This is an important and poignant discussion about how social and search algorithms have begun to filter our content, based on what it thinks we want. While this might be great when you're shopping on Amazon, it has dangerous implications on our awareness and understanding about what's happening in the world and our communities, outside of our most immediate or most frequented spheres. Pariser makes the point that when the Internet first launched, we had human editors; the problem with algorithmic editors is that they don't have the ethics, the moral compass to ensure that people are seeing what they NEED to see, not just what they might want to see.
I have to agree. I geek out on what tech can do for us every day, but this is exactly why I curate all of my own feeds on my social networks - it lets me choose the voices I want to hear, rather than letting a machine decide which content I should see, based on my past behaviors. Consider that if you do not curate your own filters, you're not seeing posts from a number of your connections, but you're also probably not seeing everything that the people you interact with the most are posting; you're only seeing the types of stuff you've interacted with from them before. That's a problem, in my opinion.
One of my favorite parts about the Internet has been serendipity, discovery and the expansion of my worldview. If we remove that, we might as well abandon the web and go back to insular, local communities.
Watch this TEDTalk and let me know what you think. It's only eight minutes, but it's eternally important.
While I don't find the game's story the most compelling, I think the implications of this technology are immensely exciting. I also recognize the value in launching with a game that uses a child as the protagonist, as it makes intuitive sense to the player that they need to train this character - the process that actually molds his artificial intelligence. It might not be as organic if we were training an adult. In addition, this game could appeal to both children and adults; the former, through identification, and the latter, through the parental desire to guide this boy to a successful and happy life.
If this works well, the storytelling opportunities are boundless. I can't wait to try out the game where you are controlling an international spy, area professional race-car driver, and, for my single friends, pursuing the adventures of the modern day Leisure Suit Larry.
There also seem to be valuable opportunities for education, training and fitness. This could take the Wii Fit to a whole new level. Imagine learning how to make business pitches, negotiate, argue your case in court, counsel a disturbed client through their psychiatric challenges. It seems that the professional and lifestyle arenas could benefit greatly from such a social and deeply immersive system.
I'm certainly going to keep an eye on this and try it out as soon as I can. This is the type of thinking that could make Microsoft truly relevant again.
Reviews, thoughts, images, articles and other content about digital media, real-time content, apps, advertising & technology that resonate with me.
