Evolving toward ubiquitous computing is the next step in technology. Computers will interact more and more with the environment. The social interactions are starting to be controlled using ubiquitous devices. Users have access to more information therefore social issues become important. In order to have a better understanding about the social issues in ubiquitous computing, aspects such as privacy of the individual, use and abuse of the state and opportunities for the individual empowerment will be discussed.
Mark Weiser defined ubiquitous computing in 1993 in his paper “Some Computer Science Issues in
Ubiquitous Computing” as “the method of enhancing computer use by making many computers available throughout the physical environment, but making them effectively invisible to the user”[1]. His vision consisted in hundreds of computers in a room, which could seem intimidating at first but will come to be invisible as people will use them unconsciously. If we take for example the objects in a room, such as wall notes, books, labels, folders, clocks, pieces of paper, even posters and we replace them with tabs, pads, board-size writing and display surfaces, then the room could contain about 100 tabs, 10 or 20 pads and one or two boards, so hundreds of computers in a room. In another paper called “The world is not a desktop” published in 1994 [2], Weiser says that a good tool is invisible, referring to the tool that does not intrude on our consciousness and the user can focus on the task and not on the tool itself. They are not invisible in themselves but as part of the context in use. Weiser’s bolder vision includes tabs with completely new functions such as active badges which can identify the user, this way keeping track of the p...
... middle of paper ...
... parents use the technology for the children’ safety. If someone older would be monitored at each moment of the day, for example a 24-year-old person or even a 84-year-old person, this would be a lack of privacy. Sometimes the employers monitor their employees in order to see what web pages they access. So from the privacy point of view, these kind of services can be in the advantage or disadvantage of the user.
References
[1] Mark Weiser, “Some Computer Science Issues in Ubiquitous Computing”, Communications of the ACM, July 1993
[2] Mark Weiser, “The world is not a desktop”, Interactions; January 1994
[3] Mark Weiser, “The Computer for the 21st Century “, "Scientific American" magazine; September 1991
[4] Lecture’s notes, “Lecture 2: Some definitions”, Nick Ryan; January 2011
[5] Mark Weiser, John Seely Brown, “The coming age of calm technology”; Oct 1996
The twenty first century in the century of technology, where technology is heavily used in the people daily lives. One of the field where technology is being utilized in is monitoring people through cameras and phone calls. Although it might be interfering with people privacy, but it has its advantages that might outweigh the disadvantages. This essay will discuss both points of view, and try to decide which one is more reasonable than the other.
Mr. Hawkins vision combined with his personal commitment and desire to constantly improve processes, efficiency, and develop new technologies has proved Jeff to be a leader in innovation. According to Mr Hawkins, "The future of computing is mobile," The PDA is going to be the way people access Internet data and integrate that data with everything else they need to keep track of. This will be most people's PC and Web terminal" (PC Magazine, 2000).
Individuals must realize that freedom is something you must take for yourself. Although there may never be a perfect balance between privacy and technology, there are many ways to inform people about the possible dangers of these high-tech gadgets. If we can all work together to promote our rights, there may be laws implemented that support privacy concerns. After all, the people are the government.
The personal connection Americans have with their phones, tablets, and computers; and the rising popularity of online shopping and social websites due to the massive influence the social media has on Americans, it is clear why this generation is called the Information Age, also known as Digital Age. With the Internet being a huge part of our lives, more and more personal data is being made available, because of our ever-increasing dependence and use of the Internet on our phones, tablets, and computers. Some corporations such as Google, Amazon, and Facebook; governments, and other third parties have been tracking our internet use and acquiring data in order to provide personalized services and advertisements for consumers. Many American such as Nicholas Carr who wrote the article “Tracking Is an Assault on Liberty, With Real Dangers,” Anil Dagar who wrote the article “Internet, Economy and Privacy,” and Grace Nasri who wrote the article “Why Consumers are Increasingly Willing to Trade Data for Personalization,” believe that the continuing loss of personal privacy may lead us as a society to devalue the concept of privacy and see privacy as outdated and unimportant. Privacy is dead and corporations, governments, and third parties murdered it for their personal gain not for the interest of the public as they claim. There are more disadvantages than advantages on letting corporations, governments, and third parties track and acquire data to personalized services and advertisements for us.
Ask anyone to name a few necessities that humans need to live in this world, and they’ll probably start to name items such as food, water, and shelter. Those who are a bit more bold might say a smart phone, computers, or even a TV. Are they wrong? It could be easily argued that they are correct in saying that those things are now important to have in day-to-day life. Phones and other technological advances are no longer a luxury for the privileged; they have become a necessity in today’s society.
