#e8s4f1

[jess14ferreira]

More imagination, Less replication!

 ONCE AGAIN, by providing easier access to its latest digital gadget, technology goes beyond our imagination. The Google glass is back in stock and available for everyone!

We're entering a reality where convenience lays right before your eyes. The Google glass provides eases to photography, text messages, access to the web, maps, etc...Everything your smartphone does the Google glass can do the same, but instead as a tool mounted to your face. It may seem like a surprising innovation. But is it really?

So we wonder, IS THAT ALL?

Based on the author Pamela Lund, in her book “Massively Networked” the future holds much better benefits than a mere head-mounted digital gadget. In the midst of expectations what are the surprising changes that may come to exist?

“Engaging in a perpetually changing reality successfully requires an entirely different strategy than relying on a static set of stories—it requires actively engaging the imagination” (Lund, 18).

Innovations require more creativity, not a replication of something that already exists.

“Combining the collective power of imagination can accelerate the process of creating new frameworks that are just right for the world we want to lie in; as a result, we can more quickly leave ordering narratives that no longer work very well behind” (19).

Technology revolution mediates in our fast changing culture. And today we want more than a smart phone or easy access to the web.  Our perspective as human being has the chance of being expanded increasingly “If you pay attention to what is happening around you and learn how to make the best use of the tools and your talents” (21).

“The internet is re-creating people in technology’s image” (McChesney, 12). We are no longer humans. We are cyborgs; whose creativity has aligned with technology.  “Every surprising bit of new behavior has two common elements: people had the opportunity to behave in a way that rewarded some intrinsic motivation, and those opportunities were enabled by technology, but created by human beings” (Shirky,101).

Technology advancements are incredibly fast and a commonplace in todays world. We are accustomed to this reality though we may fail to imagine more. What else can we dream for? 

"WHAT DREAMS MAY COME"

I would like to imagine an fantasy world. Envision myself inside a made up reality.  Kind of like an avatar, but instead experience it first hand; live and colors. Not as a gamer, or someone looking from the outside. But As someone living an alternate reality. With a simple combination of technology and human imagination I would like to spend a few hours in the land of my dreams that does not yet exist. "Through fantasy imagination, you can extend element from commons  experience in novel and unexpected ways" (Lund, 15). Perhaps get inside a movie. Interact with animals; flowers; or even fall into the rabbit hole; eat a cupcake and grow into a giant. Drink milk and shrink into small creatures. Whatever it may be, can the Google glass do that? Not yet.

But according to Lund, we can create anything we want with our imagination. So its time we start to actively engage with technology, and create our own reality.

We want more than just convenience! We want to go beyond a fixed reality. Beyond the same environment. More than the same old colors; the same type of people; the same experiences. We want different than what we have.

Google glass, step your game up. We don't want "Android-powered headset that links up with our smartphone to show alerts and run apps" (Lowensohn). We want to create our reality.

  Works Cited:

Lowensohn, Josh. “Google Glass Now on Sale to All in US, but Still in Beta.” The Verge. The Verge, 13 May 2014. Web. 14 May 2014.

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is Changing Your Life. San Francisco: PLI Media, 2012. Print.

McChesney, Robert W. Digital Disconnect. New York: New, 2013. Print.

Shirky, Clay. Cognitive Surplus: How Technology Makes Consumers into Collaborators. New York: Penguin, 2010. Print.

[kkay313]

What Dreams Come From Google’s Vision Of Sight Through Glass?

Google Glass has now become public and anyone can buy this eyewear for $1500 as long as it’s in stock. What will this wearable tech lead to? The dreams and potential ideas we have are infinite as digital and flesh selves operate virtually. What we can create and our futures through Google Glass reflects our imaginations that can lead to good and bad outcomes.

In Stock. Purchase Now?

Writer and photographer Josh Lowensohn from The Verge briefly covered Google’s pair of lenses that are now back in stock and open for anyone to buy.

“Google says it's built up its stock again, and wants to get the device in the hands of anyone who wants to buy it — as long as it's got the units on hand.” (Lowensohn)

$1500 is a lot of money for tech that’s only available in the U.S. This is not affordable for many people who are struggling in a tight economy. The glass experience becomes limited for those that can afford to pay.

Imagine What You Can Do

A/R with furniture, driving to the store, and even walking down the street are altered as you see the world in a different way. There is no limit to our imagination as we can see, talk, IM, and learn about the stuff around us. Social media consultant and Internet pioneer Pamela Lund believes that tech lets us create the world we want. Her book Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is Changing Your Life is optimistic about what technology can and will do for us. We might lose a little bit of what makes us human but our imaginations let us live life in amazing ways.

“Closing the gap between what you can envision and having it in your hands has the potential to rewire the brain in ways none of us can yet foresee” (Lund, location 694).

Glass A Step Towards Losing Our Humanity?

Virtually experiencing the world is not the same as living it. Dreams change and if we move toward a world through Google Glass we could invade privacy and ruin lives. Lund would approve of using Glass for things like shopping and directions, but how about the police using Glass to spy on innocent people? This abuse of power in the hands of our protection system could make people even more critical of the good that is possible.

Wireless software programs in Glass that encroach on the rights of citizens (Webber) are a violation of not just our privacy but our image as well. We keep our secrets and ideas, some of which stem from our dreams. Would we dream that everything we know about is exposed and used against us?

Value Through Glass

To use Google Glass for rewarding purposes reflects the public value that Clay Shirky, web guru and author of Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity In A Connected Age talks about.

Public value is an interactive as communal value, but far more open to participation from and sharing with newcomers and outsiders. In contrast to communal sharing, public sharing allows people to join in at will, and the results will be made available even to those members of the public who are not participants (Shirky 174).

