So I realized that I did not mention before about the source that I found to support my argument. I went on Google and found an academic article on the philosophy of a university education. It's five pages long and has some great info that will make the things I plan to say not just some random opinion. The link to the article ishttp://www.ugs.usf.edu/gened/university%20education%20final.pdf.
I also found a useful article on the statistics of education in America from 2001. The url is
http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2002/2002130.pdf
Friday, December 17, 2010
Thursday, December 16, 2010
"Are modern-day college campuses technopolies?"
Since I have chosen to write my final paper on Technopoly, I had to refresh my memory on its main arguments and information. I did this by not only skimming through the book but also by reading my previous blog entries on the book; it was funny to read how I titled one blog entry "Not So Crazy Niel Postman". Looking back on my first impression of the book, I really did think that Niel Postman's argument was illogical and his story about King Thamus was...interesting. I mean, not only was Postman creating words like "technopoly" but he was also referring to Greek mythology and relating it to technology in America. However, the connection between today's society's use of technology and the invention of writing that is discussed in the story of King Thamus makes sense to me now. Postman is basically trying to point out that technological innovations have dumbed down American society the way King Thamus predicted writing would make people use their minds less.
In order to connect Technopoly to a modern-day college campus, I need to decide whether the campuses are technopolies or not. Technopoly, a term invented and therefore defined by Niel Postman, is roughly a society that relies greatly on technology; so much so that the society's aim is "... a grand reductionism in which human life must find its meaning in machinery and technique."(pg 52). Postman mentions how the United States is the only country that is currently a Technopoly and that it keeps a careful eye on other countries that are trying to become Technopolies like Japan. The origin, according to Postman, of Technopoly can be traced back to the nineteenth-century when Auguste Comte tried to construct a science of society through positivism and sociology (pg 52).
Since it is encouraged to focus on the modern-day college campus and education system, I have to do some more research on those topics but from my own conclusion of them based on experience is as follows: modern-day college campuses in the United States are technopolies. This is based on the reliance on electronic grading, mail, scheduling and other functions that professors and students have. The intent of higher education in the United States is to produce educated people who can contribute to society through various employment. Colleges also have the goal to produce well rounded and the utilization of computers prepares students for jobs which will most likely rely on computers in one form or another. Postman claims that being a Technoloply is fine as long as people are still educated about other historical development of humanity like language and history; since colleges provide education on those things, I don't think Postman objects to the technology of college campuses.
In order to connect Technopoly to a modern-day college campus, I need to decide whether the campuses are technopolies or not. Technopoly, a term invented and therefore defined by Niel Postman, is roughly a society that relies greatly on technology; so much so that the society's aim is "... a grand reductionism in which human life must find its meaning in machinery and technique."(pg 52). Postman mentions how the United States is the only country that is currently a Technopoly and that it keeps a careful eye on other countries that are trying to become Technopolies like Japan. The origin, according to Postman, of Technopoly can be traced back to the nineteenth-century when Auguste Comte tried to construct a science of society through positivism and sociology (pg 52).
Since it is encouraged to focus on the modern-day college campus and education system, I have to do some more research on those topics but from my own conclusion of them based on experience is as follows: modern-day college campuses in the United States are technopolies. This is based on the reliance on electronic grading, mail, scheduling and other functions that professors and students have. The intent of higher education in the United States is to produce educated people who can contribute to society through various employment. Colleges also have the goal to produce well rounded and the utilization of computers prepares students for jobs which will most likely rely on computers in one form or another. Postman claims that being a Technoloply is fine as long as people are still educated about other historical development of humanity like language and history; since colleges provide education on those things, I don't think Postman objects to the technology of college campuses.
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Final Paper
When looking at the potential topics for my final paper, it's hard to decide which topic will produce a better paper. The topic on Technopolyis interesting because it deals with college education which I am currently experiencing; therefore I have a good idea of how to connect Technopoly to the modern-day college campus. However there is a warning to not to comment too much on my generation in general so that means that I will need to do some research and get some statistics on college education in the United States.
The second topic which connects Made to Break to the green movement also sounds interesting. I have taken an environmental class before so I can use some of that knowledge to write the paper. However, I will need to research for some sources so that the information on the green movement can be cited in the paper. The book Made to Break has some information on financial and social interests of the American society so that will be useful in the paper.
Overall, I think the essay on Niel Postman's Technopoly will be more interesting to write because it is on issues that directly affect me. The green movement is important to me but writing a paper on that does not sound as interesting as writing about a college campus. I am in college and so why not explore the intent and role of higher education? I have already got some backgound information on the green movement so Technopoly it is. I am ready to expose the college campuses of their technophile ways.
The second topic which connects Made to Break to the green movement also sounds interesting. I have taken an environmental class before so I can use some of that knowledge to write the paper. However, I will need to research for some sources so that the information on the green movement can be cited in the paper. The book Made to Break has some information on financial and social interests of the American society so that will be useful in the paper.
Overall, I think the essay on Niel Postman's Technopoly will be more interesting to write because it is on issues that directly affect me. The green movement is important to me but writing a paper on that does not sound as interesting as writing about a college campus. I am in college and so why not explore the intent and role of higher education? I have already got some backgound information on the green movement so Technopoly it is. I am ready to expose the college campuses of their technophile ways.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
"My goal was never to just create a company." -Mark Zuckerberg
The last seven chapters of David Kirkpatrick's book The Facebook Effect presented some interesting concepts that Mark Zuckerberg has in regards to the usage of Facebook. Zuckerberg wanted Facebook to be a platform for other companies to create applications for it; this strategy has been successful "As more and more software companies embrace the platform as Facebook's dominance of social network computing spreads around the globe..."( pg 233). By the end of 2009 180 countries were using Facebook and the number of people using it "was growing about a million...per day"(pg 275). And so, Zuckerberg's resistance to advertisement had to cave in despite Microsoft's $15 billion investment in order to afford and manage enough servers to support Facebook. With the help of Sheryl Sandberg, advertising became Facebook's revenue with $300-$400 revenue in 2009 (pg 273). To respect Zuckerberg's wish to avoid bombarding users with advertisement the way television commercials do, Facebook uses the strategy of charging a comparatively low advertisement fee but displaying many advertisement (pg 273); this provides users with advertisements that are more personalized for users based on algorithms.
David Kirkpatrick's discussion of society's "sense of tribal separation" is very interesting; the question of whether Facebook reinforces this separation or disables it is left for the reader to consider. I personally believe that Facebook is erasing this tribal separation because users are able to broaden their social network through the use of commercial pages. For example, if two people "Like" the same band on Facebook, they might "Friend" each other and build a friendship. The "global village", as Kirkpatrick puts it,is more connected through the technology of Facebook and therefore the tribal separation is lessened. Zuckerberg's goal to partake in a gift economy instead of a market economy with Facebook users is another interesting concept. My personal opinion is that with the growing population of the Facebook community, a gift economy cannot continue to carry on. This is because the "freeloader" of this gift economy that Zuckerberg mentions is essentially Facebook itself. It's true that Facebook has provided the agency for easier social networking but when the gains of Facebook is compared to the gains of users, there is an obvious imbalance. This is not to say that users will discontinue their association with Facebook but instead, users may demand their share of profits from Facebook. This will shift the economy of Facebook from a gift economy to a market economy.
Eric G. Swedin and David L. Ferro discuss in their book Computers how the invention of the computer was an international effort because people throughout the world and ages have had a fascination with computational skill and devices. Kirkpatrick's concept of the global village can be used to support this convergence of ideas and innovation; fitting the entire world into the context of a village makes the world seem smaller and more connected. Thus, the American culture is one that seeks to connect with people around the world and through the use of technology, this culture is supported and magnified.
David Kirkpatrick's discussion of society's "sense of tribal separation" is very interesting; the question of whether Facebook reinforces this separation or disables it is left for the reader to consider. I personally believe that Facebook is erasing this tribal separation because users are able to broaden their social network through the use of commercial pages. For example, if two people "Like" the same band on Facebook, they might "Friend" each other and build a friendship. The "global village", as Kirkpatrick puts it,is more connected through the technology of Facebook and therefore the tribal separation is lessened. Zuckerberg's goal to partake in a gift economy instead of a market economy with Facebook users is another interesting concept. My personal opinion is that with the growing population of the Facebook community, a gift economy cannot continue to carry on. This is because the "freeloader" of this gift economy that Zuckerberg mentions is essentially Facebook itself. It's true that Facebook has provided the agency for easier social networking but when the gains of Facebook is compared to the gains of users, there is an obvious imbalance. This is not to say that users will discontinue their association with Facebook but instead, users may demand their share of profits from Facebook. This will shift the economy of Facebook from a gift economy to a market economy.
