Category: Technology

Information security is denying access to system data and also preventing entry of any information to unauthorized individuals. This also means protection from the direct use of information, their modification, disruption and also disclosure of such. As organizations keep sharing their information electrically, it is required that such organizations continue to understand what is expected so as to secure their information technologically. (Mayur S. D., & Thomas, J., 2008). Ethics is the basic guideline that is meant to be followed when there is no clear direction for a particular circumstance. Some of these rules of ethics in security information include respect to matters of privacy and anonymity, taking responsibility, respect to intellectual property, and provision of diligent and professional services to principals and even acting honorably, justly, legitimately and legally (Allen, & Merrill, 2008)

The threat possessed by anyone who wants to protect sensitive data is the ease in which computers and networks can be accessed efficiently, store and retrieve data. In such cases, individual privacy is likely to be at risk. Anonymity and privacy can be useful in concealing information such as those of health, medical record and security. On the other hand, anonymity and privacy can be used to carry out illegal activities such as terrorism and money laundering. However, there are factors that undermine computer privacy and such include data matching and mining, rise of world- wide- web and processing power of computers (Jason, Segolene, & Juan, 2009).

Computer professionals have an obligation to act responsibly. Great power comes with extensive responsibility, and more often than not, their interest will differ forcing them to come into conflict with their fellow employees. Professionals should be able to take responsibility for their own defaults. Therefore, it is advisable such professional be aware of such potential conflicts and avoids them. That is what ethical responsibility is all about. (Jason, Segolene, & Juan, 2009).

Respect for intellectual property is extremely important when it comes to information security. Intellectual property in this case would mean ownership in terms of software and other applications. Whereas some programs and software distributed to the public are available and can easily be obtained in copies, there are still those programs that are not free and organizations that created them use them for investments. (Mayur S. D., & Thomas, J., 2008) Investors complain about losing a substantial amount of money despite this kind of enormous industry. This substantial loss is as a result of criminal piracy. It is therefore essential for professionals to act ethical and respect intellectual property (Mayur & Thomas, 2008).

The certification that is earned by the information system security is viewed as a privilege that must not only be earned but also maintained. This is the reason as to why all personnel of information system security must commit fully towards the support of the code of ethics in information system security. They must guard an

References

Allen C., & Merrill W. (2008) Information privacy compliance in the healthcare industry, 6, 5  19.

Jason B., Segolene B., & Juan R. (2009). Reaching escape velocity: A practiced approach to information security management system implementation. 32, 49  57.

Mayur, S. D., & Thomas, J. (2008). Managing electronic information: an ethics perspective, 4, 20  27.

Databases are components of Information Systems that are used when the Information Systems have large amounts of a, especially when the interfaces in the Information System are interactive, and when users can access the system concurrently. The use of databases in such a scenario, therefore, ensures that information is available to users in real-time, and that system performance bottlenecks are minimized due to appropriate data management. There is a variety of databases from which an organization can choose. The choice of the database application depends on the volume of data that a particular Management Information System will be handling. For Management Information Systems handling large volumes, it is advisable to use heavy database applications like Microsoft SQL or Oracle. While for Management Information Systems that handle small volumes of data, light databases like MySQL are appropriate. This paper is an analysis of the database applications used in my school.

In my school, we perform tasks that do not require the use of an Information System using the Microsoft Access database. These tasks include records of student information, student courses, and even their performance in Random Assessment Tests and Continuous Assessment Tests. With this database; MS Access, we can query the database for specific student information. For instance, if a teacher wants to know the details of the students who have failed their CATs, the database is queried to provide this information (A Beginners Guide, N.D.). With the database, we also generate reports to heads of departments containing specific information. For instance, the head of the Computer Science department may want to know the number of students who are taking databases and their names. This can be generated in the form of a report by Microsoft Access.

In addition to Microsoft Access, the school uses JPAMS in preparing student grades, and their transcripts. This is actually what the school uses the database mainly for. The database is very instrumental in enabling the school to produce student transcripts in time. It also comes in handy for teachers who may want to check how certain students, or even classes, have been performing. The JAMS database is also used to capture student attendance so that it may be used in grading students, in case the school opts to implement that policy. The database is holistic in the sense that, it captures all the information that may be of interest to teachers as they do their evaluation of how their students have performed throughout the semester. For instance, a teacher may need to know issues related to the discipline of students in a certain semester or even in a certain year. The JAMS software is very instrumental in such situations because it can generate discipline-related reports. An example of these reports is the discipline frequency report, which gives discipline-related information with details like the time it occurred (Allen, 2009). Another similar report is the court report, which gives performance-related information mapped against discipline-related information.

As evidenced in the discussion above, my school mainly uses two databases. These are Microsoft Access and the JAMS. Microsoft Access is used to capture general everyday information like student details and performance in CATs, while JPAMS is used to capture students performances and other relevant information. The latter is any information that is deemed to affect student performance. It is therefore evident that the use of databases in the organization is rewarding since it makes tasks easy and provides timely information when the same is needed.

