Readings 10: Technology and the Body

A Soft Spot for Circuitry

Like many young adults my age, I had a Tomagotchi pet when I was growing up and though it might be embarrasssing to admit, that tiny computer chip surrounded by bright blue plastic was the little love of my life. Using that interaction between robots and people is being able to create a friend for the lonely. It is amazing that the elderly could find such comfort from the cooing seal and I think that those positives outway any of the negatives. Having that technology and not using it to help the less fortunate would be cruel.

Is This Man Cheating On His Wife?

He is cheating on his wife. There is no way that he isn’t actually, it might be just a game, but they are sharing intimate moments and conversations. He met his real wife online, so what is the difference between meeting his virtual wife? I think people take these virtual reality games too seriously, but after reading this article I am definitely excited to create my own SecondLife account for experiential hours.

You Are Cyborg, Better Vision, With an Implanted Telescope, Filmaker Plans to Shoot With Tiny Camera in Eye, & Wearable Computing/6th Sense

All these articles to me are just saying how one day we will all be like the superheros we dreamed of being as youngsters. Humans are going to all be Cyborgs that have injectors, proccessing, etc. that all make it so we would live forever and be able to accomplish many tasks so out of reach. With these fake bionic parts there would be drastic changes. I actually just find it all scary. I love that technology is constantly advancing, but I also like the idea that the human body is natural.

Twitter Telepathy: Researchers Turn Thoughts into Tweets

I am a big fan of the television show “House” and this article made me think of an episode where a father suffers brain damage and can only comunnicate through blinking. This technology would have been super useful in not only the patient’s diagnosis, but even making sure the patient was comfortable and letting him talk to his family. I think it strange to think that this technology is so closely linked with Twitter because I feel as though Twitter is hardly the most important program or forum to have opinions expressed.

Digital Nation

It is amazing to see such an old woman, so disconnected from the internet become such an advocate for it. She is the grandma so many people are missing and yet has become excessible. The games that people are now living through seem to have consumed a lot of people’s lives. The fact that they all meet in person to sit on the computer and communicate is scary. The virtual worlds are changing the real world. I disagree that more technology will connect us personally, though we are all on the internet, there is no real connection. Using virtual reality to make these fake virtual worlds more believable is a mistake to me. But that technology being used to help our soldiers is a lot more worth while. I honestly think that this technology used to help pepople is amazing, it is just using it for frivolous factors that deters me.

Readings 9: Mobile Devices

Always On/Always On You

Last week I got my first smart phone, the iPhone 4 and since that day I have yet to put it down. I am now checking my e-mail every five seconds and refreshing my Facebook newsfeed constantly. I am hoping that soon the excitement of having access to the world in the palm of my hand will die down, but I look around at my peers and I don’t see that happening. With this technology a person is always connected, but it brings about the question about how connected we then are to the people around us. My dad has always commented on how my friends and I will be ‘hanging out’ and all be on our phones texting someone who is not there. I always thought it was just the old man complaining about how we weren’t listening to him, but he does raise an interesting point about how seperate we really were.

Is this constant connection really good for our relationships?

China Deputizes Smart Phones to Spy on Residents

I am not the person to discuss current affairs with, but I do know that although China is thriving economically it’s people have always been suffering. They not only have severe censorship, but now they are being watched like fish in a fish bowl. China should stop trying to pry into their citizens lives to stop the government from being overthrown and actually work on making it a government that the people respect. The country seems to be getting closer and closer to George Orwell’s 1984.

Your Apps Are Watching You

This is terrifying. When I first got my smart phone I was tapping away, downloading anything free and whatever looked interesting, it is scary to think that by me just playing around to see how things work there is a whole profile of who I am being made. I can see how this would benefit advertisers and other apps that are like the ones previously downloaded, but it is an invasion of privacy. If I wanted the world to know what apps I had on my iPhone I’d Tweet about it!

How do they gather such specific information from just downloading an app?

Multitasking Can Make You Lose … Um … Focus

There is not a hour in the day that goes by where I am not doing more then two things at once. I am a full time student have a full time and part time job and honestly when I’m not working or doing homework or sleeping I am still doing multiple tasks at once. Our society has become overwhelmed with the notion of instant gratification and we have to be ready and willing to get what we need done and move onto the next. I do understand that quality is sometimes lost, but at the same the time there are so many new technologies that aid in this multi-tasking lifestyle that it has become quicker and easier.

