Thursday, December 13, 2007
Text Messaging - The most convenient way to communicate
The article "New Political Tool: Text Messaging" by Cathy Hong was very interesting to me because I was not fully aware of how much the simple tool of texting was used out of the United States until now. I am always utilizing the SMS feature on my phone and actually switched my plan so I was able to send and receive text messages more often. Never did I think this tool would be used to gather a large amount of people together in such a short amount of time.
In the article it explained on instance where a 16 year old boy text messaged his friend in class to meet him somewhere and,
In the article it explained on instance where a 16 year old boy text messaged his friend in class to meet him somewhere and,
The next day in downtown Seoul, 400 students gathered to protest the severe pressures they must endure for the nation's highly competitive college-entrance exam.Also in other nations where the Internet has been censored, such as China, the cellphone has become an more important tool and now plays a bigger role.
In South Korea it was said that President Roh Moo Hyun would not have been elected without the help of the Internet and SMS.Simply because,
Roh's core supporters, who were of the younger "information technology" generation, launched a massive last-minute campaign. They fired off e-mails and text messages to 800,000 voters on the morning of election day, urging them to go to the polls.Interesting enough, the first text message sent fifteen years ago in 1992 by Neil Papworth which read 'Merry Christmas' to is colleagues at Britians Vodafone. An cool fact now reveals that Americans send more that 7 million text messages an hour. Wow, who would of thought an SMS feature on a cellphone would be taking to a level this high.
Identity
It is no surprise that DNA can detect alot of a person and how much the internet can turn peoples' lives into basically open books. Senator Ted Stevens a republican from Alaska had some of his staff do a trail run and steal his identity just to see the results. With his DNA being an experiment for his staff it was no surprise how much information they got from his DNA and how successful they were at getting the information.
"His staff, Mr. Stevens reported, had come back not just with digital breadcrumbs on the senator, but also with insights on his daughter's rental property and some of the comings and goings of his son, a student in California. "For $65 they were told they could get my Social Security number," he said." (Article- Personal Data for the Taking)
This shows how your identity from DNA can be used to get any information that a person wants with in limitations even if it only cost them a small amount of money. Showing that it is not that hard to for someone, if they wanted to, to steal someone's identity and if some future ideas of privacy come about dealing with using our DNA for everything to monitor what we do or just for authorization aspects of everyday life, though in some ways it is being done already with vchips and other high tech forms, it will just make it easier for someone to do what they want with our identities.
"His staff, Mr. Stevens reported, had come back not just with digital breadcrumbs on the senator, but also with insights on his daughter's rental property and some of the comings and goings of his son, a student in California. "For $65 they were told they could get my Social Security number," he said." (Article- Personal Data for the Taking)
This shows how your identity from DNA can be used to get any information that a person wants with in limitations even if it only cost them a small amount of money. Showing that it is not that hard to for someone, if they wanted to, to steal someone's identity and if some future ideas of privacy come about dealing with using our DNA for everything to monitor what we do or just for authorization aspects of everyday life, though in some ways it is being done already with vchips and other high tech forms, it will just make it easier for someone to do what they want with our identities.
The Golden Shield is only 'painted' gold
After reading the article "China's Internet Dictatorship" by Ma Jain, I did some research on my own and discovered some things that contradict what was said in the article. In the article, Jain mentions that China's new system of censor firewalls, called "The Golden Shield", is "more practical and impenetrable then the Berlin Wall". First off, you have to see the irony in him/her comparing this new system to the Berlin Wall, because eventually the wall fell. Now their is a group out their on the internet, called "The Global Internet Freedom Consortium", which feels that internet censoring is bad and goes against what the internet stands for. They make plans to build networks, email services and software, and other programs that override the blocks run by Government censoring agencies. One particular program has been very successful. The program called "Dynaweb", is a special network that is designed to go around through the back doors of the Golden Shield programs. It has already proven it self in Myanmar, by allowing the protesters to send images out of the country. GIFC also says that it has been able to get through to some people in China
Now another fact is that western computer designers are designing the Chinese systems, meaning their is a strong possibility that these back doors, which US system designers love to create, are easily accessible. If not, who's to say that the computer designers won't attempt to make a profit by selling the access codes to these back doors to the GIFC or similar organizations. Its only a matter of time, and the fact that both the article on the Golden Shield and the release of Dynaweb occured in 2005, makes me curious if future advances against "the shield" have occured already.
Now another fact is that western computer designers are designing the Chinese systems, meaning their is a strong possibility that these back doors, which US system designers love to create, are easily accessible. If not, who's to say that the computer designers won't attempt to make a profit by selling the access codes to these back doors to the GIFC or similar organizations. Its only a matter of time, and the fact that both the article on the Golden Shield and the release of Dynaweb occured in 2005, makes me curious if future advances against "the shield" have occured already.
Why Video Games make sense
In the past few years, the military has got through changes in how they train the forces. Instead of having war games out in the field, many of the combat classes are now done on simulators. As of even more resent times, simulators are being replaced by video games. One of the first versions of this was in 1997, with the Marines. The Marines took the Doom II and modified the game into Marine Doom. The game was comprised of four marines going out to accomplish a mission. The team was made up by a team leader, two riflemen and a machine-gunner. This game is now out of date and no longer used by the Marine Corps. But it is still give notice as one of the early instances as a modification of a game for military training.
Other games are now being developed and used by all parts of the armed forces to help with training. Urban Resolve is another game used by the military to help, the force bypass major urban areas avoiding a much combat with in the cities as possible.
