Final Course Reflection

This class has been a very interesting one, learning about the different ins and outs of almost all of the different technologies we use on a daily basis, how they came to be, and what the future holds for them. Right now I'm typing this blog on a computer, with a smartphone next to me, a fan blowing cool air on me, and a light on to keep things bright in my room. This class opened my eyes to just how much technology we use 24/7, and I think that's an important thing to recognize. Now, many people, including me, already realize that we use a lot of technology on the daily, but we never think about that. We just kinda brush it off and go on about our days, but I think if we took more time to think about it, it could help lead us into finding smarter ways of doing things without the need for so much tech all the time. I was taking another class talking about the end of the world and the different scenarios that could entail, and it made me think about the fact that if a "world-ending" scenario were to happen, how ready would we actually be? With how much we rely on technology, would we be able to survive very easily without it? These thoughts lead me to think that one of the most important aspects to focus on would probably have to be social issues with different technologies. I think it's important to recognize the different issues that technologies can pose to users because without proper regulation or realization, some technologies could end up being used for malicious intent without the consumers, or even the product-makers, being aware. Take the whole "targeted ads" debacle for example. You talk about something to your friends while playing an online game, only to find an ad for that same thing on Instagram the next time you open it. While it can be helpful to the consumer, I also feel it's just downright creepy and just makes me feel a little worried about privacy issues. It begs the question of whether or not someone is listening to you all the time, and whether or not that person is doing anything with what you are saying. While those things could just be rumors or speculation, it is still very odd seeing an ad for Little Ceasars pizza after talking to your friends about what toppings you like to have on your pizza. Also, with the inclusion of so many different household items and appliances being able to connect to the Internet or sometimes requiring Internet, it ends up adding to the already big digital divide that's a major issue in the US today that many people don't seem to address. With things like education requiring a laptop or an internet connection to even do assignments, it makes it very difficult for the people that aren't capable of getting those kinds of items due to poverty, lack of household, etc. Closing the digital divide would be such an important feat and would truly allow this nation to be one of opportunity.

FOMO (Fear of Missing Out)

FOMO, or the Fear of Missing Out, is created through social media. It is when you feel left out after seeing other people having fun through their pictures and videos online and it makes you feel anxious. FOMO hasn't affected me too much, I try to just scroll through social media without really thinking about what's being posted. However, more recently, I did get acquainted with someone who I now deeply care about, but because of distance, things would be pretty rough while being up here. I'd get anxious whenever I'd see posts from this person and her friends because I wanted to be there with them. I think just in general I've felt this feeling. Sometimes my friends back home all go out to get dinner while I'm left in the voice chat alone since I'm not there to join them, and it makes me feel lonely and anxious to get home for the summer. I think just being so far away from home has increased FOMO for me, but I hope that changes once I move home. I've been working on doing my own thing and staying occupied, which has helped a great deal.

Photo Manipulation

I definitely think the US should have similar laws surrounding photo manipulation in advertising and media. I feel that despite having a "retouched photograph" watermark on advertising, products will still continue to sell. I feel that, to a certain degree, most people know that what we see in advertising isn't the real thing and that the people in ads usually are edited and touched up in some way. I think this could have a benefit for societal norms because it'll help people realize that what they see on there isn't real and could help convince them to do what they want for themselves instead of relying on so many different beauty products. It would be especially helpful for teaching younger kids about being comfortable being themselves and won't have them going to ridiculous lengths to look like the people in the ads, only to be disappointed. I, however, have mixed feelings about what Getty Images have done. I can understand having the policy set in place to avoid false body manipulation and other possibly controversial content, but I also feel that certain kinds of body manipulation can add a certain artistic style to images, such as super large eyes or a very short body to add comedic effect. However, in the case of stock images, I can understand not wanting to have any sort of manipulation for people as stock images are usually used for professional reasons.

Inclusive Video Games

Video games are a very popular media in our technology-powered society, and can have big influences similar to how movies, tv shows, and other forms of entertainment retain. A bigger topic being discussed more and more recently is the idea of inclusivity within video games and allowing for a larger audience besides the typical male. Playing a lot of video games and seeing these changes first hand, I honestly do think that including other people into a fun piece of entertainment is a good step in the right direction, and I feel more people should really give video games a try since they can be very enjoyable and have good effects on the people that play them. I'm glad that games such as Call of Duty, Overwatch, and more recently, Apex Legends, are including more diverse casts of characters and character customization because I feel it can help immerse some beginner players into the games more and possibly help them get deeper into games. However, despite me being supportive of more inclusivity and diversity in games, I also do feel it shouldn't be forced. I'm not against diversity or anything, but I also feel like certain things shouldn't even need to be mentioned or done just to appease everyone. Apex Legends, made by Respawn Entertainment which is in the same universe as their previous franchise, Titanfall, seems to do diversity and inclusivity very well within their game. They have many strong characters, with around half of them being either female or nonbinary, as well as other ethnicities.  One character, going by the alias of Gibraltar, learned the value of protecting others after him and his boyfriend stole his father's motorcycle, only to end up crashing and causing his father to lose an arm. Now, it was hinted at in his backstory that he was gay, but what I think is nice about this is that it isn't what his character is built around. It's nice to know that he is gay, but it also wasn't forced and it didn't have any effect on his backstory. This is how I feel most video games should be like. I'm all for diversity, but it doesn't need to be forced, and in certain games, it doesn't matter if we know a character's sexuality, race, or gender, but more about the story being told and the enjoyable and fun gameplay. I feel if every video game story exclusively mentioned everyone's sexuality or whatever, I feel it would almost ruin some stories in certain ways because it would just feel too forced and end up becoming a trope. Similar to Gibraltar, I also feel like characters shouldn't be designed around their sexuality because then it could almost become cliche and stereotypical, and wouldn't allow more people of any sexuality or gender to relate with the characters. I can understand these things being mentioned in more story-driven games because sometimes it can add character to some of the people we meet throughout the story, but their character shouldn't be based around what they identify as because then it can just feel really forced.

