Internet of Things Article

Introduction

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical and digital machines, objects, animals or people that are provided with unique identifiers (UIDs) and the ability to transfer data over a network without requiring human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction.

The definition of the IoT has evolved due to the convergence of multiple technologies, real-time analytics, machine learning, commodity sensors, and embedded systems. Traditional fields of embedded systems, wirelss sensor networks, control systems, automation, and others all contribute to the IoT. Home appliances and thermostats also contribute to the IoT too.

This concept was first thought of as early as 1982. But in the late 90s the term really took off with the rise of the internet.

Features

6 Key Features of the Internet of Things

Intelligence - Together algorithms and computers provide the "intelligence spark" that makes a product experience smart.
Connectivity - Enables network accessibility and compatiability. Accessibility is getting on a network while compatiability provides the common ability to consume and produce data.
Sensing - Sensing technologies provide us with the means to create experiences that reflect a true awareness of the physical world and the people in it.
Expressing - Expressing enables interactivity with people and the phyiscal world. Whether it is a smart home or a farm with smart agriculture technology, expressing provides us with a means to create products that interact intelligently with the real world. This means more than just rendering beautiful UIs to a screen.
Energy - We need energy to power up the devices.
Safety - As we gain efficiencies, novel experiences, and other benefits from the IoT, we must not forget about safety. As both creators and recipients of the IoT, we must design for safety. This includes the safety of our personal data and the safety of our phyiscal well being. Securing the endpoints, the networks, and the data moving across all of it means creating a security paradigm that will scale.

Pros/Cons

The Internet of Things has its pros and cons:

Pros	Cons
Cost Savings - It makes the electronic appliances communicate with each other in an effective manner thereby conserving and saving cost and energy; hence, it's helpful to people in their daily routines. By allowing the data to be shared and communicated between electronic devices and then translating it into our required way, IoT is making our systems efficient.	Losing Security on Privacy - As there is the involvement of different technologies and devices, there is monitoring by more than one company, which directly questions the security and privacy issues. Data retrieval and storage also becomes a major concern for the companies because all of them are involved at the same time. In the case of keeping only one company, it may lead to the question of domination.
Information - It is true that with more information, you can make better decisions. Whether it is general decisions as needing to know what to buy at a grocery store or if your company has enough supplies and widgets, knowledge is a great power and more knowledge is always good.	Complexity - With all complex systems, there is the possibility of failure. Failures could be skyrocket in the case of the Internet-of-Things.
Communication - IoT encourages Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication. Owing to this, the phyiscal devices are capable to stay connected; hence, total transparency is available with greater quality and lesser inefficiencies.	Lesser Employment Prospects - With the IoT, daily activities getting automated and naturally there will be fewer requirements of human resources and less educated staff, which may create employment issues in the society.
Automation and Control - Owing to physical objects getting controlled and connected digitally with wireless infrastructure, there is a big amount of automation and control in the workings. All the machines are capable to communicate with each other without human intervention which leads to prompt output.	Over Dependancy on Technology - At present, it is observed that the younger generation is a technology freak and they depend upon technology and its devices for every little thing. With the help of IoT, this dependancy will become even more in daily routines. No application is free from fault and there are some hitches in each technical application. Totally relying on IoT devices may cause trouble in case of a non-working or crash of an IoT infrastructure.

Extra Programs

Big Data
Wireless Techologies, Devices that use the Internet - Phones, Tablets, Kettles, Microwaves etc

Sources

Summary

In conclusion:

The Internet of Things is helps a lot with efficiency and automation, but as a drawback it creates more unemployment (initially) and may create a dependance on machines and the internet which may not be so good in the future. But overall the Internet of Things is here to stay and expected to grow exponentially in the future.

The Internet of Things Article