Databases & Challenges of a Digital AgeWEEK 7 PRESENTATIONWENDY L ILEITCC121OCTOBER 19, 2014PROFESSOR FEL IX AGALABA

A database is a collection of interrelated data, logically organized to be easily accessed and managed.

Databases are used for many purposes of storing information, such as student’s names in a university

database or purchasing habits of customers in a retail database.

Databases are used by advertising and marketing companies, retailers, and even our government. All

types of agencies collectively gathering information to use for their specific purpose.

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MANAGING FILESBASIC CONCEPTS

Data Storage Hierarchy

File (Table) a collection of records [Top of the hierarchy]

Record (Row) a collection of fields

Field (Column) each field has a field name and the type of field

Byte A character, such as a letter, number, or symbol

Bit Unit of data represented by either a 0 (off) or a 1 (on)

• Key field – the primary identifier of a record. A key field makes the record searchable, therefore must be unique

• Three components of a DBMS:

• Data dictionary (repository)

• DBMS utilities – programs that enable maintenance of the database

• Report generator

DATABASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS (DBMS)

A DBMS is software that enables users to interact with the database to create, modify, or delete data.

• Hierarchical

• Network

• Relational

• Object-oriented

• Multidimensional

DATABASE MODELS

Example of a multidimensional database

DATA MINING

• The process of analyzing large amounts of data to discover patterns that could describe past trends or predict future situations

DATABASES AND THE DIGITAL ECONOMYE-BUSINESS & E -COMMERCE

4 main types of

ecommerce

B2B

B2C

C2C

Mobile commerce

INFORMATION SYSTEMS IN ORGANIZATIONSUSING DATABASES TO HELP MAKE DECIS IONS

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)

• Some fields of AI:

• Expert systems

• Natural language processing

• Intelligent agents

• Pattern recognition

• Fuzzy logic

• Virtual reality & simulation

• Robotics

Darpa – AlphaDog LS3 Robotic military dog

Shopping Bot: PriceGrabber.com

THE ETHICS OF USING DATABASESCONCERNS ABOUT PRIVACY & IDENTITY THEFT

Big Data is a term most people know. It is the gathering of massive amounts of information on internet consumers by corporations or companies. The information collected is stored in databases, which are then analyzed to, for example, predict the purchasing habits of a specific customer.

The general concern is privacy so they do not worry about identity theft and the idea that consumers want from companies is complete transparency. Let them know when data will be collected, what will be collected, who will have it, and how it will be used, then give them a chance to opt out.

Companies and data warehouses have the ethical implications of storing the data without selling or losing it to hackers. The main data collecting company is Axiom.

Click AboutTheData.com to see what Big Data has stored on you.

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There are a few challenges with living in today’s society. Technology brings with it a certain uncertainty.

Uncertainties such as truth and security issues, securing devices and communications, issues with the quality of life surrounding technology, and economic and political

implications.

TRUTH ISSUESEXAMPLES OF MANIPULATING DIGITAL DATA

Sound manipulation

• Electronic music or making a singers voice sound perfect by its pitch

Image manipulation

• Good – restoring an old photograph or creating graphic art

• Bad – image doctoring

Video & Television manipulation

• Special effects in video games or movies

SECURITY ISSUES THREATS TO COMPUTERS & COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS

• Errors and accidents – these include all human operating errors, faulty hardware, and the software bug

• Natural hazards – no matter the natural hazard, always keep your computer backed up and plugged into a surge protector.

• Computer criminals – hackers, phishers, hactivists, scammers, employees

• Computer crimes – theft of hardware or software, music, movies, information, identity

(University of Calgary, n.d.)

SECURITY SAFEGUARDSPROTECTING COMPUTERS & COMMUNICATIONS

• Must have safeguards:

• “Deterrents to computer crime” would include law enforcement agencies with cybercrime divisions or large purchase warnings to prevent fraudulent charges.

• Identification includes items such as debit cards with your picture on them, the pin number used to access the ATM.

• Encryption types: ciphertext, hashing, symmetric (most secure), asymmetric

• “Protection of software and data” include user access control and authentication of files, folders, and hard drives.

• A disaster recovery plan should be had not only by businesses but also by individuals, especially if they work at home or go to school. Hard drives should be backed up on multiple kinds of media and put in multiple locations.

QUALITY-OF-LIFE ISSUESTHE ENVIRONMENT & MENTAL HEALTH

• Green Computing

• Disposal of “technotrash” or “e-waste” is an issue and instead of shipping our waste to other countries, we should be doing more to recycle it.

