Impact of Information Systems on Humans

This assignment examines the multifaceted impact of information systems (IS) and information technology (IT) on human society. Students are tasked with analyzing both the positive and negative consequences of these technologies, considering their effects on various aspects of human life such as employment, economic structures, social interactions, and overall well-being. A specific example highlighting a negative consequence is required, supported by a referenced resource.

COIT 20246 ASSIGNMENT SUBMISSION
Due date: Thursday Week 11 (2PM AEST)
Part: Written Assessment
Weighting: 30% of total assessment.
Submission: Electronic (see course website for details)
Please fill in the following details:
Student Name
Student Number
Tasks
There are ten (10) tasks, one for each week: the tasks are detailed below. There is a
table to complete for each task. Please fill in the information required.
Note: Each resource summary should be around 200-300 words.
Week 1
The text discusses the elements of modern computing architecture however is largely silent
on the individuals who played a role in its development. Find and summarise a resource that

describes ONE such individual. The individual should have had a significant influence on the
development of computers and/or components of modern computing architecture.
Title and Reference:
Guo, W., 2016. John von Neumann.
Available at: https://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/floreen/pioneers/vonNeumannReport.pdf
[Accessed 21 Sep. 2017].
Summary:
John von Neumann is known as the father of modern computer. This Hungary born
American mathematician has a significant role and contribution in the modern
computer and computer architecture. The principal feature of von Neumann
computer includes the storage of program and data simultaneously. This architecture
describes an electronic digital computer that has parts such as Processing Unit and
arithmetic logic unit and processor registers. A counter instruction is used for storing
data and program simultaneously. The design of this architecture provides a much
simpler one than that of the Harvard architecture. This architecture has the capability
to save instructions as data and uses assembler, compiler, linker, loader and other
automated program to simultaneously in order to carry out the instructions. Some
high level languages such as LISP are used in this architecture, providing an abstract
machine independent way in order to manipulate the executable code at runtime.
This was a major development in the modern computer and thus architecture pave
the way for future computer architectures. The contribution of this of this great
mathematician is significant in modern computer and modern architecture.
Week 2
The text discusses the components and activities of operating systems however is largely
silent on the individuals who played a role in their development. Find and summarise a
resource that describes ONE such individual. The individual should have had a significant
influence on the writing or development of operating systems.
Title and Reference:
Bishop, T. (2017). ‘A real inventor’: UW’s Gary Kildall, father of the PC operating
system, honored for key work. [online] GeekWire. Available at:

https://www.geekwire.com/2014/real-inventor-uws-gary-kildall-father-pc-os-
recognized-landmark-contributions/ [Accessed 21 Sep. 2017].
Summary:
Gary Arlen Kildall is one of the most famous individuals who have a significant role to
play in development of the operating system. The American computer scientist and
microcomputer entrepreneur and created the CP/M operating system. Kildall and his
wife established a company named as Intergalactic Digital Research. He pioneered
the concept of BIOS. The BIOS is a set of programs, which is stored in the computer
hardware. The CP/M operating system market the beginning of the operating system
and its development. The computer operating system that have been developed
later, follows the path shown by Gary Arlen Kildall. He could be truly called the real
inventor of the computer operating systems. This context is relevant since the
contribution of this person is truly commendable in the fields of computer science.

Week 3
The Internet didn’t just appear – it was an evolution from earlier networks. Find and
summarise a resource that describes ONE of the networks that led to the development of the
modern Internet.
Title and Reference:
Strawn, G., 2014. Masterminds of the Arpanet. IT Professional, 16(3), pp.66-68.
[online] Available at:
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/6824521/ [Accessed 21 Sep. 2017].
Summary:
The evolution of the Internet is one of the greatest inventions that changes the world.
One of the networks that became the basis of the Internet is known as the
ARPANET. The concept was first published in the year 1967. ARPANET have been
developed in US, under the guidance of Advanced Research Projects Agency
(ARPA). In the year 1969, this network became the basis of the Internet and was
readily available for the rest of the world. The first message that was being send
using the Internet was a series of memos. This first message was written in the year
1962, by J.C.R Licklider. He was the first head of the computer program of the
DARPA, that started in the year 1962. The use of the ARPANET was useful and
significant. This is because the use of this networking marked the beginning of the
Internet, and spread all around the world. The modern Internet owes its success to
ARPANET, the first network that was used for Internet. This is a significant
development in the history of the development of Internet, thus is relevant in this
context as well. After the successful development of the ARPANET, various
computers were added to this network, in order to successfully use the ARPANET.
Week 4
Ethernet is an example of a Layer Two (L2) data link protocol that is discussed in the text.
Find and summarise a resource that describes the features and uses of ONE other L2
protocol that is not discussed in the text (i.e. NOT Ethernet).
Title and Reference:

