Slides prepared by Cyndi Chie and

Sarah Frye1

A Gift of FireA Gift of FireThird editionThird edition

Sara BaaseSara Baase

Chapter 1: Unwrapping the Gift

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What We Will CoverWhat We Will Cover

• Rapid Pace of Change• New Developments and Dramatic

Impacts• Issues and Themes • Ethics

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Rapid Pace of ChangeRapid Pace of Change

• 1940s: The first computer is built• 1956: First hard-disk drive weighed a ton and

stored five megabytes• 1991: Space shuttle had a one-megahertz

computer• 2006: Pocket devices hold a terabyte (one

trillion bytes) of data• 2006: Automobiles can have 100-megahertz

computers

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Rapid Pace of Change: Rapid Pace of Change: Discussion QuestionDiscussion Question

• What devices are now computerized that were not originally? Think back 10, 20, 50 years ago.

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New DevelopmentsNew DevelopmentsBlogs is a type of website or part of a website. :• Most blogs are interactive, allowing visitors to

leave comments and even message each other via widgets on the blogs and it is this interactivity that distinguishes them from other static websites

• Began as outlets (متنفس) for amateurs who want to express ideas or creativity

• Appealing (جذاب) because present personal views, are funny and creative, and present a quirky perspective on current events

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)Blogs (cont.):• A typical blog combines text, images, and links to

other blogs, Web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability of readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs.

• Now used as alternatives to mainstream news and for business public relations

• Popular blogs have 100,000 to 500,000 readers per day and can peak at several million views per day

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)

Video Sharing:• Rise of amateur videos on the web• Boom (ازدهار) of websites like Youtube and

Myspace• Many videos on the web can infringe

copyrights owned by entertainment (ينتهك)companies

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)

Cell Phones:• Can now be used for travel, tasks scheduling,

taking pictures and downloading music• Talking on cell phones while driving is a

problem• Cell phones can interfere with solitude

quiet and concentration ,( عزلة)• Cameras in cell phones and privacy issues

– Cameras in cell phones threaten privacy

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)

Social Networking:• First online social networking site was

www.classmates.com in 1995• Myspace, founded in 2003 had roughly

100 million member profiles by 2006• Facebook was started at Harvard as an

online version of student directories

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)Social Networking:

• Sites like Second Life (www.secondlife.com) combine many of the features of social networking sites with the 3-D aspects of video games.

• What new problems/benefits arise when a person can take on a physical persona (an avatar) that may be completely different from who they are in real life?

• Some people with physical disabilities can interact with others without revealing their handicap.

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)Collaborative (تعاوني) efforts among strangers:• Wikipedia: the online, collaborative encyclopedia,

thousands of volunteers write the continually edit and update wikipedia

• Open Directory Project (ODP): the directory of the web organized by topic areas – (ex. Google and Netscape search use the ODP )

• Collaboration between scientists in different states or countries

• Watch-dogs on the Web: A web site where a woman can publish the names and pictures of men who other women should watch out for

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)

E-commerce: • www.Amazon.com started in 1994 and 10

years later annual sales reached $8.5 billion• TV show episodes are available to view on

the Web

Free Stuff:• Free stuff on the web: email, books,

newspapers, games, etc.

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)

Artificial Intelligence (AI), Robotics, and Motion:• AI is a branch of computer science that develops

theory and techniques that normally require human intelligence to be done (ex. Complex strategy games, diagnosing disease)

• Robotic: mechanical devices that performs tasks traditionally done by human, often special-purpose devices, and may require AI to function (ex. Cow Milking machine, Robotic arms)

• Motion sensing devices are used to give robots the ability to walk, trigger airbags in a crash and cushion ( الصدمة laptops when dropped (تخفيف

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)Tools for Disabled People:• One of the most heartwarming applications of computer

technology is Restoration (استعادة)of abilities(القدرات), productivity and independence to people with physical disabilities.

