what defines personal information?

Google has recently claimed that tracking I.P. addresses (Internet Protocol) is not tracking personal information. They claim that recording what websites are visited by a computer is not personal information. Yet, there are two sides to this argument. Google is known for being one of, if not the best search engine on the internet...because they track I.P.'s that are visited most frequently, and which one's are most relevant to the search. THey also claim that knowing what I.P.'s are visited by a computer, does not automatically reveal the person that visited the website. THe other side to this argument claims that this is in fact revealing too personal of information. And in combination with other aspects that are recorded by the internet provider as well as google, it is in fact possible to track the exact person who visited the website. So the question is what defines personal information? And how exactly is all of our information that is being tracked by these providers being used? This raises the question of surveillance, and how much crosses the lines of invading personal privacy. THe article also talks about how this can be compared to a home telephone line. A lot of people use it, so technically knowing someone's home line doesn't necessarily tell you what individual you are talking to. But doesn't most of society consider their home telephone line personal information? And furthermore, our society is taking the direction towards cellphones and personal laptops, both which mainly have one owner/one user. So knowing all the websites one laptop visits can also tell you most likely the exact individual who visited those websites. I think that part is crucial and potentially leads to too much information being stored and used by Google, and may cross the line of personal privacy.

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/24/ip-address-partially-personal-information/

Vanessa Hill

Mobile Social Networks?

Companies, especially Apple, are experimenting with a mobile social network. Although iPhones currently have a Facebook application, it's merely the website version designed for the phone. A mobile social network could not only tell you where your friends are but what they're doing. The goal, however, is not to see what your friends are up to but rather to be able to walk into a room and see everyone's information to facilitate meeting new people. Whether it's for business or dating, you would be able to see a picture of the people around you including a bio, either professional or personal. iPhones are the closest to achieving this goal because it will soon have both of the necessary components, GPS and software on the phone instead of accessing the website, in order to achieve this goal.

Although some think that a mobile social network will "enhance" social situations, will it actually make us more sociable? There is already concern over the loss of social interactivity due to current technology including instant messaging and texting. Will an application on your phone that tells you who in the room might be best suited for a conversation really help our social ability?

http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/23/will-there-be-an-iphone-only-social-network/

Lauren Gaw

Stuck in traffic? Surf the internet!

The state of California may have banned talking on cell phones while driving, but what about surfing the World Wide Web? Soon, the ability to go online in your car will be at your fingertips. BMW's newest innovation, ConnectedDrive, includes a computer screen with "unrestricted" Internet access inlaid in the dash. Currently, it's only available to European automobile owners, but the goal is to have ConnectedDrive as an option for every 2008 BMW.

I think that this is awesome, especially for those of us who don't have email- and Internet-friendly cell phones. I can think of a number of different times when I've wanted to check an email immediately, look up movie times, check on store hours, or a number of other things that require Internet access. True, for those of you who can do all this on your phone, it might not be that exciting... BUT it will be great for all those BMW-driving mommies out there! The Internet can be accessed and controlled by anyone in the car, so if children in the backseat want to log on to a website to keep themselves busy during a long drive, it's totally a possibility now. BMW is taking mobile communications to a whole new step in the innovation process with this one.

http://www.engadget.com/2008/02/23/bmws-connecteddrive-brings-the-whole-internet-to-your-car-on/

Haley Hackendale

new headsets that can read brain activity

Two companies, Emitov and Neurosky, have made preliminary designs of headsets that are capable of reading a person’s brain activity and translating it into actions. Once the futuristic headsets get used to the user, they are able to respond to commands from the user’s brain. The companies show the headsets’ capabilities through video games in which the user can make the character run around and do tasks simply by thinking the commands. The companies are hoping to have the headsets on the market by Christmas time for around $300. The possibilities for these headsets are exciting. They might soon be able to go beyond video games and actually serve to eliminate the need to a mouse- a person could just think an action and their computer will do it for them!

