Who was Randy Pausch?

Randy Pausch was a computer scientist at Carnegie Mellon University

What was he known for?

Randy Pausch was known for his work in Design and Human Interaction.

5 points you liked in his talk:

-It's more important to do the right things than do things right
-Experience is something you can't fake
-if you don't dream big, you cannot do it
-Failing to plan is planning to fail
-the 4-quadrant to-do list was something interesting I came across

References:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTugjssqOT0

What is a decision problem?

In computational complexity theory, the answer to a decision problem is either a yes or a no based on the input values.

What does it mean for a decision problem to be decidable?

We consider a decision problem to be decidable when it can be effectively solved by an algorithm e.g. we can easily construct an algorithm to find out whether a number is even or odd, prime or not prime.

What is the class P? What is the class NP?

The P in P class stands for polynomial time. The P class consists of decision problems that can be solved in polynomial time. It is easy to find a solution to P problems.

What is the intuitive meaning of the “P versus NP” question?

P versus NP is an unsolved problem in the realm of computer science. P consists of problems that are relatively easy to solve while NP is a set of not easily solvable problems. The P vs NP problem essentially asks that if problems whose solutions can be quickly verified by a computer, can they also be quickly solved? That is, that if we present a potential solution to a hard problem, will it be easy to verify whether its correct or not?
All P problems are NP problems which means that if they are easy to solve via computation, it is also easy to verify their solutions. The current hypothesis is that P is not equal to NP as there are tons of problems for which we can verify potential answers, but we cannot solve them quickly.

If you resolve the P versus NP question, how much richer will you be?

You can earn a million dollars if you solve the P vs NP problem!!

References:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P_versus_NP_problem

https://news.mit.edu/2009/explainer-pnp

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decision_problem

What is Big Data?

Big Data is data that contains large Variety, arrives in increasing Volumes and with great Velocity. These are known as the three Vs of Big Data.

What is cloud computing?

Cloud computing is the on-deman delivery of computing services over the internet. The services can include storage, databases, networks and servers.

Is cloud computing a novel technology per se or an amalgamation of several traditional technologies?

Cloud computing stems from the traditional technology of distributed systems.

What are the 3 major cloud computing service models?

-software as a service (SaaS)
-infrastructure as a service (IaaS)
-platform as a service (PaaS).

Name at least 3 real-life problems that cloud computing can help solve them.

-Security and Disaster Recovery
-Cost Control as it provides flexible paying options
-Increases mobility as team workers can work from anywhere and anytime

What is the economic/business model of cloud computing?

Cloud computing has an on-demand, pay-as-you-go business model. Clients can choose packages based on their needs and resources.

References:

https://www.oracle.com/big-data/what-is-big-data/

https://blog.leaseweb.com/2018/03/20/15-business-problems-that-can-be-solved-by-moving-to-the-cloud/

https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/SaaS-IaaS-PaaS-Comparing-Cloud-Service-Models

https://solved.scality.com/solved/the-history-of-cloud-computing/

https://azure.microsoft.com/en-in/resources/cloud-computing-dictionary/what-is-cloud-computing/

Security Incident 1:

In 2017, the website of “Qatar State News Agency” was hacked. The hackers posted content against the Emir and the interests of the state on the agency’s website, and the content was viewed all across the globe. As a result of the security breach, Qatar’s diplomatic relationships with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt severed. The website was not secure and a hacker gained access using a Russian IP address. The hacker used the vulnerabilities in the code to his advantage, gained control over the network and started collecting sensitive information like passwords and messages and posted fake stories. The issue was investigated by the Qatari government, FBI and NCA. Right before the fake story was posted, there was an unusual amount of traffic on the website’s homepage and that too mainly from the UAE. Most of the clicks came from a single IP address of UAE and this helped the investigation team trace back to a mobile phone in the UAE. That phone was the first to access QNL’s website and also revisited the page multiple times right after the fake story was posted. UAE government, however, has denied all allegations.

Security Incident 2:

Around 1.4 GBs of data from the Qatar National Bank, a multi-national commercial bank, were leaked in 2016. The data included sensitive information such as bank corporate files, customer information, credit card numbers, pins etc. The breach impacted media outlets, and some government officials. The Qatar National Bank, however, refused to give a statement with regards to the issue and claimed that there was “no financial impact on the clients or the bank." It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of people could have been affected due to the breach. It is not known exactly how the data was leaked, and it is speculated that it could have been due to human error or a cyberattack from an outsider or an insider. The Bank said that they were in contact with the concerned parties to investigate the issue and were also working on securing their systems.

