The Power of Google

    Google was founded by Larry Page and Sergey Brin who were two students attending Stanford for their PhD's. Google became a public company on August 19th, 2004. Each year Google has grown and has increased their technology. An individual is able to type in any word in the box and thousands of pages will pop up. But Google is not just a place to search information. People are able to access, images, videos, news, maps, and even the Earth. An individual now has the power to go on Google Earth and type in any address and Google will zoom in at the location and see objects move. Google offers an individual everything to an individual and maybe they offer too much. Even though there are some negatives people complain about such as the lack of privacy, Google has many positives that weigh out the negatives. Google will go down as one of the most powerful inventions in our history.
     Google continues to grow its product year after year. Recently, Google has created a new way when you type something into the search box it predicts on the bottom what the individual is trying to type in. Google has the power to see what individuals around the world are searching and based on this information guess what the individual is trying to search. Also, Google now remembers all of the individual’s recent searches and goes from there. Google memorizes your history on the website and based on the individual’s history, they try and guess what the individual is looking for. This is one of the things that people complain about when it comes to Google. They say that they know too much about an individual and the person has no privacy on the web. In Siva Vaidhynathan's article "Googlization of Us" he talks about the power of Google and the realities that people need to accept in current society. Vaidhynathan said, "Younger people, one could point out, are the only ones for whom it seems to have sunk in that the idea of a truly private life is already an illusion" (Vaidhynathan). Siva's point is that young people are already use to the new technology and social network and have come to accept that privacy does not exist. He also believes a big reason why individuals are complaining about the lack of privacy is they are scared what might be posted about them. Vaidhynathan said, "When we complain about infringements of privacy, what we really demand is some measure of control over our reputations" (Vaidhynathan).Siva tries to explain here that people complain about the privacy on Google, but really they are just afraid somebody will post a picture or video of them and it will damage their reputation. Even though an individual may complain about the lack of privacy on Google, there are many resources that an individual can access all on one website.
     Google is an extremely powerful resource. An individual is able to access anything they ever need on this website. If an individual needs to find an address for an interview then a person can go to Google Maps and see how the building looks. An individual was not able to access these things before Google. Google gives an individual the opportunity to look up a topic and find thousands of WebPages related to their topic. I could not survive without Google. Google has helped me in so many ways and I feel an individual at my age would not know what to do if Google collapsed. Google has everything an individual needs all on one website, which is why Google will be remembered as one of the greatest inventions in our history.

The Lack of Privacy in America

     Privacy does not really exist in today's society. Technology has grown so much over the past decades that there is security monitoring your every move in public. A lot of this security has occurred in the post 9/11 era. Ever since America had been attacked by Terrorist our country has gone overboard on monitoring every person's move in public. Some of this can be a good thing because people can feel safer walking in public because they know people are watching. Also, when it comes to Airports, it is a nice feeling knowing that I am safe because security searches an individual much more intensely. But there are many negatives to all of this, which is an individual now has no privacy and cannot keep anything to them. In David Brin's "The Challenge of an Open Society" Brin says that "Darkness doesn't guarantee privacy." (Brin). Everywhere an individual goes there is somebody monitoring their every move and this goes against America's Constitution because an individual does not have access to freedom and liberty. Our country has become much safer since the 9/11 attacks, but an individual is not able to receive his human rights anymore because of the lack of privacy that people have in this society.
      Privacy in has become non-existent in our society. At Deerfield High School where I attended high school at, has a new program where parents can go online and look at their students grades and make sure their child is doing all of their homework. Luckily, I graduated a year before they chose to do this new program because this is an alarming situation. In David Brin's "The Challenge of an Open Society" he stated, "Overprotective parents may check compulsively. And now other parents can observe your child misbehaving" (Brin).  Parents can now check on their kids and make sure they are staying on top on their homework and are not struggling. This new policy takes away what high school is all about for a student. High school is a place that helps you prepare for the real world. Students in high school are at the age where they are considered adults and they need to learn how to be accountable for their own actions. A parent should care how their student is doing in school, but it does not need to know every little detail. It should be up to the student to take responsibility for their own action if they are struggling not for the parent to tell them what to do. No individual knows every little detail about another individual’s life. An individual has the right to keep private to certain things in their lives. But with this new program and how there is surveillance monitoring our every move in public, an individual is not able to keep things to themselves. Individuals are not able to have any privacy anymore and this is an unhealthy characteristic on for our society.
      It is important for an individual to have some privacy. Privacy is a healthy thing for an individual to have. But because of our advanced technology and having to overcome 9/11 privacy barely exists. Everywhere an individual goes somebody is looking at their every move. This is a violation of an individual’s right to freedom and liberty. Even though some of this intense security is a positive such as being safer in public and knowing when we get on an airplane we are safe, but overall the security has gone overboard. People deserve the right to have privacy. National security is very important to citizens because people should always feel safe in their country, but ever since 9/11 has occurred an individual’s privacy has become non-existent because an individual is constantly being watched.

