Responding to Technology Discussion
To those who transported goods with arms and legs, the wheel appeared to be high technology at one point in time. Today, technology is all around us—and we need to learn how to use the new technologies in ways that make our tasks easier. For this class, we will focus on digital information technologies we use for school and daily life.
Considering how different people use and respond to technology, answer the following questions:
- Describe how you use information in your daily life. Specifically, how do you use technology in your communications, whether at work, home, or school?
- How has the World Wide Web and accompanying technologies (cell phones, e-mail, social media, etc.) changed the way society works with, handles, and interprets information?
- Does computer ownership affect your ability to communicate?
Consider the following when answering:
- What is an operating system? What operating system is on your computer? (To answer this question, search for “operating systems” on the Internet. Based on the information that is displayed on the screen, identify which operating system is on your computer.)
- What is RAM? How much RAM do you have on your computer? (To answer this question, search for “system properties” within your computer system; this will tell you how much RAM you have in your system.) Can you update your RAM on the computer you have? (To find out this information, you can do either of the following:
- Visit the website of the company that made your computer and search for this information.
- Call a local store that sells computers and tell the executives there that you want to upgrade your RAM and you want to know if it is possible with the computer system you have.)
- What is software? What software packages do you have on your computer that will help you with college? (To find out about this, you can call a local store that sells computers and ask them to assist you in finding this answer. You can also look at the “Programs” or “All Programs” folder on your computer and list out the programs you have.)
You will need to do research outside of this course to justify, support, and expand on your response. Since we do not cover APA format until Module 2, you do not need to use any specific citation format, but you must identify where you found any information you use in your response. Use any format or style you wish for your citations.
Your initial response should be at least 150 words.
1b. Researching Scenarios By Wednesday, January 13, 2016,
Throughout the course of your academic career, you will be asked to conduct research to support the assertions you make in papers, presentations, and projects. Sometimes getting at the material you will need is fairly straightforward, while other times the research process forces you to get a little creative in seeking out (and finding) the types of source material that will be most useful to you. This exercise will allow you to practice conducting different types of searches.
Choose two of the following scenarios. For each scenario you choose, answer each component as clearly and completely as possible.
- You are writing up your weekly responses for your COM106 course and want to respond to a classmate who discusses the need to use social media in a job search. You are not familiar with this phrase.
- Describe what sort of search you would conduct to help you in responding to this student and why. What search engine(s) or database(s) might you use and why? What search terms? How would you go about evaluating the credibility of the information you found?
- Please share three search results you found after conducting this search that you think would be the most helpful in responding to your fellow student. Give a brief summary of the content of each source and describe why you think it would be appropriate to use in this particular context.
- You are going to be writing a research paper for your ENG101 class on a social issue of your own choosing. You know that you have always been interested in the role addiction plays in the problem of homelessness, but you are not sure what credible research is available to support this connection.
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- What sort of search might you conduct to help you get the information you seek and why?
- A search that deals with multiple components sometimes requires a few tries to get at the appropriate information. What keywords or combinations of keywords might help you find the relevant information here? Be sure to include details regarding how you might represent these words within the actual search box (using quotation marks, “and,” “or,” etc.)
- Please share three search results you found after conducting this search that you think would be the most helpful in supporting this connection. Give a brief summary of each source and describe why you think it would be appropriate to use in this particular context.
- You are putting together a presentation on the benefits of sports in the lives of children for your PSY180 course. You think that your presentation would be much stronger if you were able to argue against some of the opposition to your point of view, although you are unsure where to find information that opposes your stance.
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- What sort of search might you conduct to help you get the information you seek and why?
- How will you ensure that the sources you use are credible and reliable?
- Please share three search results you found after conducting this search that you think would be the most helpful in supporting the opposition’s point of view. Give a brief summary of the content of each source and describe why you think it would be appropriate to use in this particular context.
Compile your responses in a 2–3-page paper in Microsoft Word. Clearly cite your sources
2a. Paraphrasing Discussion By Saturday, January 16, 2016
This is a two-part assignment. First, you will use what you learned in the Module 2lectures to practice quoting, paraphrasing, and formatting in-text citations. Then, you will describe how to efficiently organize a large number of documents.
Part 1
Read this article and write two paragraphs summarizing its content. (Please be aware that this article does not use APA formatting so do not use it as an example when you are developing your APA-style citations for this assignment.)
- In the first paragraph, use several quotations to highlight the main points of the article.
- In the second paragraph, use paraphrase only to highlight the main points of the article.
Remember to use APA-style in-text citations where appropriate in each paragraph. The complete reference entry for this article is below.
Tucker, J., & Courts, B. (2010). Grade inflation in the college classroom. Foresight: The Journal of Futures Studies, Strategic Thinking and Policy, 12(1), 45–53. doi:http://www.thecampuscommon.com/library/ezproxy/ticketdemocs.asp?sch=auo&turl=http://search.proquest.com/docview/224180072
A refresher about citing sources is available on the Academic Resources page under Course Home.
Part 2
When you have finished your first two paragraphs about the article, consider the readings from this module and do the following:
- Describe an efficient filing system to store a large number of Word documents on your personal PC.
