ANGVEER's INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY BLOG.
WELCOME TO Angveer's IT Blog FOR BSc INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY/ CST-1160 (EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES IN PRACTICE)✌
Emerging technologies are technologies whose development, practical applications or both are still largely unrealized, such that they are figuratively emerging into prominence from a background of nonexistence or obscurity. Emerging technologies are often perceived as capable of changing the status quo.
Down here is the YouTube link to the Video of my Blog:
Link to Blog Video
MEDIA LITERACY:
My understanding of media literacy is that it has now become a 21st century approach to education. It also provides a platform to access, analyse, evaluate and create messages in various forms; from printing to video editing to the Internet. Media literacy not only builds an understanding of the role of media in today's society, but also as an essential skill of inquiry and self-expression necessary for citizens of a country.
A pixel is the smallest unit of a digital image that is displayed on computer or other devices equipped with a screen. Each image is made of pixels that consists of RGB(Red, Blue, Green) colors. By adjusting each percentage of colors, we are able to obtain a form.
Class Activity:
During the first week's session of this module, we started the lecture on how to convert numbers into binary( i.e 0's and 1's).
This is an example of how to convert a number into binary
Therefore 65 in binary is written as: 01000001
In the same week we discussed about Photoshop and how with the help of photo editing softwares we can change the color and structure of pictures.
In the picture below i have changed the eye color of the koala from brown on the right to blue on the left.
This photoshop image has been edited in this site: https://paints.net/editor. Some alternatives to photoshop are Photoscape, GIMP, Pixlr.com.
ONLINE PRESENCEIn simple terms, Online presence can be defined as any type of information or content about an individual that is made visible on online. For example, Instagram, which is the most popular social media platform, allows it's users to post photos and videos online. These informations are stored as a collection data in a database and can be shared to advertisers which will in turn target a specific type of ad and send to the user. In fact, the data posted is generally persistent meaning that even if any piece of information about the user's online activity is lost, there will still be traces of the information in the user's database.
E.g: Here is a picture of my online presence when i searched my name on the internet:
Class Activity:
On week 3 during the lecture on 'Online Presence', my friend Priyanka and I made a PowerPoint presentation where we had to make a sales pitch. Basically the presentation consisted of demonstrating how social media platforms enable small businesses such as "FRANTUARY" to become popular in the US.
Link to the Franktuary PowerPoint video: https://youtu.be/jj4-pqaQYm8
Here are pictures of me and my friend Priyanka during our power-point presentation:
VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS AND CONVERSATIONAL AGENTS
Virtual Environments?
Virtual Environments are networked applications that enables its users to interact with the computer simulated environment and other user's work. In other words, it involves simulated objects with a multi-user interface. There are different types of virtual environments namely ( Semi-Immersive, CAVE fully immersive, Collaborative virtual environments, etc...).
Initially Virtual Environments were created as a simulation tool for military and medical training. Virtual Reality(VR) started to become popular in the late 1980s when new forms technology such as the headset for video games was released. While most virtual worlds are common in the form of multiplayer or online games (MMOG), single player simulated worlds such as "GRAND THEFT AUTO" and "THE SIMS" are what meet the definition of a virtual environment.
Virtual environments has many advantages such as:
1) It is cost effective.
2) They are safe, e.g: pilot training.
3) Better resource allocations means better ability to run resource-intensive application.
Assignment 1
What is Augmented Reality (AR)?
Augmented reality (AR) is an enhanced version of the real physical world that is achieved through the use of digital visual elements, sound, or other sensory stimuli delivered via technology. It is a growing trend among companies involved in mobile computing and business applications in particular.
During the week 6 class, we discussed about AR and we were asked to search online on free AR applications on the Internet and create one ourselves. I personally chose Unite AR. Unite AR is a paid Augmented Reality application that has a special feature which allows you a free 30 day trial on it's site and i used it's services to create my AR project.
Class Activity:
We also had the opportunity to try and create our own Avatars. An Avatar is a graphical representation of a person where we can mold it into form we want it to be. For some persons, avatars can be a window for expressing themselves and escaping reality.