Works Cited

Allen, V. (2009). JPAMS Newsletter. Web.

Microsoft Access 2003. (N.D.). A Beginners Guide. Web.

Definitions

Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) is one of the DSL broadband communication expertise that involves the use of copper telephone lines to send out information that exceeds the capacity of a dial-up modem over the internet (Dhawan 1998, p.5).

Asymmetrical in ADSL refers to the difference that exists between upstream data and downstream data. The upstream data rates are lower compared with the downstream data since the web page requests do not require much bandwidth (Dhawan 1998, p.7).

Digital: ADSL involves the transfer of purely digital information which at the end gets converted to analog signals (Dhawan 1998, p.7).

Subscriber Line: the information is transmitted on copper lines to the customers premises (Dhawan 1998, p.7).

ADSL Speed

The speed of the ADSL is affected by the following factors:

• The distance from the local exchange the greater the distance the slower the connection (Carlson, Crilly and Rutledge 2009, P. 37).
• The speed is also affected by the type and the thickness of the wire the thicker the wire the higher the speed (Ginsburg 1999, P. 39).
• The number of joins that are available in the wire and the type of joins can affect the speed. The many they are the slower the speed (Ginsburg 1999, P. 39).
• The distance of the wire to those wires transmitting ISDN, ADSL and other non-voice signals (Carlson, Crilly and Rutledge 2009, P. 38).
• The closeness of the wires to radio transmitters (Ginsburg 1999, P.39).

Various Types of ADSL Standards and Their Speed

The table below shows various ADSL standards available in the market and their corresponding upstream and downstream speed rates (Harte 2004, P. 57).

ADSL Network Components

The ADSL network consists of the following: The ADSL modem (ATU-R) which should be at the subscribers place, modem (ATU-C) at the ISP office, Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer (DSLAM), Broadband Access Server (BAS) and lastly Splitter: a filter that is used to split analogue from ADSL data frequencies (Carlson, Crilly and Rutledge 2009, P. 43).

How does ADSL work?

ADSL takes advantage of the idle analogue bandwidth that freely exists in the wires and by using a frequency splitter tool, it divides the conventional voice telephone line into two frequencies where one frequency is used by the telephone and the other by the internet enabling you to use the internet and talk on the phone at the same time (Goralski 2000, P.87).

ADSL Requirements

Following are the requirement needed in order to set up the ADSL services: Phone-line for ADSL, Filter which is used to divide internet from phone signals, ADSL modem, Subscription with an ISP supporting ADSL.

Advantages of Using ADSL

The advantages of using ADSL is their ability to enable you to use internet and telephone signals at the same time using a single telephone line, they contain Constant, high-speed Internet access thats always online, it is inexpensive, has a high level of security on the data transmitted and lastly it is quick in downloading (Goralski 2000, P.126).

Disadvantages of Using ADSL

The ADSL has its own disadvantages in that its services are affected by the distance from the local hub, it is slow in uploading and the need for a Phone line makes it expensive (Harte 2004, P. 95).

Conclusion

Once you have power your computer on, it connects automatically unless you disconnect it manually using software or hardware (Harte 2004, P. 129).

List of references

Carlson, Crilly and Rutledge, J. (2009) Communication Systems. New York,McGraw-Hill Companies.

Dhawan, C. (1998) Remote Access Networks. 1st edition. New Delhi, Computing Mcgraw-Hill.

Ginsburg, D. (1999) Implementing ADSL. Boston, Addison-Wesley.

Goralski, W. J. (2000) ADSL and DSL Technologies. New Delhi, McGraw-Hill Companies.

Harte, L. J. (2004) Introduction to Transmission Systems, Pots, ISDN, DLC, DSL, OCX Systems and Technologies. New Delhi, Althos.

The RAD tutorials mainly focus on telecommunications, data communications and computer networking. They offer a descriptive approach to the core concepts in the above fields, and can be said to an effective learning tool in a computer networking and data communications class (Bagad 41). The introductory and general tutorial comprises of Client-server, internet communication, the internet protocol model, the internet Resiliency, the OSI reference model and the Regional Internet registries. The paper focuses mainly on the OSI reference model and the Internet protocol model. These were picked because they are all reference models that are used in facilitating data communications. In addition, the two models have various similarities making it a subject of interest as to why the internet protocol model could not just be merged as a part of the OSI reference model (Bansal 47). This paper discusses the business needs that are being addressed and the value that are delivered by them. In addition, the paper provides an evaluation of the tutorial and experience of the tutorials.

