In this assignment, we will examine the role of common standards that we have come to rely upon, and imagine what would happen if that standard no longer existed, or that it never existed.

Your Deliverable:

Think of one standard that you see or utilize every day. This could be a stop sign (standard around the world), your USB port (the same no matter what hardware you're plugging something into) or an MP4 file, (you can play on a computer or a smart phone). Our lives are governed by standards and they make life easier for us because things work the same way every time.

Answer the following in an MS Word document:

1. The name of the standard (object, process, etc.) that you rely on every day. This does not have to be healthcare or IT specific - you can be creative.
2. The name of the organization that produces or manages the standard if you can find it (This is usually a quick Google search using the standard you chose plus "standards organization" or "standards maintenance" or search for your google term on the ISO website: https://www.iso.org/standards.html(Links to an external site.)). You will not get full credit for this assignment unless you spend some time thinking about and researching the organization that manages your particular standard.
3. Why the standard helps us in our daily lives. Answers such as "it makes things easier" or "it makes life safer" will not suffice. Remember, standards are followed by thousands if not millions of people all over the world so there must be a definitive statement about why we use it.
4. The repercussions of not having the standard in place. Again, answers such as "we would all die without it" or "things would be confusing" will not suffice. Think about this in terms of what life was like prior to the standard existing.