Final Post

Our Relationships with Technology:

While technology has added a lot of opportunities for new friendships connections and even expression, I think it 100% does have unhealthy aspects. Alike anything, too much of something is always bad. We find ourselves consumed by social media and technology and we become blind to what reality really looks like for the average person.There is an image of a perfect girl, perfect relationship, perfect life that is thrown out all over social media as normal. The false image that is constantly being put out onto the internet makes you feel as if your life is insignificant or wrong in some sort of way. The more time we are spending on technology the more we are being exposed to all sorts of ways of life, life stories and struggles. Its sometimes hard to separate the reality from the fiction that is being posted online. Especially when editing technology has gotten so good, that anything can be distorted to look a certain way even if that is not how it appears in real life. Everyone of course looks happy and everyone looks as if they have their lives figured out, however it can be inferences this is not the case. However i think we forget this, and we forget that people can create whatever image they want for themselves online because it is just a snipet of what reality really holds. Relating it to the present,  In this time where we are forced to separate and stay distant from friends and even family, technology holds a little more value. We are able to see faces, hear voices all at our fingertips. This is what technology should be being used for. i think we are extremely lucky to have the capabilities and advancements that make all of these things possible at such a hard time for everyone,

 In my own life, id say i try to refrain from thinking these things however it is hard when its what your constantly seeing every single day. The less i am on social media the less i feel as if i am comparing myself to others. Limiting the time on technology is hard but is sometimes good to have a break and realize that nobody is perfect and everyone has struggles. I think that you cannot base someones whole entire life off of a photo or caption because its only what they are choosing to share, they obviously aren't sharing all of the bad things, just like i am not either.  I think that if we use technology more for what its intended for , and less to show off how perfect our lives may seem, we may realize the real value of it. I also think that we forget how much knowledge and information the internet gives us on a daily basis, especially when it feels as if we are teaching ourselves from home during this time. While there is misinformation everywhere, most information you find is contributing to some greater part of our knowledge.Everyone has basically accepted that you need to be careful what you read and where you are reading it from. We are able to learn things everyday just by typing in a keyword or asking siri a question. All of these things are crazy if you think about it. Its hard to imaging how all of it will be advancing into 10 or even 20 years from now.


Articles I read:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/education/2020/04/12/coronavirus-kids-cope-pandemic-snapchat-tiktok-instagram/5126302002/

EOTO

Policy : Sherman Anti Trust Act

The Sherman Anti Trust Act of 1890 is a law that regulates competition among enterprises, it was created and signed by congress. It was named after the senator of Ohio, John Sherman. In 1914 it was then amended by the Clayton Act. It was passed by congress under president Harrison. It prevents raising of prices by restriction of supply, and protect from abuses of being greedy.  Avoiding monopolization of a company to achieve higher profits or statuses.It is divided into 3 sections explaining rules and regulations that must be abided by under the act. Violation of the act is punishable by department of Justice who is able to bring suits if necessary. Treble damages are awarded to the party involved, this means that  3X given back of  the amount that the guilty party had charged the victim. So ultimately they end up losing out on more than they thought they were gaining by illegally raising the prices. 

The importance of this act is to minimize personal gain while hurting consumers in the process. It regulates companies abilities to raise prices for the sole reason of personal or financial gains. In times of need it is common for companies to get greedy and want to make as much money as possible. Having a punishable consequence is a good idea because it keeps those selling accountable and they know the consequences if they dont abide by the law. 

I think that this act is a perfect example of what businesses cannot do in times such as the corona virus pandemic. When people are needing more of supplies and food, they shouldn't have to suffer even more by spending more money on these needed products. If this weren't illegal, prices could sky rocket and people may not even be able to afford things that are essential for living. This would create panic and stealing and theft would probably occur for items that are life sustaining. If people are unable to afford things when times are tough, especially when people are out of jobs, its prohibits them from going about their daily lives and remaining healthy. While this may not have much effect on higher classes who could afford a spike in prices, many people do not have the luxury of spending an extra few dollars on something that is essential for them to live. The poor people would be at a big disadvantage and would have to turn to other means to obtain these items like stealing or selling illegal items for money.  Generations would have to be making more money and getting better jobs just to support themselves for basic needs.






