Chilean 33´s rescue coverage: Professional or Amateur?

On October 12, 2010, all the news around the world where focused on Chile, for the rescuing of the 33 miners trapped for 68 days at 700 meters of depth.

This news set records for TV and online audience. Fox News had an audience of 7.1 million - about twice their normal, and CNN had 2.7 million. More than 6.8 million people tuned into BBC's 24-hour news channel, The Guardian newspaper reported. The mainstream media gave extensive coverage online, in the case of CNN and BBC they had 5 and 8 million hits.

Social networks were also very active. Social media buzz peaked at about the same time as T.V. viewership; approximately 104,000 messages per hour were sent via Twitter. The word “Chile” was mentioned over 670.000 times, and in you tube, 16.000 videos were tagged as “Chile” and “miners”.

The verdict: a draw between professional media and amateurs

Professional and amateur media played an important role in the spread and impact of news, reports, networking, giving different points of view. There was a feedback loop never seen before, given the outstanding features of the event. This tragedy is similar to a classic script, with a dramatic beginning, an emotional peak (after the miracle of finding people alive at 700 m depth), and an spectacular ending with the rescue.

Newspapers and their websites, as well as social network users, had some intense days publishing content traffic. I guess that after this event, many media will take seriously the need of multimedia design and real-time reports generation in visual notes and computer graphics. Meanwhile, amateur users will keep realizing the innumerable and valuable information tools they have in their hands to contribute in communications.

Statistic source: http://mashable.com/2010/10/18/chilean-miners-rescue-news-numbers/

“RL is just one more window”, he repeats, “and it it´s not usually my best one” (1)

The creation of online identities is an issue that has been debated since the beginning of the network and the mass access to the Internet. Today, using a computer and connect to the network is easier than ever. To interact with others, you must create a user profile on the website of your choice. Online games, social networking, blogs, among others, require that the person chooses certain features that allow others to identify her. When you are online you get a“virtual identity”.

Experts such as S. Trukle, claim that this process involves the creation of different identities according to the site you visit. This is similar to real life, where people adopt certain attitudes and play a role according to the group to which they relate. The issue is that, in the online world, there is less control of identities and they can become something totally different from what they are on real life.

That is the risk involved, when a user feels that his online life is better than his real one. “RL is just one more window”, he repeats, “and it it´s not usually my best one” .

This can even lead to a diseases level, where the person chooses to turn into her online identity over her real life one. This can be seen at the Tv seriel “The Big Bang Theory”, on the third chapter of the second season, named The Barbarian Sublimation, where Sheldon introduces Penny in massives multiplayer online games. Penny becomes addicted and lose consciousness of her life in some way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUB7o2oT74c&p=D58AB19AFD19577C&playnext=1&index=47


(1) Turkle, S. (1995) “Life on the Screen; identity in the age of the Internet. New York; Simon and Schuster. (Introduction: Identity in the age of Internet” pp. 9-26.

About disability

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), disability is an umbrella term for impairments, activity limitations and participation restrictions. Impairments are problems that affect a structure or body function, activity limitations refers to the difficulty to execute actions or tasks, and participation restrictions are problems to participate in life situations. Thus, disability is a complex phenomenon that reflects an interaction between the characteristics of the human body and the characteristics of the society in which it lives. Murphy and Potts (2003) in the text "Culture and technology" state that "we are all disabled in the sense perhaps that we rely on technological assistance in different ways”.

But, do we?

If we look at developed countries, there is a heavy reliance on technology. It is undoubtedly an economic engine of development and also an indicator of welfare in different levels.

Citizens need of technology in everyday life..We use it for work, for connecting with others, collaborate, entertain ourselves, solve problems. Governments invest in innovation and implement programs to encourage the development of new technologies for social progress: health, education, and work, among others.

We can say that, without technology, we are like handicapped, because an important part of our lives depend of it.

The washing machine

We are closely linked to technology in everyday life. Since we wake up in the morning with the alarm ringing from our cell phone or alarm clock, we are "connected" to microcomputers which will be present during our day. The microwave to heat breakfast, the morning news on TV, your GPS in the car, the ticket validating machine, a security camera screen in the bus, among others. We are surrounded!

We could say that life gets easier, but sometimes less human.

My husband does car pool to go to the office with a coworker. She is a woman who lived over 10 years in Afghanistan, helping people. Among the things she has taken(no entiendo... “entre las cosas que ella ha sacado”), is getting used to life with machines. She feels that, with technology, there is a huge loss in relationships with others. For example, before she met with other women at an Afghanistan river to wash their clothes. It was a social institution. All they did, besides of washing, was to talk about their problems or just share moments of happiness, sadness or privacy. Today, here, this institution has turned into pressing the power button of herwashing machine. Just that, a mechanical fact with no further rewards tan getting the clothes clean.

The experience of living in a country affected by war and less developed than Australia, marked her deeply. Things like washing clothes may be meaningless for us, but for others, they can be an important part of their daily life.

Debate about the significance of computing

During this week, The Economist Online launched a debate whether the development of computers is the most significant technological advance of the 20th century.
The question is difficult to answer. Specially since technology has become commoditized in all scientific fields and has enabled many advances in different forms.

For example, in the development of vaccines, nuclear weapons, the elimination food´s pests and also in our everyday communication. All of them involve the use of computers in some part of their processes. In my opinion, computers are a form of technology created by men and therefore an extension of our human faculties, of our hands, of our brains. They are the result of intelligence and human creativity to solve problems and evolve. And also to destroy.

Anyways, all technological advances influence each other and would be hard to say which is the most significant.
To see the statements and comments about this post, please click here: http://www.economist.com/debate/overview/186

Debate about significance of computing

This week, The Economist Online launched a debate on the question whether the development of computers is the most significant technological advances of the 20th century.

The question is difficult to answer. Especially since technology has become commoditized in all scientific fields and has enabled many advances in different forms. For example, in the development of vaccines, nuclear weapons, elimination of pests of food and also in our everyday lives. All of them involve the use of computers in some part of the process. In my opinion, computers are a form of technology created by man and therefore an extension of our human faculties, of our hands, our brain. Are the result of intelligence and human creativity to solve problems and evolve. And also to destroy.

It is a chicken and egg, or many chickens and eggs, all technological advances influence each other and would be hard to say which is the most significant.

To see the statements and comments, please click here: http://www.economist.com/debate/overview/186

Google Street View

A Google Street View car in action - this one in the Prinsengracht in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Photograph: Toussaint Kluiters/EPA

Last week, authorities of the German Government start a discussion about technologies that identify the location of individuals and their property. This was the answer to Google´s announcement of Street View service, made in August. With the implementation of this service, at the end of the year, Germany´s 20 largest cities maps and pictures could be online. Google agreed to add pixels to pictures when the owners requested it.

While Google defends as a service and that users want it, it is transforming to a problem for governments and data protection, and investigations are being made about the collection of them through wifi networks.

Is this a new form of Panopticom form the private sector? Can government protect citizen private data? What happen if you are renting a home... do you have the right to demand it too?

You can read more about this new here;
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-11370647