The Pentagon sees the use in using video games to train and recruit soldiers. In the past the armed forces had to use large simulators with hydraulic, realistic cockpits, and wall-size video screens. The gear alone coast millions of dollars. The CIA has even begun to develop a role-playing computer simulation for training. Most soldiers know how to use a game controller and kids can pick up the controls pretty fast, so that is why video games make sense.
Other games are now being developed and used by all parts of the armed forces to help with training. Urban Resolve is another game used by the military to help, the force bypass major urban areas avoiding a much combat with in the cities as possible.
“Hunched with his troops in a dusty, wind-swept courtyard, the squad leader signals the soldiers to line up against a wall. Clasping automatic weapons, they inch single-file toward a sandy road lined with swaying palm trees.
The squad leader orders a point man to peer around the corner, his quick glance revealing several foes lying in wait behind a smoldering car. A few hand signals, a quick flash of gunfire, and it's over.
The enemy is defeated, but no blood is spilled, no bullet casings spent: All the action is in an upcoming Xbox-based training simulator for the military, called Full Spectrum Warrior.”
The Pentagon sees the use in using video games to train and recruit soldiers. In the past the armed forces had to use large simulators with hydraulic, realistic cockpits, and wall-size video screens. The gear alone coast millions of dollars. The CIA has even begun to develop a role-playing computer simulation for training. Most soldiers know how to use a game controller and kids can pick up the controls pretty fast, so that is why video games make sense.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Where $7 Goes a Long Way
In a society where bribery is considered against the law, it is hard to imagine that it is a common practice up and down the public service ladder. Although bribery goes on all the time in America, it is not as openly practiced as it is in countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. In "Where a Cuddle With Your Baby Requires a Bribe," stories of bribes that we would think of as outrageous are brought to light:
"If you want to see your child, families are told, the price is $12 for a boy and $7 for a girl, a lot of money for slum dwellers scraping by on a dollar a day...it is being recognized as a major obstacle to economic development, robbing the impoverished of already measly incomes and corroding the public services they desperately need...Even policemen double as shakedown
artists."
artists."
This kind of bribery reminds me of the corruption of policemen in the Domincan Republic. In a country where three meals a day is a luxury, policemen often ask for favored before carrying out there duties. In once instance, a friend's father was robbed of his chain and bracelet at a traffic signal. When he approached an officer for help, the officer responded, "What do you want me to do, I haven't eaten today yet," implying that he should buy the policeman a meal before he looked into the theft.
Final Presentation (Old Post)
This is an older post of mine but I think it touches on a topic that is only going to get bigger as time passes and that is the importance of cell phones and, in effect, the affect they have on us and basically how it leads to citizen journalism.
Text Messaging the New Wave?
Has it really become this big and powerful? Text messaging is something that I, along with all of my other fellow college students, tend to only use when they want to say something to a friend and don't feel like actually talking to them, if they can't talk at the moment or if the want to tell them something during class.Texting is a luxury but has become a necessity for anyone with a cell phone. I myself just got texting back on my phone after being without it for months and already I find myself looking for things to text to people. I really do believe it is the better part of the phone and makes more of an impact and that is why I like this article so much.
It is in this article where the power of text messaging is exposed as 16 year old Lee Chun-Kil texted his friend in class without looking to tell him about a protest going on about taking a college entrance exam. His friend then relayed the message to others and the next day, there were 400 protestors. " I don't think the rally would have been big if we didn't have cell phones," said Im Soon-jae, one of the organizers.Texting and the internet are becoming two of the most powerful influences in technology today and the cell phone is becoming a device that is used a lot more than just for making phone calls now. It's being used to change the world. Without talking on it.
Text Messaging the New Wave?
Has it really become this big and powerful? Text messaging is something that I, along with all of my other fellow college students, tend to only use when they want to say something to a friend and don't feel like actually talking to them, if they can't talk at the moment or if the want to tell them something during class.Texting is a luxury but has become a necessity for anyone with a cell phone. I myself just got texting back on my phone after being without it for months and already I find myself looking for things to text to people. I really do believe it is the better part of the phone and makes more of an impact and that is why I like this article so much.
It is in this article where the power of text messaging is exposed as 16 year old Lee Chun-Kil texted his friend in class without looking to tell him about a protest going on about taking a college entrance exam. His friend then relayed the message to others and the next day, there were 400 protestors. " I don't think the rally would have been big if we didn't have cell phones," said Im Soon-jae, one of the organizers.Texting and the internet are becoming two of the most powerful influences in technology today and the cell phone is becoming a device that is used a lot more than just for making phone calls now. It's being used to change the world. Without talking on it.
Globalization: Good or Bad?
In Thomas Friedman's book, The World is Flat, it touches on a very crucial matter that affects all sorts of classes in our society. This ideology is called globalization. From his arguments, we can gather the pros and cons of globalization and how it impacts either the company, country or individual.
In the beginning of the book, Friedman describes the evolution of globalization and how countries had to strive in an effort to globalize, followed by companies globalizing their markets, and finally in this current phase of globalization, individuals are urged to use their skills, talent and intellect to progress in the world of globalization. Even though these phases occurred during a particular period, they all correlate in our society today. Advanced countries such as the United States and China go to underdeveloped countries and help their corporations take advantage of cheap labor. Wal-Mart can be used as a prime example in which the company can manifest in growth and numerous amount of profit.
