-
Order Instructions:
Task 1 (Part 1)In reading about rural internet connectivity, one of our researchers has found what looks to be a useful academic paper entitled ‘The Bandwidth Divide: Obstacles to Efficient Broadband Adoption in Rural Sub-Saharan Africa’ (Pejovic et al., 2012), part of which is reproduced in Appendix A of this EMA. The article itself is too long and technical for a general readership, but the ideas are of interest to NOW UK supporters.
Read the extract in Appendix A and prepare a short article for the supporters’ magazine entitled ‘The rural digital divide: Asia vs sub-Saharan Africa’ covering the following aspects:
i.Introduction
ii.An explanation of what is meant by the terms; the IEEE Wi-Fi standards, upload speeds, and Mbps.
iii.A comparison of the differences in the digital divide and energy use in Nepal and Zambia using information obtained from the Wolfram|Alpha website (see Activity 34 in Block 6 Part 1 for more on Wolfram|Alpha). Complete and include Table 1 (below) as your answer.
Table 1: comparison of aspects of the digital divide in Nepal and ZambiaStatistic Nepal Zambia
Population
Percentage of population using the internet
Average broadband upload speed
Number of languages spoken by at least 1% of the population
Number of secure internet servers
Electricity generated per year
iv.A discussion of the technical barriers to bridging the digital divide that exist in countries in rural sub-Saharan Africa, such as Zambia, compared to Nepal. Use your completed table above and the Appendix A excerpt as your main non-TU100 sources for this section of your report.
v.A discussion of some of the social barriers to bridging the digital divide that exist in countries in rural sub-Saharan Africa, such as Zambia, compared to Nepal.
vi.Conclusion
Your answer to Part 1 of Task 1 must be no more than 750 words in total, with around 150 words for part (ii) and 250 words each for parts (iv) and (v). The completed Table 1 is supporting evidence and so it will not be counted as part of the word limit.
Block 6 Part 1 of TU100 includes a lot of material relevant to completing this task, and some other parts of the module are also relevant. The search facility on the module website will help you in researching your answer. Use your completed table above and the Appendix A excerpt as your main non-TU100 sources for your report.
You must clearly reference any non-TU100 sources, including the article in Appendix A.Part 2
Using the 'Key skills' and 'Practical & Professional skills' learning outcomes listed in either Table 2 of the TU100 Guide or prior to each Part of each Block, explain to the NOW UK recruitment panel how your study of TU100 has prepared you to successfully meet two of the four job requirements that NOW UK listed in the original job advertisement.
Your answer to Part 2 of Task 1 must be no more than 200 words in total
| Subject | Technology | Pages | 5 | Style | APA |
|---|
Answer
Internet Connectivity
The use of internet connectivity in any nation is vital for human development in areas like healthcare and economy among others (Pejovic et al, 2012). In using the internet, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Wi-Fi (wireless) standards are guidelines to facilitate the increase of speed and connectivity within the wireless technology as a bonus to internet users (Waverman, et al, 2006). Speed is one crucial factor to consider when it comes to choosing broadband. In relation to this, upload speed is that rate at which data like music and documents are transmitted from the user’s computer to the internet- perhaps to put onto a social networking site such as Instagram. Essentially, the upload goes in the opposite direction to the download- which moves data from another source to one’s device. It is more significant to people who carry out large amounts of uploading. Upload speed is appraised in megabits per second, generally written as Mb or Mbps.
