Self-Reflection and Evaluation on Weblog and Self.Net by Charlotte Lam

I remembered the first lecture of Self. Net identity in the digital age, once our lecturer Franco talked about the concept of cyborg, I was confused, and then she further illustrated that we are all cyborg now, I was totally lost! We are cyborg now? At first, cyborg to me is something wired and just like a freak, a combination of human and robot, however, after the 12 weeks lectures, I started to realize why we, human define as a cyborg.

According to Dr. Donna Haraway, “A cyborg is a cybernetic organism, a hybrid of machine and organism, a creature of social reality as well as a creature of fiction. Social reality is lived social relations, our most important political construction, a world-changing fiction.” (Haraway 150). The concept of cyborg from Dr. Haraway is much more complex than mine assumption that I have mentioned before. When I read to a phrase “a hybrid of machine and organism”, I immediately think about my mobile phone, I bet most of you would bring along with your own mobile phone all the time. Another example is, before I start to do my essay or the reflective post that I am now doing, I will do research by Goolge or Yahoo, though these search engine, I could get much information as I can, interestingly, we are no longer submit a hand writing assignment anymore, we should or must to submit a typed-style assignment. What are these means to us? According to a study by Johansson and Borovic which is about how cyberspace is used in everyday interaction. “Preliminary results indicate that the virtual and the real do become one reality; that access to the technology creates a feeling of freedom, and; that the technology affords new kinds of opportunities to social relations as well as to knowledge development. But also, that traditional stereotypes remain”. (Hernwall Are We All Cyborgs? - a Presentation of the Research Project Virtual Society). This research had shown us, we cannot live without technology because we and technology had already combined with each other.

In this unit, I like the topic of “identity” (from week 5) and “work and play” (from week 11). In week 5 lecture, webcam to me is only a tool for us to have a visual communication in Internet, it just only for fun and for convenience, however, it was totally another thing. “When Jenni sits at her computer, however, one has the sense that she has plugged her body into the machine and is connected to the mechanics of her equipment. The image of Jenni as her computer becomes an icon for that fusion, with her flesh melting into her keyboard.” (Eileen and Adam 290). Jennicam is not only for some trivial reason and she is definitely not only an object that but a subject as well. This action had also redefined the words of voyeur, that she anticipates and invites the gaze of the world into her bedroom and she could be the viewee and viewer as well which I think it is the most interesting lecture in the whole unit.

The other lecture- work and play was a very inspired topic for me, work with flexibility is the ideal thing for everyone, our life no longer need to constructed by the working timetable and managed our work more flexible, well, it sounds so ideal and prefect to everyone, but it actually could reinforce the gender role (esp. for female). According to the reading, “for women, the home has so often been the very site of their labour, whether as home “makers” or in the case of the working woman’s “second shift”(Meliss 286). The so-called ideal method for female is actually can gives the dual responsibilities of them. It reminds me that, we could not be so naïve, media could shape our mind and thoughts, we got to have a critical mind in other to think independently and judge thing by ourselves.

Well, it is a brand new experience for me to using a weblog for academic used. In my previous experience, i used to type my diary on Internet, it is so personal unlike this weblog. However, i kinda like this idea somehow, not only it had provide us an other method for us to "submit our assignment", but it also provided a platform us for us to express our thoughts on the unit and those presentations that we have made on every thursday, this is really a rare opportunity to me to let my opinion supposed is in academic way to turn into a more relax way, just like a sharing with the other bloggers, therefore, i will treasures this chance and re-think the means of weblog, not only in a personal-used but also could be an academic-used!!

The above are just some of my reflection after the course and I feel so lucky that I could have an opportunity to take this course because it not only taught me some theories about the cyborg but also let me know more about the issues that I may never noticed it and provided me a chance to re-think it which I think is the most important thing!

Reference

Gregg, Melissa. The Normalisation of Flexible Female Labor in the Information Economy. Feminist Media Studies, 2008. Print.

Green, Eileen, and Alison Adam. "A Camera with a View: JenniCAM, Visual Representation and Cyborg Subjectivity." Virtual Gender: Technology, Consumption, and Identity. London: Routledge, 2001. 290. Print.

Haraway, Donna Jeanne. "A Cyborg Manifesto: Science, Technology, and Socialist-Feminism in the Late Twentieth Century." Simians, Cyborgs, and Women: the Reinvention of Nature. New York: Routledge, 1991. 150. Print.