Not everyone is going to use Google Glass. Many might just hear about it and what it can do. Using Glass toward a common good, like the Apache project, go global and aid us all. Promoting this kind of involvement is worthwhile and society benefits (175) from these hard efforts.

Realize What Dreams May Come

Google Glass is a tool of the future that will shape how we live if we invest in it. The world will be available with a tap of the frame to talk to someone or guide us where we need to go. As Glass becomes available for all to use, it needs user responsibility in just what we do with it. With this amazing potential, we can create the kind of world we want with more open communication and interaction.

Works Cited

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is Changing Your Life. 1st ed. PLI Media, 2011. Web.

Shirky, Clay. Cognitive Surplus: Creativity And Generosity In A Connected Age. 1st ed. New York: The Penguin Press HC, 2010. Print.

Lowensohn, Josh. “Google Glass now on sale to all in US, but still in beta.” The Verge. N. p., 13 May 2014. Web. 14 May 2014.

Webber, Chris. “#GoogleGlass Making #NewYork Streets Safer? Or Invading Privacy? #e8s4.” @cwebber99. Microblog. N. p., 6 Feb. 2014. Web. 14 May 2014.

[allisonhanna8]

Real-ID: Glass Enforces Identity Transparency, Just Like Facebook and Google Plus

Forced identity transparency presents a major violation of citizen’s rights. Real-ID policies that forbid pseudonyms strip citizens of their rights to anonymous public dissent.

With the public release of Google Glass, Real-ID policies will become even more oppressive. Through facial recognition apps, Glass may become the most invasive Real-ID tool yet.

If facial recognition apps surround us, we can never be anonymous dissenters in the public sphere. Glass will threaten personal safety through Real-ID.

Facebook started Real-ID

According to Rebecca MacKinnon’s Consent of the Networked, “Facebook’s motto is ‘Making the world open and connected’” (150). This motto comes from Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg. He believes that “humanity would be better off if everybody were more transparent about who they are and what they do” (MacKinnon 150).

In practice, this motto means that Facebook enforces a Real-ID policy. Facebook suspends any account that uses a pseudonym or fake identity (MacKinnon 150).

Google Plus adopted Real-ID

Google Plus creators followed Zuckerberg’s motto, as well. Without warning, Google Plus decided to deactivate pseudonym accounts in 2011. Many of the deactivated Google Plus users were bloggers and activists (MacKinnon 161). Their use of a pseudonym protected them from danger while making political statements online.

According to MacKinnon, Real-ID is “denying people’s right to define their own identity" (161).

Shortsighted Glass App Developers Support Real-ID

Facebook and Google Plus use Real-ID policies based on Zuckerberg’s motto. But his core belief that all people should be transparent and public online is shortsighted.

MacKinnon states that the Real-ID policy is “the product of a corporate culture based on the life experiences of relatively sheltered and affluent Americans who may be well intentioned but have never experienced genuine social, political, religious, or sexual vulnerability” (MacKinnon 156).

Facial recognition apps for Glass follow the same shortsighted motto. Adi Robertson addresses this problem in her Verge article, “Can You Still Be a Stranger When Everyone Is Wearing Google Glass?”

Robertson calls facial recognition apps for Glass a new example of Real-ID. These apps enforce Real-ID online, and take that identity into the real world as well (Robertson).

The problem is, these app developers are also unaware of the vulnerability caused by Real-ID policies.

Glass will bring same Real-ID dangers as Google Plus and Facebook

According to Robertson, Glass “promises (or threatens)” a seamless connection between the internet and the real world. This threatens anonymous online speech.

This is a serious problem, though not a new one. The Real-ID problem began with Facebook, and continued with Google Plus. Now it will extend to Glass.

We have to create policies to protect our privacy across all Real-ID networks. Digital networks influence our real world safety (MacKinnon 165).

We must face these companies, and defend our rights to anonymity online.

Works Cited

MacKinnon, Rebecca. Consent of the Networked: The World-wide Struggle for Internet Freedom. New York: Basic, 2012. Print.

Robertson, Adi. “Can You Still Be a Stranger When Everyone Is Wearing Google Glass?” The Verge. N. p., n.d. Web. 14 May 2014.

[patrickhawes-defrias]

Google Glass- Seeing the Future

Google Glass is a stepping stone in the world of technology. It will change the way we see the world (literally) and what we do in it. It is coming- there’s no stopping that. We will be able to use this technology in many ways, and better the world in the process.

  Imaginative Networked

  Pamela Lund thinks very highly of our boom in technological advances. She states that it is creating a “massively networked ecosystem [where] you as an individual have more power than ever before to change the world” (Lund). In her eyes, our collection of knowledge and ability to share instantly gives us the ability to dream and create anything our imaginations could conceive.

Google Glass will do wonders for this. It promises to give users the ability to share anything they see to the world, and comment on the world around us (for example, being to write an analysis of an art piece and display it for anyone who sees the piece in question). This leads to a dynamic world which changes as we see fit and gains consistent feedback from those around us.

  Persistent Journalism

  Robert McChesney, on the other hand, believes that the digital boom has made capitalism the predominant force on the internet. It controls what we see, how we see, and where we see it.

He has some hope, however- in journalism, saying that it is “the key institution that would keep people informed of what was taking place and give citizens the capacity to resist tyranny and protect their freedoms” (McChesney).

With the Internet, everyone is a writer. And with Google Glass, your writing can be done anywhere and can be read anytime. Once the technology advances, we will be able to give deep criticism on any advertising or political messaging we see, avoid lies, and see what needs our support.

  Open World

  By using Glass, we will have access to a wide variety of options. We will have access to a variety of ways to expand our collective conscious through creative production.

However, we live in a world dominated by capitalism. But Glass gives us an excellent way to counteract this, to look at something we disagree with and immediately let anyone who looks at it know the truth.

