This week’s contents have made me so excited to talk about in my blog. I have found the material eye catching yet interesting to look on.
I have seen the Black Mirror: The Entire History of You, and I wonder what the technology is going to bring us to in the coming years. I mean just think on the idea that you are going to remember each and every person who came in your life with whole and having access to your memories is felt like a blessing to me. I mean just think we are going to watch our own childhood even in the age of 80s. we are going to remember our loved ones and can watch them in our memories whenever we want. It looked quite interesting to me.
In the movie, Liam has faced some painful phases but if we see the other aspect he also had find the truth by it. So, I think the pain is worth bearing then
In the article , I totally agree with the author’s point: “In sharing online, we are playing to a crowd. On some level, we acknowledge this. The crowd consumes the content that we share and, if we are favored, it passes it on. The crowd honors the identity that we create by sharing this content.” The author has said it right that while sharing anything online on social media, it solely depends upon us how we are going to interpret the data either in positive or in negative form. Social media has made life easy and accessible for many of us. Consider the time when our loved ones are far away and we have to wait for days to see them. Now we are just a click away from one another.
I have gone through the articles with different contents in favor and against of technology. What my personal opinion is, technology has changed the way of living for us and we should admire that too. If people now a days are facing some problems because of social media usage or by the use of google, I think they need to consider it for a moment that is the technology forcing them to? The person who is using the social media or anything on the internet has to have a self-control to stop on the point where he/she think this will harm them.
I have seen the two articles on the use of Google. These are:
“Is Google Making Us Stupid”
“Google Is Not Making You Stupid”
I think Google is not making Us stupid. The problem lies in “Us” and we do not want to accept it. Everything has its positive and negative side. So, who is going to decide on it? Of course, US!
In the end, I would say that stop and think for a moment. Who forced us to sit in front of laptops for hours? How are we going to learn self-control if not now? Does blaming technology and Internet solves the problem?
Here is an article that will help in seeing some positive aspects of technology.
The Black Mirror episode, The Entire History of You, displays everyone having access to a memory implant that is placed behind the ear and it records everything they do, see and hear. This means that you can play back anything at any time from your memory. The episode starts off with Liam leaving a job interview, which he feels he did poorly, and catches a flight to meet his wife at a dinner party. When he arrives, he sees his wife talking to a man and is relaxed and when she notices Liam she tenses up and acts differently. He is very suspicious of his wife’s behavior and constantly plays that clip over and over and analyzes every little detail. It then goes on that she had dated this man and he begins to get even more suspicious and ends up going to his house and demanding to have the sex memory of them two deleted. He then discovers that she cheated on him 18 months prior to that and made his wife show him the recording of that encounter. Heartbroken, he plays back happy memories of him, his wife, and his child.. that might not even be his. The final scene ends with him cutting out the device, removing all the memories and recordings with it. Now even though this seems like a great thing to have such as all your memories stored, never forgotten, and being played back… it has its consequences.
This device was an invasion of privacy where anybody can see even the littlest of moments in your life. It keeps you on your toes and it has you over analyze everything and are constantly reminded by horrible times and moments, which without the device, that feeling and memory would get better over time. It also intentionally distorts memory and it has you not living in the present reality. The brain takes out and puts back in memory and each time a memory gets pulled out it gets put back in differently. Your memory erases, suppresses, and forgets things to hold more space to create and enjoy more moments and information. You won’t be able to move on from moments or events if it is constantly there to see as this device did in the episode.
Along with memory and the mind, as a class we read the article “Is google making us stupid?” and my answer is that I don’t think it is making us stupid but I do think that it is slowly changing how we think and and how we do things on a daily basis. “A few Google searches, some quick clicks on hyperlinks, and I’ve got the telltale fact or pithy quote I was after.” This article talks about how we went from physically going to get information and it taking hours to clicking a hyperlink and receiving that information within seconds and doing multiple things at once. This has an impact on the brain because now our brains are adjusting to this new way of receiving information. Our brain is now receiving information at a faster pace and is not going into too much depth and it is because of the fast world of technology that we are currently living in. When going through social media such as instagram, snapchat, twitter, how long do you sit there looking at a post.. not very long right? We take a quick glance and move on to the next post or quickly switch to another platform. This also contributes to how technology and google has slowly changed and altered our mind process. Do you think your mind has changed ?
