Moving On: How Do I View Technology?

https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2023/02/24/the-future-of-human-agency/

While enrolled in COM 1450-02 this semester, my understanding and awareness of my relationship with technology has deepened significantly. Like most people, my relationship with technology is complicated, with both positive and negative aspects. Technology has impacted me in a myriad of ways through the years. I grew up during a period where personal technology was changing rapidly. The Apple iPod Shuffle, and eventually iPod Touch, were extremely popular, and the first iPhone was released when I was young. Since I have been exposed to having such technology in the palm of my hand for almost as long as I can remember, I have always been able to ‘pick up’ new tech relatively easily. While I started with a screen-less iPod at a young age, by middle school, I had a personal smartphone, and now find my iPhone, iPad, MacBook, and desktop PC to be essential to accomplish all of my responsibilities during the day. Today, I average 4-5 hours a day of screen time on my phone, which is, admittedly, an alarmingly high number. 

This pervasive use and exposure to technology has had many benefits in my life. I have made in-person friendships with people that began as social media connections, and have developed potential career skills such as graphic design, photography, video production, web design, and more because of the advanced tech available in our devices. Financial tasks such as investing, online banking, and making credit or debit card payments are incredibly convenient with smartphone apps, and instant communication with nearly everyone in my life is available with my phone.

Personal technology such as my iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, MacBook, and PC has, of course, had negative consequences for me as well. As someone who struggles with anxiety, the difficulty of properly conveying tone while using text and email often causes me stress, and the constant availability of work systems on my laptop has caused me to become somewhat of a ‘workaholic’. While I have a healthier relationship with social media now, when I was younger, I tended to worry and get depressed if my posts didn’t receive as many likes as my peers, and was often afraid to post certain things in fear of being bullied.

The lightning-fast advancement of technology is undoubtedly frightening, especially in today’s political and social climate. A portion of my extended family has, by social media and fringe ‘news’ websites, been led to believe that much of our government is made up of body-doubles, and a satanic group of child-abusers runs our country (and world). My family’s story is by no means unique. Far too many people in our country have been convinced of outlandish theories such as this, and similar conspiracies will surely arise in the future.

In a world dominated by personal technology, where everyone with a phone or computer has access to nearly all of human intelligence, a healthy fear or respect of technology is imperative. The classic phrase, ‘you can’t believe everything you read on the internet,’ has never been more true, and I can’t help but wonder how more advanced tech will benefit and hurt humanity and our world in the future.

https://www.bbc.com/news/53498434

https://www.mac-history.net/2022/12/16/timeline-the-history-of-apple-since-1976/

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/telephone-technology-timeline/

https://www.helpguide.org/articles/mental-health/social-media-and-mental-health.htm

EOTO 2: What Stuck With Me

https://venturebeat.com/ai/chatgpt-launched-six-months-ago-its-impact-and-fallout-is-just-beginning-the-ai-beat/

One of my favorite presentations from our EOTO #2 class day was Reanna’s discussion about AI technologies, and their development over time. The first AI chatbot, Eliza, was created by computer scientist Joseph Weizenbaum in 1966. Eliza, a relatively simple chatbot, was intended as a virtual psychotherapist for users. Reanna also discussed more modern developments in AI, such as Apple’s Siri or Google’s Google Assistant. Siri also works similarly to a chatbot, but can perform complex processes and answer detailed questions. Recently, platforms such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT and DALL-E have become popular uses of AI technology. ChatGPT is a revolutionary AI language model, that can use creative thinking to respond to users and perform extremely complex and detailed tasks. DALL-E is an AI platform that can be used to generate images from simple, to quite detailed, text prompts.

Like many, I am fascinated by the concept of AI and how it is working its way into every part of our lives. I use AI every day, from the moment I wake up until the moment I go to sleep. When I wake up in the morning, I tell Siri to snooze my alarm, and use Google Assistant to turn on the lights. During the day, I often use Siri to control my phone, sending messages and playing music. It amazes me that the AI industry has grown so quickly over the past few years. AI is as threatening as it is exciting. Platforms like ChatGPT have become a major issue in schools, and, personally, malfunctions with Siri have caused me to accidentally cancel my alarms, and has even attempted to call 911 without reason before. On a global level, AI in social media and our electronic devices allows companies and governments to gather alarming amounts of data without our knowledge. AI will undoubtedly continue to grow and develop over the next decade, and it is crucial that consumers pay close attention to the field and how it affects us.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/what-is-chatgpt-and-why-does-it-matter-heres-everything-you-need-to-know/

https://web.njit.edu/~ronkowit/eliza.html

https://www.pocket-lint.com/apps/news/apple/112346-what-is-siri-apple-s-personal-voice-assistant-explained/

https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/08/28/growing-public-concern-about-the-role-of-artificial-intelligence-in-daily-life/

Living With Artificial Intelligence

https://www.cnet.com/tech/computing/chatgpt-glossary-41-ai-terms-that-everyone-should-know/

It is undeniable that humans have moved into the ‘age of AI.’ Artificial intelligence is present everywhere; in our homes, cars, phones, schools, stores, and more. AI provides us with many benefits, often streamlining processes that were complex or time-consuming for humans. Many homes, mine included, have ‘virtual assistant’ devices such as Google Nest or Amazon Alexa, which can answer questions and control electronics in your home. Self-driving vehicles such as Teslas are becoming more widespread, and contactless stores track shoppers’ movements, allowing them to simply walk out with their items, without stopping at a checkout station. New websites and software programs allow humans to input short prompts, and AI can create images, videos, sounds, and more, with only a few words to build from.

