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VOLUME 15 • ISSUE 4 JANUARY 27, 2014
TECH “Tech” Talk With Thyagaraj
vedant thyagaraj tech editor
Digging in the online data mine
Along the way, the reporters were also able to unearth several miscellaneous tidbits of personal information, including past schools, attended, preference of music, and sports played. One volunteer, Hank*, had more than 800 publicly available and datedstamped online photos. Reporters were able to determine the date and destination of vacations the subject had taken, as well as identify his or her parents. For another volunteer, Sue*, reporters determined the number of rooms and value estimate of the subject’s home by using online real estate records. On the other end of the spectrum, a search conducted on Joe*, a third volunteer, yielded no public online social networks. However, reporters were still able to locate a picture of him or her online from the website of
the Upper School Robotics Team. “I wasn’t aware that it was posted online. I’m comfortable with it, though, because I did sign a concession agreement for the FRC [Robotics] Competition,” Joe said. The most common student online profiles (including social media accounts) included accounts on Facebook, Prezi, Google+, and Quizlet. Websites such as Athletic.net regularly publish data about student athletes’ sports statistics. “People probably share more than they realize,” Assistant Director of Technology Diane Main said. “More and more people are getting into social media, but some people are getting more savvy about how much they share in those mediums.” While the Internet offers a convenient medium to share and connect
iOptik contacts vasudha rengarajan Aquila features editor
CONACT LENS Innovega’s iOptik is a direct competitor to Google Glass, except that it is a contact lens instead of an acutal glasses frame. iOptik was announced at CES earlier this year, but does not have a definite launch date.
INNOVEGA
INNOVEGA
One of the most recent so-called “smart” products entering the market, iOptik contact lenses are the newest variation on personal virtual technology. Invented by the company Innovega, these contact lenses allow users to see a translucent screen appear before their eyes, navigating them through the World Wide Web. The product is turning heads in media largely due to its resemblance to Google Glass, which allows users to take photos, tell time, and search the web, all with the prompt “OK Glass.” According to Innovega’s introductory video, the contact lenses can be used to receive additional information about the user’s surroundings or overlay translucent images or video clips. The rival goods compete for the consumer market in matters of convenience, safety, and design. Some students cited the unusual design of Google Glass as the reason they would prefer iOptik contact lenses. While both have similar functions, Innovega boasts its ability to give the viewer information on his or her surroundings, identifying and labeling nearby places. “I would probably use the contact lenses as long as they have my power. I feel like the contact lenses would be more ideal for me as opposed to Google Glass, which just seems unwieldy on the face,” Sanjana Kaundinya (11) said. Prescription iOptik contact lenses are expected to join the market as well. Others felt that they would rather avoid the contact lenses for safety and comfort.
“I think I‘d choose Google Glass instead because I doubt if the contact lenses would be comfortable, and I can’t take them off whenever I want,” Sandra Yin (12) said. “I think it will be popular for a period of time because of curiosity, but later on, it depends on how useful it is.” Students expect the eyewear to cause controversy about over-dependence on technology. While many dismissed this concern, a few supported the position whole-heartedly. “I’ve never been that big of a fan of the Google Glass idea, just because it seems kind of creepy and intrusive, so the fact that you can put this in your eye and nobody can even see it [...] it’s even more intrusive because nobody knows if they’re being watched,” Andrew Rule (9) said. “I’m not so dependent on technology; that’s kind of one of my philosophies. This seems like it would contribute to [over-dependence] even more, because we’re already going that direction.” The technology first premiered at the 2014 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas from Jan. 7 to 10. Also debuting at the convention were an array of different smartwatches, a “smart” adaptor for classic television sets, and an app that allows users to cook from their smartphones. Many products are concepts that are expected to launch sometime in the future, whether next year or in the next decade. The contact lenses interact with Innovega’s HD glasses to help focus images, and will be released in the market at an undisclosed date. According to Innovega, both the lenses and the glasses are necessary to obtain a sharp image.
SMART The fully-functional prototype of Innovega’s iOptik contact lenses were unveiled at CES 2014. Students expect the product to be the next big thing in personal media.
with others, it is also a treasure trove of consumer information for online advertisers. Harvesting data from the Internet has created billion-dollar profits for Google and Facebook. Google gained over $12.5 billion in advertising revenue from quarter three of its financial year, while Facebook took in slightly over $2.0 billion in ad revenue from its third quarter. “Set your browser to remove your browsing history,” said Paul Stephens from the Online Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. “Make sure you log out of any sites which you have a login so that your personal information will not be associated with the browsing that you do.” Unlike a precious metal, online personal data is constantly
being generated by Internet users. With a horde of easy-to-find, virtually limitless, and valuable commodity, the Internet could be any miner’s dream come true. *DISCLAIMER: The Winged Post obtained the written consent of participants to search them up on the Internet. All personal information was kept confidential, and a record of the collected information was returned to each participant after the study was complete.
AMAZON
Cont’d from page 1
DRONE Amazon recently announced it Prime Air shipping service, which uses UAVs to deliver packages. The company hopes to have this devlivery method implemented by 2015.