The internet has grown vastly since it’s start in 1957. It has allowed for a lot of change to happen in our society that at the time might have seemed absurd. Despite the progress it has made through the years, I believe that the internet truly became something significant for the people in the early 2000s. I don’t intent to discredit the many important things that the internet has done for us in between the years of its start and the 2000’s but I do want to express that when social media began to take form and take off, anyone with a computer could sign up and be part of this network that would allow connections between people all over the world. This blog will be published online in 2020 and as of the year, social media has only grown bigger since it started.
I believe 1997 was an important year and I’m not just saying that because it’s my birth year, but because it’s also the birth year of the first recognizable social media site Six Degrees. Unfortunately Six Degrees did not get to see the success of its successors but I think it did set up a new way for people to see what else the internet could offer. A great quantity of social media sites that we know today as linkedIn, Myspace, Facebook, Youtube, Twitter would start up and pick up a huge following. Despite never having experienced Six Degrees, I have experienced all other social media sites that succeeded it especially the ones listed earlier.
So now we are in 2020 and not only has the list of social media sites grown, but so has its potential. We now have social media sites and platforms like Twitch, TikTok, Snapchat, Onlyfans, Patrion,Tinder, Bumble and Cameo to name a few. These platforms and sites have definitely offered entertainment or even escape from the real world but it has also made it harder to live. You might be asking what do I mean by harder to live, and I think that could mean a lot of things and typically one would assume I’m saying that it gets in the way of everyday life such as it wont let you sleep, or you spend to much time on it, but what I want to focus is on the idea that not many people are speaking about. That idea is the content we see. There’s so much that these sites have done positively for us but it also exposes us to things that we may typically not have seen had it not been for social media. I think in some way social media has desensitized and morally corrupt us.
Social media has morally corrupted us in the sense that it has made it easier for people to hide behind a screen and express themselves. Sure expression is good, and I’m not saying that good expression does not exist online but most of the expression online often comes from people who like to fight in comment sections on many things from opinions on Tv shows, Music, art and politics. You can even find that people will argue about racism and people dying. It makes people feel brave because you can literally say almost anything and once it gets out of hand they ignore the conversation or block you. It’s crazy to think that every time people get into street fights, or another person is killed by the police, Facebook or other sites are often the first ones the videos are uploaded to and shared by many possibly even before a news station gets a hold of the story. People share these videos without possibly thinking about how the person in the situation must feel. One could argue that these videos are posted to raise awareness and I don’t doubt that because it does but also I think it’s important to think about other ways to do this. Bullying and harassment can often be found on social media and people are always picking sides because it is so much easier to do it online.
I often wonder if the content we see on social media makes it harder for us to live. Theres so much bad things being posted, shared and things trending that I ask myself, Would we be better of without social media? Are we any different compared to a generation that didn’t have social media?
I think this article is worth sharing because the concept behind this portion of the assignment is to battle misinformation with accurate fact-checked information. In the article by CNN it talks about this rally Trump had in Pennsylvania. Interestingly enough Fox news stopped covering the rally because they felt that the rally was too long and believed he was wrapping up. He went on for another 50 minutes. But the most interesting thing about the article was that that Trump was fact checked and it appeared that he made numerous lies at the rally as he is normally one to do so. He lied about a “report” that CNN had made of him having a heart attack, Covid-19 numbers and ironically even talked about how dangerous Covid-19 was while having many people not social distancing at the rally.