 

While AI can have many benefits, it also carries a multitude of risks. As discussed in the documentary, AI in social media platforms is used to gather enormous amounts of data on users. Companies that hold this much data on users can, and do, use AI to analyze the data and predict the behavior of consumers. This behavioral prediction can lead to more targeted ads and a more targeted, personal feed experience that leads users into a specific mindset or belief. AI’s image and vocal generation and mimicking abilities have already led to the creation of so-called ‘deepfake’ videos, which could be used to generate videos of a person or public figure saying or doing things they never did, in order to damage their reputation.

 

As with anything, the use of AI has both risks and benefits. Consumers must realize how pervasive the use of artificial intelligence is, and be careful to limit the amount of information we allow it to gather on us. Additionally, the government must explore the risks of AI, and weigh their options to determine how, or if, it can pass laws to protect citizens.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dZ_lvDgevk

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2023/06/02/the-15-biggest-risks-of-artificial-intelligence/?sh=76c4f31f2706

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/heres-why-ai-may-be-extremely-dangerous-whether-its-conscious-or-not/

https://www.unr.edu/nevada-today/news/2023/atp-deepfakes#:~:text=Typically%2C%20deepfakes%20are%20used%20to,and%20confusion%20about%20important%20issues.

What is Net Neutrality?

https://www.citizensutilityboard.org/blog/2021/08/20/update-whats-going-on-with-net-neutrality/

This week, I studied the concept of net neutrality, and its impact on society. The term was first mentioned in 2003 by Columbia law professor Tim Wu, in an essay discussing how internet service providers (ISPs) at the time were preventing users from accessing things like virtual private networks (VPNs). In 2005, the Bush administration’s FCC passed the first net neutrality legislation, aiming to prevent ISPs from blocking users from accessing legal websites, but the order was struck down after being challenged by Comcast in court. A similar situation occurred after the Obama administration FCC passed another order in 2010, which was successfully challenged in the same court. The court did allow an FCC net neutrality order to stand in 2015, amidst a suit brought forth by communication firms. President Trump appointed a new, republican FCC commissioner in 2017, who threw out the 2015 net neutrality order, allowing ISPs to block or throttle content at will. Following the 2017 order, a court ruled that the FCC could not override net neutrality state laws, leaving it up to state legislatures to protect net neutrality, unless congress was to pass a federal law addressing the issue. 

Net neutrality is an important, but often overlooked concept. Net neutrality is the idea that internet service providers should treat all user traffic equally. Without net neutrality, internet or broadband providers could slow down or block traffic to certain websites. For example, if Verizon had a contracted deal with Fox News, they could speed up traffic to the Fox News site and slow down traffic to other news outlets. In the early 2000s, AT&T prevented customers from setting up their own Wi-Fi routers, and in 2009, Apple was reprimanded for blocking users from making Skype calls. Without net neutrality, internet users like myself may be forced to utilize a specific ISP to access their favorite sites. The absence of net neutrality has yet to cause an issue of that severity, but it is possible under current laws. Some states, such as Washington and New York, have passed legislation to protect net neutrality, but my home state of North Carolina hasn’t.

While it is frightening to know that providers do have the ability to prioritize or penalize certain internet traffic in most states, the government could still enact laws to protect our online freedom. In the absence of a federal net neutrality mandate, state governments should work to protect internet users. As a more comprehensive solution, however, citizens should pressure the federal government to pass sweeping net neutrality legislation. Consumers who pay to access the internet through an ISP deserve to be able to access the full (legal) internet without being interrupted by traffic throttling. Providers should not be able to determine how we access the internet, based on the financial deals they have made with certain websites. The only form of governmental or provider internet traffic control I support is to prevent access to, or transmission of, illegal content like child pornography or terroristic organizations. The internet should remain a free and diverse place, and net neutrality is crucial to maintaining the internet as we know it today.

 

https://www.wired.com/story/guide-net-neutrality/

https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/net-neutrality

https://www.aclu.org/issues/free-speech/internet-speech/what-net-neutrality

 

Privacy in the Digital Age

https://www.kqed.org/lowdown/18287/revisiting-the-patriot-act-and-americas-ongoing-tug-of-war-between-privacy-and-security

This week, we discussed privacy (or the lack thereof) in the digital age. After watching the TED Talk videos, I found Christopher Soghoian’s talk on phone surveillance to be the most interesting and impactful. Firstly, I was surprised at how easy it is for a government, hacker, or other entity to wiretap our phone calls. I assumed that it would have been fairly simple to surveil landline/switchboard phone calls, since they used a physical connection, but I did not expect it to be just as easy to listen in on cell phone calls. I was even more surprised to learn that digital communications through iMessage and WhatsApp are significantly more secure than traditional phone calls. Without any in-depth prior study of digital privacy, I had always assumed that vocal communication like phone calls were secure, since they were not written and recorded like text messages. It was encouraging to hear that companies like Apple are making an effort, in at least some areas, to preserve the privacy of consumers. I can recall, in recent memory, that Apple refused to unlock their devices for law enforcement investigations, even when pressured by some of the highest authorities in the government.

