The evolution

of computers
in society
Addressing learning outcomes
and building key skills

Resources and strategies for the

LEAVING CERTIFICATE COMPUTER
SCIENCE CLASSROOM
Contents
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Early Computers and Computing Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

1936: The Turing Machine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

1942–1946: First Electronic Computers: Colossus and ENIAC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

1947: Solid State Transistors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

1953: Invention of High Level Programming Languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

1958: Integrated Circuits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

1973: Mobile Phones and Interconnected Computers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

1977: First Modern PC – Apple II . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

1989: The World Wide Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

2000–2020: Cloud Computing and the Smart Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Emerging Trends in the 21st Century . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57

A Summary of Teaching & Facilitation Methodologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Overview
The Leaving Certificate Computer Science (LCCS) specification is constructed into
3 strands: Practices and principles, Core concepts and Computer science in practice.
The learning outcomes are interwoven across the 3 strands. Many learning outcomes
across all 3 strands can be achieved through a blended pedagogy of group activities
with guided exploration and creative problem solving.

Suggestions on how to use this resource

This resource aims to primarily support the learning outcomes around Computers and society, and the evolution
of computers in society, in strand 1, and also the core concept of Computer systems in strand 2.

The resources and strategies provided are intended mainly for the teacher to use in the classroom. They can
be used in the context of an Applied learning task (ALT) or simply as classroom strategies to engage students in
wider ethical and cultural questions. They are not prescriptive and the concepts do not have to be taught in the
order they are presented. Teachers will discover many other ways of helping their students achieve the learning
outcomes. Much of the learning around computers and society and the direction of technological development
can be facilitated by teachers with classroom techniques, such as Power of Persuasion, Think-Pair-Share-Snowball
and Stimulate a Debate, which are described within this resource. There are also design and development
activities, plus ideas for other suitable activities. The resource itself, with guidance and differentiation from the
teacher, can be used as a learning platform by students.

Material that is suitable for Higher Level only is indicated by an orange bar to the side.

The evolution of computers in society is outlined below. Each development in the evolution is used as a platform
to study subsequent related developments. In this sense the learning outcomes can be achieved in an iterative
and non-linear fashion. The learning outcomes can be viewed at curriculum online.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 3 

100 Years of Computing Developments

Early Computers 1936 1942–1946

and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers:
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC

1947 1953 1958

Solid State Transistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits
Programming Languages

1973 1977 1989

Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The World Wide Web
Interconnected Computers Apple II

2000–2020
Emerging trends in the 21st century
Cloud Computing
and the Smart Phone

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 4 

Encouraging successful groupwork
Here are some ideas on how to set up and encourage effective groups.

Heterogenous members Avoid friendship groups. At the start, students may object to being separated
from their friends. Explain that the groups will change regularly. Groups could
be generated randomly. Keep groups small to begin with.

Social skills need to be Teachers must teach the skills needed for group work, such as listening skills,
taught leadership skills (shared and rotated), conflict resolution skills, how to give
feedback, how to encourage each other, etc. “Be Kind, specific, and helpful”
(Berger)

Ensure everyone feels Teachers can ensure that the group is accountable while at the same time
accountable for their own making sure that there is individual accountability. For example by randomly
work and for the work of selecting one student to explain the group’s answer or giving out role cards so
the group it is clear who is the designer, reporter, communicator, etc.

Create positive The teacher structures work in such a way that students need each other in
interdependence order to complete the task.

This can be achieved:

 when the teacher sets a shared task or goal, and explains that all the group
members must be able explain how it was arrived at
 when resources are shared (one worksheet between each pair/small group)
 when the teacher requests one end product and there is a shared and
named input from each member

Both the task and Cooperative learning groups try to increase students’ learning and maintain
relationships are important good working relationships. Students need to be reminded to observe how they
are succeeding with both.

Make time for group The students need time to discuss how well they are achieving their goals and
reflection/evaluation how they are working together. Questions such as “What worked well in the
group today?” and “How can you work better next time?” are useful.

Adapted from Johnson, Johnson and Holubec, Cooperation in the Classroom.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 5 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

Early Computers and

Computing Technology
Humans have been trying to develop machines for a long time that
can assist them with performing calculations and processing data.
As populations grew and societies became more sophisticated over
time, the need to process data increased dramatically.
The  crash course of early computers traces these attempts from the abacus invented
over 4000 years ago in Mesopotamia up to Hollerith’s invention of punch cards in the
late 19th century.

Two early 19th century pioneers of both the theory and mechanics of calculation were
Charles Babbage and Ada Lovelace. He devised a general purpose machine which he
called an Analytical Engine. Lovelace realised the potential of such a machine beyond
calculations and published the first algorithm intended for a computer.

The 19th century saw the invention of the telegraph and the telephone, Maxwell
predicted radio waves to exist and published his laws of electromagnetism culminating
in Marconi’s transmission of radio waves across the Atlantic in 1901. By the 1920s
automobiles had becomes affordable and the first modern electronic television was
invented. Communication and travel were being revolutionised. The information
revolution was about to begin.

Explore a timeline of the history of computers and computing technology from the
1930s to the present day.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 6 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

Some questions to consider

There are some fundamental questions teachers and students should ask themselves as
journey through the evolution of computers in society.

 Computational Thinking is humans solving problems, knowing that a computer is in

the wings with processing power far in excess of human processing power. But the
power of computers has increased exponentially.

 Ask yourself: Does computational thinking change in nature as processing power

changes?

 Start-up companies no longer have to begin in offices. They can start in the homes
of friends, computer clubs or famously people’s garages. The Personal Computer
and the digital revolution have empowered people to become entrepreneurs and
programmers. People who have been disabled are being increasingly enabled by new
empowering technologies.

 Ask yourself: How has this empowerment become possible over the last century and
will it last?

 Ask yourself: What is the role of adaptive technology in the lives of all human beings?

 The digital revolution, particularly in the 21st century, has been called a disrupter
of both business and of society. Major multinational hi-tech companies have
established new models for calling a taxi, booking a hotel, staying in Bed and
Breakfasts, booking a table in a restaurant and then distributing the food we don’t
eat.

 Ask yourself:What are the positive and negative impacts of computing on culture and
society?

 Some innovations are a natural evolution from previous developments. However

sometimes a new innovation startles the world, and is more revolution than
evolution.

 Ask yourself: How does the power of computing enable different solutions to difficult
problems?

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 7 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

1936
The Turing Machine
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.7 develop algorithms to implement key lent chosen solutions

1.12 compare the positive and negative impacts of computing on culture and society

1.13 identify important computing developments that have taken place in the last
100 years and consider emerging trends that could shape future computing
technologies

1.14 explain when and what machine learning and AI algorithms might be used in
certain contexts

1.18 recognise the diverse roles and careers that use computing technologies

2.5 use pseudo code to outline the functionality of an algorithm

2.8 apply basic search and sorting algorithms and describe the limitations and
advantages of each algorithm
Charles Babbage

When other Learning Outcomes are addressed, for instance in classroom activities or
through related online resources, the LO is numbered.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 8 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

The birth of Computer Science and Machine Learning can be traced back to many
ideas and early prototypes, such as Babbage’s calculating machine in the early 19th How to explain the
century or Hollerith’s punch card system from the end of the 19th century. There is importance of the Turing
however a strong case that Alan Turing’s machine laid the foundations for the Machine? Visit runestone
development of Computer Science and Machine Learning. academy

In 1936, Alan Turing invented a mathematical model of a universal machine, which  Use the classroom
later became known as a Turing Machine. unplugged activity below
to perform the addition of
The  operation of the machine is a simple concept. 1 + 2 on a Turing Machine.

Despite its apparent simplicity, a Turing Machine can be constructed to solve any given LO 1.3–1.8, 1.13
computer algorithm.1 It is in this sense, the first concept of a universal, all-purpose, LO 2.5
computing machine. It provides computer science with a firm scientific foundation, since
it offers a model of computation which can be tested against real world applications.

 Classroom Activity
To demonstrate an algorithm on the Turing Machine with an unplugged version of
Learn how to assemble
the addition of two numbers.
another unplugged
A Turing Machine can, in theory, execute any algorithm a modern computer algorithm.
can execute. The Turing Machine, shown below, consists of an infinitely long
An unplugged punch
paper tape comprising an infinite number of cells. A read/write head points
card lesson, with video
to a particular cell at any given time. There are only 3 operations that can be
demonstration. From the
performed on the tape:
teachinglondoncomputing
1. Read the value website.
2. Write a new value (0,1, BLANK)
LO 1.7
3. Move the read/write head to the next cell. LO 2.8
The # symbol in the diagram below will be interpreted in this case as ADD. The
machine itself is oblivious to the symbol, as the algorithm is deciding that # in this
case means addition. An example of the steps of an algorithm to perform 2 + 3 are
outlined below. The values, 2 and 3, are bookended by blanks. We want to end our
execution of the algorithm with five 1’s in a row, bookended by BLANKs.

Demonstrate the operation of the pseudocode below to students before assigning

roles.

1 Sipser (2006) Introduction to the Theory of Computation Thomson Course Technology, USA.

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 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

1. Draw a representation of the infinite tape on a whiteboard (or any display

board). The initial state is shown below.

Blank ß 2 à Symbol ß 3 à Blank

Initial
State 1 1 # 1 1 1

Read/Write Head

2. Move LEFT; Read the value;

REPEAT until the value == BLANK {
Write 0;
Move LEFT;
Read the value;
}

Current
0 0 # 1 1 1

3. Move RIGHT; Write a BLANK;

Move RIGHT; Read the value;

Current
0 # 1 1 1

4. REPEAT until the value == 1 {

Write 1;
Move RIGHT;
Read the value;
}
ß     5     à

Final
1 1 1 1 1

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 10 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

The classroom activity requires 3 students to execute individual operations at the

 Turing Machine
whiteboard. Another group, which could be the rest of the class, ensure the steps
Addition Activity
of the algorithm are carried out correctly. They are the control unit.
The activity addresses a
The 3 people with specific individual roles are: range of LOs.

In particular:
The READER
The role is to read the value in the cell where the read/write head is pointing. The  Computational
Reader must read out the value from the whiteboard as instructed, even if the Thinking LOs in Strand
algorithm is operating incorrectly. 1 (LO 1.1–1.10)
 Computers and Society
The WRITER LOs in Strand 2
The role is to write a value into the cell where the read/write head is pointing. The (LO 1.13–1.14)
state of the Turing machine will be updated by the writer on the whiteboard.  Algorithm LOs in
Strand 2 (LO 2.5–2.7)
The read/write HEAD
Watch a  video showing
The role is to re-draw the position of the read/write head on the whiteboard, basic arithmetic on the
according to the instructions issued by the control unit. The head can be Turing machine. The
represented by the shape shown in the example, or any similar symbol that is algorithm for addition is in
appropriate. the first minute.

The challenge is to carry out the addition of any two natural numbers. For Explain how it is different
example, 2+1 or 2+5 or 3+3. to the algorithm in the
A further challenge, at an appropriate stage of the course, could be to program the classroom activity.
algorithm in Python or JS with a suitable UI, to carry the out the addition of any
two user-defined natural numbers.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 11 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

After reading the quote in

the Brain Buster, was Alan
Turing’s belief correct?
Brain Buster Facilitate a walking
debate or TPSS activity.
Alan Turing was also fascinated by such a machine’s ability to think
LO 1.13, 1.14
“The original question, “Can machines think?”, I believe too
meaningless to deserve discussion. Nevertheless I believe
that at the end of the century the use of words and general
educated opinion will have altered so much that one will be
able to speak of machines thinking without expecting to be
contradicted.”
Computing Machinery and Intelligence. Turing (1950)

What is Artificial Intelligence (AI)?

Alan Turing was also
Humans have been thinking about AI for many centuries. The term Artificial
famous for the Turing test.
Intelligence was only coined in 1955 by John McCarthy as: “the science and engineering
of making intelligent machines.” The following year, 1956, it was founded as an area of Can you tell the AI from
academic research during a workshop in Dartmouth College.2 The goal of AI is to teach the human in these short
computers to do things that humans do, only better. One of those key things is learning. breakthrough phone calls
Machine Learning is therefore in some ways a subset of AI, but it has grown so rapidly released at a Google IO
in the early 21st century that some people argue it has outgrown AI. event in 2018?

What do you think the

Machine Learning (ML) Algorithms T in the abbreviation
CAPTCHA stands for?
There are 2 broad categories of ML: supervised and unsupervised. For example, let’s
consider items needing to be sorted into waste and recyclables. Supervised learning
would require humans to examine the categorisation performed by the algorithm
and tell the algorithm, using labels, which items have been incorrectly sorted. An
unsupervised algorithm will identify patterns in both the input and output, perhaps
correlating existing categorisation, with statistical analysis, to sort the items. Both
systems improve, but in different ways.

2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_artificial_intelligence

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 12 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

The following links give 3 examples of each of the 2 main categories of Machine
Learning.

Supervised Learning uses training (input) data and if certain outputs are incorrect,
the algorithm is notified not to output this in future. It relies on good data and some
feedback.

Unsupervised Learning allows the algorithm to spot patterns and decide itself which
outputs are most useful. It does not rely on feedback.