Hernwall, Patrik. Are We All Cyborgs? – a Presentation of the Research Project Virtual Society. Rep. Department of Education, Stockholm University. Web. 29 Apr. 2011. .

Self-Reflection and Evaluation on Weblog

I am a cyborg
What is a cyborg? A superhero in science fictions? Or a new model robot? Donna Haraway defined cyborg is both a ‘creature of social reality’ and ‘creature of fiction’. She further explains cyborg as a series of real connections between bodies and machines, but it is also a series of metaphors, or new ways of telling stories in order to negotiate culture. (Andrew Murphie, 2003, p.116) This concept is highly influential human’s interpretation of the cyborg. At the beginning, I do think I am a 100 % human. However, when I think about Donna Haraway’s definition of cyborg. I found it is very hard for us to claim you as a 100% human anymore. It is because human and technology are merging together, we cannot live without technology. For example, when we do project or essay, we tend to use computer to help us finish these jobs. When we stay at home, everything around us is invaded by technology such as TV, light, cooker etc. you can imagine if there is no technology, our life and thinking will totally different. Technology become part of my life, it act as an externally nutrition to help my life goes smoother and better. Therefore, I definitely regard myself as a cyborg with a nice temperament and appearance. Lol ( a cyber language means laugh out loud)

My experience as being a blogger
To be honest, I do not like to use blog for submitting assignments or essay. I understand it is a new method for us to experience more on the relationship between technology and human. I do think it is a very successful way to let us feel what are the feelings of disclose your privacy.
This blog gives me a great feeling of technology power in the development of greatly improved technologies for storing and manipulating information. As we have to comment on two other tutorial presentations posted in the same week, my peers and I always forget to leave a comment on the same week. One day, my peers told me the date can be changed. In other words, I can leave the comment of week 2 presentation in week 6 without breaking the rules, because no one will know it. There is nothing impossible in cyber space, not only manipulate the text, but also the time.
The other feeling about being this weblogger is it blurs the boundary of private and public place. For me, I always do essays or assignments at home and submit them at school. However, this weblog washes these away. Now, I do the weblog by my iphone which means I can do and submit the assignments everywhere and anywhere. Yes. It is more convenient compare to the past. However, I also treat the assignment in a more causal way. It seems change my experience and attitude of learning.

Feeling about this unit
In this unit, I love week 5 (identity) most. The reading of this week is very interesting which talk about Jennicam. According to the Krissi M. Limaroglou, Jenni occupies the hybrid position of both object and subject, she is a composer and is composed.( Krissi M. Limaroglou, 2001, p.291) It is not only talking about Jenni’s situation, but also can apply in our real world. In reality, men objectify women if they view and treat them as objects of male sexual desire; they desire them to be submissive, and force them to submit; they believe that women are in fact submissive; and they believe that they are submissive in nature. (Ann J. Cahill, 2011, p.20) In Jenniscam, we can see the traditional thought of objectify women and how Jenni overthrows the thought and take control of how people look at her. This let me think about technology can change the norms or represent the norms on our reality. People will also express their own feelings or dissatisfaction of the society through the internet.
This unit do inspires me to think more about the relationship between technology and human deeply as well as how technology changes our society and identity. I think this unit tells me what the world is going to be and there can be a lot of possibilities exist in our world.


Reference
Green, Eileen, and Alison Adam. "A Camera with a View JenniCAM, Visual Representation and Cyborg Subjectivity." Virtual Gender: Technology, Consumption, and Identity. London: Routledge, 2001. 286-301.

Cahill, Ann J. "Troubling Objectivication." Overcoming Objectification: a Carnal Ethics. New York: Routledge, 2011. 1-31.

Murphie, Andrew, and John Potts. "Cyborgs: the Body, Information and Technology." Culture and Technology. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003. 115-41.

Sylvie's reflective post

The use of blogs for learning purposes:

At first, I felt excited to join this blog, since this is my first time partake in blogging. I also looked forward to see how it would work to facilitate me in learning. Yet, after these 12 weeks, I am regret to say that it is not as useful/helpful as I expected.