Referenced Articles:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherman_Antitrust_Act_of_1890
https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/sherman_antitrust_act

Privacy online and off

Your life Online

Your privacy online is virtually nonexistent. Anything  that you post will always be there even if you delete it. You can be tracked, watched and spied on just by the things you are posted on a daily basis. Your only pretense could be compared to a tattoo because they don't really need to be described by words, they tell stories just based off of what they look like. This can be compared to the things you post online, they represent you just by how they look, without having context. It is up to anyones interpretation and that makes it dangerous. The provide information about who and what you are just by seeing a single photo. Not only is your privacy somewhat compromised with what you post online, so is your location at any point in time when owning a phone. It is able to track everywhere you've gone and everywhere you've been. This info is used by the government for various things and used to be private but now isn't so private. Many people don't know that this is even going on. The government is constantly collecting data on us to be put into a huge database for use at any point and time. Many see this as a breach in privacy and rights of being a citizen.
Telephone companies now have the ability to wire surveillance before you even purchase  your phone.Anyone could be listening to any conversation you are having at any given time. These systems are often hacked into and breached. Its still happening today and is upsetting government that tech companies have the ability to do this to their own customers but not giving government all the access to all of this information.

Overall, in the long run everything and anything in your virtual world can be used against you at any point in time. It may be things that you never even knew the government has or obtained from your cellphone or computer, but all of these things could be used against you.The problem is people aren't taking it seriously and aren't realizing that their information no matter what it is can be compromised and hacked into at any point without them knowing.

My Online Presence

Social Media and Reputation

Quitting social media has actually become a trend among teens in society who see it as a toxic and negative place. It is a platform that anything about anyone can be shared , embarrassing pictures and confessions that we may not want the entire world to see. People seem to forget that the internet can be accessed by anyone at anytime and could perhaps tarnish our reputation for a job or future encounters. The information seen online, while it may not represent your whole entire life, can give a connotation of what type of person you are and the things you engage in such as drinking, doing drugs or even sexual orientation. All of these things could easily remain private but instead many chose to out themself to the world just to prove a point or seem trendy. The main point is, your online presence only represents so much of your life, and you have the ability to limit what is shown and what remains private, however most people put everything out there now so not much remains a secret or private. The constant update of statuses and photos give others a glimpse into your life, but how is this forming an alternative reparation online then it may be in real life? I know that my social media isn't half of what i do, say or partake in because i do not feel the need to update people who i hardly speak to about my everyday tasks and doings. Half the time the people who look at our social media are people that we hardly know or are just acquantinces with us and therefore they dont know much about us in "real life" anyways. We are able to be looked up with a basic search engine because nobody is anonymous anymore.




Articles Referenced:
https://www.fastcompany.com/90315706/kids-parents-social-media-sharing

New Technology

The innovation of snapchat 

Snapchat was created in 2011 by Evan Spiegel, Reggie Brown and Bobby Murphy who were all students at Stanford university. The app was designed to communicate but using elements such as photos that disappear 30 seconds after sending. The app became highly popular and is still used by many teens everywhere. It is only about 10 years old however it dominates the social media industry and it used by millions around the world today. 


Social elements probably highly contributed to the use of this social media platform. Once one person started using it it diffused to other teens and became a main form of communication for their age group. Our generations were at the age where we were acquiring cell phones and getting social media accounts and snapchat just happened to be on the uphill. It was a new innovative way to talk to your friends and send photos to make chatting a bit more personable. It also was a convenient and free app so anyone could get it, which made it spread even more. Its one of those apps that nobody ever really got tired of and stopped using, its kinda just a natural habit for teens to use snapchat on a daily basis and multiple times a day to communicate. 

It has a lot of positives because it is a quick way to communicate and build stronger relationships however it is all being done behind a phone screen. Alot of less face to face interaction is taking place now in society because of social media such as this. Teens resort less to spending time with friends and playing outside with their friends, because they'd rather be on their phones. Its also easier for some people to say certain things within snapchat then face to face. It has just become the norma as a way to communicate rather than doing it directly which could be seen as bad. Generations after us could be even worse and less social as technology advances even further then it is. 




