Choose Very Carefully: a Review of Black Mirror – Bandersnatch
Manipulated comes from manus: hand We see ourselves manipulated and hope in this way to come to grips with our reality When it was really still hands manipulating us manipulation … Continue reading
Apple is all ears
Once upon a time, if somebody claimed that there were microphones installed in their home that were listening in on their every word they would be dismissed as a paranoid … Continue reading
Here’s looking at you…
If at first an ill-advised piece of consumer technology doesn’t succeed in winning over a skeptical public, you can be certain that another tech company will be willing to try … Continue reading
Apple Is Not the Messiah
There is a lot of money to be made in crafting carefully manicured public relations campaigns for major corporations. Numerous large firms exist solely for the purposes of selling their … Continue reading
How to Keep What You Are Reading Secret
Is there anything more annoying than being interrupted with the question “hey, what are you reading?” while you are engrossed in a book? Is there anything more frustrating than feeling … Continue reading
Google learns the Alphabet
“You still have to learn the ABC. The ABC says: They will get you down.” – Bertolt Brecht The way to spell “Google” has changed, and now the way to … Continue reading
Facebook Gets Emotional
Have you ever found that you felt rather depressed after using social media? What about quite happy? It is probably no great stretch to imagine that the answer to at … Continue reading
Google Glass in Libraries – Disruption or just Disruptive?
Libraries are highly technological places. From books to microfilm readers to computers – a library that is free of technology is an oxymoron. Granted, there is a difference between a … Continue reading
We Apologize, We Will Change – An open letter from the NSA
[For Immediate Release – an open letter from the Assistant Director of the National Security Agency] To my fellow citizens, We are sorry. Let me repeat that to make my … Continue reading
Trading One Myth for Another – Seeing through Google’s Glass
A compelling argument could be made that myths have played, and continue to play, an important role in human societies. Granted, these myths appear in as many shapes and bizarre … Continue reading
Towards Which Utopia in 2014?
The start of a new year is the socially sanctioned moment when people are encouraged to engage in optimistic dreaming. People “resolve” that in this year they shall achieve some … Continue reading
In 2014…they’re resolved to keep watching…
It may be an understatement to claim that 2013 was an interesting year. Though it may also be a rather meaningless statement seeing as any year could be described as … Continue reading
‘Twas the Night Before Christmas (and the NSA was watching)
Twas the night before Christmas, and all thro’ the house The only sound to be heard, was the click of a mouse; The family used their digital devices with little … Continue reading
Is Privacy Really A Priority?
Would you be willing to get rid of your smartphone to protect your privacy? What about e-mail, would you close your account if it meant that you could be certain … Continue reading
They’ll Keep Watching Us…
The crowds gathered at a public protest seldom represent the true numbers that agree with the protestor’s cause. Whether prevented from attending by the physical obstacle of distance, financial obstacle … Continue reading
Rotten to the Core
The new Apple product never falls too far from the technical tree; and the digital fruit that is picked from the orchard this season is rarely significantly different from the … Continue reading
A Prequel to 1984? Just look around…
If George Orwell had decided to write a prequel to his novel 1984 it is conceivable that the tale would look very much like a description of our current times. … Continue reading
Luddism for These Ludicrous Times
A specter is haunting our technological society – it is the specter of General Ludd. Granted, Luddite is generally not considered to be a complementary term. Most of the time, … Continue reading
Trystero’s e-mail account – Mailpile!
Regardless of what gets revealed about the surveillance that takes place though our technological devices, the fact remains that most people (the vast [vast!]) majority are not going to actually … Continue reading
How Not to Heed a Warning
“The public was actively misled.” With those five words Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) provided further evidence of the need for whistle blowers in an age where the concept of an … Continue reading
Falling Under Technology’s Spell – Chromecast
Technology has society under quite a powerful spell. It may seem odd to invoke magic when mentioning machines, but as the technologies we use become ever more complex there is … Continue reading
A RoboCop Statue Amidst the Rubble – Distraction, Dystopia, Detroit
In dystopian fiction, the path that led to these crumbling civilizations is obscured by a haze of ash. While there may be general allusions to the historical event (a calamity … Continue reading
The NSA puts the “All Seeing Eye” back in Verizon
As they travel through the ether digital communications can be easily snapped up, copied, saved, analyzed, and stored without you ever knowing it. Your phone calls, text messages, e-mails, tweets, … Continue reading
So, Did You Hear the One about the Yahoo and the Tumblr?
People appreciate a good diversion. The humdrum routine of day-to-day life can be so dull, so alienating and stultifying that people yearn for a good laugh. To wrench these guffaws … Continue reading
It’s a Verb! It’s a Company’s Name! It’s…a country!? Google, the nation state.
Living in a country with a nominally functional government has its annoying aspects. There are laws that you are expected to abide by, taxes that you are expected to pay, … Continue reading
“Freedom” and “Technology” are not the same word (two shared letters does not a synonym make)
The increasing availability of ever-more-impressive technology proves an opportunity for many people, from a vast range of ideological perspectives, to contemplate what these new machines will mean for society. Thusly … Continue reading
This is Not what Resistance looks like – Google Glass as Technological Bribery
Is pre-emptive resistance to Google Glass going to prevent the device’s launch? Nope. Especially not if what passes for resistance are instances of a single bar banning the devices, legislators … Continue reading
Tomorrow’s Authoritarian Regime (brought to you by Google)
To what extent does a motto such as “Don’t be evil,” truly mean anything? After all, such smiling simplicity in a mission statement may sound good even as it solicits … Continue reading
The Unblinking Eye of the Proctor
When you are taking a test it is fair to expect that you are being watched. It’s part of test taking. You sit at your desk and at the front … Continue reading
While We Were Distracted…CISPA Passed in the House
When the news cycle is focused on tragic events it is all too easy for other important stories to be ignored, particularly stories that might not have garnered much attention … Continue reading
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