User:Megan Hoogenboom/Final Project Proposal

First ideas graduation project

Update 1: Two ideas

Narcissism on the Internet, how does the digital world change behavior of different generations? Read about this in the NRC Next in September 2010. It was an interesting discussion about whether it does change behavior or not. Why do people want to post al these photo's and information of themselves online.

Continue with my Phobias project of last year (Suck-Direct-Release). But take it to another level, do different phobias exist in different spaces, whether they are in the physical world or in the digital world. >> with my first talk with Renee she mentioned that taking it to the digital world will be a good challenge. Could the search to where these phobias exist also be the project.

Readings: Wendy Chun, Control and Freedom Technosis, Erik Davis

Possible outcomes: dynamic graphs about the digital phobias, new phobias, online search engine who searches for fears and phobias

Update 2: Mind-map

The three main subjects in my mind-map are: the net-fear and phobias-privacy and freedom. After talking with Aymeric and discussing what the most strong subjects are, we came to these things:

Fear and phobias on the internet, what physical effects does the internet have on people. Focusing on the dark side of the web. The cybersex, the abandoned areas, the self-help websites, the constantly being watched.
The computer as a human body, the internet as the mind. How does the internet function, looking at it this way. Looking at the brain, the functions, what you not use, your subconsciousness.

Further, look at: Noosphere.

How people hide behind an avatar or nickname on websites and forums, and then tell their deepest secrests, they have a fear of exposing fully.

The history of the monopoly game, because this has begone as a tool to explain that the system of landlord/renter was wrong. We do the same with information or our data on the internet. We put all our information on Facebook, and they sell it to advertisers, the system is wrong. But everybody looks at it from the user-side, and cannot take distance. We have to take a step back.

All my ideas had to do with the personal experience of the user and its device.

Blackberrys from the company, we have to be always online. The companies enslave us with free smart-phones. Each generation has a point when it cannot take anymore new technology, so they give up. This time-span gets shorter, and shorter. Because the overload of data gets bigger and bigger. We get addicted to data, to checking our email or facebook updates of our friends.

Update 3: 5 Proposals

1. The dark sides of the web, cyberporn, conspiracy theory's, anorexic websites etc. How do they open the doors to new things. What people are on these websites, is this traceable? Do these people experience being on these dark spaces as freedom? How is their everyday life influences by this? Keep it on the web, or look at the relations it had to the physical world.

>>> A project proposal could be: Map these places, why are they the dark side of the web, how can they be found, a search engine for these places. How can you enter these communities. Where do they hide (porn on the torrent sites).

>>> A essay proposal could be:

2. Physical problems caused by the virtual world. The fears and phobias people develop by using the internet. Epileptic attacks caused by the screen, cyber-hypogondry, the overload of information generated by the users, self-help-websites, fear of the not knowing. Also: the blackberry or smartphone as a tool of companies to enslave its workers. People get totally stressed and have burn-outs because of the overload of information.

>>> A project proposal could be: A program to capture these fears, or to trigger these fears

>>> A essay proposal could be: A comparison between phobias triggered by everyday life (the traditional phobias) and the phobias caused by the internet.

2.5 The phobias and fears people experience on the internet, the technologically-based fears. How are they triggered and what do people do to avoid the experience these fears. Are these fears comparible to fears they have in the phusical world? (Like crossing a busy street and using google to search for something). The fear of the not-knowing and the fear of not-keeping up with the latest technological things.

3. The computer as a human body, the human aspects of the net. The internet as a brain. Sexuality on the internet, the physical parts of a computer but also the cyberporn and internet-viruses as STD's. What happens if you take the human aspect out of the internet? See the Noosphere http://noosphere.cc/

>>> A project proposal could be: How can a virus effect the human body, differences if the computer is human. How far away do we stand from the computer? The human brain, and its subconscious, you dont use every part, not al is working, if something brakes down, other parts can take over.

>>> A essay proposal could be: a comparison between the brain and it's functions and the internet ant it's functions.

4. The phenomenon of the nickname, how people hide behind their avatar or nickname. How far away from yourself is this nickname, when you tell everything about yourself except your real name. What is so personal about a name, what makes you: your identity or your feelings and problems.

>>> A project proposal could be: what happens if you leave out the names or if you cannot nbe anonymous anymore.

>>> A essay proposal could be: The nickname-phenomenon investigated, through the different canals: avatars, nicknames on fora and nicknames in games.

5. The user, he knows that there is something wrong, like with facebook, they should be able the take a step back and take a look at what happens with their information.

>>> A project proposal could be: Make people aware of this, be the spectator, be the one who took this step back

>>> A essay proposal could be: Same as project proposal.

6. How technology influences the physical world.

>>> A project proposal could be: On what does the technology has any effect, how big is this effect and does it effect the mind of the people or the way people do things.

>>> A essay proposal could be: Take one example and explore and investigate this one.

Update 4: Merging ideas

Merging ideas together, to make 3 more explicit ideas.

2, 2.5 and 6 into: How the technology effects the physical world, especially the people and their fears and phobias.