While globalization is good for low-wage countries and for corporations. It is bad for other workers such as the white-collar workers, due to the fact that they are threatened by the globalized economy; rise of machines and intellectual people from India taking their jobs (Friedman, p. 282-283). As a result, middle-class laborers and elite college students are against globalization.
In the beginning of the book, Friedman describes the evolution of globalization and how countries had to strive in an effort to globalize, followed by companies globalizing their markets, and finally in this current phase of globalization, individuals are urged to use their skills, talent and intellect to progress in the world of globalization. Even though these phases occurred during a particular period, they all correlate in our society today. Advanced countries such as the United States and China go to underdeveloped countries and help their corporations take advantage of cheap labor. Wal-Mart can be used as a prime example in which the company can manifest in growth and numerous amount of profit.
While globalization is good for low-wage countries and for corporations. It is bad for other workers such as the white-collar workers, due to the fact that they are threatened by the globalized economy; rise of machines and intellectual people from India taking their jobs (Friedman, p. 282-283). As a result, middle-class laborers and elite college students are against globalization.
Wiki new found Growth
Recently society has found out the true meaning of Wikipedia it is simply a free online encyclopedia. The name is a combination of Hawaiian words that means quick. The words "wiki” and "encyclopedia" were both used in this term in order to form Wikipedia that we all have used today in some for shape or form. Updated any and everyday in over 100 languages and also contains over one and a half million articles. There are 11 other language editions with over 100,000 articles each, and over 50 languages with over 10,000 articles each. Now a day any consumer with an internet connection and a web browser can prepare for publication over any type of contents that Wikipedia may contain within its resources. However, as in all fields of knowledge, there is much argument over the accuracy of some information contained in Wikipedia.
Jimmy Wales who found Wikipedia just started advertisements and promotions for his newly created Wikicities. Through Wikicities, groups of Web users can create their own free Web sites and fill them with anything. The growth of Wikipedia has increased tremendously as in the past year; traffic to Wikipedia has doubled to 5.3 million visitors in the month of February 2007. Wikipedia now have more than 1.3 million articles in several different languages which continue to be updated everyday as we speak.
Jimmy Wales who found Wikipedia just started advertisements and promotions for his newly created Wikicities. Through Wikicities, groups of Web users can create their own free Web sites and fill them with anything. The growth of Wikipedia has increased tremendously as in the past year; traffic to Wikipedia has doubled to 5.3 million visitors in the month of February 2007. Wikipedia now have more than 1.3 million articles in several different languages which continue to be updated everyday as we speak.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
The Flat World
An important argument that was brought up in “The World is Flat” by Thomas Friedman is that
There is also a flipside to this argument where sometime bringing finanaces into an area can cause more problems. The quote was interesting to me because it shows that there is a cycle and within this cycle even though things are expected to become better, somethings at the same time can become worst or stay the same.
“When societies begin to prosper, you get a virtuous cycle going. They begin to produce enough food for people to leave the land, the excess labor gets trained and educated, and it begins working in services and industry; that leads to innovation and better education and universities, freer markets, economic growth and development, better infrastructure, fewer diseases, and slower population growth.”Technology brings finance, and with financial stability living conditions will be better no matter where you are.
There is also a flipside to this argument where sometime bringing finanaces into an area can cause more problems. The quote was interesting to me because it shows that there is a cycle and within this cycle even though things are expected to become better, somethings at the same time can become worst or stay the same.
Blogging Huge Aspect Of Digrevo(Final Presentation)
Blogging, as defined by Ed Heresniak in his essay “Down with Blogs…” are defined as “web logs or interactive online diaries”. (Heresniak, 1) They give viewers information about a particular subject and most importantly blogs allow them to give insight on the subject, their views on it, opinions about it, and allows them to share their own information and current events regarding the subject. Millions of people have caught on to the blogging phenomenon. They have welcomed it as a new way to share information, network, and communicate with those individuals that they would not ordinarily interact with. It also gives people an outlet to express controversial views and opinions that they might ordinarily not be able to express publicly without fear of some sort of retaliation, be it physical, financial, or social.
Those who support the use and influence of blogs are in many cases the bloggers themselves. They believe that they are reinventing how people and corporations communicate with one another. In the article “Blogging will change you business” by Stephen Baker and Heather Green of “Business week”, the authors compare the advent of blogs to that of the printing press. They write, “How big are blogs? Try Johannes Gutenberg out for size. His printing press, unveiled in 1440, sparked a publishing boom and an information revolution. Some say it led to the Protestant Reformation and Western democracy.” (Baker, Green, 2) As we all know, the printing press, even more than the cotton gin some might argue, is the most influential invention known to man. It s affects on history, journalism, revolutionary ideas, free speech, everyday life, and how people receive information is immeasurable. I think that to compare anything to the printing press says a lot. When you think of the impact of the printing press you think of large scale change. In the opinion of active bloggers and apparently even some professionals, blogging is the wave of the future, something that will change the world as we know it.
In conclusion, the blogging phenomenon has become an issue of debate for many. Both sides argue for and against the medium. From what I can see blogging has become an important part of our everyday life. Ten or fifteen years ago no one could have foreseen blogging would have such an affect on the culture. It is used by everyone including politicians, businesses, and everyday, common people. The great thing about blogging in my opinion is that it brings the elite classes and average citizens of our society together. People who would not normally interact and share opinions with each other are now creating logical, thought provoking conversations on various subjects. I will say that for those critics of blogs who say that they are simply a passing fad and hold no real influence except that of a marketing tool. They said the same thing about the television and look at it now. Sure you have to scour through all the crap it produces, but that can be said about any technological medium of communication that has ever existed. There has to be a million reality shows on the air to allow a show like Dateline NBC to survive. The fluff makes the money, the real hard hitting news and ideas makes the impact. The same thought should be applied to Blogs.
