Social Impact and History Flashcards
_______________ was the first to define concepts that were to be later used in modern computers.
Charles Babbage
_______, a programmable processor, an output device, and user-defined input were all concepts Babbage conceived for a calculating device he called a Difference Engine in 1834.
Memory
Early computers stored data for calculations and programs on _____________.
punched cards
First generation computers used __________ to store individual bits of data.
vacuum tubes
[Explanation]
Vacuum tubes represent data as 1s and 0s (on or off). They could calculate much faster than the mechanical relays found in earlier machines.
Second generation computers used ________ instead of vacuum tubes.
transistors
[Explanation]
Transistors were smaller, cheaper, and more reliable than vacuum tubes.
Operating systems were first used in ______ generation computers.
second
[Explanation]
Applications no longer had to include code to control low level hardware operations but instead called on operating system routines through simple standardized commands.
_____ generation computers used integrated circuits.
Third
[Explanation]
Integrated circuits were able to do the work of thousands of transistors or vacuum tubes on a single miniature chip.
_____ was the first programmable electronic computer in the United States.
ENIAC
[Explanation]
Completed in 1945, ENIAC was designed to calculate trajectory tables for the US Army.
UNIVAC was the first commercially successful _______ computer.
digital
Built in _____, UNIVAC was considerably smaller and more powerful than ENIAC.
1951
Fourth generation computers were ______________ based.
microprocessor
[Explanation]
Fourth generation computers were smaller, faster and cheaper than the third generation machines.
The first microprocessor was developed in _____.
1971
In 1976, Steve Job and Steve Wozniak founded _____ Computer Corporation.
Apple
[Explanation]
In the same year, they released the Apple I computer.
Using components or labor from outside suppliers is called ___________.
outsourcing
[Explanation]
Most computer manufacturers use components (hard drives, processors, memory, etc.) supplied by other companies; this is called outsourcing.
Relocating business processes to lower cost locations in _______ countries is called offshoring.
foregin
[Explanation]
Companies do this to keep prices low. Manufacturing, development, and telephone support are some examples of activities a company might elect to offshore.
Products which are announced but are never produced are called _________.
vaporware
Most Information Systems departments are managed by a ___.
CIO
CIO stands for ___________ Officer.
Chief Information
Systems ______ plan and implement new or improved computer services.
analysts
Database ______________ create, maintain, and supervise the day to day operation of databases.
administrators
A job ____________ is an automated program that searches one or more employment databases and notifies you when it finds leads that match your search criteria.
search agent
[Explanation]
Search agents and meta search tools allow you to automate your search process across many sites.
Many employers view IT certification with some degree of __________.
skepticism
[Explanation]
Critics of certification exams maintain that a multiple choice test can’t accurately measure a persons ability to deal with real world software and equipment.
___________ information about a company concerns information a competitor might find valuable.
Proprietary
What is some information the Proprietary infromation includes?
Information related to company finances, research, products and procedures.
Digital Rights Management is a collection of technologies used to limit access and use of ___________ products such as music, movies and computer games.
copyrighted
____ is used by copyright holders to prevent piracy of their products but can be inconvenient to legitimate users.
DRM
What does DRM stand for?
Digital Right Movement
The easiest way to reduce exposure to cellphone ______ is to use a headset.
radiation
Improper positioning of your ________ and mouse can cause RSI.
keyboard
[Explanation]
RSI (Repetitive Stress Injury) affects tendons, muscles and nerves in the hands, wrists, arms and shoulders.
What does RSI stand for?
Repetitive Stress Injury
__________ is the study of safe and efficient work environments.
Ergonomics
[Explanation]
Ergonomics also refers to making tools and equipment more comfortable and easy to use–i.e. an ergonomic mouse is designed to cause less wrist fatigue and fit more naturally to your hand.
On the job choices that reflect a persons values are called ____________ ethics.
professional
When an employee uses their employers computer time for non-work activities, this is called _____ of time and services.
theft
[Explanation]
Examples include playing computer games, online shopping, viewing pornography or operating a sideline business.
