M150: Data, Computing and information

1. M150: Data, Computing and information Outline Unit eleven. What’s next. Review questions. Your questions.

2. Unit eleven : Computing in the wild What is wildness? The four dimensions of reach. Human and computer agents. Taking control

3. Unit eleven : What is wildness? A system is called wild if it is: Unpredictable. Uncontrollable. Irrational. An example of such as system is the stock market. The choice of adjectives is in comparison with animals in their state of wildness. 3

4. Unit eleven : What is wildness? Wildness can come from computers and their use through: Computer viruses that “infect” programs. Spam emails that are uncontrollable. Robots that sometimes operate in an unpredictable manner. Artificial Neural Networks that mimic the human brain. Genetic algorithms that are search mechanisms that mimic the natural process of selection. 4

5. Unit eleven : What is wildness? Not to forget the Internet which is the best example of wildness. The wildness comes from: The unpredictability, uncontrollability, and irrationality of the movement of its data. The connectivity of its information which is the means how its web pages are linked together. 5

6. Unit eleven : The four dimensions of reach How can a human control the wild side of the world that lead to the development of computers? The four dimensions reachable by a human are : Space. Time. Perception. Action. 6

7. Unit eleven : The four dimensions of reach Perception and action occur in a context defined in terms of space and time. All four elements define the ways in which humans can extend their interactions with the world using computer enhanced technology. 7

8. Unit eleven : Perception It means the acquisition of information through the five senses: sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. They are enough for our surrounding environment. To perceive outside our environment, we need technologies: Example: Microscopes enhance sight to see in the micro-environment. 8

9. Unit eleven : Action There are two types of actions: Technologically unaided, any action that is human induced using only the body’s capacity without any instrument. Technologically enhanced, when instruments are involved to extend the human body capacity and to perfect its movement. 9

10. Unit eleven : Space Humans have had the tendency to reach out to the outer space using rockets. Microscopes enabled humans to reach into the smaller space. New spaces exist thanks to computers: Hard disk space, CD-ROM space. Software-based space such as spreadsheets. Cyberspace or virtual space. 10

11. Unit eleven : Time The passage and grasp of time are a big concern tu human beings. Examples include: Obelisks. Sundials. Hourglasses. Water clocks. Mechanical clocks that make use of a balance wheel and pendulum. Modern electronic and digital clocks based on vibrating crystal or electromagnetic waves associated with the internal workings of atoms as their regulators. 11

12. Unit eleven : Human and computer agents Actions such as booking tickets, buying a house, require passing through an agent. These actions nowadays can be done via the Internet, avatars will act like human agents in the virtual world. Agents bring out actions to deliver results. 12

13. Unit eleven : Human and computer agents Two properties are associated with agents: Autonomy, to act in accordance with its own principles and pursues its own goals or goals that may have been assigned to it. Identity it is what distinguishes it from all other agents. It means that there is something unique about it, such as a set of behavioral or personal characteristics. 13

14. Unit eleven : Human and computer agents Agents being either human or computers, four types of interactions arise: Human→Computer (ex: human launching a software application). Computer→Computer (ex: software closure notified to the operating system). Computer→Human (ex: disappearance of a window after hitting the close button). Human→Human (ex: another human opinion intervening with the work). 14

15. Unit eleven : Human and computer agents Who should be held responsible when something goes wrong? Laws of ethics say that a software designer should not be held responsible for any harm resulting as an outcome of the software if the harm is: Unintentional. Not reasonably predictable. Due to the unethical use of the computer. 15

16. Unit eleven : Human and computer agents Chart of responsibility: 16

17. Unit eleven : Human and computer agents Computers are not held responsible either. It is a matter of: Delegation the act of entrusting authority to another human or computer for performing a task or activity. Trust is something that has to be earned. In general we trust because most, if not all, of the time, it enables us to carry out successfully actions that are important to us. Be careful in your choices and choose a trustworthy agent. 17

18. Unit eleven : Human and computer agents Delegating a task to a computer is done through programming. A program is a single, complete and (more or less) self-contained ordered list of instructions that can be executed on a computer. A universal computer is one that, given sufficient time and memory and the appropriate program, can simulate any other computer whatsoever – including itself. 18

19. Unit eleven : Human and computer agents We delegate to computers because we trust them. We trust them because we believe that they are reliable. A computer system consistently produces the same results under the same (or similar) conditions. The more we understand how and why it behaves in the way that it does, the more we are likely to trust it. 19

20. Unit eleven : Taking control Interaction between humans and machines requires a certain currency. The currency of human–computer interaction we mean is whatever it is within which, or on the basis of which, interaction can take place. A currency can be used: As a medium of exchange. To store value. As a standard or measure. 20

21. Unit eleven : Taking control Following the preceding definition: One of the standard currencies of computing is information. The other standard currency of computing is data. Which one should we use? In order for a human–computer interaction to take place, we need to make use of both kinds of computing currency, data and information, and establish rules that enable conversion between them. 21

22. Unit eleven : Taking control During the interaction, the conversion from data to information and vice versa is done in a cycle called the information loop of computing. The cycle consists of four phases, going through all four types of interactions. 22

23. Unit eleven : Taking control Transformation of information into other information based on human– human interaction. Contraction of information into data via the representation of information in a form that the computer can deal with. Transformation of data into other data based on computer–computer interaction. Expansion of data into information via interpretation by a human being. 23

24. Unit eleven : Taking control Where does ‘wildness’ come from in computer systems? Computers interact with each other and also necessarily interact with human beings. Interaction uses of the relation of computers to human agents to situate computer programs in a dynamic environment. Since computer systems are, human–computer systems. And humans can be a source of wildness. The human agent in the information loop is a source of ‘wild’ computing. This source cannot be eliminated because computing is human–computer interaction. 24

25. 2- What’s next Unit twelve : Interacting with information. 25

26. 3- Review questions What are the criteria that help judge if a system is wild? How far can a human being reach by himself? How do computers extend our ability to reach? Give two examples of artificial spaces created by computers. What is an agent? What are the two properties associated with agents? In which ways can a developer be held accountable when damage is caused from the use of his software? Define the following terms, delegation, trust. What is a currency? How is a currency made use of during a human-computer interaction?

27. 4- Your questions ?