The OSI reference is an important aspect of data communications, which is increasingly becoming an important tool for business enterprises in the modern business era. The OSI reference model represents a model of the various protocol layers that are standard approach how data communications work and are taught irrespective of the fact that they do not practically represent the functionality of the protocols that are used in internetworking. The purposes of the seven layers of the OSI reference model are arguably present in the various communication scenarios that are deployed currently, however, only a protocol stack comprising of five layers are used for accomplishing the data communication functions. There is a significant correlation between the protocol stacks that are represented in the OSI reference model and the Internet Protocol Model. Basing on the Internet Protocol model, it is more logical to include a protocol stack under the Internet Protocol although on top of the infrastructure, which mainly comprises of the data link and physical layers. As a result, the protocol stack that is intermediary is normally referred to as the Network interface layer, which basically describes the functionality of the Internet Protocol in accordance with a specific infrastructure. Therefore, the internet protocol model comprises of the application, transport, IP/ network, network interface and the infrastructure layer (Bansal 78).

It is important to note data communications primarily depends on the OSI reference model and the Internet protocol model, implying that they are core in the achieving business goals that are directly related to data communications. Data communications is becoming an important tool that business organizations are relying on to facilitate the execution of organizational processes. In addition, communication processes in the company and facilitate management processes through the use frameworks such as the company intranet. Connectivity to the internet comes with added advantages through which the company can communicate with the outside world (Bansal 78).

Working with the tutorials are an excellent experience owing to the fact they contributes to ones understanding of the telecommunications, computer networks and data communication. The tutorials offer adequate information regarding the various fields. In addition, the introductory and general tutorial helps in the adding of ones professional resources concerning the aspect of data communications, computer networks and telecommunications. Basically, the tutorials are an important tool for IT professionals and students.

Works Cited

Bagad, Dhotre. Computer Networks. New York: Technical Publications, 2009.

Bansal, Kennedy. A Text Book Of Information Technology. New York: APH Publishing, 2004.

Opting out of Smartphone

People and technologies including smartphones today are closely connected. The compactness of smartphones and their wide capabilities make people consider gadgets as a means of entertainment and a working tool. I can associate myself with the those who use smartphones for making working or personal appointments with people. Actually, I prefer using other gadgets for work, entertainment, and personal development. It was my conscious decision to limit the time spent on my smartphone due to the physical harm it causes to my body, eyes, and psychology. As a result, I cannot provide the time activities on my smartphone. However, I will discuss why I chose other technology emphasizing its role in my personality formation.

Laptop Advantages

I primarily use the laptop for all technologies-related activities necessary to catch the pace of modern society. From my perspective, computer or laptop usage allows the person to control the flow of the outer information better. Such an approach contributes to better scheduling resulting in more efficient time management. Social media and other time-consuming platforms, which usually have an additive effect on human psychology, are designed primarily for the use of smartphones (Almendrala, 2014). This design is more convenient to use on the small screen. Moreover, many recommendation algorithms of such systems are programmed to keep the audiences interest by any means. This can negatively affect the psychology of people, causing the fear of missing out syndrome. My realization that I was the victim of this syndrome contributed to a change in my gadget choice.

The laptop provides me with the opportunity to control the recommendations and block unnecessary services more efficiently. At present, I reject any television programs and smartphone entertainment-related use. Such an approach allowed me to balance my work, hobbies, and entertainment time. Time on the Internet has become more developing because it is easier to find interesting information through the computer. From my perspective, such a vision forms me as a personality. I can focus primarily on my interest and develop in the desired direction. Moreover, I gained such skills as self and time management and learned to contribute to establishing aims and goals. Thus, the decision to reject active smartphone usage contributed to my personality development.

Video Games

Another thing related to the modern technologies which affected my personality formation is video gaming. The stories told in the interactive regime of the video games allow me to associate myself with the characters and understand the in-depth ideas of the creators of the game. From my perspective, being plunged into different event situations, which games provide, allows me to develop a high level of empathy and understanding of other people. In addition, games can help improve soft skills. Gamers can use many soft skills in their professional lives, such as teamwork, problem-solving, and strategic planning. Video games helped me become more tolerant and accepting of others problems and decisions. The most important feature of games is their motivational power to become better within the game. Such behavioral patterns can be overlapped with real-life experiences. Based on my own observations, I personally can state the significant improvements in motivation related to work and hobbies after I started playing video games.

The General Impact on Personality

The rejection of the entertainment-related usage of smartphones and video-games playing allowed me to take care of the quality and quantity of consumed computer products. I gained many valuable skills, such as time management and self-motivation, and learned how to reduce the psychological impact of addictive information through smartphones and television. Therefore, my example shows that the Internet, technologies, and a handful gadgets are vital in forming personality in modern society. Each person should decide how to minimize the adverse effects and emphasize gadgets positive effects.

Reference

Almendrala, A. (2014). Our creepy attachment to cell phones could be an addiction. Huffpost. Web.