• For blind people computers equipped with speech synthesizers read aloud what a sighted (مبصر) person sees on the screen.

• Speech recognition .• Prosthetic(االصطناعية ) devices such as artificial arms

and legs are improver from heavy dumb wood to highly sensitive digitally controlled devices.

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)

What’s Next?• Medical records on chips attached to

medical bracelets• Biological and computer sciences will

combine new ways to insert micro-processors or controlled devices on human bodies

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New Developments (cont.)New Developments (cont.)Discussion QuestionDiscussion Question

• What changes and new developments do you expect in the next 50 years?

• How will life be different than it is today?

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Issues(Issues(قضاياقضايا)and )and Themes(Themes(موضوعاتموضوعات))

Issues:• Unemployment (ex. Automation of the most

teller functions led to a decline in employment for bank tellers, bank tellers dropped from 480,000 to 301,000 in period from 1983-1993 because of ATMs.)

• Alienation(عزلة) and customer service (interaction with machine instead of interact with human) ex. Automation of teller functions removes the human contact between a customer and alive teller.

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Issues(Issues(قضاياقضايا)and )and Themes(Themes(موضوعاتموضوعات))

Issues: (cont.)

• Crime (ex. People are robbed after withdrawing cash at ATMs using stolen and counterfeit (مزيف) ATM cards.

• Loss of privacy

• Errors

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Issues and Themes (cont.)Issues and Themes (cont.)

Themes:• Old problems in a new context: crime,

copyright infringement (انتهاك), gambling.• Adapting to new technology: usually require

adaptive changes in laws, social institutions ( االجتماعية المؤسسات ) and personal skills.

• Varied (متنوع ) sources of solutions to problems: new technology is a source for both problems and solutions.

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Issues and Themes (cont.)Issues and Themes (cont.)

Themes (cont.):• Global reach of net: ease of communication

with distant countries has many good and bad effects (ex. The net makes information and opportunities more easily available to people isolated by geography or by political system. It also makes crime fighting and low enforcement more difficult )

• Trade-offs and controversy: increasing security means reducing convenience.

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EthicsEthics

What is Ethics:• Ethics is a Study of what it means to “do the

right thing”• Ethical theory Assumes that people are

rational and make free choices. Neither of these conditions is always true.

• Ethical rules are Rules to follow in our interactions with other people and our actions that affect others

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Ethics (cont.)Ethics (cont.)

Ethical Views: there are many different theories for about how to establish a firm justification for ethical rules and how to decide what is ethical in specific case.

• Deontological( المهنة theories: tend to ( آدابemphasize duty and absolute rules, to be followed whether they lead to good or ill consequences. (ex. “Do not lie.”)

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Ethics (cont.)Ethics (cont.)

Ethical Views: (cont.)

• Utilitarianism( المنفعة is to increase :( مذهبperson utility, an action might increase utility for some people and increase it for others, benefits and damages for people are calculated and an act is right if it tend to increase aggregate utility and it is wrong if it tend to decease aggregate utility.

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Ethics (cont.)Ethics (cont.)

Ethical Views: (cont.)

• Natural rights( الطبيعية الحقوق ): let people to make there own decisions according to there judgment, without any interference by others.

• No simple answers: we can’t solve ethical problems by applying an algorithm, real human situations are complex.– Do organizations (businesses) have

ethics?

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Ethics (cont.)Ethics (cont.)

Important Distinctions: a number distinctions affect our judgment but not clearly understood like:

• Right, wrong and okay• Negative rights (liberties)

– The right to act without interference• Positive rights (claim-rights)

– An obligation of some people to provide certain things for others

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Ethics (cont.)Ethics (cont.)

Important Distinctions (cont.):• Difference between wrong and harm• Personal preference and ethics• Law and Ethics

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EthicsEthicsDiscussion QuestionDiscussion Question

• Can you think of examples of liberties (negative rights) and claim-rights (positive rights) that are at opposition to each other?