1. Suppose that you had to explain to a member of your family or one of your closest friends the concept of an information system. How would you define it? Write a oneparagraph description in your own words that you feel would best describe an information system to your friends or family.

2. Of the five primary components of an information system (hardware, software, data, people, process), which do you think is the most important to the success of a business organization? Write a one-paragraph answer to this question that includes an example from your personal experience to support your answer.

3. We all interact with various information systems every day: at the grocery store, at work, at school, even in our cars (at least some of us). Make a list of the different information systems you interact with every day. See if you can identify the technologies, people, and processes involved in making these systems work.

4. Do you agree that we are in a post-PC stage in the evolution of information systems? Some people argue that we will always need the personal computer, but that it will not be the primary device used for manipulating information. Others think that a whole new era of mobile and biological computing is coming. Do some original research and make your prediction about what business computing will look like in the next generation.

5. The Wal-Mart case study introduced you to how that company used information systems to become the world's leading retailer. Wal-Mart has continued to innovate and is still looked to as a leader in the use of technology. Do some original research and write a one-page report detailing a new technology that Wal-Mart has recently implemented or is pioneering