Final Exam

Question 1

Social Informatics

Answer 1

the interdisciplinary study of the relationship between information technology and society

Question 2

Technological determinism

Answer 2

follows natural logic, which is beyond cultural or political influence. These developments impact societies and force them to “adapt.” Technology shapes society.

Question 3

Open-source software

Answer 3

Edited and created by a group of developers; peer/community review is utilized for quality control, the source code is accessible.

Question 4

Cathedral model of software development

Answer 4

closed, tight specification of objectives, small project groups, hierarchy, authoritarian, long release intervals.

Question 5

Basaar model of software development

Answer 5

open, peer-to-peer, decentralized market and control, short release intervals, feedback from users, peer review.

Question 6

Free software

Answer 6

freedom to share, study, and modify. Open to share to others as your own.

Question 7

Copyleft

Answer 7

preserves rights of users by forbidding restrictions on use, adaptation, and distribution provided that new works also adapt a copyleft license.

Question 8

Googlization

Answer 8

the expansion of google’s search technologies into more markets, web apps, and contexts.

Question 9

Filter bubble

Answer 9

a website algorithm that selectively guesses what information a user would like to see based on information about the user.

Question 10

Big Data

Answer 10

a lot of data that can not be studied individually. Uses parallel processing on multiple machines….?

Question 11

Privacy

Answer 11

one’s ability to control the data in existence about them, who gets to see it and such.

Question 12

Knowledge economy

Answer 12

general idea that knowledge and skills and availability are valued over physical set of skills one may possess.

Question 13

Knowledge work

Answer 13

a type of work that is replacing industrial work and requires a formal education, the ability to acquire and apply theoretical and analytical knowledge, and a habit of continuous learning; i.e.- accounting, teaching, etc.

Question 14

Digital divide

Answer 14

people who have access to technology vs people who do not (impoverished countries without internet access)

Question 15

Health Informatics

Answer 15

a human-centered computing science focused on the design, deployment, and evaluation of human-facing technology solutions to promote and manage wellness acts

Question 16

ICT4D

Answer 16

information communication technologies for developing countries

Question 17

Telecenter

Answer 17

public place where people can access computers and the Internet and develop skills. Telecenters are maintained by Non-Government Organizations.

Question 18

NGO

Answer 18

Non-Goverment Organizations: non-profit organizations affiliated with coordinating funding and implementation of ICT4D projects. NGOs are not government affiliated and partner with other NGOs, universities, or companies to meet goals.

Question 19

Pro-Poor

Answer 19

developing technologies on behalf of the poor (for the poor)

Question 20

Para-Poor

Answer 20

developing technologies alongside the poor (with the poor)

Question 21

Per-Poor

Answer 21

developing technologies within the poor (by the poor)

Question 22

Culture

Answer 22

the behavior, attitude, and belief characteristics of a particular social, ethnic, or age group.

Question 23

Corporate culture

Answer 23

? (A blend of values, beliefs, taboos, symbols, rituals, and myths all companies develop over time)

Question 24

X-reality

Answer 24

The reality in which we live. Combination of both the “online” reality and “the real world” reality. The problem with x-reality is that by acknowledging that x-reality exists you also acknowledge that the “online” reality and the “real world: reality are separate.

Question 25

Network media

Answer 25

typically democratic and decentralized. The audience can also be the contributors. Media tells about the right information to the city.

• Network media often requires the involvement of computers as an input/output device
• requires a community to participate and consume
  (i. e. Youtube)

Question 26

Pervasive media

Answer 26

any experience that uses sensors and/or mobile/wireless networks to bring you content (film, music, images, a game…) that’s sensitive to your situation–which could be where you are, how you feel, or who you are with (i.e. shopping malls that utilize bluetooth to send you ads on your mobile device)

Question 27

Strong social ties

Answer 27

involve regular interaction, social intimacy, sharing of secrets, etc. Usually has a strong impact on one’s actions and involvement (essential components in 1960’s activism)

Question 28

Weak social ties

Answer 28

usually associated with online relationships, involves more of a casual acquaintance with someone, one knows them but not very well; new digital activism seems to use weak ties effectively to spread around ideas.

Question 29

Twitter revolution

Answer 29

the effects of Twitter and other social networking services on the general public
-the term has also been widely used in the beginning of 2009 time frame to refer to times of turmoil in foreign countries that limit communications systems, because Twitter feeds are often unaffected by government censorship

Question 30

Slacktivism

Answer 30

using social media and other online resources to become “activist” when doing nothing physically

Question 31

Media Ideologies

Answer 31

ideas about how media should be used, help by individuals but shaped by others

Question 32

remediation

Answer 32

understanding new forms of media by comparing them with other, more familiar media and comparing their usage

Question 33

Idioms of practice

Answer 33

(how you use a piece of technology) The connections of a particular social group in how media is used to communicate, decided upon collectively and often times in an unwritten manner

Question 34

Media context

Answer 34

for her students, email is formal because they see the ways in which is similar to a letter; she sees it as informal for the ways she sees that it is unlike a letter; this is evidence that people do not share the same media ideologies

Question 35

Relational artifacts/machines

Answer 35

machines that have a personal relationship with the users-seal

Question 36

ethnography

Answer 36

the study of a certain group of people or culture and their interactions with one another

Question 37

Focus groups

Answer 37

group interviews on a particular topic with small numbers of people. Participants can feed off each other, discussions in a healthy social environment in less time

Question 38

Historical analysis

Answer 38

collection and analysis of historical documents, looking to see what made certain things fail or succeed