Journal #4 - Automatic Teller Machine

                The one computer system that comes to mind that we interact with on a daily basis is the automated teller machine, or the ATM.  This computer system makes our daily lives more convenient because almost all are open 24 hours a day, 7 days and give us the freedom to make money transactions any time.  The first automated teller machine was called the Bankograph and was first installed in New York City in 1939 by the City Bank of New York, but it was removed 6 months later because of the lack of acceptance of the population.  Its features included deposit transactions but did not feature the dispense of cash.  The ATM that we know and all use today didn't get released to the public until December 1972 with the 2984 CIT (Cash Issuing Terminal), the first true cashpoint.

                There are many underlining technologies that go into the ATM to make it operate, first is the Operating System.  The vast majority of today's ATMs use Microsoft Windows OS - mostly Windows XP Professional or Windows XP Embedded.  A card reader reads a magnetic strip on a card to verify the user's identification by checking the inputted PIN matches the requested bank account and routing number.  Most automated teller machines are connected to interbank networks such as NYCE, PULSE, PLUS, Cirrus, AFFN, Interac, Interswitch, STAR, LINK, MegaLink, and BancNet.  These networks enable cashpoints to connect to their host via ADSL or a dial-up modem over a telephone line, or directly through a leased line.  A Secure Socket Layer (SSL) is used to encrypt all traffic between the host and the ATM through TCP/IP.  Then the data goes to a secure cryptoprocessor inside the unit where it is processed.  The cash dispenser uses a bunch of robotics to issue the desired amount of cash to the user.

                There are some security issues to be aware of when using an ATM, first make sure the card reader matches the machine.  A lot of ATMs prompt you to check the reader to see if the secure tape is still intact.  Hackers sometimes place their own card readers over the machine's reader so you have to swipe your card in both.  This enables the hacker to get your bank account number, routing number, and PIN from the magnetic strip.  With this information the hacker can log on as you and have full access to your bank account.  My advice is to be aware of the different methods hackers use for identity theft and the precautions you can take to prevent it.  Because if the ATM didn't exist, hackers would still find a way to hack something else that handled money transactions and made our lives more convenient.

Journal #3: Algorithms In Daily Life

                The first algorithm I use every morning is the one to get ready for class.  This algorithm is the procedure to get ready for school:

1. Alarm goes off at 8:00AM
2. Turn off the alarm clock
3. Get out of bed
4. Brush teeth
5. Shower
6. Shave
7. Get dressed
8. Take a snack for the road
9. Head out the door

                Sometimes I brush my teeth in the shower, depending if I am pushed for time.  The algorithm determines if I put steps 4 and 5 together depending if I get out of bed on time.  But no matter what, the alarm will always go off at 8:00AM sharp to start the algorithm and end with me heading out the door.  I think a computer system can be built to follow this algorithm easily.  It has a start and an end, and only a few steps to get from the beginning to the end.  We could even program the computer to perform a task if the alarm clock never goes off, like let's say a power outage happened over night and reset the clock.  Now the alarm clock won't sound when it is suppose to.  We can program a contingency plan if that ever happens.  Like in real life I also set my phone alarm to go off at 8:00AM so if the wall clock doesn't go off for any reason my phone will still sound and wake me up at the same time.

                This is only one of the real-life situations that I might come across that would prevent me from performing my morning algorithm fast.  Another one that I come across often is when I take a shower the water doesn't get at a decent temperature fast enough.  It's too cold to step in the shower so I'm waiting outside sometimes for as long as 5 minutes waiting for the water to heat up.  When it finally gets to a suitable temperature it's perfect for a few minutes, and then turns into lava.  And that is my queue to hop out and shave.

                I don't think there is one function that a human can do that a computer can't.  From playing a game of tennis, to walking a dog, given enough time a computer can learn to perform all of our daily algorithms.  We can program a computer to calculate the velocity of the ball and then let it decide what swing to use and how hard to hit it.  We can teach a computer how to walk and then tell it what route to take the dog.  If there is a mean looking stray dog along the route we can program an alternate route to take the dog.

Journal #2: Mark Zuckerberg

                I find the most interesting person in computing history to be Mark Zuckerberg.  His father taught him Atari BASIC Programming in the 1990's and hired software developer David Newman to tutor him privately.  Newman found it difficult to stay ahead of young Zuckerberg most of the time and called him a prodigy.  We know Mark Zuckerberg as one of the five founders of Facebook and I think his social network would not have been created if he took the job Microsoft offered instead of attending Harvard University.  I think the world would be an entirely different place without Facebook.  There is not one person who does not a have a Facebook, and if you actually do find a person without an account we find him or her to be out of place.  Someone we wouldn't want to be in the social loop with anyway.  The accomplishment I find most interesting about him is the fact that he built Facebook and hosted it from his dorm room at the age of 21 and later made him a billionaire by the age of 23.  He was named number 1 on the 2010 list of the Top 100 "most influential people of the Information Age" by Vanity Fair.

                Another one of Zuckerberg's accomplishment is a media player we built called Synapse, it used artificial intelligence to determine the user's listening habits.  Microsoft and AOL tried to purchase Synapse and recruit him, but Zuckerberg decided to attend Harvard instead.  If I ever got the chance to meet Mark Zuckerberg  I would ask him why he decided to attend Harvard instead of taking the job at Microsoft?  Another question I would like to ask him is why did he decide to launch Facesmash?  Facesmash was a web site he created in 2003 that let students select the best looking person from a choice of two photos.  Students would select the "hotter" of the two.  Harvard executives forced Zuckerberg to take down the site after it being open for only a few days.  Maybe he built the site for the thrill of hacking into the Face Books at the Harvard housing buildings, or maybe for a personal vendetta. We really don't know.   Another question I would like to ask him is "Without your father's influence and kick start in computer programming, do you think you would have had an interest in computer programming?  Did you excel because you wanted to make your father proud or because you wanted to make yourself proud?"  Fathers sometimes have a weird way of showing sons that they love them, so I always wondered if Mark Zuckerberg went on to do great things in computer programming to satisfy his father or to satisfy himself.  No matter the reason why he pushed himself to excel, there is no doubt that Mark Zuckerberg has made the world smaller by creating a social network that is easy to use and update to bring information, people, and friends  together.