Within these categories there are five popular schools of machine learning
algorithms3:

1. SYMBOLISTS
This is closely related to mathematical thinking. They believe all intelligence can
Learning
be reduced to manipulating symbols. By combining pre-existing knowledge with
Opportunity: The
new data, and incorporating it into the machine, new learning will take place.
types and uses of
Machine Learning
2. CONNECTIONISTS
This is related to neuroscience. They believe that strengthening connections  Watch an in-
between neurons/logic gates will improve the machine’s learning and similarly depth video on the
eliminating connections that cause errors in outputs. By looking at the output and categories and uses of
comparing it to the correct output, the connections that require modification can Machine Learning.
be identified. This is known as backpropagation.
Now examine and
3. EVOLUTIONARIES discuss when
machine learning
This is related to evolution by natural selection. The concept of genetic
and AI algorithms
programming is very strong where the best programs are merged together
might be used in
evolving into better programs. The less successful programs are disposed of
certain contexts.
creating a constantly evolving structure capable of new learning.
LO 1.14
4. BAYESIANS
This is related to a theorem in probability called Bayes Theorem. Bayesians,
using probability, combine new evidence with existing beliefs to infer new ideas.
Learning itself, they believe, is uncertain knowledge.

5. ANALOGISERS
By comparing two things which have similarities, perhaps other characteristics
are similar. For example if two patients share symptoms, perhaps they have the
same underlying illness. By remembering the correct situations, and combining
those things that are similar, new learning can be achieved.

3 Domingos (2015) The Master Algorithm Penguin Books

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 13 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

What is Driving the AI and Machine Learning

Expansion?
AI and Machine Learning systems have been around for decades yet the self-driving Data, Algorithms and
car, for example, has only become a possibility in the second decade of the 21st century. Processing Power
Why? Why this seemingly sudden explosion.
Take the  Crash Course
 Have humans become better at designing algorithms? on AI and Machine
 Is a computer’s processing of the real world now approximating a human’s? Learning.

 Are there more quantities of useful data available to humans and computers? Facilitate a discussion
 Is the rapid expansion going to continue? What are the emerging trends? around the rapid expansion
of AI technologies, and
Predicting future trends and technologies is extremely difficult. the reasons behind the
expansion.

LO 1.13, 1.14

One trend being widely

predicted is the area of
quantum computing.
 Watch a short video on
In 1973, the invention of wifi and radio technology made mobile phones possible. Quantum Computing.

How difficult would it have been back then, to predict the future technologies available  Classical versus
40 years later in 2013? In 40 years time how will technology shape our world? What Quantum Computers...
trends will underpin that technology. a 10 minute explanation.

“The bits explosion is not over. We are in the middle of it. But we don’t know whether it LO 1.13, 1.14
will be destructive or enlightening. The time for deciding who will control the explosion
may soon be past. Bits are still a new phenomenon — a new natural resource whose
regulatory structures and corporate ownership are still up for grabs. The legal and
economic decisions being made today, not just about bits but about everything that
depends on bits, will determine how our descendants will lead their lives. The way the
bits illuminate or distort the world will shape the future of humanity.” 4

4 Abelson, Ledeen, Lewis (2008) Blown to Bits Addison-Wesley.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 14 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

1942–1946
First Electronic Computers:
Colossus and ENIAC
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.11 discuss the complex relationship between computing technologies and society
including issues of ethics

1.12 compare the positive and negative impacts of computing on culture and society

1.13 identify important computing developments that have taken place in the last
100 years and consider emerging trends that could shape future computing
technologies

1.18 recognise the diverse roles and careers that use computing technologies

2.11 describe the different components within a computer and the function of those
components

When other Learning Outcomes are addressed, for instance in classroom activities or
through related online resources, the LO is numbered.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 15 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

What constitutes a computer? Charles Babbage designed a mechanical computing

 Watch a short video on
machine called the Difference Engine, in 1822. Babbage’s later concept for an Analytical
the evolution of computing
Engine is considered the first general mechanical computer comprising a basic
devices.
processing and storage of data. In addition Ada Lovelace published an algorithm for the
machine and showed it could be programmed by punch cards. In the late 1930s Konrad  What 4 features of the
Zuse designed the Z1, an electro-mechanical programmable computer. The Harvard Babbage machine made
Mark 1 was a more sophisticated version which was first programmed by John von it revolutionary?
Neumann at the end of World War II. However the Colossus was the first fully
 Name components that
programmable electric computer. Invented and designed by Tommy Flowers and Alan
act as switches?
Turing, it made a major contribution to ending WWII when it helped to crack the codes
 What was the first
of Nazi encryption machines. Simultaneously in the USA, Eckert and Mauchly built the
microprocessor used
ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), which is often considered to be
for?
the first example of a general purpose digital computer.
Explore the Human Brain
Project website to see the
The components of the first programmable computers latest advances in how our
brains could be simulated.
The first electronic computers, Colossus and
ENIAC, weighed tons, occupied large rooms, LO 1.13
and before the invention of semiconducting LO 2.11
transistors, switching was executed by
vacuum tubes (thermionic valves). Military
advances during WWII spurred innovation  From Enigma to ENIAC
and fast-tracked the invention of the ENIAC. and John von Neumann’s
The Colossus was re-built in Bletchley Park, contribution to the
the top secret British site of WWII modern programmable
decryption. It went live on 6th June 1996. computer. The first use
The ENIAC  Watch this Computerphile tour of the of computers in 1952 to
operation of the machine. predict US election results.

The Babbage analytical machine, as explained in the video on the evolution of The history and
computing devices, had 4 revolutionary features: Input, Storage, Processing and Output development of the
components. Sequential flow control and looping operations were fundamental to his ENIAC (0–7:44) and the
concept. Today, the inside of modern computers is not that different. path forward after WWII
(7:44–12:47)

LO 1.11
LO 2.11

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 16 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

The Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU), where instructions are actually carried out, is
probably the only functional unit that is extra to the original concept, as shown in
the schematic block diagram below.

ABSTRACTED
MODEL OF
CPU COMPUTER
COMPONENTS
ARITHMETIC (Block Diagram)
INPUT LOGIC UNIT

CONTROL UNIT
OUTPUT

MEMORY

The complex relationship between society and computing technology is demonstrated

clearly through the invention of the Colossus and ENIAC. The Colossus had a real
impact on the war, shortening it by 2 or 3 years.5 Processing data, encrypting and
deciphering codes and crunching numbers became key factors in deciding the outcome
of WWII.

Would the first electronic computers have evolved so rapidly, almost independently of
each other, without the impetus of a world at war? Many military innovations become
mainstream technologies. For example, the US Defence Advanced Research Projects
Agency (DARPA) developed the Arpanet6 in the late 1960s. It connected 4 nodes in the
USA, developed IP addresses and invented TCP and UDP networking protocols. In the
1980s it evolved into the Internet.

5 BBC homepage and news http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-18419691

6 Wang (2016) From Computing to Computational Thinking CRC Press (p 97–98).

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 17 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

However ethics and computing technology spreads into our everyday life. The coggle
mindmap below delves into all the areas where people, society and business must think
not just about “Can I do this?” but “Should I do this?”.

Lots of websites suitable for LCCS that explore computers and society can be filtered on
www.compsci.ie.

– Do not leave the computer running overnight.

– Use recycle paper.

– Who provided the information and for what
purpose? criteria to evaluate the
INFORMATION ACCURACY
accuracy of information: • Ways to implement – Use paperless method to communicate.
– How old is the information? green computing:
GREEN COMPUTING – Turn off the monitor, printer, and other devices
when not in use.
– Does the site provide the reference to data?
focuses on reducing the
electricity and environmental waste while
using a computer.
• Main purpose is to find and promote new
ways of reducing pollution, discovering
alternative technologies, and creating more
unique and recyclable products.
original works such as ideas, inventions, arts,
helps determine
writings, processes, product names, and logos.
whether a specific computer action is ethical or
unethical.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY • Examples:
CODES OF CONDUCT – Ten Commandments Of Computer Ethics
– Copyright – for artistic and literary works AREAS OF COMPUTERS ETHICS – Australian Computer Society Code Of Ethics
• 3 types of Intellectual Property Rights: – Singapore Computer Society (S.C.S.) Professional
– Patent – for inventions
Code Of Conduct
rights of
– Trademark – for signs, logo, slogan individuals and companies to • Ten Commandments of Computer Ethics
deny or restrict 1. Thou shalt not use a computer to harm other people.
the collection and use of 2. Thou shalt not interfere with other people's computer
information about
INFORMATION PRIVACY
work.
them. 3. Thou shalt not snoop around in other people's computer
– Cookies – a small text file that web server stores files.
on your computer 4. Thou shalt not use a computer to steal.
– Phishing – a scam using email to get personal and 5. Thou shalt not use a computer to bear false witness.
financial information
Techniques companies, employers, or hackers
use to collect your personal data: 6. Thou shalt not copy or use proprietary software for which
– Electronic profiles – data collected when you fill a you
form or register online have not paid.
– Spyware and adware – malicious code that spread 7. Thou shalt not use other people's computer resources
through the network without authorization or proper compensation.
8. Thou shalt not appropriate other people's intellectual
– Do not reply to spam for any reason. output.
9. Thou shalt think about the social consequences of the
– Clear your history file when you are finished browsing. program you are writing or the system you are designing.
• Ways to safeguard your personal information: 10. Thou shalt always use a computer in ways that insure
– Install a personal firewall. consideration and respect for your fellow humans.
– Limit the amount of information you provide to Web
sites or forms, fill in only necessary information.

The following is a worked example suggesting how to Stimulate a Debate on an ethical

question. It creates a classroom context in which to explore the complex relationship
between military innovations, especially during wartime, influencing computing
technology in society.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 18 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

Stimulate a Debate on the positive and

negative impact of military innovations on
both society and technological developments.
The model for this activity is explained in A Summary of Teaching & Facilitation
Methodologies.

1. Watch a Stimulus Video or read a stimulus piece.

 A video of 5 DARPA innovations that have become everyday technologies

2. Prompt questions to provoke class discussion and elicit initial viewpoints.

 Can you name some military inventions that have shaped our world, both
LO 1.11
positively or negatively? (from nuclear technology to drones to GPS!)
 How would the Internet be different if a commercial company invented it Students should be able
instead of the US Arpanet? to discuss the complex
 Without the invention of the nuclear bomb, would we have nuclear power relationship between
stations? Would we have less or more understanding of our universe and the computing technologies
sub-atomic world? and society including
issues of ethics.
 Do you think the first electronic computers (Colossus and ENIAC) would have
developed in different ways and at a different pace?

3. Divide into research groups to explore the topic from key standpoints.
The positive and negative impacts of military innovations on society and on technology.

Themes for different groups:

1. Military innovations, including wartime inventions, have an overall positive

impact on society and on technology.
2. Military innovations, including wartime inventions, have an overall negative
impact on society and on technology.
3. Societies advance rapidly, from a technological point of view, when there is a
strong military and especially during wartime.
4. Societies advance slowly or not at all, from a technological point of view, when
there is a weak military or no military at all.

4. Choose a teaching and facilitation methodology.

a. Students first research each topic in research groups of 3.
b. Use a Jigsaw technique to create groups of 3 comprising one student from 3
different themes. Each person discusses their research within their new group.
c. Reassemble into original groups.
Each group has up to 5 minutes in the Hot Seat OR
A Power of Persuasion technique is used to group students into their preferred
category and try to convince other students over to their viewpoint. OR
Think-Pair-Share-Snowball a general class discussion.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 19 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

1947
Solid State Transistors
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.16 compare two different user interfaces and identify different design decisions that
shape the user experience

2.3 implement modular design to develop hardware or software modules that perform
a specific function

2.11 describe the different components within a computer and the function of those
components

2.12 describe the different types of logic gates and explain how they can be arranged
into larger units to perform more complex tasks

2.13 describe the rationale for using the binary number system in digital computing
and how to convert between binary, hexadecimal and decimal

2.14 describe the difference between digital and analogue input

When other Learning Outcomes are addressed, for instance in classroom activities or
through related online resources, the LO is numbered.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 20 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

The digital revolution, it can be argued, began in 1947 with the invention of the solid
state transistor. John Bardeen, Walter Brattain, and William Shockley, working for Bell Learn about basic
Labs in the USA, developed the revolutionary semiconductor device which can act as a electronic components
switch, turning tiny electric currents on or off, and also as an amplifier of electric (resistors, diodes,
current, boosting electric currents. transistors, &c) and an
electronics timeline.
The operation and function of modern solid state transistors (using n-type and p-type
semiconductors) are explained in this series of videos on basic electronic components. From
explainthatstuff.com.