Those who support the use and influence of blogs are in many cases the bloggers themselves. They believe that they are reinventing how people and corporations communicate with one another. In the article “Blogging will change you business” by Stephen Baker and Heather Green of “Business week”, the authors compare the advent of blogs to that of the printing press. They write, “How big are blogs? Try Johannes Gutenberg out for size. His printing press, unveiled in 1440, sparked a publishing boom and an information revolution. Some say it led to the Protestant Reformation and Western democracy.” (Baker, Green, 2) As we all know, the printing press, even more than the cotton gin some might argue, is the most influential invention known to man. It s affects on history, journalism, revolutionary ideas, free speech, everyday life, and how people receive information is immeasurable. I think that to compare anything to the printing press says a lot. When you think of the impact of the printing press you think of large scale change. In the opinion of active bloggers and apparently even some professionals, blogging is the wave of the future, something that will change the world as we know it.
In conclusion, the blogging phenomenon has become an issue of debate for many. Both sides argue for and against the medium. From what I can see blogging has become an important part of our everyday life. Ten or fifteen years ago no one could have foreseen blogging would have such an affect on the culture. It is used by everyone including politicians, businesses, and everyday, common people. The great thing about blogging in my opinion is that it brings the elite classes and average citizens of our society together. People who would not normally interact and share opinions with each other are now creating logical, thought provoking conversations on various subjects. I will say that for those critics of blogs who say that they are simply a passing fad and hold no real influence except that of a marketing tool. They said the same thing about the television and look at it now. Sure you have to scour through all the crap it produces, but that can be said about any technological medium of communication that has ever existed. There has to be a million reality shows on the air to allow a show like Dateline NBC to survive. The fluff makes the money, the real hard hitting news and ideas makes the impact. The same thought should be applied to Blogs.
Pandora
Pandora is a revolutionary Internet radio site. It gives subscribers the ability to find and play the majority of popular music for free. Because Pandora is non-profit and is not allowing user to download and keep music it has not been a target of anti-piracy campaigns. One of the more fascinating aspects of Pandora is its musical search engine. Capable of breaking down music to simple elements it has the ability to search the world for a similar type of music from a different artists that the listener may enjoy. Pandora may be the future of radio allowing Pandora's search engine and subscriber to be America's DJs
WWW.PANDORA.COM
WWW.PANDORA.COM
Labels: Internet radio, Music, Pandora, Piracy
cyber cold war???
Over 120 countries have developed weapons of multimedia destruction and these "big guns" are aimed at financial markets, government computer systems, and utilities. Cyber crimes has become a growing issue, now it isn't merely identity theft, its national security. "The Chinese were first to use cyberattacks for political and military goals," James Mulvenon, director of the Center for Intelligence and Research in Washington, was quoted as saying in the report." Just to think if someone crippled the internet in the united states what would happen, communication is key to all circles, this would affect, all businesses and institutions. It would be a great annoyance and cause a lot of unneeded frustrations and potentially leave gaps in security that can lead to robberies and vandalism due the security and alarm systems failing. No myspace, no facebook, and its unclear how long a potential glitch in the system that can have the internet for months or years...then what? I don't know that is kind of scary in a growing digital world
Labels: cyber war, information, weapons
Monday, December 10, 2007
Video Games Help Aid War Battle
Video games are being used as tools to help better war situations. Video games of war and weaponry help to assist and improve war tactics. Video games are used more and more to see reactions to any situation a soldier or commanding officer can think of, to see the effects it could do on society through a TV screen where no real life people are hurt or real damage is done. Video game technology is also used to improve ideas on enemy trails to help get a faster and wider range of detection on an enemy pursuing attack.
"For instance, military leaders could use Urban Resolve to predict what would happen if they destroyed the electricity source in a particular city. Such a tactic might have the desired effect of preventing the rebels from communicating with one another. Or it could backfire and harm hundreds or thousands of civilians -- something the military would like to minimize," (When War Games Meet Video Games) http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,65403,00.html
The combat simulation program is one of these gaming technologies that is for military aid in working towards getting an upper hand in battle. This program deals with everything, civilians, soldiers and automotives used in war etc. The people operating this program can create any situation and see how it would result. This is a continuing program that has developed and can branch out into other areas in addition to warfare.
"For instance, military leaders could use Urban Resolve to predict what would happen if they destroyed the electricity source in a particular city. Such a tactic might have the desired effect of preventing the rebels from communicating with one another. Or it could backfire and harm hundreds or thousands of civilians -- something the military would like to minimize," (When War Games Meet Video Games) http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,65403,00.html
The combat simulation program is one of these gaming technologies that is for military aid in working towards getting an upper hand in battle. This program deals with everything, civilians, soldiers and automotives used in war etc. The people operating this program can create any situation and see how it would result. This is a continuing program that has developed and can branch out into other areas in addition to warfare.
