The New Type of Computer by Sabrina

The New Type of Computer by Sabrina - February 2018 Scholarship Essay

By the year 2038 computers as they are widely available and known to us to today will have reached a crossroads. The computer is the most important part of education today, and will continue to be the number one item that students must have to achieve in school. When a student loses a notebook or calculator it is not nearly as detrimental as breaking or losing a computer. With computers we have the collective knowledge of the world at our fingertips. Students can seek help on homework in a matter of a few seconds, or communicate issues with a teacher, such as being sick, and receive the help or work they need. The current problem with these magical devices is that by the year 2038 computers will need to adapt or they will not make it.
Currently, most computers run on a signed 32-bit integer, which can hold a lot of data, but as soon as Tuesday, 19 January 2038, this system will have reached its maximum input. This is cause for concern as any data stored after this will no longer be stored in the date of 2038 but with the date 1901. This is known as a rollover, as the binary that sets the date is started over, and it will be begin to store the time in a negative integer which is an invalid form for the computer to read. By 2038 computers will have to switch to a 64-bit system, which has already been tested and done by companies such as Google for websites like YouTube, which their view counts on videos can receive over the 2,147,483,647 counts of data that a 32-bit system can cope with. Knowing that this new technology works is amazing, but it still needs to find its way into an affordable commercial sector. Widespread commercial computers will have to switch to this system, and that the outdated computers that we currently use will have to be replaced.
For various reasons this is problematic, as some school systems still use outdated computers that are not nearly as fast as the ones currently available, which puts their students at a disadvantage compared to richer school districts, and there will need to be increased funding to schools in order to buy these computers. As computers become increasingly integral for tasks such as turning in homework, research, and communication, school districts have to be aware of the issues that come with them. In order to have every student able to achieve in an academic setting, every school by 2038 needs to own computers that run on a 64-bit system. This change will be costly, as that means schools can not just update the computer’s software to keep them up to date, they will physically need to obtain all new computers for their school and students. It will also take a lot of time and labor in order to install all of these new computers. Within my own school, I can not think of a room that does not have a single computer. These computers are important for teachers, students, and are even ingrained in the way students buy lunch. The 64-bit system for computers is the most important advancement needed, not only in schools, but throughout any institution that needs computers to function, which means that the majority of the world will also need to adapt to this change and implement this new system.