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Credit card numbers and other digital data are being stolen from banks at record numbers. These thefts are largely due to organized crime groups. 285 million records were stolen in 2008. The number of reported data breaches leapt to 656 breaches, up 47 percent from 446 in one year. Organized criminal activity made up 91 percent of stolen records. Companies are now working with law enforcement to make arrests. Eastern Europe is where most of the criminal operations are from. East Asia and North America are the next top regions.
Nowadays, the thieves look for a target where they can find an easy point of entry, and figure out how to get in and get the money. These breaches can go on for months, and now personal identification number (PIN) information, credit and debit accounts are what most criminals are trying to steal. However, a lot of companies have fraud-detection systems to catch people trying to steal credit card numbers. Also, people can try to catch the ID theft early, in order to recover faster from these attacks.
Employment and Computers
AUTHOR:
Ralph S. Polimeni; Jacqueline A. Burke; Diana Benyaminy
TITLE:
Using Computer Simulations to Recruit and Train Generation Y Accountants
SOURCE:
The CPA Journal 79 no5 64-8 My 2009
COPYRIGHT:
The magazine publisher is the copyright holder of this article and it is reproduced with permission. Further reproduction of this article in violation of the copyright is prohibited. To contact the publisher: http://www.nysscpa.org/publicationsa.htm
According to a 2005 USA Today article, Generation Y is made up of people born in the late 1970s through 2002. By the year 2010, there will be 30 million people from Generation Y entering the work force, and by 2014, they will dominate the work force, consisting of 63 million and exceeding the Generation Xers by 20 million. The Generation Yers want state-of-the-art technology and instant gratification. The desire to be challenged and the need to be continuously learning with lots of feedback are also characteristics of a Gen. Yer. They have always had computers, the Internet, cell phones, and videogames. This generation wants immediate results, because they are very comfortable with technology, having been brought up with it. Career opportunities that are socially meaningful and that provide a balanced lifestyle for their families are also in high demand for a Generation Yer. In addition to respecting an individual who is intelligent and innovative but not immediately respecting someone in an authoritative position, they multitask and are goal-oriented, although they sometimes are oblivious to basic proper etiquette. This population is a victim of the Baby Boomer work ethic. Because their parents worked a lot and didn't spend much time with them, their parents spoiled them and they didn't have a lot of rules. Building self-esteem rather than teaching the importance of hard work and success was the goal of schools.
Because of the tech-savviness of the next generation of workers, the companies trying to hire them are having to do more to recruit them. Career fairs, brochures, and newspaper advertisements have been the most common recruiting methods used by these companies, but now more and more are realizing that they need to provide entertaining programs that are interactive and appealing to Yers. Using simulations breaks away from the usual ways of recruiting and training. In fact, the U.S. Government has spent over $10 million on gaming technology, in order to attract the new workers. And these simulations are helpful in teaching new people how to do the job. They teach through doing the activity, not by listening to lectures, and professionals are able to practice tasks and skills in a safe and fully-engaged environment.
Open Source Software/Collaboration
AUTHOR:
Bailey, Peter
TITLE:
Heads of the Class
SOURCE:
Time 164 no23 65-6 D 6 2004
Brady Keys Jr., a former member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, has made it his mission to fix failing inner-city schools. He thinks that parent involvement is key in a child's success in school, but he understands that a parent working two or three jobs probably can't make it to a PTA meeting. As an answer to that problem, Keys and EPOS, an educational software company, created Helping Involve Parents, HIP for short.
The program lets the more than 34,000 parents and students look at homework assignments, class schedules, and student performance. They also can look at a student's attendance and grades. This system even allows parents to view their child's information even if they don't have a computer. The program converts computer messages to voice messages. Attendance of PTA conferences has risen at the Walt Whitman Middle School from five to 164. Another wonderful statistic states that the test scores of students have risen 20%.
Copyright Issues
AUTHOR:
Jimmy Guterman
TITLE:
Does Current Copyright Law Hinder Innovation?
SOURCE:
MIT Sloan Management Review 50 no2 14-15 Wint 2009
COPYRIGHT:
The magazine publisher is the copyright holder of this article and it is reproduced with permission. Further reproduction of this article in violation of the copyright is prohibited. To contact the publisher: http://mitsloan.mit.edu/smr/
Lawrence Lessig, a professor of law at Stanford Law School, has been fighting for copyright reform. He argues that the current laws regarding copyright are making innovations fewer. In answer, he has created a non-profit organization called Creative Commons. It helps individuals and companies with figuring out the gray territory between full copyright and public domain. The licenses they provide are made so that the copyright is retained, but it allows the media to be remixed and repurposed. The creators get to decide what kind of changes if any other people get to make.
Lessig believes that the current laws regarding copyright are hindering the creativity of innovators of music, software, etc. He knows that copyright battles have been going on for at least a century but he thinks that the world is getting more open to allowing innovators innovate. They even can benefit the right holders. Lessig thinks that by letting people do this, more and more new things will be developed.