References:

https://www.cyberlands.io/topsecuritybreachesqatar

https://qz.com/1107023/the-inside-story-of-the-hack-that-nearly-started-another-middle-east-war/

https://www.spamfighter.com/News-20247-Qatar-National-Bank-Suffers-Massive-Data-Breach-No-Money-Stolen.htm

https://www.zdnet.com/article/qatar-national-bank-hacked-1-4gb-file-archive-leaked-online/

Why did we move from punch cards to programming languages? What does that tell you about the purpose of programming languages?

Punch cards served as long-term storage devices beacause initially there was no way of storing data inside the computers. However, once magnetic storage device production started at cheaper rates, we moved to programming languages, which are just another way of communicating instructions to a computer.

There are hundreds of different programming languages out there. Why do you think we need so many?

Each programming language has certain features and characteristics that make it suitable for solving specific problems. For example, web developers use Javascript, HTML to make web applications while game developers use C++ or C# to make video games.

What are some drawbacks of the programming language you use? How would you like it to be different? Think of specific examples.

I have worked with python this semester. It has slower execution as it as an interpreted language and hence executes statements line by line.

If you were going to create a new programming language, how would you start? What do you need to define?

I would begin by designing the language i.e. deciding the syntax and the programming paradigms. Then I would go ahead with creating the compiler, building the library for commonly used functions and then the editor\IDE.

References:

https://www.freecodecamp.org/news/why-are-there-so-many-programming-languages/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_programming_in_the_punched_card_era

https://tomassetti.me/how-to-create-programming-language/

How do you define AI?

Artificial Intelligence is the branch of CS concerned with building smart machines capable of performing tasks that typically require human intelligence.

Can you name at least three different sub-fields of AI?

-Machine learning
-Robotics
-Neural networks
-Natural Language Processing

AI has been around since about 70 years so far. Why is it booming right now?

It is due to increased data volumes, advanced algorithms (such as deep learning), open-source libraries, open research publication, cheaper, faster and more accessible computing power and improvements in storage.

Can you name at least three application sectors where robots are being largely employed? What are the reasons?

Health Care: For example, the da Vinci Surgical System utilizes the hand movements of the operating surgeon to control tiny, precise instruments inside the patient’s body.
Military: unmanned drones can be used for surveillance and support operations on the battlefield
Industrial: robots are used in picking, packing and palletizing of goods in many factories

Can you identify three major challenges for a wheeled autonomous robot performing a 24h surveillance task in a large facility? (e.g., something like Mall of Qatar)

-It might be difficult for wheels to reach all areas like tight spaces
-The robot is automated so it can hit people due to some miscalculation or error
-The wheels can create noise and alert the criminal allowing the criminal to escape

References:

https://builtin.com/artificial-intelligence

https://www.jabil.com/blog/ten-popular-industrial-robot-applications.html

https://aiqom.ai/en/blogs/why-is-ai-booming-now

What is a genome/DNA and why is it important to know?

A genome contains all the genetic information needed for an organism to develop and function. A genome is made up of nucleotide sequences of DNA and includes genes and other elements that control the activity of those genes.

Does CS have a significant role to play in studying why we are tall, organized, athletic, or healthy?

Computational genomics, which is a subset of computational biology, refers to the use of computational and statistical analysis to decipher biology from genome sequences and related data, including both the DNA and RNA sequence. By understanding this sequence we can explain why humans have a certain biological makeup e.g. height, muscle mass, and health

What are some of the important questions in biology and medicine that can be addressed with computer science?

In computational neuropsychiatry, we use mathematical and computer-assisted modeling of brain mechanisms involved in mental disorders to understand neuronal circuits that could generate mental functions and dysfunctions. We can use computational biology together with evolutionary biology to build population genetics models of evolutionary systems from first principles in order to predict what is likely to evolve.

Is it enough to study humans and the human genome?

No, computational biology is now also being used in the world of pharmacology to compare chemical and genomic data related to the effectiveness of drugs. Moreover, it is being used to develop mathematical models of living organisms (not just humans) to examine the systems that govern structure, development, and behavior in biological systems.

Is the industry interested in computational biology, or is it largely academic research?

Yes, computational biology has industrial applications in drug development, development of agricultural chemicals, and production and testing of medical devices and equipment.

References:

https://www.nigms.nih.gov/education/Documents/Studying_genes_final.pdf

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computational_biology#Applications

https://www.biotecnika.org/2019/05/career-in-computational-biology-job-prospects-skills-required/