Videos: Driven to Distraction & Texting While Driving

The “Driven to Distraction” video was interesting because I had no idea people could essentially be so reckless and not even realize it. I am a nervous driver, always have two hands on the wheel, and I could never imagine not having my eyes and full attention on the road. I guess it has a lot to do with the amount of people I know who have been affected by reckless driving which is why watching “Texting While Driving” was rough. Last summer a close friend of mine died because she was texting and swerved into on coming traffic. It is such a dumb reason to lose such a precious life. People need to understand that operating a car is a serious action and it shouldn’t be taken so lightly.

Readings 8: Privacy, Surveillance, & Exhibitionism

On the Record, All the Time

I wish I had a machine recording my life at all time. You’d never have to worry about forgetting anything and would be able to relive the good times over and over again. Life logging would be a great way to see how you age and how your body changes, the health logging open so many doors for scientists researching antidotes and doctors seeking diagnoses.

There are so many benefits to it, but there are also a lot of drawbacks. It is creepy to think that a person really has no alone time, there would always be a lens watching… very “big brother”-like. Also, life logging would definitely change the way people act, what they say, and do because they’d be haunted by the idea of that moment being forever captured on film. That aspect would come in handy to end homicide, but it also might stifle creative and free-thinking. I guess it would just come down to how it is being used and by whom.

Jennifer Ringley, Justin.tv, & Socialcam Launch

Jennifer Ringley makes me uncomfortable. I do not want to see the daily routines and such of an average person, it’d be like watching myself and that would actually be quite boring. Also the idea that absolutely anyone could be watching is positively creepy! Who knows who they are or what they are doing, it is just such an awkward concept. The only cool part about it is the fact that it is unedited, while Justin.tv chooses what he wants his audience to see. I definitely would love the idea of having so many people care about what I’m saying and doing, but I think I’d hate the idea of it being all strangers and having it published on such an open forum.

The Web Means the End of Forgetting

This article just goes to prove that privacy settings on social networking sites are VERY important. Poor Stacey only posted a picture that she wanted to share with friends and unfortunately it was seen by people outside of that circle. But I disagree that she is held to a different standard because of her profession. She is of legal age to consume alcoholic beverages and as long as she isn’t drinking while in the presence of her students it is perfectly fine. It is her own free time and unless she is on the clock should not be punished at her job.

Quiz: What do Facebook Quizes Really Know About You?

When I first made my Facebook I went kind of crazy with doing all of the quizes, I guess I just lived a boring life. But as soon as I started applying for colleges my parents went crazy and gave a speech or two everyday about how colleges would be looking on the internet before accepting me. So what did I do? Googled myself! Upon googling I found that the first websites to pop up were that of my Facebook quizes. I knew right then and there that I had to delete those because there is no need for strangers to know that my favorite color is blue and favorite season is Fall. This article just reiterated and set in stone the lesson I had already learned, nothing is private on the internet.

Archeological Dig 1

 

 

 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/vintagephoto/75297570/

 

 

 

Open Source Software

Open Source Software is computer software that can be edited by other parties without them worrying about it being considered copyright infringement. In other words, a company licenses out their software to be used, studied, manipulated, and even sold by other parties. This software protects outside sources from copyright infringement punishments and still lets the original owners benefit from whatever changes or distributions made. It is kind of like a win-win situation for both the company that owns the program and the users that use the program. Interestingly enough, open source software is in a way like free software. Even though many will argue that nothing is free anymore, this really appears to be. The owners of the program benefit from the spread and changes of their program.

Mozilla Firefox is an open source software. It is an internet browser that has had many adjustments to it for it to be considered one of the best in that it has a lot more options then other browsers. These enhancements are the work of the people who use the software. So the people are making the changes that they want and need. Other browsers that aren’t so popular like Safari which is owned and operated by Apple.

M&T Session 6

Photography

When I was a little girl my mom bought me a Polaroid camera and I took it everywhere. I was very selective about what I wanted to take pictures of, not because I was afraid to run out of film, but because (as my mom would say) I didn’t want to waste my time looking at pictures of things that I had already forgotten about. Pretty much doesn’t make sense at all. I guess I was a confused child, because now I take pictures of fun times with fun people specifically so I can hold onto those memories for even longer.

The camera has been a way of capturing people, times, and places for years. It is a part of technology that will never stop being improved. For that it is extremely interesting to me. The idea of this ever-evolving technology that really has grown up through the years with not only me, but the rest of society as well. I’d like to learn all about the way photography has evolved. I’d really like to create almost a timeline of that evolution and see how it corresponds with the social and political events of the time. What types of cameras were used in war zones? Who were the main photographers throughout the years?