Eric G. Swedin and David L. Ferro discuss in their book Computers how the invention of the computer was an international effort because people throughout the world and ages have had a fascination with computational skill and devices. Kirkpatrick's concept of the global village can be used to support this convergence of ideas and innovation; fitting the entire world into the context of a village makes the world seem smaller and more connected. Thus, the American culture is one that seeks to connect with people around the world and through the use of technology, this culture is supported and magnified.
Sunday, November 28, 2010
In chapters 5 to 10, David Kirkpatrick summarizes how Thefacebook transformed into Facebook, a multibillion company with big-time investors. In these chapters, Mark Zuckerberg’s values and leadership skills are presented. The description of Facebook as Zuckerberg’s baby and the interest Zuckerberg had in the Washington Post because “it’s just such a long-term focus there, and that they’re so focused on the brand of Washington Post and the trust it has”(pg 109) shows Zuckerberg’s attachment to Facebook. The final decision to make an investment deal with Accel because of an $80 million postinvestment valuation proves that the Facebook is a business first and even Zuckerberg could not resist a high offer over a moral dilemma.
Although Zuckerberg wanted Facebook to be a social network and that alone, pressures and need for income through advertisement lead to the development of algorithms to establish which Facebook users were target consumers for advertisers (pg 143). The declaration of Facebook as “a utility” by Zuckerberg gave it an “affinity with the telephone network and other communications infrastructure of the pas…a new communications medium”(pg 144). This ensured that Facebook would not die off because of the sole reliance on its coolness the way that Friendster had. The reason why Zuckerberg continued to have so much power and authority during the development of Facebook is because Sean Parker gave Zuckerberg his board seat after he stepped down from his position as president of Facebook; this resulted in Zuckerberg’s control of a total of three board seats.
The "ethos of openness and transparency that was at the heart of the company's values" (pg 158) is admirable and is the root of Zuckerberg's vision for Facebook; this vision is to allow users to only have one identity on Facebook so "that may allow people to recognize things about you that they never previously knew, whether for good or ill"(pg 194).Niel Postman states in his book Technopoly the fear that "Cultures may also suffer grievously from information glut, information without meaning, information without controlled mechanisms.”(pg 70). Zuckerberg has made all information of Facebook users available in the "News Feed" but users have the ability to control what they put out on Facebook and who can access their information. Therefore, it can be argued that Facebook is not to blame for the suffering that results from the broadcast of personal information but the person himself/herself who did not edit what they broadcast.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Scientology: As told by Wikipedia
After auditing Wikipedia's page on Scientology, I have come to the conclusion that Wikipedia cannot be used as a scholarly source because of the biased opinions present. Because there were 266 works that were cited and used in the Scientology page, the amount of research done on the topic is the strength of Wikipedia. The weakness of Wikipedia is the biased nature of it and the amount of outdated and invalid sources that are cited. The semi-protection that the Scientology page is under assures users that not just any Wikipedia editor can edit the page. However, because the Scientology page is supported by WikiProject Scientology, the biased nature of the page is more questionable. Although WikiProject Scientology claims that they promote Wikipedia editors who have an unbiased view of Scientology, they also claim that they support editors who seek to improve Scientology's image as a whole. Therefore, the negative press surrounding Scientology is not present in the page and this editing can be seen as biased.
The strength that Wikipedia has in providing a large list of cited sources allows people to do further research on the topics given. This shows that technology has changed the American culture from one that relies on "hear say" information on controversial matters to one that is more prone to do research on those topics. Although the information that people obtain from Wikipedia is likely to be more abundant than the information obtained from other people, the quality of the information on Wikipedia remains questionable. Because most Wikipedia users probably do not look into the sources that are cited on Wikipedia pages, this shows that the American culture is also one that does not question the validity of information given to them.
Through this experience of auditing Wikipedia's page on Scientology, I have learned the importance of doing further research on topics searched on Wikipedia by looking into the sources that are cited on the Wikipedia pages. It has also now come to my attention that the authors of works cited can be repeated many times and therefore have a large influence on the contents of the Wikipedia page. I have also learned that pages on Wikipedia can be supported by groups and be semi-protected by Wikipedia. In any future use of Wikipedia, I will be more wary of the validity of it's contents and will visit the works cited to determine if the Wikipedia page is biased.
The strength that Wikipedia has in providing a large list of cited sources allows people to do further research on the topics given. This shows that technology has changed the American culture from one that relies on "hear say" information on controversial matters to one that is more prone to do research on those topics. Although the information that people obtain from Wikipedia is likely to be more abundant than the information obtained from other people, the quality of the information on Wikipedia remains questionable. Because most Wikipedia users probably do not look into the sources that are cited on Wikipedia pages, this shows that the American culture is also one that does not question the validity of information given to them.
Through this experience of auditing Wikipedia's page on Scientology, I have learned the importance of doing further research on topics searched on Wikipedia by looking into the sources that are cited on the Wikipedia pages. It has also now come to my attention that the authors of works cited can be repeated many times and therefore have a large influence on the contents of the Wikipedia page. I have also learned that pages on Wikipedia can be supported by groups and be semi-protected by Wikipedia. In any future use of Wikipedia, I will be more wary of the validity of it's contents and will visit the works cited to determine if the Wikipedia page is biased.
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Thefacebook -> $ ->facebook -> $$$
The book that I have been looking forward to read the most is The Facebook Effect by David Kirkpatrick and after reading the first few chapters along with the prologue, it definitely seems that the best book was indeed saved for last. I was expecting the prologue to present some glossy background information on how much success and revenue the facebook company has gained thus far but what I found was quite the opposite. Oscar Morales's story of creating the facebook group "Un Million de voces Contra Las FARC" that eventually lead to a global march against FARC (the REvolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) who's guerrillas were kidnapping innocent people was a touching introduction. This example of how networking can unite people for a cause leads to the questions on facebook's effects on the real-world that Kirkpatrick poses in his book.
Having payed ten dollars and fifty cents to watch The Social Network, the first chapter presented some familiar information on how facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerberg and all the legal battles resulting from it. The in-depth information that was lacking in the film is fortunately present in this book. According to the book, the collaborative efforts of Zuckerberg and his roommates to create new computer programming projects was a routine activity for the boys and this "...wasn't too noteworthy at Harvard."(pg 22) where "Down every hall were gifted and privileged children of the powerful."( pg 22). However, to Zuckerberg, "Making Thefacebook fun was more important than making it a business."( pg 33). The idea of facebook being a social networking site was not revolutionary because websites like Myspace and Friendster were already created but what lead to the popularity of Zuckerberg's site Thefacebook was the exclusivity of it. When first created, Thefacebook, later renamed facebook, was only for Harvard students and later Ivy League schools. Kirkpatrick describes the importance of social ranking in Harvard with the popularity of Zuckerberg's early Internet software called Course Match which allowed students to decide which classes they take based on which students were already registered in them. Aside from the usual flirting and networking that most social networks were already used for, Thefacebook introduced a new medium for "creating study groups for classes, arranging meetings for clubs, and posting notices about parties.
With popularity and traffic growing, Thefacebook easily gained partnership with Y2M which placed ads on Thefacebook. This advertising income helped Zuckerberg and his colleagues buy new equipment and servers to support Thefacebook's growth. Through it's popularity, Facebook has become the world's largest social network. This is not to say that Mark Zuckerberg was a genius for creating Facebook. The pattern of copying and competing in the computer industry introduced earlier in the book Computers by Eric Swedin and David Ferro is essentially what Zuckerberg has done. Although it can be argued that codes and forums from other social networking sites were not used by Zuckerberg, the idea of facebook is influenced by websites like Friendster, ConnectU, and houseSYSTEM . Aaron Greenspan,who claims that he "invented The Facebook"( pg 84), experienced the consequence of neglecting to patent his ideas the way Edward Roberts, the founder of MITS, did not patent his idea of the microcomputer as discussed by Swedin and Ferro (Computers 89).
The success that Mark Zuckerberg and facebook has gained is indisputable. Giles Slade mentions in his book Made to Break :"We are going to have to live and be comfortable and maneuver in a computer environment" (pg 224). The wide usage of facebook proves that a large part of today's society already live that comfortable computer environment.
