Knowledge at Our Fingertips; You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet

We have spent the first half of June exploring concerns and dangers of our ever-emerging digital world.  This is the first of four articles which looks at the incredible benefits it brings us. There are plenty of reasons to celebrate.

Learning things, gaining knowledge, and wisdom which came with great patience and effort only a few years ago now lies at our fingertips.  Information once stored away at libraries and museums is just as easily accessible as your favorite television show.  Poetry, literature, art, science, and technology can be studied and explored at a whim from the comfort of home. How miraculous and exciting to live in such an age.

Some of my grown children and spouses make a living in the technology fields.  One is a Data Quality Manager, another Director of Technology Recruiting and a third is an Account Executive Manager of Cloud Technologies.  Our son, who just came back from an international convention in Nashville, was explaining to us how a new program solves logistic problems as easily as organizing Lego's.  His father-in-law, an accounting professor, chirped in that he was lost in whatever Steven was describing.  Though not exactly lost myself, our techy pro was telling the story of languages and applications which mystify me in so many ways.

I am no neophyte to computers.  My experiences began with them back in early 1971 when, as a young behaviorist working with troubled boys, I learned Fortran in an effort to use computers to predict adolescent behavior.  It didn't work.  My guess is that even the newest programs and languages explained by our son couldn't accomplish that heady task.  But you never know. Long story short, I was hooked on the burgeoning technology right then and there.  Over the years I have modernized hospital communications between treatment teams using personal computers, created programs to diagnose the severity of addictive illness while inventing individual strategies for recovery, and on and on.  But here I am today, swimming in a sea of technological evolution which overwhelms my head, heart, and gut.  Extraordinary wonders await us which are just around the corner...and we are at that corner already. It is developing at lightning speed and not a single aspect of life is devoid of tech influence and guidance.

Five Awesome Digital Wisdom Revolutions

1. Human Brain Project: Research neuroscientists are mapping the brain creating a 3D atlas stitching together thousands of brain cross-sections showing details as small as a human cell. This will advance neuroscience medicine in ways unimaginable a decade ago.
2. Three Dimensional Printing: Architecture, engineering, medicine, aerospace, and the auto industry (to name a few) are all using this amazing technology to make things in new and innovative ways.  Home users are creating projects that are mind-blowing.  You can get an industrial grade 3D printer on Amazon for $1,500 and have it shipped with a guaranteed delivery date in four days.  Yikes.
3. E-Learning for Anyone: It's not just for school kids anymore.  E-Learning (technology-based learning) is an industry that has been embraced by schools, corporations, teachers, and students of every ilk. Lee Ann Obringer, Communications Director of The Walking Classroom Institute says that "E-learning is to classroom learning as cell phones are to a pay phone at the bus station." It provides self-paced programs at low cost in convenient locations with continually updated content. What a benefit for traditional and non-traditional learning milieu.
4. Artificial Intelligence: AI is the replication of human intelligence by computers.  The technology allows machines to learn from experience in part by recognizing patterns.  New Deep Learning software recognizes speech, identifies images and makes predictions.  Self-Driving cars, medical diagnosis, nanorobots, design/security systems, and personal assistant robots (here comes C-3PO) are all on the AI horizon.
5. DNA Engineering: Gene editing technology is giving scientists the ability to change our DNA. They can add to, edit or remove genetic material.  There is such great interest in this miraculous medical engineering as it offers new hope in curing diseases such as cancer, sickle cell, mental illness, and HIV among many others. Ethics concerns are valid of course and have halted research in many countries.

There is a seemingly endless list of dynamic digital technologies happening and developing right now.  Managing them in our micro and macro lives are daunting.  Each of us is responsible to the extent of digital impact on ourselves and our families. But one thing is certain...our reality is changing dramatically and will continue to change regardless of any effort to slow it down.  I suggest this...Hold on and enjoy the ride.

Getting Soft; Casualties of a Digital Age

This is the fourth of four articles about concerns, or the down-side of the digital age in our series, “Mastering our Digital; Recovering the Real World.” 

We spend a lot of time in front of one sort of screen or another every day.  Michigan State University, which has gathered the largest concentration of media psychologists in the world to analyze digital impact, reports that the average American spends at least six hours a day absorbing electronic media. 

There are consequences. 

Too much screen time is creating significant health-related problems.  This is especially worrisome in children and adolescents as the influence of technology increases.  Parents have some big decisions to make when it comes to how much exposure kids have to screens. All of us need to take stock of what we are doing to our bodies and brains as we spend so much of our lives sitting and interacting with these digital devices.

Soft Brains

The most complex computer ever created is the human brain.  It is changing and developing from the time we are in the womb until death. Research tells us that the most rapid time of neurological growth goes on for the first decade of life.  Every experience contributes to who a child will become.  But the changes don't stop there.  The adolescent brain undergoes dramatic brain pruning and trimming in which as much as ten percent of gray matter is cast off as unnecessary.  Neuronal connections are remapped and higher processing and executive functioning are refined.  Even in mid and old age, the brain is constantly recreating and adapting.

So, here is the problem.  We are overloading our sensory circuits with too much screen time.  In addition, studies confirm that our overuse of digital technology is shrinking gray matter which controls higher functions and impulse control, slowing down signals between brain hemispheres, reducing cortical thickness, and impairing dopamine production causing a declining sense of well being.  Overuse of screen time is even said to be contributing to depression and suicide ideation.  The bottom line is that we are making soft brains that are maladaptive.

Soft Bodies

It seems obvious that our bodies are not going to respond well to inactivity due to digital abuse.  Here are three issues we face as a result:

1. Weight Gain and General Health~ Inactivity while interacting with screens creates a low-calorie burning scenario.  Sedentary habits lead to appetite disruption, decreased muscle mass, obesity. heart disease, diabetes, some types of cancer and links to heart disease. 
2. Sleep Disturbance ~ Digital light suppresses melatonin and sends messages to the brain that it is daytime.  Insomnia in adults and children is widespread.
3. Eye Strain ~ Our eyes are impacted by staring at a screen for long periods of time followed by dry eyes, blurry vision, and headaches.

Toxic Trends

Excessive use of social media has been connected to risky and bad decision making according to Dar Meshi at Michigan State.  Inactive bodies and neurologically challenged brains leave us at our most vulnerable. Misinformation and so-called fake news promulgated on the internet and television cause people to develop worldviews and opinions that are not grounded in truth.  Once people believe that something false is true it is very difficult to persuade them otherwise. 

When these ideas are constantly reinforced on screens we watch for so many of our waking hours, the more divided and unreasonable we become.  With Deepfake Videos becoming widespread, the line between what is real and what is not blurs. The threat to our democratic government could be at stake as the next federal election nears.  But there is plenty we can do to break the habit and regain control of our lives. Our screens cannot pass sentence on what we are to become unless we allow it.

Three Simple Ways to Reset and Restore

1. Daily Chores and Routines ~ Set a minimum time for family activities and chores every day while limiting screen time for everyone.  Anything more than one hour online is too much.  More than an hour of television is enough.  Thirty minutes of assigned chores will make your home a happier place.  Another thirty minutes of active play inside or out is a must to maintain healthy bodies. Add in thirty minutes of board games, card games or reading together. There are an hour and a half in which digital is out and bonding is in.
2. Enforce Good Sleep Habits ~  All WiFi should be turned off an hour before bedtime.  Studies show that WiFi signals may suppress melatonin and increase arousal levels.  Set bedtimes for kids.  No junk food or other eating before sleep.  Keep rooms as dark as possible.
3. Be and Play Outside ~ One of the best ways to reset the computer in our heads is exposure to sunlight, play, and exercise.  Blood pressure decreases, perspectives are broadened, memory improves and vitamin D levels increase.  All the really good stuff is outside after all.

Hacking Our Future; Time to Circle Your Web Wagons

This is the third of four articles in the June series “Mastering our Digital; Recovering the Real World.” which explore concerns about our technological age.

