Saturday, September 6, 2014

The Battle over a Smartphone kill switch IT English lesson

What would you do if your phone got stolen?  Most of us would call our phone carrier and report it stolen.  But the phone itself would probably be sold on the 2nd hand market and the thief would profit from the sale.  What if there were a simple way to render the phone useless?  Wouldn't that stop thieves? Well there is a solution, but the major Cellphone carriers don't want to do it. 

Read this article and discuss it with your English teacher or colleague.  http://edition.cnn.com/2013/11/20/tech/mobile/smartphone-kill-switch/

Key Terms
the ultimate justice
worthless rectangular paperweight
 plummet
 a kill switch
 handsets 
 triggered
Proponents
reversible
reactivation
coalition 
 violent
 major obstacle.
third-party solution
moneymaker
insurance plan 
Resold
 policymakers 
proactive, multifaceted approach
global database
dictate 
navigating

Questions
According to the article, what is the most popular device that gets stolen? 
How would you trigger the kill switch? 
Would you use it? 
Why do the US Carriers want to block this feature? 
Do you buy the anti-theft insurance?  Why or why not? 
Have you ever lost a phone?  What did you do?  
Did you buy a new one from the company or 2nd hand? 
What anti-theft actions does the CTIA-The Wireless Association want to happen? 
Why can Apple put this kill switch on its phone and other manufacturers can't?
What do you do to protect your smartphone? 
Do you text or talk on the phone while walking down the street? 
Do you feel that this is risky?
What do you use the cellphone for?





Lesson Plan by Rachael Alice Orbach - Professional English Teacher

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