Digital Divide

I do believe that the digital divide is surprisingly large, despite it feeling like technology like iPhones and laptops are basically commonplace. I feel like if something substantial isn't done to combat this divide, it may never go away or possibly get even worse. According to the graphic on the Politico article, it looks like at least half of the USA has little to no access to rural broadband, and the places that have lots of access are more or less located around big name cities and counties. Also, many of the places in the US only have access to mediocre speeds in terms of internet speed, which can be a big pain for a rapidly advancing technological society where many jobs are taking place online. Even in places where they get 100mbps, it can still be an issue for some since some jobs can require big quantities of bandwidth. I do think that this digital divide is an important issue to focus on because many people in different countries as well as our own struggle to get what is seen as a normal thing to have in society today. Schools and universities continue to move more and more towards the internet for assignments, projects, and other kinds of work. Slow internet speed is already an issue for some, causing trouble for submitting assignments and contacting professors, but the fact that there are people who can't even afford the technology needed for these different classes prevents them from getting a proper (or at least simpler) learning and educational experience. It's an extreme struggle to do an online project when all you have is a phone and no internet access. I do think that programs providing laptops and other technologies to less fortunate groups is a good step in the right direction, and I feel that more effort should be put into these kinds of programs because I feel it could help shrink this divide drastically and help everyone get the education that they deserve.

Future of the Music Industry

Just like technology today, it seems like the music industry is constantly changing and evolving. Maybe not to as high of an extent as technology, but certainly at a good pace. After looking through 2018's Global Music Report and thinking about what I've seen and heard, I do feel the music industry is straying away from physical and moving more towards completely digital. However, despite this, I feel the change is VERY slow, despite how quickly the music industry seems to be changing. I feel like there has been a sort of revival of owning and collecting physical media versus digital media since it can be enjoyable to have a collection, and record players with Bluetooth connectivity seem to be popping up everywhere. Eventually though, I do think that this will ultimately die down eventually and physical media will slowly fade out. It may still be a very long time until this happens, but I do feel it will happen. With 4.5% of physical revenue going down and download revenue going down by a whopping 20.5% according to the IFPI's Annual Global Music Report, it seems that once this change does finally happen, most music will be primarily found on streaming services such as Spotify, Pandora, and Soundcloud. However, I don't think this music will solely be held on these streaming services. Despite there being a 45.5% increase in paid subscription streaming according to this same report, I feel that saying that media will solely be on these platforms is unreasonable, simply because of how much of a revenue cut these streaming services take from publishers and songwriters. As the sale of physical media started to go down and the introduction of digital happened, songwriters, publishers, and even the band itself started earning less and less money due to these revenue cuts that services started to demand. I do feel that them putting their records onto services that charge for the album or individual songs, such as iTunes, would allow them to get more revenue since some of that money would go to the creators of the music, unlike Spotify which just has people paying for the subscription rather than the music itself.

Kickstart Research and APA

Kelion, L. (2018, September 26). Mirrorless cameras: Photography's new decisive moment. BBC News. Retrieved February 22, 2019, from https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-45627055

This article talks about why many photographers are switching over to mirrorless cameras over their mirrored counterparts, and why they are choosing to do so. It also reviews what it means for a camera to be "mirrorless" as well as different sensor sizes and what the sensor is used for. Also it compares different cameras and the quality and usefulness that mirrorless cameras can bring.

Bomey, N. (2018, January 16). CVS bans photo manipulation for store beauty brands, will place alert label on others. USA Today. Retrieved February 22, 2019, from https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2018/01/15/cvs-photo-manipulation-ban/1029616001/

This article talks about the move by CVS to remove any photo manipulation (i.e. Photoshop etc.) from anything relating to makeup or beauty products as to remove the false expectation that people will get from using these products. They also want this to help combat health issues women have due to unrealistic body images since around 80% of their customers are women. They expect this move to be active by April 2019.