Erg.abdn.ac.uk. (2017). Address Resolution Protocol (arp). [online] Available at:
http://www.erg.abdn.ac.uk/users/gorry/course/inet-pages/arp.html [Accessed 21 Sep.
2017].
Summary:
The Layer 2 protocols include a wide number of protocols along with Ethernet. These
include the Address Resolution Protocol (ARP), High-Level Data Link Control
(HDLC), IEEE 802.11 WiFi, IEEE 8-2.16 WiMax, Point-to-point Protocol (PPP). The
Address Resolution Protocol has been discussed below. The ARP is a protocol that
is used to map the Internet Protocol address to the physical address of a machine,
which is recognized in the local network. Four types of messages are send by the
ARP. These are the ARP request, ARP reply, RARP request, RARP reply. When an
incoming data packet, that is destined for a host machine arrives at a gateway, it
asks the ARP program to provide the MAC address which matches with that of the IP
address. The ARP looks in the ARP cache for the address and converts to the right
packet length, before sending it. However, if there is no entry found, for the IP
address, ARP broadcasts a request packet in a special format that is compatible for
all machines. The ARP is one of the most important layer 2 protocols and maps the
IP address to the MAC address successfully.
Week 5
The text mentions the role of hackers in attacks on networked infrastructure. Find and
summarise a resource that describes ONE famous or well-known hacker.
Title and Reference:
Jarvis, L., Macdonald, S. and Whiting, A., 2017. Unpacking cyberterrorism discourse:
Specificity, status, and scale in news media constructions of threat. European
Journal of International Security, 2(1), pp.64-87. Available at:
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/european-journal-of-international-security/
article/unpacking-cyberterrorism-discourse-specificity-status-and-scale-in-news-

media-constructions-of-threat/B68F6B8FD15E2200A5B1C159FA480210 [Accessed
21 Sep. 2017].
Summary:
One of the top hackers that they world of computers have ever seen is Gary
McKinnon. This Scottish system administrator and hacker was accessed of
penetrating into the military network. This was one of the biggest military threats that
the world had ever witnessed. Gary wished to seek information regarding the UFOs.
In this quest of acquiring knowledge, he thought of getting access to the websites of
NASA directly. He hacked into 97 US military and the website of NASA. He deleted
few essential files. He was soon found guilty of hacking into the military website and
the website of NASA. Along with deleting essential files, he also shamed the military
website. He was able to shut down 2000 military computers for 24 hours. Gary was
accused of hacking, copying confidential data, manipulating accounting files, and
copying various passwords on his own computer. The US authorities faced a hige
loss sue to this hacking and they estimated the cost of tracking and correcting the
issues was over $700,000. Thus, Gary could be cited as one of the most malicious
hackers that the world of computer had ever witnessed. The loss he caused to the
websites of NASA and the US military, took a huge time to be recovered.

Week 6
Society is increasingly reliant on networks and network technologies but they are evolving at
a rapid pace. Find and summarise a resource that describes ONE example of a future
networking technology or trend that will impact society.
Title and Reference:
Gubbi, J., Buyya, R., Marusic, S. and Palaniswami, M., 2013. Internet of Things (IoT): A
vision, architectural elements, and future directions. Future generation computer
systems, 29(7), pp.1645-1660. Available at:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0167739X13000241 [Accessed 21
Sep. 2017].
Summary:
One of the future trends in the future that will have a major impact on the society is
the Internet of Things (IoT). The IoT technology will introduce no touch interface and
ensure that artificial intelligence is used to rule the world. The IoT technology will
incorporate artificial intelligence in the devices, such that the devices are able to
communicate with each other successfully and use their intelligence to become more
useful for the human beings. The Internet of Things (IoT) is a network that connects
the physical devices and the embedded electronic software and sensors, such that
they are able to exchange information among themselves. With the implementation
of IoT, the touch free interface of the various gadgets will be introduced, thus
resulting in advancement in the gadgets that are used. The wireless data links for the
drones are also an important networking future technology. The aviation industry is
one of the trendsetters for the use of wireless networking for the planes. This
technology could be used at a cheaper rate to ensure wireless network connectivity
for the drones. These technologies have a key role to play in shaping the future.
These technological advancements are effective in ensuring success in the
digitalization and artificial intelligence.
Week 7