Having payed ten dollars and fifty cents to watch The Social Network, the first chapter presented some familiar information on how facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerberg and all the legal battles resulting from it. The in-depth information that was lacking in the film is fortunately present in this book. According to the book, the collaborative efforts of Zuckerberg and his roommates to create new computer programming projects was a routine activity for the boys and this "...wasn't too noteworthy at Harvard."(pg 22) where "Down every hall were gifted and privileged children of the powerful."( pg 22). However, to Zuckerberg, "Making Thefacebook fun was more important than making it a business."( pg 33). The idea of facebook being a social networking site was not revolutionary because websites like Myspace and Friendster were already created but what lead to the popularity of Zuckerberg's site Thefacebook was the exclusivity of it. When first created, Thefacebook, later renamed facebook, was only for Harvard students and later Ivy League schools. Kirkpatrick describes the importance of social ranking in Harvard with the popularity of Zuckerberg's early Internet software called Course Match which allowed students to decide which classes they take based on which students were already registered in them. Aside from the usual flirting and networking that most social networks were already used for, Thefacebook introduced a new medium for "creating study groups for classes, arranging meetings for clubs, and posting notices about parties.
With popularity and traffic growing, Thefacebook easily gained partnership with Y2M which placed ads on Thefacebook. This advertising income helped Zuckerberg and his colleagues buy new equipment and servers to support Thefacebook's growth. Through it's popularity, Facebook has become the world's largest social network. This is not to say that Mark Zuckerberg was a genius for creating Facebook. The pattern of copying and competing in the computer industry introduced earlier in the book Computers by Eric Swedin and David Ferro is essentially what Zuckerberg has done. Although it can be argued that codes and forums from other social networking sites were not used by Zuckerberg, the idea of facebook is influenced by websites like Friendster, ConnectU, and houseSYSTEM . Aaron Greenspan,who claims that he "invented The Facebook"( pg 84), experienced the consequence of neglecting to patent his ideas the way Edward Roberts, the founder of MITS, did not patent his idea of the microcomputer as discussed by Swedin and Ferro (Computers 89).
The success that Mark Zuckerberg and facebook has gained is indisputable. Giles Slade mentions in his book Made to Break :"We are going to have to live and be comfortable and maneuver in a computer environment" (pg 224). The wide usage of facebook proves that a large part of today's society already live that comfortable computer environment.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Different Websites Used for Different things
The most useful website for sharing information that I personally use is wikipedia.org. As sketchy as the information may be, there is a guarantee that I will find an article on a topic of my interest. It requires user participation and contribution but I am strictly a reader.
For personal relationships I most often use Facebook.com. Almost everyone in my sphere of friendships can be found on that site and it keeps me connected to the ins and outs of their life.
etsey.com is a commerce site that one of my friends use to sell items of jewelry and clothing that she designs. The website specifically promotes the buying and selling of handmade goods.
A website that revolves around health is webmd.com. The site provides information on the latest articles on health and medicine. Users can get research illnesses that they may be afflicted by.
ancestry.com is a website that contributes to the public good because it notifies people of their lineages. In doing so, the website also connects people to living relatives whom they had not known.
For personal relationships I most often use Facebook.com. Almost everyone in my sphere of friendships can be found on that site and it keeps me connected to the ins and outs of their life.
etsey.com is a commerce site that one of my friends use to sell items of jewelry and clothing that she designs. The website specifically promotes the buying and selling of handmade goods.
A website that revolves around health is webmd.com. The site provides information on the latest articles on health and medicine. Users can get research illnesses that they may be afflicted by.
ancestry.com is a website that contributes to the public good because it notifies people of their lineages. In doing so, the website also connects people to living relatives whom they had not known.
The Social Network
So I went out and watched David Fincher's movie The Social Network and I have to say that I was not disappointing. I was curious to know how Facebook morphed from a strictly college social networking website into a broader network that include highschoolers and adults. The process and drama that lead up to what facebook has become is head spinning and true American story. Although I don't know how much of the story has been fabricated and dramatized, what I blog about is based on what was presented to me.
Aside from the technical findings of algorithms and codes involved in the movie, the relationships between friends and lovers are the focal points. The fact that the character Mark Suckerberg was able to create "FaceMash" while in a drunken stupor really glorifies his intelligence and tech-ability. However, Suckerberg's attitude towards love interest Erica Albright shows that his maturity is not so developed. Suckerberg's failed partnership with the Winklevoss twins was entertaining mostly because, quite frankly, the skills of the actors portraying the twins were lacking. The legal cases between Suckerberg, the Winklevoss twins and Edwardo gave the movie substance and I doubt the movie would have been as successful if the cases had not occurred. Justin Timberlake's character Sean Parker gave the film a healthy dose of scandal with the illegal drug use and Victoria Secret model.
There is no question as to why the real Mark Suckerberg would appose to the showing of this film. My overall impression of the character Mark Suckerberg in the movie is that he is an undoubtedly intelligent and gifted man who has yet to master, ironically enough, the social aspects of life.
Aside from the technical findings of algorithms and codes involved in the movie, the relationships between friends and lovers are the focal points. The fact that the character Mark Suckerberg was able to create "FaceMash" while in a drunken stupor really glorifies his intelligence and tech-ability. However, Suckerberg's attitude towards love interest Erica Albright shows that his maturity is not so developed. Suckerberg's failed partnership with the Winklevoss twins was entertaining mostly because, quite frankly, the skills of the actors portraying the twins were lacking. The legal cases between Suckerberg, the Winklevoss twins and Edwardo gave the movie substance and I doubt the movie would have been as successful if the cases had not occurred. Justin Timberlake's character Sean Parker gave the film a healthy dose of scandal with the illegal drug use and Victoria Secret model.
There is no question as to why the real Mark Suckerberg would appose to the showing of this film. My overall impression of the character Mark Suckerberg in the movie is that he is an undoubtedly intelligent and gifted man who has yet to master, ironically enough, the social aspects of life.
Computers, Espionage and Sabotage
Chapter 7 of Giles Slade's book Made to Break, was a condensed version of Computers by Eric Swedin and David Ferro. It presented the development of newer technological advancements that replaced older ones. The general theme of copying inventions and competing between innovators was discussed by Slade. The ongoing theme of obsolescense, of course, carries through the chapter as tangible learning toys and pinball machines become obsolete and replaced by computer games and programs. The virtual reality that Nolan Bushnell mentions in the end of the chapter is thought of brightly by the progressive thinking of Eric Swedin and David Ferro who would also agree that "We are going to have to live and be comfortable and maneuver in a computer environment" (pg 224).
The waste that accumulates through the repetitive introduction and obsolescence of computer devices, essentially named e-waste, is discussed in chapter 9. The poisoning of groundwater through PBT'sand disposal of hazardous wastes prove to be a more dangerous than the wastage of time and energy. "EPA tracked hazardous waste from electronic products... to have a substantial increase over the 1.8 million tons of e-waste produced in 1999."(pg 262). The contributing factors of this increasing amount of e-waste is the previously mentioned cycle of conspicuous consumption and planed obsolescence (pg 254).Slade believes that the dangers of toxic waste will eventually result in the adoption of "design strategies that include not just planned obsolescence but planned disassembly and reuse as part of the product life cycle" (pg 281). In this way, the idea of technophiles as mentioned by Niel Postman in Technopoly is supported by Slade because he is ultimately saying that Americans will never end the obsolescence of electronic devices because, as Postman says, Americans are"lost by our immersion in a computer culture"(Postman 122).
The "Weaponizing Planned Obsolescence" towards the USSR was an interesting part of the end of this book. Espionage in general is an exciting topic and the fact that the USSR moles were sent to the US is a testament to the quality of advancements made by the US. Obsolescence of older computer technology in this case is not a negative thing when taking into consideration that it is being replaced by a more advanced technology. Gus Weiss's idea expressed by his quote:"We could take it a step further. We could shake their morale completely by making some of the stolen items malfunction in spectacular ways."( pg 254) was ingenious and effective. With so much copying and competing going on within the borders of the US, it is no surprise that foreign countries like USSR tried to do the same.
And so, the reading of Made to Break by Giles Slade is finished and I am more aware of obsolescence in America. Like the way Neil Postman explains what we must do about the awareness of technopoly in America, I will acknowledge Obsoescence in America and not deny but consume in moderation and recycle when I can.
The waste that accumulates through the repetitive introduction and obsolescence of computer devices, essentially named e-waste, is discussed in chapter 9. The poisoning of groundwater through PBT'sand disposal of hazardous wastes prove to be a more dangerous than the wastage of time and energy. "EPA tracked hazardous waste from electronic products... to have a substantial increase over the 1.8 million tons of e-waste produced in 1999."(pg 262). The contributing factors of this increasing amount of e-waste is the previously mentioned cycle of conspicuous consumption and planed obsolescence (pg 254).Slade believes that the dangers of toxic waste will eventually result in the adoption of "design strategies that include not just planned obsolescence but planned disassembly and reuse as part of the product life cycle" (pg 281). In this way, the idea of technophiles as mentioned by Niel Postman in Technopoly is supported by Slade because he is ultimately saying that Americans will never end the obsolescence of electronic devices because, as Postman says, Americans are"lost by our immersion in a computer culture"(Postman 122).