The idea of sharing the online study materials in the blog was appreciated. However, as young people use blogs to express their emotions and feelings about the experiences of their life, love, relationship with others, or even the week, but not of the academic subjects. Well, may be to complain about their lecturers or the difficulty of the course, but not about study. Therefore, the posts were all posted only according to the requirements of the assessments, and hence could not generate effective discussion. Besides, the tutorial discussion was even more lively than this blog. In this regard, it is not as effective as it seemed.

Do I regard myself as a cyborg?

As said by Dr Donna Haraway, "A cyborg is a cybernetic organism, a hybrid of machine and organism". Although in the later lecture cyborg is also defined as confusing boundaries of body and machine, I still do not see myself as a cyborg.

I have not had any surgery, so there is no machine nor technology inside my body. Therefore I am not a coupling between organism and machine. Furthermore, I am not addicted with any video game, computer game and online game, thus compared to those obsessed I am less likely to be a cyborg.

On the other hand, I could not but admit that to certain extent I have a close relationship with technologies, such as my mobile phone, though I can live without technology. As a matter of fact, I did live without technology. I had been living in a village in a foreign country with only little access to network and computer for four years.

Nowadays, technologies have an inseparable relationship with human, nevertheless, we can still control the amount of time we spend with them.

What have I most like or not about the unit in general?

This unit has taught me some whole new ideas to think about "woman" and the technologies. It has provided me a new perspective to see the impact of technologies on human. Those were something that I have never thought of. Therefore, it was very difficult for me to understand at the beginning. But then when our lecturer Franco and our visiting lecturer Alison explained to us the concepts, I have gradually comprehend the course and even deliberate using the ideology learnt. This unit is fascinating and interesting to study.

Nat's Reflexion on Self.Net

Am I a cyborg?
A cyborg is defined by Donna Haraway as a cybernetic organism, a hybrid of machines and human. I would deny it when I first reached this concept. It’s just doesn’t make sense to see myself, a person with flesh and blood, a machine-human hybrid. As I studied more, I understand that a cyborg doesn’t necessarily have a machine incorporated into the body but it has a machine emotionally and intellectually interacted with its mind. It is true to me when I’m on Facebook and MSN, managing the digitized self on the Internet. And I’d check email frequently as it serves as an antenna to receive and give response to the outer world. Thus I’d see myself as a cyborg now. It’s hard to avoid being one when you live in a city when digital devices are around you and you depend on them to carry on your living.

How I see this weblog?
Compared to discussion time in tutorials, I think it’s a good platform for us to express our points of views in clearer way. We type it out in complete sentences and can refer to previous points anytime. What’s more, we can do research and refer to resources on the Internet for a rich discussion on the topic. This is only the ideal case. Honestly, I seldom go to this blog and it’s hard to explain why.

How I see this subject?
I think this is an interesting subject which provides eye-widening theories on self. The theories seem to be far-reaching in the beginning. This is no longer the case when numerous examples and explanations have been provided in lectures and tutorials. The readings are especially easy to digest when key concepts have been clearly illustrated in lectures. The abstract concepts become concrete especially when they’re delivered in images and videos. This gives me a new angle to see the world around us.

What inspirations do I gain from the unit?
This unit inspires me to think about the value of human. What defines human? Many questions pop up my mind when I put spot on this fundamental question. If the literacy and the wooden handcrafts are the traces defining the existence of human in the past, what defines human in our generation would be computer programmes and electronic devices invented? If human natures like empathy and uniqueness are what makes a person human, would computerizing practices like putting codes on people or overuse of computers a way to dehumanize people unconsciously? To have an electronic companion like Doraemon would be possible in the future? If so, it would be great!:) 

Self-Reflection and Evaluation on Weblog and Unit_Yoyo

Am I a Cyborg?

In definition, a cyborg is a combination of mechanics and organics. When I was born, I become a cyborg unconsciously once I directly or indirectly use the technology. During childhood, I started to play video games and Game Boy. I have used the machine devices for entertaining myself. At that time, I do not consent that I have relied on the technology. When I am growing up, the higher academic level I attend, the more time I spend on working with a computer. Sometimes, I sit in front of my computer even half of the day. I gradually recognize I have an inseparable relationship with the technology.