This is site from which i have created and edited my avatar:
https://www.doppelme.com/signin
What are Conversational Agents?
Conversational agents, such as Siri (Apple), S Voice (Samsung), and Cortana (Microsoft), are smartphone-based computer programs designed to respond to users in natural language, thereby mimicking conversations between people.
How dialog systems between conversational agents and humans work?
-> First they work by converting the real-world input into a universal machine code using some type of automatic speech recognizer (ASR), or optical gesture/handwriting recognizer.
-> That input is then interpreted using some form of Natural Language Understanding Unit (NLU).
-> Parallel with the interpretation, a dialog manager tracks the dialog’s history and state, generally keeping the conversation on a logical track by activating/deactivating appropriate sub task domains.
-> Finally, the response is sent to an output generator, usually matching whatever the input format was.
Class activity:
Here is the link to my Personality Forge AI Profile:
https://www.personalityforge.com/user-profile.php?userID=230484
Below is an image of the amazing conversation I had with an AI chatbox named 'Intelligent Toy'.
Assignment 2
What is a Storyboard?
The basic definition of a storyboard is that it is a graphic organizer that plans a narrative. They are a powerful tool to visually represent any information. At their core, storyboards are a set of sequential drawings to tell a story. By breaking a story into linear, bite-sized chunks, it allows the author to focus on each cell separately, without distraction. We were asked to create a storyboard based on which we would filming and editing.
Here is a template of a storyboard that i created from vyond.com.
FUTUROLOGY
Futurology is the systemic term for the prediction of future technologies based on the current ones and how they can be improved. Basically it uses present technology and predicts how after improvement, they might be valuable for us and big corporations in the near future.
One of the most exciting example of futurology i found was self-driving cars. Back in 1939, Norman Bel Geddes, an American theatrical and industrial designer, created the first self-driving car, which was an electric vehicle guided by radio-controlled electromagnetic fields generated with magnetized metal spikes embedded in the roadway. Recently as 2016, the CEO of TESLA, Elon Musk revolutionized the idea and made it a reality by launching the first autonomous car. However it still requires the drivers supervision, but the idea is here and is still under further development, that in the near future most cars will be self driving/ automated and will replace human drivers.
Assessment 1(Short Story) Science-Fiction: 10 - 20 years from now.
During week 8, as part of an assessment, we were asked to write a short story of no more than 500 words about The impact of new technologies on people set in 10-20 years time. The story takes some current new technologies and how they might change the way we interact or how technologies might be used differently from what was anticipated.
Virtual Earth
I’m
sitting in my favorite spot. Fluffy, green grass below me on the top of the
hill that looks down on Japanese monasteries. Trees are all around and the wind
is softly blowing. Just the right temperature at just the best time of the day
in the early morning hours. I’m not cold or hot yet the Sun is shining
gorgeously. I love spending time here. That’s the only place where I feel calm
and my mind is still energized. I come here whenever I can, which doesn’t
happen often nowadays. This place has a special meaning to me as I never made
it to Japan. Well, I never will…
My
mask just became transparent and electrodes were released from my skin. I guess
my time is over. There is no calm sound of the gentle wind but the constant
buzzing of ventilators. I don’t even hear them anymore unless I get back from
my virtual sessions. It’s room temperature, there is artificial light and there
is no grass just the metal floor below me. Exactly what you would expect from
the interiors of a spaceship. Long corridors, narrow spaces, and small rooms.
It makes me feel I don’t belong here.
When
everyone and everything you know is years away from you, it’s hard to keep it
together. These virtual sessions I use for meditation are the only things that
keep me calm during the long flight. You have your chores but it takes more to
satisfy a curious human being like me. I have been bonding with the robots on
board and I can have sessions with my loved ones at home. I can wait 20 minutes
for a response. We signed up for the greatest mission of humanity thus we
mustn’t be weak. Yet, I hope we don’t lose what makes us human on the way. I
hope we create green hills, clouds, and trees on the Red Planet.
