FINAL POST

 How Technology Has Effected My Education Experience

My experience as a member of the first generation to grow with the internet. 

Although we can all point to how technology has revolutionized life; good and bad. I feel that it most clearly has influenced how I have received my education both as a high school graduate who

experienced hybrid learning and a college student who is constantly researching. Being born into the first generation who has not experienced life without the internet and a generation who has had the experience of growing with technology, I feel that my lens of the world has been holistically affected.  Thinking of my experiences with technology I think back to "computer" class in the 3rd grade, where my classmates and I shuffled into our school's library to play with Chromebooks and learn how to "safely" use the internet and type on a keyboard. 

We now have practically unlimited access to all information. Technology is often criticized for relieving students of the normal stressors of academics. For example the change in the ability to research. I often hear older people complain that when they were my age they had to spend time at the library researching through encyclopedias for information whereas all I need to complete any form of research assignment is my laptop and access to an internet connection. Having the ability to enter into my computer any topic and be met with nearly endless information has allowed for me to gain a mirage of new interests and education on billions of topics, without modern technology I would not have nearly as diverse of an interest and skill set. 

Purdue University published an article pointing to the major ways in which education has been revolutionized by technology and looks back on an Italian painting from the 14th century that depicts what

studying in a classroom looks like. The article articulates how many students are distracted in the modern classroom by the ability to access social media sites in class instead of focusing on the lecture, a flaw all students of the modern classroom know very well (of course not in our class though). The author highlights how technology has expanded the access of education. He points to being able to be educated outside of a classroom, being able to access unlimited amounts of information, different styles of learning (videos, podcasts, and sites such as Khan Academy) and even online degree programs. 

During the Covid-19 Pandemic's peak, when traditional schools were closed and education seemed to be at a halt, the world took to virtual learning. The Purdue article also highlights that education was revolutionized by technology, because communication was revolutionized by technology. The author
talked about the ability of students using sites such as google docs to collaborate on projects but also the use of Zoom to allow for education outside of classrooms. I was able to experience both as a high school student who was forced to spend the majority of her day bouncing from Zoom class to Zoom class but also having the opportunity to watch how this affected the younger generation's education through my mother's job as a NYC DOE paraprofessional. Due to the unprecedented times my mother chose to offer her time to students who were struggling more during the pandemic to ensure they do not fall behind. Through this I saw first hand how students were disadvantaged from the lack of in person education but my mother researched and found multiple sites to help aid and attempt to help the students. 

I am able to recognize how varying the quality of education was to each individual student depending on their background and accessibility to tools and people that could help them during these times. I personally had full school days online and my teachers taught classes that we were required to remain on camera at full attention, eventually switching to a hybrid learning model where I would attend class for half a week in person and half a week online. My mother’s students had a very different experience where they instead were fully remote and primarily were educated fully online in asynchronous classes, where assignments were posted on “Google Classroom”  and were forced to obtain education from a  third source. Many students used sites such as “Iready” where students were tested on their levels for math and ELA. This site is used to see how much a student is able to advance on their own. 

In college I now utilize technology daily to complete all my assignments, to view my grades, communicate

with professors, and aid in my understanding of topics I struggle with. I particularly like online grading modules because it allows for faster feedback on classes and allows for me to take more responsibility for my grades. It is easy to view assignments and continue to be an organized student. As much as our community complains about BlackBoard, we are able to view assignments in one click and organize all our work for the semester as well as see how each individual grade will affect our GPA. I know that my peers utilize this tool in companion to Google sites such as Google Calender and Google sheets to make an organized list of assignments and due dates. 

I am studying Political Science (pre-law) legal studies and philosophy. All of my areas of study are very resource heavy, and it is necessary to do large work loads of reading. I struggle to focus when doing long readings. Through the use of modern technology I have found unique ways to absorb the vital information

for my classes. For example sites such as Oyez offer easy access to Supreme Court briefs in easy to understand terms. Oyez also provides (for more recent cases) audio recordings of oral arguments. 

I have also invested much of my time enjoying learning through the use of videos known as “Crash Course” clips. Crash Course videos are free videos created on a mirage of topics. I particularly watch “Crash Course:Government and Politics”.These videos are used to introduce a topic with witty humor, fast facts, and engaging visuals. The Crash Course account has 15.5million subscribers and about 1.5k videos. Many students and teachers thank Crash Course and its creators for helping them to understand various topics, while also making them interesting. 