However, the adaptation of Apple iPhone is the turning point. Preciously, I would mock somebody who holds a smartphone and says he/she cannot live with the phone. In my mind, the technology was powerless because human creates it. Yet, my living habit, interaction models with friends and ways of receiving information have changed significantly, after I brought the iPhone last year. I acknowledge that I cannot stay away from my iPhone even for few seconds. Nowadays, I cannot but admit that I am a cyborg because I will feel lost and anxious if the technology is gone in my life.

Evaluation of the Weblog

Actually, the idea of organizing a weblog for learning purpose is theoretically meaningful. For example, students are required to post a webliography in Week 6. Assumed that there are 30 students in the class, I can access to 150 online research articles in total on five given topics in relation to the unit – an academically efficient and effective platform providing numerous relevant references.

The weblog, unfortunately, has increased our workloads. For instance, students need to post the summary about their presentations, simultaneously to pay time on monitoring and responding to discussion, as well as commenting on two other posted tutorial presentations. As a result, students are evaluated on the five main tasks (excluding webliography) completed on the weblog, which altogether count 15% marks only.

Evaluation of the Unit

The unit is substantial in content. It covers some macro-scale issues underlying the computer-mediated communication such as identity, gender, race and class. In last semester, I had deliberated whether the technology dominates human (technology determinism); in this semester, I have critically thought how self-identity is constructed with the technology. From the media texts shown in class as exemplifications, I was quite shock that human apparently is benefitted from the technology, but actually is exploited by the technology at once.

Honestly, I begin to be aware of the side effects like privacy disclosure on using technology after taking this unit. For example, a large proportion of my friends are using a popular iPhone application called “Whatsapp”. I installed it due to my best friend’s recommendation. Unexpectedly, this app require getting access to the address book, otherwise, I cannot use it. What jumped into my mind is how the contacts information will be used by the creator of “Whatsapp”. Most importantly, I cannot read the user terms before choosing “Yes”, unless I empower this app to read through all the contacts in my iPhone. Finally, I decided to click “No” and deleted the app. In the past, I might not care about the privacy matter. But now, I do.

On the other hand, I think the distribution of assessment percentages is imbalance. As I mentioned above, the weblog participation just take three-twentieths of the overall performance; while the major research essay charges 50%, a considerable weight, on the unit assessment. I think there should have some adjustments or rearrangements on the unit marks.

Tutorial presentatio: Posthuman

Week 12 - Posthuman Conclusions Presentation Summary
By Abe Lo, Jason Hung, Serena Chung

The presentation will be mainly based on the reading of Katherine Hayles, "Flesh and Metal: Reconfiguring the Mindbody in Virtual Enviorments". As regard to the reading, Hayles had defined 'Posthuman' as a construction that participates in the world with cognition spread throughout the body and the environment. This is a different concept from the cyborg ones, as it suggests that posthuman will not only simply a combination of a flesh body and wires, but having a interaction with the intelligent environment we live and work in.

Here the two main arguments will be briefly introduced in order to support this posthuman saying. They are the embodied experiment and the symbiotic relationship between human and technology respectively.

For the embodied experiment, it is a characteristic which always being neglected in the history of cybernetic. According to Hayles, our embodiment is an internal experience like feelings, emotions and sensations, this kind of experience is not merely an interplay of brain and viscera, but actually a result of our constant engagement with the environment around. Therefore, as living in the high-technical world nowadays, it will shift our habits, postures, enactments and perceptions.



Driving is an example that technology had changed and formed our habits. Since we are already very familiar of how to control a vehicle, our controlling of the vehicle seems to be habitual that we can deal with the road situations with the relevant functions of the car without conscious decision.



3D technology is another example of embodiment as with the 3D technology, it helps human to have a new visual experience which also confuses our perception.

For the symbiotic relationship of human and technology, nowadays the cognition is not only take place in human brains, but also embedded in the environment by technology. Human and technology live so close together and need to depend on each other in particular ways, while both of them are getting benefits from each other as well.



Technologies such as hearing aid, cardiac pacemaker and the human heart produced in lab, can all be an example to show how human is being convenience and having a healthy life with the use of technology, whereas technology also being advanced by us.

Hence, human are difficult to live without technology in the posthuman age.

After presenting the concepts of posthuman listed above, our group would like to have a discussion of the following issues:

1) Is there a line between human and technology?
2) Will there be a possibility that technology's cognition will over and control the human ones in the future?
3) Can you accept to remain harmony with the unnatural creatures (critters), which is created by us with advanced technology?