Introduction

• With the increase in human population, the availability of many resources is becoming scarce as the days go by.
• Individuals have the increased need to acquire basic needs, own property and live a luxurious life.
• Due to this fact, there has been an increase in the demand for goods and services over the years (Heizer and Render, 2011).
• Owning a home is among the main dreams of every adult in the world.
• This has however proven to be difficult due to the rise in the cost of factors of production.
• This includes factors such as land, raw materials and labor.
• As a result, building houses has become an expensive activity (LCH, 2011).

Interlocking Bricks

• However, there has been an advancement on the process of building and construction.
• The use of interlocking bricks has tremendously reduced the cost of building.
• It is cheap to buy or manufacture these bricks as compared to buying stones for construction.
• In addition, they require the use of minimal amount of cement.
• This in turn reduces the cost of construction.
• Other advantages of using interlocking bricks for construction include:
  • They produces relatively strong buildings as compared to other modes of construction.
  • The buildings that are constructed using this technology are more attractive as compared to buildings constructed using other methods.
  • The technology is environment friendly.
  • It is not labor intensive.
  • Construction of building takes a shorter time.
• This new technology commenced to be used in the mid 1990`s (Ndirangu, 2009).
• However, its mass production commenced in the 21 century.
• Many buildings in both rural and urban centers have been constructed using the technology.
• Constructors and developers have discovered the benefits of this new technology hence its massive application.
• These bricks are manufactured with the use of special machines.
• These machines mix and compress sand and cement together in appropriate ratios.
• The mixture is then dried under intense heat, producing bricks that are hard and strong.
• These bricks are manufactured in different shapes and designs depending on the taste and preference of the client.
• In construction, the bricks are arranged in such a way that they interlock with each other, producing a strong wall.
• Several organizations and building and construction companies have adopted this new method of construction.
• They include:
  • Low Cost Housing International.
  • Hydraform PVT Limited (India).
  • UN Habitat.
• These companies enjoy the following benefits:
  • Reduced competition since their market is not flooded.
  • Lower costs of production.
  • Availability of cheap labor (it requires mostly unskilled labor).
  • Readily available market.
  • High levels of profitability.

References

Heizer, J., & Render, B. (2011). Operations management. Boston, MA: Prentice-Hall.

LCH. (2011). Interlocking Bricks. LCH International. Web.

Ndirangu, M. (2009). Building and Construction in the 21st Century. Nairobi: Longhorn.

Introduction

Today, technological advancements are shaping the way people operate and conduct businesses. Most of the technological advances have been witnessed in different areas including cars, microwaves, cell phones, computers, and televisions. For instance, many companies around the globe are investing more in advanced technologies because it allows them to reach more customers. However, this paper strives to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of advanced technology. Similarly, the discussion will provide a reflection on advanced technology followed by a clear conclusion about the topic. Overall, this paper holds that just because something is considered advanced does not mean that it will be beneficial. In fact, advanced technology may end up causing more problems than solutions.

Advanced Technology

For the purpose of clarity, advanced technology (AT) refers to a type of technology that is still immature but with the potential to deliver significant value. According to Matthews and Greenspan (2020, p. 134), AT tend to have very few users as it is still undergoing technical maturity. Some common examples of AT include artificial intelligence (AI), speech and handwriting recognition, virtual reality and 3D visualization. Firstly, AI can simply be defined as machines that undertake human-like cognitive functions such as learning and reasoning (Haenlein et al., 2019, p. 343). AI is developing rapidly with SIRI and self-driving cars being the latest examples. Secondly, handwriting recognition is where the computer receives and interprets information from different sources among them paper documents and photographs. Thirdly, virtual reality (VR) is a type of technology with the ability to obscure the natural world. As Wohlgenannt et al. (2020, p. 455) noted, VR is a computer-generated environment with objects appearing to be real, making the user feel they are immersed in their surroundings. Lastly 3D visualization is used specifically in creating robust characters in games, and unique designs for scenes.

Pros of Advanced Technology in Todays World

Today, many people prefer to live in a world with advanced technologies due to the many advantages accrued to it. The main advantages of upgraded technology include saving time and money, and making life easier. Firstly, advanced technology makes life much easier because of the many robots and machines that complete daily life chores. For example, Samsung, for several years now, has been involved in designing household robots to help pick up laundry and wash dishes. One of the robots, the Bot Handy, has one arm and three pivot points that allow it grasp and handle delicate items such as dishes. According to Chung et al. (2022, p. 756), Bot Handy has a camera which allows it to identify objects with a lot of ease. In fact, its ability to recognize items ensures the right amount of force is used to place them accordingly. JetBot 90 AI+ is yet another robot developed to clean up with minimal effort and within the shortest time possible (Kawakura and Shibasaki, 2020, p. 234). It relies on cutting-edge-object technology to clean the house and perform other chores.

