In this essay, you will analyze five Google technologies that are current under research and development, including the self-driving automobile and four other technologies of your choice. The last chapter of your textbook discusses the search and advertising technologies of Google. While Google is best known for their search and advertising technologies, they also have a multi-billion dollar research and development department that works on cutting edge technologies ranging from self-driving automobiles to renewable energy. For your final case study, you will research 4 technologies (in addition to the self-driving automobile) that Google is currently developing, other than the search, advertising, and Gmail features that we are already familiar with. Please refer back to the Week 7 Forum for additional guidance on choosing your other four technologies.

Google technologies currently in research and development include:

Self-driving automobile

Project Wing (a drone delivery project)

Google Fiber

Smart Contact Lenses

Google Glass

Project Loon (providing Internet service via balloon)

Home Automation and Smart Thermostats (Google Nest)

Renewable Energy and Sustainability Solutions (Advanced Wind Energy, and several others)

Self-Driving Automobile

Everyone will analyze the self-driving automobile as their first technology. Conduct research on this technology and then write a minimum of

500 words about this technology, addressing the following: 1) a description of the technology, 2) challenges that Google could face in

implementing this technology, 3) suggestions for overcoming some of the potential challenges and obstacles, and 4) an analysis of the

potential positive and negative impacts of this technology on society. Make sure you address all four of these areas in your analysis.

When analyzing this technology, be sure to consider whether this technology has any potential environmental impacts (positive or negative).

If there are any environmental concerns related to this technology, discuss what steps could be taken to address the concerns. Also consider

whether there are any security and/or privacy concerns related to this technology. Identify any specific resources, methods, or approaches

that could help make this technology, and the individuals and firms using this technology, more secure. Also, consider the impact this

technology will have on managers in the future. Since we are studying management information systems in this course, discuss the types of

information systems managers will likely need to use in the future in relation to this technology. For example, with the self-driving

automobiles, managers of trucking companies will likely not have to manage drivers anymore, once truck drivers are replaced with

self-driven trucks. Instead, managers will likely use information systems that allow them to schedule the dispatch and routing of trucks to

transport goods, as well as to coordinate with warehouse managers and retail managers who will have to schedule their staff meet the trucks

at the other end of their journey to unload the goods. This is just one example of a way that self-driving automobiles could impact managers

in the future. Please come up with examples of your own in your essay.

Conclusion

Finally, write your concluding paragraph(s) in this section. Rather than simply re-stating what you have already discussed, try to use this section to take the reader one step further. There are many ways to do this and I will leave it to your creativity to come up with an appropriate conclusion for your essay!