Ujeyanthan.B.Ed(Hons)
Education : Getting the right kind of information is a major challenge as is
getting information to make sense. College students spend an average of 5-6
hours a week on the internet.Research shows that computers can significantly
enhance performance in learning. Students exposed to the internet say they
think the web has helped them improve the quality of their academic research and
of their written work. One revolution in education is the advent of distance
learning. This offers a variety of internet and video-based online courses.
Health and Medicine :
Computer technology is
radically changing the tools of medicine. All medical information can now be
digitized. Software is now able to computer the risk of a disease. Mental
health researchers are using computers to screen troubled teenagers in need of
psychotherapy. A patient paralyzed by a stroke has received an implant that
allows communication between his brain and a computer; as a result, he can move
a cursor across a screen by brainpower and convey simple messages.
Science : Scientists have long been users of it. A new adventure among
scientists is the idea of a “collaboratory”, an internet based collaborative
laboratory, in which researchers all over the world can work easily together
even at a distance. An example is space physics where space physicists are
allowed to band together to measure the earth’s ionosphere from instruments on
four parts of the world.
Business : Business clearly see the interest as a way to enhance productivity
and competitiveness. Some areas of business that are undergoing rapid changes
are sales and marketing, retailing, banking, stock trading, etc. Sales
representatives not only need to be better educated and more knowledgeable
about their customer’s businesses, but also must be comfortable with computer
technology. The internet has become a popular marketing tool. The world of
cybercash has come to banking – not only smart cards but internet banking,
electronic deposit, bill paying, online stock and bond trading, etc.
Recreation and
Entertainment:
Our entertainment and
pleasure-time have also been affected by computerization. For example:
i) In movies, computer
generated graphics give freedom to designers so that special effects and even
imaginary characters can play a part in making movies, videos, and commercials.
ii) In sports, computers
compile statistics, sell tickets, create training programs and diets for
athletes, and suggest game plan strategies based on the competitor’s past
performance.
iii) In restaurants, almost
every one has eaten food where the clerk enters an order by indicating choices
on a rather unusual looking cash register; the device directly enters the
actual data into a computer, and calculates the cost and then prints a receipt.