LO 2.14
Why Binary?
When transistors work as switches they can act as a computer’s memory. When a
switch is turned ON it is effectively storing the number 1 (high voltage). When a switch Representing data using
is turned OFF it is effectively storing the number 0 (low voltage). Transistors therefore Braille Binary, Decimal
operate in 2 distinct states and since there are only 2 digits it is called a binary system. and Hexadecimal.
BInary digiTS are better known by their shortened name of BITS.
From the CS Field Guide
 8 bits makes up 1 byte (Tim Bell)
8 bits can represent 256 (2^8) numbers and hence 256 characters on your keyboard.
Check out this interactive
The old system for representing text and numbers was ASCII but the Unicode
Stanford University site on
system is now the most widely used. Check out the Universal Transformation
measuring memory.
Format (UTF) codes for emojis.
 1000 bytes is about 1 KiloByte What do you think of its
1 KB (kB also used) is exactly 1024 bytes. This is 2^10 bytes. The base of 2 represents User Interface? Can you
the fact that a bit is either ON or OFF. 1 KB is a couple of short paragraphs of text. locate a better one? Why is
it a better UI?
 1000KB is about 1 MegaByte
1 MB is 1024KB or 1,048,576 bytes. This is 2^20 bytes. MP3 audio is roughly 1MB of LO 1.16
sound per minute. LO 2.13
 1000MB is about 1 GigaByte
1 GB is 2^30 bytes or approximately 1 billion bytes. PC RAM is measured blocks of
GB
 1000 GB is about 1 TeraByte.
1 TB is a million million bytes or to be exact 2^40 bytes. Terabyte hard drives and
the growth of cloud storage have made this unit of measurement part of common,
everyday language.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 21 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

 Take the Crash Course

Logic Gates are the building blocks of computer systems. They are made up chiefly of Video on Logic Gates
transistors and enable computer systems to make decisions using Boolean Algebra. The
functionality of 6 logic gates is described below (NOT, OR, AND, NAND, NOR and XOR.) From the Crash Course
Series on YouTube (Carri
Anne Philbin)
Logic Gate NOT OR AND
Symbol A A  Watch how to build
A OUT B OUT OUT
B logic gates and full adders
Functionality OUTPUT INPUTS OUTPUT INPUTS OUTPUT using dominoes, plus an
(Truth Table) A not A A B A or B A B A and B
explanation of binary
0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 arithmetic.
1 0 1 1 0 0
1 1 1 1 1 1
LO 2.3

Logic Gate NAND (not AND) NOR (not OR)

Symbol A A
OUT OUT Interact with Logic Gates
B B
to explore how they work.
Truth Table INPUTS OUTPUT INPUTS OUTPUT
A B not (A and B) A B not (A or B)
0 0 1 0 0 1 The NAND gate can be
0 1 1 0 1 0
made up from the output
1 0 1 1 0 0
1 1 0 1 1 0 of an AND gate fed into
the input of a NOT gate.
Logic Gate XOR (exclusive OR) Use the simulator above to
Symbol A demonstrate its operation.
B OUT
Use this or a similar
Truth Table INPUTS OUTPUT
A B A⊕B interactive simulator to
0 0 0
0 1 1 build a half-adder for the
1 0 1
1 1 0
class activity.

 An animated and
comprehensive look
at how computers add
From simple logic gates described below, the components of all computers can be numbers.
constructed, such as flip-flops and memory components all the way up to ALUs
LO 2.12
and registers. In fact Arithmetic Logic Units (ALUs) comprise a vital part of the
Central Processing Unit (CPU) of a computer. Logical and mathematical operations
are performed here. The inputs to the ALU are controlled within the CPU by the
 Watch the NCCA video
control unit.
on battery testing using a
microbit, then implement
Analog v Digital is both very simple to understand at an abstract level and extremely in class, to explore Digital
complicated at the micro and quantum level. Explore the differences between analog and Analog signals.
and digital with this 5 minute  Techquickie video. Microprocessors such as the
Arduino and Microbit enable both digital and analog processing. The revolution in Visit ncca.ie (computer
semiconductors, which began in 1947 with the invention at Bell Labs of the solid state science) or compsci.ie to
transistor, was in many ways the birth of the digital era: of 1’s and 0’s. Before that, our view similar videos.
world was driven by analog technology. Now we live in both an analog and digital
LO 2.14
world.
LO 3.11–3.13

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 22 

 Early Computers 1936 1942–1946 1947 1953
and Computing
The Turing Machine First Electronic Computers: Solid State Transistors Inventi
Technology
Colossus and ENIAC Program

 Classroom Activity  Half-Adder Activity

Design your own half-adder in some language you have learned, for example The activity addresses a
Python or Scratch. vast number of LOs. In
particular:
What is a half-adder? The basic building blocks of an ALU are simple logic gates
and one of the most fundamental elements of an ALU is the half-adder. The half  Designing and
adder takes two inputs in the form of bits, and outputs the sum and the carry-over. Developing LOs in
The addition and the Truth Table are shown below. Strand 1
(LO 1.19–1.23)
Addition of 2 bits INPUTS OUTPUT  Abstraction LOs in
A + B = CS A B Sum (S) Carry (C) Strand 2
0 + 0 = 00 0 0 0 0 (LO 2.1–2.4)
0 + 1 = 01 0 1 1 0  ALT3 Modelling and
1 + 0 = 01 1 0 1 0 Simulation LOs in
1 + 1 = 10 1 1 0 1 Strand 3
(LO 3.8–3.9)
The activity requires a minimum group of 3.

COMPONENT BUILDER
The role is to write functions in a programming language for the basic logic gates:
AND, OR, XOR, NAND and NOR gates. The function should take 2 inputs (A,B) and
output the result from the gate. The half-adder program will use these logic gate
functions to simulate a half-adder.

HALF-ADDER DESIGNER
The role is to research half adder designs on the internet. With one of these
designs, design an abstract model and algorithm to implement a half-adder design
in your chosen programming language. The logic gate functions will be used
within the overall model.

TESTER AND EVALUATOR

The responsibility is to ensure the half-adder outputs the correct values for all
possible inputs. So, a program to perform such a test is to be designed. For example,
a nested loop which generates every permutation of A and B in the Truth Table,
which then feeds into the half-adder program. The program should also be tested
for correct functionality and evaluated for efficiency and its Computational
Thinking level. (See the html NCCA resource for evaluating CT criteria in block-
based code.)

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 23 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

1953
Invention of High Level
Programming Languages
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.11 discuss the complex relationship between computing technologies and society
including issues of ethics

1.12 compare the positive and negative impacts of computing on culture and society

1.13 identify important computing developments that have taken place in the last
100 years and consider emerging trends that could shape future computing
technologies

1.18 recognise the diverse roles and careers that use computing technologies

1.22 read, write, test, and modify computer programs

1.23 reflect and communicate on the design and development process

2.4 illustrate examples of abstract models

2.5 use pseudo code to outline the functionality of an algorithm

2.6 construct algorithms using appropriate sequences, selections / conditionals, loops

and operators to solve a range of problems, to fulfil a specific requirement

2.7 implement algorithms using a programming language to solve a range of problems

2.17 use ASCII and Unicode character sets to encode/decode a message and consider the
importance of having such standards

When other Learning Outcomes are addressed, for instance in classroom activities or
through related online resources, the LO is numbered.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 24 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

In the early years of computing technology, electronic

 Watch 2 jargon buster
computer could only be programmed by numbers,
videos from a 1983 TV
tape, punch cards or even manually manipulating the
series Bits and Bytes.
thermionic valves (vacuum tubes) to certain settings.
After World War II, Grace Hopper worked on the first 1.What is the difference
commercial computer called the UNIVAC. In 1953 she between a compiler and an
invented the first high level programming language, interpreter?
A-0, that used words and expressions to program the
UNIVAC. She also created the first modern day 2.Explanation of High
Grace Hopper and the UNIVAC
compiler and coined the phrase BUG. A-0 evolved into Level Languages.
Flow-matic and eventually became the widely used COBOL. Here are some lines of What would you add to
COBOL: the list at the end of the
PROCEDURE DIVISION. languages video?
LCCS-FIRST-PARA. LO 2.4
DISPLAY ‘Hello World.’.
MOVE ‘Grace Hopper’ TO WS-NAME.
DISPLAY ‘My name is: ‘ WS-NAME. From
STOP RUN. Flow-matic (1950s)
The output will display To
FORTRAN (1950s)
Hello World. To
My name is: Grace Hopper BASIC (1964)
To
In 1954 IBM designed FORTRAN (FORmula TRANslation) which becomes an industry
LOGO “Turtle” (1967)
standard, especially in the area of scientific analysis. An IBM team led by John Backus
To
developed the language which is still in use today. Here are some lines of FORTRAN:
Pascal and C (1970s)
DO To
a = SQRT(b) + c Perl and Mathematica
IF (a > z) THEN (1980s)
!// Exit the loop (comment) To
EXIT Java, Javascript, Swift,
END IF PHP, Python and Scratch
END DO (1990s and beyond)

Explore the timeline

above.

 Watch a video on
getting Y2K ready –
BUG hysteria or good
preparation on NY eve
1999?

LO 1.11, 1.12

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 25 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

This example shows many similarities to the structure of most high level languages
and scripting languages such as Python and Javascript. One of the features of Grace
Hopper’s flowmatic programming language was a conditional called an IF statement.
The flow charts below illustrate decision-making algorithms now common place in high
level languages: conditionals and loops.

Flow chart
starts here

Flow Chart Flow Chart

if if else

Is the condition true? Is the condition true? No

Yes No Yes

Execute this
block
Execute these lines Execute these lines

Continue Continue

Flow Chart Flow Chart

for loop while loop

Have all
items in sequence Is the condition true?
had their turn

No Yes Yes No

Assign next item to loop

Execute your code
variable

Execute all statements in the

loop body
Exit the loop

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 26 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

In 1964, BASIC (Beginners All purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) was invented by two  Take the Crash
Maths professors, Kurtz and Kemeny. They designed their language specifically for Course on programming
learners. A decade or so later it was embedded on the earliest forms of personal languages
computers mainly due to its adoption by a then little-known start-up called Microsoft.
An example of the Hello World program in BASIC is below. (REM signifies a comment.) From the Crash Course
Series on YouTube (Carri
10 REM Hello World in BASIC Anne Philbin)
20 PRINT “Hello World!”
LO 1.18
The Hello World website demonstrates the introductory Hello World program in almost LO 2.4
600 programming languages.

To explore in further detail, the CS Field Guide to Programming Languages is an

There are more resources
interactive, uncomplicated yet comprehensive introduction to this area, with some
and exercises on ncca.ie
insightful interactive examples on low level languages, including machine code, and
related to this area.
also interpreted languages such as Python. The Guide also explores ASCII and Unicode
(UTF-8, UTF-16, UTF-32) in depth, including exercises on converting text to ASCII and Download the CT
Unicode, the limitations of using only 7 of the 8 bits in ASCII, and how to represent the challenge, which uses
word for cat, in Chinese. (LO 2.17) standard ASCII/uft-8
code to implement a basic
High level languages are an abstraction from lower level languages. The programmer
Caesar shift encryption
does not need to know what is going on below the level of the language, never mind at
in Python, housed within
the lowest level of ones and zeroes. In this sense it seemed inevitable that programmers
a html file. Note that the
would need to be facilitated in writing programs that resembled spoken languages more
head of the html file refers
than they resembled machine code.
explicitly to the utf-8
The innovation to use a keyboard to enter data and construct programs, revolutionised character set.
the world of computing, as far back as 1956. “At MIT, researchers begin experimenting
LO 1.22, 1.23
with direct keyboard input to computers, a precursor to today´s normal mode of
LO 2.5–2.7, 2.19
operation. Typically, computer users of the time fed their programs into a computer
using punched cards or paper tape. Doug Ross wrote a memo advocating direct access in
February. Ross contended that a Flexowriter – an electrically-controlled typewriter –
Discuss the impact of
connected to an MIT computer could function as a keyboard input device due to its low
keyboard input on the roles
cost and flexibility. An experiment conducted five months later on the MIT Whirlwind
and careers in computers.
computer confirmed how useful and convenient a keyboard input device could be.” 7
How has it helped to
Is it a matter of time before a virtual, or laser, keyboard becomes the normal means of spread digital literacy? Can
keyboard interface? It is very interesting to discuss the impact of keyboard input on the you see a world where
world of computers and the advance of computing technologies. Is it an exaggeration there is direct input to
to say that keyboard input has revolutionised our world and democratised the world of a computer, making the
computer programming? keyboard redundant?

Facilitate a Walking
Debate on the above
questions and/or TPSS
activity on this area.

LO 1.13, 1.18
7 computerhistory.org
http://www.computerhistory.org/timeline/computers/#169ebbe2ad45559efbc6eb35720ba5f3

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 27 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

The journey of the letter Q from the keyboard to processing is many ways the same
now as it was in 1956. But only at an abstract level. Follow the journey below from
the moment you press the letter Q on your keyboard to its apparently instantaneous
appearance on your screen. (Well most of the time!)

Join the Q!
1. YOU PRESS Q
The keyboard sends a signal (scancode) to the keyboard controller saying a button
has been pressed.
YOU PRESS

2. PATIENT KEYBOARD CONTROLLER

Reads the scancode, sees the letter Q and stores it until the processor is ready.

3. IMPATIENT KEYBOARD CONTROLLER

Alerts the computer’s processor (an interrupt) that it has input.

4. BUSY PROCESSOR
You can imagine the processor is quite busy. When it is ready to deal with a
keyboard interrupt, it alerts the Operating System (OS)

5. MULTI – TASKING OS
The OS locates the window you were working in when you pressed the letter Q.

6. UPDATE WITH YOUR LETTER

Let’s say, for example, you are in a word processing application, like notepad or
MS Word. It adds Q to the working area of your file.

7. 1 BYTE OF THE Q
Q takes up 1 byte of memory. (8 bits of Unicode or 7 (used) bits of ASCII)

8. LET THE OS KNOW Q

The window tells the OS to display Q. The OS obliges by adding it to the video
card memory.

9. ON THE NEXT REFRESH, Q APPEARS

Monitors tend to be refreshed over 60 times per second. YOU SEE

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 28 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

Computer science has created careers, roles and employment for people that we could
never have imagined. A browse on the web of the most sought after skills in the digital The World Economic
hi-tech industry will most likely include: Software Engineer, Cloud Architect, CS Forum did a major report
Analyst, Data Scientist and Web Developer. Picture yourself in 1977, at the launch of on The Future of Jobs.
Apple II, arguably the first modern PC. Could even visionaries such as Steve Wozniak
Review their findings on
and Steve Jobs have foreseen that careers in the CS industry would include Web
employment trends and
Developers or Cloud Architects? With neither a spider nor a meteorologist in sight!
the disruptive effect of
However the first decades of the 21st century saw the rapid expansion of AI and cloud
new technologies.
computing. It prompted many thinkers and leaders such as US President Barrack Obama
to question whether the digital revolution will be the first industrial revolution in LO 1.18
history to be a net destructor of jobs as opposed to a net creator of jobs.