The "Weaponizing Planned Obsolescence" towards the USSR was an interesting part of the end of this book. Espionage in general is an exciting topic and the fact that the USSR moles were sent to the US is a testament to the quality of advancements made by the US. Obsolescence of older computer technology in this case is not a negative thing when taking into consideration that it is being replaced by a more advanced technology. Gus Weiss's idea expressed by his quote:"We could take it a step further. We could shake their morale completely by making some of the stolen items malfunction in spectacular ways."( pg 254) was ingenious and effective. With so much copying and competing going on within the borders of the US, it is no surprise that foreign countries like USSR tried to do the same.
And so, the reading of Made to Break by Giles Slade is finished and I am more aware of obsolescence in America. Like the way Neil Postman explains what we must do about the awareness of technopoly in America, I will acknowledge Obsoescence in America and not deny but consume in moderation and recycle when I can.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Sunday, October 31, 2010
Giles Slade Is a Writer
As I read further into the book Made to Break by Giles Slade, the writing took a surprising turn. Up till the third chapter, the book sounded more or less like a history book that is seemingly objective. However, I literally laughed out loud when I got to the detailed imagery in chapter 4 of beautiful dark haired Marion Armstrong's "broad-brimmed hat twisting and flapping in the wind"(pg 105). I understand that this is Slade's attempt to give the innovators he mentions life and character but...really? For a few paragraphs it sounded like Slade's writing is an excerpt from some romance novel. The love stories, and social scandals mentioned by Slade definitely made this part of the reading somewhat comical and refreshing.
On a more serious note, chapters 4,5 and 6 of Made to Break posed some interesting information on why Americans fell into the hole of obsolescence. The creation of things like small radios, synthetic fibers, and of course cars are discussed by Slade as tools of obsolescence in America. What I understand from the reading is that manufacturers and innovators took advantage of quick and cheap mechanical assembly of products to lower the durability of products and also the price of the product. These low prices then tempt consumers who eventually find the product disposable when it breaks and therefore do not hesitate to replace it with a product of equal durability and cost. Judging from this shallow overview of the situation, it would seem that Americans are not the smartest of consumers but are they to blame? E. S. Stafford suggests that consumers are subject to "forced feeding" (pg 165) by American Companies. What Stafford means by this is that with the attractive, hip and cool advertisement and packaging of products, consumers are almost brainwashed into buying these products. The example of "Madison Avenue...marketing new goods, new fads, new symbolic gestures of defiance"(pg 179) is given. Phychological obsolescence is the factor of all these things.
This mention of the introduction of new goods reminds me of Computers by Eric G. Swedin and David L. Ferro. Computers displays the ongoing innovation in computer technology and how the invention of one thing replaces the invention of an older model. When I first read Computers, my reaction to this was positive and only thought it to be progressive. With this new view on obsolescence, the wastage of materials, energy comes to mind. However, I have concluded that if the product contributes to the advancement of society, the obsolescence of another product that is older and less efficient can be spared.
On a more serious note, chapters 4,5 and 6 of Made to Break posed some interesting information on why Americans fell into the hole of obsolescence. The creation of things like small radios, synthetic fibers, and of course cars are discussed by Slade as tools of obsolescence in America. What I understand from the reading is that manufacturers and innovators took advantage of quick and cheap mechanical assembly of products to lower the durability of products and also the price of the product. These low prices then tempt consumers who eventually find the product disposable when it breaks and therefore do not hesitate to replace it with a product of equal durability and cost. Judging from this shallow overview of the situation, it would seem that Americans are not the smartest of consumers but are they to blame? E. S. Stafford suggests that consumers are subject to "forced feeding" (pg 165) by American Companies. What Stafford means by this is that with the attractive, hip and cool advertisement and packaging of products, consumers are almost brainwashed into buying these products. The example of "Madison Avenue...marketing new goods, new fads, new symbolic gestures of defiance"(pg 179) is given. Phychological obsolescence is the factor of all these things.
This mention of the introduction of new goods reminds me of Computers by Eric G. Swedin and David L. Ferro. Computers displays the ongoing innovation in computer technology and how the invention of one thing replaces the invention of an older model. When I first read Computers, my reaction to this was positive and only thought it to be progressive. With this new view on obsolescence, the wastage of materials, energy comes to mind. However, I have concluded that if the product contributes to the advancement of society, the obsolescence of another product that is older and less efficient can be spared.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Why American Things Don't Last
Giles Slade came out with the book Made to Break in 2006 which exposes America's habit of making their products obsolete. It was interesting to read in the first three chapters about how the minds of American manufacturers began to gravitate towards obsolete products and screw over their consumers. As explained by Slade, the overproduction resulting from the shift from man-powered economy to machine-driven industry in the late 1950s only resulted in repetitive consumption(pg 9). The whole idea of America becoming a technology consumed society has been introduced by Niel Postman in his book Technopoly; Postman explains that the American character is "so congenial to the sovereignty of technology" (pg. 95) and Americans have become technophiles who are lovers of technology and can only think of technology positively. During the industrial era of the United States, manufacturers could not lessen their use of machinery.
There are a few terms which Slade presents as contributors to the development of obsolescence in America. In the late 19th century, American companies relied on increasing and sustaining demand and distribution of their products in order to sell all the products that they were overproducing as a result of industrial machines (pg 10). This was done by branding, fancy packaging, advertising and making disposable products. This created the "disposable culture" or "the throwaway ethic"; consumers would rather have the instant gratification of having an inexpensive product which was disposable than saving up their money to buy an expensive product (pg 15). these products included disposable paper shirts, dollar Yankee pocket watches, disposable Star safety razors and sanitary napkin(pg 13-17). "As the disposable trend continued, it became culturally permissible to throw away objects that could not simply and conveniently be consumed by flames"(pg 24) like food and coal.
All of these things led in psychological, progressive and planned obsolescence. Psychological obsolescence's key feature is the "self-conscious concern about being out-of-fashion"(pg 53) because companies came out with new models of products like silverware and automobiles every year. Progressive obsolescence encouraged psychological obsolescence because it sought to "elevate Sloan's practice of annual model changes to an economic habit that would sustain America's economy by means of perpetual consumption and growth in all industries" (pg 58). Planned obsolescence is even more disturbing because manufacturers would sell products with planned short lifespans.
This reading did not surprise me with the concept of obsolescence in America but instead the idea of compensating overproduction with repetitive consumption. The fact that consumers have fallen for marketing of cheap products makes me question how many priceless resources like coal have been disposed of because of blind consumption. It would be interesting to hear what advocates of American made products have to say after reading this book.
There are a few terms which Slade presents as contributors to the development of obsolescence in America. In the late 19th century, American companies relied on increasing and sustaining demand and distribution of their products in order to sell all the products that they were overproducing as a result of industrial machines (pg 10). This was done by branding, fancy packaging, advertising and making disposable products. This created the "disposable culture" or "the throwaway ethic"; consumers would rather have the instant gratification of having an inexpensive product which was disposable than saving up their money to buy an expensive product (pg 15). these products included disposable paper shirts, dollar Yankee pocket watches, disposable Star safety razors and sanitary napkin(pg 13-17). "As the disposable trend continued, it became culturally permissible to throw away objects that could not simply and conveniently be consumed by flames"(pg 24) like food and coal.
All of these things led in psychological, progressive and planned obsolescence. Psychological obsolescence's key feature is the "self-conscious concern about being out-of-fashion"(pg 53) because companies came out with new models of products like silverware and automobiles every year. Progressive obsolescence encouraged psychological obsolescence because it sought to "elevate Sloan's practice of annual model changes to an economic habit that would sustain America's economy by means of perpetual consumption and growth in all industries" (pg 58). Planned obsolescence is even more disturbing because manufacturers would sell products with planned short lifespans.
This reading did not surprise me with the concept of obsolescence in America but instead the idea of compensating overproduction with repetitive consumption. The fact that consumers have fallen for marketing of cheap products makes me question how many priceless resources like coal have been disposed of because of blind consumption. It would be interesting to hear what advocates of American made products have to say after reading this book.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Wikipedia: Social Network/Encyclopedia
In the last four chapters of The World and Wikipedia Andrew Dalby tries to convince me that my feelings towards Wikipedia is not just a superficial like but a meaningful love and that I can one day strengthen my trust in it. I have to say that I am not convinced because most of Dalby's points are directed towards active members of Wikipedia and I am just a reader. However Dalby makes sound and provoking statements.