Although I more so agree that the internet and technology has been a major asset to my education and the education of members of my generation, I understand there are major critics. As I previously stated

with my reasoning for loving Crash Course, I have seen first hand the effects of attention deficits caused by online addiction. I have given the internet a gold star for its ability to offer seemingly endless areas of interest, but for the same reason researchers at Columbia University have stated that internet access is to blame for human’s loss of attention. We now have access to emails, texts, online shopping (my personal favorite way to be distracted) and social media. This has made educating in the time of technology a difficult task. Personally, writing this blog post I have checked my phone more times than I can count and have lost my concentration to the point of having to take a break about 3 times. Columbia states that “humans are inherently motivated to self-interrupt”. 

Another major flaw of the introduction of the internet is the most beloved AI (Artificial Intelligence). I agree with researchers that AI can be used as a tool. AI can quicken research methods and organize ideas into simpler explanations. Researchers warn that AI technologies can harm critical thinking and problem solving capabilities if it is over used. I think the most major point of that is, “if it is overused”. When students become reliant on this technology they will be losing their skills for being able to process information and produce well thought out assignments. 

In all, I feel that technology is really important to education and can be a major asset. I feel that throughout my life I have had the positive experience of including technology and the internet as an aid to my learning experience.

Blog #10

News Deserts

Its the 21st century, of course every person in the United States has access to vital news and information relating to their community...WRONG! Halle Nichols examined what this means for our nation's most vulnerable and why this occurs. 

Much of the United States still experiences what is referred to as a News Desert, a specified areas that is not reached by vital communications, whether that be local or larger scale news. These areas lack news coverage and communication leading to under education of major issues. This causes a domino effect and creates more misinformation. It would be inferred that the internet has helped solve this phenomenon but news deserts are still a major problem in the modern world and the internet contributes by killing paper media. The state of North Carolina has lost about 38% of news outlets. Guilford County has specifically lost: 5 newspapers, 3 weekly papers and 2 daily papers. 

News Deserts harm communities in many ways. When people do not have access to reliable, accurate, and up to date information, it causes harm to democracy as a whole. Lack of information creates uninformed voter biases and a decline in voter turn out. This is even more of a concern when the perspective of news
deserts disproportionately effects low income minority areas. 

What can we do?

ADAPT!

There is a low chance of comeback for the traditional paper newspaper circulation. There is average decrease in 2 local newspaper per week since 2004, and regardless of efforts made by non-profits and other organizations dedicated to fighting this problem, there will likely continue a steep decline. The only way to protect areas that lack news coverage, and help their communication efforts and news sharing, is to adapt to modern news styles. Journalists and members of news production teams must find ways to thrive regardless of their format. Many news sources that have thrived in modern media have revolutionized how people consume their daily news. For example receiving daily emails with short blasts of "what is happening in the world today" from New York Times, leaning into the nation's obsession with social media, or  local news sources recruiting free lance journalists, and amateurs journalists, to cover small stories that create an interest within community. (see my local news paper's digital adaptation majority ran by local amateurs). 

Blog post #9

 The Age of AI

The initial thought of AI, artificial intelligence, I as a student immediately think of my peers common use of looking for course work help from programs such as ChatGPT or Socratic. Many professors and institutions warn agains the use of outsourcing our work to such programs because it devalues the work and defeats the purpose of lessons, other professors argue that this is where the world is going and it is necessary that we learn how to work with these tools in order to be relevant in our future careers. 

While completing this assignment, I even utilized forms of AI (don't worry Dr. Smith I did not outsource my work!). Reviewing the YouTube video, I utilized the tool that shows where most users rewound the video, I asked my Amazon Alexa to connect to my IPhone which I played my study playlist (automatically created by AppleMusic), and I researched relevant articles on Google (where plenty of user based ads popped up). 

Although a violation to the Guide To Campus Life and infraction to academic integrity is concerning, it is far more concerning how the government and major corporations are using AI to enter into private aspects of community life. The world has fully emerged itself into the digital world. The internet has become a marketplace for every aspect of modern life. AI has revolutionized these abilities into a highly profitable data collection process. With every click, every view, and every action (or non- action) taken companies are able to track your trail and accumulate data about you. This valuable data can be sold in order predict your future actions. "You would be horrified if you knew what we know about you". - A Google Exec. As I previously mentioned, the data these companies have access to is within every aspect of our personal and private lives. 