Stimulate a Debate on how computer science

is changing our world.
The model for this activity is explained in A Summary of Teaching & Facilitation
Methodologies.

1. Watch a Stimulus Video or read a stimulus piece.

  How CS is changing our world is a video overview of new careers and

opportunities opening up.
 The first 8 minutes of the BBC video  Will Robots Take Our Jobs, examines
the impact of automated ports, focusing on Rotterdam. The remaining 20 LO 1.11
minutes discusses the wider impact of CS on our world of roles and careers. Students should be able
 The following piece is from Michael Dertouzos, speculating on the impact of CS to discuss the complex
on our world in the future. It was 1995, and he had just come from a meeting in relationship between
MIT, chaired by the Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the world wide web. computing technologies
and society including
“In a quiet but relentless way, information technology would soon change
issues of ethics
the world so profoundly that the movement would claim its place in history
as a socioeconomic revolution equal in scale and impact to the two industrial
revolutions. Information technology would alter how we work and play, but more
important, it would revise deeper aspects of our lives and of humanity: how we
receive health care, how our children learn, how the elderly remain connected
to society, how governments conduct their affairs, how ethnic groups preserve
their heritage, whose voices are heard, even how nations are formed. It would also
present serious challenges: poor people might get poorer and sicker; criminals and
insurance companies and employers might invade our bank accounts, medical
files, and personal correspondence. Ultimately, the Information Revolution would
even bring closer together the polarized views of technologists who worship
scientific reason and humanists who worship faith in humanity. Most people had
no idea that there was a tidal wave rushing toward them.” 8

8 Dertouzos (1998) What Will Be HarperCollins.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 29 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

2. Prompt questions to provoke class discussion and elicit initial

viewpoints.
Rasmussen college pose 6 ways in which Computer Science improves the world we
live in today. Do you agree that the evolution of computing technology has been
only positive in the 6 areas below?

1. Solving problems and improving solutions

2. Protecting people and organisations
3. Furthering education
4. Improving communication
5. Organizing & streamlining philanthropy
6. Positively impacting every area of society

3. Divide into research groups to explore the topic from key standpoints.
If feasible, form at least 6 groups based on the 6 categories above. Each group
examines one of the prompts above, analysing the particular standpoints below or
researching the questions posed below. (The list of 6 prompts is suggestive and LO 1.12
ideally adapted in an appropriate manner for the students)
Students should be able
For example, for prompt number 4. Improving communication, research the to compare the positive
following: and negative impacts of
computing on culture and
 Is CS a net creator or destroyer of jobs in this area?
society
(Give an overview of the type of jobs created or destroyed and justify your
conclusions)
 How has CS helped to improve our world in this area?
 How has CS helped to disimprove our world in this area?

4. Choose a teaching / facilitation methodology.

Adapt appropriately for your CS classroom.

a. Students first research each topic in research groups of 3.

b. Use a Jigsaw Learning Technique to create groups of 3 comprising one student
from 3 different themes. Each person discusses their research within their
new group.
c. Reassemble into original groups.
Each group has up to 5 minutes in the Hot Seat
OR
A Power of Persuasion technique is used to group students into their preferred
category and try to convince other students over to their viewpoint.
OR
A Think-Pair-Share-Snowball (TPSS) exercise to broaden out the findings and
conclusions of each research group.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 30 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

1958
Integrated Circuits
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.2 explain how the power of computing enables different solutions to difficult
problems

1.13 identify important computing developments that have taken place in the last
100 years and consider emerging trends that could shape future computing
technologies

1.14 explain when and what machine learning and AI algorithms might be used in
certain contexts

1.18 recognise the diverse roles and careers that use computing technologies

2.3 implement modular design to develop hardware or software modules that perform
a specific function

2.4 illustrate examples of abstract models

2.11 describe the different components within a computer and the function of those
components

When other Learning Outcomes are addressed, for instance in classroom activities or
through related online resources, the LO is numbered.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 31 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

The invention of the first programmable, electric computers (Z1, ENIAC and Colossus), it
could be argued, was the first time that high level human thought processes were “Thinking like a computer
offloaded to machines which could execute these processes both quicker and better. scientist means more than
These computing machines provided proof of concept that computers could being able to program
revolutionise the way humans think about solving problems. For the first time in a computer. It requires
human history, the question could now be posed – How do I go about solving a thinking at multiple levels
particular problem, knowing I have the additional processing power of a computer at of abstraction.” 9
my disposal?
The above quote is from
After World War II, the invention of the solid state transistor almost immediately Jeanette Wing’s highly
supplanted the unreliable vacuum tubes used in the first computers. In addition to influential paper on
predictable and reliable behaviour, they opened the floodgates of semiconductor Computational Thinking.
design. No longer would an entire room be required to house all the distinct, discrete Using TPSS, discuss the
components of a computer. Suddenly the possibility of a completely functioning circuit, origins of Computational
comprised of many electronic components on a single semiconducting platform, was a Thinking in the context
real possibility. of the evolution of
computers.
Integrated Circuits (IC) were invented in 1958 by electrical engineers Jack Kilby (Texas
Instruments) and Robert Noyce (Fairchild Semiconductor). Like many inventions and LO 1.2
ideas that have changed our world, their inventions were independently discovered.
The drive behind the development of IC was very simple: how can we squeeze more
components into a smaller space, at reduced cost and operating at faster speeds? The 1.  A fast-talking
answer lay in the properties of semi-conducting elements such as Germanium and technical overview of the
Silicon. Normally they behave as insulators, in the sense they do not conduct electricity. development of IC and
However using a chemical process known as doping, these substrates can become both how Moore’s Law might be
conductors and insulators, depending on the conditions applied. There are only two re-imagined.
types of doping: n-type doping makes the substrate richer in electrons and p-type
2.  An animated
doping makes the substrate depleted of electrons. When n-type and p-type are joined
overview of the limits
together, and a certain voltages applied across the junction where they are joined,
of IC technology and the
 the basic ingredients of all micro-electronic semi-conducting devices can be
potential of Quantum
assembled into diodes, transistors, logic gates, memory and microprocessor systems.
Computing.
Kilby eventually received the Nobel Prize in 2000 for his work, where he acknowledged
In the section on the
the now deceased Noyce as his co-inventor. Noyce founded the Intel Corporation with
Turing Machine, the
Gordon Moore in 1968. They released the first microchip computer or microprocessor in
explosion in AI was
1974, paving the way for the first modern Personal Computers.
attributed to Data,
Algorithms and Processing
Power.

Would you agree with this

hypothesis?

LO 1.13

9 Wing (2006) Computational Thinking Commun ACM 49 (Carnegie Mellon University) .

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 32 

 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

Moore’s Law is one of the most famous laws in the world of computer science. The
graphic below is from www.explainthatstuff.com. Moore’s Law says that the number of  Take the Crash Course
transistors on an IC will approximately double every 2 years. Thus the processing power Video on Integrated
of computers will also double approximately every two years. Moore’s Law is more of an Circuits (0.00–9.00) and
observation/prediction than a scientific law. As can be seen by the graphic below, it has Moore’s Law (9.00–12.30)
been extremely accurate.
From the Crash Course
Series on YouTube (Carri
Anne Philbin)

LO 2.3, 2.11

But can the size of transistors continue to decrease from microns (a millionth of a metre)
into the realm of nanometres (a billionth of a metre)? The state of current IC technology
is often called process. In the table below a 4 micron (µm) process refers to the length of
the transistor gate.

Remember the width of a human hair is in the range of 80–100 µm.

Processor Transistor Count Year Process Comparable Objects Electromagnetic Spectrum

Intel 4004 2300 1971 10 µm Red Blood Cells Infra Red

Motorola 68000 68000 1979 4 µm Most bacteria Infra Red

Intel 80486 1.18 million 1989 1 µm E-coli Visble Light 0.4–0.7 µm

Pentium III 9.5 million 1999 250 nm Pollen, Viruses Approaching UV light

Six Core i7/8 2 billion+ 2011 32nm Molecules UV light

Exynos 8895 20 billion+ 2017 10nm 50 atoms of Silicon Soft X-rays are 1nm

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ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

The latest innovations are a 5nm process. This has often been considered the limit for
Moore’s Law because it is a mere 25 atoms in width and effects such as current leakage The Human Brain
and quantum tunnelling have to be overcome. It is not surprising therefore that IC Project is attempting to
technology as we know it is evolving given that humans are now engineering material understand what each
at similar widths to a DNA molecule. section of the human
brain does and how our
brains work.

 Watch this 90 seconds

video on their webpage
Stimulate a Debate on how should we showing the multi-scale
respond as a society to the rapid growth of dimensions of the brain,
Artificial Intelligence (AI) from centimetres to
nanometres.
The model for this activity is explained in A Summary of Teaching & Facilitation
Methodologies. LO 2.4

1. Watch a Stimulus Video or read a stimulus piece.

In the section on Turing Machines, a short video, on  classical versus quantum
computers, explored the limits imposed by Moore’s law and the possibilities
opened up by quantum technology. In addition the rapid growth in AI and
machine learning was looked at through the lens of data, algorithms and of
particular relevance in this section, processing power. (Why this seemingly
sudden explosion?) And what about the ethical implications of the increased
automation of human skills and processes? Watch a snippet (10:30–19:49) of a 
TED talk featuring renowned machine learning expert Jeremy Howard from
2014. The automation of clinical medical analysis, which has already surpassed
the best specialists in the world, is advancing rapidly with both positive and
negative impacts on society. Make a note of how he defines services and the
overlap between services and machines learning to do things under supervision.
Why does he think the Machine Learning revolution is different from the
Industrial revolution in terms of how it will impact society?

 Watch a BBC Click video (7:30 – end) that discusses a range of opinions on how
society should change its structures to adjust to the advances of AI. For example, if
the diversity of jobs decreases, should we consider universal income for all?

Is this a good time to check the growth of AI? When we call a hotel to make a
booking, are we entitled to know if we are speaking to a human or machine?

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ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

2. Some prompt questions to provoke class discussion and elicit initial

viewpoints.

 The service industry in the developed world accounts for about 80% of
employment. From waiters to doctors to accountants, they need to learn how to
work with AI in order to thrive. If the services industry does not embrace this
technology, will the technology consume the services industry?
 The developing world can save billions in money and in lives by embracing
automated services. For example in the area of training doctors or solicitors.
Should the training be how to work with and supervise AI as much as learning
how to work with patients?
 As the wealth generated by AI increases, and the wealth generated by humans
decreases, should we re-structure the relationship between the citizen and the
government? For example, should there be a universal income for all citizens?
Should health and well-being technology be mandatory for all humans to save
on health care and social welfare payments?

3. Divide into research groups to explore the topic from key standpoints.
Themes for different groups:
LO 1.12
 The growth of AI and machine learning has an overall positive impact on
society and on technology. Students should be able
 The growth of AI and machine learning has an overall negative impact on to compare the positive
society and on technology. and negative impacts of
computing on culture and
 Societies, both developed and developing societies, must change their
society
structures to accommodate the disruptive effect of AI.
 Societies, both developed and developing societies, must limit the impact of AI LO 1.18
to accommodate the needs of their societies.
Students should be able
4. Choose a teaching / facilitation methodology. to recognise the diverse
Adapt appropriately for your CS classroom. roles and careers that use
computing technologies
a. Students first research each topic in research groups of 3.
b. The teacher uses a Jigsaw Learning Technique to create groups of 3 comprising
one student from 3 different themes. Each person discusses their research
within their new group.
c. Reassemble into original groups.

Each group has up to 5 minutes in the Hot Seat OR

A Think-Pair-Share-Snowball (TPSS) exercise to broaden out the findings and

conclusions of each research group.
OR
A Power of Persuasion technique is used to group students into their preferred
category and try to convince other students over to their viewpoint.

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ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

1973
Mobile Phones and
Interconnected Computers
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.8 evaluate the costs and benefits of the use of computing technology in automating
processes

1.11 discuss the complex relationship between computing technologies and society
including issues of ethics

1.12 compare the positive and negative impacts of computing on culture and society

1.13 identify important computing developments that have taken place in the last
100 years and consider emerging trends that could shape future computing
technologies

1.15 consider the quality of the user experience when interacting with computers and
list the principles of universal design, including the role of a user interface and the
factors that contribute to its usability

1.16 compare two different user interfaces and identify different design decisions that
shape the user experience

1.17 describe the role that adaptive technology can play in the lives of people with
special needs

1.18 recognise the diverse roles and careers that use computing technologies

2.15 explain what is meant by the World Wide Web (WWW) and the Internet,
including the client server model, hardware components and communication
protocols

When other Learning Outcomes are addressed, for instance in classroom activities or
through related online resources, the LO is numbered.

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ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

At the launch of the iPhone in 2007, Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple, claimed to have re-
invented the phone. In many ways Apple did re-invent our idea of a phone by enabling The following quotes are
the phone to access all modes of communication, from voice to email to text to internet from Alexander Graham
connectivity. Bell, accredited with
inventing the telephone.
In 1973 Martin Cooper, a Motorola researcher, made the first
ever call on a mobile phone. As you can see in the picture, “The day will come when the
mobile phones were a lot larger in size than today’s handsets. man at the telephone will be
His first call was on a device weighing in excess of 1 kg. This able to see the distant person
event was every bit as momentous as Alexander Graham Bell’s to whom he is speaking.”
first patent for a telephone in 1876.
“I truly believe that one day,
Bell built upon advances in telegraphy, among them Samuel there will be a telephone in
Morse’s famous system of communication. For the following every town in America.”
100 years, a phone was essentially fixed to a landline. You,
Check out some
the user of the phone, had to be physically beside the location
predictions about mobile
of the phone. The concept of a phone being as mobile as the
phones beyond 2020.
user, with the only restriction being the strength of a signal,
Which ones do you think
revolutionised our idea of communication. In America the
will become standard?
mobile phone became known as a cell phone, because the local
networks were called cells.  Watch a video of 10
examples of how hard it
is to predict technological
advances or measure
the impact of current
technology.