Black Mirror: The Entire History of You is one episode of the British science-fiction series written by Jesse Armstrong and created by Charlie Booker. The Black Mirror episode had several unique and interesting perspectives on the future of mankind. The futuristic setting allows individuals to record and view their memories through a piece of technology called a “grain”. The grain works through a small implant placed behind their ear and a remote controller placed in their hand. The grain’s ability allows the main character, Liam, to critically analyze certain moments and events in his life. Throughout the episode Liam becomes suspicious and paranoid of his girlfriend (Ffion) and her ex-lover Jonas. Liam first observes Ffion’s tension as he arrived unexpectedly back home during a small house party. He also observed her facial and body expressions towards Jonas and himself. She seemed to find Jonas’s comments funny and charming while Liam’s comments were untimely and irrelevant. She showed displeasure towards her boyfriend and seemed to “light-up the room” whenever Jonas was in the center of attention. This began to weigh heavily on Liam pushing him to drink excessively and confront Ffion about her past with Jonas. She begins to crack overtime and she continues to feed Liam white lies about her past with Jonas. Liam eventually snaps one morning and finds himself stumbling into Jonas’s house aggressive and drunk looking for answers. The conversation escalated quickly between the two men and turns into a wrestling/bar fight! Liam eventually makes Jonas erase the “sex tapes” he had previously recorded with his grain technology. Towards the end of the episode Liam realizes that Ffion and Jonas had hooked up only 18 months prior to his last recording. This new found evidence floored Liam, making him spiral out of control. The final scene shows Liam reflecting on some of his romantic moments with Ffion. He lastly placed a razor behind his ear cutting and taring away at the grain. I believe the power of the grain became overwhelming to Liam and he finally realize the only thing he actually wanted to do was forget.
Liam using his grain’s power to retrace his memories.
Google has had a lasting impact on our generation and how we interpret certain information. The University of Colombia stated “…the Internet is changing the way we remember information”. How much truth is there to this statement? What are the lasting effects of online information? In my opinion I do agree that Google and similar platforms are changing the way we translate information. Is this necessarily an issue? I do not believe so. The human population and technology are radically changing without warning. It is up to the human population to be careful with social media and interpret credible sources online. The ability and tools provided by the internet are incredible and astounding. To have limitless information right at our fingertips is something that was not plausible 20 or 30 years ago. As a generation we need to continue to adapt to our new technologies and take a deep breathe, this is only the beginning.
A Professor at MIT conducted an experiment on his Philosophy class after the majority of his class failed the midterm. His solution? “…offered them extra credit if they would give me their phones for nine days and write about living without them”(Technologyreview Paragraph 2). The students that accepted the extra credit were bewildered at first without their cell phones. The professor then stated “after just two weeks, the majority began to think that their cell phones were in fact limiting their relationships with other people, compromising their own lives, and somehow cutting them off from the “real” world”(Technologyreview Paragraph 4). I would have to agree with these student’s results. My cell phone plays a major role in my communication with professors, coaches, family and friends. However, the overall use and consumption of time spent on my cell phone in my opinion, is too much. I am averaging just over 5 hours a day on my iPhone. I think my screen time should be around 3-4 hours daily and be more proactive with my day. Not being glued to our phones has become a major issue across the globe. With better communication habits we can learn from our mistakes and create a stronger tomorrow.
MIT Club of Research Triangle Park – Community Home
In the black mirror episode “The Entire History of You” the memory implant recording and storing everything you see through out the day. This is kinda like how now with the smartphone people are constantly recording and taking pictures of themselves and others and then posting some of them to social media account. The social media accounts then every year on a day you posted or saved something you took on you phone is pops up as a memory. Now while your whole day is not there for you to look back on you still have other things that you found as important that you are able to look back on.
These memories serve as a flashback to what you might have been doing that day and just be a pleasant reminder of some fun times you might of had with some of your friends. Sometimes these memories that get saved and popped up could also be bad ones that you forgot about and did not want to think about again. Kinda of like how at the end of the black mirror episode Liam is going through and re-watching all the good times with his ex wife and ends up taking the memory device out of his head. This could be accomplished in real life by either deleting the memory or creating a new account that is not linked with any of the memories.
We also read articles on whether or not google has been effecting our ability to concentrate and read things in depth. While I think google could be having a negative effect because information is so readily available I do not think it is the main cause of this problem, I believe that the main contributor is the smartphone. The smartphone has made information, social media, games and tons of other things just an app and a click away. With google you need something that either is connected to WiFi like a computer or has cellular data like a smartphone to be able to access google’s information that is available to you. If you do not have access to these you can not use google and you either have to go to a place that has these things so that you can access google or end up going to the library and doing things the old fashion way.
The smartphone is able to be used with either a WiFi connection which you can get just about anywhere nowadays or if that not available using your cellular data. Through out the day our phone become our biggest distraction with constant notifications and just the desire to always be doing something from playing games on it to texting or just scrolling through your social media. This ability to switch from activity to activity is why I think our ability to read article in depth and over concentrate on things for a long period of time is decreasing. Do you think that smartphones might be the cause of this instead of google?
