Final Blog Post: Technology Relationship with Us

 Intro

    It has been stated time and time again that my generation, The Generation Z demographic is growing up in a sudden new technological age. As we have seen the emergence of the most advanced technology creation has taken shape during this time. The creation of the iPhone, allowed everyday America to be able to have a fully working computer able to fit in a pocket. From the most advanced medical curing and treating diseases at a time when it was seen as impossible. To the most recent discovery of Artificial Intelligence that can give a person any amount of information they could possibly ask for in a matter of
seconds. Through all these discoveries there can be no questioning the fact that technology has been imbedded in our generation. This has created a unique relationship between humans and technology almost like a symbiotic relationship both using each other for benefit. Through all the advancement and continued steam, the world of innovation appears to have, the question of what cant we achieve seems to be the driving force roaring into the future. With every year a new invention or idea seems to take tuition. But as technology is increasing more, within every day while becoming intertwined in our soceity. There is a resounding question about the relationship between technology and people.

Pros 

I am very thankful to have grown up in a time where technology is very prevalent in our soceity. I feel that technology has changed my life in many ways. For example in a medical context, at a young age, I was diagnosed with a rare eye condition, that would lead to a degenerative state of my eyes while destroying my eyesight in the process. It was only through computer simulations and tests that I was able to identify the condition in a state where it was able to stop in its progression, allowing me to obtain a procedure that ended up saving my eyesight. Growing up in a generation that was able to have these computer systems and tests allowed for saving my vision which I could never be thankful enough. If it were another time, when this technology didn't exist it would appear that I would be living a very different life than the one I

am living now. So in regards to technology on the side of its medicinal uses, I believe that it in fact benefits most people and has definitely saved or prevented many issues affecting people around the globe with the issues they are facing while definitely benefitting me. In regards to social media, and the iPhone aspect of technology. I have definitely enjoyed its uses, as many people do as it allows people to communicate with my family & friends over 100 miles away. It has given people a sense of being close even when they are far away. While being able to see all the exciting activities people are participating in. Through the communication aspect of technology, I would state I have a very healthy relationship, as it has kept me in touch with so many people that without it would have definitely lost contact with. Technology has also allowed us to derive so much knowledge from world news to sports, to education from all the up-to-date articles it possesses. At the touch of the button being able to obtain all this information is such a key aspect of the growth mindset we all should be trying to enhance. 

Cons

The world of technology has become so prevalent in the world today, that some people tend to lose themself in this digital world while not appreciating the world they have around them. The addiction to technology is a real thing, as many people will struggle to get off the device, finish work, go to the gym, and spend time with friends and family due to the fact they are lost in this digital. This is a strong con in the world of technology as it lowers efficiency, and direct communication skills studies have shown that in-person communication skills are suffering due to the vast amount of differences. The emergence of Artificial Intelligence comes with many pros however if used improperly can present many dangers. AI can be used for the spread of misinformation, or as a weapon to hack into privatized businesses and government websites that can put national security at risk. We can also see AI through the lens of cheating and plagiarism in the classroom, trying to trick and portray one's intelligence as something they are. These cons all come down to one variable that solely lies in the misusages of technology as not as a tool, but as an asset for leverage over one's interest. This will lead to negatives and cause an unhealthy relationship between technology.

Online Footprint

The topic of outline footprint is stated as "the trail of digital data a person leaves behind when using the internet". This topic is critical and must be taken with certain care when using the internet. As we have seen in many stories whatever you put on the internet is there forever even if you may not think so. This is critical when applying to colleges, master's programs, and jobs as these organizations will be able to do background checks. While being able to find anything to choose from regarding your life. It is essential to

use technology properly, while not posting and doing anything that may interfere with your future. On my current online footprint, I have tried to make it look presentable. Me a lot of time in suits and professional settings, playing sports, and enjoying time with friends and family. I have never posted anything which would be able to potentially harm my future. A digital footprint should be taken with the highest level of care before and when entering the real world.

Conclusion

In a world that will continue to be dominated by technology, it is important to keep a proper, efficient relationship with technology. Like everything in life, nothing is good for you when it is overdone that same concept lies with technology. It should be used as a tool to aid in our lives and the aspect of it. Used in a matter that grows our civilization, government, and ideas However when it is used improperly or falls into the wrong hands the consequences may become dire. So we must maintain a healthy proper relationship with technology for the betterment of the world and future generations to come.