LO 1.12, 1.13, 1.18

Brain Buster
The limitations on the size of early mobile phones were due to the technology.
It was not possible, at that time, to manufacture smaller handsets. Today the
limitation on the size is determined less by the technology and more by what is
practical for an average human. As the manufacturing process shrinks to the
atomic and cellular level, should our phones shrink to the same level so they can
be embedded within the person’s body? It might give new meaning to the word
cellphone!

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ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

 Classroom Communication Activity  Communication

Activity
To design your own system of communication or use an existing system to
communicate within an LCN (Local Class Network!!!). This activity addresses a
vast number of LOs. In
The activity requires a minimum group of 3 students. It can be an unplugged physical particular:
computing algorithm, a programmed solution using Python, Javascript, Scratch, Snap,
etc.., an embedded microprocessor system solution or a combination of ideas. Each  Computational Thinking
solution must be robust and systematic, with evidence of computational thinking. LOs in Strand 1
(LO 1.1–1.10)
Below are some ideas for activities.
 Abstraction and
Algorithms LOs in
UNPLUGGED
Strand 2 (LO 2.1–2.9)
 Using only a system of blinks, design a system for giving directions to a person or  ALT3 Modelling and
automata to exit any room or labyrinth. For example, construct a simple maze from Simulation LOs in
which the person must be guided towards the exit. Remember behaviours such as Strand 3 (LO 3.8–3.9)
the length of a step or the degrees of a turn must be pre-configured.
 Morse code was a hugely successful system of telegraphic communication from
Stephen Hawking
the mid 19th to mid 20th century. It is in many ways an early form of binary in the
famously communicated
sense that all signals are either a dot (·) or a dash (–). The dash should last 3 times
through adaptive
longer than the dot. The following letters are represented in the following way:
technology. As his
M ( – – ) O ( – – – ) R ( · – · ) S ( · · · ) E ( · ) . How would you signal SOS in Morse code?
Motor Neuron Disease
The dot and dash can be represented by light, by sound, or as suggested below in the
(known as ALS in the US)
plugged section, by strings sent over radio waves.
progressively removed all
 In his book the Diving Bell and the Butterfly, later a film, Jean-Dominique Bauby
physical movement,
described his life with locked-in syndrome. How did he write the text? His method
 the technology
was to blink out each letter to a helper who transcribed it to paper. He used a system
advanced in parallel
of frequency analysis. “E is the most common letter (in both English and French), for
to ensure he could still
example. He therefore got the helper to read out the letters in order of how common
communicate effectively.
they are: their frequency. In English, the order is “E..T..A..O..”. In French, Bauby’s
language, it is “E..S..A..R..”10. However there are other even more efficient ways to How would the advances
communicate in this fashion, in particular using binary search algorithms. The in adaptive technology
following London School of Computing booklet gives an excellent overview of this have helped Jean-
problem. Dominique Bauby (see
unplugged activity) to
write his book? Would it
be a more efficient, but
less personal experience
for him?

LO 1.8, 1.17

10 Curzon P., McOwan P (2017) The Power of Computational Thinking World Scientific.

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ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

PLUGGED
There are more resources
 Using a microprocessor, design a system to communicate remotely to another and exercises on ncca.ie
system. One system of communication could be Morse code or an adapted version of related to this area.
Braille. Check out some other systems, including ciphers such as the Caesar cipher.
Or communicate between 2 microprocessors using the serial ports. For example, the In the section on Lists
microbit serial communication mimics the 7 bit ASCII code referred to in a previous and Dictionaries there
section. is an advanced CT
challenge, which uses
 Use Python or JS to create basic communication systems within your group or
standard ASCII/uft-8
perhaps an interactive webpage that uses html action forms or similar code, to allow
code to implement a basic
communication within your LCN. (Local Class Network). Your group decides on the
Caesar shift encryption in
channel of information transfer, whether it is using emails, IP addresses, sms texts (if
Python, using a Tkinter UI
allowed under school policy), or a combination of unplugged and plugged
and/or a simple txt file.
communication systems.
LO 1.22, 1.23
In the same year, 1973, that the first call was made on a mobile phone, another concept
LO 2.5–2.7, 2.19
that would eventually revolutionise the world became real and feasible: interconnected
computers. The story behind the Internet begins much earlier. In 1957 the Soviet Union
launched Sputnik, the first unmanned satellite in space. As part of the USA’s response to
In the 1960s ARPA
this technological breakthrough, the US government set up the Defense Advanced
developed a system called
Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Originally called ARPA, its aim was, and still is, to
NLS (oNLineSystem). Its
ensure the US stays at the cutting edge of technological advances.
pioneering HCI evangelist
“DARPA explicitly reaches for transformational change instead of incremental was Doug Engelbart. In a
advances. But it does not perform its engineering alchemy in isolation. It works within now legendary “Mother
an innovation ecosystem that includes academic, corporate and governmental partners, of all Demos” in San
with a constant focus on the Nation’s military Services, which work with DARPA Francisco in 1968, he
to create new strategic opportunities and novel tactical options. For decades, this stunned his audience
vibrant, interlocking ecosystem of diverse collaborators has proven to be a nurturing with:
environment for the intense creativity that DARPA is designed to cultivate.” 11
 Word processing of
documents
Stimulate a Debate on the role of the military,  Windows on your
and in particular DARPA, in shaping some working documents

key technological developments in everyday  Collaborative online

editing of documents
society. (LO 1.11, 1.12)
 Video Conferencing
 Hypertext links within
In the 1960s, before the networking of computers, people could share a single computer documents
by logging on to a terminal. They would then time-share the main computer. This multi-  The use of a new
user approach spawned file sharing, emails and generally improved communication gadget he invented
within the business, military and educational worlds. But only in a limited, localised himself called a mouse!
fashion, generally known as Local Area Networks (LANs).
LO 1.15, 1.16

11 DARPA official site https://www.darpa.mil/

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ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

In the late 1960s, DARPA decided to connect scientists and engineers in 4 separate
locations using a network of interconnected computers called the ARPANET. It was  Watch a PICOL
successfully launched in 1969, and within a couple of years other networks sprung up animated video on the
all over the world (NPL (UK), ALOHANET (a wireless system in Hawaii), HLN (an airline History of the Internet,
network), CYCLADES (France)). Because these networks developed in isolation, their including DARPA’s role.
methods of communication and packet switching were incompatible. The (subtitled)
interconnection of networks became a key goal of industry and of military. The UK and
The SciShow have a
France were the first to experiment with internetworking. However it was ARPA’s
 history of the Internet,
Transmission Control Protocol / IP, first sketched out in 1973 by Vint Cerf and Bob
followed by History of the
Kahn, which would come to dominate the landscape of information transfer. ARPA at
Web. (subtitled)
this stage had several networks and in 1977 demonstrated that it could connect them
all. This became known as the internet.  Lynn Root and Vint Cerf explain the Some prompts for the
operation of packets and TCP in this code.org video. above video lessons:

1973 was also the year the ethernet was invented. At the time there were many  The early form of the
standards for interconnecting computers such as IBM’s Token Ring. But the ethernet Internet was known as
is the one, looking back, that became the standard. The big question is often why some the ARPANET. Which
technologies endure and others simply fade away. In the age of wireless communication, colleges did it initially
and increasingly as devices do not have any method for direct ethernet connection, connect?
 watch a tech experiment to connect an iPhone to the internet using an ethernet  What is Packet
cable. Switching, and why
has it superceded
Circuit Switching?
code.org designed an internet simulator for the classroom.
 Name other networks
The activity is fully described it the section on the world wide web.
that formed and outline
their contribution to
the development of the
internet.

LO 2.15

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 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

1977
First Modern PC – Apple II
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.7 develop algorithms to implement chosen solutions

1.11 discuss the complex relationship between computing technologies and society
including issues of ethics

1.13 identify important computing developments that have taken place in the last
100 years and consider emerging trends that could shape future computing
technologies

1.15 consider the quality of the user experience when interacting with computers and
list the principles of universal design, including the role of a user interface and the
factors that contribute to its usability

1.18 recognise the diverse roles and careers that use computing technologies

2.1 use abstraction to describe systems and to explain the relationship between wholes
and parts

2.4 illustrate examples of abstract models

2.11 describe the different components within a computer and the function of those
components

2.12 describe the different types of logic gates and explain how they can be arranged
into larger units to perform more complex tasks

When other Learning Outcomes are addressed, for instance in classroom activities or
through related online resources, the LO is numbered.

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 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

A brief review  Watch a short video on

The first electronic computers, Colossus and ENIAC, weighed tons and occupied large the evolution of computing
rooms. The invention of solid state transistors and integrated circuits placed computer devices.
hardware on the exponential curve now known as Moore’s Law. The reality from 1958
Some video prompt
was that every 2 years or so, IC manufacturers could squeeze twice as many
questions:
components into the same space, at reduced cost and operating at faster speeds. In
addition software and UI design were accelerating at a phenomenal rate. For example,  What 4 features of the
Hopper’s invention of high level programming languages in 1953 or Engelbart’s 1968 Babbage machine made
demo of windows on a screen, word processing and a mouse. By the 1970s, the it revolutionary?
microcomputer kit which the user assembled into their own casing, became very  Name components that
popular. One of the early examples of a microcomputer kit was the Altair 8080. In 1975 act as switches?
they teamed up with 2 software developers, Paul Allen and Bill Gates. That April, the
 What was the first
two friends formed Microsoft.
microprocessor used
for?

What made the Apple II different Explore the Human Brain

Project website to see the
All of these hardware and software ingredients needed a visionary to bring them
latest advances in how our
together for a mass market. In fact 2 visionaries were required. Steve Wozniak and
brains could be simulated.
Steve Jobs.
LO 1.13
The Apple 1 was the first computer assembled on a single circuit board. However it
LO 2.1, 2.11
was still a microcomputer kit, which the user housed in their own casing. Apple II
revolutionised the concept of a computer through a mixture of innovative hardware
design and a focus on user-centred design.

The first Apple was completed in 1976. It

sold 175 units. Users had to build their own
casing around it, like this wooden casing in
the photo. Wozniak used 1970s state of the
art Intel processors. Software (written by
him in BASIC) was still quite limited as it
had to be customised to the hardware.

The second Apple was completed in 1977.

Inspired by modern electronic commodities
such as TV and stereos, the modern PC had
truly arrived. Apple produced a million
units. Major corporations, such as IBM,
were now being disrupted for the first time
by small start-ups like Apple.

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 1953 1958 1973 1977 1989
ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

One of the biggest differences in the

Steve Wozniak himself
development of the first PC, compared to
looks back at his invention
previous computing technology, was that it
of the PC.
started up from the garages and homes of
computer enthusiasts. Wozniak, seen on the In this  intriguing 5
left of this photo with Jobs, was a highly gifted minute tour, from 1984, he
engineer, but computer engineering was a explains his concept of a
pastime he pursued on his own and through “portable computer” and
his computer club. In many ways he was the how 1984 would be the
original hacker. When he teamed up with Steve year of the mouse!
Wozniak and Jobs, April 1, 1976
Jobs, the concept of a start-up company in a
garage or a bedroom was born.  Later, in 2014, he
explains his innovations as
part of a series on hi-tech
Inside the computer companies disrupting the
business world.
At an abstracted level, the modern computer has four components. Input, Output,
Memory and Processing. For the modern computer, processing is done in the Central LO 1.13, 1.15
Processing Unit (CPU). It makes sense when describing CPU to describe the Arithmetic LO 2.11
Logic Unit (ALU) and the Control Unit. The schematic diagram shows the five components.

ABSTRACTED
MODEL OF
CPU COMPUTER
COMPONENTS
ARITHMETIC (Block Diagram)
INPUT LOGIC UNIT

CONTROL UNIT
OUTPUT

MEMORY

1. INPUT The keyboard and mouse quickly established themselves as the most
effective input devices. Increasingly voice and visual images are forming an
essential part of interaction with computing technology.
2. OUTPUT Computer screens have been the most enduring physical devices associated
with computers, with modern screens displaying at very high resolutions. The visual
and audio output elements are becoming increasingly important. 3D Games require
excellent graphics cards to function on PCs. It was once thought computers would bring
in a paperless world. However, printers remain essential for outputting hard copies.

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ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

Read the section on the

five components of a
3. MEMORY The hard drive of a computer is the name for the permanent computer. Then address
(magnetic) long-term storage of vital information. We are now in Terabytes the following.
for most hard drives. Random Access Memory (RAM) is temporary short-term
INPUT Will the physical
storage, while your computer is working. The Apple II had 24 kB of RAM. A
keyboard and mouse
good analogy is that RAM is what you need when sorting files on your desk
become obsolete?
and your hard drive is what you file away in your filing cabinet.
4. ALU The Arithmetic Logic Unit is an integrated circuit of logic gates, designed Memory What is the
to carry out basic mathematical and logical operations. Most CPU operations RAM on the device you
are executed in the ALU. The inputs to the ALU are stored in specialised CPU are using to read this?
memory called input registers. Once the calculations are performed, the results
Check out this site
are stored in memory called output registers.
explaining units of memory.
5. CONTROL UNIT The control unit controls the operation of the processor
and tells all other components how to respond to the computer’s instructions. Is lots of memory on
A program counter is a specialised memory that keeps track of the order of your PC so important,
instruction that a computer is executing. The dedicated bit of memory is called or even necessary, with
a processor register. the dominance of cloud
computing?

