DP Digital Society Questionbank

Water is becoming increasingly scarce in Chacra Province, and the provincial government is concerned there will be a point when there is not enough water for all of the farms to water their crops or fruit trees.

To manage water for the watering of crops and fruit trees, the provincial government of Chacra Province intends to use computer modelling to calculate how much water each farm in the province will receive.

Explain three factors that will contribute to the accuracy of this computer model.

A cashless society

In the near future, it is possible that cash will not be accepted as a means of payment in Sweden. People are already using alternative ways of paying, such as mobile payment, card payment and internet payment. Currently, over 95% of citizens in Sweden have internet access.

Many people in Sweden claim there are advantages of using an app developed by Swish. The Swish app allows friends to share a restaurant bill, pay where credit or debit cards are not accepted, for babysitting or parking tickets, or make a donation at church.

However, other people in Sweden claim that making the Swish app the only means of payment may increase inequalities within the country.

Discuss whether countries should pass legislation making apps such as Swish the only means of payment.

The farmers of Chacra Province are concerned about the provincial government using a computer model to determine the amount of water they will be allowed to use to water their fruit trees.

To what extent should the farmers of Chacra Province rely on their knowledge and experience, rather than the computer-based solution provided by the provincial government, to manage the watering of the fruit trees?

To what extent do the benefits of using Lyrebird’s voice-cloning software outweigh the concerns that may arise from its use?

Identify two other forms of biometric data Bright Creativa could collect.

Identify two characteristics of a relational database.

Identify two methods that could be used to ensure that the data input to the database is accurate.

As part of the implementation of the biometric authorization system, Bright Creativa has written a privacy policy.  

Explain three features that Bright Creativa would need to include in a privacy policy linked to the company’s biometric authorization system.

Identify two ways how the TailorEd system could provide feedback to students.

Identify two ways how the data collected about students’ academic progress could be used by TailorEd.

To what extent are the benefits of employees’ improved access to company resources outweighed by their concerns about the level of surveillance by the company?

Identify two measurements that could be taken by the weather sensors in Kinakora National Park.

Analyse whether it would be appropriate for Lyrebird to release the biometric data of a user to a third party.

Evaluate Kinakora National Park’s decision to use computer modelling to develop strategies for dealing with wildfires.  

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.

Identify two methods of visualization that could be used to present information from the new computer modelling system.

Two methods for informing tourists about wildfires in Kinakora National Park are:

• short message service (SMS) texting/text messaging
• posting information on the Kinakora National Park website.

Analyse these two methods.

To what extent do the benefits of collecting students’ academic progress data outweigh the concerns of the students, teachers and parents?

To what extent should pattern recognition in AI systems be trusted to make decisions about sending real-time alerts to the police?

Sharing dashcam* footage with police

Many police departments have started campaigns to encourage members of the public to upload footage of possible offences committed by drivers to police websites. The police are looking for footage of activities such as dangerous driving and driving whilst talking on a cellphone/mobile phone.

Members of the public can create an account on the police website to upload footage from their dashcam (see Figure 3). They can also upload their dashcam footage anonymously.

The police claim that using dashcam footage uploaded by the public will help reduce the number of accidents caused by dangerous driving.

Figure 3: An example of a dashcam

* dashcam: a video camera mounted in a vehicle to record activity on roads

Discuss whether this dashcam footage should be used by the police as part of their strategy to reduce the number of accidents caused by dangerous driving.

Automated medical image analysis

EBBZS IT, based in Groningen, the Netherlands, intends to develop a system using artificial intelligence (AI) to help doctors at Joelstraat Hospital interpret medical images.

Due to the high resolution* of the digital images (see Figure 4), EBBZS IT claims the AI system will be able to learn from these images to assist doctors when diagnosing patients’ illnesses.

EBBZS IT also claims the AI system will be able to cope with the significant increase in the volume of patients and the increased complexity of their symptoms and conditions.

