Emerging Trends

Answer:

Cloud-based services commonly used include email services like Gmail, cloud storage services like Google Drive or Dropbox, streaming services like Netflix or Spotify, online office suites like Microsoft Office 365, and social media platforms such as Facebook or Instagram. These services are accessible over the internet and provide storage, computing, or application functionalities without needing local installation.

Answer:

The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the network of physical objects embedded with sensors, software, and other technologies to connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the internet. Potential applications include smart homes (automated lighting, security), healthcare (remote monitoring), smart cities (traffic management, waste management), agriculture (soil monitoring), and industrial automation.

Answer:

a) Cloud Computing: It is the delivery of computing services—including servers, storage, databases, networking, software, analytics, and intelligence—over the internet (the cloud) to offer faster innovation, flexible resources, and economies of scale. Users can access these services on-demand without owning physical infrastructure. b) Big Data and its Characteristics: Big data refers to extremely large data sets that may be analyzed computationally to reveal patterns, trends, and associations. Its main characteristics are Volume (large amounts of data), Velocity (speed of data generation and processing), Variety (different types of data), Veracity (quality and accuracy of data), and Value (usefulness of data).

Answer:

a) Artificial Intelligence (AI): AI is the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, especially computer systems. These processes include learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and language understanding. Applications include virtual assistants (Siri, Alexa), autonomous vehicles, medical diagnosis, and robotics. b) Machine Learning (ML): ML is a subset of AI that enables systems to learn and improve from experience without being explicitly programmed. It uses algorithms to identify patterns in data and make decisions. Applications include spam filtering, recommendation systems (Netflix, Amazon), fraud detection, and image recognition.

Answer:

Cloud Computing is a model for enabling ubiquitous, convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources (e.g., networks, servers, storage, applications) that can be rapidly provisioned and released. Example: Using Google Drive for storage. Grid Computing is a distributed computing model that involves a collection of computer resources from multiple locations to reach a common goal, often used for complex scientific computations. Example: SETI@home project that uses idle computers worldwide to analyze radio signals. Key differences: - Cloud computing provides services on demand with scalability and virtualization. - Grid computing focuses on resource sharing and distributed processing across multiple administrative domains. - Cloud is service-oriented; grid is resource-oriented.

Answer:

Cloud computing allows users to store data on remote servers managed by cloud providers. This eliminates the need for investing in expensive physical storage hardware and maintenance. Users pay only for the storage they use, making it cost-effective. Additionally, data can be accessed anytime and anywhere via the internet, saving time compared to traditional storage methods that require physical access. Cloud providers also handle backups and data security, reducing administrative overhead.

Answer:

On-demand service refers to the ability to provision computing resources as needed, without human intervention, allowing users to access services instantly when required. In cloud computing, this is provided through virtualization and automation technologies that enable users to request and receive resources such as storage, processing power, or applications via a self-service portal. The cloud provider dynamically allocates resources to meet the demand, ensuring scalability and flexibility.

Answer:

a) Government provided cloud computing platform examples include the National Informatics Centre (NIC) Cloud in India, and the US government's FedRAMP cloud services. b) Large scale private cloud service providers include Amazon Web Services (AWS) offering services like EC2 (virtual servers), S3 (storage), and Lambda (serverless computing); Microsoft Azure providing virtual machines, databases, and AI services; and Google Cloud Platform offering compute engine, big data analytics, and machine learning services.