Secondly, technology saves time and money, especially for those running or managing different businesses. With advanced technology, one is able to streamline processes and, at the same time, cut down on costs. More specifically, AT makes processes easier, thus allowing one to reduce the number of employee-hours needed to pay for every week. Similarly, advanced technologies allow employees to work from home which improves efficiency and flexibility (Vrontis et al., 2022, p. 1237). In fact, it is now easy for managers to save money on overhead costs by simply setting up employees to work from home with some upgrade on technology.

Cons of Advanced Technology in Todays World

While advanced technology is increasingly being utilized in different sectors of the economy, it is not without its disadvantages. As indicated earlier, not everything that has been upgraded offers the desired outcome. The first disadvantage of advanced technology is that it reduces jobs. According to Milovanovi et al. (2022, p. 200), technology ensures the efficiency of tasks improves significantly, which explains why it is replacing humans in almost all sectors of the economy. The high reliance on AT means that many tasks performed by humans will soon be completed by machines, thus creating a shortage of jobs. In fact, many organizations today prefer AT that is capable of undertaking tasks more efficiently compared to humans. Secondly, advanced technology has created a high dependence on processes, tools and devices. People are no longer bothered with the need to recall information. For instance, the overreliance on mathematical calculators has reduced the need for people to perform mental calculations. In a study carried out by Sowder (2020, p.123), mental calculations help stimulate the brain: it keeps the brains sharp as well as boosting learning capabilities.

Thirdly, the use of advanced technology in everyday activities ends up creating privacy problems. It is imperative for people to ensure private information and data is secured. Although many applications and tools have put in place measures to safeguard privacy, most of them have failed to guarantee the same. Based on the study carried out by Eswaran, and Magann, (2021, p. 392), the latest advancement in technology has outpaced privacy protection efforts. In the end, the digital footprint can easily be traced by government and corporations. As digital footprint continues to grow and expand, more data about intimate aspects of peoples lives get stored. These aspects include purchases, online searches, communications and personal contacts. The problem here is that the government and other corporations can easily get access to this information; in the end, people lose their privacy and control over their information. Today, people are forced to choose between advanced technologies and the need to protect their civil liberties.

Another disadvantage associated with advanced technology is that it creates health problems. Many different technologies raging from computers, television to automobiles compel people to seat for many hours. This, according to Euchi (2021, p. 182), is dangerous to peoples health as far as musculoskeletal issues are concerned. People who spend most of their time looking at their devices for a long period have been reported to suffer from neck and back pain. Similarly, the use of smartphones involves people sitting in positions that result in poor ergonomic function. Back pain can result from poor gaming or computer posture: technology overuse has been linked to selfie elbow.

Reflection

While technology has been cited as the key driver of economic development, it has equally changed how people communicate and interact. For instance, in America today, many people spend most of their time calling and messaging on different social media networks. The change in communication has been informed by the advancements in technology. As explicated in the study by Achterhof et al. (2022, p. 107), technology has been entangled with the everyday life of Americans. Many people today, including children spend most of their free time on phones instead of using it to process their own feelings and reflect on how well to handle challenges. Personally, I have young siblings and surprisingly all of them have smartphones, tablets and gaming systems that consume most of their time. Looking back 10 years ago when I was the same age as them, there was a huge difference in the way we spent our time. Even though technological advancements had started shaping how people interacted, I did not spend most of my time on my devices like my siblings.

It, therefore, follows that as technology gets more advanced, many people will be drawn further into isolation which affects their social skills. According to a recent study, people engaged in face to face conversations were found to have high levels of empathy while those who spend time on their gadgets reported difficulties interacting with others (Timpe-Laughlin et al., 2022, p. 5). Many families no longer spend their time together: they just go in their rooms and get entangled in their gadgets.

Conclusion

This paper argued that just because something is considered advanced does not mean it will be beneficial. In other words, advanced technologies can easily cause many problems such as those related to privacy and health. On the issue of privacy, the focus has now shifted on upgrading technologies without paying close attention to privacy issues that may arise. For instance, as digital footprint continues to grow and expand more data about intimate aspects of people lives get stored. With regard to health, many people tend to spend most of their free time on their gadgets which, in the end, leads to musculoskeletal issues. Overall, advanced technologies compel people to isolate themselves that ends up affecting how they interact and communicate.

Bibliography

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Chung, H., Lee, S., & Jun, S. (2022) How to make robots optimal anthropomorphism level: manipulating social cues and spatial context for an improved user experience. In Proceedings of the 2022 ACM/IEEE International Conference on Human-Robot Interaction, 10(5), pp. 731-736).

Eswaran, H., & Magann, E. F. (2021) Use of telemedicine and smart technology in obstetrics: barriers and privacy issues. Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology, 64(2), 392-397.

Euchi, J. (2021). Do drones have a realistic place in a pandemic fight for delivering medical supplies in healthcare systems problems? Chinese Journal of Aeronautics, 34(2), 182-190.