1, 4 and 5 into: the dark sides of the web, witch has a lot to do with the user and the user's nickname.

3 as a stand alone project. This project is the most different and more difficult than the others, but can be very interesting. There is a lot written about it, but beware of subjective writings and opinions. Look at: Software and brain, Nodes and neurons,

System Theory: look and take apart one system, and apply this to another system to understand it.

Furthermore, look at:

http://www.runme.org software art, some use viruses

The book: The raise of consciousness by Denneth

Update 5: The merging of the 6 ideas into 3

1: Physical problems caused by the virtual world, the phobias and fears people experience on the internet

The fears and phobias people develop by using the internet. Epileptic attacks caused by the screen, cyber-hypogondry, the overload of information generated by the users, self-help-websites, fear of the not knowing are few examples.

Some of this fear can be caused by the blackberry or smartphone as a tool of companies to enslave its workers. People get totally stressed and have burn-outs because of the overload of information.

The technologically-based fears. How are they triggered and what do people do to avoid the experience these fears. Are these fears comparable to fears they have in the physical world? (Like crossing a busy street and using google to search for something). The fear of the not-knowing and the fear of not-keeping up with the latest technological things.

>>> A project proposal could be: A program to capture these fears, or to trigger these fears

>>> A essay proposal could be: A comparison between phobias triggered by everyday life (the traditional phobias) and the phobias caused by the internet.

2: The dark sides of the web, like cyberporn, conspiracy theory's, anorexic websites and so on. How do they open the doors to new things. That people are on these websites, is this traceable? Do these people experience being on these dark spaces as freedom? How is their everyday life influences by this? Keep it on the web, or look at the relations it had to the physical world. They hide behind a nickname, or avatar. How far away from yourself is this nickname, when you tell everything about yourself except your real name. What is so personal about a name, what makes you: your identity or your feelings and problems. Also, the user, in this matter, knows that there is something wrong, like with facebook, they should be able the take a step back and take a look at what happens with their information.

>>> A project proposal could be: what happens if you leave out the names or if you cannot nbe anonymous anymore. Map these places, why are they the dark side of the web, how can they be found, a search engine for these places. How can you enter these communities. Where do they hide (porn on the torrent sites). Make people aware of this, be the spectator, be the one who took this step back

>>> A essay proposal could be: The nickname-phenomenon investigated, through the different canals: avatars, nicknames on fora and nicknames in games.

3: The computer as a human body, the human aspects of the net. The internet as a brain. Sexuality on the internet, the physical parts of a computer but also the cyberporn and internet-viruses as STD's. What happens if you take the human aspect out of the internet? See the Noosphere http://noosphere.cc/

>>> A project proposal could be: How can a virus effect the human body, differences if the computer is human. How far away do we stand from the computer? The human brain, and its subconscious, you dont use every part, not al is working, if something brakes down, other parts can take over.

>>> A essay proposal could be: a comparison between the brain and it's functions and the internet ant it's functions.

Update 6: Group Critique

Leave the epileptic out of the physical effects of the virtual world, really focus on what aspects I want to focus on. So the neurotic part or the more physical part: here also RSI comes in. -> For me the neurotic/psychological effects are the more interesting, because they are more in connection to the virtual world, where epileptic attacks can also be triggered by lights flickering.

What was also mentioned was the history of how technology influenced us throughout history. The hysteria in the beginning of the 21 century, followed by the post-traumetical stress and now the internet-phobias. Do technology feed on our fears or do we generate fears on different technologies?

The commercial links between the cyber-hypogondria and the websites listing all your posible illnesses and solutions, search results from google, sponsored advertisements. Are people aware of this commercial influence on the internet?

All the ideas are connected in a way.

Update 7: First talk with Steve + outcome

See the attached files for the first, second and last updates of the proposal.

First version: http://pzwart3.wdka.hro.nl/wiki/File:OutcomeMegan.pdf

Second version: http://pzwart3.wdka.hro.nl/wiki/File:OutcomeMegan2.pdf

Update 8: Group Critique

Presentation for first years. Didn't help with much progress. Comments that were made: Pay attention on the commercial aspect of the dark sides of the web.

Focus on the confessional side (medical, neurotic) or the conspiracy side. Myths, online. Phobias of parenting, how they express themselves, also with the focus on paedophilia (practising and catching them). Hysteria, history of female histeria, is this now happening online? Are we creating websites of cyber-hypogondria because we are too lazy to go to a doctor? Or are we scared? (Iphone apps for self-doctoring, gettng your heartbeat).

Shadow Web: The shadow web can be defined as: the findable places on the internet witch are not commonly accepted as 'normal' places to visit. They are NSFW (Not Suitable For Work) and people often use nicknames and no personal information to keep their offline identity secret. The websites are not about one person, but are most of the time being kept alive by its users. They provide the content, and it is the content that makes it be in the shadow web.

http://pzwart3.wdka.hro.nl/wiki/File:Presentatie.zip

http://www.flickr.com/photos/43096847@N07/with/5248206817/

Update 12: Proposal New Version

Project proposal new version: Project proposal new new version: