UNIVERSITY EXAMINATIONS: 2016/2017
EXAMINATION FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN
DATA COMMUNICATIONS
MDC 6105 EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES
DATE: AUGUST, 2017 TIME: 2 HOURS
INSTRUCTIONS: Answer Question One & ANY OTHER TWO questions.
QUESTION ONE: 20 MARKS (COMPULSORY)
a) Describe the following terms in the context of emerging technologies and trends (4 Marks)
i. Emerging technologies
ii. Wearable computer
iii. Internet of things
iv. Pervasive computing
b) Discuss four characteristics of emerging technologies (4 Marks)
c) Describe Moore’s law highlighting it significance in technological developments (4 Marks)
d) Define the term digital divide and show how it continues to exist or increase in the African
context in the face of emerging technologies. (4 Marks)
e) Social media has changed how communication has changed drastically in the past decade.
Describe face book as a social medium of communication detailing the positive and negative
impacts it has had in the society. (4 Marks)
QUESTION TWO: 15 MARKS
a) Describe cloud computing as an emergent technology highlighting its advantages as well as
challenges (5 Marks)
b) 5th Generation (5G) communication technology is expected to change the nature of wireless
communication. Describe the activities happening in the development of 5G as well as its
anticipated benefits (5 Marks)
c) Discuss the tele-working technology detailing its benefits and challenges to the worker and
the organization as well (5 Marks)
QUESTION THREE: 15 MARKS
a) Explain the second life emerging technology showing how it is changing life 3 Marks
b) Discuss the following technologies showing two positive and two negative for each on the
contemporary way of life (12 Marks)
i. E-commerce
ii. E-learning
iii. E-banking
iv. E-learning
QUESTION FOUR: 15 MARKS
a) Emergent technologies sometimes lead to technological obsolescence thus causing huge
investments to organization; hence the need to study emerging technological trends.
Required:-
i. Discuss five such trends that organizations should study to protect themselves
from technological obsolescence (5 Marks)
ii. identify five ways that the results of the studies done in part i) above would help
the organization to be better prepared to face the problems of emerging technologies (5 Marks)
b) Discuss any five emerging technologies in the health sector and describe how it has changed
the life of its users (5 Marks)