Figure 4: Examples of digital images used in the AI system

Describe two features of the user interface in Figure 1 that make it intuitive.

Outline one advantage of using a relational database to store this data.

Some states are planning to return to a paper-based voting system, where voters put a cross (X) in the column next to the party of their choice.

Discuss whether these states should retain e-voting or return to a paper-based voting system.

Identify two vital signs that can be recorded by Jaime’s sports watch.

Jaime has decided to share his personal health information with researchers at the University of Sierra Nevada.

Analyse Jaime’s decision to share his personal health information with the University of Sierra Nevada.

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.

Explain why George believes the avatar developers should observe the passengers’ real-time interactions with the system.

Matt Earle, the CEO of SBE Cruise Lines, has been investigating using artificial intelligence (AI) systems to track passengers and suggest activities they may wish to take part in when they interact with the touch screens on the ship. Some of his colleagues have concerns about taking this approach.

To what extent should Matt rely on the recommendations from the AI system to suggest activities to passengers?

Clouds under the sea

Microsoft has located one of its data centres on the seabed. Project Natick is now operating 100 feet below the surface of the North Sea (see Figure 4).

Figure 4: An artist’s representation of a data centre on the sea bed

[Adapted under sea photo by NOAA on Unsplash]

Microsoft has chosen to develop data centres on the seabed because they claim there are concerns about the environmental impact of data centres built on land. These seabed data centres can be constructed and placed on the sea bed in 90 days. This is compared to the two years that are required for land-based data centres.

Google patented their design for an underwater data centre in 2009. Even though functioning prototypes have been trialled, none have been used commercially.

The demand for data storage is doubling every two years, so it is likely that an increasing number of data centres will need to be constructed. These data centres can be constructed either under the sea or on land.

Discuss whether companies like Microsoft should build data centres on the seabed.

Analyse the decision by some airports to attach radio frequency identification (RFID) tags to luggage when it is checked in by the passenger, instead of barcode paper printed tags.

MediResearch is looking to expand access to the genome data it holds by sharing it with other companies.

Explain three strategies that MediResearch could use to ensure the security of the genome data.

Rajesh has been told that subscribing to an internet protocol television (IPTV) service may compromise his anonymity.

Distinguish between anonymity and privacy.

To what extent is it acceptable for Rajesh to use services like a virtual private network (VPN) to access content that may be blocked in the country he is visiting?

Scientists used visualizations, such as in Figure 4, to present the information about predicted earthquake activity.

Analyse the decision to use visualizations.

Identify two pieces of information about the luggage that may be obtained from this database.

Identify two features of a relational database.

Airlines have databases that contain data about passengers when tickets are booked. This data includes travel dates, itineraries, contact details, passport details and passengers’ home addresses. When passengers purchase a ticket online from an airline company, they have to accept the airline’s terms and conditions by clicking “Agree” (see Figure 3).

Figure 3: Acceptance of airline terms and conditions

Within these terms and conditions, it states that the airline may receive a request to share this data with the government of the country to which the passenger is flying.

Discuss whether airlines should share passengers’ data with the governments of the countries to which they are flying.

The chief executive officer of MediResearch is considering using cloud-based storage to store the genome data.  

Discuss whether MediResearch should move to cloud-based storage.

Identify two reasons why a relational database, rather than a flat-file database, is used to store the data for MediResearch.

Outline one reason why it might be difficult to collect accurate data that can be used for predicting earthquakes.

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using machine learning to predict natural disasters like earthquakes.

Identify two features of data analytics.

Compare and contrast what Source C and Source D reveal about the implanting of microchips in humans.

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.

Mobile devices provide many benefits for children but can also be used inappropriately. Some groups claim it is the responsibility of parents to ensure their children use their mobile devices responsibly, while other groups claim that responsibility lies with other stakeholders, such as schools.

With reference to all the sources and your own knowledge, to what extent do you agree that parents should be responsible for ensuring their children develop safe and healthy habits for mobile device usage?

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.

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.