A Business Model

Larry Page and Sergy Bryn created a platform, Google, that forever changed the world. Their catch-phrase to this model was "Don't Be Evil", they were referring to the way in which technology (specifically AI) could, and eventually would, be used. The two, unparalleled to the current stance of their company, were deeply opposed to advertising. They feared that this would forever distort the internet- it has. Eventually,

in order to stay afloat, Google did turn to utilize this technology in order to profit and continue offering a free search engine to the public. They begun selling the data that is collected with every search and trace left by users. In order to keep this most valuable, they kept it a secret until Google became a publicly traded company. The business model became: Provide free service (which at this point is a necessary service for day to day life) --> collect data from users (often without complete consent) --> sell valuable data. Soon other brands followed, including Mark Zuckerburg's Facebook which found itself in hot water in the Cambridge Analytical Scandal of 2018. This scandal brought to light the "phycological profiles", including political views and how they can be affected, that are collected and sold. This raised the alarms for many that democracy is in danger! Any billionaire with enough money to do so can take away our ability for free though through the purchase of our data and utilizing AI to target. 

Surveillance Capitalism 

Personally, I enjoy that my ads are relevant to my interests, but being aware of that this doesn't just apply to ads for things like clothing but incentivizing Americans to vote (or vote in a particular way) does cross

the lines of concern.  This is done through various tactics, including sponsored search: which matches consumers to advertisers based off of their uses and regular interests. "Surveillance capitalism claims the private, human experience as a free source of raw material fabricated into a prediction".  Many users assume they have some control over how much, and if, they are surveilled. Often, this is not true, and when it is true there is not "proper consent". This is due in part to lengthy "privacy" contracts signed when clicking "I consent to the terms and use of this app" (which we are all guilty of tapping yes without really reading). The users un-awareness to these abilities has allowed for surveillance capitalists to further take advantage of their data. 

Current State or Horror Movie

The data collected through our internet use is obviously a concern, but what about the data collected each

time we exit our homes (or while in home) and drive on the street or swipe a credit card? In China, the
state is always watching. They introduced cameras to monitor if people are jay walking, but they also use cameras and technology to track individuals based off of their face (or even how they walk). In Xinjiang, the Chinese government is using their surveillance technology to target Turkic Muslims, Uyghur. Their every move is tracked resulting in prosecuting their people and sending them to detention centers for "reeducation". 

How IJOP looks on the government official's side

The Chinese surveillance system is a major human rights violation! They have popularized the use of a system known as "Integrated Joint Operations Platform" (IJOP) which has an app that is used by government officials to track extreme amounts of personal information: ranging anywhere from religious affiliation to blood type. Each time a government official stops a person for "suspicious behavior", which could be exiting through the back door opposed to the front, they scan their ID and all their information pops up. They are then able to flag people for any reason and arrest them, under "the suspicion of disrupting the societal order". 

Technology like this is extremely concerning because although the United States has the legal infrastructure to protect against our government from implementing any similar use the mere fact that it exists and can be used by .anyone threatens the privacy of all people. As previously mentioned, much of our surveillance happens without our awareness to it. 

Blog Post #8

 Media Consolidation

Did you know 6 companies own 90% of media?

Majority of all media consumed is produced by the "Big 6" media conglomerates. These media giants own smaller "channels" and brands. For Example, TimeWarner is a parent company to CNN and HBO. This gives the illusion that you have a consumers chose when selected where to absorb media, especially news, when in actuality- there is not much diversity in media. This is known as media consolidation, or in economic terms the monopolization of media.

This is extremely concerning because it is major corporations and billion dollar companies controlling what and how we consume information, and we are not left with many options. Less options for where to

get your media from hurts the marketplace of ideas and leads to the information being shared is what is spoon fed by major corporations. 

This problem does not only occur in channel surfing or picking your favorite weather man but in all aspects of how you are absorbing media. These companies own and control all forms of media including television networks, streaming services, news papers, digital sites, major social media and even the devices you use to access all of these platforms. The idea in which a company is able to control all aspects of a supply chain is known as vertical integration. For example TimeWarner is the same brand as AT&T, therefore AT&T subscribers are using devices likely purchased by from the company, on a network run by the company, to view media produced by the company!

This only exacerbate the problem because these brands are so wealthy they are able to access different technology and produce a very different product, or simply just buy out competitors when necessary, not allowing for much competition. The idea of restricting competition in an industry is known as a monopoly. Many critics have called for strict anti-trust regulations, especially in the media industry to regulate the relationships and how these major companies interact with one another and smaller companies. 