Digrevo: The War Within The Net
My Favorite Topic
It is hard for me to decide which topic has been my favorite this semester. I learned a lot from each of the topics and every one of them has something that interests me. I'm torn between my own blog on Wal-Mart which is something that is very dear to me but I think my favorite topic was the surveillance topic. The article written by Ted Koppel, "Take My Privacy Please" was one that really kept my interest. Everything that he touched on was something that I had thought about but didn't really pay too much attention to. I didn't want to be another paranoid, conspiracy theorist but this facts are out there. Every day we trade in our privacy for so called safety when we aren't even sure who we are being protected against. If someone is going to do us harm, there is no GPS, Onstar, or VeriChip that will be able to save us. Surveillance covers so many aspects of our lives that it is hard to get away from. In times of tragedy or war, the public is so much more complacent with the government watching what is going on and sometimes they take advantage of the nations vulernablity. It is so easy to give away our privacy for safety and a piece of mind. It is sad that we can not trust our government enough to protect us for good reasons and not for them to take advantage.
Labels: surveillance
No such thing as privacy
The digital revolution has not only allowed us to come up with solutions to different concerns, but it has also created many problems that have occured. The biggest issue with the internet today is privacy. Everything from identity theft to simply tracking the use of particular sites has made this a world in which no privacy exist. Although having connections to people across the globe and the power to find out information just by the click of a button is amazing, it does have negative aspects. One example is Facebook and the new feature it has recently introduced. This feature called Beacon is used in order to track purchases made by Facebook users and then advertises the product for all to see. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/06/technology/06facebook.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1197325739-3LudAalou9edV+ODWETymA Even a social networking site has a way of exploiting you and your identity. Many issues such as this have caused problems for web users. When using the internet, you cant feel safe about making a purchase or having something of yours advertised for all to see. The problem is that we cant stop the intrusion of privacy. As long as free speech and search engines against censorship are allowed then the internet is an open door for everyone to look into. In the article "The Age of Sousveillance", Steve Mann states
"The reason sousveillance is such a concern is that it is not under control and
there are no transparently obvious ways it could be brought under control"This to me seems to be the most important issue in the internet today. With all the hackers out there, we have no way of really keeping certain information a secret. Someone will always be able to get particular information that is useful to them just by your actions on the web.
Sunday, December 09, 2007
We're watching You
Well after taking this class this semester we all now know that there is no such thing as privacey on the internet. A very commonly used website today is Myspace, and yes even a website as rediculouse as Myspace is far from private or safe. People take surveys and post bulletins thinking that only there friends can read them. Actually most of those clever surveys are made by marketing firms and are used for research. It's collecting information about you with out your consent. Yes folks there is absolutley no privacey on the internet. Even sites that claim to have a secure connection so you can feel comfortable with giving something like credit card information is far from secure. If someone wants that information you best believe they are going to get it, it's really not all that hard. There are many people using the internet for fraud, stealing, predators and many other forms of illegal activity. And keep in mind that everything single thing you click on is monitered and you leave your history trail everywhere you have been. Everyone has an ISP that is unique to their computer.
"ISPs do, however, collect at least some information about the consumers using their services. From a privacy standpoint, the ideal ISP would collect only as much information as it requires in order to provide Internet connectivity (IP address, billing information if applicable, etc). A common belief exists that most ISPs collect additional information, such as aggregate browsing habits or even personally-identifiable URL histories."(wikipedia) Other fun little things that interupt your privacey are also spyware and addware, web bugs, phishing, malicious proxy servers, cookies and other tracking devices.
Data logging, everthing is recorded. From what websites you go to, to how long you spend looking at each page. You would think for sure that there would be laws and courts doing something about this mass invasion. On the flip side it is hard for them to get many of the criminals on the net because of their fourth amendment rights, which protects them, when what there doing is violating your fourth amendment rights. For example check the supreme court case US vs. Zeigler.
"Yahoo! and MSN search data
Data from major Internet companies, including Yahoo! and MSN (Microsoft) have already been subpoenaed by the United States[8] and China[9]. AOL even provided a chunk of its own search data online[10], allowing reporters to track the online behaviour of private individuals"(wikipedia)
Here is something I found that I thought was kind of scarey. All you have to do is click on it and watch what happens. http://www.bfletcher.com/bfletcher/privacy.asp
"ISPs do, however, collect at least some information about the consumers using their services. From a privacy standpoint, the ideal ISP would collect only as much information as it requires in order to provide Internet connectivity (IP address, billing information if applicable, etc). A common belief exists that most ISPs collect additional information, such as aggregate browsing habits or even personally-identifiable URL histories."(wikipedia) Other fun little things that interupt your privacey are also spyware and addware, web bugs, phishing, malicious proxy servers, cookies and other tracking devices.
Data logging, everthing is recorded. From what websites you go to, to how long you spend looking at each page. You would think for sure that there would be laws and courts doing something about this mass invasion. On the flip side it is hard for them to get many of the criminals on the net because of their fourth amendment rights, which protects them, when what there doing is violating your fourth amendment rights. For example check the supreme court case US vs. Zeigler.