Modern-day spies are not only found within the secret confines of legendary organizations like the CIA, the MI5, or Russian SVR RF. They lurk in front of and within digital devices around the planet. Espionage, which had formerly been conducted to glean state secrets by clandestine operatives is now the purview of troll armies and web brigades such as the Russian company known as IRA (Internet Research Agency).

Images of 007 are replaced by mental pictures painted by President Trump when he questioned the identity of those responsible for hacking our 2016 federal election saying "It also could be somebody sitting on their bed that weighs 400 pounds, OK?”

Computer robot programs or "bots" are crawling around the internet.  They spread viruses, collect information, duplicate websites, and capture email. Cyberterrorism and hactivist groups are using these bots to achieve political or ideological gains every minute of every day. 

As of 2012, more bots visit websites than humans.

That means bots are determining the value of websites to potential readers. 38% of the bots crawling our sites are up to no good. So not only are we out-numbered, but nearly 2 out of every 5 visitors to your site are trying to steal information, exploit security loopholes and pretend to be something they are not.

Four Ways to Improve CybersecurityDownload

Four Kinds of Bad Bandit Bots

1. Site Scrapers: This bandit steals and copies web content and posts it in other places on the internet. They rip off intellectual property, customer lists, pricing and other databases. Scraping is responsible for millions of dollars in lost annual revenue.
2. Hacking Bandits: The bad guys of this bot pretend that they are you.  They steal your identity by hacking entire databases like the infamous Linkedin theft of 167 million account passwords and logins.  Then they sell the information on the dark web.
3. Spam Bots: These are the nasty critters that collect and harvest email addresses and build lists for sending unsolicited mail. They can send out Trojans which will turn a computer into a spam distributor.
4. Ad Fraud Bots: Digital Advertising Bots are costing businesses about $4.5 million an hour. Only 38% of all online advertising is human.

The result of cybercrime, digital espionage and data breaches from malware and ransomware is costing billions annually and has created high demand for corporate cybersecurity firms, in-house teams, and enterprise security systems. Lloyds of London Bank recently revealed that cybersecurity is now the most sought after skill among small businesses.  Varonis, a cybersecurity innovator published a list of 60 Must-Know statistics about cybercrime that is very informative and disturbing.

Being Better Consumers and Citizens

In light of the bad bots, individuals, and governments compromising our security at all levels there are measures we can all take.  Being better-informed consumers, alert to personal threats and conscientious in digital behavior is the best answer to cybercrime.  Social media companies, the various media, and governments give lots of lip service to doing a better job but it remains to be seen if they will do what it takes without lots of pressure from us...their customers and their electorate. With another federal election coming up next year there is still no national security strategy to improve on what happened in 2016.  

Four Ways to Improve Your Cybersecurity

1. Backup Your Data - If all of your data, pictures, videos, music, financial records and other information is in one place, you could easily lose it all to malicious cybercrime.  One simple way to do this is to buy an external hard drive and simply copy everything onto it and store it away.  Do this on a regular basis.
2. Have Good Up-To-Date Antivirus Software - The best computer antivirus systems will update on a regular basis and keep constant vigilance on your system.  You cannot afford to be without it.
3. Enable and Use Two-Step Verification - This is a simple way to vastly improve your security.  The most common form of two-step verification is after you log into an account and enter your password, a text is sent to your cellphone which you have to enter to complete the process.  Though slightly annoying, it can greatly diminish hacking. Most every social media site and search engine has a way to set up two step verification. Follow the link above for more information.
4. Never Use Public WiFi - You might as well write down and broadcast every one of your passwords, personal information, and access to your accounts while sitting naked at a coffee shop if you are going to use a public WiFi.  Just never, ever do it.  While you're at it...Don’t use hotel WiFi either.

Mastering our digital lives means that we have to take control of the technology.  Bots, adversaries, and enemies are betting we won't do it.  My money is on us.

Reclaiming Privacy in the Digital Age

This is the second of four articles in the June series "Mastering our Digital; Recovering the Real World." which explore concerns about our technological age.