The dream that comes with Google Glass is a world open to everyone, where we as a society can help and support each other in a way that’s easy as point, and click.

  Works Cited

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is Changing Your Life. San Francisco: PLI Media, 2012. Print.

  McChesney, Robert W. Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism Is Turning the Internet against Democracy. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.

[tgoyette]

Google Glass to change the world

What dreams may come?

With the recent Beta release of Google Glass, a headset, worn like a pair of glasses, that creates a level of augmented reality, or AR for short.

AR, “places a layer of virtual information over a physical setting.”( Lund, 24) The capabilities of this virtual information are boundless, able to run facial recognition scans, aid with directions, and even help you pick out a place to eat at without once lifting a finger.

Josh Lownesohn of The Verge says, “some of the most interesting have been services that offer augmented reality like golf helpers, and real-time translation tools.“

Pamela Lund, author of Massively Networked, shares her insight on the advantages of this tech, saying that a user will now be able to pull up, say, a furniture catalog while in their home, select a couch that is to their liking, and be able to virtually see that product in their home.

The advanced tech within Google Glass will offer a greater level of interaction with the cybernetic world. We will become more integrated with the matrix, so to speak, and will be able to access anything we would normally be able to on a laptop, but placed over our normal sight.

While passing a historic site, Google Glass could pull up information on why this location is important- which could lead to a better educated population, while passing a restaurant on the street, it would be possible to pull up their menu and decide whether or not to eat there without once stepping foot into the building.

The dark side of the moon.

We have the natural potential to perceive everything that is going on in the world at this very moment in time. However, through our own evolutionary process we have shut ourselves off to the majority of that input solely for survivals sake. If all of that information was perceived and understood we would have an exponentially more difficult time picking out what was, and was not, essential to our survival in the now.

Robert McChesney, author of Digital Disconnect, shares a view of this very fact that relates to the digital era, “ If one digitally recorded all extant human cultural artifact and information created from the dawn of time until 2003, one would need 5 billion gigabytes of storage space. By 2010 people created that much data every two days.”

Evolution and spiritual dilution have limited the amount of natural information that we can perceive for survivals sake. However, mankind has a tendency to bend the rules.

AR tech will be able to tap into the entirety of human knowledge, including the all of the pointless memes, videos, and faux new stories that are on the web. This great influx of new visual information could overload our brains and alter our state of living forever if not used correctly.

Clay Shirky of Cognitive Surplus expands upon this by quoting the late Edgar Allan Poe, “ The enormous multiplication of books in every branch of knowledge is one of the greatest evils of this age; since it presents one of the most serious obstacles to the acquisition of correct information by throwing in the reader’s way piles of lumber in which he must painfully grips for the scraps of useful lumber.” (Shirky, 47)

There is a fine line that is needed to be walked here; a line that teeters between technological comfort and tech induced insanity.

I am growing increasingly fearful of the seemingly inevitable day when mankind has disconnected themselves so far from nature for the sake of societal comfort that we become something even less than human. I fear that a tech meant to aid our lives, and increase social interaction, will do just the opposite.

History Repeats Itself.

Cellphones and laptops were meant to connect the world with each other and create a better educated population through the vast amount of knowledge provided on the internet.

However, despite the majority of human knowledge stored online we spend our days scrolling through a news feed created by bogus virtual friends, watching admittedly humorous videos, and laughing at cat memes.

We have not grown closer, but further apart.

Google glass will essentially shut us off even more, making it possible to leave our phones in our pockets while still ignoring everyone and everything around us. We will become completely self sufficient and lose the need to interact with other human beings aside from the basic need and/or want for sexual satisfaction, which, I’m sure we will one day ruin for ourselves as well.

Silver Lining

Shirky’s Cognitive Surplus, focuses on the idea that the vast majority of the worlds population now has the ability to educate themselves on line, and, not only educate- but to publish their own opinions into the public sphere.

The idea is simple, rather than wasting our time chasing the immediately pleasurable impulse brought by funny videos, memes, and so forth- we can focus on growing the knowledge base of our people through cooperation on the internet.

We can create forums that discuss the sciences, history, engineering, health and a whole plethora of other topics and thus create progress rather than a stuporous standstill chasing pleasure impulse through meaningless forms of entertainment.

With the increase of public knowledge and availability to voice their opinions and concerns, it is growing increasingly more difficult for governments to keep their secrets, well, secrets.

Rebecca MacKinnon, in Consent of the Networked, tells of a young waitress in China named Deng Yujiao who has been working at a multi service establishment. During her shift a political official requested sexual services, which had been known to be available here. Deng refused, and in her struggle to fight off his advancements, killed the man.

She was later placed in a mental institution, and in most cases, nothing would have been heard from this woman again. However, news spread online like a wildfire and it wasn’t long until the local government was presented with a large number of letters criticizing their officials abuse of power, and the failure of the government in allowing woman to work in such conditions.

Rather than being forgotten, Deng was instead released on lesser charges.

How this all relates.

So, what dreams may come?

Google Glass is both a gift and a curse. If used correctly, with its intent, the device has the ability to correct social injustice worldwide. It can be used as an active field guide, and an honest documenter of the world the user is experiencing. The tech can be used to study the behaviors of people within a major city, and even to explore through forgotten mountain paths. It can work as a check to the power of government officials and local law enforcement, seeing as they may not be so brazen when presented with the possibility of being recorded.

However, I fear that the tech will be abused, and treated much the same as cellphones and laptops are today. We will find distractions for distractions sake and cease to move forward because standing still seems much safer.

We are now presented with a glorious second chance at doing things right through the use of tech. Google Glass is a double edged sword, both able to liberate us as a species or to stunt our growth entirely.