Dalby starts off the second half of his book by giving a glimpse of what editors and contributors go through in order to produce an article. By reading about this I realized for the first time that Wikipedia is a social network. Never before had my eyes wandered away from the content of the articles on Wikipedia to the top right corner of the page where the "Log in/create an account" link sits. Judging from the information given by Dalby on the feuds and scandal involving Wikipedia's network of people, wikipedians are charismatic and opinionated. A particularly funny conversation on a Wikipedia talk page is between wikipedians The Cunctator, Robert Merkel and founders Lawrence Sanger and Jimmy Wales ; this conversation consists of a dispute over the proposed establishment, by Sanger, of a Wikipedia militia/guard/committee that basically "...keep things running in any emergency"(pg 23). It is humorous because everything from trollish behavior to free buffets are discussed reminiscent of a playground fight. As a result of this conversation, however, administrators of Wikipedia were given the right to delete on sight any new page if it "...is nothing but vandalism, or a misspelling, or totally unsuited to an encyclopedia..."(pg 124); and so, to say that Wikipedia's talk page consists of meaningless banter is an understatement. Harassment between wikipedians is also common and is the reason why many wikipedians have deleted their accounts. Some of the reasons which Dalby gives to explain why many more people continue to join and participate in Wikipedia is because they enjoy the social aspect, the sharing of knowledge and the eternal truth of Wikipedia; wikipedian Ram-man claims:"It's fun for me."(pg 118).
The global use of Wikipedia and controversies related to them were also interesting to read about. As it turns out, American scholarly encyclopedias are not the only ones suffering from Wikipedia's popularity; Germany's Brokhaus and Norway's Store norske leksikon are a few foreign encyclopedias which have stopped producing print versions (pg 199) due to drops in sales. I was surprised to learn that Germany actually gave state funding to German Wikipedia. Another shocker was that "Microsoft finally announced in March 2009 that Encarta, both DVD and online, was closing down."(pg 201); Encarta was one of the "reliable" sources that my teachers in grade school encouraged me to use.
With all of these changes in the market of encyclopedias, Dalby points out an important fact about Wikipedia's articles; he states that "Wikipedia tends to ensure...that it is never ahead of the consensus of opinion but always slightly behind it." (pg 195). This is to minimize the potential of false information floating around as a result of Wikipedia. In the book Computers:The Life Story of a Technology by Eric Swedin and David Ferro it is stated that in the year 2000, studies showed that "51 percent of U.S. families owned a computer and 41 percent of U.S. homes had Internet access"(pg 132). With this information, when it is considered that Wikipedia was named the seventh most popular online reference work by Alexa the influence that Wikipedia has on society is immense(pg 192).Jimmy Wales is aware of this and so both he and many wikipedians try to be responsible posters of information on the internet (pg 223). Because of this, Dalby claims that "Wikipedia has grown up" ( pg 225).
Given this information, I am now better equipped to navigate through Wikipedia. Sited information are the most reliable and I will not rely on Wikipedia for the "First news on what's about to happen"(195). Niel Postman states in his book Technopoly the fear that "Cultures may also suffer grievously from information glut, information without meaning, information without controlled mechanisms.”(pg 70) but if contributors of Wikipedia continue to edit and control the information presented in Wikipedia, people will continue to have free access to valid information about the world.
Dalby starts off the second half of his book by giving a glimpse of what editors and contributors go through in order to produce an article. By reading about this I realized for the first time that Wikipedia is a social network. Never before had my eyes wandered away from the content of the articles on Wikipedia to the top right corner of the page where the "Log in/create an account" link sits. Judging from the information given by Dalby on the feuds and scandal involving Wikipedia's network of people, wikipedians are charismatic and opinionated. A particularly funny conversation on a Wikipedia talk page is between wikipedians The Cunctator, Robert Merkel and founders Lawrence Sanger and Jimmy Wales ; this conversation consists of a dispute over the proposed establishment, by Sanger, of a Wikipedia militia/guard/committee that basically "...keep things running in any emergency"(pg 23). It is humorous because everything from trollish behavior to free buffets are discussed reminiscent of a playground fight. As a result of this conversation, however, administrators of Wikipedia were given the right to delete on sight any new page if it "...is nothing but vandalism, or a misspelling, or totally unsuited to an encyclopedia..."(pg 124); and so, to say that Wikipedia's talk page consists of meaningless banter is an understatement. Harassment between wikipedians is also common and is the reason why many wikipedians have deleted their accounts. Some of the reasons which Dalby gives to explain why many more people continue to join and participate in Wikipedia is because they enjoy the social aspect, the sharing of knowledge and the eternal truth of Wikipedia; wikipedian Ram-man claims:"It's fun for me."(pg 118).
The global use of Wikipedia and controversies related to them were also interesting to read about. As it turns out, American scholarly encyclopedias are not the only ones suffering from Wikipedia's popularity; Germany's Brokhaus and Norway's Store norske leksikon are a few foreign encyclopedias which have stopped producing print versions (pg 199) due to drops in sales. I was surprised to learn that Germany actually gave state funding to German Wikipedia. Another shocker was that "Microsoft finally announced in March 2009 that Encarta, both DVD and online, was closing down."(pg 201); Encarta was one of the "reliable" sources that my teachers in grade school encouraged me to use.
With all of these changes in the market of encyclopedias, Dalby points out an important fact about Wikipedia's articles; he states that "Wikipedia tends to ensure...that it is never ahead of the consensus of opinion but always slightly behind it." (pg 195). This is to minimize the potential of false information floating around as a result of Wikipedia. In the book Computers:The Life Story of a Technology by Eric Swedin and David Ferro it is stated that in the year 2000, studies showed that "51 percent of U.S. families owned a computer and 41 percent of U.S. homes had Internet access"(pg 132). With this information, when it is considered that Wikipedia was named the seventh most popular online reference work by Alexa the influence that Wikipedia has on society is immense(pg 192).Jimmy Wales is aware of this and so both he and many wikipedians try to be responsible posters of information on the internet (pg 223). Because of this, Dalby claims that "Wikipedia has grown up" ( pg 225).
Given this information, I am now better equipped to navigate through Wikipedia. Sited information are the most reliable and I will not rely on Wikipedia for the "First news on what's about to happen"(195). Niel Postman states in his book Technopoly the fear that "Cultures may also suffer grievously from information glut, information without meaning, information without controlled mechanisms.”(pg 70) but if contributors of Wikipedia continue to edit and control the information presented in Wikipedia, people will continue to have free access to valid information about the world.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Wikipedia [like]
If Google had those Facebook "like" buttons for the websites it displays, I would definitely press that like button for Wikipedia. With all the forewarnings from high school history teachers to biology professors about how unreliable Wikipedia is for a scholarly final paper on the gulf war or on a lab report, Wikipedia has provided me with easy access to valid information on many subjects. Andrew Dalby in his book The World and Wikipedia: How we are Editing Reality more or less supports my preference to use Wikipedia over all other encyclopedias. As a wikiepdian himself, Dalby knows the processes which take place in the presentation of information on Wikipedia and makes a thorough and insightful argument on why Wikipedia, despite it's 32% error rate, continues to be a strong competitor against other reputable online encyclopedias.
Neupedia, established by Jimmy Wales, was the predecessor of Wikipedia and was created to be a scholarly web-based encyclopedia. Since then, Wikipedia has become an interactive website where the general public can write and edit articles on various topics which is why many users of Wikipedia regard Wikipedia "To be refreshingly democratic"(pg 54). It cannot be argued that Wikipedia has proved to be a global broadcast of information which is easy to use and available to all. Dalby talks about the "circle of knowledge"(pg 21) which Wikipedia has become, providing it's services in 265 languages and allowing the writing and critiquing of articles by people around the world.
To the many who have opposed my use of Wikipedia, Dalby's information on how more and more professionals and scholars in the subjects presented in Wikipedia are contributing to the site is a strong rebuttal. Articles are posted on Wikipedia on an hourly bases with hundreds of people adding cited information and statistics while others are editing the information which are questionably false. It is no wonder that Wikipedia is becoming a respectable and notorious online encyclopedia like the tried and true encyclopedias promoted by schools. I would venture to say that if Gaius Plinious Secundus, the famous encyclopedist, were alive today, he would prefer Wikipedia over Encyclopedia Britannica because of the problem of revising and updating encyclopedias which Wikipedia has solved.
Neil Postman, in his book Technopoly, states that he wants America to be a society where"The philosophies of science, of history, of language, of technology and of religion"(pg. 199) are taught to everyone. If the public is charged a sum of money to view information pertaining to these subjects, it is inevitable that people will be less willing obtain those information. As supported by the Nature survey mentioned by Dalby, Wikipedia's free and public source is more attractive to information seekers. And so, Wikipedia can contribute to Neil Postman's efforts to educate America.