Photography doesn’t play a huge role in my future career ambitions, but it is an important part of the rest of my free time. There is not a day that goes by where I don’t take at least fifty pictures and I would love to make my photography part of photography’s evolution.

What do you want to learn about it? What relationship will it have with your professional ambitions?

Assignment 5: Remix Culture

RiP: A Remix Manifesto

I’ve known about Girl Talk for awhile now and have really always enjoyed what he jumbles together, it really puts a fresh spin on classic and popular songs. I never thought of what he does as breaking any copyright song because the pieces he uses are so small that sometimes they are even unrecognizable. The way he takes those tiny parts of each song and mutilates them into a completely different song is an art.

The style and genre of the music he makes is completely different from not only the rest of the new music out there, but even different from the songs his creation is made out of. The fact that copyright laws can be inflicted on him almost seems crazy to me. I could understand it if he was using the same beat or lyrics, but he changes so much about the original track and how he puts it all together.

It all comes down to the creators of those songs he uses not getting credit or compensation. Everyone is trying to accumulate as much money as they can and don’t stop to look at what they’re effecting by doing that. The people who sue artists like Girl Talk are other creative minds. I guess it is like a never ending cycle, one day even Girl Talk will be the plantiff.

I think I could understand the big copyright blunder if the actual song was being reproduced by Girl Talk. But because Girl Talk uses only parts and changes them and  mixes them it really seems as though any part of the original song is almost non-existent.

 

Readings 5: Copyright and Creativity

Copyright, Collage, and Creativity

I think all creativity comes from taking from what is around. Did the creator of the piano sue Beethoven? The world, although not always cohesive, has a flow. We as humans learn from doing and experimenting. So taking words or phrases from one piece of work and mixing it with another isn’t stealing, it’s adding. It’s opening our eyes to a different aspect that wasn’t seen the first time around. To some an improvement and to others second rate, but in any case… it is something different.

Recently there have been a lot of programs and efficiencies that have revolutionized how and how cheaply everything can be copied, distributed, and modified. With all these programs there of course has been more reproduction and more argument over what really is copyrighted and what is just creative. Honestly, if people weren’t so worried about how much money they were making they would realize that imitation is the best form of flattery.

The Generational Divide in Copyright Morality

I cannot lie and say I’ve never used Limewire or any other site that let’s me download music and movies for free, but I do always feel about it after. It’s like creating a masterpiece and not getting any recognition or payment for it. But at the same time, who wants to pay $25 for a CD when they really only want the one song? Itunes and other sites that provide pay-per-song also begin to add up very quickly. So if you aren’t getting caught does that make it okay? Thinking about all the people who worked hard to produce that tidbit of media makes you wonder if saving yourself the $.99 is really fair. How would these ‘artists’ get paid if no one buys what they are recording? When it is asked if it is morally correct the obvious answer (unfortunately) is no.

In Defense of Piracy

I’m in awe of the reaction over sharing a few seconds of this video. $150,000 is absolutely ridiculous. It’s obvious that the way in which media is shared has to be changed. There is way too much confusion and since there is no set punishment or really even law it just keeps getting more and more out of hand. This article is not only interesting in that it brings up such an extreme case, but it always gives suggestions to the issues. The way media is being shared right now obviously has to change.

Readings 7: Suggestions, Recommendations, and Algorithmic Culture

Hitting It Off, Thanks to Algorithms of Love

I actually have a couple of friends who have tried the whole online dating thing. They each have come back with the same conclusions, it’s a waste of time and money. I don’t agree with them, because it must work for enough people for these sites to keep popping up. Relationships are starting whether friendships or actually couples, something must be working. But even if it is, internet dating sites are not the place for me personally. I don’t trust those “algorithms”, I’ve taken many, many math tests to find that no matter how well I have studied how to use the equation, you still need to know how to read the word problem to know where each part goes. In that case, I think that these sites may get all the right information, but they don’t know exactly where it goes. So I guess it really comes down to luck, and that is how it is for everyone else who is going out to find there soulmate.

 

Artifacts From the Future: Online Dating Site

I think having information about your partners genes and such is important when it comes to a couple who already in a commited relationship and starting a family, that information could save their unborn baby. But for the those people looking for love, I think they should stay away from everyone else’s gene pool. It is such a weird concept to me. It honestly almost seems like something extremists like Hilter would promote, ‘creating the perfect match’. Love is how a person connects with another person, not how their DNA connects.