"Yahoo! and MSN search data
Data from major Internet companies, including Yahoo! and MSN (Microsoft) have already been subpoenaed by the United States[8] and China[9]. AOL even provided a chunk of its own search data online[10], allowing reporters to track the online behaviour of private individuals"(wikipedia)
Here is something I found that I thought was kind of scarey. All you have to do is click on it and watch what happens. http://www.bfletcher.com/bfletcher/privacy.asp
Thursday, December 06, 2007
The Dynasty is Back to throw up the diamond
Now on a brighter note of hip hop it’s seems like the Dynasty is throwing the roc sign back up trying to bring the real essence of hip hop. Def Jam and C.E.O of recording label Roc-a-fella Records Jay-Z is starting to come back on the rap scene for the state of hip hop. It seems like hip hop is in danger to the south orientated style of basic lyrics and club dancing tracks. Inspired by the motion picture “America Gangster” Jay-Z strives to bring back the lyrical intent of hip hop as reminds us of the Reasonable Doubt and Blueprint lyrical side of things. Things has continued on for the Roc-a-fella label with Kanye West continuing as a solo artist dropping albums and hits when the Roc had dismantled after beef occurred within their organization. Things has started coming together for the Roc dynasty after Kanye West dropped his third album “Graduation” which went two times platinum already. This showed how the Roc was still alive and now breathing new life. Once Jay-Z dropped his inspired album American Gangster this showed that it is now time for the Roc to take over the airwaves and the rap game as a unit. Other rap artist on the Roc-a-fella recording label is also getting radio play and videos out to support their next album. Beanie Sigel’s new song with R. Kelly, Peedi Crack, Young Guns, and Freeway also all have videos and are getting radio play as well as Jay-Z and Kanye West.
After the break up friendship between Dame and Jay the Roc was in a doubt for a quick minute but now is back on the rise. After the Diplomats and Dame Dash left the Roc, Beanie Sigel got locked up and then rumors started that other Roc-a-fella artist were going to sign with other hip hop entourages in the industry. Only having Kanye West after all these events took place within the dynasty they were still breathing because of the creativity and stardom Kanye West possessed as an individual artist. Once Jay-Z calmed to be retired and then dropping his album Kingdom Come it did not receive the welcome back his was looking for so it was time to take a different approach. Jay-Z then signed True Life, Uncle Murder, and recently signed Jadakiss to help the Roc-a-fella label take over the rap industry again. Knowing that Jay-Z is back and putting the Roc back on the map has other rap artist on their toes to put out good material to hopefully stay on top. Should the Roc have us throwing up the diamond once again why not?
Web Crime-Fighting
The issue that this article brings up is a difficult one to choose sides on. On the one hand, citizens should cooperate with authorities when they know of actions that pose a threat to our country. On the other hand, if everyone was doing what A. Aaron Weisburd is, it would undoubtedly hinder the governments' investigation efforts against terrorism.
Another problem is the fact that no one can really monitor these "internet crime-fighters" and their methods. "The activists often operate at the boundaries of what is legal and illegal." Although Weisburd claims that he does not do anything illegal, he states that "he cannot always control the actions of those who help him."
Cyberterrorism and Cyber Space
Cyberterrorism targets most imporntantly computers and technology mainly the internet. It serves to bring the world harm and disruption. It can be threats toward our country for example terrorism can send a bomb threat to the internet. Many terrorist use the internet to scare people with threats, but sometimes people should not take threats lightly because look what happen to the World Trade Center on 9/11. Cyber space can hack into you information you have on your computer. In which your information can be stolen an use to vandalize websites, when your computer has been hit it can lead to you having to spending alot money. According to Dorthy E. Denning Many of the attacks are serious and costly. The recent ILOVEYOU virus and variants, for example, was estimated to have hit tens of millions of users and cost billions of dollars in damage.
So Cyberterrorism can lead to people losing there life and Cyber Space can lead to people spending lots of money due to there computer being attacked.
So Cyberterrorism can lead to people losing there life and Cyber Space can lead to people spending lots of money due to there computer being attacked.
NO WORD UNHEARD?
In an article written for business week online ,Otis Port reports that many Al Qaeda operatives and terrorists have been obtained since September 11th through the use of electronic snooping. This includes the use of cell phone,email, and web upload surveillance techniques, specifically the use of the secret Echelon network . For those of you who don't know Echelon is a global eavesdropping system run by the National Security Agency and its counterparts in places like Australia, Britain, Canada, and New Zealand. According to Port these supercomputer systems used at the NSA move through a flood of terrorist related materials. These documents got to human analysts and whatever cant be used is gotten rid of. But according to Port these analysts have one downfall. They are human and can only read through the data so fast. Port writes of this,
"Two Arabic messages collected on Sept. 10, 2001, hinting of a major event the next day, weren't translated until Sept. 12. Now, the intelligence agencies vow to do better, and the FBI says it has already shrunk translation delays to under 12 hours."
The eventual goal of this supercomputer system is to be able to spot terrorist actions and attacks before they happen through the use of data-mining systems that could look through multiple databases and spot terrorist related phrases and warnings about future plans.
In my opinion this is a great tool in the fight on terrorism . The companies involved in this should push ahead in its objectives since the battle on terror will probably never end and a tool such as a supercomputer to detect terrorist activity could be a useful one. Of course improper use of this tool is an issue raises at the end of this article. Of course a tool such as this one is subject to improper use by a government or ruling party , but so is everything else created for the good of society. I guess this is simply a case of trying to see it as the good outweighing the bad. Yes, this will be a tool used to fight terrorism, but it may be subjected to misuse by authorities to violate citizens rights and privacy. I think that the "anonymization" policy adopted by authorities will aid in this. Certain information such as social security numbers will not be translated by this supercomputer unless authorities can prove that the knowledge of this information is absolutely necessary. Will it work, I don't know? We'll, have to wait and see.
