Group items tagged

Google's plan to provide internet access to the most remote regions of the world.

This article reports cyber attacks on major websites like Twitter and Netflix. What's frightening is that attackers used "hundreds of thousands of internet-connected devices like cameras, baby monitors and home routers that have been infected - without their owners' knowledge - with software that allows hackers to command them to flood a target with overwhelming traffic." These are attacks that can easily reach into my daily life. I've felt (falsely) "immune" to random attacks like the shootings and bombings we hear of in other major cities (besides my Chicago), but I'm not immune to these. However, it's better than a bomb in the subway!

"Delays to loading web pages and videos increase our heart rate and produce a level of stress equivalent to watching a horror film, according to a study from Ericsson."

"It turns out that the means of delivery, the things the Internet has let us do over the last two decades or so, give us a good clue as to what will need to remain consistent in your digital program (or whatever it ends up being called) over the next half century."

Interesting article about the social aspect of teenagers on the internet. Not so much about the darker aspects but about the "garden variety" relationships and how they affect kids.

interesting findings from the census

The Boston Marathon bombings were horrifying for many reasons, and one is how easy it is for someone to construct a deadly bomb using simple and easily obtainable materials, with instructions posted on the internet. This is one of the hazards of technology - misuse and abuse.

Emails "hijacked" from Clinton's campaign manager's email account and being slowly released by Wikileaks show us once again that we don't have privacy on the internet. The "transparency" this is forcing in regard to the Clintons' foundation is troubling less than 2 weeks before the election.

Human memory is a weak point in cyber security. Passwords are an essential part of existing on the internet, and most of them are terrible. But they are terrible for good reason: Passwords need to be remembered and long, obscure phrases built out of letters, numbers, and symbols are hard, so people tend to pick up something basic like abc123, and then leave it alone until they're eventually hacked and locked out of their email.

The F.C.C. passed new rules that "prevent companies like AT&T and Comcast from collecting and giving out digital information about individuals - such as the websites they visited and the apps they used - in a move that creates landmark protections for internet users." This is an exciting development in light of what we've learned about how big communications companies use our histories to target advertising. It is real progress in the securing of our privacy.

The positive and negative effects of technology.

When we think technology, we mostly relate it to the internet. The computer era has certainly transformed many areas in society. But, for every action, there is an opposite and equal reaction. In spite of all the positive influences technology has brought on society, we can not ignore the other side of the coin.

This older article gives a nice overview of the inherent risks of technology in regard to interpersonal relationships. The author is looking specifically at the effects of internet addiction here. Gives general information and advice---not too preachy or scientifically in-depth (clearly it's written for a general audience) but good for those in psychology, social work, and mental health counseling fields.