With Covid-19 being the talk of pretty much all of 2020 I figured why not do the first article on that. This article talks about how cannabis and specifically CBD might help treat Covid and help patients with a better and saver recovery. Covid creates a high amount of inflammation and after being treated leaves the patients with damaged and scared lung tissues. Early studies have shown that CBD can help reduce the inflammation and also help with stopping the damage and scaring of the lungs by doing this it increases your chance of survival and damage to the body.
The biggest thing that really stuck with me this week was not any of the readings, videos, or podcasts. It was the thinking that was brought about after dissecting all of this material together.The realization of the world that I live in today and the realization that it’s probably affecting everyone, including myself, more than we’re willing to admit.
The biggest ideas we reflected on this week were our memories and our dependence on social media/technology. Let’s look at The Entire History of You first :
The obsession that Liam starts to have with memories and the events that occur throughout the episode are pretty good reflections of the relationships that we have with our phones and social media. Comparing this episode with the feelings that students had in the article on MIT Technology Review offers some insight. When this professor asks his students to turn in their cell phones, they describe feelings of being “weird or something”, that their phones may be “depriving them of their relationship to the world”, or feelings of real work and world engagement once the cell phones were gone.If you remember from the Black Mirror episode, all of these ideas were present; for example, the feelings of “being weird”. When the characters are at a dinner party, they begin discussing how everyone should have the memory device, and when one of the women states that she had it removed, everyone is astonished at the fact that she can live without it. They begin ranting about how flawed our brains are when it comes to memory. This matches the feeling that someone had after asking for the time. People were looking at her funny as if saying, “You don’t have a cell phone?”.
We also have the instance where Liam begins depriving himself of the real world once things with his girlfriend don’t work out. Rather than looking around at the life he still has left, he is constantly looking back at his memories to blind himself from what’s actually going on around him. He replays thoughts of what he had woken up to in the past, what his house had looked like before, etc. Although this may seem extremely sad when watching the show from that perspective, this is what we do on a smaller scale when looking at the world through our cell phones day in and day out.
Lastly, we have the realization that in some instances, we are better off and can focus more effectively once these distractions are removed. After removing the device, Liam and the girl at the dinner party are no longer hindered by exact replays of the things that happened in their life. The students who no longer had their phones were no longer hindered by constant buzzing, texts, notifications, and so on.
If everyone takes a moment and looks into their own social media/cell phone usage, they will probably see the same themes, especially for those in my generation. Everyone has let their social media feed or a notification get in the way of a conversation, homework, etc. Everyone has had a Facebook or Snapchat account remind them of a memory from years ago that brought them back to a place or people that they wish they hadn’t been around. There have been times where I have had to shut off my phone to do homework or leave it behind so that I could enjoy myself without the constant distractions. I have also seen the things that are said or done on social media ruin relationships.
Cell phones and social media are not all bad. But when you find yourself over indulging, remember the lessons that we learned this week. My question for everyone is: Do the useful aspects of social media and technology outweigh the bad? And do you think there’s a way that we could give people access to the good without being susceptible to these flaws?
Here’s a short video about a couple who got rid of their cell phones and the cost benefits, just to offer a different perspective.
WEEKLY NEWS
Here is an article about a small college, about the same size as Alfred University, who is currently battling COVID-19 in the only way that they now can, due to outbreaks. I’m sharing this article in order to stress the importance of following guidelines and the real world consequences if guidelines are not followed from the get-go.
This week we saw the Black Mirror and its story was interesting. The story was in a new style so that life in the series is the most important thing to evaluate so we can talk about what happened in the story. The character of the series is Lisa. He is not a beautiful and intelligent girl, but was interested in evaluating the pictures or videos more than her family. Also, Lisa is contradicting herself and people when depicting things that are neither pretty nor delicious and making a false comment for evaluation. In the series, anyone with a value of less than 2.5 is expelled from currency and becomes homeless and out of the scum of society.
