Has community lost its unity?

 

It has been suggested by some religious theorists the notion of the ‘global community’ or ‘village’ is deeply rooted in the Catholic idealism of ‘the great human family’. The term ‘global village’, coined by Marshall McLuhan in the 60’s, became rhetoric in a period when westernisation was viewed as the solution to underdevelopment, and although masked behind the term ‘global’, it is still evident that the global community is based on a euro-American model. Peter Drucker states that “the educated person of the future will have to expect to live in a globalized world, which will be a westernized world”, which advocates notions of free speech, justice, democracy, commercialism and capitalist living. These ideals are not necessarily representative of the traditional cultures within many developing nations.

 

Some sociologists and digital communication theorists, such as Armand Mattelart, suggest that there has been a loss of tradition and close stable communities, as society has become concerned with never-ceasing progress and is thus exclusively future oriented. This has heavy implications for those left behind in the technological race, whose lack of access excludes them from progress by preventing entry into global connectivity networks.

 

At this point, one might consider the true and literal nature of a supposed ‘global community’. The Internet has undoubtedly contributed to increased connectivity around the world. However, the Internet by no means creates an all-encompassing global community, largely due to the lack of access and equal representation for the majority of the world’s population. According to World Internet Stats, as of 31 March 2008 only 21.1 per cent of the world’s population used the Internet. Furthermore, possession of equipment and Internet access is not the only reason for divides within the supposed ‘global community’, but also the efficiency, quality and speed of the equipment. Consequently, the notion of a ‘global community’ with ‘instant connectivity’, in actuality, is very elitist, restricted to a small portion of the global population.

 

Second life, same world

 

According to Julian Thomas “new communication technologies provide comparatively decentralised and open environments that appear to promote rights to freedom of expression, information, and communication” (Thomas, 59). This is a relatively sound argument, as the Internet is often employed as a forum for democracy and individual self-expression, while also facilitating convenient communication and the dissemination of information on a global scale. The Internet is organised by its users as they create their own content with minimal regulation, and interact with users from around the world in socially formed, democratic worldwide communities. People who interact with this technology can form digital identities that are removed yet intricately entwined with their sense of real-world identity.

 

This is particularly evident through programs such as Facebook, MySpace, chatrooms and Secondlife. Through networking sites and chatrooms, users can construct a digital personality, which may or may not directly represent their real-world personality. This may be perceived in many ways, such as a form of deception or as a harmless manifestation of the imagination. In many cases, users can form digital social relationships and the real-world personalities will never come into contact. In other cases, digital personalities have been used to exploit other users, particularly in cases of paedophilia and extortion.

 

Secondlife allows users to create their own avatar, often personalised to suit their imagined perception of themselves. Secondlife allows members to buy body-parts and accessories with Linden dollars. This personalisation of an avatar, not only comes at a monetary cost, but also involves physical, psychological and emotional investment. Suggesting these online personalities exist independent of real-world personalities would simply lack insight into the extent of social application involved in these processes. Secondlife encountered some moral and legal difficulties, as some members engaged in digital sex with child-like avatars, or sold digital representations of real-world intellectual property (ie. a Louis Vuitton handbag). The latter resulted in a real-world lawsuit on the grounds of breach of copyright.

 

Furthermore a female avatar was raped in Secondlife, and the woman tried to claim compensation for emotional damage in the real world. Empirical evidence suggests that the digital world is not so far removed from the real-world, particularly given the digital world involves replications of real-world activities and products. To further illustrate this point, the ABC Island in Secondlife was destroyed by a ‘digital bomb’ in 2007, as reported by ABC News Online, which was considered by some as an act of terrorism. In this case, digital actions had material messages. People spend real time in front of their computers, they spend real money, which can create a sense of protection and possessiveness over their avatar or ‘property’, and they engage with real people’s digital identities from around the world. Therefore, many digital actions have real-life consequences.

 

Reference:

• Thomas, Julian. “Liberal machines.” D. Meredyth and J. Minson eds. Citizenship & cultural policy. London: Sage, 2001. 154-166.

 

Quantum Computing

I often consider the future of our technological development, and where we will be in terms of computer technology in the future. The last decade has seen rapid advances in computer sciences, and perhaps the most baffling is that of quantum computing. 

Quantum physics is a difficult area to explain and understand, and i definitely do not consider myself an expert even to the slightest degree. However, i have done some research and i have learnt that quantum computer is still in its early stages of development. The notion was first theorized only 30 years ago, and still is largely based on theories of quantum physics. From what i understand, the Turing machine, developed by Alan Turing in the 1930s, is a theoretical device that consists of tape of unlimited length that is split into small squares. These squares can either hold a symbol (1 or 0) or be left blank. A read-write mechanism interprets these symbols and blanks, which gives the machine instructions for conducting a certain program.

However, in a quantum Turing machine, the tape exists in a quantum state, as does the read-write head. Consequently, the symbols on the tape can be 0 or 1 or a superposition of 0 and 1. This means that the symbols can be 1 and 0 and all of the points in between. While a computer can only perform one calculation at a time, a quantum Turing machine can perform many calculations at any given moment. While the notion is that the amount of equations performed at any given time is infinite, during these early stage of development scientists have manged to create a quantum computing device capable of conducting 16 equations simultaneously.

However, I have also read that at this point in quantum computing development, a major problem is keeping the components of the computer in a coherent state, due to its immense processing power, the slightest interaction with the external world would cause the system to de-cohere.

Visual expression; Blogging without boundaries

Regardless of how large one’s vocabulary may be, our expression will always be restricted within communication abilities and subsequent boundaries. I have always been quite comfortable expressing myself through the written word, however, even I can understand how easily the message can be lost in the channel between authors and their readers.

One of the many beauties of the blog is its capacity to harbour a range of verbal, written and visual expressions to best suit the author’s message. For instance, this week in class we are learning to upload video’s onto our blog. This opens the gateway to yet another form of expression, whereby the author may be expressing a point of view about an issue that may require a relevant video footage, or the author may speak directly to his/her listeners as a ‘post’.

Video, as a form of expression, comprises different elements to the written blog. The reader/listener has the opportunity to access a range of different types of communication, not possible from the limited expression of writing. If a blog is an online journal, then it makes sense to open the field for freedom of expression, including the conveyance of influential interpretation elements such as body language, tone of voice and various other visual or listening associated connections to the author.

I watched a blogumentary about a woman in Germany, and although her English was limited, her love for the study of blogs was clear through her smiles, tone and intimacy with this medium. She was also able to show her tattoos and discuss the prejudice she faces as a young woman from a conservative society in relation to her body art. I remember this clip vividly, her tone of voice, her facial expressions, her tattoos and her hand gestures; this is just one example of the power of the video blog.