ALU Review the

Operating System Layers
operation of logic
“The most important and crucial piece of software for a computer is its operating gates and how to
system (OS). The same hardware under a different OS is literally a different computer.”12 build more complex
An OS is software that manages all other programs on a computer. The other arithmetic blocks.
programs are called application programs (apps). The OS handles the operation of the 4
abstracted components of a computer system: Input, Output, Processing and Memory. LO 1.7
The interface between the application programs and the OS is called the Application LO 2.4, 2.11, 2.12
Program Interface (API). The user can interact directly with the OS through the
Graphical User Interface (GUI) or sometimes through the command line. An even more
fundamental piece of software is the Basic Input Output System (BIOS). This acts as the A brief history of
interface between IO devices and the main OS. Because it is particular to the hardware computers provides more
of the machine, and comes pre-installed, it is often called firmware. Examine another detail on how
way of looking at OS layers.
 Apple II evolved
The most common operating system on home PCs are Microsoft Windows and Mac OS.
 Intel and Microsoft
Corporate firms also commonly use Linux and UNIX OS.
established dominance
in the market (and
Kildall didn’t!)
 Steve Jobs started a
user revolution in the
late 1980s, starting
with the Mac OS GUI.

LO 1.11, 1.15
12 Wang (2016) From Computing to Computational Thinking. CRC Press (p 69–77).
LO 2.11

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ransistors Invention of High Level Integrated Circuits Mobile Phones and First modern PC – The Wo
Programming Languages Interconnected Computers Apple II

Why have an OS?

Computers simply cannot function without the coordination and resource management
offered by an OS. The software in the first PCs had to be customised to the specific
hardware design. This meant that a user’s programs could not operate on a different
computer. In 1976 Gary Kildall, from the same computer club as Wozniak, had an idea
to put a system between the user and hardware. This Operating System could run the
user’s programs and also communicate with the hardware design. Because the OS can
communicate with the hardware design of any machine of similar make, then the user
can run their programs on any machine. This is crucial for programmers, business and
general home users.

ABSTRACTED Click the links on each

App / User
MODEL OF
OS layer to watch a video
OS LAYERS
(OS and Hardware) or read
some more (App/User and
BIOS)
Operating System  Videos are from
techquickie and code.org.

The read some more

BIOS articles are from the CS
Field Guide and Wikipedia.

LO 1.15
Hardware  LO 2.1, 2.4, 2.11

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 1977 1989 2000–2020 Emerging trends
nes and First modern PC – The World Wide Web Cloud Computing in the 21st century
ted Computers Apple II and the Smart Phone

1989
The World Wide Web
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.11 discuss the complex relationship between computing technologies and society
including issues of ethics

1.12 compare the positive and negative impacts of computing on culture and society

1.13 identify important computing developments that have taken place in the last
100 years and consider emerging trends that could shape future computing
technologies

1.18 recognise the diverse roles and careers that use computing technologies

1.22 read, write, test, and modify computer programs

2.15 explain what is meant by the World Wide Web (WWW) and the Internet,
including the client server model, hardware components and communication
protocols

When other Learning Outcomes are addressed, for instance in classroom activities or
through related online resources, the LO is numbered.

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 1977 1989 2000–2020 Emerging trends
nes and First modern PC – The World Wide Web Cloud Computing in the 21st century
ted Computers Apple II and the Smart Phone

 Watch Tim Berners-

Lee TED talk from 2009
and answer the following
prompts.
The world wide web, was invented by Tim Berners-Lee while working at the CERN  Who is Hans Rosling?
laboratories in Switzerland. “The things that happened with the web blow us away, they
 What are TBL’s 3 rules
are much more than we originally imagined. …There is still huge unlocked potential”13 for using the web?
Originally invented as a means of sharing research and data, the web has transformed  What is linked data?
itself into a vital part of all our lives, transforming our lives in the process. The Internet
 What is Database
and the world wide web are not the same thing. Hugging?

The Internet is a global network that connects computers and computer networks. The LO 1.13, 1.18
linking of computer networks is called internetworking, from which we get the name
internet. The communication system governing this global network is known as
Internet Protocol (IP). The Internet evolved from a US military project in the late 1960s An overview of a Lesson
known as ARPANET, from which IP and other protocols (TCP, UDP) evolved.14 Plan on the Internet using
code.org.
The World Wide Web is the information space that can be accessed by the Internet. You can sign up your class
Resources on the web are requested and retrieved by uniform resource locators or to view these lessons on
URLs. A URL is usually in the form: the Internet.
Follow the setup
scheme://serverhost:port/pathname?query_string instructions, including a
 video on how it works,
The scheme indicates the protocol (http is the default scheme, https is the more secure to create an Internet
protocol) Simulator, as part of the
code.org lesson plan.
serverhost is the domain name or IP address (A DNS is a Domain Name Server or LO 2.15
System whose job is to convert human-friendly domain names into internet-friendly IP
addresses. It is in essence a database.)
Facilitate a walking debate
port and pathname are optional and seldom included in modern usage. on Tim Berners-Lee quotes.
For example:
HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language, and was invented by Tim Berners-Lee.
<start tag> A file written in html contains text and content (videos, images, etc..) “I think in general it’s clear
that most bad things come
interspersed with <begin tags> and </end tags> . The tags allow the content to be easily
from misunderstanding,
read and formatted by any Web Browser (explorer, firefox, chrome, etc..). </end tag>. and communication is
Each programming concept on the NCCA website contains a Computational Thinking generally the way to
Challenge written on a html platform, designed to be edited by teachers and students. resolve misunderstandings,
and the Web’s a form of
communications, so it
generally should be good.”
LO 1.13

Open the html

demonstration file for CT
Challenges in section 0 of
Programming Concepts on
the ncca website.
Visit ncca.ie Computer
Science
LO 1.22
13 https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_berners_lee_on_the_next_web#t-225527
14 Wang (2016) From Computing to Computational Thinking CRC Press.

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Computer Network Protocols

Think of how many different types and brands of computers you can buy, and then
think of all the different Operating Systems working on those computers. For these
computers to communicate over the network they have to agree rules and conventions A brief introduction to
known as Network Protocols. Network Communication
Protocols.
The OSI (Open System Interconnect) model of networking layers provides a
From the CS Field Guide
standard view of how protocols operate. The table below shows how TCP/IP maps
(Tim Bell)
against the OSI layers. TCP/IP is the dominant protocol.
LO 2.15
The TCP/IP and OSI Models of Networking Layers

TCP / IP OSI Layers Example

Protocols

Application Data Application http, dns

Transfer html to your computer

Data Presentation SSL

Format the data (Network
Translator)

Data Session NetBIOS

Coordinate different processes

Transport segments Transport TCP, UDP

Reliable end to end Transfer

Internet packets Network IP

Determine physical path data takes

Network frames Data Link PPP, Ethernet

Interface Physical Addressing

bits Physical USB,

Media and Binary Transmission Bluetooth

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The design of network protocols is an important area of computer science. Note in

 Take the Crash Course
particular the following ideas and examples.
Video on Computer
Client Server Model When you email or video conference or browse the web, the Networks including
network service you are using involves a client program (MS Outlook, Google Chrome, ethernet.
etc) communicating on your behalf with a server program running on a specific host.
From the Crash Course
HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) Web browsers and web servers communicate Series on YouTube. Leads
using this protocol. Its job is to transfer hypertext, like html, to your computer. on to the Internet and
WWW. (Carri Anne
Philbin)
HTTP request
Web Web
LO 1.12
Server Browser
LO 2.15
HTTP response

Internet Protocol (IP) Addresses In the lower layer of the OSI model, every host Play the Packet Attack
will have its own network address that identifies the host (usually your computer) Game which goes through
for communication purposes. A typical IP address would look like 83.141.127.255. 7 levels of Transfer:
This is an IPv4 address. It is made up of 4 bytes. In binary it is 32 bits and would be A simulation of TCP
01010011 10001101 01111111 11111111. The rapid expansion of the Internet is now and why it is virtually
accommodated by IPv6, which supports 128 bit addresses. impossible to stop level 7
TCP.
Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) is the transport layer that ensures data
arrives reliably. The system of handshakes, ordering and acknowledgement From the CS Field Guide
that data has arrived, trades off speed for accuracy. Given the number of nodes (Tim Bell)
(computers, routers, etc..) that packets of data must go through, data inevitably gets
LO 2.15
delayed or corrupted by interference. Play the Packet Attack Game to see why TCP
is the most commonly used transfer protocol on the internet.

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Classroom Experiment
It is quite straightforward to see how data is forwarded by routers through
the network. Simply go to your command prompt (or terminal or shell prompt
depending on your OS).

Type TRACERT followed by a url for a website.

For example, the command “tracert www.compsci.ie” yielded the following path:

Hop 3 Round Trip Time Delays Some router info, including [IP address]

User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is also a transport layer, but it loses reliability for
speed. It is used when transmission of all the data is not so important, say for
example in video or music streaming.

Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) uses access to the internet to transmit voice
messages, bypassing telephone lines. It is also called IP telephony and is one of the
most significant developments in telephony since the invention of the telephone
itself. Skype is the most well known example, so much so that often the word
skype has become synonymous with online video calls.

Our society has become normalised to putting our data on the web. One of the core
concepts of the LCCS specification is Data. Many ethical and privacy questions have
been raised in recent years around ownership of data. GDPR, a General Data Protection
Regulation act, became law across the entire EU on May 25th 2018.

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Stimulate a Debate on how much data, and

the kinds of data, governments and giant
multi-nationals should be allowed to keep on
citizens and consumers.
The model for this activity is explained in A Summary of Teaching & Facilitation
Methodologies.

1. Watch a Stimulus Video or read a stimulus piece.

 Watch this stimulus on ordering a pizza

Read this piece on rules around patients’ medical records.

“The key principle for doctors under Medical Council guidelines is that they must
not disclose information about your care or illness to any other person, without
your consent. A doctor who breaches confidentiality can be reported to the
Medical Council and may face a hearing into his or her conduct. Confidentiality
is the cornerstone of medical care. This rule does not apply however, when the
information is needed by a court of law.”15

2. Prompt questions to provoke class discussion and elicit initial

viewpoints.
 What were the pros and cons of the Pizza company being able to access the LO 1.12
customer’s data?
Students should be able
 Did they have too much access to data, or was their usage of the data at fault?
to compare the positive
 How much data do you think governments or hi-tech companies NEED to
and negative impacts of
retain on citizens? Perhaps a certain amount is required for national security
computing on culture and
or in the case of online medical companies they could use AI on your data to
society
prevent future illness, mine your data or suggest treatments?
 Consider the source of information for the stimulus video. Who are ACLU?
 Learn how Cambridge Analytica used Facebook data to influence the 2016 US
Presidential election.
 Read the story of how JJ DeAngelo was convicted three decades after his
crimes.

15 Irish Health website http://www.irishhealth.com/article.html?con=546

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3. Divide into research groups to explore the topic from key standpoints. LO 1.11

Personal online data is essential to allow governments protect and nurture its citizens Students should be able
and to allow multi-nationals to offer a better service to its consumers. to discuss the complex
relationship between
Themes for different groups:
computing technologies
 Governments should be allowed unlimited access to citizens’ online data. and society including
 Governments should be allowed no access to citizens’ online data. issues of ethics

 Major institutions, such hi-tech medical or financial firms, should be allowed

access to all consumer online data.
 Major institutions, such hi-tech medical or financial firms, should be allowed
no access to consumer online data.
 When citizens or consumers put their data online, or data is requested from
the person, that data is their sole property and should not be consumed by any
organisation.
 When citizens or consumers put their data online, or data is requested from
the person, that data ceases to be their sole property and should be allowed to
be consumed by organisations that store the data.

4. Choose a teaching / facilitation methodology.

a. Students first research each topic in research groups of 3.
b. Use a Jigsaw technique to create groups of 3 comprising one student from 3
different themes. Each person discusses their research within their new group.
c. Reassemble into original groups.

Each group has up to 5 minutes in the Hot Seat

OR
The government could be in the Hot Seat followed by an informed citizen or a
consumer, followed by a social media multinational. OR

A Power of Persuasion technique is used to group students into their preferred

category and try to convince other students over to their viewpoint.
OR
A Think-Pair-Share-Snowball (TPSS) exercise to broaden out the findings and
conclusions of each research group.

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2000–2020
Cloud Computing
and the Smart Phone
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.8 evaluate the costs and benefits of the use of computing technology in automating
processes

1.11 discuss the complex relationship between computing technologies and society
including issues of ethics

1.12 compare the positive and negative impacts of computing on culture and society

1.13 identify important computing developments that have taken place in the last
100 years and consider emerging trends that could shape future computing
technologies

1.14 explain when and what machine learning and AI algorithms might be used in
certain contexts

1.15 consider the quality of the user experience when interacting with computers and
list the principles of universal design, including the role of a user interface and the
factors that contribute to its usability

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The term Cloud Computing is now generally used to mean the delivery of services
hosted on the internet. The concept of delivering computing as a service or a utility (like  Watch a short
hooking up to the electric grid) is not a new concept. Mainframe computers have existed (mashable) video
since modern computing evolved, where end users hook up their terminal to a larger explaining the cloud and
system with greater speed and processing power. cloud storage.