There are cool pictures of the headsets and more great information at:
http://venturebeat.com/2008/02/21/thinking-peoples-games-emotiv-and-neurosky-headsets-offer-mind-control/#more-88832

Whitney Heil

The U.S. Navy Looks to shoot down satellite

The United States Navy is looking to deploy a missile into space over 150 miles above them to shoot down a U.S. spy satellite. The Naval Ship USS Lake Erie was delayed by the touch down of the Space Shuttle Atlantis as well as from rough seas. The Navy will have a 10-second window for the next ten days to intercept the satellite with a missile. There is cocern that the satellite, if it enters the earth's atmosphere, may release toxic waste. I like that the Government is taking an active role in protecting the world from the possible damage our country's satellite may potentially cause.


http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/space/02/20/satellite.shootdown/index.html

Steven Hagemann

Reaction to "Big Brother is Listening"

I do not agree with the bill that is being passed. As Americans do care about national security, they also care about their privacy. As a high percentage of Americans do not have much to hide (regarding a conversation about a possible planned terrorist attack, assassination, etc., anything that would be a threat to our national security) during a telephone conversation or a text message. The entire United States population acting as resources of possible suspects of terrorism is ridiculous. As for President Bush stating, "The lives of countless Americans depend on our ability to monitor these communications," is not only impractical, but not realistic. Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, there has been an increased amount of security at airports, national agencies, etc. These measures fit the desired increase for security, however prying into Americans conversations will not only waste time, but millions of dollars that could be spent withdrawing some of troops from the Middle East or spending the money on terrorist precautions outside the U.S.

Jacqueline Gilbert

Big Brother is Listening

We talked about surveillance in the discussion section this week and the primary question that I was trying to get you to answer was, "How much surveillance are you willing to tolerate for your security?" There is an article in the Washington Post this morning concerning an extension of a telecommunications surveillance program which releases telecommunications firms of any legal responsibility while they comply with federal authorities. One notable change to the new bill being submitted is:

The most important change approved by the Senate yesterday would make permanent a law approved last August that expanded the government's authority to intercept -- without a court order -- the phone calls and e-mails of people in the United States communicating with others overseas.

Is this an appropriate level of surveillance?

- Scott

backing up work without having to do anything???

That's right. Mac introduced it's Time Machine backup device that works in hand with the new Leopard operating system. Not only does it back up your work automatically, but Apple also just introduced  the Time Capsule that is made to work with the Time Machine. It is a wireless connection that is available in either a 500 gigabyte or a 1 terabyte capacity (1,000 gigabytes). Now we wont forget to back up our work because with the Time Machine and the wireless Time Capsule it is all done for you. 

That's not all. It is also an Airport Extreme base station which utilizes a USB port to set up any printer for sharing, Mac or PC, so the whole house or office can print, no matter what system you are on.  

-Samantha Auerbach

YouBama.Com

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/01/30/move_over_youtube_here_comes_y_1.html

This is an article that explains the site YouBama.com. The site basically compiles movies from Obama supporters who explain why you should vote for Obama. The link I used is an article that explains this new idea. You guys should definitely check out YouBama.com.

I thought this was really interesting because it shows how Obama supporters are using technology as a means to communicate why one should vote for Obama. I' m particularly unbiased since I'm not from the country, and so, I'm not really passionate about certain candidates. So, as someone who has no clear position when it comes to American politics, I have to say that YouBama is a powerful vehicle that will certainly convince voters because the information doesn't come from Obama himself (who obviously wants to promote himself) but from voters who are extremely passionate about what he has to provide the country. I thought YouBama is cool because it shows how our society is completely technology-geared and how this type of technology is available globally. It's also interesting, and in my opinion, smart that the YouBama creators decided to combine the YouTube idea with their project since YouTube has shown to be a phenomenon in passing on information. Even though the site has nothing to do with Obama himself, it, in a way reflects a bit of Obama's "web-savvyness" that his supporters know well of.