Works Cited

"Google Glass Now on Sale to All in US, but Still in Beta." The Verge. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 May 2014.

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is Changing Your Life. San Francisco: PLI Media, 2012. Print.

MacKinnon, Rebecca. Consent of the Networked: The World-wide Struggle for Internet Freedom. New York: Basic, 2012. Print.

McChesney, Robert Waterman. Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism Is Turning the Internet against Democracy. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print.

Shirky, Clay. Cognitive Surplus: Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age. New York: Penguin, 2010. Print.

[oliviavgauvin]

Google Glass: dream or expensive nightmare?

Google Glass sounds like something out of a dream.  But it is not as “available” as it might seem to be, and is out of the question for most people.  Most people, that is, who could use technology to create civic value.  Google glass is cool, but we need technology that is more affordable and helpful.    Google Glass: a dream come true? The idea of Google glass sounds like something out of a dream, or a sci-fi movie. Picture this: you are walking down the street.   You need directions, and a map pops up, complete with directions to get to the nearest Starbucks.  You ask where your friend is, and his location shows up on your map.  You order your coffee, and can see the money coming out of your account.  And you take a picture of your drink, post it on social media, and can see the “likes” racking up.   You have access to virtually any application you want, literally before your eyes.  You don’t even need to move your hands.   Glass availability increasing According to Josh Lowensohn, more people will finally be able to live the dream of Google Glass.  Google has entered a new phase of beta testing in which it “wants to get the device in the hands of anyone who wants to buy it” (Lowensohn).   This comes after years of very limited availability.  For anyone who has been planning on buying Google Glass, but hasn’t been one of the just-over-10,000 people who could get their hands on the device, this is good news. Glass price unaffordable Even Lowensohn acknowledges that the availability of Google Glass is still limited.  He says that Google will sell their devices to the general public… “as long as it's got the units on hand” (Lowensohn).  But this is not the only way in which the dream of Google Glass is not available to everyone. Even with a more appealing design than the original and manufacturing of enough devices for a “a full-blown consumer launch” later this year, (Lowensohn) Google Glass still caters to a very limited customer base.   The device is only being sold to consumers in the United States.  The the prohibitively high $1,500 price tag makes it financially unavailable for the vast majority of Americans.   Civic Value: where is it? In this context, in which we have an innovative device that is available only to an elite few, it is no wonder that the most “interesting” services offered are golf helpers and translators (Lowensohn).   But from a company as powerful as Google, shouldn’t we expect more than interesting? Internet and technology expert Clay Shirky points out that, with the help of technology, individuals can move beyond creating personal and community value to creating public and civic value (172).  In other words, individual people can change the world.   A major corporation like Google should create its own civic value, by making its value-producing technology available to all who can use it productively.  And, according to Shirky, this is just about everyone.   In other words, Google should be able to give us something that is more than just cool and interesting.  And it should give it to the people who can use it to create positive change.  And this includes a lot of people who don’t have $1,500 to spare.   Glass blinds us to global issues Rebecca MacKinnon, in her Consent of the Networked, highlights Google when she talks about Siva Vaidhyanathan’s The Googalization of Everything.  Vaidhyanathan warns that Google “encourages a dangerously ‘blind faith in technology’ on the part of people who use Google services.  Such faith, he argues, blinds us to what companies might be doing differently, how their internal decisions affect our lives in ways we have never thought about, and whether our excitement with the new technologies lulls us into accepting risks that we do not see or understand” (MacKinnon 10). Now, it seems that more and more people are “[buying] into [Google’s] vision of the future” (Lowensohn).  But I’m not buying it.  And not only because I need to pay my rent and bills.  I don’t want to buy a pair of glasses that will make me blind.      In our excitement about Google glass, have we forgotten about global issues?  When Google makes a device that I can afford that will help me to combat poverty and hunger, I will be impressed.   Until then, technology for the sake of technology will be more of a nightmare than a dream. Works Cited Lowensohn, Josh. "Google Glass Now on Sale to All in US, but Still in Beta." The Verge. Vox Media, Inc., 13 May 2014. Web. 14 May 2014. MacKinnon, Rebecca. Consent of the Networked: The Worldwide Struggle for Internet Freedom. New York: Basic Books, 2012. Print. Shirky, Clay. Cognitive Surplus: How Technology Makes Consumers into Collaborators. New York: Penguin, 2010. Print.

[thenickmurrayblog]

Glass Invasion

Hello Google Glass, Goodbye Privacy

Glass is just the next step of marketing and advertising jumping out of our computers and into our faces.

Google Glass is only in the beginning stages of, but as Josh Lowensohn writes in his article, Google Glass Now on Sale to All in US, but still in Beta, "Google's offered a development platform on top of Glass to build tools that might make more sense in front of your eyeballs than on a smartphone screen." (Lowensohn)

What tools make more sense to advertisers to be in front of your eyeballs? You'll tell them.

Lowensohn's article makes mention of an augmented reality app for golfers and a real-time translation app. But not all of us are golfers or in international business. Not to worry, simply put the Glass on and walk around town. Google will absorb everything you see. They will know everything you look at. And they will create advertisements designed for you, based on their observations of what you look at and do.

Eventually, your activity will be directed by Google's advertisers. After all, as Robert McChesney writes in Digital Disconnect, advertising has become "the most sophisticated system of applied propaganda in the world." (McChesney)

Digital World

In the documentary Terms and Conditions May Apply, the opening sequence has presents two scenarios, one labeled "Real World," in which a man goes to a clinic to get an itch on his foot checked out and in the elevator to, he texts his significant other about dinner plans.