The world is getting smaller as technology expands at lightning speed bringing exciting innovation.  It is indeed a brave new world.  But as we gain access to vast and unfettered information we are becoming more vulnerable than ever before. Privacy and security worries are increasing.  We seem to be living in glass houses, naked and vulnerable without our informed consent.

A Matter of Serenity and Safety

Evolving technology has been influencing, challenging, and compromising our ideas of privacy for a long time.  I remember an encounter I had in a remote area of the Western North Carolina mountains where a friend of mine's grandfather lived.  He worked a small tobacco farm that had been in his family for generations.  The cabin where he lived was built in the middle of the nineteenth century and only had electricity and running water for two decades.  Charley was a widower and his grown children and grandchildren were worried about him living alone up there without a telephone. 

One of the boys arranged for Bell Telephone to come up and install a unit, but Charley ran the worker off the front porch with a warning and a shotgun.  Another friend and I were asked to try convincing Charley to let the man install a phone.  When we presented how convenient it might be to just call his family to hear how they were doing rather than make the trip to their homes he replied that "It sure would be nice to do that but the other side of the coin is any one of them could pick up the dang phone and call me anytime they felt the hankerin'.  It would ruin my serenity."  With that. the advance of technology was halted at his doorstep.

We've come a long way since Charley refused to have his serenity interrupted.  With cell phones attached to our bodies, the melodious ringing follows us everywhere and interrupts anything.  We even have to be reminded to disconnect during religious services.  On one hand, we want to be available for conversations all of the time while on the other we cry out for privacy protection.  It seems almost counterintuitive.  We certainly don't act like it is a priority. But of course, it is.

Our privacy is invaded every day.

Far-reaching surveillance measures and policies are designed to keep us safe from those who would do us harm. But we give up a lot with video cameras everywhere we wander.  Drug testing is so commonplace that nobody seems offended when asked to provide a urine sample.  DNA we provide to learn more about our health or genealogy are all too available to governmental agencies.  Body imaging devices search us at airports and other public places.  Metal detectors are at the entrances of most schools. Our privacy is invaded daily by external forces in the name of security.

Short of "going dark", there are certainly ways to have a desired amount of privacy.  And there are some simple ways to maintain the balance necessary for individual inviolability and freedom. 

Five Ways to Protect Privacy

1. Be Smart With Your Smartphone. These wonderful devices are tracking more than you probably know. By using a smartphone you are giving up most elements of the privacy you treasure. They collect information about you even with the pictures you take of family and friends. Stay aware of what your phone is tracking and doing. Check it out at this link: https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/phone-privacy/

2. Protect Your Passwords. It is impossible to remember all of the passwords we set up. But overused ones are more easily accessed by strangers and predators. Get a password vault or manager to save and generate passwords that will save you lots of headaches and trouble. Here is a link to the best ones available in 2019. https://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/best-password-managers/

3. Pay in Cash. It should be obvious by now that folks who issue credit cards are selling your personal information. If you want for your buying patterns to be your own business, slow down the online purchasing. Get your money at the bank and spend it the way we used to...with dollars and cents (sense).

4. Be Email, Message and Call Savvy. If you don't know the sender of an electronic mail, don't open it. Be especially careful about opening any attachments. This is how phishing works. All of your information is at risk when you aren't careful. The same goes for responding to callers on phones (even landlines). If you don't know who is calling, don't answer. They will leave a message if it is important.

5. Guard Your Social Security Number. It seems like everyone would like the last four numbers of your SSN. Be very cautious and wary unless it is your bank or the IRS. The fact is that predators of all kinds can figure out the rest of your number with the last four and your birthplace.

Five Ways to Protect Privacy PDF

Download

There are dozens of other ways to make yourself safer and to protect your privacy.  Social media profiles should be very limited in terms of your personal information.  Make sure devices have a password or thumbprint requirement for opening.  Enable private browsing on your search engine.  Set up a Google alert for your name by accessing this site google.com/alerts. Take some time to investigate the different measures you might want to take by checking out trusted sources.

