3. Extra Credit: Google and its power

Article: U.S. Government Requests For Google Users' Private Data Jump 37% In One Year, from the week of 10/1

http://www.forbes.com/sites/andygreenberg/2012/06/17/u-s-government-requests-for-google-users-private-data-spike-37-in-one-year/

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Google has become more than just a software and search engine company. With the data sets based on users of their content Google has become one of the most powerful entities in the world. With the United States government now requesting information for undisclosed reasons and Google having the ability to deny this information shows a power shift. Google now has control over information that the government has no way of retrieving and is increasingly worried about getting. This power shift does not only apply to Google, many of the large companies (most of them making or distributing technology) have a certain disposition and control over the common people that the government cannot hope to have. This control is fueled by a more modern knowledge of the working of current day situations and people as well as an obvious expertise on current technology and a loyal following of people. All of this power the government wants access to, but as Google has shown with its denial of access to private information, the companies actually hold an incredible amount of power. These companies also have access to large sums of money. The combined power of these companies is similar to Rockefeller and the power his empire held in the early 1900’s. The government is currently in a huge amount of debt and these companies could hold the key too a door out.

            The data that Google hold is also invaluable because of data sets and holds on user posted content because other countries want access to this information. Users can post political ideals and comments on Google without fear of these being taken down because that would violate free speech in America. Therefore people can post political comments and spread ideas without fear of their own government. The data sets on other countries are powerful agents against enemy states and this information is collected at a civilian level without regard to that country’s government. The article mentioned a case such as this when Google used information of China in an investigation.  

Data Mining Reading Questions

Reading: A Deep Dive into Facebook and Datalogix: What's Actually Getting Shared and How You Can Opt Out
1. Are large sample sizes a way for companies to bypass security and privacy concerns when collecting data?

2. Should a company following and collecting data from random people without them knowing be illegal?

3. What kind of rules should be in place to stop a company like datalogix collecting data on individual people?

2. Extra Credit: The transition of Social Interactions

Article: Are You A Psychopath If You Don't Have A Facebook Account? We Don't Think So, from week of 9/17

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/07/facebook-psychopath_n_1752993.html?view=print&comm_ref=false

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Humans are evolving because of protocols that they create, but the control structure of categorization has fallen behind. So many people are fighting the change that new alternatives to past activities are seen as unhealthy. For example a statement in the article says that face-to-face meeting is actual socialization is actual socialization while meeting and talking through social sites is considerate a passive unhealthy relationship. While I personally believe that face-to-face interaction are much more healthy, the idea that new ways of interactions are instantly regarded as unhealthy shows that people are not willing to accept change. Many people are meeting and socializing physically with just as many if not more people on a daily basis then their ancestors ever did because of new transportation and different types of work. On top of this physical interaction these people also interact with more people on the Internet. I think that a major problem isn’t that they aren’t socializing with people face-to-face, it is that each interaction is short and the relationship is not well defined. There is too much of an illusion that the people we interact with online are more important than the physical interactions. A simple chat on Facebook could be regarded as a successful social interaction and a true connection with that person so we no longer feel the need to physically interact any longer. Humans haven’t become completely used to the idea that a simple text message isn’t the same as a physical hello and shake of hands. As time goes on and everyone is connected through phones and the internet I think that people will start to realize that more is gotten out of physical interaction that from messaging. We are currently in a transition time and we haven’t had time to properly become used to the new interaction tools that technology has given us.

words: 309

1. Extra Credit: Advertising and Automation

Article: Newspapers getting outsmarted on mobile from week of 9/10
http://newsosaur.blogspot.com/2012/09/newspapers-getting-outsmarted-on-mobile.html

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As the race for complete control of media consumption begins the fight for privacy begins to look unwinnable. Smartphones now catalogue so much about their owner’s lives that they know more about the person and their habits then that person’s friends or family. The pros of having a device that offers almost anything you want within seconds seems outweighs any cons of having your information processed and given to people who just want your money. The world is no longer private and hasn’t been since the technology revolution. Children born into this age will not care about their privacy and won’t have the same worries that their parents did that someone somewhere is always watching and logging all of their activities. Was the ideology that people should have private lives ever necessary for human life to continue “normally”? Should we as people ask ourselves if privacy would matter to us if we had never known what privacy was? Is this the world that we want all future generations to know? There are still some positives with personal information being available to everyone. As the article said companies already know your preferences so buying nearly anything becomes quick and painless. Matches for potential employment could be found based on preferences and past tendencies/experience without actually looking and then “resumes,” submitted at the click of a button. The employers could also see your past experience and easily find the best people to be possibly hired at their company. This automation seems scary to current generations, but this automation will be normal in the future. The time freed by computers doing all of the mindless tasks will be enormous. Of course what happens if the systems fails? Someone who actually understands the system has power over the normal people to an incredible degree. Warfare between the people who understand the system will take place above any normal everyday life, this is already happening of course but as computers control everything the entire control scheme becomes exaggerated. When will the consequences of an automated world surpass the luxury of having everyday life automated?