In our group's opinion, we think it is too arbitrary to say that there is a boundary between human and technology, as this line will shift with times. In the past, human was the creator and controller of technology. Nowadays, it seems the status among both of them become parallel. Also, the act of trying to find a boundary line to divide human and technology as two separate and different things is actually a result of the binary thought. We always define what is natural, biological between human and technology. Even a technological creature seems to be a biological organism (like the human heart created in lab), we would argue that it can't be counted into an organism since it is not from nature. However, is there necessary to find a line between human and technology, especially in the technological environment of today? Instead of thinking with the binary relation in between, maybe we can see human and technology as a whole, that technology is a thing that help human to connect to the world, environment and the spirits.

Tutorial Presentation - Week 11: Work and Play

Week 11 Work and Play
Tutorial Presentation Summary
By Carmen Lam, Charlotte Lam & Oscar Kwan

Our group has decided to choose “Work” as the theme of our presentation. The presentation is mainly divided into three main aspects to examine the women in workplace in terms of flexibility, work-style and work choice.

To start with, with the development of our society, it seems that the new technology can liberate the women’s sense of self and gender identity in work. In terms of flexibility, it can blur the binary of “private” and “public” as well as “work” and “home”. For example, there is an increasing number of media and advertisements which emphasize women can work at home nowadays. However, does it mean another kind of exploitation to women rather than being flexible for them?

According to the reading written by Gregg (286), for women, the home has so often been the very site of their labor, whether as home “makers” or in the case of the working women’s “second shift”. Moreover, the notion of flexibility seems to be ideal to the women. Yet, this so called “ideal” actually reinforces the gender role of women. They have to be a primary care-giver in family. At the same time, they have to work for support the family. Then in fact, they have to take the dual responsibility.

Secondly, our media and society encourages a new concept of work-style. By consuming through and at work, people can be more fashionable. For example, working by the laptop in café and using Skype to hold a meeting. This leads to a new class which named “creative class”. It implies that women do not only can participate in the traditional occupations. They can choose to do some freelance job so that they can “enjoy” this work-style. However, it means that they are working under the unstable condition such as unknown wages, working hours and duties. In additions, this leads to the problem of taking the responsibility. As she decided to take this kind of unstable career choice, if anything goes wrong, she has to blame herself only. Frankly speaking, moreover, this definitely interrupts our leisure time. Thus, this only lets women have the freedom to work, at times and locations rather than freedom from work.

In terms of work choice, as women still have to take the role of care-giver, it limits the work choice of them. Though some upper class can access the internet and so to do some creative jobs, lower class females are still suppressed in our society. They are hard to be flexible due to lack of education and belonging to the non-White group. Therefore, choice reinforces rather than challenges traditional assumptions about and practices of gender division of labor in family and society.

Thus, to conclude, work is still limiting women’s roles by reinforcing their inferior images in terms of flexibility and work choice.

After the presentation, we are going to hold a discussion of this issue. Overall, there are three questions will be discussed.

1. As you are going to be graduated, do you prefer working as a freelancer/ working at home in the future?

2. Ref: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiXqwsqYKrc
After watching this part of TV program, do you think that in our HK society, female still have to take the primary care-giver role in family?

3. Hong Kong is an egalitarian city, so do you think that there still are the problems of gender division of labor?


In our opinion, we also agree the reading that work indeed limits women’s role. Though contemporary society encourages egalitarian, status of women in workplace is still very low. The development of society and technology seems to improve the situation of their workplace. In fact, this more exploits women in terms of their live and time. Also, social norms are still very rooted that females should take the primary care-giver role in the family. Thus, for the independent female, they receive a high pressure from the society that they do not have a family while the working mothers have to do the part-time or inferior occupations in the job market. Thus, we believe that work definitely is limiting women’s role rather than liberate them.

We are going to present this thursday, hope that everyone can enjoy our presentation.
Thank you!

News Reflection by Serena

Wade, Will. “The Future Shape of Payments is Anything But Flat” American Banker Article. 16 April 2011. http://www.americanbanker.com/specialreports/174_3/-373004-1.html

The article mainly discusses the way of payment in future, which no longer is cash or credit card.“Over time, there will be a natural evolution to new payment instruments. It can be a watch, a camera, a car key, even a sticker, or, as many executives expect will be the next major stage in the evolution of payments technology, a mobile phone.” The principle is simple that the contactless chips can be stick on any kind of objects and it does not have to be a card anymore. For the view of it, the article stated that they raise an idea that consumers can choose the device that they like for payment and it can be considered a viable replacement in future.