Your initial response should be at least 150 words. Each of your follow-up responses should be at least 50 words.
2b. Creating a Flyer by Tuesday, January 19, 2016.
Before beginning this assignment, you should thoroughly review Windows Explorer, File Management, Office Features, and Word Documents from your course textbook, Go! All in one: Computer concepts and applications.
For this assignment you will be creating a one-page flyer in a Microsoft Word document. The flyer will advertise the fitness activities for students at a college. There are two categories of fitness activities: Fitness Services and Intramural Sports. Please carefully read the paragraph below to understand the fitness activities on and off campus.
The Associate Students of Laurel College sponsors fitness activities. These take place both on campus and off campus. The activities fall into two categories: Fitness Services and Intramural Sports. Fitness Services are noncompetitive activities, with the most popular being Kickboxing, Jogging, and Aerobics. The most popular Intramural Sports activities—which include competitive team and club sports—are Field Hockey, Volleyball, and Basketball.
Create a one-page flyer that contains the following:
- A title that uses Text Effects
- A text description about the activities based on the fitness activities detailed above. Do not simply copy and paste this! Rework it to more clearly present the information in your flyer.
- A SmartArt graphic
- A picture of your choice or the w01K_Volleyball image.
- Text that wraps around the graphic and/or the picture to demonstrate the use of the Text Wrapping feature.
Don’t forget to spell check your work.
3a. Discussion: Communicating with Technology By Saturday, January 23, 2016
Describe in detail at least three instances during the course of an average week that you are required to organize, calculate, and interpret numeric data. If your average week does not generally include organizing numerical data, you may need to be creative with this part of the discussion! For each of the instances you describe, explain how the use of different technology tools might make these tasks easier and more accurate. Provide multiple examples of technology tools including:
- portable devices (cell phones, pocket calculators, tablets), desktop computers, computer networks
Discuss any ethical, legal, and security implications of using technology to create and share numerical data.
Use properly documented sources from this course or other valid outside resources to justify, support, and expand on your response.
3b. Expenses Worksheet in Excel by Tuesday, January 26, 2016.
Before beginning this assignment, you should thoroughly review Excel Worksheets, Charts, Formulas, Functions, and Tables from your course textbook, Go! All in one: Computer concepts and applications.
For this assignment you will use Microsoft Excel to develop a worksheet that details your personal expenses in at least four categories from the last three months. Some of these expense categories might include, but are not limited to, Mortgage, Rent, Utilities, Phone, Food, Entertainment, Tuition, Childcare, Clothing, and Insurance. (These numbers may be fictitious.)
Part 1: The Spreadsheet
- Begin by opening a new Microsoft Excel file. (You may use the template foundhere.)
- Save it as LastnameFirstInitial_M3_A2
- Use Rows 1 and 2 for a title.
- Beginning in row 4, use column A to list your different expenses.
- Label the next three columns (B, C, D) for the past three months.
- Fill in the appropriate amount for each expense for each month.
- Beside the column with your third month’s entries, create another column for totals for each category.
- Use a formula to calculate a total for each category of expense.
- In the row below your last expense entry, create another row for the monthly totals of expenses.
- Use a formula to calculate a total for each month of expenses.
- Beside the column add another column for calculating the percent of the budget for each expense category.
- Use a formula to calculate the percent that each expense category is of the total expenditures.
- Format the worksheet by adjusting column widths and wrapping text, and by applying appropriate financial number formatting and cell styles.
Please Note: While some calculations might be easy to do in your head or using a calculator—merely typing the answer into the appropriate cell—the point of this assignment is to get you accustomed to using formulas. In situations requiring frequently updated data or more complex calculations, Excel is a very powerful tool if you know how to use it. Your grade is based on your demonstrated ability to use the required formulas.
Part 2: The Chart
Below your table of monthly expenses, you will create a chart using the numbers from your spreadsheet similar to the example below.
- Open the Insert ribbon at the top of the screen.
- Click on a populated cell inside your spreadsheet, then, click on Column on the Insert ribbon. Select the style of column chart you like.
- Click and drag your column chart into position below your spreadsheet.
4a. Getting the Word Out By Saturday, January 30, 2016,
Social media can be a powerful tool to help you get the word out to a wide audience in a relatively short amount of time.
- Imagine that you are organizing a fundraiser for a local charity. Explore the various social media outlets discussed in this module or that you are aware of from your own personal and professional use (examples include Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, Instagram, etc.).
- Compose two announcements advertising the event to be posted on two different social media sites. The first should be geared toward your friends, family, and other social acquaintances. The second should be written for co-workers or professional colleagues or acquaintances.
- What types of media would you include in your announcements? Written, photographic, video, or audio? Would the same media be appropriate for both announcements? Where could you get this media? Is it OK to copy whatever clip-art you find on the web? Why or why not? Is it OK to use part of your favorite song? Why or why not?
- Discuss which social network site would be most appropriate for each example and explain why. Be sure to include a brief reflection on the differences in tone, style, and content of the two postings in terms of their intended audiences.
Your initial response should be at least 150 words.
