Assignment 1: Information Literacy

Kenny Lancheros

Best Practice (BB): create the document and under each step type the answer.

1. Use the Internet to find a Technology current event article

The article must be current (no more than 30 days old) and from a reputable source
Article must discuss one or more of the following topics;
o Mobile technology
o Ethics
o Privacy
o Security
o Emerging technology
Some recommended sites are zdnet.com, techcrunch.com, technology sections of
CNN, BBC, and Economist.

2. Write a paragraph summarizing the article. (5 points)

The article in question is about smartphone Makers needing to take the initiative to make
smartphones distraction free while the user is driving. As if as drivers werent distracted enough with,
outside noise, vehicle movements, operating the vehicle it self, and other unpredictable drivers on the
road, smartphone distractions are now the cause of 1 in 4 vehicular accidents. How much information is
being fed to us through our phones? There are countless push notifications from, applications and text
messaging, fighting for our attention. The problem is that they grab our attention at the wrong time.
Most of us dont have the self-control to put down the phone or even ignore the distractions, so a
standard feature disabling the use of the phone while in motion would be the answer. App developers
wont implement this feature in to their app with fear of inactivity from the users, and if they do, its
usually an option that we choose to ignore. So in conclusion, the solution should come down to the
operating system and who writes it. To take it up on them selves, for the sake of saving lives, to disable
phone features like texting, push notification, and voice features, And simply temporarily responding
automatically to the sender of the whereabouts of the driver and the activity they are involved in, I.E
driving. Apple has patented a software feature for its future devices, which disables any activities that
may distract the driver as soon as it detects forward motion in the vehicle.

CSIT 101 Assignment 1: Information Literacy

Updated 1/6/15

Assignment 1: Information Literacy

Kenny Lancheros

3. Find two additional Internet articles on the same topic. (4 points)

List the keywords you will use to do the search.

o Smartphone + distractions
Run the search on two different search engines.
Identify the search engines you used.
o Google.com and ask.com
Compare the results from the two searches was one search engine better than the
other, why, how.
o There was barely any difference in the results from each search engine.
Goole.com had articles on distraction free phone innovations by entrepreneurs,
and how obsessed we are with our phones nowadays. Ask.com listed so studies
on how talking through hand free devises in cars cab be just a s dangerous as
using a smartphone while driving. In my opinion they were both informative
and useful. It really comes down to search engine preference.

4. TRAAP your sources. (8 points)

Evaluate one Internet article you found in step 3 by answering the following questions:
1. Time
o when was it written?
September 17 2014.
o Has it been updated?
No
2. Relevance
o does it relate to your topic or answer your question?
It relates to my topic because it agrees that smartphones are not only a
distraction while driving but also to our everyday lives.
3. Authority
o who is the author(s)?
Geoff Weiss.
4. Are they qualified to write about this topic?
o Yes, Mr. Geoff Weiss is staff Writer for entrepreneur magazine. He frequently

covers YouTube, celebrity entrepreneurs and viral trends.

5. How do you know?
o The article was directly from the entrepreneur magazine website.

CSIT 101 Assignment 1: Information Literacy

Updated 1/6/15

Assignment 1: Information Literacy

Kenny Lancheros
6. Accurate
o Is the information trustworthy?
The information came from the interview of Jake Knapp, a blogger and
design partner of Google ventures. The idea came from the problem that
he had in his personal life with how much his phone distracted him.
o Is it supported by evidence?
He ran an experiment for a year. He removed any social media and
entertainment app that have endless media streams.
o Has it been tested for accuracy?
Yes, many readers sent in screen shots of their phones screens, showing
how they cleared their phones of the same distractions. There is also a
separate author suggested article about a china theme park that opened
a separate walking lane for people that like to walk and use their phones
often.
7. Purpose
o Why was it written, to inform, sell, persuade?
It was written to both inform about innovative productive ways make
your smart phone distraction free, and to persuade people to experiment
distraction free phones.
o Is there a bias or is the material objective?
Its objective, it seems to be that we all experience this with our
smartphone, everyone that reads this article seems to relate to the
everyday distraction and wasted time that comes from constant media
stream on our phones.

5. Find two scholarly journal articles on the same topic from the CCBC library
databases. (4 points)

List the keywords you used to find the articles.

o Smartphones and distractions
o Texting and driving
Identify the database you used.
o Access Science
Justify the choice of the database used.
o The Articles in this database were written by leading figures in their fields from
the McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology

CSIT 101 Assignment 1: Information Literacy

Updated 1/6/15

Assignment 1: Information Literacy

Kenny Lancheros

6. Compare the Internet and Journal articles. (5 points)

Write a paragraph comparing one Internet article and one journal article based on the
following:
Ease of access
Timeliness
Authority
The article found on Tech crunch was a whole lot easier to get to than the
access science journal article. The Teach crunch article was located in a website
specialized in technological news, and it helps that it is also a well know technology
webpage. No log in or extensive search was required, and as soon a you type in the
key words more articles that you can think of are at you disposal. The timeliness of
the article was very recent, in fact it was written yesterday 1/09/2015. The author
Sara Prez was a former I.T professional for many years and the former writer for
ReadWriteWeb. The journal article required extensive effort. It also required a
login to be able to use it. I also had to manipulate the keywords to even get a hit, so a
refined search was eventually required to be able to find a second article and even
then it was hard to find one that was relevant to my topic. In my opinion the journal
article search is more complicated. Though complicated I had success eventually,
and the information that I found was very insightful. Time wise, the article was
published in 2013 and no specific date was given. The author was Steven E.
Schlandover, a research engineer from the path program of the university of
California.

7. Cite all five sources in APA or MLA format. (10 points)

Specify which format you are using. MLA

You may also use Easy Bib to create citations

Perez, Sara. "Smartphone Makers Need To Put An End To Distracted Driving." TechCrunch. N.p., 9 Jan.
2015. Web. 10 Jan. 2015.
Weiss, Geoff. "This Man Made His Smartphone 'Distraction-Free' -- And It Changed His Life.
Entrepreneur. N.p., 17 Sept. 2014. Web. 10 Jan. 2015.
Associated Press. "New Studies Point out Dangers of 'talking' to Car." Fox News. N.p., 7 Oct. 2014. Web.
10 Jan. 2015<http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2014/10/07/study-finds-smartphonesinfotainment-systems-worsen-distracted-driving/>.
Shladover, Steven E. Connected Vehicles. AccessScience. McGraw-Hill Education, 2013. Web. 11 Jan.
2015.
Klein, Raymond M. Cell-phone Use and Driving. AccessScience. McGraw-Hill Education, 2012. Web. 11
Jan. 2015.
CSIT 101 Assignment 1: Information Literacy
Updated 1/6/15

Assignment 1: Information Literacy

Kenny Lancheros

8. Formatting of document. (4 points)

Place the title of the assignment and your name on the left side of the header.
Place the page number in the center of the footer.

9. Upload document for a grade in Blackboard.

Grading of Project
Paragraph summarizing the article
Two additional Internet articles
TRAAP your sources
Two additional Journal articles
Compare the Internet and Journal articles
Cite all five sources
Formatting of document
Total

5 points
4 points
8 points
4 points
5 points
10 points
4 points
40 points

Points will be deducted for spelling and grammatical errors.

CSIT 101 Assignment 1: Information Literacy

Updated 1/6/15