Module 13

Brandi Barnett
IST 1100
4/13/13

Hey all, the time has come where we say goodbye to this semester and start our summer vacation or for some people to shake their head in disgust and asking why am I doing summer classes agian? You will get through it I promise (eh probably not). This paper is to reflect on past assignments and getting to pick the good, bad, and the ugly of the course. Lets begin shall we:

     For the first few blog entries we were to have read The World Is Flat by Thomas Friedman. I generally skip the big and thick books like this and obviously the title is not interesting to me. I am more of you know vampires sucking blood and zombies eating brains kind of person. So getting this book was defiantly a ball buster for me. However, I as it pains me to say it really liked this book. Now, don’t get me wrong there was boring parts I really wish I did not have to read. I did enjoy is opinion on the ten major reasons why the world is flat. While, reading further into the ten flatteners I finally began to get into the book. The Berlin Wall I was like just born when that happened while it was a great piece of history that happened I was just not in to it simply because I have no idea it even happened till middle school or high school. So, when it came to talking about computers and the business aspect of why the world was flat I was all ears. Computers are essentially the worlds greatest influence on mankind. Without it we would be lost since we became so dependent on it and we would of course go back to writing with pencil and paper if something were to ever happen a la revolution and computers were not existent. Overall, it was a very good read and I would truly recommended it. And, the book is available online for free. So, tell future students.

      Other blog assignments was to read articles and get to watch a movie. I really enjoyed reading “Why The Future Doesn't Needs Us” by Bill Joy. It was quite a read. I like to hear peoples arguments on certain subjects and his was one of them. He had some good arguments on the matter of GNR, but there is always a risk to everything and you can’t let that stop anyone from creating something that could be life saving. It is a chance us millions of people are willing to take.

       I am always hesitant on taking online classes since I am a forgetful person and frankly it is hard to remember you have another class. But, this one was very easy to remember since the due dates were always the same for each assignment. I did not know what to expect logging on for this class and it is definitely still not what I was expecting. I really like the class setup and what not. I was already in the blog universe since I had to do it for another class so that was not new to me and actually like that teachers are becoming more found of it. I have found new fond interests thanks to this class. Thank you.

Module 12

Brandi Barnett
IST 1100
4/6/13

This week we are supposed to read “Why The Future Needs Us” by Bill Joy and explain what GNR is and what the author fears about the. The three components to GNR are: genetic engineering, nanotechnology, robotics. The author describes how each of them will destroy man kind as we know it.

       Genetic engineering is to create a ton of crop yields while minimizing the use of pesticides to make thousands of special species of bacteria, animals, etc. and possibly help with cloning. Like with anything else genetic engineering has major side effects that Joy fears is a problem since it can be deadly his other fear is that it will create power for a white plague.

       Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter on an atomic and molecular scale to create a utopian future of abundance. Which, would solve any disease or physical problem imaginable. Joy has issues with this particular subject because is it ethically right to do such a thing? Not only that he also fears what it can become of such great technology improvement. It can lead to a massive destruction if put into the wrong hands since it can grow back cells.

     Robotics that someone can create robots that could be really intelligent than the human race itself. What comes with a highly intelligent robot comes fear. We thrive on knowledge whether we like it or not and that could lead to humans discovering new things like building a robot which come on it is pretty cool, but it is a concern since these highly effective robots could possibly take over the human population with their really intelligent ways.

     Bill Joy is not wrong when voicing his concerns over GNR, because the greatest fear is the fear of oneself and those of others. GNR are ultimately weapons that can be used against us from outside sources or even from within our own walls. However, GNR will never replace humans because we are always in control and the future will forever need us.