In the next scenario, labeled "Digital World," the same man goes to the same clinic for the same problem, and is confronted right away, and throughout the experience, with advertisements. In the clinic's waiting room, doctors jump in front of him boasting discounted rates and a natural medicine alternative jumps out as well and offers herbs and prayer. In the elevator the man receives the text about dinner. The elevator is suddenly illuminated from all sides with glowing ads for dinner and coupons for food items. Down the hall, the advertisements continue and people jump out from behind doors to bombard the man with products as he runs away.

Digital Invasion

This scenario in the film is not far off from the digital world we engage in on the internet. But what if the "Real World" was never disengaged from the "Digital World"? What if everything we do is absorbed, calculated, and quantified to deliver products and steer us toward buying them. Or Worse?

The documentary mentioned above also reveals some terrifying real life consequences of the invasion of digital technology and information sharing in people's lives. The film explains that one man stormed into a Target store, fuming about the coupons for baby products and pregnancy tests that were being mailed from the store to his teenage daughter. After some very personal conversations, the daughter revealed that, based on her purchases, the store knew that she was in fact pregnant before her own father did.

Another real life scenario from the film describes how a man's family vacation was ruined after, despite having good credit history and a prior credit limit of $10,000, his limit was suddenly cut down to around $3,800. The credit card company responded to his complaints in a letter, explaining that due to the poor repayment history of other people that shopped at the same establishments as the man, he was deemed a risk and his credit lowered.

The film also explained that many people's insurance premiums were raised by assessing risk in the same manner.

Google Glass Hero

Imagine walking down the street, wearing Glass. A man drives up in a flashy new car. You check the plates, and the price, so does Google. An ad pops up for cars for sale.

The man gets out of his car and  you notice his suit. Google tells you exactly what he is wearing and where you can buy similar suits.

You scan the man's face. So does Google. Google has done a facial recognition and alerted the authorities that the man you've spotted is wanted for bank fraud and the police are now on their way.

You observe and take video from Glass as you sip your coffee. You are a hero.

Google Glass Criminal

Imagine  the same scenario as before. This time you get out of your flashy car and your face is scanned by a man across the street.

The man walks over and says "Hey, Stan!"

You turn and try to remember the man, but can't place him.

"Hey, buddy." The man says. "I went to So and So high school and picked up your son earlier. Why don't you get in the car and we'll go withdraw all $11, 913 from your checking or I'll kill your family at your house in So and So address."

Cool apps and fast mobile searching, with the addition of some all in one information sharing company that sold your personal information, has enabled a criminal to bend you to his will in a few seconds.

Works Cited

Hoback, Cullen. Terms & Conditions May Apply. Hyrax Films, Topiary Productions, 2013. Netflix.

Lowensohn, Josh. “Google Glass Now on Sale to All in US, but Still in Beta.” The Verge 13 May 2014.

Shirky, Clay. Cognitive Surplus Creativity and Generosity in a Connected Age. New York: Penguin Press, 2010. Print.

[katyiskelly]

Selling Google Glass to the Populace: What Dreams May Come?

Glass impacts its user negatively. Josh Lowensohn simply describes the product in his article about Google Glass, restating that anyone can buy it but failing to pause and wonder: what dreams may come? He fails to pause and consider the negative aspects of the tech tool in relation to corporation control.  

Expanding Power: Corporations and Capitalism Infringe on Privacy

Google expands its global company to a device that has the ability for facial recognition, social media, GPS, and just about any app the consumer desires. Picture everyone wearing Google Glass, a tech tool that anyone can buy with 1,500 dollars on hand: a nightmare or a dream? This ever expanding media giant looks to sell it to anyone that can afford it. Lowensohn states, “Google says it's built up its stock again, and wants to get the device in the hands of anyone who wants to buy it — as long as it's got the units on hand” (Lowensohn).

Everyone recognizes you instantly while wearing Glass. This unsettling infringement on privacy is just the beginning. Robert W. McChesney, author of Digital Disconnect, shows that Google already holds almost 70 percent of the market for search engines. Google monopolizes this corner of the marker, even taking up 97 percent of search market on mobile (McChesney). This expanding company grows in size and strength rapidly. What then, will happen to consumers and citizens?

Losing privacy goes hand in hand with losing freedom, an alarming idea for citizens. With Google being a super power in the Internet realm, users lose their privacy. McChesney writes about social media site, Facebook, claiming, “It is monopoly power, for example, that makes it possible for Facebook to disregard its users’ concerns about privacy” (McChesney 141). This two way communication device, Facebook, disregards users’ concerns, simply because it can. What’s to stop Google from doing the same? Google takes tech out of the virtual and into the real world as well. The use of Google Glass imposes on the privacy of those around them.

Intruding on the privacy of non-wearers, and even wearers of Glass, comes with the deal of wearing this tech tool. The instant facial recognition pries into the life of those near the wearer. Google can even access location on the wearer of the tech, much like a cell phone. Even ads will be tailored to location, only benefiting in the growth of these media giants.

Ads Impose on Daily Life

Ads tailored to location physically and virtually will only give more power to these media giants. McChesney claims, “There is one important development for media, communication and the Interent that is triggered to a significant extent by the growth of monopoly in the economy: advertising” (McChesney 41). Ads already follow people in day to day life. Ads are tailored to the user while surfing the web or reading news on a site. Ads flash by on the subway during the morning commute. Billboards and store front windows show products that the consumer needs. But Glass brings it to a whole new level.

Ads follow the glass wearer wherever they go. Around lunch, ads can pop up for food in the wearer’s area. Ads will follow the wearer virtually and physically. Not only will there be ads for the sites the wearer visits, but the shops they enter in the real world. Ads are not just an annoyance, but a way for monopolies to grow and grow. Internet sites and firms make most of their revenue from ads. Having the user wearing glasses for a good chunk of the day, allows for even more profit.