• Non-renewable resources are being used for the energy to manufacture devices and for the material the devices are made of. Recycling would help here as well.

• Chemicals leaked into landfills from electronics, e.g. chromium and lead, are dangerous to humans

• Mental health

• The overuse of technology is actually considered an addiction in the psychology field because addiction is any uncontrolled activity that induces stress, anxiety, depression, and insomnia.

• There are even mental health programs that deal with technology addiction. The Center for Internet and Technology Addiction offers cognitive behavioral therapy as one of their services.

QUALITY-OF-LIFE ISSUESCHILD PROTECTION & THE WORKPLACE

• Child protection

• Unfortunately, according to Williams and Sawyer, the Internet is also a place full of online predators, pornography, and bullying (2012).

• To help with these issues, the FCC established the Child’s Internet Protection Act of 2000 that rewards schools and libraries with communications discounts for having a policy on Internet safety which includes content filters, online monitoring and the like.

• Workplace

• Productivity may be hindered in many ways. “Hyper-connectedness” certainly may either hinder or boost productivity depending on the levels of device maintenance and the experience of the employees. According to Cornerstone On Demand, the overwhelming of technology depends on the age of the employee. The younger they are, the more inept they are to use their own devices for productivity and not feel overwhelmed (2014).

ECONOMIC & POLITICAL ISSUESEMPLOYMENT & THE HAVES/HAVE -NOTS

Industrialization Digital Age

We are currently in the middle of a transformation to a more technology service-oriented nation. Education is becoming more readily available thanks to the Internet and we should capitalize on this fact so as to lead the way for the rest of the world. Connecting children as early as possible and actually teaching web and programming classes in the public schools should be our future.

IN CONCLUSION…

Databases are crucial to nearly every aspect of everyday computing. They range from individual and

organizational cloud storage to customer information databases in e-commerce. We must all make ethically

sound decisions when working with databases.

We are in the age of information and must not only use this to our advantage, but use this to make the world a

better place and a “better place” includes protecting our environment at the same time. We must always

remember to “unplug” quite often to value our quality of life.

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types-of-cyber-criminals/Carnegie Cyber Academy. (n.d.). Environmental issues. Retrieved from

http://www.carnegiecyberacademy.com/facultyPages/environment/issues.htmlConcept Draw. (n.d.). Pyramid diagram examples [Online image]. Retrieved from

http://www.conceptdraw.com/examples/chart-of-management-information-system-with-diagram

Cornerstone On Demand. (2014). The state of workplace productivity report. Retrieved from http://www.cornerstoneondemand.com/resources/research/state-of-workplace-productivity-2013

FCC. (n.d.). Child’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA). Retrieved from http://www.fcc.gov/guides/childrens-internet-protection-act

Greenfield, D. (n.d.). The center for internet and technology addiction. Retrieved from http://virtual-addiction.com/

King, J. & Richards, N. (2014). What’s up with big data ethics? Retrieved from http://radar.oreilly.com/2014/03/whats-up-with-big-data-ethics.html

Linn, M. (2014). What are the different types of encryption methods? Retrieved from http://www.wisegeek.org/what-are-the-different-types-of-encryption-methods.htm

Sassoon, Y. (2012). Transforming snowplow data so that it can be interrogated in BI / OLAP tools like Tableau, Qlikview and Pentaho [Online image]. Retrieved from http://snowplowanalytics.com/blog/2012/12/17/transforming-snowplow-data-so-it-can-be-interrogated-by-olap-tools-like-tableau/

Singh, S. (2014). Companies devise new strategies to keep pace with rapid rise of mobile commerce. Retrieved from http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/retail/companies-devise-new-strategies-to-keep-pace-with-rapid-rise-of-mobile-commerce/articleshow/44892422.cms

Telemetry Labs. (n.d.). M2 cloud solutions [Online image]. Retrieved from http://www.telemetrylabs.com/

University of Calgary. (n.d.). Identity theft on Ebay [Online image]. Retrieved from http://wiki.ucalgary.ca/page/Courses/Computer_Science/CPSC_203/CPSC_203_2008Winter_L03/CPSC_203_2008WinterL03_TermProjects/T19_Group_3-_Identity_Theft_on_Ebay

Williams, B. & Sawyer, S. (2012). Using Information Technology, 10th ed. McGraw-Hill.