My reading and analysis of Andrew Dalby's book is unquestionably biased and I will admit it. On an side note, I went on Wikipedia after my reading to research Encyclopedia Britannica and there was an unbiased lengthy article on it's history. However, I went on Encyclopedia Britannica's website and found a five line description of Wikipedia before it asked me to subscribe.
Neupedia, established by Jimmy Wales, was the predecessor of Wikipedia and was created to be a scholarly web-based encyclopedia. Since then, Wikipedia has become an interactive website where the general public can write and edit articles on various topics which is why many users of Wikipedia regard Wikipedia "To be refreshingly democratic"(pg 54). It cannot be argued that Wikipedia has proved to be a global broadcast of information which is easy to use and available to all. Dalby talks about the "circle of knowledge"(pg 21) which Wikipedia has become, providing it's services in 265 languages and allowing the writing and critiquing of articles by people around the world.
To the many who have opposed my use of Wikipedia, Dalby's information on how more and more professionals and scholars in the subjects presented in Wikipedia are contributing to the site is a strong rebuttal. Articles are posted on Wikipedia on an hourly bases with hundreds of people adding cited information and statistics while others are editing the information which are questionably false. It is no wonder that Wikipedia is becoming a respectable and notorious online encyclopedia like the tried and true encyclopedias promoted by schools. I would venture to say that if Gaius Plinious Secundus, the famous encyclopedist, were alive today, he would prefer Wikipedia over Encyclopedia Britannica because of the problem of revising and updating encyclopedias which Wikipedia has solved.
Neil Postman, in his book Technopoly, states that he wants America to be a society where"The philosophies of science, of history, of language, of technology and of religion"(pg. 199) are taught to everyone. If the public is charged a sum of money to view information pertaining to these subjects, it is inevitable that people will be less willing obtain those information. As supported by the Nature survey mentioned by Dalby, Wikipedia's free and public source is more attractive to information seekers. And so, Wikipedia can contribute to Neil Postman's efforts to educate America.
My reading and analysis of Andrew Dalby's book is unquestionably biased and I will admit it. On an side note, I went on Wikipedia after my reading to research Encyclopedia Britannica and there was an unbiased lengthy article on it's history. However, I went on Encyclopedia Britannica's website and found a five line description of Wikipedia before it asked me to subscribe.
Sunday, October 3, 2010
The Not So Crazy Neil Postman
I ended my last post on Technopoly by Neil Postman in wonder of how Postman would prefer the American society to be and it is roughly stated in the second half of his book; this, of course,is not presented until Postman states a few more things on how technology has taken over American culture. To briefly summarize these things, I believe that the image of the "tail wagging the dog" (pg. 142) drawn by Postman is a good introduction. Basically, Postman believes that technology is the tail in this analogy and the dog is the human race. For instance, Postman lists a slew of medical statistics which show that American doctors are using medical technologies more often and rigorously than other countries in Europe including England, France and Germany. It is then explained by Postman that this is due to the American character that is "so congenial to the sovereignty of technology" (pg. 95). Postman believes that technological innovations are not synonymous with human progress because the traditions of humans and our mental and physical skills are "lost by our immersion in a computer culture"(pg.122). Other things like images of Christ and symbols of nationalism are considered by Postman to be "diminished in importance"(pg. 166) by technology because the availability and mass print of these things "drains it of its symbolic value"(pg. 166). In the end however, Postman seems to acknowledge that his objective is to raise enough awareness of the dangers of Technopoly and to get people to resist the dangerous outcomes of technology which he so generously devotes his book to listing.
The shock effect that Postman wanted in his writing is there but it is obvious that Postman is not just a crazy ranting man. It is Technopoly's last chapter which saves Neil Postman from being the most narrow minded King Thamus which he proclaims himself to be. Postman states that resistors of American Technopoly "admire technological ingenuity but do not think it represents the highest possible form of human achievement"(pg. 184). And so, it is fair to assume that Postman would not appose to the reading of Computers:The Life Story of a Technology by Eric Swedin and David Ferro because it not only highlights humanity's technological achievements in the field of computers but also other achievements like numbers and counting methods.
Postman's overall goal in my opinion is sane and achievable. To remind and teach the human race about "The philosophies of science, of history, of language, of technology and of religion"(pg. 199) is to make society rich in it's knowledge of human culture; a culture which does not revolve around technology. However, I still believe that to call America a Technopoly is a general and biased opinion. I understand that Postman has written this book to mainly reach out to people who are immersed in technological advancements, but I am convinced that there is a population of Americans, however small that ratio may be when compared to technophiles, who share Niel Postman's appreciation for morality and philosophy among other human abilities.
The shock effect that Postman wanted in his writing is there but it is obvious that Postman is not just a crazy ranting man. It is Technopoly's last chapter which saves Neil Postman from being the most narrow minded King Thamus which he proclaims himself to be. Postman states that resistors of American Technopoly "admire technological ingenuity but do not think it represents the highest possible form of human achievement"(pg. 184). And so, it is fair to assume that Postman would not appose to the reading of Computers:The Life Story of a Technology by Eric Swedin and David Ferro because it not only highlights humanity's technological achievements in the field of computers but also other achievements like numbers and counting methods.
Postman's overall goal in my opinion is sane and achievable. To remind and teach the human race about "The philosophies of science, of history, of language, of technology and of religion"(pg. 199) is to make society rich in it's knowledge of human culture; a culture which does not revolve around technology. However, I still believe that to call America a Technopoly is a general and biased opinion. I understand that Postman has written this book to mainly reach out to people who are immersed in technological advancements, but I am convinced that there is a population of Americans, however small that ratio may be when compared to technophiles, who share Niel Postman's appreciation for morality and philosophy among other human abilities.
Cyborg? Already?
If I were to make note the top ten most shocking newsflashes I have come across, CNN's artlicle "Cyborgy professor looks to future of bionic technology" would be on the list. This article is about Kevin Warwick, a professor of cybernetics at Reding University. In 1998 Warwick had a radio frequency ID chip implanted in his arm and since then, he has found that the implant allows him to "turn on lights by snapping fingers, open doors without touching them." Later, in 2002 Warwick discovered that his wife can take control of his body with the use of her own brain waves when he connects his nerve to electrodes. Currently, Warwick is researching "brain interfaces and autonomous robots" and because this is helping to understand how to treat braind diseases like Alzheimers and Parkinson's, the Royal Society of Medicine will be awarding him the Ellison Cliffe Medal next year.
Kevin Warwick's research regarding brain interface is exciting when the possibilities of medical advancements are considered. However, when discussing this article with fellow students, there was an overall consensus that brain interface is both good and bad. For example, one student claimed that the utilization of brain interface to control dietary issues would be disturbing if the technology used forcefully stops a person from eating "that chocolate cake that you want" that Warwick mentions. Also, Social Justice would be challenged by brain interface and body control since the dignity of humans might be degraded if they have to rely on technology to control their behavioral problems such as overeating. One thing that was for certain during the class discussion and that was the shock that this bionic technology exists today. A classmate posed the question: "What else are they hiding from us?"
My personal opinion of Kevin Warwick is that he is an odd man, however irrelevant this may be to the analysis of this article. Warwick has a fear that "humans will someday fall behind the advances of robots we're building" and believes that upgrades on the human body with the use technology is needed to prevent this. I find this to be a disturbing idea because a fear of technology is obviously present in Warwick. The article alludes to this fear by mentioning how "He has very little technology at home, and counts 'The Terminator' among his biggest influences." This proves that fear is a sure fire way to generate innovation.
Kevin Warwick's research regarding brain interface is exciting when the possibilities of medical advancements are considered. However, when discussing this article with fellow students, there was an overall consensus that brain interface is both good and bad. For example, one student claimed that the utilization of brain interface to control dietary issues would be disturbing if the technology used forcefully stops a person from eating "that chocolate cake that you want" that Warwick mentions. Also, Social Justice would be challenged by brain interface and body control since the dignity of humans might be degraded if they have to rely on technology to control their behavioral problems such as overeating. One thing that was for certain during the class discussion and that was the shock that this bionic technology exists today. A classmate posed the question: "What else are they hiding from us?"