When I read this article, I have a mind that a lot of things that we now think they are impossible to occur, will happen in our future someday. We may pay the bills at a supermarket by a watch with payment capabilities and no need to queue up for cash payment. The method of payment is just as same as the operations of Octopus watch now that paying our fees with different payment devices. When we are able to use these devices shopping at the supermarket, and we generally use electronic money for trade, furthermore, that represents we live in a high level technological era. And we are really the cyborgs at this time that not only coexist with prosthesis or artificial heart but human-machine symbiosis.

Future is full of impossibility. Before the smart phone, we just got the mobile phone which disconnects to the internet. It definitely proves that technology is getting more and more advanced. And the means of payment may have a great change in coming future and I believe that it will be a common way for us to pay bills.

After reading the article, you probably need a visual.

News story reflection by Renile

Dennis, O'Reilly. "The Internet and the Death of Ethics." CNET news. 12 October,2010. Retrieved on 15 April,2010. http://news.cnet.com/8301-13880_3-20018998-68.html Do we need to have internet ethics? It is a very difficult question to answer. To some people, they may argue that, we can do or write whatever we want in the cyber world on the condition that it is not illegal. However, the writer of this article argues that he has already seen the death of ethics on the internet. For instance, those cases of plagiarism, using names of other people for sending emails and posting indecent videos in order to attract more viewers for earning money from advertisers are severely serious nowadays. However, what make things even worse was that people didn’t realize the seriousness of these actions. When do we become conscious about computer ethics? Actually, in 1989, the internet Advisory Board first issued a memo about computer ethics for the sake of the US government. As more people came to realize the issues of computer ethic, later, the Computer Ethics Institute set the ten commandments of computer ethics to entreat computer users to treat the others with consideration and respect. From the perspective of sociology, achieving social goals is so important to many people in today’s society, i.e. to make money or to achieve high social standard. Nevertheless, different people might use different ways. Some may follow the tradition path to earn money. But some might choose the other way round such as by uploading indecent video to make money or by copying works from others to make money. In my opinion, the reason why they did such things might be because internet is a good place to get information and easy to access. By one click, you can get what you want or who you want to contact. As some might think that the information is available online, it means that they are willing to share it with everyone in the cyber world. Hence, lots of people would believe that copying information is not a serious matter and ignore the seriousness of it. Besides, it is a controversial matter to determine whether loading indecent video for making money is ethical or unethical, as they may argue it is not a law-breaking activity. Those are just some examples quoted by the writer. I am sure there might be a lot more different examples. I believe that it is a very difficult task to set a line to determine where the ethical line should be put in the cyber world. However, the presence of the 10 commandments is a signal for warning us that we need to change and re-examine our attitude towards using internet. To conclude, I want to quote the words from Virginia Shea, I also believed that internet user “should behave to the same standards of behaving in real life.”

Newstory from Sam =)

According to the article, there are cyber wars happened in the state and private networks. In the following sections, two discussions will be held.

1) Re-thinking about the definition of war

Like the security expert Bruce Schneier mentioned it is hard to define and describe the cyber war. Critical infrastructure, state and private networks data will be spied and stolen during the cyber war. What have happened in the virtual war is totally different with the "real war". In reality, people suffered from various kind of physically and mentally tortured. For example, like rape, get shot or suffferd mentally illness. They may even die during the war. The lost and damage in reality war time and virtual war are completely different. From the differences, can the cyber war still claim as "war"?
This re-thinking is inspired by one of our classmates presentation question: If a person has been raped in the matrix world, does it count as rape?

The damage caused in cyber war would indirectly harm the people in reality. Then does it still count as war? It is worthwhile for people to re-think it!

2) Regulations and morality

In the journal, they claimed that they have to protect the state and private networks away from the terrorist and cyber criminal. In order to defend themselves from the invasion, they proposed to establish the new cyber protection system. However, are they really that harmful to public? Who are the biggest group being influenced? In a skeptical POV, public definitely vote for yes to pass the rules when they heard the terms like "terrorist" and "criminal". For me, I think the real victims are the state and private "companies" being threatened. They may suffer great or enormous economic lost when the "hackers" reveal their secrets or something that has done and against the public. If the state and private entrepreneurs are that skeptical, why do we have to protect them? And who should be given power to enact the law and system?

