Introduction
Technology is something that has managed to creep into most of our lives, wether we are heavy uses of it or not. It effects what we interact with, who we interactive with and how. We adapted to using technology in our daily lives so much they are almost extensions of ourselves in communication and intereaction.
Since Technology is now so readily available, more and more people depend on using it, where the older generation are even adapting to new things.
In some cases, technology has become so apart of peoples lives, we almost live through them as more and more people spend most of their spare time on using technology. The Australian Bureau of statistic quotes
“In 2006-07, 64% of Australian households had home Internet access and 73% had access to a home computer”(Household Use of Information Technology, Australia, 2006-07)1 showing that the use of technology is prominent in the average Australian household.
These technologies have made parts of our lives easier, such as staying in contact with relative via email, and being able to do banking and shopping online to have goods delivered straight to your door via Amazon, Ebay or any other purchasing online infrastructure. We can even view images based from the other side of world and create social networks with people from those places, using Facebook, Myspace, and even new applications on our phones. In the American Psychologist, a report suggests that greater use of the Internet leads to shrinking social support and happiness.
”They found a direct correlation between participants level of Internet use and their reports of social activity and happiness. As their use of the Internet increased, the participants reported a decrease in the amount of social support they felt and in the number of social activities they were involved in. They also reported being more depressed and lonely.” (Isolation increases with Internet use, Scott Sleek, 1998)2
Through these technologies that we feel we are living, they could also be replacing vital day-to-day human interactions.
The devices that we use in our daily lives are all becoming so self sufficient, containing almost everything in the one piece of equipment, we need to look no further and don’t even have to leave our rooms, or physically interact with anyone. They are also becoming very single user based, which also encourages similar behavior as we become immersed into our music players and Ipods.
”Teenagers spend increasing amounts of time immersed in television, video games, and music from their iPods-activities where they listen rather than speak. As a result, they don’t get much practice at communicating clearly with others, and they aren’t exposed to a wide vocabulary” Р (Chad Nilep, 2006)3
On the other side of the coin to this mediation is the use of technology to enhance communication between people within physical proximity. “Systems enabling large audiences to interact offer numerous possibilities for entertainment, education, and team building.4” We would like to extend on team building by rewording to community building, so as to include the affect they may have on people in a broader context. “Social involvement is more important than technological involvement.4”
Wireless Networks
Amongst these Existing and developing technologies that are becoming usable by multiple users, either by close proximity or via distant networks, comes the use of wireless technologies which has enabled so many possibilities for social connection through both personal and public spaces.
Wi-fi (Wireless Fidelity) is a technology that was initially developed in the 1980’s. In the U.S, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), that had access to wireless technologies, decided to make several bands of the wireless spectrum available without a government license. One of these bands known as “the garbage band 2.4ghz” which was previously assigned to some household devices such as microwave ovens that omitted noisy radio frequency’s, was then later to be used in multiple industries such as Industrial, Scientific and Medical area’s (ISM).
This band however was extremely sensitive and picked up mass amounts of other radio signals and only specific technologies at the time could operate in such conditions. Improving the use of communication through “the garbage band” frequency, the devices had to “spread” the radio frequencies over a larger area, which is also known as “spread spectrum”. This spread spectrum technology was widely used by the military such as sending out wide signals to guide torpedos, and used for general communication.
Once this technology took off in the early 1990’s, it was only used in small areas indoors, only covering a short range with low power, which over time advanced into various formats that enabled it to spread signals throughout large outdoor areas. These formats can be known as Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), and metropolitan area networks (MAN) in rural areas. (Alberto Escudero-Pascual 20 05 17, A brief history of wi-fi18, the economist 2004, Wikipedia 2008)19.
The potential for a widespread technology, not only being used in small, indoor personal environments, but having the ability to be used through large outdoor social areas could very well change what we do and what we interact with in public space. Its multi-use is significant to both our private and public social lives, and could have a huge benefit for all its users world wide, thus connecting us with close urban spaces and faraway locations.
A case study where a Wireless network has been applied to an entire city for use to all its residents and workers is used for multiple purposes. The technology however was not originally intended for the purpose of creating a city-wide wireless network, it began as automated meter reading for municipal gas and water services throughout the Corpus Christi, Texis in 2002.
“Meter readers often have difficulty accessing a property because of fences or dogs20 ”.
The metro-wide Wi- Fi mesh network utilised the already existing fixed fiber optic network as part of an automatic meter reading (AMR) system.
The AMR application used only a portion of the Wi-Fi mesh network’s bandwidth, where the vast potential of the networks capabilities were seen:
“vehicle equipped laptops for police, fire and other public safety officers; mobile desktops for field supervisors and managers, creating vital online information while they are in the field. It also enhances uses for residents and visitors to city resources such as library’s, City Hall’s, museums, and in public spaces all throughout the city.” (Tropos Networks Case Study June, 2005)20.
How this is done is via MetroMesh routers, placed around various parts of the city. Covering around 18.5 square miles, it creates a giant “hotspot”, where the network is accessible via set up accounts for workers, residents and visitors.
