Technology Annotated Bibliography

Vaughan, Liwen, and Thelwall, Mike. “Search engine coverage bias: evidence and possible causes.” Information Processing & Management 40.4(2004), 693-707.

This article discusses the roles played by commercial search engines in access of information and dissemination. The main issue is determining whether the search engines are biased in their dissemination of information towards the United States or other countries. This was designated by testing for national bias in the major search engines. Another important aspect of the searches is whether they are biased and what the underlying causes are. Measurement of bias in the article was determined as the percentage of the group of websites covered by the search engines. The study used the coverage of a sample of commercial websites from the United States, Singapore, Taiwan, and China by AltaVista, Google and AllTheWeb. The article highlights the tension that would arise from biased indexing of websites due to the increasing volume of online trade. Coverage bias was found in the websites since the United States’ sites got more coverage compared to the other countries. This source is relevant because it shows that the internet is a biased information source.

Mostafa, Javed. Seeking Better Web Searches [Preview]”Deluged with superfluous responses to online queries, users will soon benefit from improved search engines that deliver customized results.” Scientific American 24 Jan. 2005. Web. 10 Jun. 2012.

This article from the internet highlights the use of the internet as an information-gathering tool. It focuses on how the internet and search engines have changed significantly since the invention of the internet. Googling or web searching has become synonymous with research. Online search engines have to improve their functionality in line with the needs of the people. The article examines how the internet enables a curious mind to gather information. New search engines improve the quality of search results by delving deeper into online databases in order to sort and present the results better. The examination engines also track the long-term interests of the individuals in order to ensure that they refine handling of new information.

This source shows how the search engines optimize their results in relation to the interests and location of the individual. It shows the possibility of having customized web searches in order to improve the outcome of searches for the individuals. Matching sketches to similar shapes also enables the user to get . These issues highlight how the efficiency of internet searches can be improved to enable handling of new information. This article is highly relevant to the issue of information gathering from the internet by showing how the search engines can be improved to increase the efficiency of internet searches.

Zayani, Mohamed. “Social Media and the Recon%uFB01guration of Political Action in Revolutionary Tunisia.” Democracy and Society. 8. 2 (2011): 1-4. Print.

This article emphasizes on the significance of new media channels in the political events that forced the Tunisian president out of office. It exposes the relationship between revolutionary momentum and media activism. This article is relevant in showing the relationship between social media and democracy since it reveals the evolving dynamics of political engagement of the young generation. The focus of the article is the reconfiguration of the terms and spheres of political action in the social media age. This article describes the structure of political organization of Tunisia. It also shows how the structure contributes to the compounding of the problem thus aggravating the citizens. The citizens were deprived their human rights and dignity. This provided a basis for understanding the desperate actions of the young Tunisian who triggered the riots and subsequent revolution.

This journal article presents how the social needs of the citizens were intertwined with their political demands. It gives an adequate account of the simmering tensions in Tunisia due to the discomfort. The article expose how earlier riots were quelled by the government. It shows the appeal of Tunisia’s young and educated population towards social media. The youth and other citizens of the country had to use social media because of its ease of access and affordability.

Eltantawy, Nahed and Wiest, Julie. “Social Media in the Egyptian Revolution: Reconsidering Resource Mobilization Theory.” International Journal of Communication 5 (2011): 1207-1224. Print.

The article opens a dialogue on the utilization of the theory of resource mobilization for explaining sociopolitical movements and their impact on the people. It describes how new media channels enable the mobilization of collective action. Social media created an avenue for social movements fueled by the internet. It exposes how tech-savvy users can utilize the internet to organize collective action such as customer boycotts or public protests. The use of cyber-activism movements is an essential aspect in promotion of democracy, in the age of web 2.0. This article enables the audience to explore ways in which social and political movements are supported by social media through the provision of opportunities for political expression.

The article also shows how the social media has been used to organize collective action for resource-poor actors. This affords them to have the means of communication that are not constrained by financial or spatial factors. The Egyptian revolution of 2011 is used as a case study for the utilization of social media in organizing social movements. This source is, therefore, relevant in analyzing how social media is used in driving democracy. It provides evidence of the resource mobilization theory in utilization of social media to organize people in their quest for democracy.

