Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Blog 18: The End of the Beginning



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In the end of Neff and Nafus’ self-tracking exploration they discuss the future of self-tracking and how it can easily and productively be transferred into the medical field. Our medical data is often taken, analyzed, and used for studies and we have very limited access to it. But, is we were given the opportunity to manage and maintain our data and then do with it as we please we may be able to feel like we have more control. The argument stems from the fact that we do know our bodies better than anyone else. However, there are some issues with putting that much power and responsibilities in our own hands. If this data is life or death information and something goes wrong a normal person who isn't in the medical field may have a hard time figuring out what to do. Or they might not even know something went wrong and scue the data. We need to be able to trust that people will keep up with the tracking and make it  a priority which can be hard to do.
Finally, in chapter six Neff and Nafus go over some of the topics that they covered in their book. They make predictions for the future and how self-tracking will expand into our everyday lives. There are a couple concerns regarding security of personal information and the selling of data that I think need to be worked out before we can go much further with self-tracking. Neff and Nafus make the point of putting the data in our hands and giving us the responsibility, but I think this could get sketchy with the buying and selling of data. People could eventually put the price of their data extremely high which could ultimately limit research and growth in many different fields of research. Another area that will need to be introduced to the ideals of self-tracking is the government, laws, and regulations. We need proper legislation and what is ethically acceptable and where that line is before we can explore too far. Ultimately, I think self-tracking is something that has a lot of room for development and will be interesting to see how it grows in the future by the way it affects our lives.

Some questions I have are:
  1. How do we work with legislators to help them fully understand what these devices are capable of so we get proper laws in place?
  2. What is the next step for self-tracking devices? What do they look like? What do they track? Why do we need this information?

Neff, G. & Nafus, D. (2016). Self-Tracking. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Picture: http://groupvisual.io/tag/healthcare/

Wednesday, April 19, 2017

Blog 17: Buckle Up

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In Chapters 3 and 4 we dive into a world where we have accepted wearable technologies as the present and the future. We know that wearable technologies are just starting to emerge and we have to prepared for how they will further develop and expand in the future. Neff and Nafus talk about how you can deal with these tools and use them to your advantage. The step is acceptance. Chapter 3 talked a lot about us as consumers and how we can quickly become obsessed with these tools for tracking our progress. We feel the need to justify our habits by making them concrete with tracking. I know that when I first got my fitbit I almost felt like a slave to the device. I didn’t feel accomplished unless I hit my step goal for the day. Even, if the reason I didn’t hit my goal is because I was being productive with my homework. There just wasn’t the rush of satisfaction when I had a documented record of it. With all that being said it is important to look into Chapter 4 where Neff and Nafus discuss the appeal that the industry creates when developing these devices. They look for solutions, social influence, data tracking, and more. It is consumer based, but given to us by the industry that does some of the most self-tracking. They self-track in their sales and through our usage. They look for fads and study how to look past those fads and how they can keep their self-tracking products relevant. All together self-tracking is something that is very current and something that will be around for a long time, so buckle up.

Questions for discussion:
  1. How do we protect ourselves from becoming zombies of our devices?
  2. What are some of the most effective and ineffective ways that we have seen self-tracking used? How did we grow from our failures and succeed from our successes?

Sources:
Neff, G. & Nafus, D. (2016). Self-Tracking. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. [Chapters 3 & 4]
Picture: http://synapse-circuit.blogspot.com/2013/05/a-follow-up-on-iron-man

Tuesday, April 18, 2017

Blog 16: Self-Tracking-The Good and The Bad

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In chapters 1 and 2 of  Self-Tracking by Gina Neff and Dawn Nafus. They push us to begin developing an understanding for what positive and negative effects that self-tracking can have on our everyday lives. Self-tracking can help us with our health issues as we track the amount of exercise we get a day and maintain health goals through tracking. Self-tracking can go even deeper into our bodies with pacemakers and heart trackers that are internally placed in our bodies to look at how fast, slow, or how many times our hearts are beating. These self-tracking devices can save our lives. But, there are aspects of self-tracking and reporting this data that can get a little unethical and cross privacy boundaries. By buying and registering our devices to track our steps and data (ex: iPhones, fitbits, smart watches, etc.) are we allowing these companies to use our data? Do we essentially sign a waiver for them to know every move we make.
These two chapters really made me think about a conspiracy theory I have heard after the boom in personal tracking devices like fitbits a couple years ago. The conspiracy theory was that the government started marketing these devices in a fashionable and popular way. People who were extremely fit wanted one and people who were extremely unfit wanted one and everyone in between. Did we really need them? Or was it the government trying to collect data on where we were going, when we were sleeping, and even who we were taking calls from. Now this may be far fetched, but actually something that is very possible. I don’t think that this is the case with fitbit, but it does make you think about the opportunity there is for someone to track your every move.

