Alexander Quach

9/17/10

• [1]
• The Google health is a personal health record. Its been redesigned to be more user-friendly and focus more on wellness and fitness.

• It focus on people and machines.

9/21/10

• [2]
• The Google ME was created to fight against other social networking such as myspace and facebook. To compete with facebook,the google me has created a program called wave which has abilities such as real time chat with voice and video. It's estimated that Facebook will overtake Google Me in the next year or two.

• Stakeholders: Richard Smedley, Dan Smith, and Robert Marshall.
• ITGS Social/ethical issue: People and machines, globalization and cultural diversity, and control.
• This article relates to me by me wanting to try and join Google ME.
• I would try it out to see if it's a good social network.

9/29/10

• [3]
• The federal institute of technology in Lausanne has created a new wheel chair which combines brain and messages with artificial intelligence. There are two webcam on the wheelchair machine which help manuver it from objects on the ground. It takes a week or two to master the wheel chair.
• Stakeholder: federal institute of technology in Lausanne.
• ITGS Social/ethical issue: People and machine.
• Area of Impact = Health
• If it is not too expensive then i think this is a very good idea.

10/5/10

• [4]
• The three top things that I read that made me think was the percentage of teachers using computers as an aid between the 4th grade and the 8th grade. The other one was the use of computers for school work by the kids in the 4th, 8th, and 12th graders. the last one was the downside of the use of Facebook.
• The issue of Facebook in my opinion was the issue that caught my eye the most. I think downside effect of Facebook can changed into a benefit but we need the parents to control their kids from excessive use of Facebook and force them to focus more on studing. Technology was made to help us but due to its advancements everyday people in general are addictive and just wait for the next big change. Even though Facebook usage brought students GPAS down by one point parents need to see this and remove any sort of technology from their kids.
• The downside of technology that I believe has been going for the last 30 years has been the addiction people have to technology. Now a days people cannot go on with any type of technology for more than a day. The only if fixing this is to have people focus more on socializing with others in public or have them be involve in any activity that would get them of the computer. We cannot stop the enevitability of this but we can slow it down and make better.

• The new google tv is coming soon and is supposed to rival tv brands like Samsung and Toshiba. The sony internet tv is going to cost around $200-300. These devices will be release in the upcoming month.
• Stakeholders:Viktor Mayer-Schönberger, Andrew Keen, and Jürgen Habermas
• ITGS Social/ethical issue: Intellectual propery
• Area of Impact: Entertainment
• I would be very happy if i was able to obtain this device.

10/12/10

• [5]
• The three top phones in America is Android, Blackberry, and Iphone. Android leads in it with 21 states, Blackberry is tied for first with 21 states as well, and Iphone is last with 16 states. In Virginia Blackberry is the top phone.

• Social and Ethical Issue: People & machnine, and Intellectual Property.
• Areas of Impact: Science and the enviroment.

• It relates to me that I have an Android phone.
• If I had to chose then I would pick Android.

10/20/10

2 Million Minutes

• 1. The fact that careers are all but selected for students in India and China also allows them to focus more in particular fields, providing them the opportunity to take classes in that field before they are even out of high school. This drastically contrasts with American high school students who usually do not even think about their careers until they are preparing to apply to colleges and may even change their intended careers halfway through college. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Why?

• I think they both work because of how successful China, India, and the United States have become. If I had to chose I would pick the American way because it brings balance to a persons life and lets them grow in their own way. When we let the people in America have freedom and fun it lets them act their age. The people in China and India are just soo focused on their careers at age 8 they don't know how to have fun and to just find themselves.

• 2. I think the students chosen to represent Americans were a pretty good depiction of some of the top students we have here. Do you agree or disagree? Why?

• Yes, because when there is a national competition the countries in it always want to do their best so they would send the best of the best. No, because they United States is soo diverse with all the different types of foods, religion, and people. Top students in America that aren't shown are people of different race because the leaders of America want the world to still think that all the top students are caucasian.

• 3. The purpose of viewing the video was to demonstrate a flat world - made flat by competing economies in China and India. And that happened because of the dot.com bubble which laid down the fiber optic cables connecting our country with theirs via the Internet. Now that you've finished viewing the video, what are some of your thoughts? Was it worthwhile to have viewed this video? Has it made you appreciate what you have? How can we say the world is flat and global all at the same time? Don't those images cancel each other out? Explain.

• I believed the video was worth it because it just showed that we aren't the top country in the world anymore and how dedicated all the other countries are like China and India. The video has definitely made me appreciate what I have because we have soo much freedom and fun. The world is flat and global all the time because of the simplicity it can become due to every nations one desire. The movie really put me in a place that I've never been before because I never really thought of how well we have it compared to China and India.

10/28/10

• 1. What is the hourly salary of one of the newly hired BMW U.S. autoworkers? What is the hourly salary of the same autoworker if they worked in Germany?

• The hourly wages of workers in America is about $15 and in Germany it would be about 46 euros. 46 euros is about $30 and more. The european car companies have figured out how much in need America is for people to find jobs and they attacked it.

• 2. Are you surprised by the pay differential between the U.S. and Germany? Why or why not?

• Yes because even though the european economy is better I never would expect it to be much more. I believe the reason why it is very low is that Americans need jobs no matter the pay. Germany benefits even more even though their car companies are very profitable.

• 3. Can you think of other industries and/or countries that would offshore to the U.S.? Explain.

• Yes,all companies who can make parts and get paid cheaper than in any European countries. Any car companies who can produce parts for cheap labor such as Honda and Toyota. I think China will soon start to offshore some of its companies over to America. Companies I think will be game system companies.