Articles Used:
https://www.thestreet.com/technology/history-of-snapchat
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diffusion_of_innovations

Eight Values of Free Expression

The Most Important Value

One of the eight values of free expression that sticks out to me is the marketplace of ideas value.While not only does it represent freedom of speech it exhibits the rights to have opinions different than others too. It is one of the most important because it touches on everyone contributing their own ideas to possibly develop an even bigger one. Everyone has a different outlook and sometimes judgement is clouded by other biases or personal experiences, so having everyones ideas put into one and being able to draw conclusions from that is pretty cool.  i personally could relate to sometimes not contributing my thoughts/feelings towards something and later regretting not speaking my mind. I have the power to do so, so why wouldn't i use that to contribute to a greater idea. I see it as a bunch of different minds are coming together with all kinds of different thoughts that maybe build off of eachother to form a huge idea that maybe hasn't been thought of before. 

It also shows just how important community and contributing ideas is because if people didnt all come together and do this there wouldn't be new ideas made today. Opinions only stay opinions unless they are expressed and put out into the world. I think it is important that people are able to come together to share ideas to possibly form a bigger one. While all of the values of free expression contribute differently, i see this one as benefiting not only the ones contributing ideas but society as a whole when they are put into place for public use. New inventions, ideas and ways of thinking all come from these ideas that were once thought up and eventually expressed to others. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marketplace_of_ideas

Technology Continued...

History of Cassette Tapes

Originally refereed to as the compact cassette, introduced by Phillips in Belgium in 1963. It wasn't until 1965 that completely blank cassettes were created for recording devices and playback. By 1953 1 million households contained tape recorders that allowed the actual cassettes to be played and listened to. The actual casette  It contained 2 miniature spools that had an analogue magnetic tape made of polyester that had the ability to record and playback. They were originally created for dictation machines but later developed into something much more. It could come in blank forms for recording purposes or already loaded with content such as music. It allowed for easier and cheaper recording and playback than previous devices. Both Phillips and Sony related portable cassette platers that allowed those to listen to things such as music anywhere. Some cars even developed cassette players within them so that things could be plated while driving other than the radio.  For almost 2 decades they were extremely popular however  in 1980 they began to decline because of the discovery of CDs and other forms of playback. In 2001 less then 1% were sold due to this drastic decline. They are much less used today with the formation of smartphones and new technology. When Phillips created this device they had no idea what it would transform into as years progressed. From the walkman to the iPod to the first smart phone. All of these devices contained playback services as well as recording capabilities. 

Today, we probably cant imagine life without a portable device that we can listen to music on while walking to class or driving in our car. The advancement of something so small has turned in to a bigger idea that has transformed the way we listen and stream today. 




Related Articles.. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassette_tape
https://southtree.com/blogs/artifact/the-convenience-of-the-cassette

Technology I Learned About

Technology Innovation Pt2 :

The first Personal Computer- 

The first non personal computer was Created in 1822, The word Computer oring referenced a person who did calculations, not the invention itself. They served to be of importance within the industrial revolution to automate tedious tasks and perform functions of making things. The "loom" was created out of this that automatically could weave fabric designs within the warehouses. During world war 2 the first digital calculating machines were developed. Later in the 1950's integrated circuits were created and implemented within these newly created devices in order to also perform various tasks and make a-lot of things simpler for workers. 

Apple computers were released April 1976, by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak ,with a single circuit board. It wasn't until 1977 that color graphics and more advanced graphics were incorporated within the product, as well as bigger drive space. The first personal computer by apple  dropped in 1983 and it was called "lisa". It had icons and even featured drop down menus and options.The flip factor it incorporated started to be referenced as a "laptop" and the term has been used ever since. Search engines such as google started up around 1996, and wifi was created soon after in 1999.

It wasnt until the creation of the iPhone in 2007 that internet became available on cellular and personal devices. This innovation changed the use of internet and computer like softwares forever.

Technology Timeline Topic

The 1st Camera Phone-

The first camera phone, known as the  Kyocera Visual Phone, was created in 2000 by Sharp. When it was released it cost around $400 to the public. It was made up of a 1.5 inch screen, weighing 74 grams and containing only a back facing camera. it had the ability to take up to 20 photos that then had to be accessed through plugging the phone into a computer. If even a small video was taken it would take up most of the space on the phone. They also could be accessed by taking out the memory card. The photos were limited to a 0.11 pixel quality, which left them grainy and blurry. The flash was made up of an LED light that gradually dimmed if used for too long, making it hard to adequately take flash photos. The phone ended up being a flop because of its build and limited storage.

