| Date | May 2019 | Marks available | 2 | Reference code | 19M.1.SL.TZ0.1 |
| Level | SL | Paper | 1 | Time zone | no time zone |
| Command term | Identify | Question number | 1 | Adapted from | N/A |
Question
Braille keyboards
According to the World Health Organization, over 250 million people worldwide are blind or visually impaired. Many of them use a writing system called Braille, which they read by touching patterns of raised dots with their fingertips.
Several companies have recently developed Braille keyboards, such as the one shown in Figure 1. Braille keyboards use different combinations of the nine main keys to form characters.
Figure 1: A Braille keyboard
Braille keyboards are usually very expensive. They can cost twenty or thirty times more than standard keyboards. They are always protected by patents and cannot be cheaply reproduced.
Umair Osman, a young teacher in Pakistan, has invented a haptic interface that uses a flexible plastic overlay1 to imitate the layout of a Braille keyboard.
Umair has also developed software that converts the combinations of keys pressed on the overlay to the corresponding ASCII2 character. The overlay, together with the software, enables visually impaired students to convert a standard keyboard into a Braille keyboard.
Umair is considering releasing his software as open-source software and using crowdfunding3 to develop the Braille keyboard further.
1 overlay: a flexible plastic cover that is placed over the keyboard to allow combinations of keys to be pressed by the user
2 ASCII: American Standard Code for Information Interchange
3 crowdfunding: funding projects from donations made by a large number of people via the internet
Identify two characteristics of a haptic interface.
Identify two ways how Umair could have represented the algorithms prior to writing his software code.
Outline one reason why Umair used these representations of the algorithms prior to writing the software code.
Explain why Umair used surveys, interviews and observation to gather information from visually impaired people during the development of his system.
Umair has decided on a strategy to develop his software and Braille keyboard by using crowdfunding and open-source software.
Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of this strategy.
Markscheme
Answers may include:
- Relies on touch
- Provides physical responses to the user
Award [1] for each definition, up to a maximum of [2].
Answers may include:
- Structured English (text)
- Flow charts
- Pseudocode
Award [1] for identifying each representation, up to a maximum of [2].
Answers may include:
- Each of the representations provide a simplified view of the code.
- This means it is easier for the developer to see the logic used and identify potential errors before it is written (and run) as code.
Award [1] for identifying a reason why Umair used these representations of the algorithms prior to writing the software code and [1] for a development of that reason up to a maximum of [2].
Answers may include:
Surveys
- Provides quantitative data (or data that can easily be quantified).
- This may highlight key trends/patterns.
- Can be linked to visualization techniques that make the trends/patterns easy to understand/comprehend.
Interviews
- Provides more detail than can be gathered from quantitative data.
- This may include insights that may need to be teased from the interviewee that develop on quantitative initial responses / give a wider perspective.
Observation
- Provides real-time interaction of the visually impaired person with the technology.
- May be less demanding on the visually impaired person / less intrusive / not be affected by the use of language.
Award [1] for identifying a reason why each method of gathering information was used and [1] for a development of that reason up to a maximum of [2].
Mark as [2] + [2] + [2].
Answers may include:
Advantages
- Umair may be able to develop working relationships with other like-minded and trusted individuals who may be willing to fund his development work without him having to change his vision.
- The use of crowdfunding may lead to a relatively cheap product, which may help to reduce the digital divide between sighted and visually impaired people.
- This could lead to more visually impaired people being able to express themselves online.
- Crowdfunding may enable more rapid development of the software and overlay.
- The software will enable visually impaired people to redefine their identity.
Disadvantages
- The Braille keyboard and associated software is very much Umair’s vision, and he may not want to relinquish control of it as he may have an emotional attachment to the software.
- There may not be the level of crowdfunding and collaboration Umair had anticipated, and the development of the products may not progress.
- There may not be the expertise in the wider community to drive the development of the software so it becomes usable.
- There may be unethical developers who will take Umair’s ideas and use them to develop their own products / may not share Umair’s altruistic vision.
In part (c) of this question it is expected there will be a balance between the terminology related to digital systems and the terminology related to social and ethical impacts.
Keywords: innovation, trust, collaboration, digital divide, software applications, open source, algorithms, change, expression, identity, ethics, values
Refer to SL/ HL paper 1, part c markbands when awarding marks. These can be found under the "Your tests" tab > supplemental materials > Digital society markbands and guidance document.
Examiners report
Syllabus sections
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21M.1.SL.TZ0.4a.i:
In addition to a voice sensor, identify two sensors that would be found in Pepper.
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19M.1.SL.TZ0.3a.i:
In addition to adaptable font size, identify two features of the e-voting graphical user interface (GUI) that could be customized to make it accessible for all voters.
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19M.2.SL.TZ0.4:
To what extent do you agree that the advantages of implanting microchips in humans outweigh the concerns? Use all the sources and your own knowledge.
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22M.1.SL.TZ0.2a.i:
Identify three sensors that may be used to detect data about the weather conditions.
