Lesson 5 focused on the theme:
1) ICT and World Change (Mass Media, the Internet, Wireless, Interactive Telecommunications) Past, Present and Future
Project Natal Milo Demo from E3
We started the lesson with a look into a video featuring a character named, Milo. I found this video particularly interesting as the woman, Claire, featured in it really appeared to connect with Milo on some emotional level. Milo was completely created though and, so, I found it a bit scary how he could be so much like a real boy. Project Natal emphasizes the growing possibilities in our very near future. It also reminds me of how fast technology has been growing in our generation. For example, I remember my mother's first handphone and how when she got it, it was considered a novelty. Now 7-year-olds own iPhones and Androids. Perhaps, something like project natal will become common in the future. I find that with the somewhat exponential growth of technology this is an extremely real possibility.
Areas of Technology Mentioned
In this lesson, we talked about a wide variety of technologies used in this day and age as well as there influences on society. The facets go from things such as mass media to cloud computing. Mass media has grown immensely through the years where before it was primarily based on word of mouth and eventually progressed to the newspaper. Now we have tools such as google to find information as well as twitter and Facebook where friends post articles of interest. This change in mass media allows for more interactive communication as now we are able to discuss our thoughts on topics. In my opinion, this has a both positive and negative side. The positive side is that we get a deeper insight on topics and gain more understanding. The negative side is that governments and other institutions of power will have harder time controlling the masses. Nowadays, anyone has the ability to post whatever they want. This connectivity could pose a problem in times of crisis (London riots) or when people feel discontent as they have a greater means to mobilize the masses.
Another interesting aspect is the idea that we now live in a completely open society. If someone wants to know more about you they can simply type your name on Google or add you on Facebook. It allows for information to be readily available about anyone and everything.
The Risks of ICT
In this class we also discussed the potential risks of using ICT. These include things ranging from espionage to identity theft. In our world, identity theft is a huge issue as with another's identity one can claim many things from a person. I find this somewhat frightening as we are in danger practically with everything we put on the internet. Espionage is another risk worth mentioning as now if someone wants to know more about a particular person it is much simpler from the initial search on Google to the hiring of a person to tail the other person in question. There are many potential risks of ICT and, so, we must be weary of them as well as aware of them.
Economic Consequences of the Diffusion of Cloud Computing
This particular article focuses on the Cloud Computing. Prior to this lesson I didn't know what cloud computing was and was surprised to learn that we have been using it for sometime with elearn as well as other school websites. The introduction and implementation of cloud computing in the work environment can make life much easier for the average worker. Workers will have the ability to have everything synched between different devices easily. Companies will no longer have to pay the large sums of money required for software/external organization systems. As a whole, I believe it will benefit the work and education environment quite a lot in the near future.
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