  words: 349

Viral Reading Questions

Reading: Has Viral Gone Viral?
1. With viral media and social sites adding in the growth of other social sites will there be so many social media sites that usage of new sites will be nonexistent and impractical?

2. Many sites are receiving huge growth spikes early in their creation, will sites that grow like this lose visitors just as fast?

3. What dangers are present in sites that present social interactions with people that you don't already know?

It & Poltics Reading Questions

1. Is the unpredictability of social media important to how effectively it can be used?

2. Is the "anybody can be somebody" idea of social media allowing for protests to be organized more quickly and more effectively?

3. With political videos and pictures having the ability to go viral will governments have to be more open with their people because of a fear that secrets will be revealed and destroy the government?

Questions for Digital Art Readings - 10/15

From VisitorsStudio
Can the collaborative element present in visitorsstudio be extended into other elements besides media such as game creation with live feeds and comments or education with building media projects?

From conch
Is creative (abstract) entertainment ever destined to become more than something that is viewed a handful of tiems and then discarded?

from Ping Melody
Is experimental music and art becoming a more prominent and acceptable form?

Questions- week 10/8

The future of Videogames:
1. When games become an integral part of regular life do you think that productivity will drop because of the distraction or will increase because work is fun instead of being a chore?

2. When the line between game and reality becomes blurred that humans will lose their ethical obligations?

3. When artificial intelligence reaches a near human level do you think that relationships with real people will become useless if the relationships with A.I. characters are just as satisfying?

Does game violence make teens aggressive?
1. Do researchers have any power against these large video game companies and their lawyers?

2. If the same brain activity is present after any violent media is watched then can any one type of media be censored if all types of media are not censored?

3. If there is no long term effect on brain function then is there any real reason that this research is relevant?

My media Input

My personal network consists of friends who I meet with in person or chat with on Facebook or through texting, class acquaintances who I organize projects with through email of texting, and professors and other higher ups who I email or meet formally.

On a daily basis my media in put consists of social interactions with people through face to face in my dorm and at class, through Facebook, email, phone calls, and text messaging. The face-to-face interactions happen consistently throughout the day where I mainly focus my attention on my close friends that live close to me. I give these people most of my attention through working on homework together, playing games, talking, or watching television. Also, every day my friends and I make a point of all going to dinner together so that we all have a relaxing time to see each other. The relaxing component is especially important because we are all engineers. My other social interactions with people happen through my computer or phone where I converse with people, post status updates and look at other peoples’ posting and using email to formally answer professors and other students. On a daily basis my media input is taken up by a variety of videos, photos and articles comes from fun sites such as “I waste so much time”, “YouTube”, or “IGN” and serious news from BBC or yahoo news. Most of this browsing is only done when I have a few minutes to kill or don’t have any work due (very rarely). I will also watch a movie of episode from a TV show on almost a daily basis. The television I watch and the games I play are for stress relief and because I get to hang out with my friends while I watch or play. My media output on a typical day would mostly consist of status updates, but also posting pictures or videos that I’ve taken or found. Posting writing that I’ve composed either for a class or for fun.

            My focus throughout the day goes primarily to schoolwork and friends. However, almost every day I check my usual media sites and look at Facebook. When I am by myself, not online or working on schoolwork then I focus my time on writing and reading for pleasure and designing and coding video games. My focus during the school year is much different then what my focus is when I am alone, but school is helping me towards a life where my focus is on the things that I want to do rather than what I have to do.

Media input/output on Friday Oct 5:
Input
-music while walking to class
-posters on walls in room and hallways
-various photos and videos on Facebook
-photos on friends laptop
-video at astonaut presentation
-music in writing class
-comedian special on netflix
-south park on netflix
-you tube videos
-read two stories before writing class
Output
-Story I wrote