In the 1970’s, and before the PC dominated the computing world in the early 1980s, What is the difference
the power of computers was very limited: less processing power than a standard 21st between storage in the
century smart phone. Limited bandwidth and connectivity meant companies could cloud and storage in a
not provide cloud computing on a commercial scale. That all changed in the 1990s as data centre? Is cloud
internet bandwidth developed. One of the first companies to capitalise was Amazon. computing different to
Their Amazon Web Service (AWS), grew out the realisation that their data centres cloud computing?
had more computing power than the company could use. So they began to rent their
“You don’t generate
computers as virtual servers to clients who wanted to avail of online storage and
your own electricity.
computing power. Also the web went from being quite static (web 1.0) to something
Why generate your own
much more collaborative, responsive, interactive and social (web 2.0). Amongst many
computing?”
innovations, Javascript, one of the prescribed programming languages of the 2017 LCCS
specification, has become more and more central to this phenomenon. Jeff Bezos, CEO Amazon.

What developments have enabled cloud computing and what are some of the key LO 1.8, 1.13
technologies and trends related to Cloud Computing?

Virtualisation Read a highly concise

explanation of Cloud
When a company has computing power, or simply an actual computer, to offer as Computing from
part of a managed service, it will often segment that single resource into a multiple TechTarget
set of resources. Each of these smaller resources, with the appropriate software, can
in turn act as a virtual server or virtual storage. Virtualisation is the simulation of  What is the
a device or a resource. It creates an environment for a user that is independent of difference between
physical infrastructure. You can have virtualisation without cloud computing, but a Public Cloud model
you cannot have cloud computing as we know it without virtualisation. and a Hybrid model?
 The abbreviation
“aaS” stands for “as a
Web 2.0 Service”. What does
Iaas, PaaS and SaaS
The web was invented by Tim Berners Lee (link to that section) in 1989. It was quite
mean, and give
static in the sense that information was presented using html and users either
some examples.
viewed or downloaded content. It was retrospectively called Web 1.0. As its usage
grew and network connectivity improved, people wanted more interaction. Software  Emerging cloud
and Infrastructure as a Service expanded the capability of the web. In the mid technologies such as
2000s the phrase Web 2.0 was coined to capture this transition to a dynamic world AI and Machine
wide web. Take Javascript as an example. Javascript was developed in 1995, more a Learning services
kind of hacking type of solution to give the browser more choice and responsiveness. are helping to detect
In the early 2000s, JS could do more and more through web browsers. And as the fraud, improve
web become more and more of a business and social tool, technologies such as AJAX weather predictors,
(Asyncronous Javascript and eXtensible markup language) allowed pages to update etc.
seamlessly without the need for http requests. Google Maps uses an AJAX engine to LO 1.13, 1.14
allow users work on data in real time in their browser.

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Cloud Computing makes it possible for dumb to become

smart
By the end of 2017 there were more mobile devices connected to the cloud than
people living in the world. Smart phones accounted for over half of all internet access,
outstripping all other forms of access, such as desktop access.16 The growth in usage of
mobile access is most prevalent in the developing world. The first touchscreen smart
phone, the iPhone, was unveiled by Apple in 2007.  Watch the video and discuss the
following questions.

1) In the video Steve Jobs claims that Apple have re-invented the phone, and shows a
chart as to why the iPhone was unique amongst smartphones. Discuss this chart.
2) Examine his claim that the iPhone represented a revolutionary UI and a
breakthrough in internet communication.
3) Make note of the quote he uses from Alan Kay (who coined the phrase Graphical
User Interface (GUI pronounced gooey)) regarding the relationship between software
and hardware. Give examples of other hi-tech companies who have followed this
trend. (LO 1.12, 1.15)

Why stop at making mobile phones smarter? Imagine if any system which made
decisions and had intelligence built into its operation (such as a home heating system)
availed of cloud computing and storage? Or if we could intervene early to safeguard a
person’s health and well-being in their daily lives through data analysers operating in
the cloud? The idea is known as the Internet of Things (IoT). It raises many possibilities
and scenarios of an entire world connected to the cloud.

Brain Buster
If the world of things is being rapidly connected, is it inevitable that the human
race itself will be permanently connected to the cloud? Or consider the following,
is it more desirable to be integrated into the cloud: “Like many transhumanists,
Nick (Bostrom) was fond of pointing out the vast disparity in processing power
between human tissue and computer hardware. Neurons, for instance, fire at
a rate of 200 hertz (or 200 times per second), whereas transistors operate at
the level of gigahertz. Signals travel through our central nervous systems at a
speed of about 100 metres per second, whereas computer signals travel at the
speed of light. The human brain is limited in size to the capacity of the human
cranium, where it is technically possible to build computer processors the size of
skyscrapers.” 17

16 International Telecommunications Union : https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Pages/default.aspx

17 O’Connell (2017) To Be a Machine. Granta Publications.

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Stimulate a Debate on Cloud Computing

The strategy below can be used to explore the complex relationship between computing
technologies and society. Learning Outcomes 1.11 to 1.18 can be covered, depending on the
topic being researched and debated. The 4 steps of the classroom strategy to stimulate and
facilitate debate are:

1. Watch a Stimulus Video or read a stimulus piece.

2. Prompt questions to provoke class discussion and elicit initial viewpoints.
3. Divide into research groups to explore the topic from key standpoints.
4. Choose a teaching / facilitation methodology.

Below are some of the pros and cons of cloud computing designed to act as a stimulus piece
for a class debate. The arguments are based on an article on the website explainthatstuff.
com. Future trends in cloud computing are also discussed on the same website. Design some
prompt questions or use the summary below to help divide the class into research groups to
explore the issue from as many standpoints as possible. Facilitation strategies are explained
in A Summary of Teaching & Facilitation Methodologies.

CLOUD COMPUTING PROS

 Lower upfront costs and reduced infrastructure costs.

 Easy to grow your applications.
 Scale up or down at short notice, known as elasticity.
 Only pay for what you use.
 Everything managed under Service Level Agreements (SLAs).
 Overall environmental benefit (lower carbon emissions) of many users efficiently
sharing large systems.

CLOUD COMPUTING CONS

 Higher ongoing operating costs. Could cloud systems work out more expensive?
 Greater dependency on service providers. Can you get problems resolved quickly, even
with SLAs?
 Risk of being locked into proprietary or vendor-recommended systems? How easily can
you migrate to another system or service provider if you need to?
 What happens if your supplier suddenly decides to stop supporting a product or system
you’ve come to depend on?
 Potential privacy and security risks of putting valuable data on someone else’s system
in an unknown location?
 If lots of people migrate to the cloud, where they’re no longer free to develop neat and
whizzy new things, what does that imply for the future development of the Internet?
 Dependency on a reliable Internet connection.

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Emerging Trends
in the 21st Century
Learning Outcomes addressed in this section are listed below.

1.11 discuss the complex relationship between computing technologies and society
including issues of ethics

1.12 compare the positive and negative impacts of computing on culture and society

1.13 identify important computing developments that have taken place in the last
100 years and consider emerging trends that could shape future computing
technologies

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A Time Capsule Exercise

In the first term of 5th Year, students could use a Think Pair Share mechanism to
predict trends and future technology. Their predictions and analysis of future trends
could be recorded using the html demonstration file for CT Challenges in section 0 of
Programming Concepts on the ncca website.

Re-visit in 6th year to see if students would review their predictions or if any
predictions have already been realised.

 Watch a video of 10 failed technologies and predictions to see how difficult it is to

predict whether a technology will succeed or fade away! Review this  2017 video of
top ten emerging technologies, including Boston Dynamics amazing robots. See the
 background behind the famous exoskeleton video from the Brazil 2014 soccer World
Cup, as an inspiring example of future trends in adaptive technology. Since 2012,
robotic arms can be programmed by technology that intercepts people’s thoughts to
perform actions. Watch this  video of a DARPA funded project by a US applied physics
department to revolutionise Human Computer Interaction using mind-controlled
prosthetic limbs.

9 questions for future trends in the evolution of

computers in society
Emerging technological trends are covered throughout the evolution of computers in
society over the last 100 years. Some of those trends are greater movement towards
cloud computing and cloud services (IaaS, SaaS, etc.) to the implications of the physical
limitations reached by Moore’s Law and hence a trend towards alternatives such as
quantum computing. There will be further emergence of AI and ML technologies
in areas such as automated professional, retail and caring services, self-driving
automobiles, adaptive technology for a wider variety of human needs, and so forth.

SOME ETHICAL AND CULTURAL QUESTIONS

Further emerging technological trends can be investigated online.

Perhaps just as interesting is how emerging trends are influencing some important
ethical and behavioural issues. Using a suitable teaching or facilitation methodology
from A Summary of Teaching & Facilitation Methodologies, such as Stimulate a Debate,
Think-Pair-Share-Snowball, or just a simple Carousel Brainstorming exercise, examine
the following questions through the lens of emerging trends, ethics or the positive and
negative impacts on society. (LO 1.1–1.18)

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Some stimulus material and prompt questions are also suggested, and in some cases the
teacher and students can brainstorm around their ideas on a question.

0. Wolfram: Is human Intelligence is nothing more than sophisticated

computation?
“Normally when we think of computers we imagine constructing machines or programs
for specific purposes – to perform tasks we want. And certainly this is what Turing had
in mind when he set up Turing machines, or discussed how ‘intelligent machines’ could
be built.

Originally motivated by natural science, what I did was to explore the general universe
of possible programs – starting with simple programs that one might set up at random,
or by enumeration. And what I found – first in the context of cellular automata – was
that even extremely simple underlying rules are capable of producing behaviour of in
effect arbitrary complexity.

This led me to the general principle – the Principle of Computational Equivalence

(Wolfram, 2002) – that implies that beyond some very low threshold, almost any set
of rules or programs that one encounters, if it does not have trivial behaviour, it will
behave in a way that is computationally as sophisticated as anything else. In other
words, it does not take much to be able to do sophisticated computation.”

And the Wolfram concludes:

“But what of abstract intelligence? My conclusion is that there is nothing really to

distinguish it from ‘pure computation.’”

Wolfram, S. Intelligence and the Computational Universe.

At odds with Wolfram is leading neuroscientist Miguel Nicolelis. You can see one of his
TED talks or look again at his exoskeleton work that has helped people walk again. He is
of the view that “The brain is simply not computable. It cannot be simulated.”18

1. Jeremy Howard – AI will soon replace doctors. Can caring/people centred

professions be replaced by AI?
Jeremy Howard was once head of the data science project company Kaggle. His current
AI company is outperforming radiologists in the US.  Watch a snippet (10:30–19:49) of
a TED talk featuring Howard from 2014. Teachers, Nurses, Doctors, Home Help, etc if
they are replaced, what are the implications for health, education, working life, leisure.

18 O’Connell (2017) To Be a Machine. Granta Publications (p 56).

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2. Obama – Could the information revolution be the first revolution where the
number of jobs destroyed is greater than number of jobs created?
Is there validity in this statement. What are the reasons behind the validity of this
statement? Or not! Reference examples. In 2017, all line judges were replaced with
hawkeye in some professional tennis tournaments, with the umpire being the only
human judge. Also SMART electricity meters are being installed in Ireland over the
coming years. Will a human meter reader be thing of the past? Interestingly, before
the invention of the electronic computer, the word computer originally referred to the
human who did the number crunching and mathematics.

3. Can we handover responsibility for driving and flying to an algorithm, for

killing to war drones, for medical analysis to AI, for care for the elderly to a
robot?
The role of AI crossing over to traditionally human responsibilities. Are drones harmful
or helpful, plus Asimov’s 3 laws for robots. There are real limitations to computers and
AI in figuring out the world we inhabit. “Humans are very good at insight and hunches.
Computing is very good at doing the same thing over and over again.” 19

4. Are computers and Computing Technology designed for humans and for
human interaction?
Explanations of HCI (Human Computer Interaction) When computing technology is
designed for profit or for government use, where is the human on the priority list?
Equally, to ensure HCI is about improvements for humans, there must be investment in
it or money to be mad in some from?

5. What are the implications for humans if the human mind can be uploaded?
Mark O’Connell’s 2017 book To Be a Machine raises some thoughts on this question… is
the mind then a machine … is it you uploaded?... what will be the substrate for carrying
the uploaded mind around? … can a human brain and its feeling and emotion be
reduced to code? The operation of transistors within a computer system share many
characteristics with the operation of neurons in the neural networks of our brains.
Watch a TED talk on the  art of neural networks.

6. If a robot can carry out the same function as a human, is the robot showing
signs of intelligence?
If yes, then what is intelligence and what is consciousness…. If no then can robots/
machines/ AI ever get to stage where they show intelligence or demonstrate
consciousness? … “at least in principle, I see no reason why it would not lead to an artificial
consciousness” Consciousness and the Brain (Dehaene, 2014).  Descartes believed in
dualism, that the body and mind were two separate things. How would this apply to AI:
is its “mind” separate to the processing power, the silicon or the algorithm?

19 White (2015) How Computers Work QUE (10th edition).

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7. What are the positive and negative impacts of military innovations on both
society and on technology?
A fully worked example of Stimulate a Debate on this question (in the Colossus and
ENIAC section of the main resource) allows for this question to be explored in depth.
The invention of electronic computers occurred during WWII in response to human
computers’ inability to decrypt messages with sufficient speed; drones for example can
now drop bombs while being remotely piloted and they can also drop emergency goods
and supplies in exactly the same way. Which technological innovations did not arise out
of military innovations?

8. How much data, and the kinds of data, governments and giant multi-
nationals should be allowed to keep on citizens and consumers?
A fully worked example of Stimulate a Debate on this question (in the World Wide Web
section of the main resource) allows for this question to be explored in depth. Certain
kinds of data are vital for governments to function in the interest of its citizens (PPSN,
Tax payments, criminal records, etc.). But how much data is too much? Should health
records be analysed by government AI to signal who is in danger of diabetes or obesity
or dementia in an effort to reduce health care costs and spend taxpayer money more
efficiently? Similar arguments apply to both giant hi-tech companies and smaller online
companies that need some of your data to operate profitably, and in the consumer’s
interest. What are the responsibilities and rights of the citizen and consumer in this
regard? Should there be a right to take back all of your data with no limitations?