For discussion:
  1. Is there any benefit into letting someone track your moves? Is it good for safety?
  2. Is it really unethical for these devices to track and use our data if we agree by registering them?

Source:
Neff, G. & Nafus, D. (2016). Self-Tracking. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Thursday, April 13, 2017

Blog 15: Our First Taste of Technology



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In the final chapter Greengard takes us into the future and creates what he thinks the future will look like in the year 2025. I found this very interesting because although it seems impossible now, a lot of what Greengard talked about could really happen. These device would literally be constantly around us we would rely on them so heavly that it could become dangerous. Our lives today are already so controlled by technology it is hard to imagine a world with even more. Specifically wearable technicolgoies. This last chapter really made me think about wearable technologies and will they develop with us. My research project for what’s next is about the Apple Watch and the development towards its existence. These wearable technologies were first depicted in cartoons as unique gadgets that were often invented by super genius scientists who developed gadgets far beyond their time. Fast forward to 2017 and many of these gadgets are in our everyday lives. As I work with the Apple Watch I plan on investigating into the modeling and development from some of these shows that showed us the first products that continue to develop in our lives.


A couple questions I have after this reading is:
  1. If our technology learns to develop as we develop and age are we giving it too much power?
  2. Is there a real need for wearable technology? Does it go too far and become too invasive?


Source:
Greengard, Samuel. The internet of things. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. [Introduction, Chapter 7]
Pictures:
http://www.recordnet.com/article/20140910/NEWS/140919980
http://kimpossible.wikia.com/wiki/Kim%27s_clothes
http://www.zdnet.com/pictures/before-they-were-stars-the-smartwatch-in-pop-culture/2/

Monday, April 10, 2017

Blog 14: Cyber Terrorism

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Both chapter 5 and 6 went further in depth in describing our connection and develop to the internet. Out of the two chapter I found chapter 6 to be the most interesting because of the emphasis on the connection the internet provides for us. However, we must be cautious as we develope. I think one of the most important aspect to consider is the possibility for terrorism. We are so connected with the internet that it has become a part of our everyday lives. Our banking, personal information, and contacts are all stored within our phones and computers. A terrorist attack in the future could involve shutting off our grids so that we lose all access of contact. Shutting of the grids could also affect our cars, lights, and travel accessibility. We would be trapped. It is important that we learn to protect ourselves on all levels of technology. We must make sure that our personal sights are locked down from cyber attacks, but also trust that our government knows how to handle a situation if the day ever came where we did have a cyber attack on the national level. Safety is major key to the success of the internet and as we develop the internet our safety skills and security must also develop with it.
After reading these chapters my questions are:
1. What are the best ways to prepare ourselves incase of this type of terrorism?
2. Yes, we are connected, but do we take advantage of that? Do we lose interpersonal skills that we need for strong connections? Have we taken this technology for granted and ruined an aspect of our lives in the process?

Source:
Greengard, Samuel. The internet of things. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. [Chapter 5 & Chapter 6]


Wednesday, April 5, 2017

Blog 13: My Everyday Life

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Chapter three talks about the fluidity of human and machine life. The main goal when developing the technology is to make it blend into our everyday life by developing the Internet into something that requires little thought from the human thought process. We have become very accustomed to our lives including technology. I am typing this blog post on my laptop in the comfort of my bed on my laptop. I have Netflix playing in the background and I am listening to one of my favorite shows. My cell phone is sitting next to me and I am waiting on a text from my boyfriend, so I know he is done with Hockey practice. After I am done with my homework I will get up and brush my teeth with my electric toothbrush and set the alarm on my phone to wake up and do it all again tomorrow. These things I take for granted. The ability to do my homework and communicate with people wherever I want is amazing,but something I grew up expecting and almost demanding. Thinking back to back when my parents were in college and using typewriters was not that long ago, but the amount of information at my fingertips, compared to them in huge. We have so many benefits that come with technology, but I think there needs to be more awareness for the amount of time we spend using technology and how important it is to not let it control our lives.