"Stealing" data from the the public is not moral as it harms the majority, according to the utilitarianism. Then how about the "big" company that force their customers to agree all the privacy settings which later sell the data to another company. Is it moral as well?

To conclude, no matter how virtual war happens, it does influence the reality. It is hard to select the specific one to have right for execution. There are always different standards to measure. We really cant determine who is the most suitable one to be the "one" in reality and virtual reality. It is so pity that people are educated to measure things with principle of duality and class systems.

Reference:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-12768617

Ava's reflection on a newstory

Moseman, Andrew. “Who's Smarter, a Human or a Computer? Round 9: Jeopardy.” Discovery Magazine. 14 April. 2011. 17 April 2011. http://discovermagazine.com/2011/jan-feb/14-who.s-smarter-human-computer-round-9-jeopardy/article_view?b_start:int=0&-C=

“Who’s smarter, a human or a computer?” What a vigilant article, published in Discovery Magazine on 14Feb, 2011. The article mainly reported on the Jeopardy competition with Ken Jennings, Brad Rutter and IBM’s Jeopardy-playing computer system, named Watson. When looking through the article, a quite interesting question raised in my mind is that -- is “Watson” a cyborg? In the last few lectures, we’ve been discussing the virtual and reality, cyborg and robot. Is Donna Haraway’s definition of cyborg unquestionable? Is the boundary of robot, cyborg blurred? In this article, I just want to take “Watson” as an example to reflect on the topic of cyborg.

Regarding the definition by Donna Haraway, cyborg is “a hybrid of machine and organism”, should it be possible to say “Watson” is an organism? Actually, when IBM’s Deep Blue, chess-playing program, won a chess game against world champion Garry Kasparov in the 1990s, both software designers of checkers, chess, Scrabble, bridge, and more are hoping to create systems that master the game. However, Jeopardy competition is not the case. Machine is needed to parse clue and analyze the category title to pick out the proper response, just like human, in Jeopardy competition. Mathematical and closed system resembling chess-playing program is unable to handle the situations.

Therefore, “Watson” was inserted a great amount of database which is “human experience” in my word. Although “Watson” is not physically “a hybrid of machine and organism”, emotionally, “Watson” is an organism because it is regarded as a supercomputer to surpass human mind. First, though he was stuffed in an ordinary metal box, do you agree “Watson” is a robot? Then, if “Watson” a robot, do you agree robot supposedly is emotionless? Hence, “Watson” is emotionless? Lastly, if an emotional robot is thinking like human, is it a cyborg? Paradoxically, scientists seem to comment on the issue by giving a human identity to this supercomputer by naming it “Watson”.

“Watson” is a very good example to reconsider the blurred boundary of robot, cyborg and human. When we consider ourselves cyborgs just because our virtual identity in cyberspace, then why can’t we consider “Watson” as a cyborg just because it has human mind and was given a human identity by scientists? In the digital age, the relationship of human and machine become correlated. The blurred identities of human and machine in a way were re-defined by the cyborg theory. Actually, is it necessary to create cyborg “Watson” to win human? Maybe it is non-sense in the 19th century, but in today’s technological dominated society, it seems as ordinary as we chat online but not by cell phone.

New story reflection by Kit Chan

The link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/35272248/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/ This news relates to our topic which is online communities. The news talks about a rape case on the internet, but it really happened in the reality. A woman in Casper really was assaulted at her home. Therefore, the authorities have charged two men. One has charged with carrying out the rape. Another is accused of posing as the victim online and said that the woman had rape fantasy. We have to think about our online identity affect our daily life or not. In the news, a man pretended the victim online and posted a “rape fantasy” message on the internet. No one can imagine that there is someone get that message and make it true at last. People always believe that cyber space is a fiction. They can have fun with any responsibility, because the online identity does not represent your real identity. For example, people can scold or threaten who they hate. They can attract people by malicious language through the online identity. People usually get hurt mentally, but this time is different. The victim got assault physically. This proved that what you do on the internet can relate your real identity. Therefore, we have to think about even your online identity is fake or not, this could affect your daily life seriously. The other argument is the laws can be applied for the cyber space or not. This news answered us yes. It is a wise and suitable decision for the criminals. People cannot believe that it is illegal to pretend others’ identity online and send out some kind of fantasy message. The regulations can have deterrent effect for the cyber users. This can make the users pay more attention on responsibility. They will think clearly before they have to leave their comment or post something online. I think it is great that the laws can regulate the internet users to decrease the internet crime.

