Post 10: Age of AI

     In class today, we watched a PBS documentary titled In the Age of A.I., in which we were walked through all the ins and outs of A.I. as it is today. 

    I was clearly unaware of many things, as all of this came as quite a shock to me, but it would appear that A.I. has yet to have all that positive of an effect on the world. Though it has helped us solve extremely complicated problems and do things as such, it has created a workless world. Everything done by humans will and can soon be done by a machine. It created a lack of economic stability, as well as is to blame for about 20-25% of job loss since 2020. 

    Another negative aspect of A.I. is the looming fact that it is, has, and always will be watching your every move and reporting it back to the government. It surveils you, businesses you use, and even goes as far as saying that "Google searches YOU". China is even implementing A.I. into the entire country, making it so that the can locate anyone anywhere at anytime using their advanced A.I. systems.

    The documentary goes on to say that the only ones benefitting from the mass automation of the world are those who are already financially prosperous. 

FINAL POST: My Relationship With Technology and How It Has Helped Improve Physical and Mental Health

     For our final blog post, we were tasked with associating technology with our daily lives. How has it helped us? What implementations of it have benefitted us the most? I feel that technology has benefitted health overall due to the massive increase in technology-related health devices such as red light saunas, cryogenic freezing chambers, FMRI's, and regular old medications! 

    As a person functioning daily with anxiety and other health, technology has greatly benefitted me and the improvement of physical mental health. Technology has brought us advanced imaging techniques, like an FMRI (Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging) and can help us understand what parts of the brain are affected by anxiety and other mental health and health disorders. Advanced genetic testing can help us figure out what is truly wrong with a patient, as well as help prescribe the appropriate medications. Not to mention, the invention of Telemedicine, which allows for you to be in contact your health professional online. Whether you are minutes away or in a different country,  Telemedicine can help you get your required medications in a valid legal way. For example, though I am at school in North Carolina, Telemedicine allows me to speak to my doctors from 450 miles away and get the medications required. Advances in drug delivery technology also allow for more precise dosages of medications. For example, extended-release medications such as adderall or vyvanse, allow for a steady release over time, which reduces side effects and improves the overall performance of the medication. 

    My digital footprint is quite small, as when you look up my name many other "Owen Godfrey's" show up, none of which are me. My LinkedIn appears, which is good from a business standpoint, however when it comes to revealing personal information about myself, you will not find it online. I feel that overall, technology has had its fair share of negatives, however the possibilities because of it are endless. We are on the brink of discovering new diseases, new medications, and new ways of treatment, all because of technology. Though I have several social media accounts on different popular platforms, I do not have much of an online presence. I do not post much, as I feel social media is just a vessel for posting funny stuff. Anything serious does not require an Instagram post, just a genuine in-person conversation. 

     

Overall, technology is both good and bad for us. We all see the benefits, as new medications and treatments are available every day. Because there is so much bad, we forget to see the good as it is life changing for so many people. Though A.I. and things as such are creeping up on us and seemingly taking over our world, we need to see the good as advancements  for health have come so far. 

Post 11: Gatekeeping and What I Learned

     This week, we were able to watch our EOTO group presentations. The one in which I found the most interesting was the theory of gatekeeping. This idea was created by a post-WWII social psychologist named Kurt Lewin. He specialized in studies on how families selected their foods post-war, and created the term based on the excuses and hiding people would do in order to keep what little food they were able to get a secret. Its true meaning is someone or something that prevents you from accessing something, such as not revealing the location of a beautiful location, not revealing where their clothing is made, or so on so forth. 

    There can also be gatekeeping in politics, such as one particular news station or newspaper choosing bias over one political party. When this occurs, they could censor or potentially not even advertise the opposing side's campaign. This is an issue because it makes for an uneven playing field between the political parties, as well as does a great job at diving our nation even further than it already is. 

EOTO: Net Neutrality

     For my EOTO assignment, I was tasked with researching the idea of Net Neutrality. This was quite interesting to me, for I had not heard of it since the whole net neutrality twitter ban that circulated in 2017/18. Upon further research, I found that Net Neutrality really is the idea that all internet companies must provide the same service to everyone, with no favoring or censoring of one provider over another.

    The overall consensus is that this is a good thing for our country, as it gives all equal access to the internet and other useful online resources. Because of the laws put into place, the dissolving of major monopolies such as AT&T's reign over the United States took place in the 1980's and 90's. The government felt that they were overreaching and swooping up too much of the playing field, not allowing for any other competitors to gain enough traction to succeed. I personally found this to be super interesting because today, we have companies such as Verizon, Mint Mobile, MetroPCS, and so many others that share the free market of internet providing. The idea of one company monopolizing over all of the United States blows my mind, for the power they held must have been immense.

    The only negative aspect of Net Neutrality was the 2017 proposed repeal of the act. This would make it so that only required services would have a fixed rate of charge, whereas if one were to create a blog, or any other recreational website, a tax would be imposed. Written in the bylaws were statements that would ban streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu, as well as social media websites such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Imagine a world where you would be charged for the mere usage of shopping for clothing? Imagine going through the pandemic without the ability to use streaming services? Me neither. 

    One may ask, does Net Neutrality allow for equal access to all regardless of gender, race, sexual orientation, etc? The answer to that is also yes. Net Neutrality made it so that everyone regardless of who or what they are has equal access to the internet. Everyone will pay the same price for the same package, unless you choose to upgrade or barter on the price. Though some at an older age may not possess the ability to fully comprehend the ins and outs of the internet, rest assured Grandma and Grandpa will still be paying the same price that you pay. 

    Overall, this is fantastic for us. It allows us to access anything we want on the internet whenever we want to at one fixed price. Prior, overage fees and things as such could tamper with the experience. Our families can enjoy as many devices on a network as we please with charges only being applied for the overall service, not the amount of devices. Net Neutrality is a great thing for us and our country, and most definitely not something that we should be taking advantage of. The threat of it being taken away has been imposed, and some are afraid that we are closer to losing it now than before. 

Post 8: The Innovation of Instagram

    On October 6, 2010, Kevin Systrom and Mike Kreiger set out to create a social media platform that stood our from the rest. One in which you could not only share photos, but interact with your friends and family online like never before. The sensation garnered nearly 1 million users after just two months, proving to be immensely successful. On May 18, 2012, Instagram hit the open market at $42.33 a share, and by the new year had reached over 100 million monthly active users. 

    Since then, the platform has been acquired by Meta (Facebook), and introduced featured such as IGTV, reels, and direct messages, all in which are new ways to interact with others online. This goes hand in hand with the diffusion theory because it shows that Instagram started off small, has worked its way up, down, and back up. People have come for the app, and people have left the app, but all in all it is still extremely successful. 

Post 7: Drones

     After watching our peers engage in the presentation of their technology projects, we were tasked with choosing one and researching it. My classmate Tony was able to excellently describe the concept of Drones and their uses, so much so I was able to write this post about it. 

    Abraham Karem created the first drone in 1937,  and it was designed to be utilized for military target practice. They were soon after used for dangerous militant tasks, popular because it did not require the possible loss of a soldier's life. A prime example of this is the use of drones in the movie Top Gun: Maverick, where Tom Cruise is able to guide a missile to a bunker using a drone.  The more modern day use of unmanned, robot-controlled drones has become extremely useful, for the operator can be thousands of miles away and still be able to deliver on target. 

    Nowadays, we also have camera drones that can be purchased by civilians. These are flying machines with cameras, in which allows you to take beautiful aerial photos from up to 200 feet off the ground. The use of this technology has greatly benefitted both the military and photography worlds, allowing for missile launching and picture taking all in one small package. 

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