Education website for computer technology.
Hardware
How Computers Think
Hardware
People use tools to survive. For thousands of years, straight edges, rulers, protractors, pulleys and levers were all survival tools. Now, the personal computer, keyboards, webcams and all sorts of other devices are tools. Personal computers are not just for entertainment and games, they are for survival.
NJ CC Standards 8.1
8.1.2.A.1 Identify the basic features of a computer and explain how to use them effectively.
8.1.2.A.2 Use technology terms in daily practice.
8.1.2.A.3 Discuss the common uses of computer applications and hardware and identify their advantages and disadvantages.
Memory
How Computers Think
Hardware
People can remember all sorts of things like names of friends, what we had for dinner yesterday, how to dribble a basketball and the color of a favorite T-shirt. We remember things because our brains help us and our muscles help, too. Computers remember things, too. How do computers remember things? Just like people, computers have short term memory and long term memory.
NJ CC Standards 8.1
8.1.2.A.1 Identify the basic features of a computer and explain how to use them effectively.
8.1.2.A.2 Use technology terms in daily practice.
8.1.2.A.3 Discuss the common uses of computer applications and hardware and identify their advantages and disadvantages.
How Computers Think
How Computers Think
How Computers Think
Most people don't know that all technology use a type of thinking that is not taught in schools. This type of thinking is taught in Boolean Algebra, which is a math with NO ARITHMETIC!! You have to take a special class called Discrete Mathematics in either high school as an AP class or in college to learn this. However, we are all born with the ability to think in Boolean Algebra, so learning how it works is not that hard. Once you learn Boolean logic, problem solving becomes easier.
NJ CC Standards 8.2
8.2.4.G.1 Examine a malfunctioning tool and use a step-by-step process to troubleshoot and present options to repair the product.
8.2.4.G.2 Explain the functions of a system and subsystems.
Operating Systems
Beginnings of the Internet
How Computers Think
Computers are not just hardware, there's something that makes them usable by people: Operating Systems. Peter Pan and Wendy personalities instigated technological change that promoted the development of 3 operating systems.
NJ CC Standard 8.2
- 8.2.8.B.5 Identify new technologies resulting from the demands, values, and interests of individuals, businesses, industries and societies.
- 8.2.8.B.6 Compare and contrast the different types of intellectual property including copyrights, patents and trademarks.
Beginnings of the Internet
Beginnings of the Internet
Beginnings of the Internet
The Internet started in the 1960s as a military project. This video explains how the United States military initiated its first network of computers and then through international efforts it became the World Wide Web.
NJ CC Standard 8.2
- 8.2.5.B.4 Research technologies that have changed due to society’s changing needs and wants.
- 8.2.5.B.6 Compare and discuss how technologies have influenced history in the past century.
- 8.2.8.B.2 Identify the desired and undesired consequences from the use of a product or system.
- 8.2.8.B.5 Identify new technologies resulting from the demands, values, and interests of individuals, businesses, industries and societies.
Queues and Stacks
Beginnings of the Internet
Beginnings of the Internet
NJ CC Standard 8.2
- 8.1.5.AP.1: Compare and refine multiple algorithms for the same task and determine which is the most appropriate.
- 8.1.5.AP.2: Create programs that use clearly named variables to store and modify data.
- 8.1.5.AP.4: Break down problems into smaller, manageable sub-problems to facilitate program development. 8.1.5.AP.5: Modify, remix, or incorporate pieces of existing programs into one’s own work to add additional features or create a new program.
- 8.1.5.AP.6: Develop programs using an iterative process, implement the program design, and test the program to ensure it works as intended.
- 8.1.12.AP.1: Design algorithms to solve computational problems using a combination of original and existing algorithms.
- 8.1.12.AP.2: Create generalized computational solutions using collections instead of repeatedly using simple variables.
- 8.1.12.AP.3: Select and combine control structures for a specific application based upon performance and readability, and identify trade-offs to justify the choice
TECHNICAL CHALLENGE Level 2
Internet Layers
Internet Layers
Internet Layers
The Internet kept growing. Browsers like IE and Chrome were developed. Also Yahoo came around to help people find websites, and now Google is somewhat of a defacto search engine.