The population in Nepal is based at 30,986,975 with 13 languages spoken by at least 1% of the population and 62% using the internet, while that of Zambia is at 14,638,505 with 18 languages spoken and 15% using the internet. With the use of internet, an average broadband upload speed in Nepal is 8.8 Mbps with 84 secure internet servers, 254 Kbps in Zambia with 54 secure internet servers. Electricity generated per year in Nepal is 91.9 quadrillion joules per year, and 159 quadrillion joules per year in Zambia. Internet penetration has over the years reached astounding numbers in some areas, but has not done much for those in developing areas (Pejovic et al, 2012). Drastic variations have been experienced when it comes to internet connectivity; only 26% of individuals in Sub-Saharan Africa are connected. More so, several technical barriers are faced in bridging the digital divide that exists in rural Sub-Saharan Africa. Rural areas of the developing regions like Zambia have few resources like libraries that provide the basic information about the issue (Brewer, 2005). Furthermore, for advancements to be made, labor is required, which is deficient as the skilled workers mostly move to more industrialized areas that are already experiencing the good of internet. More importantly, there is lack of access to computers and the internet in both Nepal and Zambia. Nepal is a mountainous country with most of its people living in the rural areas and availability of electricity is limited to a small percentage and where internet is available, it is rather expensive and has a low bandwidth. Zambia, additionally, has more people living in the rural areas where very little infrastructure exists and electrification is an issue, forcing many to rely on solar energy which requires substantial initial investment and planning (Brewer, 2005). Also, one satellite is meant to serve many people, increasing the aspect of limited aspect since satellite connectivity is closely associated with delay in communication. Geographically, the rural areas are also located far from the main data centers, experiencing a lag caused by the physical distance from the application servers.
Countries in rural Sub-Saharan Africa are often characterized by dispersed communities with sparse population and a concentrated central area. These individuals live a subsistence lifestyle, dependent on subsistence agriculture for their livelihood through growing of maize (Chen, 2011). This points out how people in such areas are greatly associated with their tradition ways of life hence creating a gap in filling up the space it has in the use of internet. In their way of life, the rural people live in clusters of home and are separated from one another by one or more kilometers. The great disparity in their location and closeness to each other creates a barrier to bridging the digital divide. Nepal also experiences something of the sort. Since it is mountainous, majority of people live in its rural areas and carry out subsistence farming too (Chen, 2011). Zambia, just like many other countries in the developing regions, has its people still focused on gender inequality. This implies mainly boys can access the internet more than girls. People fail to realize that involving both genders increases the number and chances to access the internet and improve their lives. Additionally, many view as the internet as a way of their culture decaying and deteriorating into something else, having no chance for the future generation to embrace what is truly theirs and act accordingly as per their customs and traditions. This is due to not embracing the changes in today’s world and using it to their benefit, and ensuring limitation is greatly considered.
My study of TU100 has being an enjoyable one, well-presented and it has definitely introduced me to a huge number of new ideas on how digital technologies relate to us, through how computers and the internet allow people to interact with others, both negatively and positively. Through this programme, I have been able to develop my programming skills and my study skills as well. It has enhanced my way of looking at the world, in relation to the changes experienced due to the advancement of computing technologies and their application. Studying the programme has enabled me to see the digital divide around the globe and learn how to overcome it through ways like creating web pages where I can help address the issue and gain supports and their help. In so doing, I can also create accounts in social networking sites where information can be shared to create awareness to many others who can provide assistance, and further interact, thus sharing information and ideas on how to develop endeavors in the organization. Interacting in such a way has helped develop confidence in addressing issues and embrace critics and ideas for the better of myself and the organization.
The access to the internet is crucial, but the technology however needs to be sustainable and affordable to all, and not just a fraction (Chen, 2011). Connectivity in rural areas has yet to get a grip on the technological advancements and grow just like many other regions are. To bridge the rural digital divide, there is concern to build up human and institutional capacities to exploit information and knowledge more efficiently (Waverman, et al, 2006).
References
|
Brewer, E ( 2005). The challenges of technology research for developing regions. IEEE Computer, 38, 15-23 Chen, J. ( 2011). Re-architecting Web and mobile information access for emerging regions, Department of Mathematics, New York University
Waverman, L et al, (2006). The Impact of telecoms on economic growth in developing countries. Vodafone Policy Paper Series, 2
|