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21N.1.HL.TZ0.6:
Smart warehouse
Greenwood Industries’ warehouse uses a smart storage solution for the picking of products from the shelves of the warehouse. Robots are used in this automated picking process.
Currently, these robots are programmed to access a knowledge base* that enables these robots to use the most efficient route for the picking of products.
Greenwood Industries claims the picking process would be improved if the expert system was replaced by an artificial neural network (ANN).
Discuss whether Greenwood Industries should replace the existing system with one that uses an artificial neural network (ANN).
* knowledge base: a set of rules that are manually input into an expert system.
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20N.1.SL.TZ0.3c:
The development of mobile health apps has changed the way citizens manage their own health and well-being.
Discuss whether citizens like Jaime should rely only on the advice of a health app to manage their own health and well-being.
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18M.3.HL.TZ0.3:
The students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) want to be included in school activities and have appropriate access to the curriculum.
The two interventions influence a student’s identity in the classroom.
Evaluate the impact of educational digital technologies, such as social robots and assistive technologies, on the identity of students with SEND in Tayton School.
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17N.1.SL.TZ0.4a.i:
Identify two sensors that Robbi could use.
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18N.1.HL.TZ0.5:
App or intuition?
Apps have been developed that allow a customer to submit a trip request to a taxi company on their smartphone. These apps allow the customer to select the starting point and final destination of the journey as well as add other information, such as the time of journey and number of passengers.
The developers of the taxi journey app claim it can capture the real-time details of a journey, including the starting point, route, distance travelled, the speed of the car and the final destination. The app integrates this information with real-time traffic information, such as closed roads or accidents. Fares can be estimated before the journey, and the customer can pay digitally with their credit card or by PayPal.
Some traditional taxi drivers in cities such as Paris and Rio de Janeiro have campaigned against the introduction of these apps in taxi companies. Based on previous journeys recorded by the app, the taxi company recommends that their taxi drivers rely on the taxi journey app rather than their own knowledge of the city when determining the best route.
Discuss whether the taxi driver should rely on the taxi journey app, rather than their own knowledge of the city, when determining the best route.
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18M.1.HL.TZ0.5:
Can digital technologies be used sustainably?
Many organizations claim that the most efficient use of information technology (IT) equipment, such as laptops and printers, is to replace them on a regular basis. For example, an organization’s strategy may be to do this every three years.
Other organizations purchase IT equipment that can easily be upgraded by increasing the storage and memory or upgrading the processing capabilities only when required. They claim they do not need to replace their IT equipment on such a regular basis and believe this is a more sustainable practice.
Evaluate the sustainability of these two strategies.
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20N.1.SL.TZ0.4a.ii:
Identify two sensors that the passenger’s bracelet may use.
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19N.1.SL.TZ0.3b:
There are two possible methods for ensuring students use the TailorEd online learning system responsibly. They are:
- restricting access to sites that may be considered inappropriate
- educating the students about acceptable use.
Analyse these two methods.
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19M.3.HL.TZ0.2a:
Explain how Miketon Town Council could encourage its citizens to use the ride-sharing app.
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18M.3.HL.TZ0.4:
With reference to the stimulus material and your own inquiries, recommend whether Tayton School should use social robots and/or assistive technologies to ensure students with SEND can be further integrated into the school.
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19M.3.HL.TZ0.1b:
Identify two characteristics of ride-sharing apps that have made them popular
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19M.1.HL.TZ0.5:
How to appropriately interact in an online environment
Increasing numbers of parents are claiming digital technologies that monitor online activities are the best way to protect their children from offensive content. A number of companies, such as mSpy and Qustodio, have developed online monitoring apps.
Other parents claim it is not necessary to monitor their children’s online behaviour, preferring to encourage their children to develop the knowledge and skills to make appropriate choices.
Parents can consider two different interventions to ensure their children use the online environment appropriately:
- Monitor their children’s online behaviour using apps
- Encourage their children to develop the knowledge and skills to use the online environment and make appropriate choices.
With reference to real-life scenarios, evaluate these two interventions.
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21N.1.SL.TZ0.1a.i:
Identify two hardware devices that Rajesh could use to view his internet protocol television (IPTV) channels.
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21N.1.HL.TZ0.5:
Smart farming
A government in East Africa is using the expertise of scientists at a university in the region to promote the culture of smart farming and increase the productivity of farmers (see Figure 5). To do this, they have developed an app that the farmers can use to assist them in their decision-making.
Figure 5: An example of farming in East Africa
[Palmer, N., 2010. A farmer at work in Kenya’s Mount Kenya region [image] [online] Available at: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2DU_Kenya_86_(5367322642).jpg (CC BY-SA 2.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en [Accessed 18 May 2020].]
Unfortunately, the scientists who developed the app have received many complaints from farmers who have been unable to use it. They are considering two options:
- making the existing system more user-friendly
- educating the farmers to use the existing system.
The scientists claim by making changes to the app it will make the app more user-friendly for the farmers. However, the farmers claim it would be better to provide them with education, such as training, so they can use the existing app.
Evaluate these two claims.