Everybody is Listening
With all the commotion on terrorism, especially after September 11th, the National Security Agency has a global electronic system that is used to listen and eavesdrop on all types of communication. This system used is called the Echelon Network. The FBI states that over the years they have been able to prevent other terrorists attacks through the use of this special network. Whether this may be true or not, the system is highly used and then translated through professionals who determine if a threat has occured. Echelon is able to pick up on different formats of communication, such as satelitte, towers, and fober-optic cables. We may not be able to completely prevent terrorism, but technology can certainly help us try.
China hacked into the Pentagon
On September 4th it was noted that the Chinese military was able to hack into the pentagons network. The United States government is now up at arms fearing the threat that they can disrupt the defense department. They believe it was done by China's People's Liberation Army, which was able to shut the computer system for a substantial period of time . US officials are now scared that they are able to breakdown the system at any critical time.It was also Noted that the PLA was responsible for hacking in to the German government as well.
The Pentagon's Chatter Box
This article spoke about the developement of a decoding machine that could not only decode english, but decode foreign languages and codes, translating them into english.
"experts describe the project as the most ambitious undertaking in the history of human language technology".The National Security Agency gathers information all the time, but with this new technology they will be able to use that information by getting it analyzed and then to help stop terrorism."
"The ultimate goal of the endeavor, dubbed GALE for Global Autonomous Language Exploitation, is to turn the staggeringly large volumes of recorded foreign language broadcasts, phone conversations, and Internet traffic into something national security analysts, spooks, and soldiers can actually use."Yes it is true that this can help our country and make it easier to stop attacks before they happen, but will this developement backfire. Some people like Gilman Louie, the president and CEO of In-Q-Tel, the Central Intelligence Agency’s venture capital arm, feel that putting this type f technology in the governments hand is a huge problem. Not only does this article show how the world is advancing everyday, but it shows how even when it come fighting in the battlefield, there is always a use for advance technology.
Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Cyberwar.... could it just be another Y2k scare?
The thought of a war is frightening and always stirs up a frenzy but the thought of a cyberwar is a nightmare and confusing for many to comprehend. Cyberwar is the attacks and threats against computers and information networks it has been the goverments fear for years, the very act is unlawful and a intelligent way for terrorist to cause distruction against a nation. Cyberspace is always volnerable for attacks there are easily accsessed virus on the web that can destroy and ultimately destroy goverment and company data and trade screts. However not everyone is so sure that a cyberwar will ever occur, John Arquilla who came up with the term cyberwar many years ago feel that the term has been taken out of context he refers to the word as a controled goverment activity meaning military interactions that can be regulated so that the opposing military cannot function. Ariquilla believes that hacking is just a small part of cyberwar and he strongly believes that cyberwarfare is less risky due to the fact that it is only a method to "improve your capabilities" so that your likely to lose fewer and win more.
Cyberterroism
The attacks happened on the computer, airplanes, personal data and etc. People tends to steal information by using social security number. The important things is to not give out your social securityu number to anybody on the net because they have the chance to steal your information and that can create identify theft. A person can also attack by using a virus to send to other people's computers. Spams can is also an example of an attack. Terrorists do use cyberspace to facilitate traditional forms of terrorism such as bombings. They put up Web sites to spread their messages and recruit supporters, and they use the Internet to communicate and coordinate action.
Tuesday, December 04, 2007
Information Warfare Today
Here are two links to recent articles about information warfare:
Mark Landler & John Markoff, "Digital Fears Emerge After Data Siege in Estonia," NYT, 5/29/07.
John Schwartz, "BIT WARS; When Computers Attack," NYT, 6/24/07.
Mark Landler & John Markoff, "Digital Fears Emerge After Data Siege in Estonia," NYT, 5/29/07.
John Schwartz, "BIT WARS; When Computers Attack," NYT, 6/24/07.
Nintendo Wars
Programmers for the U.S. Defense Department have create an urban war simulator known as Urban Resolve. Urban Resolve is essentially a video game that contains with in it sophisticated A.I. So sophisticated it allows generals to plan and practice techniques for conquering urban cities. Its main objective is to make U.S. generals and commanders more efficient in their Urban Campaigns, as well as reduce the prominence of civilian causalities. I think this is an incredible technology and ideal. However I am skeptical about how well this program can work. Creating A.I. that truly mimics the intelligence of a human being would be a major break threw in its own right. Such a technology could be applied to better understand many hypothetical situations.
Labels: A.I., Netwars, Urban Resolve
Playing Games
A $195,000 video game has been developed by the U.S. Joint Forces Command, a division of the Department of Defense. The game, Urban Resolve is a simulator that allows the U.S. military to learn more about how to handle urban conflicts like those going on in the middle east right now.
The developers of Urban Resolve's intent is a three-phase effort:
Phase I: Each of the three planned phases of Urban Resolve will build on previous efforts. Phase I will focus on using human intelligence, along with advanced intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) technologies, to gain comprehensive situational awareness and situational understanding of the urban environment and the adversary forces.
Friendly forces will employ a variety of future ISR sensor capabilities to detect, locate, and track adversary systems and personnel inside a densely populated urban area.
The adversarial forces will employ increasingly more effective means of signature reduction, including camouflage, concealment, and deception to hide from friendly ISR, while moving among the neutral inhabitants of the city.
Phase II: In Urban Resolve Phase II, the friendly force will continue to employ leading-edge ISR capabilities to find and track the adversary.
Phase II will expand the scope of the experiment to include shaping the future battlespace through the use of special operations forces and precision effects, both lethal and non-lethal, primarily launched at a distance. This phase of the experiment will start to directly inform the continued development of both the major combat operations and the joint urban operations concepts being developed by U.S. Joint Forces Command.