EOTO 2 Theories Presentations

 Analyzing information heavily research from your peers can be critical to growing one's knowledge on a particular topic. Last week we were able to listen to our fellow students discuss a variety of differing topics that play key impacts in our political sphere. The one that I found most intriguing that sparked my interest was the political theory of the Overton Window. My fellow classmate Chris would dive deep into this theory explaining the background, the implications, and overall how it has changed throughout the years.

 This theory was developed in the mid-1990s by Joseph Overton who was a political analyst and the Vice President at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. He created a theory after years of studying and research on politics. This theory states "The spectrum of ideas on public policy and social issues consider to be acceptable by the general public at a given time". The idea states that any policy falling outside of

Overton Window is out of step with the current public opinion and the current political climax taking place in the country. Throughout years and elections, there may be a shift in what appears to be acceptable in the eye of the public. We have seen these changes take place throughout our history in many different ways. 

There are many implications that arose due to the creation of the Overton Window. The first is that it allows for the creation of public policy as legislation is shaped through public acceptance. In our form of government today, the people can vote on certain laws that have been created by their state or local government to state if they want a certain law. When they are participating in this act they are using the Overton window when deciding on the law. If they are unhappy, they can write to their local representative and call for a change to take place.  Another implication falls to the negative side when deciding when to either expand or limit the scope of the Overton Window which needs to be taken with immense care. A push to one side can be called for political polarization where each side it pulling away from the other, which as we've seen time and time again doesn't solve anything. The diagram shows when we stay toward the middle, we can get a lot more done in many aspects of policy and perceptions.

The Overton Window theory is a very critical theory in the world of government and politics. As it is a driving force to our legislation while allowing the American people to be able to voice their concerns in times of need and keep the policies when they appear to be working.

Diffusion Theory & Snapchat

Technology is prevalent in our soceity as it appears everything nowadays runs some sort through the internet and communication. The diffusion of innovations theory that was founded in 1962 by Everett Rogers in his book "Diffusions of Innovations" looked to present a way for a deeper understanding in a manner of how, why, and in the manner of technology is spreading. These can be seen through statistical data representing the number of users or through research identifying the pros and cons of the technology. 

One piece of technology I wanted to dive into was research through the lens of the diffusion theory in the application of Snapchat. The social media application currently possesses around 443 million daily users which has been on a constant increase since 2019. There are many reasons why Snapchat has become such a hit to so many users around the globe. The first is it provides an alternative to iMessage on the iPhone

and allows people to communicate with pictures going back and forth between people. This is the first social media platform that directly allowed communications through pictures in a rather easy method. It also allows people to upload pictures of their daily activities and cool events. This was not the first of its kind as Instagram and Facebook allowed for the uploading of pictures however Snapchat took a different approach to the method. As the posts only last for about 24 hours, allowing people to directly communicate about the pictures through direct messaging caused a difference that Instagram and Facebook didn't possess. Snapchat also formulated a program for a more personalized system of communication compared to the other social media platforms. These are reasons for the catch-on and spread that led to 443 million daily users on Snapchat.

Snapchat generally targeted younger demographics as it appealed to their generations as the were the first general adopters of the social media platform. Comparing the application to the older generation it really never hit their demographic base early in its founding. Many of the users of those generations happened to be very content with Facebook and iMessage in their forms of communication and social media. Diving into the cost-benefit of Snapchat for much of the time of the lifespan of the application it remained a free app. It wasn't until last summer, that a new application of Snapchat arose which was Snapchat Plus which caused a 4 dollar a month increase if users elected to buy the subscription which just improved the apps performance, and gave some new tools for service. However its main for making money lies in the company's advertisement, as many companies buy advertisements in Snapchat to showcase their brand or items. This has led to over 5 billion dollar in total revenue for Snapchat. Not bad at all for the application that started off as a knockoff iMessage.

In conclusion after looking at the application of Snapchat through the lens of the diffusion theory, it has shown why Snapchat has had constant success since its founding in 2011. While appearing to be maintaining steam roaring in the second half of the 2024.