Controlling the Web: Glass another Tool for Mastery

Glass becomes just another tool in the hands of firms to control people. Rebecca MacKinnon, author of Consent of the Networked, also worries about sovereignty in the hands of firms. She writes, “Google and Facebook are just two of the many companies whose products and services have created a new globally networked public sphere that is largely shaped, built, owned and operated by the private sector” (MacKinnon 9). This private sector allows for firms to have ultimate control over the people.

Firms control users through this private sector. Not only do these firms dictate the market, but personal relations as well. The idea of being human has been lost. Glass and social media taint relations that humans make, putting them in a virtual and lonely world.  So then, Glass impacts its users poorly.

So, what dreams may come? Glass controls the manner in which people see each other, themselves, and the world around them. In relation to advertising and privacy, their profits benefit from wearers. The 1,500 dollar price tag isn’t the only component bringing in profit. Users benefit the firms, becoming cogs in the machine of media giants.

Works Cited

Lowensohn, Josh. “Google Glass now on sale to all in US, but still in  Beta.” The Verge. 14 May,2014. Web. 13 May, 2014.

McChesney, Robert W. Digital Disconnect: How Capitalism Is Turning the InternetAgainst Democracy. The New Press, 2013. Print.

Shirky, Clay. Cognitive Surplus: How Technology Makes Consumers into Collaborators. NewYork: Penguin, 2010. Print.

[mattdacosta]

Q: What Dreams May Come? A: Whatever Google Creates

We are in a world where technology advances are happening so quick, it can cause anxiety to someone who is trying to keep up. If we harvest the technology at our own pace, we can engulf ourselves in a creative wonderland.

Google Doesn't Deliver

One of the biggest players in this wonderland is Google. Their wearable device, Glass, allows users to interact with apps and interfaces thats are projected on a screen in front of them that only the user can see. THIS IS GOING TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD! Right?

Google's public release of Glass left people with dim hopes that they can take the next step into becoming a cyborg. This highly remakrked, highly marketed device barely had enough units to cover the demand. Tech-junkies everywhere were left in disappointment as the device that everyone thought was going to revolutionize every human life as we know it only reached about 10,000 of those lives. Or .00014%.

The Doubters

In his article on The Verge, "Google Glass on sale now on sale to all in US, but still in Beta," Josh Lowensohn writes that "Google says it's built up its stock again, and wants to get the device in the hands of anyone who wants to buy it — as long as it's got the units on hand."

Lowensohn is one of those junkies who expected Google to pull through with their promise as they always do. He feels that Google has abandoned their people and products. He wraps up his article by writing, "Google's offered a development platform on top of Glass to build tools that might make more sense in front of your eyeballs than on a smartphone screen, though more recently has turned its attention to the wrist with Android Wear."

What Dreams May Come

Tech celebrant, Pamela Lund, calls this "inductive imagination" and "fantasy imagination." In her book, Massively Networked," Lund writes about the side of tech that is for the good of the people and allows people to live in a more quantifiable, organized world.

Inductive Imagination

She says, "Inductive imagination gathers input from ordinary experience and puts these elements of experience into a fresh interpretation...inductive imagination brings something new into the world through reinterpretation of things that already exist" (Lund, 382).

Google Glass does this with the maps feature. When walking around a city, you can get info and tidbits on buildings and landmarks you didn't know about. This also applies to the golf course feature. Golfers can now use Glass to see a bird's eye view of the course, wind speed and direction, as well as previous results.

Fantasy Imagination

Fantasy imaginations "extend elements from common experience in novel and unexpected ways" (Lund, 410) This imagination takes reality and alters it, transforming the familiar into an alternate perspective.

Glass embodies this imagination through use of gaming apps. Games on Glass take the world we see and turns it into an interactive gaming platform. We know this style of reality as "augmented reality."

Future We Dream Of

There will always be the doubters and skeptics. We can't let them get in the way of where technology can take the human race. With tools like Google Glass slowly taking its final form, there is no ceiling for advancement into a Utopian-like world.

Works Cited

Lowensohn, Josh. "Google Glass Now on Sale to All in US, but Still in Beta." The Verge. The Verge, 13 May 2014. Web. 14 May 2014.

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is Changing Your Life. San Francisco: PLI Media, 2012. Print.

[cwebber99]

Google Glass Makes Dreams Reality

Google Glass Changes World

Google Glass has the ability to make everything in our lives easier. It is the first step towards a major change for society. Josh Lowensohn, photographer for Google said Google "wants to get the device in the hands of anyone who wants to buy it — as long as it's got the units on hand."(Lowensohn) His article touches the surface of what Google Glass really has to offer. No longer do people have to look down at their smartphones while walking, looking for directions. Just look right into your glasses and see a map giving you directions wherever you would like to go. Google Glass has the ability to make everything in life easier for people. This is the start of what Pamela Lund, author of Massively Networked would refer to as "The Internet of Things". A way for all people to connect.

Glass Makes Life Easier

Everyday people complain about the difficulty of having to do certain tasks. Saying "its 2014 why do we still need to do this," Google Glass puts an end to that. We now have a chance to get things done much easier, and making life that much easier and better. Google Glass gives us a chance to connect with people that we never thought we could. As Pamela Lund says "... by participating in this network of communicants, we gain more power to create the world we want." (Lund, 130) Google Glass gives people the power to make a life that they want. We can create our own world, and lifestyle that makes us the happiest.

Creative Reality

Google Glass has made it so the most difficult and important tasks in life can be done with relative ease. We have seen surgeons use them to help with difficult operations. Professional sports leagues are considering using them for live games, to ensure they make the right call. Things we once thought to be impossible are now becoming very possible thanks to Google glass. We now have the ability to share with others that used to never be possible. In doing so it creates a stronger community. According to Clay Shirky, author of Cognitive Surplus we should do whatever we can to make a stronger community, and use the tools available to do so.