If
we cannot make it happen, if Mars remains a pile of stones without a soul, we
will pretend it has one so we will belong there. Just like at home. History
shows we are good at pretending.
SENSORS AND EMBEDDED SYSTEMS
During week 13's lecture we discussed about smart systems and sensors and how they impact our daily routines and enable organisations to perform their work more easily.
What is a sensor?
A sensor is a device that takes input from the physical environment and uses built-in compute resources to perform predefined functions upon detection of specific input and then process data before passing it on.
Smart sensors enable more accurate and automated collection of environmental data with less erroneous noise amongst the accurately recorded information. These devices are used for monitoring and control mechanisms in a wide variety of environments including smart grids, battlefield reconnaissance, exploration and many science applications.
The smart sensor is also a crucial and integral element in the Internet of Things(IoT), the increasingly prevalent environment in which almost anything imaginable can be outfitted with a unique identifier and the ability to transmit data over the internet or a similar network.
How sensors work?
A sensor ties a raw base sensor to integrated computing resources that enable the the sensor's input to be processed.
The Sensor is the component that provides the sensing capability. It might be designed to sense heat, light or pressure. Often, sensors will provide an analog signal that must be processed before it can be used. This is where an intelligent sensor's integrated technology comes into play. The onboard microprocessor filters out signal noise and converts the sensor's signal into a usable, digital format.
What are the types of sensors?
There are 5 main types of sensors used in industrial environments. Although there are many types of sensors in use today, they are generally based on one of the five types of sensors:
- Level sensors. A level sensor is used to measure the volume of space taken up in a container. A vehicle's fuel gauge might be connected to a level sensor that monitors the level of fuel in the tank.
- Temperature sensors. A temperature sensor is a sensor that can monitor a component's temperature so a corrective action can be taken if necessary. In an industrial setting for example, a temperature sensor can be used to make sure machinery is not overheating.
- Pressure sensor. Pressure sensors are often used to monitor the pressure of gasses or fluids in a pipeline. A sudden drop in pressure might indicate a leak or a flow control issue.
- Infrared sensors. Some infrared sensors, such as those used in thermal imaging cameras or non-contact infrared thermometers are used for temperature monitoring. Other infrared sensors are optical sensors tuned to a frequency that enables them to see light in the infrared spectrum. These types of sensors are used in medical equipment, such as pulse oximetry devices, and in electronic devices designed to be operated by remote control.
- Proximity sensors. A proximity sensor is used to detect the location of a person or object with relation to the sensor. In retail environments, proximity sensors can track customer movements throughout the store.
ACCESSIBILITY
In this lecture, we learned about INPUT and OUTPUT devices and how we use network systems for transfer of information and data from one form to another.
INPUT DEVICES
1) Keyboard
The keyboard is an input device that allows users to type information such as letters, words, numbers and symbols into a computer. Keyboards comes in various types of forms, colours and shapes. There are also 3 types of keyboard placements available namely: QWERTY, AZERTY and QWERTZ.
2) Mouse
The mouse is a small, movable and hand-held pointing device that enables it's user to control numerous things in a computer. There are also 2 types of mouses, i.e the normal mouse and the gaming mouse which has additional buttons.
3)Trackpad
The trackpad uses relative motion allowing it's user to use their finger or a stylus across the surface pad whereby allowing movement of the cursor on the screen.
4) Joystick
The joystick is an input device that can be used to control movement of a cursor or pointer on a screen. Normally most joystick are used in gaming purposes such as the PlayStation hence giving the user better grip for gaming performance in games.
5) Scanner
The Scanner is a computer device that uses a light beam to scan codes, text, or graphic images directly into a computer system. Scanners are also used in fax machines and to input graphic material directly into personal computers.
OUTPUT DEVICES
1) Monitor
The Monitor is an output device that interprets and displays pictorials, texts or graphical designs from the computer's Graphics card to the monitor screen.
2) Printers
The printer is an output device that accepts texts and graphic outputs from a computer and transfer the information into a paper. There are also many types of printers that give different outputs. Namely: Inkjet printer, Dot-matrix printer, Laser printer, Plotter, etc....