21st Century Learning
AUTHOR:
Terrence Clark
TITLE:
21st Century Scholars
SOURCE:
Educational Leadership 67 no1 66-70 S 2009
COPYRIGHT:
The magazine publisher is the copyright holder of this article and it is reproduced with permission. Further reproduction of this article in violation of the copyright is prohibited.
At Bethpage Union Free School District, in New York, the teachers and students are participating in a revolutionary idea, hoping to expand the student's horizons. The students are taking part in the Bethpage 21st Century Scholars Program. The teachers met for six months before the program was launched, coming up with ideas to help students be more in depth when it came to their learning. Within this program, the students were to make an electronic portfolio documenting their experiences. With support from the students, parents, and faculty, the program was launched the first week in October, 2008.
The program was an amazing success. More than 450 kids signed up and the teachers became competitive trying to come up with the best activity for the kids to do. Activities varied from discussing books in locations that are discussed in the book, to raising money and loaning the money made to entrepreneurs in other countries. To sign up for the activities, the students sign up online and then document their progress there when the activity is over. For a day, the students even got to teach about a newly acquired skill they had.
Creative Commons
AUTHOR:
Michael Baumann
TITLE:
An Insider's Guide to Creative Commons
SOURCE:
Information Today 26 no9 15 O 2009
COPYRIGHT:
The magazine publisher is the copyright holder of this article and it is reproduced with permission. Further reproduction of this article in violation of the copyright is prohibited. To contact the publisher: www.infotoday.com/
When the internet first started to gain momentum, the issues with copyrights started to make themselves known. While music, software, and more can be gotten on the internet without compensation to the creator, the original copyright laws prohibit the actions. However if someone wanted to share an original work, there is a way to make sharing it possible while still keeping the credit. The Creative Commons website offers digital licenses to an individual which allows them to choose how much they want to limit the use of their work.
Basically there are four licensing conditions. Attribution is if anyone uses your work, they have to give you credit. Share Alike is a license that states that anyone can change your work as long as the changed work has a licensing agreement that is the same as the original. Under Noncommercial, anyone can copy or distribute your original work, but they can’t be used for commercial purposes. Finally, there is No Derivative Works. This license states that your work can be displayed, copied, or distributed, but the work is not allowed to be remixed or edited. These are combined to make six Creative Commons licenses. While these licenses can restrict the use of a person’s original work, they don’t take the place of copyright licensing, and they aren’t necessarily accepted worldwide.
New Technology
AUTHOR:
Daniel Lyons
TITLE:
Apple's Blank Slate
SOURCE:
Newsweek 155 no3 21 Ja 18 2010
COPYRIGHT:
(C) Newsweek, Inc. All rights reserved. Any reuse, distribution, or alteration without the express written permission of Newsweek is prohibited. For permission http://www.newsweek.com
When word came out that Apple was coming out with a brand new technology called the iPad, speculation on what it would be able to do quickly followed. However, many times what a product is expected to do doesn't exactly go through. For example, the iPhone apps that are so popular didn't even exist when the new phone came out. Even the huge search engine giant Google was somewhat of a blunder that just happened to be the right thing.
Facebook and Twitter are other examples of new technology that didn't do the task it was made to. Facebook was meant to keep college kids in touch. They thought selling advertising to brands would pay for the site, but it was when Facebook allowed developers to make applications that the business really began to pay off. The developers would make games and would advertise in their games. To get more players, they have to buy more advertising space. Twitter was only supposed to be a "micro-blogg", only allowing 140 characters, but soon it became apparent that it was more. It now is a way to get news feeds and blogs, while also keeping you updated on your favorite celebrities. So while the new technology can sound really cool now, it might not be anywhere near what it will be in the future.
Computers Being Used to Help an Individual
AUTHOR:
GREGORY MONE
TITLE:
ROBO-LEGS
SOURCE:
Popular Science 274 no6 46 Je 2009
COPYRIGHT:
Copyright (C) Time4Media, Inc. 2005. All rights reserved. No part of this material may be duplicated or redisseminated without permission.
Amit Goffer, a paraplegic, wanted to find a way to walk upright. He started developing the ReWalk, a device that helps people walk. This device involves crutches, so a person paralyzed from the neck down could not use it, including Amit himself. This is because he wanted to make it energy efficient and not use a lot of batteries. In order to make it energy efficient, he couldn't have the device balance for a person, keep the body upright, and walk at the same time. The ReWalk helps a person to walk, sit, and ascend/descend stairs. It is 44 pounds, and takes just a few minutes to get into. It also filters out the effects of clothing and vibrations in the ground on the sensors the device has.
A person decides whether they want to walk, sit, or go up or down stairs, and selects it on a wristband controller. To walk, a person plants a crutch and leans forward. The computer in a backpack instructs the hip and knee of a leg to move forward. If they keep leaning, the ReWalk keeps walking until they stand up straight, and the ReWalk stops. Testing has been successful outside of the U.S., and testing in the United States is going to start soon.