After reading these chapters my thoughts and questions are:
  1. How much time does the average human spend with technology a day? Are there any studies that show this?
  2. What is in the future for us? Where do we expand to next? Technology already seems so invasive, where does it go to next?


Sources:
Greengard, Samuel. The internet of things. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. [Chapter 3 & Chapter 4]

Monday, April 3, 2017

Blog 12: The Internet and our Personal Connections


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In the first couple chapters of The Internet of Things by Samuel Greengard. The two chapters touched on some topics that had been previously mentioned in some of our other books we have read and talked about in class. One of the topics I found most interesting was the information about IP Addresses an IP Address is a combination of numbers that when placed in a specific order help to identify each computer and communicate over networks. A big topic that was also touched on by Greengard is how important computers are in connecting us with each other and allowing us access to those networks. Computers have quickly became a huge aspect in our lives and impact them from the time we wake up by using our iphone alarms to the time we text our family and friends about what happened during our day. They will soon be something we wear and even have implanted in our bodies. This discussion reminded me of a family friend who has a trackers implanted close to his heart to monitor his beats per minute to show the doctors where there may be gaps. This is a life saving technology that is literally inside of him. It is incredible that this technology can be inside of him at all times and track our movements. I am really excited to see what will come next to technologies that are implanted inside of us that are outside of the medical field. Greenard also touches on a little bit of the history of the internet and the importance between physical and digital first objects.


After reading these chapters may question are:
  1. What are some technologies that could be implanted in us that are outside of the medical field?
  2. Where is the line of too much technology? When does it take over our lives and become overbearing?
Sources:
Greengard, Samuel. The internet of things. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. [Introduction, Chapter 1 & Chapter 2]

Picture: http://siliconangle.com/blog/2011/09/06/remaking-the-internet/

Wednesday, March 29, 2017

Blog 11: We must Face Our Fears


As we conclude Toye’s short introduction to what we define as rhetoric, we end in the present. Toye talks about how rhetoric has developed with us and we dove into an age of instant communication and connection to one another. The introduction to these new technology came along with a lot of anxiety and suspicion. In some aspects rhetoric took a turn for the worst. Psychological manipulation is now at our fingertips and we must be aware of how and when we use and listen to it. Personally, I think rhetoric is a very powerful tool that we should be teaching our kids from a young age. One of the reason our society struggles so much with the concept is because we have a hard time identifying it, and when we do we are offended that someone would try to manipulate us. If we could take this stigma out and teach ourselves to understand, identify, and acknowledge rhetoric I think we could have an easier time. I think rhetoric has entered into a darker time, but it is something that can be fixed through education and understanding. If we can identify it we can take away the “shock”


After reading this last chapter my questions are:
  1. How can we take steps to educate ourselves about rhetoric before we feel it is an intimidating thing?
  2. What is the next thing that will change the way we use rhetoric like technology did?

Picture:https://www.pinterest.com/BookOblivion/visual-rhetoric/?lp=true
Toye, Richard (2013). Rhetoric: A very short introduction. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. [Chapter 4 & conclusion]

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

Blog 10: Intent is Everything




In chapter two and three we learned about the three branches of oratory, the five canons, about the intentions of rhetoric. Toye explains the three branches of oratory as 1. forensic/judicial rhetoric, 2. epideictic/display rhetoric, 3. deliberative rhetoric. I was personally most interested by the deliberative rhetoric because of its close connection to legislators and voters. One of my possible job aspirations is to be a lobbyist where a huge part of the job is being able to participate and accurately use deliberative rhetoric when defending or pushing a bill. Being able to persuade someone in a very useful skill, and while some people may feel a little uneasy with it, there is still very much good to be said about someone who can effectively get their message received.

Next Toye talked about the five canons of rhetoric which are 1. invention/discovery, 2. arrangement, 3. style, 4. memory, and 5. delivery. these five canons reveal the elements of rhetoric that when hit on and delivered properly help to drive any message you are trying to deliver home. In order to effectively use these five canons one must focus on the nature of the audience. By focusing on questions like, who is your audience and what do they value you most? You can really take advantage of what rhetoric has to offer.

Lastly, a point that was really driven home by Toye is how not only do the fundamentals of rhetoric matter, but most importantly what your intentions are. Rhetoric has often been viewed in a negative connotation and mostly because people will use rhetoric, but also pepper it with lies. If you are completely honest with your audience and are strong, confident, respectful, and also 100% believe in your cause you should have no reason to doubt the intent of the argument.