The Sherman Anti-Trust Act

The Sherman Anti-Trust Act calls for government regulation in industries in order to restrict activities that endanger competition in the marketplace. When analyzing media consolidation, it is important to
recognize media and what users are consuming; as a good. The way in which these media conglomerates are operating is in order to discourage or completely restrict competitors from producing a similar product. The lack of competition leads to lower quality and more expensive product. 

How to fight it and Why?

The great thing about a capitalist economy is the power is concentrated in the consumer! The bad thing about a capitalist economy, a lot of the time the consumer does not realize this! 

The media as a whole is right slanted (contrary to conspiracy theorists). This is because media is

controlled as a product, and therefore it is produced in order to ensure that it draws an audience. If the audience appeals to wanting a more diverse spread of media, for example viewing and subscribing to independent and local journalism, it will cause a reaction in the industry. 

Being aware of the problem is the first step in being able to fight it. Knowing the chain of how these conglomerates control different networks and newspapers (or sites) helps you to be aware of who is sharing information to you. On a similiar note, sharing what you are viewing and perusing what your peers are viewing is important. Communicating what is occurring in our world allows for a natural transfer of ideas. 

  

Blog Post #7

 Privacy in the Modern Age

Found image of my 16th B-Day easily found by Googling my name

Being born into the age of technology and the normalized use of social media has caused for my entire life (including every awkward phase) to be memorialized eternally on digital platforms (specifically my parent's Facebook pages but also local news sites and many others) for eternity. 

Maia Knight

The analogy of how each of our digital footprints are equivalent to a digital tattoo to our name is interesting. There is an entire genre on TikTok and YouTube for "family vlogging". This relates to the idea of the digital tattoo because as the genre grew audiences began to question the ethics of exposing children, who are not able to consent to participating in media. Would it be ethical to begin assigning "digital tattoos" to minors and children who are unaware of the immortal tattoo. For example a family vlogger popular on TikTok, Mia Knight (post backlash) opted to cover her children's faces and begin privatizing much of the information she used to freely share, in part due to dark sides of the internet utilizing her posts for nefarious purposes, inching toward child porngraghy.  On a far less serious note, if I were to scour the internet for "embarrassing photos" of anyone of my friends or colleagues it would take seconds for images to appear. Similarly, if I were interested in researching any person I could easily acquire tons of information including sports played in high school, where they attended school, family members, relationship status, job status, residency, and much more. This is all easily accessible information. 

In fact I was able to find my running times from 2009, I have not run track since 2009. 

Although it feels we share every aspect of our lives "willingly" on social media and other outlets there is a different concern of privacy when it comes to surveillance. The introduction of new technology, and even telephone companies have included surveillance technology in the creation of their servers, has begged the questions on where to draw the line. It can be argued that it is necessary for there to be some surveillance, for example monitoring terrorism threats but where there is the exception for one there is an exception for all. I was concerned with the idea of "license plate readers"(LRP), which can be attached to police cars in order to record the data of a license plate thus allowing the location stamping of a car, and upon further research I found the statement released by New York City (my home) which d
oes not provide any comfort. "LPR data may only be used for legitimate law enforcement purposes or other official business of the NYPD" There is not a specific guide on what is "other official business of the NYPD". Many police departments have been criticized for collecting and storing data recorded by the LRP, which often includes
not only where the vehicle was at a given time but who was in the vehicle, regardless if this vehicle was involved in malicious activities. 

Taylor Swift, Recent victim of DeepFake Porn brought attention to the Bill.

The government should be prioritizing our privacy. In the modern age of technology and the digital access to so much of a person's personal information it is completely necessary and important that the government adapt and apply laws to protect people. When the framers wrote the constitution and imagined for a future nation, there was no concern for things like "Revenge Porn" "Identity theft" or "Phishing" all of which are concerns of modern society. I feel that the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (1986) needs to be updated to account for such things and future concerns such as the normalization of things such as "Deep Fakes". Currently awaiting Congress is the Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits Act of 2024, which is intended to pass legislation in regards to the distribution of images such as deepfakes that are being created without the subjects consent. 

 

Blog #6

Raise the Sound: Anti War Voices in Media

When researching anti-war throughout the media there is little coverage. On a Google search, where most Americans would go to find more information about a topic, there are outdated articles covering the first page and little to no legitimate information provided. This is abnormal for any research topic in the 21st century and can easily be seen a suspicious. 