Reflection on Newstory: Mind Rape

The article I choose is a blogger mainly discusses the tropes in television content and the topic which the chosen article is about “mind rape”. One of the scenes from “Babylon 5” was mentioned and lead to the discussion of emotional and psychological torture of human. In the article, the author thinks that although “no sexual contact occurs, but everything else is there to resemble a rape”, while “the physical attacks won’t go very far”.

The way of which the author sees “mind rape” has encouraged me to rethink about the very original nature of “rape” as a kind of attack.

Some argument deems that rape in cyberspace is not a “real rape” as there is no physical contact. Moreover, most importantly, the law, for example in Hong Kong, has defined the action of “rape” by describing the unwilling sexual intercourse between a man and woman. Regarding to this argument or definition, the injury of the body resulting from rape becomes the main concern. In other words, “rape” is not metaphysic, therefore, the term “mind rape” is only a symbolic of how a person’s mentality injury. Nevertheless, in my point of view, if “rape” is being as a tool to attack people, it must be related to someone’s mind including mentality and emotion. It is because “attack” that is being as a warning or demonstration of power is sending message to the victim. Physical injury is only one of the ways to send this message as the injury relates to the feeling of offensiveness, pain, fear, danger, etc. For example, if we are beaten to bleed, it is the feeling of pain and the fear of dead that enable the possibility of “attack”. The action of “rape” which is being an attack is never merely include physical injury, but must be related to the psychological and emotional injury.

Under this sense, “mind rape” is no long only a symbolic term which borrows the situation in the reality in order to describe what happen on the Internet, but rather an even stronger term which emphasize on the extent of the injury of mentality and emotion which result from cyberspace bully. As there is no difference between “rape “and “mind rape”, there should not be any excuse for people to take it as easy as only a kidding or teasing and regulation should protect people from being mind raped too.

Different from rape in reality, mind rape is not obvious and happens in various situations. It is hard to define mind rape and the meanings of language depend greatly on context, a flexible regulation is needed for the Internet. Although it may not be fair that different webmaster has different definition of the concept of mind rape, the flexibility helps with maintaining the freedom of speech on the world of Internet.

Tvtropes. "Mind Rape". Available on: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/MindRape. Retrieved on 15 APRIL 2011.

News reflection by Jason

The link: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-12162063

‘Teachers’ union warns of dangers of online ‘abuse’’ is the topic of this online news resource on 11 January 2011 that was impressed me a lot. The news is about there is more and more teachers were bullied on the network by the parents but not just the students. The National Association of Headteachers (NAHT) reported that there were some adult bullied cases occurred recently and they told BBC Radio 5 live that they will prepare to take action if the parents continue making the libelous comments on websites.

‘The NAHT said that they received calls every week from teachers who believe they have been ‘cyberbullied’ – and the majority of complaints are about parents using the web to criticize teachers or a school’s scholarship.’ BBC’s reporter said. In the news, there was an example of parents online-attacked the teachers and school. The content is about a parent, Sam who tried to make appointment to see the headmistress about her son being bullied. But she was told that she couldn’t see the headmistress and when she went to the school, the headmistress wasn’t there. After this, she vented her angry on her Facebook page, she wanted other parents to know what was going on. But Sam got a letter from the school warning of legal action if her comments became libelous. At last, the NAHT said that they will set up some instruction for the teachers and teach them how to solve these kind problems.

In the news, there is a sentence which is made me impressed – ‘Social networking sites are a medium for the unreasonable and the unprincipled’. Nowadays, social network become an essential part in our life and it seems that it replaced the traditional approaches to communicate with people. To educate a student is not only the reasonability of the teachers, it also need the communication between the parents and teachers. It is nothing wrong to say that using social network is very convenience to communicate, but I think that face to face communication is the most direct way and it is more effectively. Therefore, if the parents have any problems about the students, I think they should go to school and find the teachers to discuss, rather than online chatting and using the network to bully others.