The ________-Oxley act requires full disclosure in accounting systems and protects corporate whistleblowers.
Sarbanes
The Sarbanes-Oxley act was established financial reporting regulations to prevent corporate _____.
fraud
Biometric authentication devices verify a person’s identity using the persons ______ characteristics.
physical
[Explanation]
Examples include fingerprint identification and retina scanners.
Screening job applicants and limiting employee access to only information needed to do a specific job are examples of ______ controls.
people
[Explanation]
Controlling people is one important way to protect software and data.
A _________________ plan is used to restore information technology functions after operations have been interrupted by an event such as a hurricane.
disaster recovery
[Explanation]
Hurricane Katrina and the World Trade Center bombings are examples of events which required IT departments to implement disaster recovery plans.
Disposal of e-waste is a major _____________ problem caused by information technology.
environmental
[Explanation]
E-waste includes discarded obsolete monitors, televisions, printers, cell phones, and other electronic devices.
According to security experts, employees pose the greatest ______ to their companys technology infrastructure.
threat
[Explanation]
One survey indicated that 75 to 80% of computer crimes are committed by current or former employees.
A browser ________ is spyware that changes browser settings without your knowledge.
hijacker
Adware is spyware that tracks surfing and online _________.
purchases
_________ use adware for pop ups and other ads.
Merchants
________ are small text files left on your hard drive by websites you visit.
Cookies
[Explanation]
Cookies can save you time by not requiring you to retype in the same information on subsequent visits to the same website.
What type of information do Cookies contain?
Information like preferences, settings, and login
____ is an internet protocol used to make phone calls over the internet.
VoIP
What does VoIP stand for?
Voice over Internet Protocol
____ is a protocol used to communicate between electronic musical instruments and the devices that control and manage them.
MIDI
[Explanation]
A MIDI file describes the music in terms of the musical notes, pitch, length, etc.. A MIDI device can then use this information to reproduce the music.
What does MIDI stand for?
Musicial Instrument Digital Interface
A _________ logger is a type of spyware that records each character you type.
keystroke
[Explanation]
A keystroke logger can be used to steal passwords.
ISPs are connected to the internet backbone via a ___.
NAP
[Explanation]
NAP stands for Network Access Point.
Forging an email senders name is called ________.
spoofing
What is spoofing?
Spoofing makes it appear that a message came from someone other than the sender. This is a tactic often used by spammers.
Sending out legitimate looking emails which attempt to solicit passwords or financial information is known as _________.
phishing
[Explanation]
For example, an email may look like it’s from Paypal and tell you that you need to log into your account to update something. When you click the link, it takes you to a site that looks just like Paypal; you enter your login information on this fake site and now the phishers have your username and password.
Overloading a computer system or network by making repeated requests to it and thereby denying access to legitimate users is called a _________________ attack.
denial of service
[Explanation]
A DOS attack can originate from one or many computers. The goal is to overload the target server or network by suddenly bombarding it with thousands or even millions of requests, making it unable to respond to requests from legitimate users.
A program that copies itself repeatedly on to the computers hard disk or into the computers memory is called a ____.
worm
[Explanation]
Code Red, Nimda, and MyDoom are all examples of famous worms.
What is the difference between a worm and a virus?
What distinguishes a worm from a virus is that a worm has the ability to spread itself to other computers without any human action (i.e. use your email software to send an infected email to all of your friends) whereas a virus is attached to an executable file which you must run for your computer to get infected.
___________ are viruses that are set to go off at a certain time.
Logic bombs
White hat hackers are computer professionals who break into computer systems with the owners __________ to identify security flaws.
permission
_______________ are politically motivated hackers who attack computer systems intending to cause large scale physical or financial harm.
Cyberterrorists
[Explanation]
Cyberterrorists typically attack military targets, banks, power plants, water treatment plants and traffic control centers.