Government and commercial entities are only partly to blame for compromising privacy in the digital age. The bulk of the responsibility rests with each of us.  You really have the power to balance your own safety and privacy.  

Digital Life; Challenges of A New Frontier

The topic we are investigating in June is "Mastering Our Digital; Recovering the Real World."  In a series of four articles and four follow-ups, our hope is to better grasp the nature of this barely charted course before us in order to maintain at least one firmly planted foot in the material dimension where we live and breathe.

We have a dilemma. Portable screens, social media, internet gaming, virtual reality, artificial intelligence, and cable television have intruded to a point that we seem beyond the control of them and of ourselves.  Even elections are compromised by dark forces bent on influencing who we are and what directions governments should take.  It's all pretty overwhelming, especially to skeptical generations which lived most of their lives without these machines. Though the dilemma may appear insoluble, it is not. Or at least it doesn't have to be.  After all, these 'things' are designed to make our lives better.  The quandary is whether we should fully embrace, begrudgingly accept, or run away screaming as this New Frontier of Digital Life looms before us.

There is a wonderful story about President Eisenhower which circulated among my IBM friends back in the early 1980s. Ike had commissioned an early supercomputer for the Pentagon.  When completed, an entire section of one subterranean floor was devoted to the machines.  A master control station was set up behind impenetrable glass walls.  According to legend, the President came to see his creation and asked to be alone with it for a minute.  He typed out this question, "Is there a God?" and the computers all started flashing and whirring.  After several minutes, a single card spits out of its' slot toward Eisenhower.  It said, "There is now."

Bill Moyers queried renowned author, historian, and professor, Joseph Campbell during a 1988 PBS documentary called "The Power of Myth." concerning computers and the role they might play in the future.  Campbell looked over at his computer screen and said: "To me, that machine is almost alive. I could mythologize that damn thing." but went on to say, "The first time anybody made a tool, I mean, taking a stone and chipping it so that you can handle it, that’s the beginning of a machine. It’s turning outer nature into your service. But then there comes a time when it begins to dictate to you." It seems that Joseph Campbell had already foreseen thirty years ago what might happen in a computer age.  But there is no reason to rage against the machine.  With the Eisenhower story and Campbell's warning in mind, what we must take charge of is the extent to which we allow the digital world to dictate our daily life.

Trying to find a good perspective of the digital era involves looking at some of the negative and positive aspects of its landscape as we experience it today.  This is an early stage of technological development really. We have a better chance to guide and adapt now than if we wait very much longer.  I am reminded of the popular modern myth "Game of Thrones" which just finished its' final season on HBO.  Despite a chorus of voices that warned "Winter is coming" everyone procrastinated.  Old ways of dealing with conflicts, security, and enemy threat persisted even when the almost invulnerable White Walkers were in plain sight and civilization seemed doomed. Myths like this one have the power of validating or maintaining a society while providing a path forward (as Campbell tells us). Now is the time for action as we master our digital and recover the real world.

This is the direction we will take over the next four weeks together.  Hopefully, our eyes will be opened a bit and we will be able to better navigate the seas ahead without too much upheaval. Follow the content link on each of the 'concerns and celebrations' below as you experience one of the many wonders of the digital age.  Instant information.

Four Areas of Concern
There are plenty of areas in which we can focus our concerns about modern digital life. These are four which stand out as ones deserving of our attention:

1. Digital Addiction/Electronic Screen Syndrome
2. Personal Privacy and Security/Real Stranger Danger
3. Global Cyber Crime/Hacking our Future
4. Physical and Mental Health/Soft Brains and Bodies

Four Areas of Celebration
It's a small world after all.  Our digital world has connected us in ways we could have never imagined.  People who are not like 'us' become potential friends as we forge into this new frontier.  Here are four of many reasons to celebrate our screens.

1. Wisdom at Our Fingertips; The Future of Research, Learning, and Education
2. Alternative Environments; Family Enrichment by Work-at-Home Providers
3. Social Media; Staying Close and Keeping In Touch with Old friends and Family
4. Medical Miracles; From Diagnosis to Treatment OnLine.