Information system

Information systems

The term information system (IS) sometimes refers to a system of persons, data records and activities that process the data and information in an organization, and it includes the organization's manual and automated processes. Computer-based information systems are the field of study for information technology, elements of which are sometimes called an "information system" as well, a usage some consider to be incorrect.

History of information systems

The study of information systems originated as a sub-discipline of computer science in an attempt to understand and rationalize the management of technology within organizations. It has matured into a major field of management, that is increasingly being emphasized as an important area of research in management studies, and is taught at all major universities and business schools in the world. Börje Langefors introduced the concept of "Information Systems" at the third International Conference on Information Processing and Computer Science in New York in 1965.
Information technology is a very important malleable resource available to executives.Many companies have created a position of Chief Information Officer (CIO) that sits on the executive board with the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Chief Technical Officer (CTO).The CTO may also serve as CIO, and vice versa.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_Systems

Knowledge management

Knowledge Management (KM) comprises a range of practices used in an organisation to identify, create, represent, distribute and enable adoption of insights and experiences. Such insights and experiences comprise knowledge, either embodied in individuals or embedded in organisational processes or practice. KM has been an established discipline since 1995 with a body of courses in universities to include business administration, information systems, management, and library and information sciences . More recently, other schools, to include those focused on information and media, computer science, public health, and public policy, also have started to contribute. Many large companies and non-profit organisations have resources dedicated to internal KM efforts, often as a part of their 'Business Strategy', 'Information Technology', or 'Human Resource Management' departments . Several consulting companies also exist that provide strategy and advice regarding KM to these organisations.
KM efforts typically focus on organisational objectives such as improved performance, competitive advantage, innovation, developmental processes, the sharing of lessons learned, and continuous improvement of the organisation. KM efforts overlap with Organisational Learning, and may be distinguished from by a greater focus on the management of knowledge as a strategic asset and a focus on encouraging the exchange of knowledge. KM efforts can help individuals and groups to share valuable organisational insights, to reduce redundant work, to avoid 're-inventing the wheel' per se, to reduce training time for new employees, to retain intellectual capital as employees turnover in an organisation, and to adapt to changing environments and markets .
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knowledge_management

The History of Computers

Who invented the computer?" is not a question with a simple answer. The real answer is that many inventors contributed to the history of computers and that a computer is a complex piece of machinery made up of many parts, each of which can be considered a separate invention.
This series covers many of the major milestones in computer history (but not all of them) with a concentration on the history of personal home computers


Computer History Year/Enter
Computer History Inventors/Inventions
Computer History Description of Event
1936
Konrad Zuse - Z1 Computer
First freely programmable computer.
1942
John Atanasoff & Clifford Berry ABC Computer
Who was first in the computing biz is not always as easy as ABC.
1944
Howard Aiken & Grace Hopper Harvard Mark I Computer
The Harvard Mark 1 computer.
1946
John Presper Eckert & John W. Mauchly ENIAC 1 Computer
20,000 vacuum tubes later...
1948
Frederic Williams & Tom Kilburn Manchester Baby Computer & The Williams Tube
Baby and the Williams Tube turn on the memories.
1947/48
John Bardeen, Walter Brattain & Wiliam Shockley The Transistor
No, a transistor is not a computer, but this invention greatly affected the history of computers.
1951
John Presper Eckert & John W. Mauchly UNIVAC Computer
First commercial computer & able to pick presidential winners.
1953
International Business Machines IBM 701 EDPM Computer
IBM enters into 'The History of Computers'.
1954
John Backus & IBM FORTRAN Computer Programming Language
The first successful high level programming language.
1955(In Use 1959)
Stanford Research Institute, Bank of America, and General ElectricERMA and MICR
The first bank industry computer - also MICR (magnetic ink character recognition) for reading checks.
1958
Jack Kilby & Robert Noyce The Integrated Circuit
Otherwise known as 'The Chip'
1962
Steve Russell & MIT Spacewar Computer Game
The first computer game invented.
1964
Douglas Engelbart Computer Mouse & Windows
Nicknamed the mouse because the tail came out the end.
1969
ARPAnet
The original Internet.
1970
Intel 1103 Computer Memory
The world's first available dynamic RAM chip.
1971
Faggin, Hoff & Mazor Intel 4004 Computer Microprocessor
The first microprocessor.
1971
Alan Shugart &IBM The "Floppy" Disk
Nicknamed the "Floppy" for its flexibility.
1973
Robert Metcalfe & Xerox The Ethernet Computer Networking
Networking.
1974/75
Scelbi & Mark-8 Altair & IBM 5100 Computers
The first consumer computers.
1976/77
Apple I, II & TRS-80 & Commodore Pet Computers
More first consumer computers.
1978
Dan Bricklin & Bob Frankston VisiCalc Spreadsheet Software
Any product that pays for itself in two weeks is a surefire winner.
1979
Seymour Rubenstein & Rob Barnaby WordStar Software
Word Processors.
1981
IBM The IBM PC - Home Computer
From an "Acorn" grows a personal computer revolution
1981
Microsoft MS-DOS Computer Operating System
From "Quick And Dirty" comes the operating system of the century.
1983
Apple Lisa Computer
The first home computer with a GUI, graphical user interface.
1984
Apple Macintosh Computer
The more affordable home computer with a GUI.
1985
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft begins the friendly war with Apple.
http://inventors.about.com/library/blcoindex.htm

