Week 5

"Introduction," in The Numerati pp. 1-16

• Internet cookies open the door to interesting connections between person and needs. All of which can be traced and stored online.


• Writer talks about Numerati as the mathematicians and computer scientists who are in charge of this data that traces the history of our lives.


• P300, a brain wave that heats up upon recognition, is researched to see what types of people react to certain types of ads


• My personal reflection this article is that this is definitely something that explains why deals such as Groupons are so effective. If a company knows what you like and can tailor an incentive to your desires, it is a very powerful marketing tool. I also get concerned that as DNA mapping becomes more prolific, we may start to see biological traits that people would get hold of to start building sales off of genetic traits. For instance, if you are more prone to smoking based on your chemistry, I do not think its fair for a company to market products based on such information. We are not there yet but I definitely think it will be there later in my lifetime.

"Brief History of the Internet"

• Internet is one of the most disruptive innovations of communication


• Oct 1957 Russia put 183lb sputnik into orbit that caught US off guard


• From Sputnik, many computer like competing systems built across the world. Then led to trying to network the systems together to communicate.


• Mobile pack radio network linked us to Europe. Built protocols to smoothly communicate with each other (late '72-73) known as Internet. TCPIP


• Electronic post card equivalent


• Not owned or controlled by government or any organization


• My personal reflection is its interesting to see how government is now getting heavily involved in the Internet as a matter of national security and protection of information. Many countries have had critical servers hacked by other countries. We have also seen more interaction with government on social media during political movements/uprisings. I think over time government will have an increasing presence in local Internet markets. Aside from companies like Facebook selling data to government security agencies, I think the government will utilize Internet tracking for tax collections, national security and drug enforcement. It can make the country safer but at the expense of individuals losing their anonymity.