The United States has a history of marketing war as a necessary and healthy event in our timeline, when it isn't really. Robert Jensen outlines this timeline in his article, published in 2001, there has since been many developments. He points directly at the United States unjust actions and behaviors that violate international law. It shields itself behind the guise of "self-defense". He compared the the bombing of hundreds of innocent civilians to the killing of American civilians in the 9-11 attacks. Jensen directly calls out the US stating that the claim of "war is the only way to deal with terrorists" is unsophisticated. 

Anti War. com covers a vast array of anti-war views that are not projected in the mainstream media coverage. The site breaks down the issues by nation and conflict. It is important to note that this site is run by a nonprofit institute. I found most interesting the page dedicated to the Garris v. FBI landmark case in which the FBI attempted to suppress the speech of antiwar.com author after he posted an FBI "watch list" to the site. The Court ordered that according to their First Amendment right and the Privacy Act of 1974 the FBI had to expunge the information collected about the authors from their records. 

Through previous understanding of war theories, I feel that the United States government is inclined to suppress antiwar speech because of concern of lack of unity when entering into war, whether it be legal and legitimate war or not. The two theories that came to mind were the Rally Around the Flag theory popularized by John Mueller and the Wag the Dog philosophy. 

The idea of rally around the flag is the sergeance of support and voter participation in the government when the nation is in crisis or war. This is not exactly the situation we find ourselves in when the US is suppressing anti-war speech but it is similar. The government cannot participate in war or "military actions" without the support, or at least the lack of wide spread protest. It is a basic political theory that a democracy is unable to operate without the support of its people and I feel this connects back because if anti-war voices were popularized the majority of the nation would disagree with its behaviors.

The Wag the Dog idea is similar in the sense that crisis brings people together and cause a gain in support.  It is originally based on a 1997 film. This relates itself to suppressed anti-war speech because it represents the positive effects crisis
coverage in 24 hour media has on support to the government- the stark opposite of what supporting anti-war speech would have.

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Blog Post #5

 Carrier Pigions 

Tess grabbed my attention the most during presentations while sharing information on the carrier pigeons and how they effected communication technology. I had never fully realized that carrier pigeons were so widely used. 

In Tess' presentation, I learned the significance of the "rat with wings" that as a native New Yorker have always seen as a useless and disgusting bird The process of how pigeons were once domesticated serves as an answer to why these so-called pests are so dependent on humans, and our crumbs. For centuries these birds were bred and trained, with food and care supplied for by humans, and tragically when our technology advanced beyond them- there was no need for them leading to them to be hunted for sport and kicked in the street. 

The use of pigeons to share messages dates back to early Egypt, where their talents were utilized to announced Olympic winners. This is interesting to imagine, now living in a time of smart phones and fast paced media- where Olympic winners are announced as they pass the finish line.

To fast forward to what I though was not only the most interesting bit of information shared in Tess' presentation but the entire day's presentations- was how the carrier pigeons aided in war efforts. Pigeons were used in later years because of not only share urgent messages but also in order to avoid the capture of highly sensitive information by enemies. Many even received military bravery awards such as the Dickin Medal, which recognizes the bravery of war animals. 

 Of these brave birds I was most taken with the story of Cher Ami, one of the 600 Army Signal Corps pigeon sent to France in World War One. Cher Ami is known for her heroic act of saving the 77th Division (the Lost Battalion). The 77th Division was split up from the other American troops and there was no radio signal to contact to let them know their position. Soon the Americans began bombing the area,
because of their belief of it only being left with German troops. The troop attempted contact through
carrier pigeons but the Germans stopped them by shooting the birds, and thus their message down. Flying alone was Cher Ami who was abled to deliver the message, although being shot twice and regaining flight. It read, "We are along the road parallel to 276.4. Our own artillery is dropping a barrage directly on us. For heaven's, sake stop it". This ultimately saved the lives of soldiers, though Cher Ami was permanently blinded and lost her leg eventually succumbing to his injuries. 

Finally, I learned that pigeons are still used to transport messages today! Although far less heroic, pigeons are notorious for smuggling drugs and other contraband to prisons. I enjoyed hearing that regardless of how technology has advanced beyond the need for carrier pigeons an Indian police force still maintains a flock of carrier pigeons "just in case". 

After this presentation and further research, I will be sure to thank a pigeon and share my crumbs the next time one greets me in the concrete streets of New York.