Road safety
Traffic lights
Traffic lights help reduce traffic jams and road traffic accidents. It does this by stopping the cars for pedestrians to get across safely and letting cars in other directions to get there chance to go across the road. The disadvantages of traffic lights are they can sometimes break and this causes traffic jams, accidents and road rage. This type of technology is done by control. A computer is inside the traffic light which is set to a certain time to change. This technology helps the community by preventing road traffic accidents and damages to the community. Overall I think traffic lights are a good type of technology because they reduce traffic jams and road traffic accidents which is what they are intended to do.
Security (crime prevention)
CCTV cameras
CCTV cameras are a form of data capture technology they help the community in Middlesbrough by catching the criminals red handed and getting them arrested and hopefully sent to prison. The fewer criminals on the street means the less crime committed. The disadvantages of CCTV cameras are they can easily be dismantled and broken by the criminal that will result in them not being caught and being left on the streets to commit more crime. Overall I think CCTV is good because it catches the criminals most of the time resulting in less crime.
Education
Computers in the CLC
The CLC (City Learning Centre) is a building were adults can come for night classes to get better qualifications for a better job. The advantages of the CLC are it has night classes for ICT and to get any job you need a good qualification in ICT. The advantage of the CLC is it provids a place to learn how to use computers which helps the community in Middlesbrough. The disadvantages of the computers in CLC are if one computer gets a virus the whole system of computers do and this will make it unusable. Overall I think the CLC is good because it serves its purpose of helping the community to get better qualifications.
Health
Defibrillator
The only effective method of treatment for cardiac arrest is to deliver electric shocks using a defibrillator. The advantages of using a defibrillator are it restarts the heart and saves lives. The disadvantages of using a defibrillator are people who are unqualified might misuse this type of technology. Overall I think a defibrillator is a good technology because it is effective in saving lives which is its purpose.
Helping the community
Touch screen
Many shopping centres use information services to assist the people. Such as touch screens at tourist information centres.
These information points give local information such as; interactive maps and details of key events, taking place as well as general information that may be of use to the people using the service. They use touch screen technology and allow you to find out information that you would otherwise have to go to the tourist information centre to find out. The advantages of using Touch screens are you can access information without going to a tourist information centre, which there may be only one of in the shopping centre but five information touch screens to use that are near you. The disadvantages of using touch screens are they can crash like a computer if you keep pressing the screen. The second disadvantage of touch screen computers is that they are only in shopping centres in Middlesbrough instead of local places. Overall I think a touch screen is a good idea to get information but on the other hand not very many people use them.
BT Phone box kiosk
BT payphone kiosks allow access to the phone network but also allow you to send text messages, send e-mails and to surf the Internet.
These Internet kiosks have already been introduced in larger cities and key locations such as train stations. The disadvantages of the internet in the phone box are that sometimes a connection can not be made. The advantages of using the phone box for an internet connection are you can check emails or information when you are out in the community. Overall I think internet in the phone box is a good idea because you can check your emails when you’re out but on the other hand not very many people use this.
How the technologies work
Traffic lights
Traffic lights work by having three different coloured lights which represent something different to follow. These lights are; green, yellow and red. The red light symbolises stop, the Yellow light symbolises get ready to stop and the green light symbolises go. The purpose of traffic lights is to reduce traffic jams and accidents.
CCTV cameras
CCTV cameras are a form a data capture technology they record images onto a VCR and can be played back on a monitor to replay the events it has recorded. The main purpose of CCTV is to capture criminals re handed.
Computers in the CLC
The computers in the CLC are connected together to one system. The computers are mainly used for work related use. The purpose of the computers is to help the community get better qualifications for better jobs.
Defibrillator
The only effective method of treatment for cardiac arrest is to deliver electric shocks using a defibrillator. A defibrillator "de-fibrillates." When the heart is fibrillating, it is fluttering. The heart monitor looks like a series of "V"s. The defibrillator jolts the heart back into a normal rhythm so it can pump blood to the body. If a person is flat line, the defibrillator won't do any good.
Touch screen
A touch screen has three main components: a touch sensor, a controller, and a software driver. The touch screen is an input device, so it needs to be combined with a display and a PC or other device to make it work effectively.
BT Phone box kiosk
BT phone box kiosks work by being connected to the internet and having a touch screen attached so you are interactive with the internet. The purpose of this technology is so that you can send emails, surf the net and phone people all in one device.