She had a goal of reaching 4.5 in order to be able to get a 20% discount on the new rent. In order to get this evaluation, she needed to attract the attention of people who had a rating between 4.6 to 5.0 and she got what she wanted. She valued her old friend and was staying with her friend 4.7 and invited her to her wedding. It was Lisa’s chance to raise her rating because the guests who would ban the wedding rated them above 4.0. But Lisa did not know that her friend was using her to evaluate her. Unpredictable happened, you don’t rate it a lot. Her rating reached 2.6, after it was 4.2, and her friend called her and told her that she did not want her to come because she was staying, but she had no hope for her status to rise. Lisa was an hour away from her friend’s wedding. Lisa arrives at a wedding that has arrived for 1.1. And her geek was in love with her friend, and in the end, Lisa was imprisoned for insulting everyone, but she was relieved that she said what was in her heart.
Since the web proprietorship upset, a great many people have not had the option to abandon online media. As of late, individuals have been appreciating a cozy relationship with informal organizations that permit them to do an assortment of exercises, for example, messing around internet, working outside, and watching shows on the web. Besides, individuals spare time when they utilize web-based media. For instance, playing computer games on the web, so players can play without meeting in a similar spot, or having prospective employee meet-ups. Web-based media use is advantageous in light of the fact that it enables individuals to convey, look for data, and make new companions.
Individuals love to convey utilizing online media more than some other way. Individuals utilize web-based media on the grounds that it is less expensive than settling on decisions. For instance, having an arrangement that costs not as much as pay-per-call. Web-based media assists with speaking with individuals who live abroad, for example, universal understudies or laborers. Individuals who are examining or working abroad speak with family or companions by means of video call, talk, and photograph and video sharing through Snapchat. Additionally, when understudies have a gathering venture, it will be simpler for them to convey as a gathering utilizing an online media application, for example, Facebook, WhatsApp, or Skype. Understudies can have a conversation about their undertaking without the problem of having a period and spot to meet. College life centers around the scholastic and social network. Joining interest-situated networks on Facebook can give a solitary understudy a solid feeling of having a place. “(Nooruddin 12). Correspondence on Facebook keeps understudies associated. These days, educators speak with understudies there through email to one another. It is quicker and simpler to remain. Contact whenever.
Looking for data via web-based media is normal on the grounds that numerous individuals like to impart their encounters and information to other people. They record their encounters and transfer them to web-based media as recordings, articles and banners. Individuals frequently utilize interpersonal organizations to look for subtleties. For instance, when individuals request some data on any subject, they will probably look for it utilizing Google, Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube. Quest for a spot to visit, for example, park, eateries and galleries utilizing Google Maps. Likewise, understudies doing explore research get some data from news stories on the web. “Individuals everywhere on over the world approach the Internet, to see online journals, to peruse or post data utilizing some type of web-based media.” (Colbert, Lyman, 302-303). Looking for a reference via web-based media assists individuals with gaining more from different encounters.
Making new fellowships through web-based media is simpler than building connections as a rule. These days, individuals utilize social sites to appreciate watching recordings or pictures on Facebook, Instagram or Snapchat, which leads individuals to share their inclinations, and online media has an element that permits clients to show their preferences. Consequently, clients assemble adherents who like what they post and when they become companions because of enthusiasm for following what clients post, for example, entertaining recordings, proficient photographs or helpful data. “Online media is the simplest and most hallowed approach to make new companions and meet new individuals when all is said in done.” (Pisa, November 2, 2014). Then again, individuals once in a while become companions by means of informal communities when they need assistance; For instance, when they follow others who have similar leisure activities, for example, photography, swimming or drawing, they show their esteem and compose deferential remarks on thoughts that are presented via online media on build up their relationship to be companions with the proprietor of the thoughts. Thusly, making new companions on interpersonal organizations connects with individuals to break the hindrance of disgrace and effectively start another relationship.
All in all, web-based media, for example, Facebook are valuable, as it enables individuals to convey, permits them to look for subtleties, and meet new individuals. Through informal communities, individuals can stay in contact with their family, companions, and accomplices. Additionally, individuals can look for data on any point they need via looking via online media. Similarly, through online media individuals can discover new companions. Later via, online media will have the chance to serve every singl.
Works Cited
Colbert, James A., and Lisa Soleymani Lehmann. “Partnering with Patients to Realize the Benefits of Social Media.” American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, vol. 212, no. 3, 2015, pp. 302–303.e1. doi:10.1016/j.ajog.2014.12.014.