Google Glass Creates Public Value

This new technology lets us share and connect with the world like never before. We have the ability to create a much stronger society and community through the use of Google Glass. As the world continues to grow more technology reliant, it is important that people still connect through this technology. Shirky thinks this is the most important part of the growth of technology. "Public value is as interactive as communal value, but far more open to participation from and sharing with newcomers and outsiders." (Shirky, 174) Because of this new technology, each person has the ability to create their own perfect world. But it still remains important to communicate and share that world with the rest of your community.

Imagination Becomes Reality

Google Glass has the ability to turn imagination into the real thing. Things we use to dream of doing are becoming reality now. As Pamela Lund says, "Through the imagination you have access to a vast store of realities that have the potential of shaping your physical world." (Lund, 17) Google glass has taken that idea and made it possible. Through a lens we can do things we never though possible. And we can do it with extreme ease. By simply telling Google Glass to bring you somewhere, you are there. Dreams are starting to become true because of Google Glass. Instead of scrolling, and clicking around on your smartphone, things can now just appear for you. Google Glass has the ability to improve this world.

What Dreams May Come 

According to Lund, Google Glass is just the start of the new world. Lund believes soon anything will be possible. Anything we dream or imagine will one day be reality. 3D printers have already been created to help make tools, food and soon possibly human organs. Google glass has already done much to the few who have been able to use it. Once the whole world gets to use it, dreams will come true.

Work Cited

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is Changing Your Life. 1st ed. PLI Media, 2011.

Shirky, Clay. Cognitive Surplus: How Technology Makes Consumers into Collaborators. New York: Penguin, 2010. Print.

Lowensohn, Josh. “Google Glass now on sale to all in US, but still in beta.” The Verge. The Verge, 13 May 2014. Web. 14 May 2014. <http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/13/5715054/anyone-in-the-us-can-now-buy-google-glass>.

[oliviapepe2]

Using Google Glass to Create

Google Glass has opened to the public. Now anyone with the means can buy this new technology. But what does it all mean? I wonder how soon we will become accustomed to seeing people wearing these funny looking glasses. I personally don’t think I will be investing in Google Glass. That doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate all of the good that they can do, if used properly.

Connecting the World

Pamela Lund, a writer and technology enthusiast writes a book “Massively Networked,” completely focused on making new technology work for us. By using our imaginations, the aid of products like Google Glass can speed up the process of creating. Google Glass will make communication easier than ever before. Aside from just chatting with friends, inventors, businessmen, even doctors around the world can keep in touch and make some big, great changes.

As Lund says in her book, “The puzzle pieces brought to reality by the convergence of social media and technology can pop into life from the power of multiple brains and bodies all over the globe and almost at once. The only requirements are desire and intention to participate” (Lund 18).

Google Glass creates an augmented reality. This brings Lund’s words to life. Using apps on Google Glass will make mundane tasks easy, and help people multi task. This frees up time to focus on important things like their work or children.

Looking Forward

Who knows where google glass will go in the future. I sincerely hope that we, as a society, will take advantage of new products like this. Lund also speaks in her book about health benefits using apps gives us. The google glass can do this too, encouraging a healthier lifestyle.

I hope to live in a society where products like this are used to shape and change our lives for the better. The public now being able to buy Google Glass is a step in the right direction. If I have learned anything this semester it is that we get out of technology what we put in. If we use these products for creative and innovative reasons, there is nothing we can’t accomplish.

I could not say it better than Pamela Lund in her book, “Media and technology give you more power than ever before to create the world you want. And so does everyone and everything else. The tangible connections facilitated by social media and technology are giving each of us this power. Therein lies what makes this a unique time in human history to create the world you want” (Lund 141).

Works Cited

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is Changing Your Life. 1st ed. PLI Media, 2011.

[bmcleodumd]

Imagination Glass - The Prospective Future Through The Eyes of Google

Google Glass is the world's next sign of the future. Wearing it on your head grants you an augmented reality-like simulation. The device connects with your mobile device, and has its own apps. 

Josh Lowensohn, tech writer from The Verge, wrote about the public release of Google Glass. Lowensohn describes the device as, "Google's $1,500, Android-powered headset [that] links up with your smartphone to show alerts and run apps."

That's where the sentence ends. This is insulting to Google, and to readers who expect to hear what Glass is truly all about.

The imagination behind Glass

Our class is prefaced with the question: "What Dreams May Come?" Pamela Lund's book Massively Networked brings up the idea of the imagination thinking anything up. An expert in social media, Lund recognizes the power of the networked.

With a device that Lowensohn says just shows alerts and runs apps, the imagination is required to see every benefit. Here's a few I'm able to come up with.

Doctor's being able to see the records of their patients without moving a muscle.

EMT's seeing a victim's history without seeking their wallet or family.

Students being able to see notes in front of them while doing an assignment.

Seeing the price of items in a store without looking for a price tag.

The uses for Google Glass range from practical to life-saving. It's a matter of whether or not your imagination allows you to see the benefits.

The experts weigh in

Rebecca MacKinnon, author of Consent of the Networked, understands the importance of technology in our future. She is a proponent for "power, freedom, and control." Google Glass's technology empowers these ideas. It allows for the freedom of imagination.

Google Glass is the future. It's the augmented reality we've all been waiting for. It's going to open the Internet's possibilities beyond what the world has seen.

We were asked what dreams may come, but the answer is whatever the imagination provides for Google Glass.

Works Cited

Lowensohn, Josh. “Google Glass Now on Sale to All in US, but Still in Beta.” The Verge, May 13, 2014. http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/13/5715054/anyone-in-the-us-can-now-buy-google-glass.

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked. PLI Media, 2012.