3) Speakers
A speaker is an output hardware device that connects to a computer, TV, phone and many other devices to produce sound. When the speaker receives electrical input from a device, it sends the current through causing it to vibrate. This vibration thereby generates sound waves.
GROUP PROJECT
For our final coursework, we were asked to do an Arduino Project which consists of using the different components present in our Arduino Kit. My team which consisted of Priyanka, Sabeeha, Trevor, Macdonald and I, decided to a Buzz-Wire Game where we used some components in the Kit to build it.
Each one of us was assigned a specific task in order to make this project.
Down here is the link to our Arduino video where we explain every details about the Arduino Project : https://youtu.be/7IV_uCNtkp4
RECOMMENDER SYSTEMS
What are recommender systems?
Over the last few decades, with the rise of YouTube, Amazon, Netflix and many other such web services, recommender systems have taken more and more place in our lives. From e-commerce (suggesting products or articles to viewers) to online advertisement (matching viewers' interests), recommender systems are today unavoidable in our day-to-day online journeys.
In other words, Recommender systems are software algorithms that suggest items to a user based on their preferences and history.
Recommender systems can be broken down into two major :
1) Collaborative filtering.
2) Content-based filtering.
There is also a third method, i.e. A hybrid approach that combines collaborative and content-based filtering is also increasing the efficiency of recommender systems.
1) What is collaborative filtering?
Collaborative methods for recommender systems are based on the relationships between users and items in order to produce new recommendations. These relationships are stored in a table called the user-item interactions matrix.
The central concept of collaborative methods is that users who interact with specific items are likely to interact with similar items, and likewise, that users who interact with other users are likely to have similar interests.
Collaborative filtering works without needing information about users or items, so it can be used in any scenario. Additionally, the more users interact with items, the more new recommendations become accurate: for a fixed set of users and items, new interactions recorded over time bring new information and make the system more and more effective.
2) What is Content-based filtering?
Content-based recommendation approaches go beyond the user-item interactions to use additional information about users and/or items. Content-based methods are methods of analyzing item (text, images, etc.) interactions that try to build a model based on the items' features (words, shapes in images, length of hyperlinks in text, etc.) that explain user interactions with these items.
Taking movie ratings as an example, young women tend to rate better some movies and that young men have other preferences. If we manage to get such a model, we can make new predictions for a user by looking at his or her profile (age, sex, …) and recommending relevant movies.
Content-based methods have an advantage over collaborative ones: new users or items can be described by their characteristics (content) and so relevant suggestions can be done for these new entities.
Here is a summary of different types of Recommender systems algorithms:
SKILLS FRAMEWORK FOR THE INFORMATION AGE (SFIA)
What is SFIA?
SFIA is a tool that enables an organization to evaluate the Autonomy, Complexity, Influence and Business skills of its employees. It is made up of 7 levels and each level has certain skills. As an employee acquires these skills, he or she grows as a professional.
Student Employability
During this course, we have been asked to evaluate our own abilities and write a list of skills we possess. As an evaluation based on my life so far, the following is a list of the top 10 skills that I have acquired:
1) Communication skills
2) Teamwork
3) Negotiation and persuasion
4) Organisation
5) Perseverance and motivation
6) Use of online resources
7) Programming
8) Computer literate
9) Writing skills
10) Critical Thinking
Down here are the features that makes someone employable according to the CBI:
What career do I want to pursue?
Based on the degree that i have chosen, i have found out that there lots of career opportunities in the IT industry. Below is a list of IT related careers to look into:
1) Data Scientist
2) Software Developer
3) Data Analyst
4) Network Engineer
5)Web Design
6) IT consultant
7) System Developer
8) Information Systems Manager
Employer's View
In a CBI-Higher Education Task Force Report, students are said to lack self-management, communication skills, and business awareness. Business awareness means how to present data that is, how to make a professional yet captivating PowerPoint Presentation. During this module, I will have the opportunity to improve on that skill.
classwork:
Down here is SFIA competency exercise we were asked to do on week 9:
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