Haenlein, M., Kaplan, A., Tan, C.W. and Zhang, P., (2019) Artificial intelligence (AI) and management analytics. Journal of Management Analytics, 6(4), pp.341-343.

Kawakura, S., & Shibasaki, R. (2020) Deep learning-based self-driving car: Jetbot with NVIDIA AI board to deliver items at agricultural workplace with object-finding and avoidance functions. European Journal of Agriculture and Food Sciences, 2(3), 234-355

Matthews, P. and Greenspan, S., (2020) Technology definitions. In automation and collaborative robotics. Apress, Berkeley, CA.

Milovanovi, S., Bogdanovi, Z., Labus, A., Despotovi-Zraki, M., & Mitrovi, S. (2022) Social recruiting: an application of social network analysis for preselection of candidates. Data Technologies and Applications, 8(4), 145-255

Sowder, J. T. (2020) Making sense of numbers in school mathematics. In Analysis of arithmetic for mathematics teaching. Routledge.

Timpe-Laughlin, V., Sydorenko, T., & Dombi, J. (2022) Human versus machine: investigating L2 learner output in face-to-face versus fully automated role-plays. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 7(4), 1-30.

Vrontis, D., Christofi, M., Pereira, V., Tarba, S., Makrides, A., & Trichina, E. (2022) Artificial intelligence, robotics, advanced technologies and human resource management: a systematic review. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(6), 1237-1266.

Wohlgenannt, I., Simons, A., & Stieglitz, S. (2020) Virtual reality. Business & information systems engineering, 62(5), 455-461.

The book, Outliers, discusses a variety of factors that influence unimaginable success in various fields by incorporating evidence of the achievements of individuals such as Bill Gates and Joseph Flom, and groups like the Beatles. The author, Malcolm Gladwell, examines the influence of different backgrounds on an individuals intelligence and the ability to arrive at a rational decision.

Malcolm places a lot of emphasis on the need for persistence and dedication when pursuing an objective by repeatedly stating, Elite performers had totaled 10,000 hours of practice in their occupation (Gladwell 38). The book highlights the fact that societal settings and notions greatly hamper the realization of the full potential of most people.

Malcolm illustrates that people who achieve outstanding success often appear as rebellious and misfits in the context of the societys perception of achievement. The author focuses on individuals whose level of success goes beyond the imagination of most people and challenges the reader to analyze the interplay of factors such as family, culture and friendships in influencing the achievements of successful people.

Malcolm claims that successful people get opportunities and resources that are not available to other people, which give them an upper hand in realizing their dreams. An analysis of the history of the drone technology highlights the concept of the 10,000 Hour Rule considering that modern high-tech UAVs came into being due to the initiatives of the19^th century scientists and the improvements by their successors.

The preciseness and robustness of modern drones took several decades to achieve just the like the Beatles who achieved greatness by dedicating a lot of time into their music career between 1960 and 1964. The idea of drones dates back to the 19^th century when Austrians used unmanned balloons to bomb Venice and later advanced during the First and Second World Wars mainly in Germany, Israel and the United States.

The balloons had limited range, efficiency and precision due to unfavorable winds and the need for very strong batteries to generate electromagnetic fields to fire the bombs. The invention of winged aircrafts advanced the idea of the Austrians regarding unmanned vehicles that pilots could control from a distance. After the First World War, research on radio-controlled aircrafts continued mainly in Britain and the U.S with researchers ascribing the term drone to aerial targets controlled using radio systems.

The tactics employed in modern warfare focus on inflicting the greatest damage on the enemy while ensuring minimal risks on personnel. The invention of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) has led to a significant decline in the loss of personnel in combat zones. The highly sophisticated telecommunication systems installed in drones allow a crew, positioned miles away, to maneuver the vehicle into dangerous combat zones.

The use of satellite communication links and GPS systems to control the flight of drones such as the Predator and Global Hawk has significantly improved the range for UAVs allowing communication with pilots located thousands of miles away from the vehicle. The control system of a drone may include onboard computer systems or transmitters and receivers that allow remote control from a ground station.

While the launch and recovery of the first prototype of UAVs relied on remote piloting, modern drones mostly employ the concept of autonomous control. Although the concept of drone technology arose in response to the need to reduce the trauma and casualties associated with the crash of military aircrafts and to perform risky operations, there has been an increasing use of drones in civil applications.

A growing number of entities are using drones for tasks such as policing and patrol, firefighting, surveillance and reconnaissance (McManus 100). The versatility of drones has seen an increased use of the vehicles in news coverage and documentation of events such as the Sochi Olympics and recent political protests in Bangkok and Thailand.

The future of UAVs seems bright with the current research on Stealth Technology, Thrust Vectoring and supercomputing to allow, A new era of UVAs that send data on high-bandwidths in real-time through air, water and space (Springer 193). With the increasing use of drones by civilians, the vehicles will become a necessary acquisition for performing routine surveillance and maintenance tasks in homes, schools and business premises.

