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LIVING WITH COMPUTERS

 

In view of the widespread use of microprocessors in smart machines such as VCRs, telephones, and microwave ovens and the dependence of business and industry on computers, it should be obvious that we are indeed "living with computers." Rarely does a day go by without a report in newspapers or mag­azines or on television of some new application of the computer. To show you some of the many seen and unseen impacts of the computer, computer appli­cations in various areas of the world around us are summarized in this section. Other applications are discussed in detail in later lessons.

Applications in Business, Industry, and Government

You are undoubtedly familiar with many business uses of computers that affect your life everyday—for example, computerized mailing lists and billings—but businesses also use the computer for many "behind-the-scenes" tasks. For example, many companies rely exclusively on the computer for monitoring inventory and ordering, receiving, and paying for goods. Data processing is also important in many companies for computing payrolls applying to many different pay scales and deductions. A not-so-hidden business use of the computer is the point-of-sale (POS) system that is used at retail checkout counters to speed the processing and automate inventory control. Airlines and national hotel chains depend on large mainframe computers to handle reservation systems. Very few offices today are without either a personal computer or a terminal hooked into a mainframe. The PC is often used for various clerical operations, such as word processing, while the terminal allows the office to link into the corporate infor­mation center.

On the financial side, banks have for some time been using a computerized check-handling system involving magnetic ink. Now, ATMs and bank-by-tele­phone services have made the computer even more important in banking. Finan­cial institutions also make heavy use of computers to process and store many transactions each day. The use of computers for electronic funds transfer (EFT) means that many people can now transfer money and make purchases from the comfort of home. Another development involves the use of a computer chip in a card that allows the user to make purchases without checks or credit card verification.

Industries of all sizes and types are relying heavily on computers to man­age large inventories necessary for manufacturing industries, to help design products and manufacturing processes, and to control machines that build the products. The management of inventories is critical—too much inventory is expensive and too little inventory can shut down the entire manufacturing or supply process. Two areas in which the computer has improved productivity are computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM). In CAD, computers replace drafting machines, thereby speeding the design process; in CAM, microprocessors control various manufacturing processes, such as con­tinuous-flow paper making.



Automated machines called robots are commonly used to reduce costs and defects while increasing safety in manufacturing tasks that are unsafe or boring. These robots are not the walking, talking variety seen in various science fiction movies, but are primarily microprocessor-controlled "arms" that can perform the same hot, dirty, or dangerous task—such as welding or painting automobile bodies—time after time without loss of concentration or reduction in efficiency.

Governments at the local, state, and national levels have found the com­puter to be an important tool in efficiently serving their citizenry. For example, computers were an integral part of many weapons used in the 1991 Gulf War. In fact, computers are a crucial element of most U.S. armed forces defense sys­tems in use today. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) uses computers to com­pare financial records of businesses and individuals to detect possible tax fraud. Recently, IRS agents have used laptop personal computers for their auditing duties. Similarly, the Bureau of the Census would not be able to complete the U.S. population count without the help of many mainframe computers.

Medical, Educational, and Sports Applications

The advances brought about by the use of information technology are very vis­ible in the fields of medicine and education. In the medical field, the computer is being used in every conceivable way to diagnose and treat all types of diseases and conditions. Probably the best known computerized diagnostic tool is the computerized axial tomography (CAT) scan, which allows the doctor to visualize a cross section of the body part through a series of X- rays that are combined by the computer. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a relatively new technique that is complementary to computerized axial tomography, relies on computer-visualized images of organs produced through the behavior of the nuclei of atoms in our bodies in a magnetic field. Treatment of diseases is being improved through the use of microprocessor-controlled smart machines that release just the right amount of a medicine into the bloodstream at just the right time.

Doctors may now be assisted in diagnosis and treatment by software pack­ages called expert systems (ES). Each package provides the physician with expert advice to formulate questions for patients and suggest treatment based on the answers. The computer has also been extremely useful in making handi­capped individuals more independent and better able to live productive lives. For example, it is now possible for an individual with head injuries and speech loss to carry on a conversation using a personal computer equipped with a speech synthesizer, or for a quadriplegic to gain physical independence in a wheelchair controlled by a microprocessor. Blind people are finding that per­sonal computers can be programmed to verbalize text on the screen, and deaf people are using computers to answer telephone calls by displaying a message on the screen.

In education, the computer is being used at all levels, from kindergarten to college. Colleges have been adding PCs to the mainframe and minicomputer they have used for years, and some institutions require incoming students to purchase a PC for class use.

At the elementary school level, the greatest current uses are in computer-aided instruction (CAI), in which the computer acts as a tutor to the student, and in computer-managed instruction (CMI), which frees teachers from many administrative chores that distract from their main purpose of classroom teach­ing. Many students find CAI a better way to learn since it is nonjudgmental and self-paced. The software determines the student's level of understanding by the number of correct responses to test questions and adjusts the pace of the lesson to match the level of response. Teachers find that newer software, with its high-quality graphics and animation, can hold the interest of even the easily distracted student far better than many standard teaching methods.

At the secondary school and college levels, personal computers are helping students learn to use software packages and computer programming. At the col­lege level, mainframe computers are also used to teach programming. Further, computers can enhance learning in areas, such as biology or psychology that are not normally associated with computers. In these courses, the student uses the computer to run simulated experiments to learn the techniques of scientific investigation.

Retarded, learning disabled and handicapped students have been taught successfully with the computer. For these special students, the computer is never tired and, when combined with appropriate software, can be a very interesting teacher.

In the area of sports, computers analyze large amounts of data to help coaches scout opponents and prospective players. The computer has also helped athletes by graphically breaking up their body movements for closer study to improve technique. Individuals and teams in various sports have improved their performance by using the computer to find weak points to improve upon and strong points to stress.

Multimedia

The PC revolutionized the computer industry only several decades ago, but it is already becoming more than just a tool for crunching numbers and processing words. It is being used increasingly in combination with audio and video equipment— such as laser disks, CD and DVD players, webcams, and high-fidelity stereo—to produce interac­tive, full-motion videos, or what is referred to as multimedia.

Multimedia applications greatly enhance the learning process. In business, multimedia already is being used for sales demonstrations and training and is expected to become an important part of the over $4-billion worldwide market for presentations. In education, a multimedia system would have many uses: Geography lessons could include a mix of words, maps, video, and sound. A history film could be paused so the student could "call up" related history videos for viewing. A multimedia French language system has already been developed by Stanford University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), in conjunction with Apple Computer, Inc. In this combination of PC, television, sound, and innovative software, a Macintosh computer is loaded with information about Paris, including color pictures, video clips, maps, street sights and sounds, and even a Parisian, who leads the viewer through the city. Using a mouse, a student can explore various popular locales, visit natives, and, along the way, learn French.

Multimedia applications are being developed for various other markets, including, and perhaps most especially, the home. Many industry leaders believe that multimedia may become the system that will make the PC as widespread as the television is today.

 

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Date: 2015-02-03; view: 1222


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