The text mentions social business and the impact of the use of social networking platforms.
Find and summarise a resource that describes the history of the development of ONE such
social media platform.
Title and Reference:
Brügger, N., 2015. A brief history of Facebook as a media text: The development of
an empty structure. First Monday, 20(5). Avaialable at:
http://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/5423 [Accessed 21 Sep. 2017].
Summary:
The advent of the social media has a key role to play in enhancing business. The
social networking platforms that has been successful in leaving a mark in the society
includes Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Linkedin. The development history of
Facebook has been described here. Facebook is one of the most popular social
networking sites. The social networking site was launched on February 4, 2004.
Facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerburg. After the launch of Facebook, the
network was extended to other Boston universities. The social networking site
became Facebook.com in August 2005. This address was purchased for $200,000.
From September 2006, the Facebook network was extended beyond the educational
institutes and was open for everyone to be registered, with a valid email address.
The social networking site was free to be joined, and will always remain free. Google
and Yahoo are two of the companies that expressed their interest to buy out the
Facebook. The development of this social networking site attracted thousands of
users. The features of this social networking site were user friendly and attracted
huge number of users. Facebook provided a platform to the users for social
communication and is an useful platform for business and social marketing.
Week 8
With the advent of mass data collection and storage has come data mining. Find and
summarise a resource that describes ONE example where data mining has been used
successfully by a business. You should not use any examples covered in the textbook.
Title and Reference:
Rokach, L. and Maimon, O., 2014. Data mining with decision trees: theory and applications.

World scientific. Available at:
https://eric.univ-lyon2.fr/~ricco/tanagra/fichiers/
fr_Tanagra_DM_with_Decision_Trees.pdf [Accessed 21 Sep. 2017].
Summary:
Data mining could be defined as the practice of using large pre-existing databases, in
order to generate new information, from the existing ones. One of the areas of
business that uses the technology of data mining includes the retail sector. The
retailer sector segments the customers into RFM groups. This refers to the
segmentation of the customers using Recency, Frequency and Monetary factors.
The retail sector uses the technology of data mining in order to classify the
customers in these groups. This segmentation is done in order to offer different
promotions and discounts to different set of customers. The customers who are loyal
customers and have a buying history with the particular brand are given more
discounts and loyalty offers. However, the new customers are also given high
discounts in order to ensure that these customers are attracted towards the particular
retail brand. Thus, with the use of the technology of Data mining the retailers are able
to understand the buying pattern of the customers. Along with the usage of data
mining in the retail industry, the other areas of application of data mining include the
e-commerce, supermarkets, Facebook, crime agencies.

Week 9
One of the greatest success stories in application development in recent times has been the
popularity of mobile apps. Find and summarise a resource that describes the story of ONE
successful mobile app developer.
Title and Reference:
Shaikh, H., Kehar, A., Mahar, M.H., Surahio, F.A. and Jumani, A.K., 2016.
WhatsApp: A Technique to Halt Intrusive Group Join Request and its Analysis,
Designing and Development. International Journal of Computer Science and
Information Security, 14(11), p.413. Available at:
http://www.ghspjournal.org/content/4/2/311 [Accessed 21 Sep. 2017].
Summary:
Mobile application development has been a revolutionary success among its users.
The mobile applications of recent times have made a grand success in the mobile
industry. Among the various mobile apps available in the market, Whatsapp is one of
the most famous apps that the world uses. The two employees of Yahoo, Jan Koum
and Brian Acton developed the app. They left Yahoo together and joined Facebook.
After the success of Facebook, Koum and Acton released an iPhone app. This app
was accepted worldwide and received huge success. The reason behind the success
of this App was its ease of use. People did not have to register or create an account.
They could simply download the app in their phones and use it for messaging. With
the ease of use and popularity, Whatsapp attracted over a billion of users all over the
world. The funding of the app was also unique. The iPhone users were charged a
one-time installation cost, while the android phone users were charged yearly.
However, in the year 2014, Whatsapp was sold to Facebook for $19 billion. The
simplicity of this App and the ease of use ensured that more customers and users
will be attracted to use this app.
Week 10
While information systems and technology deliver many benefits to society, they can also

result in (sometimes inadvertent) negative effects and outcomes. Find and summarise a
resource that describes ONE example of where the use of an information system or
technology has led to negative consequences for humans.
Title and Reference:
Deb, S. and Deb, S. (2017). Information Technology, Its Impact on Society and Its
Future. [online] Article.sapub.org. Available at:
http://article.sapub.org/10.5923.j.ac.20140401.07.html [Accessed 21 Sep. 2017].
Summary:
The use of information system and information technology has been a boon for the
society and the world. However, there are certain negative effects of the IS/IT
systems, that have a negative impact on the society as well as humankind. One of
the major negative impacts of the society is the loss of jobs of the people in the
society. With the increase in the use of IT/IS, the manual labour has been replaced
with digitalization. Moreover, the economic consequences of the extensive use of the
IT/IS systems include loss of income, loss of social status as well as loss of self-
esteem. This is one of the major negative effects of IS/IT. Another negative effect of
the extensive use of IT/IS is the loss of real life socialization. With the increase in the
use of the social media, and social networking sites, the people connect to other
people all over the world. However, they fail to connect with people in the real world.
Thus, the virtualizations have overtaken the real life relations. These are some of the
negative effects of the extensive use of the information system and information
technology.