The declining cost of manufacturing drones and availability of customized and miniature vehicles has enabled people to own drones at a cost of about 500 dollars. The field of geographic information systems (GIS) will greatly expand in the future in response to the development of drones for all purposes. GIS is at the center of the effective operation of drones because the vehicles rely on software and hardware that allows the analysis and manipulation of spatial and attribute data in real-time.

Geographic referencing facilitates the analysis of patterns and trends in locations, which are easy to present on screens, maps and charts and integrate into network systems. The advancement in the drone technology offers an opportunity through which an intelligent and driven person can attain great success just like in the analysis of successful people in the Outliers.

Works Cited

Gladwell, Malcolm. Outliers: the story of success. New York: Little, Brown and Co., 2008. Print.

McManus, Ron . The Drone Enigma. New York: Morgan James Publishing, 2014. Print.

Springer, Paul. Military robots and drones: a reference handbook. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO, 2013. Print.

Energy Trust is an independent nonprofit organization whose main task is to help utility customers benefit from saving energy and tapping renewable resources. The Energy Trust of Oregon has incentive programs for homes, businesses and renewable resources. Moreover, the Trust has the goal of commercializing smaller and newer renewable energy resources. Therefore, renewable energy mission is attained by getting renewable energy certificates, helping to pay above-market cost and enabling business capabilities. Similarly, the Energy Trust demonstrates commercial and pre-commercial renewable energy technologies and builds market for renewable energy.

In the Energy Efficiency Mission, the Trust reduces costs of utility customers bills by purchasing efficiency. This is attained through two major approaches namely resource acquisition and market transformation. In addition technical assistance, marketing and incentives are some tools utilized in creating energy efficiency.

Some primary technologies that promote energy efficiency have been developed in various areas namely lighting, heating, cooling, controls, operations and process and process support efficiency for industries. Similarly, primary technologies in renewable energy have been innovated namely solar PV, small hydro, wave and small and medium wind.

Managing Technology Innovation

The speaker noted that the utility industry is not good at supporting early or lab R&D because it requires huge portfolio, and lack of Energy Trust expertise. However, the Trust aid in technology innovation by advising manufacturers since they understand customers applications and efficiency needs. Moreover, the Energy Trusts markets products that qualify as energy efficient hence they have market advantage. In deed the trust influences the markets by bench tests and field validation of new technologies.

Priority of a given technology is influenced by factors like size of potential savings, time to market, other players doing the work, odds of success and resource and expertise required.

Technology Forecasting

Energy Trust has not been able to forecast accurately timing, cost and saving of specific emerging technologies or changes in the estimating technologies. Besides, forecasting technologies are relatively expensive. Therefore, improvement of forecasting will aid in promoting new technologies in the market.

Technology management and energy and technology innovation

Essentially, development of energy sources should be considered in technological innovation since new source of energy could be a source of advance in a technology system (Betz, 2011, p.238). Market transformation caused by newer forms of energy causes simultaneous change in the existing technologies. Therefore, firms that fail to adapt to new changes face the risk of becoming redundant in the market. Moreover, products which adapt to new energy changes have higher competitive edge over other products. In deed, Energy Trust markets products that qualify as energy efficient hence they have market advantage. Besides, some energy efficiency measures have little or no cost i.e. improvement of management of industrial energy (Wilkins, 2002, p.15).

According to Wilkins (2002, p.6) renewable sources of energy cannot sustain all energy needs, thus renewable should be used in combination with other energy sources in order to attain economic growth while conserving environment. Besides, renewable energy is cost effective than other sources of energy in the long run. In addition, increased population growth has led to higher energy demands which can be met by energy efficiency or/and renewable energy. Therefore, states can have energy security for future economic development.

The Energy Trust is aware of market needs and energy trends thus they can advice manufacturers hence create progressive innovation. Moreover, the ability to forecast timing, cost and energy savings as a result of a specific technology or changes to an existing technology helps to market products. In deed consumers are continuously seek for products that reduce their utility costs.

References

Betz, F., (2011). Managing Technological Innovation: Competitive Advantage for Change. NJ: John Wiley and Sons. Web.

Wilkins, G., (2002). Technology Transfer for Renewable Energy: Overcoming Barriers in Developing Countries. London: Earthscan. Web.

Introduction

There are many models of how people choose whether to use a new system or product or not. Some models have predictive validity, allowing to partially predicting the use of a new product or feature using questionnaires. One of the most famous is the technology acceptance model and technology readiness. Their integration helps to understand better users intentions and the system of tracking technologies in the tourism environment, taking into account individual differences.