Noor Al-Deen, Hana S. et al. Social Media: Usage and Impact. Lanham, Lexington Books, 2012,
Pezza, Nicolette et al. “Using Social Media To Break Out of Your Comfort Zone And Make Friends In College.” Using Social Media to Break out of Your Comfort Zone and Make Friends in College, Nicolette Pezza, 2 Nov. 2014,carpejuvenis.com/2014/07/25/using-social-media-to-break-out-of-your-comfort-zone-and-make-friends-in-college/.
In this week’s class, we read one book, six articles, watched one episode of Black Mirror, listened to one podcast, and watched two Youtube videos. During class, we went over some of this material. We also talked about social media and how it affects us. Overall this week was about how the internet has changed the way our civilization thinks. By having phones on us or around us we can get distracted from the real world and lose touch with the things and people around us.
Personally I found the readings very interesting and surprising. I use to read one book per night as a child, and as I grow older I became more connected with the internet. As I stopped reading I realized can not stay focused for long as I use to. In, “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” my personal thoughts confirmed, by having access to so much information we have lost interest in having to look for an answer. “My mind would get caught in the narrative or the turns of an argument, and I’d spend hours strolling through long stretches of prose. That’s rarely the case anymore. Now my concentration often starts to drift after two or three pages. I get fidgety, lose the thread, begin looking something else to do. I feel as if I’m always dragging my wayward brain back to the text. The deep reading that use to come naturally has become a struggle.” This quote from, “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” puts into words how I have been feeling. The human mind is almost infinitely malleable, so while the internet may be affecting it, it is not damaging our brains in any way. The internet has made our minds form new ways of learning. This is the so-called Google effect; Google nor the internet are not making us stupid instead it is changing how our minds are processing information. “There is no question that the new technologies are changing our lives. But here we need to remember: The more things change, the more they stay the same.”(Google Is Not Making You Stupid)
Now we will move on to social media. Do we really know what it can do to a person? The majority of us have at least one version of social media. The term social media is broad, but usually, we think of apps such as Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, etc. There are all different types of social media ranging from Tinder to your Game Pigeon account. “In online sharing, we are playing to a crowd. On some level, we acknowledge this. The crowd consumes the content that we share and, if we a favored, it passes it on. The crowd honors the identity that we create by sharing this content.”(Foucault and Social media: life in a virtual panopticon) Social media can be positive and very negative. Some people can become obsessed with their profile and how many friends/ followers they have. “No doubt this satisfies a deep psychological need for recognition. Whatever it is drives it, it draws us back to share and share again.”(Foucault and Social media: life in a virtual panopticon) In the Black Mirror episode we watched, we saw an alternative reality where we can record our memories and play them back. We witnessed a man finding out his wife was unfaithful, and in the end, he was so hurt with be able to remember how happy he used to be he took out his memory device. Imagine your parents forced you to show the your entire day, would the find something that would break their trust? Or a secret you have been keeping?
I’ll wrap this up with questions for you: Have you been influenced by any online celebrities? Do you have over two different types of social media? Have you ever sent something negative or received negative messages?
“To know who you are as a person, you need to have some idea of who you have been.” The Story of The Self
Memories make up our life experiences. In the Guardian article, The Story of the Self, the writer asks, “How many more of our memories are a story to suit the self?” Lose your memory and you lose a basic connection with who you are. When we look at how memories are constructed by the brain, the unreliability of memory makes perfect sense. The French Philosopher Michel Foucault says, “What we post on social media shapes the logic and experience of the act itself.” As he compares social media to being in a virtual panopticon. Facebook encourages us to share our thoughts and post something. Every so often, it saves your memories and shows them to you again.
Is this for our benefit?
We tend to filter out what we don’t care to remember. If being constantly visible online affects us psychologically, what does reliving memories do? Bad memories would be like reliving that trauma constantly. In the Black Mirror episode, The History of You, Liam experiences what it is like to be able to access his memories at any time. As a matter of fact, throughout their relationship they access memories when fighting in order to prove to the other that they were right. Liam grows obsessive and jealous when he notices his wife seemingly happy talking to Jonas, a former acquaintance according to her. He keeps replaying his wife’s interactions and focuses in on her facial expressions. He notices her body language and sees that she looks happy when she is talking to him and that she laughs at Jonas’s jokes, even when they aren’t funny. It takes a psychological toll on his mental health when he realizes his wife has been cheating on him and their daughter may not be his. In a drunken state, he confronts Jonas and his life has spiraled out of control. He even remarks, “this isn’t me.” In the final scene, he replays the good memories of his wife before removing the chip implanted.