After reading these two chapters my two questions are:
1. Is there a way we can detect a bad intention when someone is using rhetoric?
2. if there was a 6th canon what would it be?

Sources:
Reading: Toye, Richard (2013). Rhetoric: A very short introduction. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. [Chapters 2 & 3]
Picture: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristotle

Monday, March 20, 2017

Blog 9: The Power of Rhetoric

In the introduction of Richard Toye's Rhetoric: A very short introduction Toye talks about the power that the Nazi regime held and the ways they used rhetoric to retain it and recruit other members. The Nazi rhetoric involved everything down to their sentence structure and word choice. Every word was chosen specifically to build the party and take down a common “enemy”. Toye goes on in the introduction to talk about how influential rhetoric is on our current society and how it has always played a role in our lives. Even though rhetoric can carry this negative connotation we have to accept the place it has in this world. In our everyday conversations we are constantly taking positions on right versus wrong and using rhetoric to tell others why we think this way and why they should to. Rhetoric in its simplest form is translated to “the art of persuasion” and is used to express ideas and show the way they are generated.
In Chapter 1 Toye talks about the first signs of evidence of rhetoric. He took it all the way back to the Sophists. They were brilliant minds who used rhetoric through their teachings while also focused on identifying and developing it in other writings. These professors were very opinionated and therefore rhetoric went hand in hand. As the chapter goes on Toye talks about the impact that rhetoric had on many different generations on many different aspects. Rhetoric was used in education, governing, and rule making. He talks more about how important it is to understand rhetoric and distract it when trying to understand complex topics in government and and social atmospheres. These arguments identify what significant issues are to a community and how to control and attack them.

After reading these two chapters some questions I had were:
  1. How can we change rhetoric to have a positive connotation? There are many positive outcomes of rhetoric, so how do we bring those to the front line?
  2. If rhetoric is so powerful, powerful enough to make other people kill other people, where do we draw the line between inappropriate mind manipulation and rhetoric.
Sources:
Reading: Toye, R. (2013). Rhetoric: A very short introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Bonus Blog 3: Experiencing the News

In the next class following our initial interactions with the Google Cardboard our class took a more in depth look at what these cardboards could do. We looked at comparing a digital newspaper, a normal newspaper, and then the news apps used by google cardboard. We looked for similarities and differences, and the positives and negatives. With the google cardboard apps we saw a lack of options and a tough time with usability. It was hard to scroll and read, it almost hurt your eyes to try to focus on these words while also moving your head to scroll. While there are good intentions behind the news app for google cardboard it fell very short to a hard copy print or even a news website. After testing all three of these I came to the conclusion that google cardboard is meant for experiences, it helps to transport you to somewhere else. So, while this is not the most effective way to communicate news it would be cool if it could transport you to where the news is happening. I think it would be interesting if we could watch the news from this source as well.

After using the news app for google cardboard my questions are:

  1. What is the best kind of information and/or learning tools that we can utilize through google cardboard? How do we develop them? 
  2. What is the next step for google cardboard? Adding buttons? Speakers? Sounds? How do we take this product to the next level? 


Bonus Blog 2: Untapped Potential of Google Cardboard

We continued our search into these interactive technologies from the latis lab in our class in the next section. This time we analyzed Google Cardboard a little further in depth. Megan and I spent our time in class trying to find the most realistic apps and features that would really make the most of these plastic goggles. Eventually, we determined the apps that made you feel the most like you were moving or really emerged in the game were the rollercoaster games that almost gave you motion sickness. In the mission to find them though I did come across a couple hundred videos and movie previews that were compatible with google cardboard. While all of these applications were interesting, none of them were extremely interesting or well developed. I think if a company really invested time and energy there could be more of a use for them. I am honestly surprised google hasn't tried to make more of a market out of them and try to develop games of better images. I mentioned in my blog about the VR headsets how amazing it would be if you could somehow facetime with the headsets, but I think it would be a really good start with these google cardboard. If they could develope an app that would allow you to feel more emerged in your conversation. Ultimately, I think this is a very underrated product for the price that it is offered yet and I would even go as far as to say that it has a lot of untapped potential.

After experimenting with the Google Cardboard my questions are:

  1. How can we make this product an everyday necessity and something that people really need? What kind of apps and development would take it to the next level? 
  2. Why has no one put more time into this? What are the limitations that I may not be seeing? How can we overcome those? 


