Data are facts, statistics, or items of information used to calculate, analyze, or plan something. As the information shared through communication channels are subject to more and more new kinds of tracking and quantification, data is becoming increasingly more relevant in our society. So much of our lives revolve around technology, so thinking about how much of our personal data is tracked (whether with or without our knowing) is pretty unsettling. For example, most days I wear an Apple watch. I can see the daily trend data for exercise minutes, active calories, stand hours, walk distance, flights climbed, and more. Because I choose to wear the watch, this data collection would be put under the self-assembled information category. Although, I think the Apple watch (and all Apple products in general) collect way more personal data than you may think about. The google maps feature uses satellite GPS technology to provide real-time travel instructions to get you to your destination, which is very useful and convenient. But the GPS is also tracking every location you travel to, how long you stay there, how often you frequent there, the route you take, and more. (Isn’t it strange when your phone suggests, “You haven’t been to the gym today. If you leave now you can get there in 8 minutes because the traffic is light”?) While technology makes our lives more convenient, the ethics behind data collection are definitely very murky. I think transparency is important (although, do people ever really read terms & conditions or know what it means to “allow cookies”?), especially when it comes to consent and data handling.
2 thoughts on “Data – Chloe Fandetti”
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I am currently using a fitbit and it has many similar aspects as the Apple Watch. It also tracks many health related things such as my heartbeat, steps, and even my sleep. However, it’s not just how long I sleep, it is also tracking how long I’m in REM sleep or a deep one. It seemed very interesting at first but then I realized how strange it was. I also relate to what you’re saying about the GPS. Since I am a commuter student, every morning I get in my car and as soon as I sit down and look at my phone it says “University of Richmond, … minutes away. At first I thought it was sort of amusing until it started picking up patterns. For the longest time my sister and I would go to the mall every Saturday and my phone started picking that up. Again, we found it comical but also kinda creepy.
It is interesting to think about how reliant we have become on this exchange of data, or at least how intertwined it has become with our lives. I think the only way one could truly separate from contributing to all these streams of digital data would be to live off grid in the woods somewhere. In other words being an active member of society today basically depends of you having things like social media and a smartphone both of which can be largely helpful but also collect a lot of data. I agree that transparency would help, but I wonder i9f there is truly a middle ground where data is only shred with ones knowledge and without having to completely disconnect from the technological devices that run our lives.