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The emerging trends unit is short, but it is full of terms that sound alike. Students lose its marks less from not knowing the topics than from mixing up pairs: AR with VR, cloud with grid, IaaS with PaaS. This post defines each trend in the syllabus the way NCERT does, adds the standard cloud definition from NIST, works through classification questions and ends with a short revision routine.
What does the 2026-27 syllabus cover?
The CBSE Informatics Practices curriculum for 2026-27 lists Unit 4, Introduction to Emerging Trends, at 5 marks: artificial intelligence, machine learning, natural language processing, immersive experience (AR and VR), robotics, big data and its characteristics, the Internet of Things, sensors, smart cities, cloud computing and cloud services (SaaS, IaaS, PaaS), grid computing and blockchain technology. The textbook is Chapter 2, Emerging Trends, in the NCERT Class 11 IP book.
Five marks out of 70 for theory is about 7 per cent (5/70 = 0.071). It is a small unit, so aim for precise definitions rather than long essays.
How does NCERT define AI, machine learning and NLP?
Artificial intelligence aims to simulate human intelligence in machines, such as learning, decision-making and problem solving. AI systems build a knowledge base of facts, assumptions and rules, and make decisions from it.
Machine learning is a subsystem of AI in which computers learn from data using statistical techniques, without being explicitly programmed. Models are trained on training data, tested on testing data and then used on new data.
Natural language processing deals with interaction between humans and computers in human languages. Examples include predictive typing, spell checking, voice search, text-to-speech and machine translation.
What is the difference between VR and AR?
NCERT describes virtual reality as a three-dimensional, computer-generated situation that simulates the real world, usually experienced through a headset. Augmented reality superimposes computer-generated information on the existing physical surroundings. The short version: VR replaces what you see, AR adds to it. A location-based app that shows information about a monument when you point your camera at it is AR.
What are big data, IoT and sensors?
NCERT gives five characteristics of big data: volume (size), velocity (rate of generation), variety (structured, semi-structured and unstructured), veracity (trustworthiness) and value (hidden patterns worth finding).
The Internet of Things is a network of devices with embedded hardware and software that connect and exchange data, such as a door lock or air conditioner you control from a phone. The Web of Things uses web services so that one interface can connect them all, instead of a separate app for each device. Sensors are central to both. NCERT's example is the phone's accelerometer, which detects orientation, together with the gyroscope, which tracks rotation. Smart cities combine IoT, the Web of Things and sensors to manage resources such as water, traffic and power.
How do the three cloud service models differ?
The US National Institute of Standards and Technology published the standard definition of cloud computing (Mell and Grance, 2011). It calls cloud computing a model for on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing resources that can be rapidly provisioned and released. It lists five essential characteristics: on-demand self-service, broad network access, resource pooling, rapid elasticity and measured service.
The three service models differ in how much the user controls:
IaaS: you get processing, storage and networks. You control the operating system and your applications, but not the underlying hardware.
PaaS: you deploy your own application onto a ready platform. NCERT's example is a web app built with Python and MySQL running on a pre-configured server.
SaaS: you simply use the provider's application. NCERT's examples are online document editors and office suites.
Worked example: classify these
A school rents virtual machines to run its own exam software: IaaS.
A student uploads a Python web app and the provider runs it on its own configured server: PaaS.
A class edits a shared document in a browser: SaaS.
Volunteers' computers each take part of one large scientific calculation: grid computing, not cloud. NCERT explains that a grid joins many nodes to solve a common problem, while an IaaS provider rents out infrastructure.
Traffic cameras stream footage every second, mixed with text reports, some of them unreliable: big data, showing velocity, variety and veracity.
How does blockchain work?
NCERT describes blockchain as a decentralised, shared database in which every participating node holds a full copy of an append-only ledger. A new block is added after the nodes in the network verify the transaction, so no single member can change the data. The most familiar use is digital currency. The original Bitcoin paper by Satoshi Nakamoto describes a peer-to-peer network that timestamps transactions in a chain of hash-based proof-of-work, forming a record that cannot be changed without redoing that work. NCERT also mentions possible uses in healthcare records and land registration. In the exam, keep to NCERT's simpler description.
Common mix-ups and how to avoid them
AR versus VR: AR adds to the real world, VR replaces it.
Machine learning as separate from AI: NCERT calls it a subsystem of AI.
Cloud versus grid: cloud provides services, and a grid pools resources for one task.
IoT versus WoT: the Web of Things uses web services to give one interface to many IoT devices.
Listing only three Vs of big data: NCERT gives five.
A revision routine
Day 1: write a one-line definition for each term in the syllabus list from memory, then check them against NCERT.
Day 2: invent three examples each for IaaS, PaaS and SaaS, and classify a friend's examples.
Day 3: answer two short questions aloud: how a smart city uses sensors, and why a blockchain is hard to alter.
For other Class 11 IP units, see our guides to NumPy arrays and database concepts. If you want help sorting which terms you still confuse, Fermi's AI tutor can work out what you already know and build a plan for the session.
Today, write the three cloud service models on a card with one example each, and test yourself tomorrow morning.
