So Computer Science has begun in earnest.
In a four-day week, we've had three CompSci classes. This happened because of somewhat unbalanced scheduling; it was probably for the best, though, as it gave us time to understand half our classes in detail while not having to worry much about the other half. (The homework caught up to me on the weekend....)
Most of this week was devoted to understanding the sheer power of change currently being unleashed by the Internet. Social networks (Facebook and the like) featured prominently. Social networks are a topic I have an uusual connection to- I'm part of the tiny minority of teenagers that doesn't have a Facebook. I'm rather paranoid about how much total strangers can find out about me, and I feel no need to concentrate this information in a single place, especially as I see no compelling reason to join a social network. It's somewhat shocking, then, just how popular they are and how fast they have grown.
What worries me is that social networks are becoming increasingly expected. In fact, the digital world as a whole has become something unavoidable. That's a problem- if we cannot function without an Internet connection, we are making our society depend on something that, in the end, doesn't always work. The Internet is powerful, but fragile, which is not what a society's foundation needs to be.
If all of this sounds like an op-ed, that's because class so far has been about a topic- computers' impact on society- that is extremely divisive. In fact, a large part of class time has been spent in discussions, which have on occassion resembled debates. Compared to most of my peers, I'm on the cyber-conservative side of the matter; but I fear that soon there will be no choice.
In a four-day week, we've had three CompSci classes. This happened because of somewhat unbalanced scheduling; it was probably for the best, though, as it gave us time to understand half our classes in detail while not having to worry much about the other half. (The homework caught up to me on the weekend....)
Most of this week was devoted to understanding the sheer power of change currently being unleashed by the Internet. Social networks (Facebook and the like) featured prominently. Social networks are a topic I have an uusual connection to- I'm part of the tiny minority of teenagers that doesn't have a Facebook. I'm rather paranoid about how much total strangers can find out about me, and I feel no need to concentrate this information in a single place, especially as I see no compelling reason to join a social network. It's somewhat shocking, then, just how popular they are and how fast they have grown.
What worries me is that social networks are becoming increasingly expected. In fact, the digital world as a whole has become something unavoidable. That's a problem- if we cannot function without an Internet connection, we are making our society depend on something that, in the end, doesn't always work. The Internet is powerful, but fragile, which is not what a society's foundation needs to be.
If all of this sounds like an op-ed, that's because class so far has been about a topic- computers' impact on society- that is extremely divisive. In fact, a large part of class time has been spent in discussions, which have on occassion resembled debates. Compared to most of my peers, I'm on the cyber-conservative side of the matter; but I fear that soon there will be no choice.
No comments:
Post a Comment