Big Ideas

When developing computing innovations, developers can use a formal, iterative design process or a less rigid process of experimentation. While using either approach, developers will encounter phases of investigating and reflecting, designing, prototyping, and testing. Additionally, collaboration is an important tool at any phase of development, because considering multiple perspectives allows for improvement of innovations.

Data are central to computing innovations because they communicate initial conditions to programs and represent new knowledge. Computers consume data, transform data, and produce new data, allowing users to create new information or knowledge to solve problems through the interpretation of those data. Computers store data digitally, which means that the data must be manipulated in order to be presented in a useful way to the user.

Programmers integrate algorithms and abstraction to create programsfor creative purposes and to solve problems. Using multiple program statements in a specified order, making decisions, and repeating the same process multiple times are the building blocks of programs. Incorporating elements of abstraction—by breaking problems down into interacting pieces, each with their own purpose—makes writing complex programs easier. Programmers need to think algorithmically and use abstraction to define and interpret processes that are used in a program.

Computer systems and networks are used to transfer data. One of the largest and most commonly used networks is the Internet. Through a series of protocols, the Internet can be used to send and receive information and ideas throughout the world. Transferring and processing information can be slow when done on a single computer, but leveraging multiple computers to do the work at the same time can significantly shorten the time it takes to complete tasks or solve problems.

Computers and computing have revolutionized our lives. To use computing safely and responsibly, we need to be aware of privacy, security, and ethical issues. As programmers, we need to understand the potential impacts of our programs and be responsible for the consequences. As computer users, we need to understand any potential beneficial or harmful effects and how to protect ourselves and our privacy when using a computer.