Monday, March 6, 2017

Bonus Blog 1: A Day in the life of Virtual Technology





Through our class we had an extremely unique experience to actually get to put our hands on these technologies that are quickly reshaping our everyday lives. We go to use google cardboard, observe the 3D printer at work and even get to experience the best of virtual reality at the moment by using the the virtual reality headsets. By far, these headsets were my favorite thing to use during our time there. I have never got to actually use them, but have heard good things about it. However, you don't really realize how realistic it is until you get to get your hands on it. I think this technology is something that after a little more development you will start to see in classrooms, homes, and offices. I imagine that once there are learning games that allow children to be immersed into learning games or into history books we could see them popping up there. Or, if they could develop a way for pre-med students to get an opportunity to learn surgeries and operations through the VR system it could change the way doctors learn. Another cool idea I would like to see developed is the ability to FaceTime/ Skype people but be able to walk around their house with them or share a meal. All of these technologies, especially the Virtual Reality headsets, I predict, will soon be as common as computers in places where we work, study, and live.
My questions for this blog would be:
Some of this equipment could be super helpful to people, but can be extremely expensive. What would it take to bring those prices down?
How long will it take exactly to develop these programs that would be extremely

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Blog 8: Politics and the Internet

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In the last phase of Johnny Ryan’s book I think he covered some of the most relevant issues facing our current generation of Internet users. One of the most interesting chapters to me was the one on the effect of the internet of politics. As a double major in Technical Writing and Communication and Political Science I am very passionate about politics. This chapter brought my two majors together and displayed the overlap between them. Ryan talks about the “digital soapbox” and how the Internet has given people a platform to say their ideas and their feelings about politics. This digital soapbox really made me reflect on the past election and how many Facebook posts I saw during the entire campaign season. Yes, we did give these people the ability to share and write about these issues. However, it is important that with this power we contain great responsibility to provide true facts, which can be difficult over the Internet. There were countless times where i would read a post that was factually incorrect, unfortunately those types of incidents are extremely common and lead to a rumor mill effect across the entire web.


But, politics and the Internet are still developing together. One of the benefits Ryan talks about is the ability for politicians to be in constant and direct communication with their constituents. They are able to maintain more constant communication and deliver platforms and policy information with the click of a button. Another positive impact the internet has made regarding politics is it increased participations. The Internet puts facts and news at our fingertips, so it is almost impossible to completely ignore it. A major key in a successful democracy is participation from the citizens and the Internet brings in more of a crowd that may have not participated in the past.


With all of this being said politicians have always had to be careful of the image they portray to the general public. The Internet gives even more immediate and intimate details about these people to us right in the comfort of our own homes. My questions for Ryan after reading these chapters are:
  1. Will there ever be a time when voting will be online and how do we go about that without the threat of fraud or hacking?
  2. Should we have access to these private facts and details about these politicians lives? AKA is it fair to know things about people you wouldn't want people to know about you?


Picture: https://helloonetwofive.wordpress.com/2011/03/23/9-internet-and-politics/

Ryan, J. (2010). A history of the internet and the digital future. London, UK: Reaktion Books. [Phase 3: 11, 12, & 13]

Monday, February 13, 2017

Blog 7: How Do We Trust the Internet

At the end of Phase 2 Ryan talks about security and developing the rules of when you can cross the lines of security and it turns into pirating. Ryan talks a lot about the development of security systems regarding numerous websites and how they chose to regulate who can see, use, and distribute their content. One of the most interesting concepts was created by Google and is called PageRank. PageRank ranks all sites that are linked to a webpage and assigns them a value based on the sites linking to them. Through using this website Google is able to determine which sites have been "voted" a best source for information.
At the end of Phase 2 and chapter 9 Ryan talks about how the Internet effects our economy through the introduction of online shopping. I thought a really interesting part of this chapter was when Ryan talked about how grocery stores already make very little in the margin after they buy and sell the food. but, now with the use of online grocery shopping and the fact that we can have food directly delivered to us it brings that margin to practically nothing. This is an example of the benefits that the Internet gives us, negatively impacting others while benefiting us directly.


After reading these three chapters I have a couple questions:
1. Wikipedia has always had a bad reputation through academics for being untrustworthy. What must a website do to make us trust it? From what you can read about Wikipedia today it is pretty locked down and trustworthy. However, if you sight it in a paper a teacher may question it or even downgrade you.
2. What is another way we can attack finding a valuable website? Google developed PageRank? What is next? What is better? What is smarter?