In 2002 Nokia took on the task of recreating something better. The screen was 2.1 inches of display and it contained 4MB of storage.It was referred to as the Nokia 7650, and it was much more desirable than the original model that had been made. It marketed for around $329 even though it contained more features than the previous one. In 2005 the Sony Ericsson released, it had an amazing flash and 1.9 inch display and used the new cyber shot technology that had been recently created. It was alot less bulky and easy to put inside a pocket which made it even more desirable then the others. In 2007, however an even more advanced form emerged, the LG viewty. it resembled camera on the outside, including being able to turn it sideways to take the photo. It also had a touch screen that was 3 inches. It included a xenon flash, slow motion video capturing, and 16x visual zooming power.

Today, we dont know what its like to have minimal space on our phones, we can take thousands of pictures and access them on the spot. We can share them on any platform instantly with the entire world. Out photo quality has drastically changed and advanced throughout the past few years. Looking back at how the camera phone started and where it currently is makes you realize just how quickly times and technology is changing. Its hard to even imagine how camera phones will be within the next 10 or even 20 years.


Articles referenced- 
https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/camera-phone-history/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camera_phone

https://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/flashback-the-past-present-and-future-of-the-camera-phone-1209860

Antiwar? Never heard of it

We don't see many themes of antiwar throughout the US because war has become the center for solving problems and disagreements. War isn't always seen as a bad thing because its ability to resolve issues that may not have been resolved otherwise. While the idea of war can seem scary, especially for those fighting within it, it is a natural part of our history that has been happening for decades. Antiwar activists see war as maybe a waste of money or lives that are sacrificed when it occurs. They see bloodshed as not worth it for the end result.They think there may be other ways of dealing with issues other than war itself. The website also looks into other countries and investigates the brutal deaths of millions of lives on the other end of our war doing. Even the innocent ones who may have lost their lives protesting just because of war. The theme of anti violence and not having to kill mass amounts of people. But what other ways can we resolve issues with countries that we cannot simply speak an agreement to? We engage in war because it is easier and fairer because the strongest party wins. It has nothing to do with verbal agreements like antiwar activists seem to think are influential. While everyone sees the topic differently its hard for our society (mostly) to think that there is any option other than war. While yes, there are certain arguments that should be solved more civilly, i dont think war will ever be outlawed or stopped for solving certain things. It has been around for years and the results have been seen therefore theres no reason to change what we are already doing.

We dont hear about antiwar much because not many people are antiwar.The US has engaged in wars for decades and it doesn't seem that they are going to stop anytime soon, considering wars have shown to be effective in decision making and eliminating of problems. It has shown to be beneficial, and because of this we keep doing it. While antiwar activists do shed light on the millions of lives lost, innocent or not, they do not give alternative ways that would take place of war for solving problems efficiently. The 1st amendment gives us our rights to fight this way, but it also gives activists the right to say their part. 

Related article:
https://www.antiwar.com

Can we Trust Social Media with our Personal Information?

Washington (CNN), September 9th, 2019-
Eight states are being investigated by the attorney general looking into facebook's consumer data and privacy. The concern whether users data has been put at risk in order to enhance advertisements and fit consumers interests and information. Facebook, as well as other tech companies such as google agreed to work with the attorneys general and answer further questioning on what consumer data is used when promoting and advertisement purposes. The fear among policy makers is that this is also hurting competition, due to the system being "rigged" in their favor. While social media platforms have been accused of doing so, there is never a real scope of what information of the users is actual put out to others. Our privacy has been breeched for years and i do not doubt that it will continue to happen because we let them do it and get away with it. People dont (usually) stop using platforms after hearing their data could be compromised and therefore they aren't afraid of losing users due to this. furthermore they won't change what they are doing because it isn't losing them customers or profits. 

I do understand the concern for consumer privacy, but i also do sympathize that markets want to reach the biggest audience they can. If they are putting advertisements out for guys on a girls facebook timeline, it doesn't do as much good as if it was placed on a same-sex timeline. Knowing small snippets of info that doesn't directly hurt the market shouldn't be a problem. Target markets and segmentation is a bit easier when tailoring it to your consumer. I think as long as the personal information of the people isn't released to the wrong source it isn't a breech in their rights to their personal information. They choose what they put on their account and its basically public knowledge so facebook has the ability to access it. Putting your information out there is always warned about, so it isn't a shocker that your information gets used for other things such as advertisements. Its all about marketing and promoting each other and facebook needs to put advertisements on their site inorder to run and be profitable.

