Am I A Number?

     Am I a number? The answer is yes. Is everyone else that uses the internet a number? Once again, the answer is yes. Although it's not quite that simple. Each one of us is more of an algorithm. During one of his talks (http://www.ted.com/talks/eli_pariser_beware_online_filter_bubbles.html You can either watch the video before or after reading this), Ted talks about how the internet, not just Google and Facebook, monitor your activity and personalize everything you see. Then he brings up the concept of a "filter bubble." Today I'm going to talk about how those filter bubbles and data mining applies to me personally.

     It's fascinating to think that there is no standard Google. How, regardless of if you're not signed in you won't get the same thing as someone else. I also find it irritating. Now, if you know me well, you'll know that I love to learn, and like Ted, I like to hear other peoples opinions and thoughts. I also like to hear about things that are going on that may not have anything to do with me. These filter bubbles are, honestly, a good concept. I love having Google personalize my searching, so when I search for something, say, a computer term, I won't get a ton of links that have absolutely nothing to do with what I'm searching for. Although, we do need to have some control over it though, or, at the very, very least, some exceptions to these extremely strict algorithms. Instead of having only links, or statuses (Facebook), that are only what the computer thinks the user wants to see, I think there needs to be other links that aren't exactly what the computer thinks we want to see. For example, knowing that I love to learn and, like everyone else, like to be distracted from things I have to do, when I am looking for information on Google, I want to see things that I may not be looking for directly but it would be nice to see other things. 

     Now, data mining affects everyone. There are ways to prevent some of it from certain sites or from using cookies, but as long as you use the internet someone, well some machine, will be tracking you and/or your data. Instead of delving into what data mining is (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_mining) and whatnot, I'm going to talk about what I think of it and how it pertains to me, similarly to the previous paragraph about the filter bubble. In order to form this filter bubble, companies have to gather information. Most common is the links that are clicked on, such as after searching through Google or on your news feed on Facebook. Like everyone else my links are tracked and everything is personalized. Also, like I said earlier, I think it's a good idea it just needs to be altered in a few small but key ways.

     When someone says that everyone is just a number on the internet, you can now say that they're more of an algorithm that specifies what you see and what you don't see, regardless of what you want. The internet has changed from what I, and others, thought it would be but it can get much better. 

My Personal Stance on Privacy

     My stance on privacy is pretty straightforward: privacy is essential. Now, that isn't very descriptive or specific so I'm going to try and elaborate on it for the remainder of this post.

     When I say that privacy is essential, I mean a number of things. The most important is that, no one ever, for any reason, wanted everyone, or even most other people, to know everything about them. Thus, privacy is essential. The degree of privacy changes from person to person. For me, I only want people to know what I tell them individually. Well, my life doesn't need to be quite that private, but in an almost perfect world, that's what people would know.

     The same goes online, I only want people, and machines, to see what I want them to see. Now as much as I would like to go into what others and I could do, and do, to keep people and machines from only seeing what you want them to, this is suppose to be my stance on privacy so check out lifehacker and read their many articles on privacy. (lifehacker.com) 

     Although privacy is ever so important to me, like most other people, I don't want to pay extra for things (software, hardware, etc) that increase my security, and thus privacy. Now, theres another factor that plays into that. I'm a college student, but even if I was making more money than I was spending, I probably wouldn't be going around buying all the latest security gadgets and software. Security software and hardware can have a large impact on how private one's life is. There are numerous software programs that can , but aren't limited to, help ensure strong passwords, block cookies that can access information on websites one goes to, and keeps sites, such as Facebook, from giving away your information and invading your privacy. Hardware can include encrypted hard drives which only people who know the encryption key can access, or even security cameras. 

     In concern to other's privacy, I feel just as strongly about their privacy as I do my own. I will almost always be okay with not knowing something if that person doesn't want me to know. 

     As I stated earlier, privacy is essential. Now, you know my stance on privacy I hope you consider yours just as important.

