Communication Technology

Communication Technology

Learning StandardLearning Standard3. Communication TechnologiesIdeas can be communicated through engineering drawings, written reports, and pictures.

3.1 Identify and explain the components of a communication system, i.e., source, encoder, transmitter, receiver, decoder, storage, retrieval, and destination.

3.2 Identify and explain the appropriate tools, machines, and electronic devices (e.g. drawing tools, computer aided design, and cameras) used to produce and/or reproduce design solutions (e.g., engineering drawings, prototypes, and reports)

3.3 Identify and compare communication technologies and systems, i.e., audio, visual, printed and mass communication.

3.4 Identify and explain how symbols and icons (e.g., international symbols and graphics) are used to communicate a message.

Learning ObjectivesLearning

ObjectivesAt the conclusion of the unit students will be able to:

Define communication & communication technology & understand the difference between them

Understand the 5 things that must be considered when creating a message in order for the message to be effective

Identify & understand the different types of communication

Identify & explain the components of a communication system

Understand what an icon/symbol is & why they are important to communication technology

Understand why Alexander Graham Bell, Philo Farnsworth, Martin Cooper & Tim Berners-Lee are important to the advancement of communication technology

Communication:

Communication Technology allows humans to share ideas easier

This information is used to help people• make decisions• solve problems

Exchange of information between people

Message Design

Purpose of the Message:

WHY have you created the message

In order to create an effective message, the person creating it needs to be aware of 5 things:

Intended Audience:

WHO will be receiving the message

Ideas being exchanged must be understood in order for communication to be effective…

Message DesignNature of the Message:

WHAT is the message about

Language used create message:

Message should be created using language that is understandable to the intended audience to allow clear communication

Medium Being Used:

HOW will the message be delivered (TV, Radio, Billboard, Internet, Text Message, Email, Music, etc…)

Types of Communication

Technology

Mass CommunicationCommunication to a large number of people at one time

Began with the invention of the Printing Press

Mass Communication

Invented by Johannes Gutenberg in 1448

Prior to this invention, people had to write every word on every page of every book by hand – this was a very slow process

The device made it possible for the common man, woman & child to have access to books for the first time, which meant they would also have the ability to accumulate knowledge

As a result books were very expensive so only wealthy people had access to the knowledge they contained

TelecommunicationCommunication over a distance

Examples:

Phones, televisions, radios, satellites

Graphic CommunicationCommunication that sends & receives messages visually using of drawn or printed pictures & symbols

Examples:

People send & receive messages through reading, writing, drawing & painting

Magazines, newspapers, messages on clothing, billboards, road signs, computer images

Wave Communication

Communication that moves in waves

Sound Waves:

Example:

Vibrations traveling through the air,water etc. that can be perceived bythe human ear

Light Waves:

Message is transmitted as waves of light

Example:

Musical instruments & human voice

Television

Electromagnetic Carrier Waves:

Wave Communication

Message is converted into electrical signals and carried through the atmosphere. Large antennas & dishes transmit & receive the signals.Example:

Television & radio broadcastsCell Phone calls

This creates a more complete & entertaining message

Multimedia Communication

Audio refers to:Video refers to:

Sound

Images

Combining text, sound & images into one presentation

Frequently used for:• Entertainment• Education• Advertising

Components of a Communication System

Source

Encoder

Transmitter

Decoder

Receiver

Where the information begins / where the signal is sent from Examples: voice or image

Channel

Changes the information (message) into code so it can be sent (transmitted)

Sends the encoded message over a channel

Translates the encoded message into useful information so that it can be understood

Takes in the encoded message sent through the channel by the transmitter

Channel:

The medium or link through which a signal is sent from the transmitter to the receiver Examples: wire cables, fiber-optic cables, wireless wave communication

Many communication systems often have 2 additional components that allow information to be saved so that it can be accessed when needed

Storage: Message is saved for later use

Retrieval:

Message is recalled when needed

Examples:

Voicemail / Telephone answering machine

Components of a Communication System

Books / Notebooks

iPods / MP3 Players / Cameras

CDs / DVDs / Blu-rays Video GamesComputer hard drives / Flash drives

Icon/Symbol:

Icons & Symbols

A picture or image that is used to represent something else

Allows people to communicate without using words

Icons & Symbols

Alexander Graham Bell

Born March 3, 1847 in Edinburgh, Scotland

Worked as a teacher for deaf students in Boston & became a professor at Boston University

Obtained the first patent for the telephone on March 7, 1876

Alexander Graham BellMade first phone call to his assistant Thomas Watson who was working in another room on March 12, 1876

Created the Bell Telephone Company on July 9, 1877 with Watson and several other business partners

The first long distance call between New York City & Chicago in October 1892The first long distance call across the United States was made between New York City & San Francisco on January 25, 1915

Alexander Graham Bell

Interestingly, Bell considered the telephone an intrusion and would not have one in his Study

Philo Farnsworth

Born in Utah in 1906

First person to create a fully functional all-electronic television system & demonstrate it to the public in 1927

Holds over 165 patents

Martin CooperBorn in Chicago in 1928

Made the first Cell Phone call on April 3, 1973 in New York City

Worked as a General Manager for Motorola’s Communication Systems Division

The call was made to his friend & competitive rival who was working for Bell Labs who was also working to develop a cellular phone

Martin CooperIt took 10 years for the cell phone to be ready to sell to the public (1983)

This first publicly available cell phone weighed 16 ounces (1 pound) & sold for $3500

Today Cooper is the CEO of ArrayCom, a company that he co-founded in 1992

ArrayCom develops more reliable and inexpensive cellular antennas

Tim Berners-Lee

Born in England in 1955Worked as a computer scientist for CERN in Switzerland in 1989

CERN employed thousands of Nuclear Research Scientists & engineers worldwide

Tim Berners-Lee Workers at CERN needed a way to share technical information & documents

Berners-Lee was working to come up with a solution to his company’s problem

Tim Berners-LeeHypertext:

One piece of computer text can be linked with another

Tim Berners-Lee

Using the hypertext concept - Tim Berners-Lee wrote the first “browser” softwareText and documents could be linked together - not just within CERN but over the entire internet

Berners-Lee had been experimenting with his own version of hypertext

Tim Berners-Lee This could be done using mouse clicks – notyping was necessaryHe called his program “World Wide Web”which worked like current browsers exceptthere were no pictures or color monitors

Tim Berners-Lee The first website went online on August 6,1991. CERN announced that it could be used bythe public for free in 1993The fact that it was free was very important to the growth of the Web

Tim Berners-Lee The World Wide Web has become arguably most powerful communication medium the world has known

Today Berners-Lee works at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts and is the leader of an organization (W3C) that is responsible for overseeing the Web’s continued development