If you ask people to name one of the most important technologies of the twentieth century, one of the answers would most certainly be the computer. A computer, however, is not a technology all to itself. Many other technologies went into the modern home computers of today, including the mouse. Douglas C. Engelbart, a worker at the SRI (Stanford Research Institute), invented the mouse in 1964. However, the process of the invention of the mouse was not instantaneous and without effect on the realm of computing and society. In this paper I will be examining the problems that had to be overcome and the technologies that had to be invented for the mouse to become a reality. It also analyzes the impacts it has had on society and the computer industry.
Tomeski, Edward, Lazarus, Harold, People-Oriented Computer Systems: The Computer in Crisis, New York: Van Nostrand Reinhold Co, 1975
The inevitable truth about our technological advances has become an ongoing controversial dilemma. It begs to question whether or not our technology is taking us closer to the world of Big Brother. It even subjects us to address all the pros and cons this said technology, as a whole, has to offer. These days when people talk to each other, some no longer share eye contact because they are too busy on social media, texting, checking emails, looking for the next big thing, and so forth. Many people are blinded by the fancy & entertaining applications, availability of gps, and most importantly, being able to surf the web at the palm of their hands, but little do they know that those
As technology as advanced, so has our society. We are able to accomplish many tasks much easier, faster, and in effective ways. However, if looked at the harmful impact it has had on the society, one can realize that these are severe and really negative. One of the main concerns is privacy rights. Many people want that their information and personal data be kept in secrecy, however with today’s technology, privacy is almost impossible. No matter how hard one tries, information being leaked through technological advancements have become more and more common. With personal information being leaked, one does not know exactly how the information will be used, which validates the statement that privacy rights have been diminishing and should be brought to concern. Many people do not realize that their information is being used by third-parties and to consumer companies. In conclusion, technology has had a significant effect on privacy
The world exists where people no longer wear just clothes, but a person wears a watch or a shirt that is always functioning and require a minimum of the wearer’s attention. Laptops are no longer need because with wearable computer on him why needs of a lab top. MIThril’s vision of this project is to provide our gifted society with a better way to computing. Laptops are the thing of the past; wearable computer is the step to the future.
In today’s society, computers are used in most areas of life such as communications across the globe, for students to do homework, commercial business, industrial sector, and many other parts of society. The use of computers have replaced other areas of life such as email has replaced mailing a letter to a friend, people use dating sites to find a relationship rather than going out to meet people, websites replacing newspapers, and more. The hypothesis is as computers continue to improve and take over more parts of daily life from people, then people will be becoming more depended on computers. Computers are in many forms such as a smart phones, laptops, tablets, desktops, and computers are found in cars/trucks, air conditions temperature controls, security systems to interface with smart phones, refrigerators are coming out with built in computer to program different features, and more.
The way we interact with the world around us has developed significantly since the first desktop computers. First access to the internet for general, public use was really only available to those who were able to afford the large, expensive desktop computer systems, but as computing evolved and smaller, higher performing systems were becoming more available and affordable, our dependence on having this connection to the internet was also developing. The trend continues to grow with the conti...
An example of the pros and cons of privacy in the work place while during the hiring process is in 2012, a company in Maryland decided to ask job seekers to log into personal profiles and search through wall posts. As this is becoming more of trend many creative ways to monitor the posts. Another example within this sector is the athletic program at the University of North Carolina, “Each team must identify at least one coach or administrator who is responsible for having access to and regularly monitoring the content of team member social networking sites and postings”
As technology penetrates society through Internet sites, smartphones, social networks, and other modes of technology, questions are raised as the whether lines are being crossed. People spend a vast majority of their time spreading information about themselves and others through these various types of technology. The problem with all these variations is that there is no effective way of knowing what information is being collected and how it is used. The users of this revolutionary technology cannot control the fate of this information, but can only control their choice of releasing information into the cyber world. There is no denying that as technology becomes more and more integrated into one’s life, so does the sacrificing of that person’s privacy into the cyber world. The question being raised is today’s technology depleting the level of privacy that each member of society have? In today’s society technology has reduced our privacy due to the amount of personal information released on social networks, smartphones, and street view mapping by Google. All three of these aspects include societies tendency to provide other technology users with information about daily occurrences. The information that will be provided in this paper deals with assessing how technology impacts our privacy.
Almost every device has some type of computer in it. Whether it is a cell phone, a calculator, or a vending machine. Even things that we take for granted most cars since the 1980’s have a computer in it or a pacemaker. All of the advancements in computers and technology have led up to the 21st century in which “the greatest advances in computer technology will occur…” Mainly in areas such as “hardware, software, communications and networks, mobile and wireless connectivity, and robotics.”