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A Summary of Teaching &
Facilitation Methodologies
“Leaving Certificate Computer Science is underpinned
by collaboration and working with others.”
LCCS specification (2017)

Methodologies previously referenced in this resource are explained in further detail below. There is particular
reference to how key skills can be embedded within teaching and learning of Computer Science in general and
Computers and society in particular. Each key skill has associated elements and learning outcomes and these
are set out in the Key Skills Framework. This summary is not intended to be a comprehensive course in all the
elements and learning outcomes of each key skill. Please consult the Key Skills Framework for full details.

We cannot take for granted that students have the necessary skills to be able to engage in genuine dialogue and
debate and to work collaboratively and effectively with each other. Skills of listening, summarising, encouraging,
criticising ideas (and not people), negotiating differences of opinions, etc. all need to be taught. They also need to
be reflected upon through group processing.

Throughout the course students need to be given opportunities to develop the key skills in an integrated way.
The use of these types of facilitation methodologies will help to build key skills in senior cycle students.

INFORMATION
COMMUNICATING
PROCESSING

 Brief description of methodologies

 Stimulate a Debate Strategy
CRITICAL THE
BEING  Further NCCA resources
AND LEARNER
PERSONALLY  Helpful tips for groups and discussions
CREATIVE
EFFECTIVE
THINKING
WORKING
WITH
OTHERS

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Brief description of methodologies
BRAINSTORMING
Brainstorming is a technique which involves generating a list of ideas in a creative, unstructured manner.
The goal of brainstorming is to generate as many ideas as possible in a short period of time. The key tool in
brainstorming is “piggybacking,” or using one idea to stimulate other ideas. During the brainstorming process,
ALL ideas are recorded, and no idea is disregarded or criticised. After a long list of ideas is generated, these can
be prioritised as most/least important, most/least helpful, plus/minus, etc. They can also be ranked 1–5 in order
of importance or in the order in which they might be useful in planning a response.

Carousel Brainstorming is another useful technique.

1. The class is arranged into small groups. Each group has a different colour marker.
2. The teacher poses a question on a flip chart, e.g. Will AI benefit humans in the long run?
3. The flipchart question is passed from group to group. (To speed up the process you may have a number of
pages going around)
4. Each group must add two original suggestions.
5. The flipchart page(s) are displayed for all to see.
6. You can see which group has suggested each idea (by colour) and ask them more about their idea.

THINK-PAIR-SHARE-SNOWBALL (TPSS)
This is an activity to encourage higher-order thinking that involves students thinking individually, then pairing
with a partner, then snowballing those ideas with the wider group. The sequence generally begins with the
teacher posing an open-ended question, to which there may be a range of responses. Think time or wait time is
followed by discussion with a partner. The pair may then pair up to form a square, or share it out to the wider
group, and build on each other’s ideas. TPSS is also suggested in the lesson resources on the NCCA website for
teaching and learning of Programming Concepts.

WALKING DEBATE
This is a well know methodology that can be used and adapted for the Computer Science classroom.

At one end of the room, place an ‘I agree’ sign on the wall, and on the other end an ‘I disagree’ sign. Place ‘I’m not
sure’ in the middle of the room and ask the students to stand in this space.

Call out statements and as the students consider each one they move to the position that reflects their opinion.
The closer they move towards each sign, the more they agree or disagree. Emphasise that is it okay to stay in the
middle and it is also okay to move position according as students hear different views.

In the CS class the teacher can show the complexity of an issue by airing as many different perspectives
as possible. Walking debates have been suggested in different sections of the evolution of CS. For example,
Can Machines Think? The teacher can also push students to explain and justify their position with evidence
by asking questions such as ‘Can you give an example of that?’ ‘What is the evidence to support that view?’
‘What have people like Alan Turing or Stephen Wolfram said about this?’ ‘What will it take for computers to
demonstrate they are thinking in such a way to convince humans?’ etc.

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THE POWER OF PERSUASION
Another strategy to get students thinking is to pose a question which has more than one correct answer: Why
increased automation is a bad idea for society? Or Why the CS revolution will have a very different impact on the
developing world than the developed world? Then get the class to generate four possible answers to a question and
vote on their preferred answer.

Count the votes for each answer. Ask the students to sit with their preferred answer groups. Now the job of each
group is to persuade others from different answer groups to come over to their group. Give them some time to
formulate their campaign strategy. The following questions may be useful to prompt debate:

 Who is going to speak? What argument will they use? What evidence can they provide to support their argument?
 Are they going to have a campaign slogan?
 Which other group will they target?
 Will they focus on the strengths of their own argument, or on the weakness of the opposition?

During the ‘campaign’ the teacher acts as chairperson, although this role may also be assigned, especially as
the class becomes familiar with the strategy. In the course of the lesson, learners may change sides, or revert to
original positions. Leave enough time at the end of the lesson to think about the campaign and the tactics used.
A good follow-up homework task for further learning is for students to generate a paragraph or a statement
beginning with I was persuaded because…. or, Answer A won because…..

IN THE HOT SEAT

This is a powerful strategy of putting a learner in a HOT seat, taking the role of a character from fiction or from
history. Or of a person from another part of the world or facing a particular challenge.

In the section on the invention of the Web, there is a Stimulate a Debate exercise on access to personal data. It
suggests that as part of the teaching and facilitation methodology at the end of the exercise, that the HOT seat be
taken by the government, then by a major hi-tech multinational, then by a citizen or a consumer. All students can be
involved by preparing questions in advance, or by turning the spotlight and putting the whole class in the HOT seat.

PROBLEM BASED LEARNING

Problem based learning offers many benefits. When students are centrally involved in working out what the
problem is, and coming to their own understanding of the problem, they will have a deeper understanding of
the issue. In problem based learning, it is important that the problem chosen drives the learning rather than
providing an example of concepts or theories already taught in class. To be effective problems ‘should not be over
circumscribed’ and instead should be ‘ill defined or ill structured so that aspects of the problem are emergent and
definable by the learners’ (Jonassen 1999).

The characteristics of good problem based learning are

 multiple criteria for evaluating solutions can be used;

 uncertainty about which concepts, rules, and principles are necessary for the solution or how they are organized;
 an absence of prescribed rules or principles for describing or predicting the outcome
 a necessity for learners to make judgements about the problem, defend their solutions, and express personal
opinions or beliefs.

The ALTs described in the specification, the task-based NCCA supports and the PDST manuals all support
opportunities for problem-based learning.

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JIGSAW LEARNING TECHNIQUE
Jigsaw groups are a very effective way of organising group work. In this scenario, students are arranged into
groups and each group is given a different subtopic related to the one topic. For example, the overarching topic
might be ‘the role of adaptive technology in all human lives’ (related to LO 1.17) and students might be put in groups
and given examples to research (special needs, real-time translation of foreign languages, robotic home help for
dependents, etc…) They must become ‘expert’ on their topic and agree how they are going to teach it to their
classmates. When they are re ady, the groups are mixed up so that there is now one expert on each subtopic in
each group. They take turns ‘teaching’ their subtopic to each person in the group.

JIGSAW TECHNIQUE

Step 1: Step 2:

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PLACEMATS
Adapted from Barrie Bennett, Beyond Monet

Place mat is a form of collaborative learning that combines writing and dialogue to ensure accountability and
involvement of all students. It involves groups of students working both alone and together around a single piece
of paper to simultaneously come up with lots of alternative ideas.

Materials: Flip chart paper is preferable, but not necessary.

The paper is divided up into sections based on the number of member in the group with a central square or
circle.

Steps
1. Carefully construct the task or question.
2. Assign students into small groups (3–4
works best)
3. Hand out the task/question with the flip
chart page.
4. Students work alone first, using their
section of the place mat to record their
ideas.
5. Then students share their ideas with the
group
6. Then they prioritize the 2–3 big ideas that
have emerged from the group and these
go on the centre placemat.
7. Sharing then takes place between groups.

Below shows different ways of designing

your placemats depending on the number of
students in each group. A large poster or flip
chart paper works well.

PEER TEACHING / PAIR PROGRAMMING

Peer-to-peer presentation or collaborative paired programming is a methodology that involves students teaching
with, and learning from, each other. This is very effective as students must understand a topic in order to teach
it to their peers or they can bootstrap their learning from a peer. This type of activity boosts understanding and
also builds strong communication and information processing skills as students must think how best to transmit
the information.

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Stimulate a Debate Strategy
The strategy below can be used to explore the complex relationship between computing technologies and society,
and the ethics surrounding the relationship. There are many examples of how to use this strategy throughout
this resource. Learning Outcomes 1.11 to 1.18 in particular can be achieved, depending on the topic being
researched and debated. The 4 steps of the classroom strategy to stimulate and facilitate debates are:

1. Watch a Stimulus Video or read a stimulus piece.

2. Prompt questions to provoke class discussion and elicit initial viewpoints.
3. Divide into research groups to explore the topic from key standpoints.
4. Choose a teaching / facilitation methodology.

1. Watch a Stimulus Video or read a stimulus piece.

It could be background information or provocative arguments around the topic.

2. Prompt questions to provoke class discussion and elicit initial viewpoints.

For example:

 What will happen to employment – will the growth of computing technology and AI in particular, be a net
creator or destroyer of jobs?
 Will our quality of life improve through cheaper, faster and higher quality health care and greater access to
knowledge?
 Will the rich get richer, and corporations more powerful?
 Will ordinary citizens be more active and better heard by their government or will government have access
to all the data it needs on its people, without consulting them?
 Will our privacy be assured on this electronic network or will Big Brother end up knowing more about all of us?
 Should we amend our laws to protect against this new computing technology?
 How might war and peace be affected? How has the nature of warfare changed?
 How will human relationships be affected by the accelerated progress of technology and new modes of
interpersonal communication?

(These are sample prompt questions based partially on the teachers institute at yale)

3. Divide students into research groups to explore the topic from key standpoints.
These will be typical opposing standpoints in the usual tradition of debating. Students must explore the topic
from the assigned standpoint. For example:

 Military innovations, including wartime inventions, have an overall positive impact on society and on technology.

Equally another research group will investigate:

 Military innovations, including wartime inventions, have an overall negative impact on society and on technology.

4. Choose a teaching / facilitation methodology.

From the summary of teaching and facilitation strategies, there is a range of strategies such as Think Pair Share
Snowball (TPSS), HOT seat, Power of Persuasion. In addition a Jigsaw Learning Technique can be used effectively
after research has been done, as well as other classroom strategies that encourage dialogue, debate and feedback.

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Further NCCA resources
NCCA RESOURCES FOR SELF-REFLECTION
The NCCA classroom resources are designed for ePortfolios and for self-reflection. All html resources are
designed with minimal code to encourage students to edit the code, modify the resource and include their own
programs and reflections. All NCCA resources designed for CS, in the Programming Concepts and ALT sections,
are designed as platforms for students to re-use and to develop their own unique resources. Teachers can help
students to develop their skills of personal effectiveness in a number of ways. These are described fully in the
Building key skills in the Computer Science classroom resource.

NCCA FORMATIVE AND REFLECTIVE BOOKLETS

workshop Focus on Learning workshop Focus on Learning

03 Formative
Feedback 04 StudentS reflecting
on their Learning

Giving students opportunities to support each Encouraging students to record their goals and review
other in their learning through reviewing their their progress, for example, through a journal/blog or
own work and their peers’ work and giving and the use of student reflection sheets. This helps them to
receiving feedback. understand their achievements, identify the areas they
need to improve upon and plan for future learning.

Download these resources, and more, at this link https://www.ncca.ie/en/junior-cycle/assessment-and-

reporting/focus-on-learning.

Developing key skills in the Politics and Society classroom has many strategies similar the ones described in this
resource, and many more that are applicable to exploring and discussing ideas in the classroom.

Computer Science – Evolution of Computers in Society 68 

Helpful tips for groups and discussions
ASSIGNING STUDENTS TO GROUPS – TIPS FOR SUCCESS

 Assign the groups yourself.

• At times, each group should have a mix of abilities, gender, motivation levels, etc.
• At times, generate teams randomly. This has the added bonus of de-personalising the selection. Teacher
discretion should also be applied here.
 Start out with small groups (2 or 3) until students become skilful in group work.
 The shorter the time available, the smaller the learning group should be.
 Assign each student a job or role but rotate them frequently.
 Graduate the tasks so that there are some tasks that everyone can do with ease and some more challenging
tasks or questions. That way, everyone can contribute something to the group.
 Make your expectations clear so that students know what you want them to do and how to behave.
 Agree ground rules.
 Observe and monitor students working.
 Teacher’s role is to set the task, to keep students focused on the task, support students if they get stuck on the
task and give positive feedback.

HELPFUL PHRASES FOR COLLABORATION AND DISCUSSION

 I think…. because (evidence)

 I agree/disagree because…
 Let’s examine our solutions/ideas we have so far …
 Do I understand you correctly, are you saying….?
 I’m not sure what you mean. Can you say a bit more about that?
 How can we back-up this idea with evidence?
 Let’s summarise our main ideas so far
 Let’s take turns to make sure that everyone has a chance to speak.
 Let’s check to see if everyone has aired their view or is there another perspective on this?
 Let’s hear from someone who hasn’t had a chance to speak yet.
 I think that’s an interesting point but we’d better stick with the question we’re working on right now.

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