The Age of A.I

 Over the last many years, technology seems to have taken major leaps, as it just keeps advancing. These continuous advancements have led to the emergence of the newest and possibly most powerful piece of artificial intelligence technology. Once only seeming possible in a science fiction movie, it has now become intertwined with much of our society, with many people depending on it for a variety of differing functions.

Many of the knowledge and potential pros and consequences can be seen in the documentary "Age of AI" as it discusses the innovations of these new technologies. AI has emerged in the private and public with sectors with many people being able to access it a click of a button with Openai's chatgpt4 website. That allows for the answering of questions, writing of papers, and even formulating analysis of scientific questions. All great tools, however, if used improperly can formulate cheating and plagiarism destroying people's academic careers. The emergence of AI also worried a lot of people espically in my generation, the Gen Z voters. The cause for worry is that many scientists believe that AI could take away many jobs since it will be able to formulate more efficient and better results in the job markets than a human can for

less cost. In my case in the field of law espically as AI can dive into a variety of different cases on a certain law in a matter of seconds to create an argument, as opposed to a human which would take some time researching the argument, making a case for the argument, and presenting the case for the argument that makes sense for the case. We have already seen through Tesla and Elon Musk the emergence of these AI robots. As last month it these robots were seen bartending, driving cars, and serving during his unveil. Just showcases three jobs that can potentially be automated in the future. These results of difference between AI are a raise for concern in the specific as it keeps increasing its knowledge it will keep walking the lines and potentially on many human services.

Although there appear to be a lot of negatives in the world of AI. The technology has many benefits if it's used as a tool. The first is solving these great equations in a matter of seconds as opposed to humans which can take an immense more time. Also on the side of simulations, AI can correctly run scientific simulations to predict if certain hypotheses will be proven correctly. This could be greatly used in the advancement of new technology and in the world of research. As it will shorten the time immensely in the cases of these research projects. There may be no limits of the benefits it could potentially do for humans

Growing up in the world of AI is going to be interesting and for many years we may not witness the full power of the technology. In conclusion, AI is a great tool which is should be used as a tool, it should never be taking away the jobs of the American people. While also should never be in a position where it can infringe on the rights of the American people through it surveillance capabilities. AI needs to be kept in check by not allowing it to keep advancing til a point where it takes over many of the capabilities in our society that humans. It should remain a tool and there should be safeguards where it is used properly.

Antiwar: a silenced voice?

Over recent years, there has been a rising difficulty in hearing the voices of people who have had an outcry to put an end to endless wars taking place on our globe. Governmental bodies have tried to silence many of these outcries through social media censorship of statements they don't typically agree with. While portraying that war may be positive and allow for gaining some strategic advantages. This causes a rise in concern on how a government body founded on the 1st Amendment principle "Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech" can in fact silence the ideas they don't particularly agree with.  The government has used war more recently as a tool for political advantage as that appears that has been the driving force of politics today. Through this action is why I feel you have to seek out this obscure website to find these opinions because the government doesn't want you to possess them.

These have become more and more dominant in our soceity today, as soceity recently generally tries to paint a negative picture of those who don't confined to the norm. Those who speak out over the injustices taking place in the world, espically in the sphere of war are seen as insensitive. We have seen this time and time again espically regarding the war in Ukraine v. Russia. The thought process of potentially escalating a war that is taking place thousands upon thousands of miles away seems blasphemous. However, the antiwar effort seems to be taking the backseat behind the opinion that America should be helping, while supplying millions of dollars of weaponry and funds to continue a war taking place. This should be extremely alarming as the resounding question of when will this end, and how this will end. The political machine wants war, it takes strategic advantage of wars while giving little to no attention to the everyday taxpayer. This message is dominated on the website of Antiwar where it states opinions and ideas that may not be generally popular in our soceity, or in fact, people are too afraid to state their opinions due to potential repercussions that may occur

In a time, where countries possess weapons that can change the fabric of the earth. It is essential to go to peaceful diplomatic decisions and not engage in these endless wars that put future generations at risk. It is a necessity to formulate peaceful decisions
and restore a world where we promote peace, and remove the silencing of differing opinions as they allow for the formulation of opinions that can benefit the world in which we live in