iCheck Microsoft Office 2003 Introductory

These articles further explore computer safety, ethics, and many other topics covered in the Technology Handbook found in the student edition.

Emerging Trends in Computing (p. H39)

Introduction Learn more about emerging trends in computing.

Directions Read the information below and apply what you learn to answer the questions. Check your work carefully, and click Check Answers.

Wireless Technology: The Next Technological Revolution

Most of the projected technological advances involve wireless technology. This technology relies on wireless zones, which allow people to access the Internet with wireless devices, such as laptops, PDAs, and digital cell phones. Indeed, wireless zones are already available in many locations, such as cafes, hotels, and convention facilities. For a small fee, customers are able to “connect” to the wireless network without needing to plug into anything. Perhaps one day wired networks, with all of the wires, cables, and plugs that accompany them, will be a thing of the past.

Security Problems with Wireless Technology

One of the major obstacles to the growth of wireless technology is security concerns. Currently, most wireless networks are not secure against hacking, since anyone with the adequate equipment can locate a wireless network’s signal, tap into it, and become a part of the network. From there, the hacker can do what he or she pleases. This security threat exists because wireless network transmissions can radiate in all directions. A wireless network’s signal may extend several hundred feet beyond the building in which it is used, allowing passersby to pick up the signal.

Some solutions to these security problems have been introduced. Wireless firewalls add an additional layer of protection, and encryption schemes convert the wireless network signals into a code which must in turn be decoded by someone else within the network in order to be decipherable. However, additional security measures are needed before wireless technology becomes the norm.

What to Expect

As security concerns regarding wireless technologies are addressed, the Internet will rely less and less on physical connections. With greater, perhaps unlimited, bandwidth, the Internet will become an even more valuable tool for communication and research. Medicine will most likely be practiced online. In the future, surgeons will be able to use virtual reality systems and cameras to control surgical robots in order to perform surgeries remotely.

One of the most discussed emerging technologies is nanotechnology, which involves the development of molecule-size supercomputers. This technology may result in paper-thin computers that will roll up and fit in your pocket, or wearable computers that are built into clothing. Eventually, doctors may be able to treat patients by injecting tiny robots that will single out and destroy diseased cells. Such an application of nanotechnology, however, will present various security as well as ethical concerns that will need to be resolved before it becomes commonplace.

1			What is a wireless zone?
2			Name two solutions to security concerns regarding wireless technology.
3			What is nanotechnology?
4			Describe an invention that you think nanotechnology will make possible.