Hannah Minarick Computer Scrapbook
2009-2010
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Article Reviews
Computer CrimeCredit card numbers and other digital data are being stolen from banks at record numbers. These thefts are largely due to organized crime groups. 285 million records were stolen in 2008. The number of reported data breaches leapt to 656 breaches, up 47 percent from 446 in one year. Organized criminal activity made up 91 percent of stolen records. Companies are now working with law enforcement to make arrests. Eastern Europe is where most of the criminal operations are from. East Asia and North America are the next top regions.
Nowadays, the thieves look for a target where they can find an easy point of entry, and figure out how to get in and get the money. These breaches can go on for months, and now personal identification number (PIN) information, credit and debit accounts are what most criminals are trying to steal. However, a lot of companies have fraud-detection systems to catch people trying to steal credit card numbers. Also, people can try to catch the ID theft early, in order to recover faster from these attacks.
Employment and Computers
Because of the tech-savviness of the next generation of workers, the companies trying to hire them are having to do more to recruit them. Career fairs, brochures, and newspaper advertisements have been the most common recruiting methods used by these companies, but now more and more are realizing that they need to provide entertaining programs that are interactive and appealing to Yers. Using simulations breaks away from the usual ways of recruiting and training. In fact, the U.S. Government has spent over $10 million on gaming technology, in order to attract the new workers. And these simulations are helpful in teaching new people how to do the job. They teach through doing the activity, not by listening to lectures, and professionals are able to practice tasks and skills in a safe and fully-engaged environment.
Open Source Software/Collaboration
Brady Keys Jr., a former member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, has made it his mission to fix failing inner-city schools. He thinks that parent involvement is key in a child's success in school, but he understands that a parent working two or three jobs probably can't make it to a PTA meeting. As an answer to that problem, Keys and EPOS, an educational software company, created Helping Involve Parents, HIP for short.
The program lets the more than 34,000 parents and students look at homework assignments, class schedules, and student performance. They also can look at a student's attendance and grades. This system even allows parents to view their child's information even if they don't have a computer. The program converts computer messages to voice messages. Attendance of PTA conferences has risen at the Walt Whitman Middle School from five to 164. Another wonderful statistic states that the test scores of students have risen 20%.
Copyright Issues
Lessig believes that the current laws regarding copyright are hindering the creativity of innovators of music, software, etc. He knows that copyright battles have been going on for at least a century but he thinks that the world is getting more open to allowing innovators innovate. They even can benefit the right holders. Lessig thinks that by letting people do this, more and more new things will be developed.
21st Century Learning
The program was an amazing success. More than 450 kids signed up and the teachers became competitive trying to come up with the best activity for the kids to do. Activities varied from discussing books in locations that are discussed in the book, to raising money and loaning the money made to entrepreneurs in other countries. To sign up for the activities, the students sign up online and then document their progress there when the activity is over. For a day, the students even got to teach about a newly acquired skill they had.
Creative Commons
When the internet first started to gain momentum, the issues with copyrights started to make themselves known. While music, software, and more can be gotten on the internet without compensation to the creator, the original copyright laws prohibit the actions. However if someone wanted to share an original work, there is a way to make sharing it possible while still keeping the credit. The Creative Commons website offers digital licenses to an individual which allows them to choose how much they want to limit the use of their work.
Basically there are four licensing conditions. Attribution is if anyone uses your work, they have to give you credit. Share Alike is a license that states that anyone can change your work as long as the changed work has a licensing agreement that is the same as the original. Under Noncommercial, anyone can copy or distribute your original work, but they can’t be used for commercial purposes. Finally, there is No Derivative Works. This license states that your work can be displayed, copied, or distributed, but the work is not allowed to be remixed or edited. These are combined to make six Creative Commons licenses. While these licenses can restrict the use of a person’s original work, they don’t take the place of copyright licensing, and they aren’t necessarily accepted worldwide.
New Technology
Facebook and Twitter are other examples of new technology that didn't do the task it was made to. Facebook was meant to keep college kids in touch. They thought selling advertising to brands would pay for the site, but it was when Facebook allowed developers to make applications that the business really began to pay off. The developers would make games and would advertise in their games. To get more players, they have to buy more advertising space. Twitter was only supposed to be a "micro-blogg", only allowing 140 characters, but soon it became apparent that it was more. It now is a way to get news feeds and blogs, while also keeping you updated on your favorite celebrities. So while the new technology can sound really cool now, it might not be anywhere near what it will be in the future.
Computers Being Used to Help an Individual
A person decides whether they want to walk, sit, or go up or down stairs, and selects it on a wristband controller. To walk, a person plants a crutch and leans forward. The computer in a backpack instructs the hip and knee of a leg to move forward. If they keep leaning, the ReWalk keeps walking until they stand up straight, and the ReWalk stops. Testing has been successful outside of the U.S., and testing in the United States is going to start soon.