Blog Post # 4 – What could you add to Wikipedia?

The Wikipedia pages that could have additional information added to them are: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_computer_hardware and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_waste.

            On the first Wikipedia page, it gives information regarding the hardware in the personal computer. Although it is seen primarily in laptop computers, there is no information regarding the hardware for wireless communication. These may include the wireless cards and Bluetooth technologies. These are important because many devices nowadays are able to connect wirelessly. I believe the reason why this information is not on the webpage is that the hardware is not essential to the performance of a computer.

            The second webpage is thorough with its content regarding electronic waste. However, one thing that might be nice to have on that webpage, in the section where the hazardous materials are listed, is the health problems related to that specific material/element entering into the environment and its respective health risks in people. I do see the point in not putting the health risks associated with each material on the Wikipedia page because it would clutter the webpage. If one does want to know the health risks, he or she only needs to click on the link to the material’s Wikipedia page where it provides information on the health risk.

            Overall, I think the Wikipedia pages regarding e-waste, the PC, and the history of the development of the computer are extremely informative and include the information that a person using Wikipedia as a source would want to know.

Bog #3: Why the technology is controversial

            I used Bing.com as my search engine as I have only used it a few times before and I wanted to see how the search engine compares to the others.

            I searched using the following phrases: “computer parts harmful effects” and “electronic recycling process.”

            The two best websites I found were http://www.greencitizen.com/harmful_effects.php and http://reference.findtarget.com/search/Computer%20recycling/.

            The first websites is by an organization called Green Citizen. They are funded by their daily operation of repairing electronics to run more efficiently and extending their product life as well as recycling electronics in an environmentally safe manner. Their mission is “to create a cleaner environment by addressing the growing electronic waste crisis” (http://www.greencitizen.com/who_we_are_overview.php). The information provided is current because the main page that I looked at covers the chemicals / elements in electronics and their effects on human life. They provide a nice little graph that breaks down the effects of each upon human life. The useful arguments that are provided on this site is just the list of defects and problems that can be caused. However, the problem with the site, although I believe it to be reliable is that the site does not cite where they received the information from. One  problem with this site is that they might be giving a little bit of outdated information although it still applied to today. (For example, they give a stat that computer screens have a given amount of lead in them. However, I believe this is for CRT monitors and not most of the new versions that are being sold today. Though there is this switch in types of monitors, old monitors are still being thrown out and creating environmental problems.)

            The second website I used is by findtarget.com. This website’s mission is to provide information about various topics. The site is funded through advertising found on its webpages. I believe the information is reliable because it presents the material in an objective manner and includes information on both how electronics are actually recycled and how some are just thrown into landfills whether or not they are in US or foreign soil. The information provided is backed up by references. The point of view that is missing from this website as well as the previous one is the point of view from the people who actually suffer from the pollution of electronic materials and the harmful effects that are caused to people by the mining and production of these computer components.

            Human health organizations would probably have information about the populations that suffer from the disposal of electronic equipment.

Blog topic #2: How the technology works?

This time I used google.com because it is the one I am most familiar with and I feel that I can find relevant websites the fastest.

I searched using the phrases “how does a computer work” and “harmful effects of computer parts.”

The three best sites I found are http://www.howstuffworks.com/pc.htm, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_waste, and http://svtc.org/.

The first site is one where I actually have frequented a few times before. How stuff works is usually reliable; in this instance, it is credible because a Microsoft certified systems engineer wrote the article. How stuff works is a subsidiary of Discovery Communications (think of the Discovery channel) and is funded through advertising that is displayed on their web pages. The information is current since the overall computer design has remained the same in recent years, only the components have been updated and become better/faster. The information is useful because it gives a walkthrough of the parts of the computer and the processes that are done by the components. The site does not give information regarding the impacts upon the environment of the computer components. Therefore more the other sites I researched this time are devoted to that topic.

Although the second site is listed is a Wikipedia page, I believe it is a good source because it gives a good overview of the topic. It provides lists of the harmful materials in computers, the issues dealing with the trade of products by different countries, a brief overview of electronic waste management, and current efforts and organizations that support better care for old/thrown out electronics. I believe the site to be credible since it is written in an objective manner without any obvious bias.

The third website is used for research is from the organization called Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition. This organization is devoted to protecting the communities around high-tech industries that use harmful chemicals in their production. The site is funded through donations by the public and by other organizations. The information that is useful on the site is the example that they give about India and the conditions that are caused there because of the exportation of electronic waste from the US to India. Still more research is needed regarding the actual processes that are used to recycle electronics and make the results safe for the environment and people.

Blog topic #1: How the technology emerged?

            I used Ask.com because it is usually a reliable search engine to being primary research on various topics.

            I searched twice using the terms “History of the computer” and “computer development.”

            The two sites that I found to be the most useful for researching the history/development of the computer were:

http://www.computerhistory.org/timeline/?category=cmptr

http://inventors.about.com/library/blcoindex.htm

            The first website listed is the one where I based my information below on.

            The organization that is responsible for the site I thought to be most valuable out of the ones that I viewed was the Computer History Museum. The Computer History Museum is a nonprofit organization set up to preserve the history of the computer and the information age.

            The website and the physical site of the museum are funded through donations, endowments, and by the lectures and series that the museum puts on for a cost.

            Although the website is current, the section dedicated as the historical timeline of the computer ends at the year 1994. This might be a problem for learning about recent developments, but for the primary goal of this part of the project is to research the development of the computer. Therefore, this site has plenty of information regarding major software, company, hardware, and much more.
            The information on the website about how the technology works is not as good as it could be. The information about the hardware talks about the improvements made upon existing technologies and how these advances allowed computing to develop in a certain direction and or have faster/better processing. The images given on the website are great because they show the gradual development of computer hardware from its original conception to more current models.

            The information missing on the site is the crux of the presentation: the information regarding the impact upon the environment, impact upon people regarding the toxic chemicals and materials, and the question regarding the short lifespan of current computers and other similar devices. As stated above, though this information does not directly relate to the main part of the presentation, I feel it is important to understand because it gives a good summary of the history of the computer. In order to find the missing information, I would need to delve into sites and articles that are primarily written about the relationship between computers and the environment/people. Secondly, to find information regarding the short lifespan of current computers, one would need to find sites that describe the production process, the needs of software (which somewhat force the current lifespan due to the ever increasing need for more space and faster processing), and research and development of any new technologies that might provide for longer lasting products.