The internet and technology giant Google has been promoting the ground-breaking introduction of Google
Glass, a wearable technology that merges the digital world with the physical
world to form a “smart reality.” The potential for this product and the
accompanying software technology is endless, yet I had only seen one article
about this innovative technology before enrolling in this course. For those who
do not take a particular interest in the tech industry, it is unlikely that
they are aware of the existence of this product. Where is all the hype that
Google executives are pushing so hard to create?
I believe that the potential for innovation with this product
is being over-shadowed by possible violations of personal privacy and federal
wiretapping laws. Public caution about getting too excited with Google Glass seems
to be swayed heavily by today’s social-media mafia. In fact, there has already
been one establishment in tech-savvy Seattle that has emplaced a ban on Google
Glass in advance of their introduction to the public. Essentially, citing
privacy issues, the owner expressed concern with the possibility of his patrons
being videotaped without their knowledge or approval. Whether his reasoning, he
runs a seedy bar that some patrons wouldn’t want other people knowing they go
to, lends merit to his concerns or not, it definitely opens the debate for the
negative uses that this technology could be used for. Please follow the link
below for the full article.
Google Glass could be harmful to an individuals’ quality of
life over a long enough timeline. Two diagnosed occupational illnesses related
to technology are Computer Vision Syndrome (CVS) and Technostress. CVS is any
eyestrain condition related to display screen use, and technostress is stress
induced by computer use. Symptoms of technostress include aggravation,
hostility toward humans and impatience…among others. These two maladies are the
most likely to occur through the use of Google Glass, which, by its design,
keeps users “plugged in” longer than almost any other device to date.
All negativity aside, the implications for this technology is
exciting. I truly want to be a believer and would be very interested in trying
it out…if it didn’t resemble that thing that Lavar Burton wore in Star Trek.
Rule # 1 for my former job was to “always look cool” and this device in its
present form would make that very difficult. I feel that if it was developed
and engineered by Apple during the Steve Jobs era, it would probably be quite a
bit more aesthetically pleasing in the same way as the IPad and the IPod.
Ultimately, I believe its introduction and shelf life of
this product will closely resemble that of another “ground-breaking” invention that
has maintained a presence in our society, albeit a much more minimal one than
predicted and only in specific niche areas, the Segway.
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