Technology Acceptance Model

The technology acceptance model (TAM) operates on two basic concepts: subjective utility and subjective ease of use. Perceived usefulness is a value that reflects the degree of confidence of the user that the technology used will increase their productivity (Yoo et al., 2017). A high index of the first concept indicates that the technology goals correspond to the users goals and vice versa (Tubaishat, 2018). Nugroho Bakar and Ali (2017, p. 29) define perceived ease of use as a degree to which a person believes that using the system would be free of effort. Based on TAM, a questionnaire can be developed (Rachman and Napitupulu, 2018). It will allow measuring the subjective simplicity and usefulness of a product and partially predicting how much it will be used.

Technology Readiness

The second important aspect that needs to be considered is technology readiness (TR). Blut and Wang (2020, p. 1) describe that this construct aims to better understand peoples propensity to embrace and use cutting-edge technologies. The technology can be considered a general state of mind, which results from formed mental stimuli that determine a persons predisposition to use any new technologies. Technology readiness has four main dimensions: optimism, innovation, discomfort, and insecurity (Sunny, Patrick and Rob, 2019). Thus, the technology of readiness determines the level of readiness of customers to use a particular technology in their lives.

Integration Theory of Technology Readiness and Acceptance Model

The combined use of TAM and TR can help better explain consumer intentions and predict peoples behavior adopting technology. These technologies can be used incredibly effectively in the radio frequency identification system (RFID), a technology tracking system, in the context of tourism, taking into account individual differences. Honarzade, Mahmoudinia and Anari (2017, p. 2) define RFID as one of the automatic detection technologies that use radio waves to identify objects and collect information without human intervention. Tourism plays an important role not only in the personal life of every person but also in the economy of any country.

The use of new technologies would help develop the tourism area even more and make it easier to use. Alghamdi (2019) in work suggests that the use of RFID technologies can help the blind in the field of shopping and tourism. All the needed actions and steps people can do independently using only their smartphone. The use of technologies contributes to the calculation of the readiness of individuals to implement such technologies, the effectiveness, and the need to use them in everyday life.

In one study, Balouchi et al. (2017) investigated the factors influencing the behavioral intent of Iranian tourists in using specialized websites. As a basis, TRAM was used when considering how visitors planned their trip. Using the technology, the authors concluded that perceived trustworthiness is the most vital factor reflecting behavioral intentions. In addition, the most significant relationship is between perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use (Indarsin and Ali, 2017). Thus, the tourism industry has to quickly adapt to the new reality and the use of new technologies will only accelerate this process.

Conclusion

The TAM and TR models are used directly for technologies, but their principles are applicable in many other areas. To simplify it, the technology acceptance model says that people want to use the technology if they perceive it as valuable and easy to use. At the same time, TR shows the degree of readiness and openness of people to new inventions. Their integration contributes to more effective and informative results.

Reference List

Alghamdi, S. (2019). Shopping and tourism for blind people using RFID as an application of IoT, 2019 2nd International Conference on Computer Applications & Information Security (ICCAIS), pp. 1-4.

Balouchi, M., Aziz, Y. A., Hasangholipour, T., Khanlari, A., Abd Rahman, A., & Raja-Yusof, R. N. (2017). Explaining and predicting online tourists behavioural intention in accepting consumer generated contents, Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, 8(2), pp. 168-189.

Blut, M., & Wang, C. (2020). Technology readiness: a meta-analysis of conceptualizations of the construct and its on technology usage, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 48(4), pp. 649-669.

Honarzade, M., Mahmoudinia, M., & Anari, M. S. (2018). Identifying and Ranking Influencing Factors in Using RFID Technology in Tourism Industry via the Use of Structural Equation Modeling, International Journal of Information Systems in the Service Sector, 10(4), pp. 1-20.

Indarsin, T., & Ali, H. (2017). Attitude toward Using m-commerce: The analysis of perceived usefulness perceived ease of use, and perceived trust: Case study in Ikens Wholesale Trade, JakartaIndonesia, Saudi Journal of Business and Management Studies, 2(11), pp. 995-1007.

Nugroho, A. H., Bakar, A., & Ali, A. (2017). Analysis of technology acceptance model: Case study of Traveloka, Arthatama, 1(1), pp. 27-34.

Rachman, T., & Napitupulu, D. (2018). User acceptance analysis of potato expert system application based on TAM approach, Int. J. Adv. Sci. Eng. Inf. Technol, 8(1), pp. 185-191.

Sunny, S., Patrick, L., & Rob, L. (2019). Impact of cultural values on technology acceptance and technology readiness, International Journal of Hospitality Management, 77, pp. 89-96.

Tubaishat, A. (2018). Perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use of electronic health records among nurses: application of technology acceptance model, Informatics for Health and Social Care, 43(4), pp. 379-389.

Yoo, C., Kwon, S., Na, H., & Chang, B. (2017). Factors affecting the adoption of gamified smart tourism applications: An integrative approach, Sustainability, 9(12).