Explain why Umair used surveys, interviews and observation to gather information from visually impaired people during the development of his system.

Outline why visualization is used to present data.

Distinguish between data and information.

Explain why the data collected about Hurricane Irma was not encrypted prior to being transmitted.

Different weather variables, such as wind speed and temperature, need to be collected in order to predict the track of a hurricane. Wind speed data is sampled more frequently than temperature data in a hurricane.

Explain one reason why wind speed data would be sampled more frequently than temperature data in a hurricane.

Companies such as Panasonic will not make the data in computer models available to governments, as they are concerned that doing so would compromise their commercial interests.

Discuss whether governments should be able to make private companies such as Panasonic share their data.

Identify two features of encryption.

The developers of the AI software used visualizations as part of the development process.

Explain one reason why visualizations would be used as part of the development process.

Explain two problems the developers of the AI system could encounter when gathering the data that will be input into the AI system.

The chief executive officer (CEO) of CBR Bank, Alice McEwan, said in a recent interview, “CBR Bank will be replacing all passwords, PINs and personal verification questions for our online banking and mobile banking with voice biometrics recognition.”

To what extent are the changes proposed by Alice beneficial for both CBR Bank’s customers and CBR Bank’s IT support?

Many citizens have raised concerns about the surveillance of their web browsing history or the censorship of selected websites by their national government.

To what extent is it appropriate for national governments to use surveillance and censorship to control citizens’ access to websites?

CBR Bank holds a large amount of information on its customers. Some customers are concerned about the security, privacy and anonymity of their data.

For each of the concerns above, explain one policy that CBR Bank could use to address the concerns of its customers.

Apart from heart rate, identify two vital signs that could be recorded by the sports watch.

The principal at Collège Earlet has been discussing arrangements for sharing data from the students’ watches with a third party, Fitness World.

Discuss whether the principal at Collège Earlet should agree to share data that has been collected by the students’ watches with Fitness World.

Using a Segway with machine learning capabilities?

The Segway Patroller is a two-wheeled, battery-powered electric vehicle. Recently, Segway Patrollers have been used for security purposes in cities as well as in public spaces such as concerts, railway stations and shopping malls.

The Segway Patroller can travel up to a speed of 20 kilometres per hour (about 12 miles per hour) and travel about 40 kilometres (25 miles) in distance before the battery needs to be recharged.

Figure 3: A Segway Patroller

Explain why the reliability of the sports watches may be a concern for the teachers.

The human face of student counselling

Many Diploma Programme (DP) coordinators are finding they do not have enough time to interview every student before they choose their DP subjects. They are considering purchasing the Student Counselling System, a proprietary management information system (MIS).

The developers of the Student Counselling System claim that, if students complete online questionnaires to determine their interests, abilities and future goals, the system can give them very accurate results, resulting in less than 5% of students changing their diploma subjects. They also claim the Student Counselling System will allow DP coordinators to be able to interview every student, something they cannot do now.

Some DP coordinators have concerns about the automation of this process and believe that advising students is something that is best done by relying on their own professional judgement and intuition.

Discuss whether DP coordinators should rely on the recommendations of the Student Counselling System rather than their own professional judgement and intuition when advising students about what DP subjects to study.

Google will collect large quantities of data that will be held in data centres.

Explain two concerns linked to the increasing number of data centres.

The research team developing the Robo-Assist project used quantitative and qualitative data to gather information relating to the user.

Explain why the research team collected quantitative and qualitative data.

Identify two reasons why staff at the Okavango Medical Centre would use a form to enter patient data into the database.

Outline one reason why the Okavango Medical Centre would use a relational database for the patients’ records.

Dr Schultz has arranged to speak to the local authority in an attempt to get more funding for the medical centre. He intends to use presentation software to create a multimedia presentation to support this speech. Dr Schultz is aware that many people in the audience are annoyed when slideshows are poorly designed.

Explain three design errors Dr Schultz should avoid when creating his multimedia presentation slideshow for the local authority.

