Big Idea 5.1 Beneficial and Harmful Effects

Harmful Effects of Computing:

  • AI may eventually be used in most fields thanks to computing, which could drive people out of work.

  • Computing can result in troll accounts, spam accounts that disseminate hate, and a significant rise in bullying on all fronts, including cyberbullying.

  • Important PII may be compromised as a result of computing, endangering people’s lives.

Positive Effects of Computing

  • Through computing, we can speed up operations that would take a very long time to complete physically.

  • Resources that would be difficult to share manually can now be distributed relatively quickly online and through computing platforms.

  • It is possible for humans and computers to collaborate to create goods that benefit the world.

CPT Application

I think the benefits outweigh the drawbacks for our CPT in particular. Humans are collaborating to create a non-partisan news platform that offers cutting-edge features for users to interact with, such as random facts and words being generated, adding news stories, and signing up for immediate news updates from a platform without any political agenda using the resources provided by modern computing.

What are pros/cons on internet blockers at router and lack of admin password on lab machines at school?

Internet filters on school networks can be helpful since they stop students from visiting websites that can be wholly irrelevant to school, helping them to concentrate in class. Additionally, having internet filtering software can stop unauthorized websites from launching cyberattacks on schools. One drawback of blocking internet access at school is that it may encourage certain kids to find ways around it, which could have even more detrimental impacts on the students’ concentration in class. While the lack of an admin password on lab computers at school makes it possible for anyone to easily access school resources, this may not be a positive thing.

What concerns do you have personally about the digital divide? For yourself or for others.

I believe that the digital gap has already had a significant negative impact on societal and interpersonal interactions. Instead of stepping outside and engaging in face-to-face conversations like we used to, we are becoming far too reliant on computers to complete jobs for us. Without these relationships between people, our civilization as a whole would collapse, making many of the things we can currently complete considerably more difficult.

Talk about dopamine issues above. Real? Parent conspiracy? Anything that is impacting your personal study and success in High School?

Dopamine problems, in my opinion, are genuine. Yes, parents may be so preoccupied with it that we begin to believe it is “false news,” but dopamine release from potentially harmful behaviors might eventually be detrimental to us. For instance, watching YouTube or playing video games can help us release a lot of dopamine because they give us a stress break, but engaging in these activities excessively can lower our energy levels, decrease our productivity, and generally weaken our resolve to get up, engage in physical activity, go outside, and interact with others.