The Social Implications

of Computing

"The most profound technologies are

those that disappear. They weave
themselves into the fabric of everyday life
until they are indistinguishable from it.”
-Mark Weiser, Xerox PARC
 Computer Contributions to
Society

 E-mail
 Instant Messaging
 The Web
 Cellular Phones
 Video Games
Social Implications of
Networked
Communications
 Estimated Users on the 'Net as
of March 1999
 88.3 million in the US and Canada

 37.15 million in Europe

 26.97 million in Asia

 4.63 million in South America

 1.14 million in Africa

 0.88 million in Middle East
 159.0 million
 Doubles every year
 The Internet as a
Communications Medium
 Electronic Publications
 Library Archives
 Newsgroups
 Email
 Advertisements
 News
 P2P networks
 Public Spheres
Prior Networked Ensuing Networked
Communication: Communication:
 Town Hall  Television

 Church  Newsgroups

 Town Square  Online Polls

 Virtual vs. ‘Real’ Resources
 Online courses  Class discussion
 Email  Having coffee with
 Research using a friend
search engines  A book which is
primary source
written by an
expert in the field
 Globalization vs. Isolation
 Share ideas with  But will be taken
the world with a grain of salt
 Buy anything from  Without
anywhere, experiencing any
regardless of culture outside the
location
computer room
 Connect with
anyone in the world  As opposed to
using 2 of your meeting in person
senses and communicating
on all 5
 Cons
 Copyright infringement
 Addiction
 Loss of social skill
 Insecurity
 Desensitization
 Conclusion
 Great tool if not taken out of context
Growth of, Access to, and
Control of the Internet
 Extreme Growth
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
1971 1983 2003 2050
Computers on the ARPA/ Internet (in thousands)

Year 1971 1983 2003 2050

Number of 3000 Who
25 1000
computers (projection) knows?
 Growth of the internet
 ARPANET - started by DoD to
research networks (1969)
 December 1995 - 16 million users

 Current:
• According to Nielson
 580 million people worldwide now have
access to the internet
 168.6 million attributed to the U.S
The Top Five Most Popular Internet Activities
(Percent Of Internet Users)

1. E-mail and instant messaging 87.9%

2. Web surfing or browsing 76.3%
3. Buying online 48.9%
4. Finding entertainment information 47.9%
5. Reading news 47.6%
(data from 2001)

• Email usage has doubled in past three

years
 30  60 billion messages a year
 Another doubling expected by 2005
 Who controls the internet

 Cyber crime defined

• The dissemination of racist and xenophobic
material through computer systems

 Governments
• Citizens must use state-run ISPs in some
countries
 Blocked content
 Who controls the internet (cont’d)

 Parents and Employers

• Cyber nanny
 Disallows graphic or violent images
• PICS
 Platform for Internet Content Selection
 Labels that discuss a sites content
 Access to the Internet
 72.3% of Americans use the net
• Others do not for lack of access
 Not disinterest
 Men & Women
• Approx the same 74-70%
 Income and educational difs

• PhDs >85% >$100k = 10 hrs

vs. vs.

• High school 60% <$30k = 4hrs

 Here to stay

 More people are using it daily

 Look forward to equal access…

After all, the Internet is for everyone

(RFC 3721)
Gender related Issues of
Computing
 Personal Experience
 I was too quick to
judge.

 Stereotyped.

 Can such a biased

stereotype be
justified?
 Is there a Gender Gap?
 After analyzing
more than 1,000
research studies,
the American
Association of
University Women
(AAUW) has
concluded that
when it comes to
technology, there is
an alarming gender
gap.
 Statistics
 US population of men
and women is 50:50.

 Tech jobs are growing

every year.

 However women
represent only 20% of
the Computer science
and engineering labor
force.
Where are all the Women?
 So What?
“The gender gap in computer science must be
eliminated for two reasons.

(1) The more obvious reason is to ensure that fair

and equal treatment is being provided to all
potential and current computer scientists.

(2) The less considered danger of the gender gap

concerns the advancement of the field as a
whole. By hindering half of the population as
potential contributors, the field of computer
science decreases its chance of further
development.”
Quoted from: http://www.expage.com/page/genderissues3
 Angles
 Male-Dominated Environment
-Are women being elbowed out?
 Discrimination
-HR playing favoritism?
 Image of Computing
-Nerdy/Bad Stereotypes
 Lack of Adequate High
School/College Preparation
-Do teachers
encourage/discourage females to
pursue tech jobs?
 Societal Implications
-Games
-Role models
 Lack of Adequate
High School/College Preparation
 According to a study by the Research Foundation for Improving the
Representation of Women in the Technology Workforce, the number
of women who received CS bachelor's degrees, the number peaked
in 1986 when women represented approximately 36% of the total
number of graduates. Since then numbers have only declined!

 “The gender gaps we see are evidence

that public schools are failing to fully prepare
girls for the 21st century”.

 Concerned and embarrassed that women

account for only 15 to 20 percent of their
computer science majors, a number of top
colleges are looking for ways to attract more women to careers in
computers. They are adding courses that appeal to women's
strengths, creating mentoring programs and thinking harder about
the gender gap.
 Societal Implications
- Childhood Development?
The Association for Computing Machinery's
Committee on Women in Computing (ACM-W) have
found that:
 Role Models? – “Fathers are more likely to be using

computers in the home than mothers so you have the

element of the role model”.