How Technology Can Change Education

     Technology is something that is amazing. Well, that's just my opinion and it kind of influences how I think technology can change education. If implemented correctly I think that technology will influence education in a positive way. Since everyone learns most effectively in different way, technology will be able to help pinpoint what way that is for each person and help them learn in the best way possible. Today, most people know how they learn the best, but it usually takes years and years of trial and error to narrow it down to around the best way they learn.
     While technology has been rapidly improving outside the classroom, technology inside the classroom has been slowly improving. Understandably so, because teachers and other educators don't know how to implement these amazing technologies as teaching tools. I have heard of and seen schools that are either so far behind in technology that their computers are 10 years old, or that have up to date (or fairly close) technology and not use it correctly. Both situations are almost equally as bad. Now enough on what the schools do with their technology.
     Technology can change education in a very positive way. For starters, in a general classroom setting, technology can help students learn the material in many ways. Through new and upcoming technology, the versatility of techniques that can be used for displaying the material that is being taught. For instance, one used to have to print out black and white overhead projector sheets or use blank sheets in order to show something on the wall. Now, most schools have projectors with computers plugged into them and they can show countless teaching materials. Along with the projector, there are "SMART" boards that students can write on, with electronic markers. The boards also allow them to interact with various objects to help them learn material. Recently, schools have even started buying iPads for students.
     As far as I'm concerned, technology, for schools, will bring more good than bad, but the bad still has to be addressed. As I said before, schools, and individuals, are buying iPads for school. Now that alone is not a bad thing. Nothing is much better than an old fashioned, paper, hardback textbook, well, I think. It is cheaper and better for the environment to purchase electronic books for iPad or computer but there are some aspects of a physical book that are better. There have been some studies about that, that have shown some preferences to physical books. (For example: http://lifehacker.com/5898644/read-a-physical-book-when-you-really-need-to-remember-something) Another possible downfall to an only technological future is that some people can't look at computer screens for long periods of time in order to get things done to learn from them or read a book off a screen.
     All of these technological materials, and more, are good and have helped some students learn, but they aren't the best. Future technology will, or at least should, be able to help everyone learn a little bit better. I envision technologies that are outside of our current reach but I hope we will be able to achieve them at some point. I look forward to the future technologies both outside and in education.

Cloud Based Storage: An Internet Technology

     The idea of cloud based storage has been around since the 1960s. It is believed that Joseph Carl Robnett Licklider was the person to invent it. He also allowed the development of Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET) Although it wasn't until 2002 that it was put into action by Amazon Web Services. Now there are quite a few very different services offering cloud storage. Including Amazon Cloud Storage, Windows Live SkyDrive and Dropbox.
     Storing something "in the cloud" is not actually being saved in the clouds or in the air. The phrase refers to something being stored over the internet on a servicer's servers. In this case, and most cases when in regards to the internet, being in the cloud means that it is accessible through the internet. Now, what happens when something is stored in the cloud is it is sent, over the internet, to the servicer's servers and then sent to their storage units. Most places will perform what is called a redundancy. When that occurs, it means that they copied everything onto a separate drive in case of a drive failure or so that if you delete it, you may be able to access the files and information again. For example, while using Dropbox, a certain amount of files that are deleted by the user can be recovered later on. Cloud storage systems are contained of many distributed resources while still acting as one; very secure against faults through, like stated earlier, redundancy and distribution of data; and durable through the creation of versioned copies
     There are various advantages to using a cloud based storage system to back up files. For companies, they only need to pay for storage that is actually used by them and there is no need to install their own physical storage devices. Now not only for companies, there is no need to worry about maintenance tasks, such as data replication, backup and purchasing more storage devices. It also allows users immediate access to resources and applications in the infrastructure of another organization.
     Now, along with advantages, there are disadvantages or concerns. When something is sent to the cloud it is also copied and that increases the number of places the information is and the possibility of an unauthorized user accessing it. That can be decreased through the use of encryption. Now, the number of people with access to the data is usually drastically increased and these people might also be bribed or coerced into allowing access or receiving data. If encryption is used, keeping the key with the user and not the servicer will decrease this possibility of unauthorized access. There is also an increase in the number of networks the data travels through. Another concern is that the supplier of this cloud storage could do a number of things, such as, going bankrupt, expanding and changing focus, being purchased by another larger company, or suffering an irrecoverable disaster. If any of those happens, there is a high possibility of the user's data being lost.
     I am someone who uses Dropbox almost every day, and as a frequent user I think cloud storage is a wonderful technology.



Thanks to:

• http://www.computerweekly.com/feature/A-history-of-cloud-computing
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_storage
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_computing_security