Related Article:
https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/06/tech/facebook-antitrust-investigation/index.html

The Founding Era: The Supreme Court

The supreme court is responsible for a variety of duties to the people. Many issues are decided within the court, and it is easily the most powerful court in the US. They abide by rules and laws that have been in play for centuries. Over the years there have been on average 100 supreme court justices appointed by the president. Once appointed they have a high standard to uphold and many laws to abide by. Often times, it is their job to draw lines between the government power and individual powers. Making sure that the government isn't overstepping their boundaries. The court uses the constitution to resolve a variety of problems within the United States. While all justices have their own opinion on the matter, one thing stays constant, the obedience to the constitutions main values and laws. Justices receive thousands of cases once a week that they are responsible for themselves. Cases are after a trail court, questioning if everything is constitutional. Then the grout decides which cases are severe enough to be accepted into the actual Supreme Court. This takes awhile, and isn't an easy or quick process. If the case isn't accepted, it goes back to the hands of the regular government. When it is accepted , you come into the court and give your oral argument to make sure a justice hasn't overlooked anything within the case.You argue within 9 other justices with questions and thoughts being thrown around. Picking out normally the one focused argument that matters most to the court is the one focused on. Then they all vote to decide the case, one writes an opinion writing and reasoning to decide on cases. Justices can disagree with the courts choice, but must state why. They can then be persuaded otherwise in order to create a bigger majority. All of this takes around 3 months to accomplish. The press is notified once the court has decided.

However, the supreme court didn't always obtain this much power. In the 1800s the question of slavery created distrust and problems within The Court, before the constitution was amended. Many years and changes to the constitution such of the adding of the bill of rights, went into creating what the Supreme court now uses within the justice system. The respect and trust given to the supreme court today is a drastic change from what it was like decades ago.  Only the best of the best cases get accepted into the supreme court, and usually become a public argument by the time the trials end. There are supreme cases currently happening within our society such as Trump v. Vance and Trump V. Mazars. 

Related Videos: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWRoXYRsaeo&feature=youtu.be

Related Articles :
https://www.scotusblog.com

Should Instagram posts be considered a 1st amendment right?

Retrieved from google Images

 December 30th 2019, in Bay City MI-

The father of a local high school teen has filled a lawsuit against the Freeland Community School District in regards to his son receiving expulsion for creating an offensive instagram making fun of a current biology teacher at the school. His lawyer claims that his son is within his constitutional rights and therefore shouldn't be punished for his actions. As well as punishment should be implemented by his guardians  not the school. He defends his actions as a "parody" account and was only created out of amusement and fun, not to be offensive. and the child claimed he has no other intentions with the account. The principle Traci Smith claimed that the posts "deemed as inappropriate" as well as used the biology professors name within the username, therefore disrupting his privacy as a teacher. While no pictures or direct references were made regarding the teacher, it was still deemed a problem by the school board.  It was also noted that the student was obligated to know the student handbook guidelines which were not abided by in this case due to respect for higher ups such as teachers.

After deliberation the court decided a hearing wasn't necessary for the magnitude of this case. Due to the student handbook misconduct  the expulsion of the student remained to be 10 days due to school policy. While the court is still deliberating whether the father has the right to file for these 1st amendment rights and take it further, it is taken into consideration that the child performed this act outside of school, and did not cause any disruptions to the school directly. However, again referencing the student handbook is a conflict of interest on the students behalf. 

In my opinion I think that this case could go either way. The fact that the kid used the biology teachers name within the account could be considered him taking his identity and possibly acting as a "catfish" in a way. However, i also think that because this didnt happen within the school and it didnt ruin the teachers reputation or creditability, there was no harm done in making the account. Thus he is able to use freedom of speech but im not sure if this also plies on social media platforms. I especially think that because none of the posts were offensive or highly inappropriate that the childs intentions were nothing but out of fun. Therefore im not sure how this case will turn out but i can see both sides. 


Related Articles- 
https://www.mlive.com/news/saginaw-bay-city/2020/01/school-violated-students-1st-amendment-rights-over-parody-instagram-account-lawsuit-claims.html