My Flickr Project Experience

     When our professor first told us about this project we were going to be doing I did not know what to expect. But as our group got together and discussed our ideas, it all of a sudden clicked for me. My group found out the perfect idea for this project and the ideas began to flow. Our story was about a relationship where the man cheats on his girlfriend and the girl finds out. Therefore for obvious reasons she broke up with him and the man was furious. He could not believe she was breaking up with him right away and this anger fueled him. As the girl started to find a new boyfriend the ex- boyfriend began to follow their every move. Wherever they went the man was spying on them. Eventually, the man bought a weapon and decided to kill his ex- girlfriend and the new boyfriend. The story was of a breakup that got violent.
      This experience in class was one of the most enjoyable projects I have ever done in a school environment. It was awesome that there was no subject we had to do it on. Our professor allowed us to do the project on whatever we wanted. In a way it is a bit odd with all of the ideas we could have done we chose to do two people dieing. (Haha) But the ability for us to express our imaginations and let our ideas flow was an awesome experience. The coolest part about Flickr is that the project is a slideshow of pictures. Obviously, there are comments on every slide, but really the photo tells the entire story. The famous saying is a picture says a 1,000 words and in this project that saying is really true. Flickr was a really neat project and something my friends would consider to do for fun in the future. Even though our class used Flickr as a project for an assignment, many people use this tool as a way to get exposed and become a professional in photography.
     Flickr is a great tool to use when people are with their friends and want to create a story. But now Flickr is more than just a place to create a slideshow with friends. Flickr is now a way for amateurs to become professionals in photography. For example, Daniel Krieger was originally just a kid posting his photos up for fun. But eventually, people started to take notice of his talents, not just peers on Flickr, but professional businesses. Krieger could not believe all of what was happening to him because he posted a few slideshows and he said, "Being able to watch some regular Joe Schmo buy a camera, hop on Flickr, and develop into a talented photographer.. I don't there that has ever been anything like that"(Maderazo). Social networking has come along so far that people can express their work online and get a professional deal. Before individuals would have to come to the companies office and meet in order to display their work. Now if a company sees what they like on the Internet they can contact the individual using one of the networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, or email. Krieger also said, "Flickr community, has helped make him what he is today: a working professional photographer" (Maderazo). Flickr is a phenomenal tool because everybody can use it. It can be a way for kids to have fun, but also can be a way for inspiring photographers to become professionals. Flickr is also free so it is a great way for inspiring photographers to advertise their works for no charge. Flickr is an amazing tool and my group had a blast using it and hopefully other individuals use Flickr to their advantage.

Our Flickr Project: http://www.flickr.com/photos/68302494@N06/sets/72157627757779001/
My Source: http://www.pbs.org/mediashift/2007/08/flickr-changes-lives-launches-photog-careers214.html

Freedom of Speech or Is It?

Freedom of speech is the first Amendment of the United States Constitution. But does this really mean an individual can say whatever they would like? Well, in today's society an individual cannot. Social networking has taken over the world with people using Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube to express their thoughts.The internet was a great way for an individual to express their beliefs, but now an individual must ask permission before they can post what they believe. In today's society an individual must ask permission to use a song or mention a business on their web pages. The consequences are severe if an individual does not ask for permission first, they could  potentially get sued. The term freedom of speech is almost irrelevant now because in order to post an opinion an individual must ask for permission. The term now is permission to speak and this is preventing the individual to express their imagination and expand on their thoughts. Almost anything people say now the person needs permission and if the company says no then nobody wants to fight it because people cannot pay for lawyers. The lack of freedom of speech being allowed for the individual is hurting the growth of the individual because one cannot express their thoughts and beliefs freely.
     In Lawrence Lessig's book Free Culture we read the chapter "Creators". This section talked about how Walt Disney got his stories from the Grimm Fairy Tales. In 1928 there was a thirty year rule, which meant after thirty years of the work anybody could use the information without needing permission. As Lessig states, "No permission is then needed to drawn upon or use that work"(Lessig). Walt Disney was able to rewrite his own stories from the original Grimm Fairy Tales. Now, people are not able to use somebody else's idea and expand on it because of all the copyright laws. In Japan they take Comics very seriously and it is cruicial for their economy. Japanese are very big on developing their comic authors and they believe the best philosophy is to look at others works. This was a philosophy that the Japanese took from the Americans in the 1920s, which is banned in America today, but beneficial for the Japanese society now. Lessig said, "American comics were born out of copying each other.. That is how the artist was taught how to draw"(Lessig). The best way for people to learn how to get better is by learning from the best. In America we are not allowed to do this because of the copy rights laws and nobody wants to get sued. In Japan they encourage others to copy and take notes because they know that is the best way for them to grow. The Japanese have the freedom of speech and right to explore others works, which helps the individual grow because they can use others works to develop their own thoughts.
     America now has a permission policy where we must ask before we look into somebody's else work. In Lessig's book he talks about how back in the 1920's Walt Disney did not need permission to ask to look at somebodies work. Because Walt Disney was able to look at the Grimm's fairy tales, it helped him discover a billion dollar industry. In order for an individual to succeed he needs to look at the professionals works and see why they were successful. By looking at somebody's work it helps gives the individual the expectations that are required to be successful. Japan has a very vibrant economy right now and people in Japan have a reputation for being extremely well educated. Japanese take comics very seriously and in their culture they encourage others to explore others' work. Because the Japanese are able to look at other people's works it expands their minds and helps discover their ideas. In America today we are not able to use freedom of speech because anything we say or publish without must get permission from the source can lead to serious consequences. The inability for Americans to express their thoughts and beliefs freely is hurting the growth of the individual in our society.