NJ CC Standards 8.2
8.2.5.A.4 Compare and contrast how technologies have changed over time due to human needs and economic, political and/or cultural influences.
8.2.8.A.1 Research a product that was designed for a specific demand and identify how the product has changed to meet new demands (i.e. telephone for communication - smart phone for mobility needs).
8.2.8.A.2 Examine a system, consider how each part relates to other parts, and discuss a part to redesign to improve the system.
8.2.12.A.3 Research and present information on an existing technological product that has been repurposed for a different function.
Cybersecurity
Internet Layers
Internet Layers
Cybersecurity is not just about hackers and antivirus software. It's about what kind of information people want to steal and why they want it. Students have all sorts of personal information that people can use to commit acts of cyberbullying or get money.
NJ CC Standards 8.1
8.1.4.D.1 Explain the need for individuals and members of the global community to practice cyber safety, cyber security, and cyber ethics when using existing and emerging technologies.
8.1.4.D.3 Explain the purpose of an Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) and the consequences of inappropriate use of technology.
8.1.8.D.1 Model appropriate online behaviors related to cyber safety, cyber bullying, cyber security, and cyber ethics.
8.1.12.D.1 Evaluate policies on unauthorized electronic access (hacking) and disclosure, and dissemination of personal information.
8.1.12.D. Explain the impact of cyber crimes on society.
Networks
Internet Layers
Wi Fi Routers
You email and play video games. You know you need access to the Internet in order to do those things. How do you you get access to the Internet? In this video you will find out what a network is.
NJ CC Standards 8.1
8.1.2.A.1 Identify the basic features of a computer and explain how to use them effectively.
8.1.2.A.2 Use technology terms in daily practice.
8.1.2.A.3 Discuss the common uses of computer applications and hardware and identify their advantages and disadvantages.
8.2.4.G.2 Explain the functions of a system and subsystems.
8.2.4.G.3 Evaluate the function, value, and esthetics of a technological product, system or environment from the perspective of the user and the producer.
8.2.8.G.2 Explain the interdependence of a subsystem that operates as part of a system.
8.2.4.F.1 Describe how resources are used in a technological product or system.
8.2.4.F.2 Explain how resources are processed in order to produce products and systems.
Wi Fi Routers
Making a Webpage
Wi Fi Routers
You know what the Internet is. You know it's a place where you can get email, social media and games. How does all that "stuff" (images, sounds, words) wind up in your computer or cell phone? We're going to take the first look at how data is sent into your electronic devices. A central point are WiFi routers.
(recommended prerequisite: Hardware and Networks)
NJ CC Standards 8.2
8.2.4.G.2 Explain the functions of a system and subsystems.
8.2.4.G.3 Evaluate the function, value, and esthetics of a technological product, system or environment from the perspective of the user and the producer.
8.2.8.G.2 Explain the interdependence of a subsystem that operates as part of a system.
8.2.4.F.1 Describe how resources are used in a technological product or system.
8.2.4.F.2 Explain how resources are processed in order to produce products and systems.
Making a Webpage
Making a Webpage
Making a Webpage
You go to all sorts of websites and see images, read copy and play games. How do these webpages get created? You will take the first step into making a webpage. You will take a look at a computer language called HTML.
NJ CC Standards 8.1
8.1.8.A.3 Create a multimedia presentation including sound and images.
8.1.2.B.1 Illustrate and communicate original ideas and stories using digital tools and media-rich resources.
Project: Write a news article about a school or community event using HTML.
8.1.4.B.1 Produce a media-rich digital story about a significant local event or issue based on first-person interviews.
8.1.8.B.1 Synthesize and publish information about a local or global issue or event on a web-based shared hosted service.
TECHNICAL CHALLENGE Level 3
Relational Databases
Relational Databases
Relational Databases
You login into an online store or your favorite video game site, and all your information is kept there. How does that happen? Your user name, the last game you played, your previous purchases, what movies you watched are all kept in a database. We will learn how databases keep track of all the information you put into these websites.
NJ CC Standards 8.1
8.1.8.A.2 Plan and create a simple database, define fields, input data and produce a report using sort and query.
Bubble Sort
Relational Databases
Relational Databases
If you have a bunch of numbers that are out of order, how does a computer put them in order? There are many different ways to do this. We will take a look at a simple one, Bubble Sort.