Submarine

A submarine is a watercraft that can operate independently below water, as distinct from a submersible that has only limited underwater capability. The term submarine most commonly refers to large manned autonomous vessels, however historically or more casually, submarine can also refer to medium sized or smaller vessels, (midget submarines, wet subs), Remotely Operated Vehicles or robots. The word submarine was originally an adjective meaning "under the sea", and so consequently other uses such as "submarine engineering" or "submarine cable" may not actually refer to submarines at all. Submarine was shortened from the term "submarine boat".
Submarines are referred to as "boats" for historical reasons because vessels deployed from a ship are referred to as boats. The first submarines were launched in such a manner. The English term U-Boat for a German submarine comes from the German word for submarine, U-Boot, itself an abbreviation for Unterseeboot ("undersea boat").
Although experimental submarines had been built before, submarine design took off during the 19th century. Submarines were first widely used in World War I, and feature in many large navies. Military usage ranges from attacking enemy ships or submarines, aircraft carrier protection, blockade running, ballistic missile submarines as part of a nuclear strike force, reconnaissance, conventional land attack (for example using a cruise missile), and covert insertion of special forces. Civilian uses for submarines include marine science, salvage, exploration and facility inspection/maintenance. Submarines can also be specialised to a function such as search and rescue, or undersea cable repair. Submarines are also used in tourism and for academic research.
Submarines have one of the largest ranges in capabilities of any vessel, ranging from small autonomous or one- or two-man vessels operating for a few hours, to vessels which can remain submerged for 6 months such as the Russian Typhoon class. Submarines can work at greater depths than are survivable or practical for human divers. Modern deep diving submarines are derived from the bathyscaphe, which in turn was an evolution of the diving bell.
Most large submarines comprise a cylindrical body with conical ends and a vertical structure, usually located amidships, which houses communications and sensing devices as well as periscopes. In modern submarines this structure is the "sail" in American usage ("fin" in European usage). A "conning tower" was a feature of earlier designs: a separate pressure hull above the main body of the boat that allowed the use of shorter periscopes. There is a propeller (or pump jet) at the rear and various hydrodynamic control fins as well as ballast tanks. Smaller, deep diving and specialty submarines may deviate significantly from this traditional layout.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Submarine

Ghost

A ghost is said to be the apparition of a deceased person, frequently similar in appearance to that person, and usually encountered in places she or he frequented, the place of his or her death, or in association with the person's former belongings. The word "ghost" may also refer to the spirit or soul of a deceased person, or to any spirit or demon.[1][2][3] A place in which ghosts are supposed to appear is described as haunted. A related phenomenon is the poltergeist, literally a 'noisy spirit' that manifests itself by moving and influencing objects, though a widespread view today is that these occurences are either fraudulent or manifestations of the psychic energy of, particularly, adolescent girls.[4] Phantom armies, animals, trains and ships have also been reported.[5][6]
The reality of ghosts is a vexed subject which divides believers and skeptics.[7] The study of ghosts is both the subject of folklore and also, since the nineteenth century, of the investigations of parapsychologists, who have attempted to refine the vocabulary used in describing ghostly phenomena. Summoning or exorcising the shades of the departed is an item of belief and religious practice for spiritualists and practitioners of ritual magic. Though some claims of ghostly phenomena are proven frauds others remain unexplained or are subject to conflicting explanations. So far no one explanation has gained universal acceptance.[8] According to a poll conducted in 2005 by the Gallup Organization about 32% of Americans believe in the existence of ghosts

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost

Aeroflot Flight 821

Aeroflot Flight 821, operated by Aeroflot-Nord in a service agreement with Aeroflot,[1] crashed on approach to Perm Airport on 14 September 2008.[2][3][4] All 82 passengers and 6 crew members were killed. The weather at the time of accident was rainy and foggy. The aircraft, a Boeing 737-500 registration VP-BKO, departed from Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport. A part of the Trans-Siberian Railway was also reportedly damaged in the crash.[5]

Global warming

Global warming is the increase in the average measured temperature of the Earth's near-surface air and oceans since the mid-20th century, and its projected continuation.
The average global air temperature near the Earth's surface increased 0.74 ± 0.18 °C (1.33 ± 0.32 °F) during the 100 years ending in 2005.[1] The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes "most of the observed increase in globally averaged temperatures since the mid-twentieth century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic (man-made) greenhouse gas concentrations"[1] via an enhanced greenhouse effect. Natural phenomena such as solar variation combined with volcanoes probably had a small warming effect from pre-industrial times to 1950 and a small cooling effect from 1950 onward.[2][3]
These basic conclusions have been endorsed by at least 30 scientific societies and academies of science,[4] including all of the national academies of science of the major industrialized countries.[5][6][7] While individual scientists have voiced disagreement with some findings of the IPCC,[8] the overwhelming majority of scientists working on climate change agree with the IPCC's main conclusions.[9][10]
Climate model projections summarized by the IPCC indicate that average global surface temperature will likely rise a further 1.1 to 6.4 °C (2.0 to 11.5 °F) during the twenty-first century.[1] This range of values results from the use of differing scenarios of future greenhouse gas emissions as well as models with differing climate sensitivity. Although most studies focus on the period up to 2100, warming and sea level rise are expected to continue for more than a thousand years even if greenhouse gas levels are stabilized. The delay in reaching equilibrium is a result of the large heat capacity of the oceans.[1]
Increasing global temperature is expected to cause sea levels to rise, an increase in the intensity of extreme weather events, and significant changes to the amount and pattern of precipitation, likely leading to an expanse of tropical areas and increased pace of desertification. Other expected effects of global warming include changes in agricultural yields, modifications of trade routes, glacier retreat, mass species extinctions and increases in the ranges of disease vectors.
Remaining scientific uncertainties include the amount of warming expected in the future, and how warming and related changes will vary from region to region around the globe. Most national governments have signed and ratified the Kyoto Protocol aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but there is ongoing political and public debate worldwide regarding what, if any, action should be taken to reduce or reverse future warming or to adapt to its expected consequences.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_warming