The past few weeks we spent the bulk of our time concerned with a survey. As a group we created a survey to solve a problem that we had. My group chose to do a survey about hosting a summer barbecue. We were looking at what location people preferred for a barbecue, what types of food should be prepared, and what types of beverages should be available for guests. We charted our results by grouping them according to location, food, and drink. Our results showed that most people preferred to have a barbecue in a backyard, eat hamburgers and hot dogs, and drink water, soda, or beer. Our results can be found here.
We also were to listen to Bill Tancer. Bill Tancer is an internet analyst. He studies trends on the internet and what people look at and do on the internet. I found Bill Tancer to be kind of interesting. First, I would never be able to do his job day in and day out. Studying trends on the internet and what consumers are searching for is not something that I could do every day. Second, from a business stand point, his research could really assist retailers in increasing their revenue. When he discussed prom dresses, he found that teenagers were researching prom dressed in January and retailers weren't making them available until March. His research allowed retailers to make prom dresses available in January. Now, working in a high school with a classroom full of computers, I could have told retailers to make prom dresses available in January, but not everyone works in a high school classroom with computers. Third, I think his methods could be seen as ethical and unethical. Some people may think his data is manipulative, however, he doesn't typically research specific populations. So, he wouldn't always know who exactly is providing the data.
We were asked to come up with a job that would be available in the future. This was a difficult task. It's hard to think of a job that would be needed in the future without being a psychic! But, we came up with a teleporter specialist. This person would assist people in teleporting. Someday, we may not need cars, planes, trains, or boats. Transportation may be done by teleporting, a concept that has been featured in futuristic movies. Anything is possible, so maybe someday this could be a job that is needed.
