behavior of individuals in organizations. It studies the science and application of knowledge about how people, individuals, and groups act in organizations. The purpose of the study is to improve relationships in organizational context and therefore improve the process of achieving the organizational goals and objectives. Definition of organizational behavior “Actions and attitudes of individuals and groups toward one another and toward the organization as a whole, and its effect on the organization's functioning and performance.” Evolution of Management theory Behavioral science approach This Approach focuses on the psychological and sociological processes that influence the performance of workers. This approach focuses on the workers, not the job itself. The behavioral science was influenced to a large extent by the human relations movement, namely the Hawthorne experiments (e.g. influence of lightning on performance etc.) in the 1930s. Human relations approach The human relations approach evolved in the 1960s and included research from Herzberg, Maslow, and McGregor etc. They tried to find ways to motivate employees based on their needs. 1. McGregor X and Y theory McGregor stated the XY theory of management that says that there are two types of management approaches. A type Y manager sees people as individuals with intrinsic motivation to achieve the organizational goals. Therefore the job of...
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...The Fluidity of Computer Science. Gender Norms & Racial Bias in the Study of the Modern "Computer Science" Computer science or computing science designates the scientific and mathematical approach in computing. A computer scientist is a scientist who specialises in the theory of computation and the design of computers. Its subfields can be divided into practical techniques for its implementation and application in computer systems and purely theoretical areas. Some, such as computational complexity theory, which studies fundamental properties of computational problems, are highly abstract, while others, such as computer graphics, emphasize real-world applications. Still others focus on the challenges in implementing computations. For example, programming language theory studies approaches to description of computations, while the study of computer programming itself investigates various aspects of the use of programming languages and complex systems, and human-computer interaction focuses on the challenges in making computers and computations useful, usable, and universally accessible to humans. Computer science deals with the theoretical foundations of information, computation, and with practical techniques for their implementation and application. History The earliest foundations of what would become computer science predate the invention of the modern digital computer. Machines for calculating fixed numerical tasks such as the abacus have existed since antiquity...
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...instantly, your essay scored by a software program. And then, instead of being done with that exam, imagine that the system would immediately let you rewrite the test to try to improve your grade. EdX, the nonprofit enterprise founded by Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to offer courses on the Internet, has just introduced such a system and will make its automated software available free on the Web to any institution that wants to use it. The software uses artificial intelligence to grade student essays and short written answers, freeing professors for other tasks. The new service will bring the educational consortium into a growing conflict over the role of automation in education. Although automated grading systems for multiple-choice and true-false tests are now widespread, the use of artificial intelligence technology to grade essay answers has not yet received widespread endorsement by educators and has many critics. Anant Agarwal, an electrical engineer who is president of EdX, predicted that the instant-grading software would be a useful pedagogical tool, enabling students to take tests and write essays over and over and improve the quality of their answers. He said the technology would offer distinct advantages over the traditional classroom system, where students often wait days or weeks for grades. “There is a huge value in learning with instant feedback,” Mr. Agarwal said. “Students are telling us they learn much better with instant feedback.” But...
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...University of Phoenix Material Environmental Science and Human Population Worksheet Using the textbooks, the University Library, or other resources, answer each of the following questions in 150- to 300-words. Be sure to provide references for the sources you use. |Question |Response | | |The current growth rate can be sustainable. There will need to be some | |Is the current growth rate of the human population |more changes to make it sustainable. We would have to make sure that we | |sustainable? Explain, using the concept of carrying |are not over using the natural resources we have available. If this does | |capacity. |happens the environment starts to degrade in most cases start to shrink. | | |Ways that we can actually make the human population sustainable would be | | |to have better technology that can alter the capacity. It’s as if we have | | |to reserve enough resources for the future of the earth and population. If| | |not in the future we wont be able to carry capacity. This will effect | | ...
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...The use of Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) in the U.S. started in the 1960s in a few health care providing institutions. In the 1970s and 1980s, a number of hospitals and clinics across the U.S. adopted the use of limited EMR technology (Carter, 2001) In the early 1990s, heeding recommendations from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) landmark study, the U.S. government set an ambitious goal for all physicians to computerize patient records by the year 2000 (Dick, R.S., Steen, E.B., & Detmer, D.E. 1997) Due to patients’ privacy issues, less streamlined and often conflicting software technologies, and multiple other barriers in EMR technology adoption, this goal could not be achieved. The adoption of EMR technology started to gather some momentum since 2004 when President George Bush outlined detailed plan to ensure access of electronic health records by all Americans by 2014 (Bush, Executive Order 13335) To achieve this goal, President George Bush created a new, sub-cabinet level National Health Information Technology Coordinator position at the Department of Health and Human Services to implement health IT infrastructure nationwide. The biggest push targeted towards promoting the adoption of EMR technology came with the passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) 2009 by the U.S. Congress which appropriated $19 billion dollars government assistance to jump start the adoption of EMR technology by physicians, clinics, and hospitals. The healthcare reforms highlighted...
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