Phase III: During Urban Resolve Phase III, the U.S.-led coalition will employ a fully equipped, combined or joint task force with modern air, land, sea, and space capabilities to maneuver effectively in the urban battlespace.
The question I have is this: How is a game whos players consist of "mainly retired military leaders and contractors who consult for the Department of Defense" going to help the soldiers who are actually under fire in the situations that Urban Resolve simulates? If so much is being invested into this game, shouldn't soldiers be playing them instead of retired military personnel that no longer see action on the battlefield?
The developers of Urban Resolve's intent is a three-phase effort:
Phase I: Each of the three planned phases of Urban Resolve will build on previous efforts. Phase I will focus on using human intelligence, along with advanced intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) technologies, to gain comprehensive situational awareness and situational understanding of the urban environment and the adversary forces.
Friendly forces will employ a variety of future ISR sensor capabilities to detect, locate, and track adversary systems and personnel inside a densely populated urban area.
The adversarial forces will employ increasingly more effective means of signature reduction, including camouflage, concealment, and deception to hide from friendly ISR, while moving among the neutral inhabitants of the city.
Phase II: In Urban Resolve Phase II, the friendly force will continue to employ leading-edge ISR capabilities to find and track the adversary.
Phase II will expand the scope of the experiment to include shaping the future battlespace through the use of special operations forces and precision effects, both lethal and non-lethal, primarily launched at a distance. This phase of the experiment will start to directly inform the continued development of both the major combat operations and the joint urban operations concepts being developed by U.S. Joint Forces Command.
Phase III: During Urban Resolve Phase III, the U.S.-led coalition will employ a fully equipped, combined or joint task force with modern air, land, sea, and space capabilities to maneuver effectively in the urban battlespace.
The question I have is this: How is a game whos players consist of "mainly retired military leaders and contractors who consult for the Department of Defense" going to help the soldiers who are actually under fire in the situations that Urban Resolve simulates? If so much is being invested into this game, shouldn't soldiers be playing them instead of retired military personnel that no longer see action on the battlefield?
U.S. Military Playing Games
The U.S. Military are playing video games to improve on real field work. The video game is called Urban Resolve, developed by the U.S. Joint Forces Command, a division of the Department of Defense. The game citing takes places in urban areas of battle like ones in Iraq, and helping the U.S. Military learning other ways to take down a city by isolating different nodes in the cities that they encounter.
One of the things that i found most interesting is that the soldiers could be replaced with almost any characters in any scene, This help determine ways to deal to with the civilians and crowd control. The tests focus mainly on helping military leaders determine which types of senors are best for tracking enemy forces that are hiding in a modern city.
http://www.jfcom.mil/about/experiments/uresolve.htm
One of the things that i found most interesting is that the soldiers could be replaced with almost any characters in any scene, This help determine ways to deal to with the civilians and crowd control. The tests focus mainly on helping military leaders determine which types of senors are best for tracking enemy forces that are hiding in a modern city.
http://www.jfcom.mil/about/experiments/uresolve.htm
Monday, December 03, 2007
Final Assignment: Due 12/13
The third and final writing assignment is available on Blackboard. It is due in class on Thursday, December 13.
Sunday, December 02, 2007
Protestors
Protesters mobilizing. The determination of protesters against war is very strong. They have no limit to the networks they reach out to. Their is not one specific leader, it is a group world wide effort and they reach each other through mass communication such as email, phone calls and new additions from over the years such as text messaging and internet networks to form together.
"This is mass mobilization, but also nimble mobilization. Protesting a war that hasn't begun requires a constant eye on the calendar of government action. And the movement's flexibility maximizes its impact, organizers say. A protest date can easily be moved, timed to affect the latest diplomatic maneuver." (How the Protesters Mobilized)
From the 1650's movements to years since then, protests have only gotten bigger and more nation wide. The protesters do whatever it takes to get their point across. They are dedicated, very well organized and have a plan for mostly anything that can happen in the process of the goals of the movements of what to do in certain situations that they could come across. Protesters work hard to plan ahead of government administration actions to try and prevent events from happening or fight to solve or stop events in process with the strength of their voices.
"This is mass mobilization, but also nimble mobilization. Protesting a war that hasn't begun requires a constant eye on the calendar of government action. And the movement's flexibility maximizes its impact, organizers say. A protest date can easily be moved, timed to affect the latest diplomatic maneuver." (How the Protesters Mobilized)
From the 1650's movements to years since then, protests have only gotten bigger and more nation wide. The protesters do whatever it takes to get their point across. They are dedicated, very well organized and have a plan for mostly anything that can happen in the process of the goals of the movements of what to do in certain situations that they could come across. Protesters work hard to plan ahead of government administration actions to try and prevent events from happening or fight to solve or stop events in process with the strength of their voices.
Saturday, December 01, 2007
High Tech Military Games
The information offered in the article "When War Games Meet Video Games" is relieving to know. This expensive combat game called Urban Resolve is a great way for the military to prepare themselves in a compromised situation. The game allows them to decide on the best tactics to use when a threat has occured. The game shows the outcome of decisions the U.S. military takes. I think its great, especially since our military is currently in Iraq. Urban Resolve consist of two teams. A Red team and a Blue team. The game is designed to have the two teams at war with one another which then can provide a game plan when encountering the real thing. Although it hasnt been used on a large scale yet and is being tested, when used it may be able to prevent us from taking actions that may harm other people or damage us when we are at war.