Identify two reasons why organizations like the NHS would use data analytics.

It is claimed that the NHS’s partnership with Google is beneficial for both stakeholders. However, concerns have been raised about the ethical implications of this data-sharing agreement.

To what extent is it ethical for the NHS to share patient information about eye scans from Moorfields Eye Hospital with Google?

Explain one reason why it may be difficult to ensure the security of information in a large peer-to-peer network such as bitcoin.

Identify two items of health-related data that could be used to improve the treatment of patients.

Evaluate the decision by the NHS to share patient data with Google.

The agreement between Google and the NHS includes policies for the collection, storage and sharing of patient data.

Explain why it is important that the agreement between Google and the NHS includes policies for the collection, storage and sharing of patient data.

Explain one reason why bitcoin makes use of encryption when transmitting data.

Some users of bitcoins are concerned that their anonymity may be compromised by their bitcoin address.

Explain one way in which a bitcoin address may be used to reveal information about a bitcoin user.

Identify two reasons why NHS records are stored in a database rather than in a spreadsheet.

Some people feel uncomfortable about having their photographs taken and posted on a public website.

To what extent is it acceptable for ACP to take photographs of participants, post them online, and sell them without asking their permission?

Identify two methods that the marketing manager at Gustavo’s could use to collect feedback from customers about Dennis.

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.

Selecting candidates for political parties

Political parties often have large numbers of applicants who wish to act as representatives in their various governing bodies. A senior party official must make the final decision about which applicants should be offered which roles. Many roles receive as many as 15 applications, and it is not possible to interview each applicant.

In an attempt to streamline the application process, a prospective representative will need to complete two tasks:

1. Completing an online questionnaire.
2. Submitting a video where they explain the reasons behind their application.

Neither task will involve the team in the political party.

The applicants will be directed to a link provided by the software developer where they can complete both tasks. The responses to the questionnaires and the videos will be analysed using artificial intelligence (AI).

The software will score the questionnaire and video for each applicant and send it to the senior party official’s team. The applicants with the highest scores will then be invited by the political party for an interview.

The software developers claim this will reduce the number of applications the senior party official needs to process and lead to the most appropriate applicants being selected for an interview.

Discuss whether the political party should introduce the digital system to assist the senior party official when deciding which applicants should be offered roles as representatives.

Define the term privacy.

Many people use smartwatches to monitor their vital signs and manage their health.

To what extent should an individual use a smartwatch to manage their health?

Identify three advantages of using a relational database rather than a flat-file database.

There are concerns about the reliability of the data being input into the MADAS system.

Explain why data validation and data verification are used to ensure the reliability of the data being input into the MADAS system.

The MADAS system uses data visualization.

Explain why data visualization is used by the MADAS system.

The European Union’s (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) governs data protection and privacy in the EU. Its regulations give users certain rights in terms of their data.

Explain three principles that should be included in data protection regulations such as GDPR.

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of a government using a facial recognition system that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor the behaviour of its citizens.

Cameras in school

The principal at Flynn School has received requests from parents saying that they would like to monitor their children’s performance in school more closely. He is considering extending the school’s IT system by installing cameras linked to facial recognition software that can record student behaviour in lessons.

The facial recognition software can determine a student’s attention level and behaviour, such as identifying if they are listening, answering questions, talking with other students, or sleeping. The software uses machine learning to analyse each student’s behaviour and gives them a weekly score that is automatically emailed to their parents.

The principal claims that monitoring students’ behaviour more closely will improve the teaching and learning that takes place.

Discuss whether Flynn School should introduce a facial recognition system that uses machine learning to analyse each student’s behaviour and give them a score that is automatically emailed to their parents.

Describe the difference between monitoring and surveillance.

Other governments are considering setting up similar systems that will use facial recognition to gather information about the behaviour of its citizens.

Explain why the developers of the new facial recognition system would need both primary and secondary data collection.

To what extent can the use of models and simulations like the MADAS system help prevent future accidents?