- Gabriela Gholmia
February 6th, 2008

How Much Ink is used in used in Green Announcements

Within the last several years, the push to go Green has become prevalent in today’s technological society. Electronic companies have been developing new ways to reuse or recycle printers and printer cartridges in hopes to cut down on the amount of waste accumulated each year. For instance, “Xerox announced that since 1991 is has recycled a total of 2 billion pounds of spent toner cartridges, outmoded printers and enough waste to fill more than 160,000 garbage trucks .” The Environmental Protection Agency also joined the race encouraging “electronic manufactures and retailers to join its Plug into eCycling program, by collecting and recycling ink cartridges and machines to save enough electricity to power more than 7,000 homes.” While these projects are valiant, there is much more to be accomplished in order to protect our environment from the mass amount of waste. In particular, printer companies create designs that make it impossible for consumers to refill their ink cartridges. Another factor that makes recycling even more difficult is that H.P. found most average consumers keep their printers for seven years and computers for even twelve. By then, even charities don’t want them and few parts are usable. While I would argue that most average consumers do not keep their printers and computers for longer than four or five years finding a way to making today’s technology green friendly is imperative. Professor Lee’s lecture also focused on the mass amount of technological waste found in China.

Professor Lee discussed that while “recyclability is key, manufacturers do not focus on recycle-ability as parts are soldered together rather than clipped.” Today companies like Mac or Dell are constantly coming up with new designs and models of the latest gadgets. Consumers are constantly temped to toss last year’s model to get the newer and improved version. It is crucial that computer companies come up with a better way to reuse and recycle these products.


posted by: Alexandra Catalano

http://http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/05/but-how-much-ink-is-used-in-green-announcements/

How to Post to the Blog

1) Go to www.blogger.com

2) Sign in using the classes login and password.

3) Click the “+ New Post”.

4) Title your blog post and write your post in the text box.

5) Highlight the text that you wish to be a hyperlink.

6) Click the link button (It looks like a globe with a piece of chain)

7) Enter the web address. Click ok.

8) Go to the bottom of the page and hit “Publish Post”

Assignment #1 - The $100 Laptop Project

Explore and examine information about the “$100 Laptop” project at www.laptop.org , http://olpc.com , and at elsewhere. Also, search for and read the recent news about the project. You should expect some of the information to be contradictory, out-dated, or incomplete. It is your job to make sense of the information in the face of these imperfections.

For your assignment, do two things:
1. Describe the technical, organizational, and cultural aspects of this specific piece of technology. (Refer to the lecture outline and the reading “Technology: Practice and Culture” for the conceptual framework to guide your writing).
2. Identify how technical, organizational, or cultural factors present challenges or opportunities for the laptop project.

Write a 3-page (or more, double spaced, 1-inch margins, 12 point font) paper detailing these aspects. In your writing, you must cite sources in APA or MLA style. Include a list of work cites or references. Your sources cannot be Wikipedia. You can use Wikipedia as a starting point, and refer to the sources cited there.

The paper is due at the beginning of your laboratory sessions in the week of September 22, 2008.

Blogging Schedule

9/18
Albrecht, Adam, Perry
Altamirano, Elias, Andres
Aspell, Kati, Michelle
Carbajal, Erika, Ashley


9/18
Andrejich, Jacqueline, Michelle
Damrongchaitham, Rafah
Del Castillo, Rebecca, R.


9/25
Gariano, Alexandra, Andre
Finkelstein, Lauren, Taffet
Fischer, Rebecca, Mary


10/2
Hornberger, Gareth, Hawley
Khakshouri, Lisa
Hua, Transam


10/9
Nordwind, Jake, Spencer
Nussenfeld, Sally
Karasik, Alex, Wainwright
Kirkendoll, Chelscey, Elizabeth


10/16
O'Malley, Morgan, Rose Elizabeth
Ortiz, Joshua, Michael
Kirkham, Amanda, Lynn
Larsson, Anna, Elizabeth


10/23
Oyama, Sophia, Nami
Pearlman, Darren, Frank
McCloskey, Devin, Allene
McCormack, Kathryn, Anne


10/30
Pollak, Maya, Debeer
Ply, Amanda, Elizabeth
Radia, Renee, Catherine


11/6
Sakow, Brynsley, Kerr
Saleeb, Michael, Samy
Ramirez, Javier


11/13
Sussman, Mallory
Wilson, Devin, Elise
Yacoob, Gabrielle, Alexandra


11/20
Dozier, Desiree, Starr
Huang, Annie, A.
Rosenberg, Dina, Elise


12/4
Guzman, Alexandra, Lara
Yousefzadeh, Leila, JustineL
Perez, Samantha, Ann