In the near future the Tropos MetroMesh architecture could allows effective delivery, of advanced voice and video that emergency services such as firemen, swat teams can relay real time information back and forth from each other that has never been able to be done before. In collaboration, with the use of “smart chips”, the network may also allow easy tracking for services in need, such as goods delivery, or police in the field. (Tropos Networks Case Study June 2005)20 (B net – Dec 5, 2006)21
Location / Global positioning systems
This Wireless network technology is becoming so broadly used, almost any kind of information can be accessed via personal handheld mobile technologies such as phones and GPS navigation devices. Location based alert systems are emerging that utilises wireless networks that can feed you information about your surroundings whilst your in public space. To make an example of such a system,
Awarespot: acts as a multipurpose alert system for mobile phones, where once a user has signed up to it via the website, they can be fed information that is relevant to them out in public. The free service is designed so that police, public safety and community service organizations, media, clubs, businesses, and more can quickly and easily set up community alert broadcast channels that deliver location based, relevant, timely information to their audiences. (Gizmag online- AwareSpot location based alert system for mobile phones)22
For example, an entity such as a public safety office can create a distribution list to publish it in various ways, publishing it so anyone can subscribe to it, or making it scrictly invitation only. Having sush a system, if users subscribe to distribution lists that co-inside with there dialy life, such as travelling routes, days, times etc, they can receive message if there are traffic jams up ahead. The alerts provided can also be “sticky”, so they can be downloaded to navigation devices and used to flag areas such as construction zones. The information can also be updated so if the information changes in the real environment, the user will be informed of the changes.
The commercial retail industry may also make use of this by creating distribution lists of their sales and specials, for when a subscribed consumer walks near, they will be alerted of the sale. (Awarespot, Tenereillo Inc, 2008)23
These Global positioning systems embedded in mobile devices will also allow users to digitally tag real locations with text and images. Using RFID (radio frequency identification) tags and text messages, would enable the user to pick up reviews of restaurants left by other visitors. Other applications could be navigating through historic sites or museums whilst picking up audio tours from around the areas you walk. (Salon Media Group, 2008)24
Conclusion
As the methods of communication are constantly changing, we find that where there are problems solved, there are also problems formed. From when telephones and internet were non existent, people had to rely on face to face interaction, or written letters that took time to be delivered. In these kinds of social environments, people were happy to be physically social. Now with all of the personal technologies we use, we find that less personal physical contact is needed in order to keep up to date with information from friends and relatives as is it all available almost at an instant.
We also find that these patterns of social activity change as technology evolves. Creating interactive involvements that were once only glimpses of imagination, are now being used in our everyday life that not only make communication and connection with others around us easier, they also advance these social experiences.
Interactive media has the potential to change how we live and socialise in these public spaces, using the latest technologies almost anything is possible.
Being able to track where your friends are via a wireless location network, whilst picking up reviews of restaurants left by strangers, to viewing where all the social activity is using heat mapping all just in general mobile phones. Combining these technologies with interactive landscapes in public space for all to use creating advanced social networking utilities, shows that we are slowly making the loop back to where we once were, except in a new way, with technology.
1. Household Use of Information Technology,
Australia, 2006-07
http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/8146.0
Viewed on the 25th of Aug 2008
2. Scott Sleek, Volume 29, number 9, 1998 Р Isolation increases with Internet use, http://www.apa.org/monitor/sep98/isolat.html
Viewed on the 2nd of September 2008
3. Chad Nilep, Linguistic Anthropology –
December 30, 2006 – Does BBC News cause “technology isolation syndrome” ?http://linganth.blogspot.com/2006/12/does-bbc-news-cause.html
Viewed on the 2nd of September 2008
17. Alberto Escudero-Pascual, 2005 Р
Creating wireless opportunities in a “Garbage Band” -http://www.it46.se/docs/papers/mmtk_wireless_introduction_vision_escuderoa.pdf
Viewed on the 28th of Aug 2008
18. The Economist print edition, Jun 10th 2004 – A brief history of Wi-Fi, http://www.coe.montana.edu/ee/rwolff/EE580/history_of_wifi.htm
Viewed on the 25th of Aug 2008
19. Wikipedia, WI-FI,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi#City_wide_Wi-Fi
Viewed on the 19th of August 2008
20. Tropos Networks Case Study June, 2005
Click to access corpus_casestudy%5B1%5D.pdf
Viewed on the 19th of August 2008
21. B net, Business Wire – Dec 5, 2006
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2006_Dec_5/ai_n27074472
Viewed on the 19th of August 2008
22. Gizmag
http://www.gizmag.com/awarespot-location-based-alert-system-for-mobile-phones/9572/
Viewed on the 18th of August 2008
23. Awarespot, Tenereillo Inc, 2008
http://awarespot.com/how-it-works.php
Viewed on the 18th of August 2008
24. Linda Baker, Salon Media Group, 2008- Urban renewal, the wireless way
http://dir.salon.com/story/tech/feature/2004/11/29/digital_metropolis/print.html
Viewed on the 27th of August 2008
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Just fellow author, a very interesting article, is rarely found in the network once again want to thank the sponsors, thank you.