Mind the Gap

According the reading "in the most basic sense, the digital divide is the ever-growing gap between those people and communities who have access to information technology and those who do not,"the text also talks about the digital divide being the most important civil rights issue facing our modern information economy. With so many people not having access to the Internet studies are showing the direct link between household earning and education as being one of the biggest reasons people may not have a computer in their homes or have access to the Internet. The reading also says the digital divide could change with five issues being addressed by Americana's, access, content, literacy, pedagogy, and community. "Giving people access to technology is important, but it's just one of many issues that need to be considered. Schools, libraries, and community centers are taking that firsts step in getting wired, but they must also consider the needs of the learners, the teachers, and the communities that support them."

A cyborg manifesto

This article was a little hard for me to read. Science fiction is not really my area but I did find parts of this article that tied in directly with what we have been talking about in class relating to gender. I chose one of the chapters to talk about because I thought it would be too hard to talk about the entire article. The chapter that I thought tied in well with the class discussions was ‘Homework Economy’ outside ‘The Home’. This talked about the future and what it looked like for men and women in the work force and I thought it was sad how women were represented in this article and in this chapter. A part of the chapter that had the most affect on me was the explanation of being feminized. “To be feminized means to be made extremely vulnerable, able to be disassembled, reassembled, exploited as a reserve labor force; seen less as workers than as servers; subjected to arrangements on and off the paid job that make a mockery of a limited work day. Leading an existence that always borders on being obscene, out of place, and reducible to sex.” (pg 166-169). I felt like this is defiantly not what the future of women in the work force looks like. Women have been fighting for many years to be treated like equals in the work force and it’s a little disheartening when you read an article like this, even if it is science fiction. Women have been able to juggle home and work over the centuries most of them with great intelligence and grace and I don’t believe that this article paints any kind of truthful future for women in this world.

Nakamura

In the end of the Nakamura’s article it says that “race matters, and that bodies matter. Programming languages and internet connectivity have made it possible for people to interact without putting into play any bodies but the ones they write for themselves”. Throughout this article we’re able to see that in cyberspace race and body types are an important factor in living in the fantasy world of the internet, you are able to enter pretty much any world you can dream up and visit as any race or gender you would like other players to perceive you as. In these fantasy world’s you are able to get away from your everyday life and take a “vacation” leaving your work, your family, and sometimes your real self behind without even having to leave the comfort of your living room chair. I think that this really relates to a lot of what people want. Traveling the world or other neighborhoods that you would otherwise never see from the comfort of your own home is a lot of what happens now that traveling is seen as a privilege for so many people.

Social interaction is another factor that I think draws people into cyberspace. You can not only look the way you want you can also have the personality of anyone you choose. If for example you are not very social in your everyday life you may be able to open up to more people through the Internet and make more cyber friends along the way.

I think for some people the down fall of the Internet and becoming any one you want is that sometimes through cyberspace you may not be able to just be yourself. The games may not offer your body type or race as one of the choices so you are then forced to become someone you don’t see as yourself. This sometime can be unfulfilling for people who would like to explore cyberspace and know who they are talking and relating to is really what you are getting.

DTC 475

Blog for 475, Digital Diversity