Do You Work Harder When Someone Is Watching?

             I do believe that people work harder when they are being observed. The first reason being that no one wants to get in trouble for slacking off. The second being that when you are being observed, it puts a pressure on you to not make mistakes.
             My opinion is that for business purposes, the Hawthorne Effect is a good tool. I think it is a great way to motivate people. It keeps everyone focused and disciplined.
             When a person is putting money and time into an employee, who they want to do well, it is completely fine. I wouldn't want to pay someone sixty-thousand dollars a year, and then find out they did a terrible job at the years end. It may put a little extra stress on people, but if they do a good job, its okay.
             Observation is a good tool for gathering data in any system study. It provides and on-site way to gather the data at multiple locations. It is also good for reporting this data in real-time. That way it can be analyzed immediately. This is much better than waiting for reports from each specific branch of a company.

Social Networking

     Item's that are popular on a social networking site depend on what people are looking for. It's really up to each person's own interests. Some items appeal to a larger audience of people. But usually they are only temporary until the next big thing. This changes daily.
     There are also many unusual items that some of the more open-minded people come up with. One such item is musical underwear. No, I could not stop laughing either. I would write more about them, except I can't make it past the title.
     Some items have photos that help explain certain steps to the reader. A few have been edited with words, arrows, and boxes to make specific points stick out. These photos can be very helpful and interesting.
     Members can share and request information in a variety of ways, depending on the kind of website. In my experience there are three types of social networking sites. The first are sites like Myspace and Facebook. Which mostly focus on social communication, through status', private messages, photos, and instant messages. The second type is a site like Instructables. Which allows you to make an article with photos and links. Then users can comment on these articles, and the creator can comment back. The third kind is a forum. An example of this is Monsterfishkeepers.com. A forum is similar to a site like Instructables, but is focused more on learning through constant conversation instead of articles. It is also much easier to request information by making a question post.
    Social communication sites are probably the most popular form of social networking, but the other websites are all great tools for locating information and finding people to talk about your hobbies with. In short, social networking is a great way to gather information and keep in touch with friends, or make new ones.

Sources:
http://www.instructables.com/
http://www.facebook.com/ 
http://monsterfishkeepers.com/

Ethics and Issues 5-2

I would not mind constant monitoring by a facial recognition system. As long as it didn't take more than a few seconds. The reason for this is that it can provide an easier way to check a persons ID, It could potentially help catch criminals, and it could limit the ability to steal a persons identity. Identity theft is a huge problem today even with all of the security questions in place for most things. A facial scan at a store or a bank could prevent people from stealing, or using, thousands of dollars.

I believe that all known criminals should have to be entered into the facial scan system. This could prevent sexual predators from entering schools, day cares, and other places that children gather on a daily basis. It could also prevent known drug dealers from purchasing anything from a pharmacy in bulk. It's also a way to quickly put out an alert for any criminal they suspect has repeated their offense. If you don't want to be entered in to the system, don't get arrested.

If I was improperly detained I wouldn't have a problem depending on the manner in which I was detained. If I was charged and tackled by an officer without even a warning, then I would probably be mad. If the officer Asked me to step aside so he could compare my face to a picture and check my ID card, I would understand. The way that I picture the system working is that there is a silent alarm that alerts the officer or security guard. I think that is the best option, and the will create the smallest amount of issues.

Tap-to-Pay

The reason that I chose tap-to-pay is because the larger percentage of the U.S. population has a mobile phone. Different surveys show that at least eighty percent of Americans own a cell phone. Cell phones are also getting more and more affordable, which means that more people can afford them, and they can also own more advanced ones. This is a trend that will catch on because it will make things even easier than they already are. Personally, I would love getting read of my bank card. It is one less thing that I would have to carry or worry about losing. I can also put a password on my phone, unlike credit cards. Besides using it to pay for things like transport or groceries. An employer could also use this to pay their employees. It's reliable and that way everyone knows they are getting there money on time. Just swipe your phone over the pad on the way into work.

Censorship: Should certain material be restricted to select groups, or banned entirely from the Internet?

I chose the subject of censorship because I feel that with the internet being accessible to an increasing amount of people, it is one of the biggest political issues in the United States at the moment. I would have to agree with censorship to a certain extent. The first reason being that there are large amounts of sensitive information that can be stolen very easily.  Maybe with a little help from the government our private information would be stolen a little less often. My second reason is that there are thousands and thousands of websites that run scams and advertise false products. I feel that if there was a better system for screening websites, it could filter out many of those. As it stands now any person with some web design knowledge can host a website from any number of services, and no one asks any questions.

What I hope to get out of CSI 112 this semester

I already have a pretty decent base knowledge about computers and their components. I have built my own computer, and it is much easier than you might think. So this semester I hope to learn more about the software and what I can do with it.