Blog Post #5

     After watching the videos on privacy, it gave my a further realization and a reminder that everything I ever thought no one would get a hold of has an opportunity to get. Ever since I was little I was raised to not post any political opinions, my location, my addresses, or any photos that would raise red flags in the future. I have always known that anyone has the capability to get access to whatever they want regarding my personal life if I gave them the opportunity too. 

  These videos gave me a sick feeling in my stomach knowing that at any point of the day a police officer can tell me where I have been and basically my whole schedule. Or me in the background of a random picture, someone can clarify my name and my birthday. It makes me super uncomfortable that anyone can identify me throughout the day via social applications. Thankfully none of the topics discussed in this video as far as I know have affected my family or friends, but I still have heard stories from the news or these videos. I personally think the government should implement laws saying that unless it is for legal purposes, your picture should not be taken without your permission. I do know that is either a law or a rule today, but people still don't ask so I think it needs to be more serious than what it is now. What can we do to protect ourselves from these examples? Obviously watching what you post and what is included in the picture. Being aware of what you look up on the internet because everyone knows those days where you look up that cute top you saw your friend wearing and the next day there is an advertisement on instagram for it, it's weird right? I really think we should also give a forewarning that a picture is being taken and whoever doesn't want to be in it needs to get out of it. I personally hate being photographed as it is, so just knowing I am in the back of thousands of photos makes me uncomfortable. 

Blog Post #4

     For my research, I chose one of my favorite platforms to receive the news from, Twitter! Twitter is a great app you can get on a cellphone or look it up on a computer (Twitter.com) According to Britannica, twitter is an "online microblogging service for distributing short messages among groups of recipients." (https://www.britannica.com/topic/Twitter) As a twitter user, you can send tweets to your "friends" updating them about what you are doing during the day and you can also look up what is trending currently, so you can see fresh news. 

    The history of twitter is very interesting, it was built off a different wed application called "Ruby on Rails", which was designed by Evan Williams and Biz Stone. (britannica.com) It first started out as being a messaging service called, Twttr, but the designers saw a potential in the idea and soon starting working to change its purpose and than it evolved into being Twitter. Twitter also didn't start becoming popular until famous actor, Ashton Kutcher, received a million followers on twitter and then the innovators of the SMS system saw more potential and realized they could make it more than messaging. 

    The "problem" that Twitter was trying to solve was staying connected with people at first, but when they realized the potential Twitter had the innovators changed it into a way to get news with the trending tab. It also gave people the privilege of staying in touch with their idols or celebrities while they go through their normal days. 

    I think this innovation changed the world because not only did it give people news fast, it also connected with technological advances throughout the years. This meaning that the innovators of Twitter saw that newer generations were getting more involved with cell phones and technology, that they made improvements to reach out to the younger generations to make Twitter popular. The problems it solved were also how people explained what was going on throughout their days. Before Twitter, people would have to get a full backstory to lead up to one important topic that was being discussed. Now you can see on Twitter right then and there when something is going on with your friends and then you can ask them about it later in person when you see them or you can call them.

    This changed communication because it gave people easier access to talk to other people. Before Twitter was popular, you had to wait to see the person in person to hear their stories, but now you can just see it on Twitter. A negative impact that Twitter has is it now has generations living with their face in the phone to see the constant updates. It doesn't allow to let people look up and see the world for itself and it also prevents the face to face contact that people need to thrive. You can now look at Twitter all day to see what is happening with people instead of seeing the emotions in person. As you per already know the internet can be a dangerous place where people hide behind screens and do things that are not the most ideal. Twitter gives them the opportunity to be anonymous if they want which makes it very hard to find people that are doing illegal things. Going with hiding behind screens, Twitter can also expose you as a person. You can find a lot of personal information about someone on Twitter like what their beliefs are, when their birthdays are, where exactly are, etc. The internet can be innovative and dangerous in so many different ways. 

Sources 

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Twitter

Images from Google 

Blog Post #3

    The one freedom I chose because it is personal to me is Individual Self-Fulfillment (aka Self-Actualization). I chose this one because I think freedom of speech and being able to be your own, true self is very important in this world. If every person were to follow another person's lead there would be no change in the world and it would be chaos. I resonate this theory with the involvement of the world pandemic COVID, which we are dealing with right now. 

    The Self-Fulfillment theory explains why everyone feels they have the right to discuss their thoughts and do that they wants when it comes to the virus. Part of why this is occurring is that even that experts do not have the answers. But while we wait for the experts to come up with solutions, we can do things that are probably hurtful to others. Just by the mere fact of not agreeing with someone causes friction and tension and the divide that out country is feeling today. 

    There are so many different news stories out there and so many different people, both medical and non-medical who are chiming into the discussion. Does the vaccine help? Once you get the vaccine, can you get it again? Can you transmit the virus if you are vaccinated? What about if you are not? Honestly, it is all mind boggling. We have guidelines from the CDC and recommendations, but these are not laws. This allows Americans to have freedom. If you see something should you say something? It's our right to say something, but should we? This article suggests it is "not productive" https://www.healthline.com/health-news/should-you-say-something-if-you-see-someone-not-wearing-a-mask.

    Citizens of the United States are now at the point where everyone is getting tired and careless about wearing masks, so COVID cases are spiking throughout the states. COVID is also changing everyone's viewpoints about things that they used to love. As I was doing research on this topic, I came across an article that talks about how a healthcare worker who was passionate about her job now works as an advocate for healthcare workers because of the anxiety she went through working as a nurse during COVID.  She stresses that it affected her mental health and drained her emotionally. (https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/31/covid-is-driving-an-exodus-among-health-care-workers.html)

      

   

Blog Post #2

     For Blog Post 2, I read the article on History.com and watched the videos. I also did some other research regarding the topic because I was interested. I went to the actual Supreme Court Website to see how one would go about turning in a case. (https://www.supremecourt.gov)

    Something that I learned about the Supreme Court in the article and the videos that I already didn't know was that "it is the most powerful Judicial body on Earth"(Seen in part 1 of the video). I knew it was the most powerful in the court system and in the United States, but I did not know it was the most powerful on Earth, The most important takeaway about the Supreme Court is that they make life changing decisions on an everyday basis. This meaning that the judges add or take away laws to help the people of the United States live a happier and more controlled life. The most surprising thing that I took away from was the importance that was stressed when the judges were discussing matters on the Bill of Rights and the Constitution and how they reflect upon the negative aspects of the past people, so we don't make those same mistakes today. It surprised me in a good way how much the judges evaluate what has happened in the past. It makes me as a citizen of the United States feel comfortable with the people who have the power to make these decisions. The video changed the way I thought about the Supreme Court because when I was taught about the courts in the past, they made it seem like the judges were very judgmental, hard-core people, but after seeing how they act in the videos it made me realize that they too are normal people who go about their day the same way I do. It also made me realize that even a judge does something bad based upon peoples opinions, they still have the best intent for us to strive as a nation and be protected and good.