My personal opinion of Kevin Warwick is that he is an odd man, however irrelevant this may be to the analysis of this article. Warwick has a fear that "humans will someday fall behind the advances of robots we're building" and believes that upgrades on the human body with the use technology is needed to prevent this. I find this to be a disturbing idea because a fear of technology is obviously present in Warwick. The article alludes to this fear by mentioning how "He has very little technology at home, and counts 'The Terminator' among his biggest influences." This proves that fear is a sure fire way to generate innovation.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Technophiles, Technocracy and Technopoly
Neil Postman's creative novel titled Technopoly makes the argument that every technological innovation has positive and negative effects on society. The term technophiles is introduced by Postman as lovers of technology who can only think of technology positively. In regards to computers, it is encouraged by Postman to focus on the way it alters our conception and undermines our old ideas instead of focusing on its efficiency (pg. 19). This argument may be refuted by the authors of Computers:The Life Story of a Technology, Eric Swedin and David Ferro, who greatly emphasis their discussion on the ever improving efficiency of the computer. Swedin and Ferro seem to take pride in America's advancement in technology by listing numerous innovations but Postman regards this advancement as strange and dangerous; Postman creates the word Technopoly to describe America's altered interest, "character of symbols" (pg. 20) and community due to technology.
Although Postman begins his novel by encouraging the view of technology as both positive and negative part of society, further reading of the book suggests that Postman himself has a negative outlook on technology. I agree with Postman's argument that technology became "one sure thing to believe in" (pg. 55) when religion and tradition were being challenged by Nietzche, Darwin, Marx and Freud ( pg. 54). However, Postman believes that "Any conception of God's design certainly lost much of its power and meaning, and with that loss went the satisfaction of a culture in which moral and intellectual values were integrated."(pg. 38) This statement sounds very dramatic and I believe that Postman overstates the effects of technology. Postman's opinion that sin and evil have disappeared in Technopoly because " Their god speaks of efficiency, precision, objectivity"(pg.90) and not "righteousness or goodness or mercy or grace"(pg. 90), is extreme and suggests that America's society has totally lost a sense of morality. It is true that morality has been challenged by technology but not to the exaggerated extent that Postman states. Overall, Technopoly has introduced some interesting concepts of the way technology has changed the culture of America but if Niel Postman states that it is obvious that there are two sides to technology, and proclaims himself as a Thamus ,one who speaks of the burdens of technology(pg.5), he sounds just as narrow minded as technophiles; I look forward to reading what kind of society Postman would prefer America to be.
Although Postman begins his novel by encouraging the view of technology as both positive and negative part of society, further reading of the book suggests that Postman himself has a negative outlook on technology. I agree with Postman's argument that technology became "one sure thing to believe in" (pg. 55) when religion and tradition were being challenged by Nietzche, Darwin, Marx and Freud ( pg. 54). However, Postman believes that "Any conception of God's design certainly lost much of its power and meaning, and with that loss went the satisfaction of a culture in which moral and intellectual values were integrated."(pg. 38) This statement sounds very dramatic and I believe that Postman overstates the effects of technology. Postman's opinion that sin and evil have disappeared in Technopoly because " Their god speaks of efficiency, precision, objectivity"(pg.90) and not "righteousness or goodness or mercy or grace"(pg. 90), is extreme and suggests that America's society has totally lost a sense of morality. It is true that morality has been challenged by technology but not to the exaggerated extent that Postman states. Overall, Technopoly has introduced some interesting concepts of the way technology has changed the culture of America but if Niel Postman states that it is obvious that there are two sides to technology, and proclaims himself as a Thamus ,one who speaks of the burdens of technology(pg.5), he sounds just as narrow minded as technophiles; I look forward to reading what kind of society Postman would prefer America to be.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Copy and Compete
The last half of the book Computers:The Life Story of a Technology by Eric Swedin and David Ferro is by miles more interesting than the first and although it took a while for me to warm up to the book, Computers has made the history of computers much more interesting. Reason being that it is refreshing and entertaining to read about innovators who are still alive and companies that I am familiar with. When evaluating the time line of the microcomputer, it is surprising to find that within 37 years, the microcomputer has evolved from a machine with no peripherals to what it is today. Swedin and Ferro continue their attempt to meticulously list every important innovation in the field of computers so the information given on this evolution and everything around it is plenty.
Through the reading, it can be concluded that competition has kept the ball of progress in computers rolling.Patenting ideas proved to be an important factor of beating competition. For example, Edward Roberts, the founder of MITS, did not patent the idea of the microcomputer or "the bus" which is the "mechanism through which the computer communicated with its components"(89) and because of this, various companies and hobbyists copied these ideas.Therefore, competition for the advancement of the personal computer launched in 1976 with the microcomputers of Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems(MITS) and IMSAI. Later, Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs' company Apple Computer became head competitors with IBM. IBM allowed Microsoft to "sell it's operating system to other hardware manufacturers"(101) and had an open architecture for it's personal computer so competitors were able to copy IBM PC's hardware. Apple on the other hand had "a tight legal hold of their Macintosh ROM BIOS chips"(101) so copying of their microcomputer was harder to do. Software companies also ran into copying problems with "open source software" which published the source codes for software; this fired competition between software companies and forced them to continually create and improve their products. Other competitions in respected fields of computer technology are presented in the book but this brief overview is enough to conclude that the impact of competition has been beneficial to the advancement of computers.
I, like Swedin and Ferro, am excited to see what else the minds of innovators has in store for us in the future. The stories of Bill Gates and Steve Wozniak prove that the ability of a person to create and produce new technological advancements can start at an early age.Because of this, I believe that the potential for innovation by children today is greater than any generation before them. In the year 2000, studies showed that "51 percent of U.S. families owned a computer and 41 percent of U.S. homes had Internet access"(132); these numbers have only been increasing and with that the access to technology. Although the excessive usage of computers by children today is often viewed as a frightening addictive habit, it is encouraging to know that some children are feeding their strive for technological innovation.
Through the reading, it can be concluded that competition has kept the ball of progress in computers rolling.Patenting ideas proved to be an important factor of beating competition. For example, Edward Roberts, the founder of MITS, did not patent the idea of the microcomputer or "the bus" which is the "mechanism through which the computer communicated with its components"(89) and because of this, various companies and hobbyists copied these ideas.Therefore, competition for the advancement of the personal computer launched in 1976 with the microcomputers of Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems(MITS) and IMSAI. Later, Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs' company Apple Computer became head competitors with IBM. IBM allowed Microsoft to "sell it's operating system to other hardware manufacturers"(101) and had an open architecture for it's personal computer so competitors were able to copy IBM PC's hardware. Apple on the other hand had "a tight legal hold of their Macintosh ROM BIOS chips"(101) so copying of their microcomputer was harder to do. Software companies also ran into copying problems with "open source software" which published the source codes for software; this fired competition between software companies and forced them to continually create and improve their products. Other competitions in respected fields of computer technology are presented in the book but this brief overview is enough to conclude that the impact of competition has been beneficial to the advancement of computers.
I, like Swedin and Ferro, am excited to see what else the minds of innovators has in store for us in the future. The stories of Bill Gates and Steve Wozniak prove that the ability of a person to create and produce new technological advancements can start at an early age.Because of this, I believe that the potential for innovation by children today is greater than any generation before them. In the year 2000, studies showed that "51 percent of U.S. families owned a computer and 41 percent of U.S. homes had Internet access"(132); these numbers have only been increasing and with that the access to technology. Although the excessive usage of computers by children today is often viewed as a frightening addictive habit, it is encouraging to know that some children are feeding their strive for technological innovation.
Monday, September 20, 2010
My Venture into The Techy's Holy Grail
If you have ever wanted to know about the history of the technology which you are using right now, Computers by Eric G. Swedin and David L. Ferro is a must read. Everything from computation methods used before computers to microprocessors are explained within the first four chapters of the book. Personally, the brief timeline printed before the book even begins is enough information to fulfill my curiosities about computers. However, for a tech savvy person, the very thorough history presented in the book might be very entertaining.
When the history of computers is considered, it is easy to date the birth of computers back to 1939 when John Vincent Atansoff and Clifford E. Berry's computer which was "digital, used vacuum tubes, used binary numbers, used logic circuts..." (27-28) but what Swedin and Ferro acknowledge is that the journey of the computer began centuries before. In fact, the first chapter of the book begins by discussing a computing machine which is speculated to have been made by Romans "between 100 and 40 BCE"(1). Mathematics, which is the base of any technology regarding computers, is dated even further back in time; artifacts like notched bones from 35000 BCE prove that people used mathematics in their daily lives (x). Most importantly, counting and numbers proved useful in commerce and finger calculation which "existed prior to 500 BCE" has "allowed bargaining without the need to learn another language" (8). Having various minimum wage cashiering jobs over summer breaks has taught me that this is as true today as it was then; when dealing with customers who speak very little English, it is always a relief to know that numbers are universal. Through these personal experiences, I have also come to appreciate computer cash registers which I have to thank Pierre de Fermet for leading the way to mechanical adding and subtracting through his invention, the Pascaliner (11).
