Museum of Innovation and Science

Who Am I

iPhone with replica of Alexander Graham Bell's first telephone

Air Tag

Motorola DynaTAC 8000X, first cellular telephone, 1983, original cost $3995

Future Sight

In 2011, 35% of Americans owed a smartphone, in contrast with 83% who owned a cellphone at all. In early 2021 the number of smartphone users increased dramatically to 85%, while the number of those who owned a cellphone at all increased to 97%, surpassing even those who owned a desktop, laptop, or tablet computer.

In the decades since the arrival of the first telephone, the meaning of “phone” is one that has expanded to a device that not only makes calls, but also surfs the Internet, films video, sends emails, plays music, and gives directions with minimal human intervention. Many students are probably familiar with how to use a cellphone/ smartphone, but less so the inner workings of it.


·        Discuss the role of cellphones in their own life, including their uses and roles

·        Understand not only how technology has evolved over time, but also explain those changes to their classmates via a “time travel” activity

·        Compare and contrast facial features to understand how facial recognition identifies individuals

https://technobyte.org/how-snapchat-filters-work/

https://sightcorp.com/knowledge-base/image-recognition/

·        Green screen backgrounds

o  How can the same information be edited to tell different stories?

·        Movie/ audio streaming: why can we watch some things sometimes, but not others?

o  How is information saved on a DVD? Casette tape? CD?

·        Downloading/ uploading videos/ music: where does is come from? Where is it stored? 

·        Comparing the effectiveness of various cellphone cases

·        “Quick, Draw!” game from Google

https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/fact-sheet/mobile/

The Smartphone: Putting it All Together

educator materials