At first, it might seem kind of convenient to have a way to access everyday interactions with people. I would never forget a name again and have the ability to recall certain conversations. I would never need to make a list to remember to pick something up at the grocery store. At what point would we just give up and completely rely on technology in order to access our brain functions. Currently, I use my iphone as a planner and a way of keeping all of my information in one place. I have not taken the Bored and Brilliant challenge because I feel too reliant on my phone. Not as much for social media, but for organization. I would find it difficult to keep track of everything otherwise and am aware that I may forget something. In many ways we are already reliant on technology for basic cognition. Without it, I feel like I would forget things I need to accomplish for the day.
How The Memory Works
How good is your memory without the use of technology?
This is an article on WeChat. The US has proposed banning it.
I found these two paragraphs interesting:
For most Chinese people in China, WeChat is a sort of all-in-one app: a way to swap stories, talk to old classmates, pay bills, coordinate with co-workers, post envy-inducing vacation photose, buy stuff and get news. For the millions of members of China’s diaspora, it is the bridge that links them to the trappings of home, from family chatter to food photos.
As a cornerstone of China’s surveillance state, WeChat is now considered a national security threat in the United States. The Trump administration has proposed banning WeChat outright, along with the Chinese short video app TikTok. Overnight, two of China’s biggest internet innovations became a new front in the sprawling tech standoff between China and the United States.
I think that this week in class was a real eye opener for me and probably a lot of the class pertaining to how modern technology has messed with the way we do our day to day life. Now it is a matter of opinion if this in general is a good thing or if it a bad thing for us in general, but I think there is no doubt that it has changed most of the people with at least a smart phone or a lap top.
In the Black Mirror viewing we had this week, The Entire History of You, I looked at it with a different perspective than I did when I watched it for the first time. I went into watching the episode the first time with more of a mindset that all black mirror episodes are just whacko sci fi thrillers meant to entertain you, or that they were just episodes that were bordering the line of reality just enough to make us think maybe, just maybe this was a possibility. The second time I watched it was after I read a few articles about how technology has affected our brains. I watched it now thinking that this probably isn’t going to happen in our life time, but what if it does. Apparently there is the technology to do it, so if people want that in their brain, and people are willing to do the procedure, who’s stopping them?
In the article The story of the self the author talks about how memories can be altered very very easily. They briefly mention that in Black Mirror when they were questioning the girl for not having a chip in her head. This Is one of the advantages/disadvantages of having a chip like that.
As I alluded to earlier, I read a few articles about how the technology is affecting our brains and what we should, or should not worry about when it comes to that. First off everyone can agree that life is much, much easier than it was even 25 years ago in the mid 90’s when it comes to communication, finding information, and convenience. I take it for granted, and so do a lot of people. I barely remember a time before my parents had a smart phone and I always remember being able to just hop on the internet and find what I wanted to find or do what I wanted to do.
The big discussion is whether the change is a good thing for us or if it is a bad thing. There are two counter articles that we read were one was titled “Is Google Making Us Stupid?”, and it’s counterpart is “Google Is Not Making You Stupid. It is pretty self explanatory which one has which viewpoint, but they do bring up good points. The one that thinks Google might be making you stupid brings up the point that a lot of people find themselves in a situation where they are trying to do some deep reading and their brain starts wandering and they can’t focus on what they are trying to read. The other article points out how we would not even have access to that information in the first place.
The concept of these articles relates to another article which we had to read titled Foucault and social media: life in a virtual panopticon. In this article the author says “There are no guards and no prisoners in Facebook’s virtual Panopticon. We are both guards and prisoners, watching and implicitly judging one another as we share content”. A panopticon is a prison where the prisoners have no clue if they are being watched or not because they are in constant view of the guards who are in the middle of all of them. (see below)
In today’s day and age we have all this access to information which can really help us very much in a lot of ways, but mentally that is up for debate. I want to ask you, do you think the pros out way the cons.
SOCIAL MEDIA & SOCIETY 