One theme which resonates throughout the beginnings of the book is that the journey to making the first computer was an international effort; it is not a credit which can be given to the United States alone. In the first chapter, Before Computers, countless nations are mentioned which birthed computational ideas and inventions. To name a few there was the Peruvian Incas and their knotting string system, China and their tally sticks (6) Hindu-Arabic numbers, the Japanese soroban abacus, Greece and the astrolabe, Italy and the sector(8),and Scotland's Napier's bones(9). The list goes from nation to nation across the globe. Even the numerical bases which John Vincent Astansoff studied and used for creating the electronic computer rooted from different societies like the ancient Babylonians and Mayans (26).
The development of technology and science became a race between nations by World War II; ideas for innovation were bouncing back and forth from one nation to the next (30).For example, Germans patented the Enigma encoding machine in 1919 which helped encode and decode messages (31) and soon the Dutch, Italians, Poles and British were purchasing and utilizing this invention to get ahead in their military efforts to win the war. Later, during the Cold War, computer technology developed at a rapid pace through the United States and the Soviet Union's competition to have "more advanced computers, computer networks,the internet..." than the other.
It can be argued that the reason why the United States has made the most computer advances is not only due to the federal governments efforts to advance but also because of the country's acceptance of brilliant foreign immigrants. Johann von Neumann who has been dubbed the "father of computers" was a Hungarian native who "received his doctorate in mathematics from the University of Budapest" and only later moved to the US to become a professor at Princeton University and member of Princeton's Institute for Advanced Study(40). The United States is a place where people of all backgrounds can come and share their ideas and innovation and through this the country's efforts to get ahead of foreign competition in technological development is enhanced.
When the history of computers is considered, it is easy to date the birth of computers back to 1939 when John Vincent Atansoff and Clifford E. Berry's computer which was "digital, used vacuum tubes, used binary numbers, used logic circuts..." (27-28) but what Swedin and Ferro acknowledge is that the journey of the computer began centuries before. In fact, the first chapter of the book begins by discussing a computing machine which is speculated to have been made by Romans "between 100 and 40 BCE"(1). Mathematics, which is the base of any technology regarding computers, is dated even further back in time; artifacts like notched bones from 35000 BCE prove that people used mathematics in their daily lives (x). Most importantly, counting and numbers proved useful in commerce and finger calculation which "existed prior to 500 BCE" has "allowed bargaining without the need to learn another language" (8). Having various minimum wage cashiering jobs over summer breaks has taught me that this is as true today as it was then; when dealing with customers who speak very little English, it is always a relief to know that numbers are universal. Through these personal experiences, I have also come to appreciate computer cash registers which I have to thank Pierre de Fermet for leading the way to mechanical adding and subtracting through his invention, the Pascaliner (11).
One theme which resonates throughout the beginnings of the book is that the journey to making the first computer was an international effort; it is not a credit which can be given to the United States alone. In the first chapter, Before Computers, countless nations are mentioned which birthed computational ideas and inventions. To name a few there was the Peruvian Incas and their knotting string system, China and their tally sticks (6) Hindu-Arabic numbers, the Japanese soroban abacus, Greece and the astrolabe, Italy and the sector(8),and Scotland's Napier's bones(9). The list goes from nation to nation across the globe. Even the numerical bases which John Vincent Astansoff studied and used for creating the electronic computer rooted from different societies like the ancient Babylonians and Mayans (26).
The development of technology and science became a race between nations by World War II; ideas for innovation were bouncing back and forth from one nation to the next (30).For example, Germans patented the Enigma encoding machine in 1919 which helped encode and decode messages (31) and soon the Dutch, Italians, Poles and British were purchasing and utilizing this invention to get ahead in their military efforts to win the war. Later, during the Cold War, computer technology developed at a rapid pace through the United States and the Soviet Union's competition to have "more advanced computers, computer networks,the internet..." than the other.
It can be argued that the reason why the United States has made the most computer advances is not only due to the federal governments efforts to advance but also because of the country's acceptance of brilliant foreign immigrants. Johann von Neumann who has been dubbed the "father of computers" was a Hungarian native who "received his doctorate in mathematics from the University of Budapest" and only later moved to the US to become a professor at Princeton University and member of Princeton's Institute for Advanced Study(40). The United States is a place where people of all backgrounds can come and share their ideas and innovation and through this the country's efforts to get ahead of foreign competition in technological development is enhanced.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Technology Log And Reactioin: Thursday/Friday/Saturday
Technology Log:Thursday/Friday/Saturday
Thursday: 9/9/10
-Internet to check homework, drop a class, check school map, check e-mail, write an essay, go on facebook, print out articles for class.
-Computer/Register to charge customers at work
-Cell phone to call, txt, alarm clock, note work schedule
Friday: 9/10/10
-Internet to print out articles for class, check e-mail, check homework, check movie listings
-Computer/Register to charge customers at work
-Cell phone to call, txt, alarm clock
Saturday:9/11/10
-Internet to make a blog, online homework, face book
-Computer/Register to charge customers at work
-cell phone to call, txt, alarm clock
Reaction to Technology Log:
So, this technology thing…I’m not so good with it. Hence the reason why I’m writing my first post on this Description area of my blog. Side note: I tried writing post but the thing didn’t load. Anyways, writing a log of my technology use wasn’t so difficult or shocking to review because I know that most people my age use the internet more than I do. My use of the internet mostly was associated with school and homework. This isn’t to say that I don’t socialize through technology because facebook and cell phone uses were part of all three days; I’d like to think that the amount of time I use these methods of social networking isn’t as long as most American teenagers but of course there seems to be a need to visit facebook every time I’m on the internet which is alarming. The duration of my visits to facebook did not exceed two hours and often times, I left the page on while doing other things on the internet. My reasons to visit facebook is to check posts on my wall and other messages from friends. Facebook, simply put, connects me to my friends.
Most of my time away from home and school was spent at work and even during this time, I mostly used the computer/register to ring up my customers. Side note: I worked at Aunty Anne’s pretzel shop. If I hadn’t worked five hour shifts on Thursday and Friday or a ten hour shift on Saturday, I probably would have used the internet more for leisure than schoolwork or at least watched a little more TV. My free time was obviously limited during those three days but I can attest that my use of the internet isn’t excessive compared to most.
Starting a blog and my failure to figure out how to post something on it proves that besides facebook, I don’t use other social networking sites. So far, after getting to read some of my classmates bogs, blogging seems like a more productive and creative use of the internet than most other online activities. I was surprised to find that my friends already had blogs and so it is exciting to join them in their blogging activities. I look forward to writing more entries and expressing my thoughts on other blogs. Before that however, I must learn how to write a post. This shouldn’t be too hard.
Thursday: 9/9/10
-Internet to check homework, drop a class, check school map, check e-mail, write an essay, go on facebook, print out articles for class.
-Computer/Register to charge customers at work
-Cell phone to call, txt, alarm clock, note work schedule
Friday: 9/10/10
-Internet to print out articles for class, check e-mail, check homework, check movie listings
-Computer/Register to charge customers at work
-Cell phone to call, txt, alarm clock
Saturday:9/11/10
-Internet to make a blog, online homework, face book
-Computer/Register to charge customers at work
-cell phone to call, txt, alarm clock
Reaction to Technology Log:
So, this technology thing…I’m not so good with it. Hence the reason why I’m writing my first post on this Description area of my blog. Side note: I tried writing post but the thing didn’t load. Anyways, writing a log of my technology use wasn’t so difficult or shocking to review because I know that most people my age use the internet more than I do. My use of the internet mostly was associated with school and homework. This isn’t to say that I don’t socialize through technology because facebook and cell phone uses were part of all three days; I’d like to think that the amount of time I use these methods of social networking isn’t as long as most American teenagers but of course there seems to be a need to visit facebook every time I’m on the internet which is alarming. The duration of my visits to facebook did not exceed two hours and often times, I left the page on while doing other things on the internet. My reasons to visit facebook is to check posts on my wall and other messages from friends. Facebook, simply put, connects me to my friends.
Most of my time away from home and school was spent at work and even during this time, I mostly used the computer/register to ring up my customers. Side note: I worked at Aunty Anne’s pretzel shop. If I hadn’t worked five hour shifts on Thursday and Friday or a ten hour shift on Saturday, I probably would have used the internet more for leisure than schoolwork or at least watched a little more TV. My free time was obviously limited during those three days but I can attest that my use of the internet isn’t excessive compared to most.
Starting a blog and my failure to figure out how to post something on it proves that besides facebook, I don’t use other social networking sites. So far, after getting to read some of my classmates bogs, blogging seems like a more productive and creative use of the internet than most other online activities. I was surprised to find that my friends already had blogs and so it is exciting to join them in their blogging activities. I look forward to writing more entries and expressing my thoughts on other blogs. Before that however, I must learn how to write a post. This shouldn’t be too hard.
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