MacKinnon, Rebecca. Consent of the Networked: The Worldwide Struggle for Internet Freedom. Basic Books, 2012.

[shannonenl368]

Got Glass? Now Everyone Can

Google has recently made their Glass tech available to the public. Photographer Josh Lowenshon reports Google “wants to get the device in the hands of anyone who wants to buy it – as long as it’s got the units on hand” (Lowensohn). His article skims over the uses of Google Glass, but does not capture the essence of what this release will mean for the public.

Google Glass being freely available to all who seek it will ignite a change in social structure and open the world to new possibilities.

Explore Your World

Glass is not only, as Lowensohn describes, an “Android-powered headset [linked] up with your smartphone to show alerts and run apps” (Lowensohn), it is a channel through which we can view the world differently.

Google’s website for this product describes Glass users as “explorers” (Google).

The sleek web design brings viewers through a journey to explain what Glass can do and boasts how it will influence your life with page titles such as:

Be Active

Explore Your World

Live Lighter

This technology will change what it means to go for a run, visit a landmark or communicate with others. Glass will enhance how we see living by lending a hand in understanding the world that we inhabit.

Live Lighter

Let’s focus on this assertion of Glass’s ability to help you “live lighter” (Google)

Pamela Lund, author of Massively Networked, states

“in order to live a fulfilling and satisfying life, an increasing number of workarounds are necessary – including complex strategies for managing finances and finding a way to push aside activities we would find more fulfilling in order to remain employed.” (Lund 17)

Google Glass will be able to take this common stressor out of the equation and improve the quality of life for users.

Imagine, for a moment, that you are walking along a path and come upon a bird.

There is a desire to take a photo, but your camera is in your bag.

By the time you get the device, your chance is gone.

The bird has flown away.

Now think what would happen if you had Google Glass.

You see the animal,

You take the picture.

You want to know what kind of bird it is?

You have the information.

You want to share this experience?

You can immediately

The nature of Glass technology is to limit the time it takes to perform remedial tasks and allow more time for creative enjoyment.

What Dreams May Come

Lund focuses heavily on the importance of imagination to the world in her book.

“Through imagination, you have access to a vast store of immaterial realities that have the potential to shape the physical world.” (Lund 9)

This quote appears as a tagline for Lund’s first chapter. She explains the ways in which creative thinking have influenced the world that we live in. From Einstein to Star Trek, the presence of fantasy is noticeable in our lives.

The future is now, the change is coming.

Google Glass, will not only make our lives easier and more enjoyable, but it will also give us the opportunity to open our minds and change how the world works.

Google Glass will reinforce Lund’s claim that “you as an individual have more power than ever before to change the world.” (Lund 19)

Works Cited

"Google Glass." Google Glass. Google, n.d. Web. 14 May 2014. <http://www.google.com/glass/start/>.

Lowensohn, Josh. "Google Glass now on sale to all in US, but still in beta." The Verge. The Verge, 13 May 2014. Web. 14 May 2014. <http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/13/5715054/anyone-in-the-us-can-now-buy-google-glass>.

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is    Changing Your Life. 1st ed. PLI Media, 2011. 

66.9

Word Count: 556

[pesephone-blog]

Google Glass: Smartphone Accessory or Tech Staple?

Google Glass looks to redefine portable computing through wearable tech. Currently they're more toy than tool, but currently Google Glass is a simple smartphone accessory. User input will help, but the hardware my be too restrictive to become a staple.

Got Glass. Now What?

Glass Heads have already cracked open their piggy banks and laid a hefty chunk of change on one of Best Buy's stick counter tops for their tech-spectacles. But has the novelty worn off yet?

Have you begun begrudgingly worming your fingers through your pockets to property reply to a text or tweet after it was displayed on your eye wear. Most of us can't afford to speak our responses and find ourselves groping for our ancient smartphones. 

Google Glass becomes a smartphone accessory rather than a standalone platform. But for how long?

Usability vs Convience

Google Glass offers its user a constant connection to the web, but that connection is a clumsy one. Glass is a one button device that responds primarily to voice control and sometimes that isn't enough. It requires a symbiotic smartphone relationship that many users won't see worth the price tag.

What smartphones lack in convenience, considering a pocket is essentially miles away, is usability.

"Glass is worn like a pair of glasses, and pairs with your smartphone to deliver notifications to a small display in front of the right eye. It works with both Android phones and the iPhone. Wearers can read emails, surf Twitter and send text messages without needing to take their phone out of their pockets" (Gilbert, 6)

Gilbert says our phones will remain holstered, but what if we need to respond to a notification?

From my intelligent glassware I can view notifications in real time but depending on my location I may not be to respond appropriately. Voice controls lack the accurate input and privacy that a tactile keyboard posses. I may not want everyone in my crowded subway car to be a third party in my private conversation.

You may find your old smartphone more effective even if it isn't augmenting your reality.

Give Glass Time!

Pamela Lund, author of Massively Networked believes that if we want more from our wearable tech, it's coming and we can help.

Once the novelty wears off from tapping our temples on the toilet and darting our pupils towards the top right of our screens at the faintest buzz: What do we do. What will push us to toss our cellphones to the side?

According to Lund, we can do anything.

Support for Google Glass is still in it's infancy. Developers have yet to assess what us cyborgs need before we clear a socket on our crowded surge protector.

If a need is great enough, Google will soon provide. But that may not be enough to overcome the awkward interface.

Gilbert, Jason. "Google Glass on Sale for a Brief Time Thursday." Google Glass on Sale for a Brief Time Thursday. Yahoo, 24 Apr. 2014. Web. 14 May 2014.

Lund, Pamela. Massively Networked: How the Convergence of Social Media and Technology Is Changing Your Life. San Francisco: PLI Media, 2012. Print.