Amazon delivery drones shay lari-hosain asst. design editor
When most people think of “drones”, the image that appears is one of large military aircraft carrying lethal missiles. But recently, a new use for them has surfaced: the prospect of UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) having civilian and commercial applications. With “Prime Air,” online retailer Amazon.com hopes to further this transition. In an appearance on CBS’ 60 Minutes on Dec. 1, Amazon CEO Jeffrey P. Bezos unveiled the company’s plans to deploy fleets of UAVs for delivery purposes. According to Bezos, the drones would be completely autonomous and would be directed to the destination with GPS coordinates. The delivery time would take approximately thirty minutes with a fulfillment center located ten miles away from the destination. Amazon Prime Air would be available for deliveries up to five pounds, which accounts for 86 percent of packages. “Safety will be our top priority, and our vehicles will be built with multiple redundancies and designed to commercial aviation standards,” Amazon said on its Prime Air website, where the company also released a promotional video of a test drone delivering a package. “It’d be cool to just order something from Amazon and have it delivered to your door thirty minutes later,” Nicky Semenza (12) said. Today, commercial use of UAVs is illegal. Under the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, Congress asked the FAA to establish test sites and conduct research in an endeavor to safely legalize UAV use in domestic airspace by 2015. Among the test site operators are the University of Alaska, the state of Nevada, Griffiss International Airport in New York, the North Dakota De-
partment of Commerce, Texas A&M University, and Virginia Tech. Vincent Lin (12) also believes that UAV use in the United States would be acceptable, saying that legalizing drones would not introduce new privacy concerns. “You can also attach a camera to a toy helicopter,” Vincent said. “Yes, [drones] are better, but toy helicopters can do the same thing and we’re not banning those, are we?” Critics of drones maintain that legalized, unmanned aircraft have the potential to encroach on privacy in new, unprecedented ways. “I’m not really comfortable with having drones in the consumer business, because I already feel there is enough data mining and data stealing technologies out there,” said Sanjana Kaundinya (11). “I don’t think we need another one,” Sanjana Kaundinya (11) said. Dr. Eric Nelson, faculty head of the Robotics program, believes that delivery by drone will eventually become a reality, as the need for instant gratification is ever increasing. Dr. Nelson pointed out that drones will also be used less in rural areas. “It’ll be interesting to see how it’s handled in somewhat more rural areas, where shotguns are more prevalent than in downtown San Jose,” he said. “I’m sure there will be a few people that will find it fascinating to do target practice on [drones], which will probably mitigate where they’ll be used.” As drones drop in price and surge in ubiquity, the prospect of unmanned aircraft hurtling through the sky above city streets and suburban districts will ultimately seem less bizarre. Today, Prime Air is still under development. Amazon says its army of courier drones will not be deployed anytime soon. In the meantime, if you’re ordering a package, the usual three-to-five business day wait will have to suffice. Or, even more shockingly, a trip to the brick-and-mortar store.
Privacy. In a world dominated by social media networks such as Facebook and , we lose track of how much information we are submitting into the vortex of the Internet. Whether submitting a response to a single question in an online survey or actively posting on friends’ Facebook walls, we reveal more and more about ourselves. The amount of information on the web also paves the path for a multitude of companies that scan personal data and target users. Others, such as the government, scan your Facebook profiles and gather information about your race, gender, political outlook, and frequently visited locations. Every Facebook post and every email you send is stored in cyberspace. Remember that em“ U l t i m a t e l y, barrassing the government’s photo you focus is the wellthought being of its conyou had stituents. And if deleted this is the goal, it a couple is more than jusdays back? tified in taking It’s not the actions it has. entirely Only when the ingone. Hitfringement of libting “deerty outweighs the lete” does protection of peoabsolutely ples’ lives should nothing; we truly begin to the govreconsider whethernment or er our inherent any other rights are being related compromised. “ agency can pull up anything “d e l e t e d ” whenever it wants. One San Francisco based company called Wickr, which builds selfdestructing texts akin to the concept of Snapchat’s self-destructing images, stated that they were approached by the FBI to install a “back door” into their server, so the federal agency could have easy access to its data. Although the CEO refused to comply, many other technology giants, such as Microsoft, Facebook, and Apple, have been coerced in a similar manner. As you have been assured that all your electronic data is private, you might say, “That’s a HUGE violation of my privacy rights! The government can’t do that!” Unfortunately, they can. In fact, the whole surveillance thing started back in 1994, with the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA). Under CALEA, the FBI has the authority to record all telecommunication, broadband, and VoIP activity of any individual using media in the U.S. Another law, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which was just extended, allows for surveillance of “foreign intelligence” within the United States. In other words, this law gives the government the authority to sift through electronic information to determine if there is any “leak” of classified information to foreign agencies from within America. These rigid surveillance policies may be seen as a breach of privacy. And the saga continues: the government and its supporters argue that this invasion of privacy is a necessity in order to ensure the security of American citizens, while staunch opponents argue that privacy should be preserved at all costs. That brings up the quintessential question: in light of the recent reports about the NSA’s invasion of privacy, is what the government is doing bad? Although many label its actions an infringement of their rights, I firmly believe that federal agencies are using private data to prevent any comprises on security.