The issue of digital privacy affects just about everyone in the US today, including me. As someone who grew up with the internet and personal electronics, I realize that much of my life has been chronicled online through social media posts by my relatives, and I can never remove those posts from the internet. If the government were truly committed to protecting our privacy, they would repeal invasive acts such as the 2001 Patriot Act, but I believe that governmental surveillance will only get worse over time. With little support from our own government, citizens should do what they can to protect their own privacy, like limiting their social media use and using more secure communication platforms, like iMessage or Whatsapp.

 

https://time.com/5765771/apple-fbi-pensacola/

https://www.aclu.org/documents/surveillance-under-usapatriot-act#:~:text=Under%20the%20Patriot%20Act%2C%20the,the%20Fourth%20Amendment%20explicitly%20requires.

The Impact of Facebook

https://www.playinglean.com/blogs/playing-lean-blog/132681859-blast-from-the-past-facemash

Facebook first began on the campus of Harvard University in 2003, under the name Facemash. Originally used as a university-centered platform where students could rank the attractiveness of others, Facesmash only attracted 450 people in its two days of existence, before it was shuttered by Harvard. Facebook took the form of a more traditional social media network in 2004, but its availability was limited to students of a few prestigious US universities. Within a few months, Facebook (TheFacebook at the time) expanded to 34 colleges and universities, and had more than 250,000 users. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, Facebook crossed the one million user mark by the end of that year. Students in any high school or college were allowed to join in 2005, and anyone over the age of 13 in 2006. Today, Facebook has over than 3 billion users every month.

 

The first adopters of Facebook were likely attracted by the university-centered approach to social media. While students at our school widely use apps like YikYak today to communicate with other students, Facebook provided an early version of school-limited social media. There are a variety of reasons as to why some people were late adopters of Facebook, or have yet to join Facebook. Since the site began with college students in mind and with a young user base, older people likely may have felt ‘out of place’ joining. There are also a myriad of downsides to using social media sites like Facebook. Studies have shown that users who deactivated their Facebook accounts became less politically polarized, and improved their overall wellbeing. Additionally, Facebook has been the subject of privacy concerns for years, which has led some people to avoid joining the site altogether, or delete their existing accounts. While each person is entitled to their own opinions on Facebook and social media as a whole, I plan to continue using social media, while being careful to preserve my own mental health and privacy online.

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/264810/number-of-monthly-active-facebook-users-worldwide/

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Facebook

https://tech.co/news/facebook-bad-stanford-study-2019-02

https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-media/timeline-facebook-s-privacy-issues-its-responses-n859651

 

Suppressing Dissent in Wartime

https://www.brookings.edu/articles/interim-security-insights-and-implications-from-the-first-two-months-of-the-russia-ukraine-war/

I enjoyed exploring stories from The American Conservative and Antiwar.com. Antiwar.com’s tagline reads “Your best source for antiwar news, viewpoints, and activities.” Many of the current top stories on Antiwar.com are related to the ongoing war in Ukraine, especially the United States’ involvement in the war. The American Conservative, whose tagline includes, “embraces realism and restraint in foreign affairs based on America’s vital national interests,” features a wider variety of stories, all with a conservative, right-leaning viewpoint. Recent stories on The American Conservative include those discussing US defense pacts and many written about the war in Ukraine. Overall, a large portion of both websites is dedicated to the American government’s involvement in the war between Ukraine and Russia.

It is quite uncommon to see so many antiwar stories on mainstream news networks. I can’t recall seeing any stories from left-leaning networks such as CNN or NBC discouraging US involvement in the war, and have only seen similar stories from right-leaning networks like Fox News. Historically, antiwar voices have always been discouraged or silenced in the media. The Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798 briefly allowed the government to prosecute people who criticized the government, especially those expressing antiwar sentiments. While all but one of these acts were repealed within a few years, the government, and society, still finds ways to suppress antiwar voices.

The government has, at times, used laws such as the Espionage Act to suppress dissent. Today, it is likely that the government attempts to suppress certain voices by pressuring social media and news companies, and society as a whole can also help to hide antiwar ideas. Wartime generally helps to unify citizens in support of the war, and, if a majority (or a large enough group) of people support the war, they can discourage or cover up the dissenting opinions shared by others. Regardless of the situation, it is vital that voices of agreement and disagreement be shared and publicized, to maintain a free society.

 

https://firstamendment.mtsu.edu/article/free-speech-during-wartime/

https://www.theamericanconservative.com

https://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=3&psid=3904

https://www.antiwar.com

https://www.archives.gov/exhibits/treasures_of_congress/text/page5_text.html