The passage that I chose was from Adriana de Souza e Silva's article, "From Cyber to Hybrid." It is the second complete paragraph on page 758. This passage, as well as the article, are talking about how mobile devices which have internet access are creating mobile spaces out of the areas we live in. This passage more specifically mentions how hybrid spaces are different than mixed reality, virtual reality, etc.
I couldn't help but think of many different examples when I read this paragraph, and how many different things mobile phones can do now. One of the first that popped in my head is how iPhones can use their GPS to "geo-tag" a photograph when one is taken. Essentially what this means is that the photograph carries with it the exact location the picture was taken from and even the direction the camera was pointing. There are other applications that take use of this, allowing people to take pictures and upload them, where there friends can see them and even see where the person is that took the photo.
This type of seemless integration of the digital medium of the internet into our physical lives is leading to many more possibilities both good and bad. While being able to look at an application on your phone and see in real time where all your friends are via their GPS locations it enhances the knowledge we have of our surroundings. We are connected at all times, can get any information we want at the touch of a button. At the same time we are losing a sense of privacy because while we can bring information in, information can also be sent out.
Unlike many of the other forms of reality that Silva talked about in her article, there is no way to turn off hybrid spaces, they are made up by all of the different people around us and their mobile devices. No longer do we feel chained to our computers to get information. Our computers are now with us at all times. As the technology evolves, the line that divides the physical world and the digital world will continue to blur.
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Your blurb about the geo-tagging is a great expample of what we were discussing Thursday in class. I didn't even think about that! Great idea to put into your blog.
ReplyDeleteI also like how you took a different approach in looking at being unable to unhook from hybrid space. I hadn't thought about the issue like that either. It's true that we are constantly surrounded by others who are utilizing the mobile interface and bringing about hybrid space even when we are not utilizing the interface at the same time.
Over the next few years I believe that we will see an even stronger flow of hybrid space since the cell phone is so widely used and the platform on which they are built is increasingly becoming faster and more capable.
More people currently have cell phones throughout the world than computers. Until recently I had never really pondered or known that was the case.
However, do we really feel unchained from our computers yet? While our phones do tend to provide us with much of the same information, they aren't quite as capable as a desktop yet. Soon however, you may be right, we may hold everything that we need in the "palm of our hand", or body.
The thought of disconnecting or removing yourself from cyberspace/hybrid spaces starts to get more complex as they become more necessary to living in a modern world and as tracking tools become more pervasive/accurate.
ReplyDeleteWe can start to opt or drop out of certain location aware programs and technologies, but they come at the cost of drifting away from communities that you may need to be part of in the future.
If we look at a tool like a phone, we can use Google-backed android phones as an example, there is the option of not sharing location information with Google and one could lose out on some relatively minor things. However, some tools that are location based may become critical at some point and to maintain that level of separation/privacy, someone unable to achieve certain things. Basically, this ubiquity of always on applications and tools can start to fragment communities in addition to bringing them closer.
On an semi-related note, I was reading part of Neuromancer (released in 1984) for a project in another class and I thought it was interesting how Gibson realized the potential for information networks to completely change our perceptions of physical space.
good post & comments, guys.
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