 

Roommates Who Click

This sort of site makes more sense then trying to find your soulmate from your computer chair. Living with someone is a commitment with contracts and such, but thankfully there is People’s Court with Judge Judy to get anyone out of that situation. When I was filling out my housing information to live at Ramapo College years ago, I was asked to fill out a questionnaire with only like ten questions on it and they only ranged from, “what is your favorite type of music?” to “what is your favorite book?”. These questions hardly said enough about who I am. When I finally got the names of my future roommates in the weeks before move in day I immediately Googled them and tried to find them on Facebook. Only one of them actually had a Facebook (which of course made me think the other one, who didn’t have a Facebook, was socially awkward and enjoyed things like knitting cat sweaters), but the information I gained from Facebook was a lot more useful then anything the Ramapo survey could’ve given. So, I think that sites for roommates is a really good idea.

 

The Song Decoders

I like Pandora, it is a great way to listen to music I’ve never heard before by artists I love and never knew even existed! I am actually kind of music obsessed, my ipod has to always be filled with the latest and greatest music so I use a lot of sites, but Pandora and 8tracks.com have easily become my favorite. Pandora because it plays more mainstream music that is in the same genre of whatever artist or song I search for and 8tracks.com because it more obscure and created by regular people making playlists influenced by their moods.

 

Search Takes a Social Turn

Advertising is a extremely important part of business. As much as I hate the ads telling me about a sale that I would be taking advantage of if I wasn’t a poor college student, it is a great way for companies to reach out to their specific consumers. The actual concept of these businesses being able to access people’s likes and dislikes is intrusive, but at the same time can be considered convenient for the consumer and after all, a great business is centered around it’s customers.

 

Assignment 6: Final Project Proposal

Topic

For my final project I have chosen the topic of advertising through social networking sites. Currently I am the administrator of Liquid Lightning at Ramapo College’s Facebook page (it’s an energy drink that I promote for) so I have gotten to see how these sites work, but not really if they work. So I have many questions in which I know need to be explored. For instance, does “liking” one of these product pages really influence a consumer? What are the benefits of advertising on these social networking sites? Are ad agencies taking advantage of using Facebook as a free outlet? Can’t companies (such as the one I work for) just run these pages internally? Would there be an advantage to having it controlled by an outside source? Are other social networking sites such as Myspace supporting product pages? I feel like all these questions lead me to research not only the effects of advertisement pages on social networking sites, but also how they are run and paid for.

Since I started out on Myspace in like 2008, I have always taken notice of the advertisements that surround each page, the ads have become pretty inescapable. But it is on Facebook with the creation of the “like” button that there are now pages of products, companies, and services that can be liked. Is this the new form of advertisement? Once a user “likes” the page they soon find that any updates made to that page will appear on their newsfeed, whether it’s a sale, new opening, or new product, anything and everything is now conveniently presented to them. It can almost be compared to guerrilla advertisement where the product is shoved into your face. Perhaps it helps the companies that use the service, but does Facebook itself gain any compensation? And does the creation of more and more product pages mean that the advertising is working?

 

Keywords

Social Network Sites – Facebook, Myspace

Social Network Analysis – analyzing the effects and affects of social networking sites

Social Network Advertising

Social Media Targeting – sites taking advantage of the demographics they obtain on the person’s profile

Facebook Beacon Project – notifications that a “friend” has bought a specific product

Direct Advertising – banner ads

Individual Developers – SponsorPay, Adparlor, Offerpal

Indirect Advertising – creating ‘groups’ or ‘pages’

Fan Pages – have subscribers

Facebook’s “Liking”

 

Research Plan and Production Schedule/ Timeline

By the end of next week I am hoping to have gone through each of these possible source articles:

Using Social Networking Sites

Social Network Advertising and Marketing Outlook

Social Network Ad Spending

Advertising with Social Network Marketing

Advertising on Social Networks

Facebook Passed Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft in User Engagement

I also plan on finding more articles and going to the library to use the journals before Spring Break.

During Spring Break, I am looking to organize all that information obtained from those articles to put in my paper. I want to have the outline for the paper and the visual sources filled out completely by the time we come back from vacation.

In the following weeks it will be about actually writing the paper and if so, finding those last bit of visuals (i.e. videos/charts/pictures) that complete it.

Here are just some videos I found on my topic that I might use:

Social Network Business Tutorial: Social Network Advertising, Statistics, and Analysis

How Advertising Works on Facebook

The Social Network Advertising Problem