Pepitone, Julianne. “Hundreds of protesters descend to ‘Occupy Wall Street’.” CNN Money. 17 Sept. 2012. Web. 25 June, 2012.

This resource is a web page that focuses on use of the internet, mainly social media, for organizing the leaderless protest on Wall Street. The article shows how demonstrators went to the streets of Manhattan in order to draw attention to the havoc wrecked by the powerful financial interests. The organizers and demonstrators used social media tools, such as Twitter and Facebook, to join and protest the economic problems caused by significant financial interests. This web article reveals the effectiveness of social media in the organization of people in order to express their views. It discusses the freedom and flexibility provided by social media in promoting democracy through communication. It demonstrates the success achieved by the organizers of the protests. It also shows how social media provided them with a chance to make their stand on the issue. The article emphasizes on the empowerment of citizens through communication. People gain enlightenment when they communicate with their peers and people who are like-minded. Most of the people involved in the protest felt it necessary to ensure justice was taken on the financial sector leaders that had a hand in financial crisis in their country.

Rationale

The ideas expressed in the article on search coverage bias can be used in showing that the internet is not accurate in the dissemination of information. This would be an essential aspect in enabling students to understand that the internet or search engines are biased as an information source. This would enable students to understand that the search engines cannot be used as adequate research sources because of their bias. The ideas can be involved in middle-high school curriculum because the students have the knowledge and skill to use the internet as a research tool. It would enable them understand the bias in search engine results. This is essential in enabling them to come up with ways of increasing the effectiveness of their research in order to improve the education gains.

Computer programs and different algorithms are utilized to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of search engine. These also optimize the recalling and precision of search information. Although, it is a noble course, it has been hindered by several challenges that reduce its overall objectivity. For search engines to be effective, they have to be reliable, efficient, relevant, and user-oriented to yield high satisfaction for the users. This has to be understood by the students since it is essential in their internet-based research. The students have to use searches that feed their curious minds and enable them to gather the right information when requested.

The internet has changed significantly with recent innovations. These innovations enable the search engines to customize search results for different users. Search engines applying the highlighted innovations will improve the efficiency of the searches and enable people to use them more effectively. These ideas are relevant for high schools students that use the internet as a relevant information source for both academic and non-academic issues. It would be essential for their curious minds in order to enable them understand how their searches can be optimized. The goal of teaching this would be to enable the students understand the internet and innovations, as well as how they can be used to improve the efficiency of their searches.

Use of social media in political action in Tunisia, Egypt and Wall Street provides information on the use of social media in enabling collective, democratic action. These show the direct relationship between social media usage and political action. They can be used to demonstrate students how ordinary citizens use the internet to organize collective action in the quest for democracy. The evolving dynamics of political engagement in the age of social media has to be understood by students because of its relevant and current development. The articles prove that it is not only applicable in poor economies because of the Wall Street protests.

Because of the development of interactive internet and social media, sharing of information and finding relevant information has become relatively easy and fast. People can share and access information from different parts of the world, which has helped in increasing awareness in relation to sensitive issues such as economic and social injustices, as well as democracy. As a preventive effort, governments in some countries such as Korea and China have implemented control policies for the spread of social media and internet access. This is based on the ability of these technologies to enable people to join and engage in collective action that can upend governments or oppressive regimes as witnessed in Egypt, Tunisia, Syria, and Bahrain.

Students have to understand the dynamics of situations and their triggers in order to understand the nature of the situations. Political triggers in Tunisia and Egypt differ from the trigger of the New York protests. The resource mobilization theory is an adequate theory for explaining the usage of the internet in the organization of collective action. The students have to understand the significance of collective action in administration of democracy. Spatial or financial factors are not an essential hindrance in usage of social media thus provide a highly effective way of communicating with masses. This can be involved in high school curriculum because the students in this age group are known for their frequent usage of the internet. This would aid them in understanding alternative uses of the internet and social media in positive uses. Human rights and privileges have to be protected to ensure that leaders do not offend the citizens. Social media provides an avenue for people to organize collective action in order to ensure democracy and protection of their rights.