 Self-confidence? - boys “exhibit higher computer self-

confidence and a more positive attitude about computers
than girls”.
 Societal Implications
- Video Games?

 Computer games, which often attract children to

computers, are written by male programmers!
 Generally these games consist of violence, killing and
scoring points, all of which interest young boys . Thus
girls, who are not engaged as much by these games, are
less likely to follow this avenue into computer science.
 Software produced specifically for girls?

-Researchers and parents feel that so-called “pink”

software, such as Disney’s Princess Fashion Boutique and
Barbie Magic Hairstyler will teach girls the technology skills
and confidence building they need to narrow the digital
gender gap.
 Conclusion
 As technology continues to expand
nationally and internationally, it is
important that advances are equally
influenced by men and women.
 In order to reduce the Gender Gap, the
issue must be taken seriously. Schools,
video game manufacturers, and industries
must find a way to involve both genders.
 Parents (mothers) must take an active roll
in influencing and encouraging their
daughters to pursue tech jobs/degrees.
International Issues
Issues of International Business
 Language
 Time Zones
 Sharing of data
 Learning foreign Business Practices
 Presentation
 Language
 Knowing a second language
• If not then a translator may be needed
• Americans tend not to be multilingual
 Translations may contain errors
 Time
 Time zone differences
• Limited windows of communication
 Email?
• Not always a perfect solution
 Can be time intensive
 May not produce the best results
 Sharing of Data
 Media of transport/ Communication
• WAN
 Transfering projects
 Emails
• Snail Mail
 Learning foreign Business
Practices
 Trying to treat international business
partners like an american business is a BAD
idea...
• “The appropriate ways of conducting business and
holding meetings vary from country to country
and from culture to culture.”
 Good example
• A meeting set for a certain time in China a person
should be 15 minutes early and preparing
• A meeting set for a certain time in Mexico might
not actually start for an hour or two
 Examples of Do’s and Dont’s

 Germany
• Do
 Knock before opening a closed door.
• Don't
 Shake someone's hand while your other
hand is in your pocket.
 Examples of Do’s and Dont’s
 France
• Do
 Avoid calling your associates' personal number
for business related issues. If it cannot be
avoided, do so before 9:00pm.
 For corporate letters or e-mail, use a very
formal and business-like approach.
• Don't
 Use first names during a business meeting.
 Show up late for meetings.
 Bring up business at the start of a
dinner/meeting.
 Examples of Do’s and Dont’s
 Japan
• Forget it I don’t have enough time...
 Literature
 Books found @ barnesandnoble.com

• Doing Business in China

• Business Korea: A Practical Guide to
Understanding South Korean Business Culture
• International Business
• International Business and Trade: Theory,
Practice, and Policy
 Presentation
 Organization
 Appearance
 “Be civil, neat and listen to what they
are saying. Since we are
representing our company, we need
to project the best image to our
customer.” –Ralph Flatau
 References
• http://www.zakon.org/robert/internet/timeline/
• http://www.isp-planet.com/research/
• Number of users: http://cyberatlas.internet.com/big_picture/geographics/article/0,,5911_1593591,00.html (feb
2003)
• IPv4: http://www.isoc.org/briefings/001/
• Crime: http://www.cyber-rights.org/cybercrime/
• Demographics: http://ccp.ucla.edu/pdf/UCLA-Internet-Report-2001.pdf
• Gov’t control: http://www.rferl.org/nca/special/enemies.html
• The map of the world: http://www.ipsos-reid.com/us/services/syndicated/dsp_face.cfm
• Armando Gomez. (2003, February 24). Business Travel Etiquette. [World Wide Web] Available:
http://www.askmen.com/money/career/20_career.html
• Flatau, Ralph. (2003, February 25). Infimed Inc Manager. [Email Interview]
• http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=320264<http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?
id=320264&;coll=portal&dl=ACM&CFID=8149335&CFTOKEN=12007127>&coll=portal&dl=ACM&CFID=8149
335&CFTOKEN=12007127
• Brainball: http://portal.acm.org/toc.cfm?id=604575<http://portal.acm.org/toc.cfm?
id=604575&;idx=J373&type=issue&coll=portal&dl=ACM&part=magazine&WantType=Magazines&title=interact
ions&CFID=8149042&CFTOKEN=44437748>&idx=J373&type=issue&coll=portal&dl=ACM&part=magazine&
WantType=Magazines&title=interactions&CFID=8149042&CFTOKEN=44437748
• Number of Cell Phone Customers: http://www.emc-
database.com/website.nsf/index/pr020319http://inventors.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=
• http://www.pbs.org/internet/timeline/timeline%2Dtxt.html
• http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/wireless/2001/09/28/relay.html
 References (Cont.)
• http://www.acm.org/women/
• http://www.expage.com/page/genderissues3
• http://www.cpsr.org/program/gender/index.html
• http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/youth/jan-june99/gendergap_1-29.html
• http://www.iota.org/Winter00/gendergap.html
• http://www.ucalgary.ca/~northcot/380-2/lec12.html
• http://www.ucalgary.ca/%7Ekawwalsh/introduction.htm
• http://www.interweb-tech.com/nsmnet/docs/updated_numbers.htm
• http://www.anu.edu.au/people/Roger.Clarke/II/NetN3.html
• http://www.uclic.ucl.ac.uk/harold/srf/networked.pdf
• http://www.caul.edu.au/org/commsdoc.htm