Ryan, J. (2010). A history of the internet and the digital future. London, UK: Reaktion Books. [Phase 2: 8, 9, & Phase 3: 10]

Picture: http://www.codemakit.com/2013/02/pagerank-and-serp.html

Wednesday, February 8, 2017

Blog 6: Are Social Networks Intimate?


After reading the first part of Phase 2 in "A History of the Internet and the Digital Future" I was most interested in chapter 6 where Ryan talked about the relationships we develop through the internet and the "intimacy" of them. One part that really stood out to me was when he talked about the telephone and that without that connection at the other end of the phone it is more useless than a child's toy. What makes the phone useful is the connections you can make with it and the millions of other options for connections you can make as well (Ryan, p. 84). These networks allows us to make connections with each other and help develop the internet through every connection we make. Ryan also talks about the predictions that were made about how technology will affect the way we communicate and if you ask me he was correct. The way we communicate through technology is very different than face to face. There is no way to introduce tone or inflections into the words that you type on the screen. I think it is interesting that my generation feels so comfortable communicating through these technologies where my parents generation does not. It almost feels like there is unspoken rules and etiquette that my friends and people I talk to know and sometimes my parents won't know those unwritten rules. I'm sure you can write about these rules all you want, but it's through practice and experience that you really gain this knowledge.
Some more interesting topics that Ryan covered in Phase II talked about the difficulties that businesses and cooperations had with incorporating new technologies and transferring everything over to a digital age. Also, in Phase II Ryan talked about the impact that the Internet had on our spending and the way that we shop. If you agree with Ryan that the Internet affected our social behaviors, than this will really drive this point home. Shopping and going to markets used to be considered like a social putting and now for all practical purposes you never have to leave your house because everything could be delivered to you.

After reading these Phase II my questions for class discussion are:
1. Would Ryan consider it a bad thing about how we communicate now through the Internet. The data is out there that our communication has changed, but is that a bad thing or just different?
2. My topic for the upcoming project is Social Networks. What is the most important Social Network? How was it developed and what makes it better than the rest?

Ryan, J. (2010). A history of the internet and the digital future. London, UK: Reaktion Books. [Phase 2: 5, 6, & 7]
Picture: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/3-ways-improve-your-online-etiquette-dandan-zhu

Monday, February 6, 2017

Blog 5: Phase 1 of the Internet

In the preface of "A History of the Internet and the Digital Future" by Johnny Ryan, Ryan discuss what he plans on covering in the upcoming chapters and the power that an individual can possess when harassing the Internet properly. He also talks about the impact that the Internet will and has had on many different aspects of everyday life (ex: businesses, politics, and society).

Phase 1 talks a lot about the struggle for innovation and wanting to push boundaries through governmental experiments, but the constant fear of failure or not being complete secure. In chapter 1 Ryan talks about World War II and the development of RAND (Research and Development Corporation) which focused on the nation's need for development in technology and allowed researchers freedom to pursue projects that would strive to further the country.

In chapter two Ryan talks about the space race and the major developments to technically that came along with it. This was a very competitive time for the united States as we competed with the Soviet Union to get to the moon first, develop our computers, and ultimately be the greater nation. Ryan introduces J.C.R. Licklider who was hired by the ARPA to work on command and control program as he saw fit (Ryan, p. 25). Licklider worked on developing computer networking and seeing the big picture of computing and strived to develop it. While these developments were groundbreaking they didn't quite add up to the internet we know now.


Finally, chapter 4 talked about the relationship between human and computer. Many people never thought that we would have the technology we do today right at our fingertips that was affordable and, for lack of a better word, "casual" for day to day use. Computers allow us to advance our lives and the way we interact with the world. These kinds of computers were once thought of as magic, but we know them today as expected resources for our everyday functions.

The questions I have after reading this is:
1. My project focuses on social networking. How has the definition of social networking and social media changed from when Licklider started working on it? Is this what he imagined it would come to?
2. People from my generation don't know a world without technology. What would happen if it was hypothetically all taken away from us? In Ryan's opinion what would happen if we lost this relationship we have developed with our machines?

Ryan, J. (2010). A history of the internet and the digital future. London, UK: Reaktion Books. [Phase 1: 1, 2, 3, 4]

Picture: http://www.cgpublishing.com/Books/ColdWar.html