Freedom of Speech

So. For Americans the definition and guidelines for freedom of speech are set out in the First Amendment. This amendment protects rights such as freedom of the press which has grown to include aspects of television, radio, and most recently, internet. The debate today is how much freedom of speech or freedom of press should the internet be allowed. Should it follow the guidelines set out for books and other printed material,which is relatively broad and open, or should it be restricted much like radio, which has less freedom and is more carefully regulated? Topics such as the legality of posting pornographic websites or sites with obscene language have been discussed. Should these sites be allowed in an area where children in general can have access to them? There is also the ongoing debate of whether comapnies, schools or parents in homes should simply use filters to block unwanted sites. This is discussed in conjunction with the argument that it should not be made 'illegal' to have these kinds of sites available for people who want them. This is what we have been discussing in class these past few weeks and it is an very important question. Internet is a new forum for information and its restrictions are still under construction, which can be good in that it allows a free flow of all different types of information and opinions. However, this also leaves loopholes which leave minors vulnerable to inappropriate material even in the safety of their own home. I feel that this will continue to be debated and worked out for several years to come before a firm final decision can be made.

Obsolescence...of toys?

In reading through tech in the news this morning i was struck by the headline on cnn.com which read, "Next-generation toys read brain waves". My first reaction was, seriously, should i be scared or only slightly disturbed. Maybe both. However, i gave the article a second chance and kept reading. Actually, the sutff theyre talking about would be pretty cool. It would make video 'more educational/require more brain activity'. The idea is that video-gamers could control game characters or avatars in virtual worlds using nothing but their thoughts. Some slightly less complicated versions of these games, such as a Darth Vader suit with a light saber which lights up with nothing but a thought, are due out later this year. The basic technology has to do with reading or recognising brain wave movements and changes. Essentially, " The basis of many brain wave-reading games is electroencephalography, or EEG, the measurement of the brain's electrical activity through electrodes placed on the scalp". This technology has been used in the medical world for a few years but this new use with games is cheaper, simpler, and aimed at kids with behavior disorders such as ADHD, autism and mood disorders. Very interesting. Makes you look at obsolescence in a whole new way. Will there soon be a day where we will have to say to our kids, "back in the day when we had to use controllers for video games"? Is technology extending at such a rate that soon normal, average toys will become obsolete? Sounds possible.
Here is the link to the original article:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/fun.games/04/30/mind.reading.toys.ap/index.html

Ergonomics

Recently we did a small activity in class investigating the ergonomics of working on a computer. First of all, according to Jonathan Bailin, Ph.D, ergonomics is "the science of adjusting your work environment to fit your body and make it more comfortable". Most of the stuff we learned was relatively simple, straightforward stuff like how close to sit to your computer screen(about 25in away), the best and most comfortable position for your feet and arms while typing for extended periods of time. However, i was a little surprised to hear that extras like wrist rests for working with a keyboard or mouse are not truly necessary and can, in some cases be more harmful or tedious. The whole lesson made me much more conscious of how i sit and type and how long i sit at a computer without resting my eyes. It was, over all, very interesting.

Social Networking Sites

Along with the Social Bookmarking, we've also been looking at social networking sites in class. Amazingly, these have gone from a fun way to keep in touch with friends, and look at pictures, to a major topic of debate for students, teachers, and even suddenly government officials. We are doing a debate in class about whether Lincoln should allow facebook to be accessed through the school computers, and in doing the research for this debate, i discovered that a Resolution has been PASSED in the U.S. House to force public schools and libraries to ban social networking sites. Crazy! i mean, i can see individual schools banning them but to make it a federal offense to let kids use them at school? a little much, in my opinion. And possibly, not really their business? anyways, more later on that.

Social Bookmarking

So. Over the past few weeks, we have been working on another ongoing activity in ITGS: Social bookmarking. Honestly, i had never even heard of this until we started using it in class. After a few weeks of using it, i can say that I'm dissapointed that i didnt know about it sooner. Ive really enjoyed this incredibly easy way of saving important articles. It makes it so much easier when doing research for a big project to be able to go back and find a whole archive of self-chosen articles without having to sift through the thousands of search results on google. Also, the whole tagging aspect of social bookmarking makes the organisation of these articles so much more convenient. AND it allows you to find other related articles that people have tagged using the same key-words. So basically, im really enjoying this new activity and finding it VERY helpful.

Cars and Technology

So on one of my fav tech websites, engadget, recently, there were two different articles about how a certain piece of technology had affected a driver's performance on the road. The first was a woman who reportedly followed the advice or directions on her GPS rather than watching or heeding the road signs. The result: she plunged her mercedes and herself into a very swollen river. So GPSs are awesome devices that are extremely helpful when searching for a location, but maybe they should be used alongside the 'old fashioned' roadsigns

The other article was rather amusing. It made me laugh anyways. Apparently a study done by Drexel University showed that using iPods while driving affected the performance of drivers. REALLY??? you mean playing around with a touch wheel and watching movies while im driving will make my driving, shall we say, slightly hazardous?? shocker. i never knew. Apparently common sense is in short supply these days.

Thankfully all the studies were done by simulation. So no one was actually hurt by this stupidity. And the woman in the car came out fine, if a bit shaken.

We dont need Internet??

So i was under the impression that most people living in the U.S. and most other western countries for that matter, find the internet irreplaceable and absolutely necessary in their daily lives. Imagine my surprise when i found an article on CNN discussing a survey in California on how many people find the internet unnecessary in their lives. According to this article, or more specifically Park Associates a Dallas-based technology market research firm, "29 percent of U.S. households, or 31 million homes, do not have Internet access and do not intend to subscribe to an Internet service over the next 12 months." CRAZY. And i mean i can totally understand internet being expensive and people not wanting or unable to pay for it but then the article hits me with "Forty-four percent of these households say they are not interested in anything on the Internet, versus just 22 percent who say they cannot afford a computer or the cost of Internet service, the survey showed." Although i was very surprised, it is also a little bit of a relief that American society is not quite as internet-obsessed as i first thought. Good to know.

here is the site of the article if you want to have a look. http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/internet/03/26/internet.holdouts.reut/index.html?eref=rss_tech