Looking back at the first period of my studies, there were two topics that I found specifically interesting: the first topic was that of robots and Artificial Intelligence in relation to gender bias. During my bachelor’s programme, the concept of gender had always been a topic of interest for me and I enjoyed applying it do digital technologies. The conversation that my peers and I had during the tutorial was very interesting and engaging. We reflected a lot on the gender biases that might be embedded in both the field of robotics and technology, as well as in society as a whole and we thought about how those technologies should, perhaps, be used in a more gender-neutral way to avoid further stereotyping of the norms and values that we have in our society in terms of gender.
Another topic that I found interesting, was that of Digital Hyperreality during the course Real Virtualities. Here, we also touched upon the concept of Artificial Intelligence, but then as a technological simulation of a social companion. I really enjoyed the paper of Turkle (2011) about the sociable robots and their (dis)connection to human beings. We also discussed social media in light of hyperreality and I found it interesting to reflect on the change that both artificial intelligence and social media have brought within our society. Those kinds of technologies have completely changed how people interact socially and they might have created a state of hyperreality in which we now live.
Lastly, there is a third topic, which we discussed in the course Transformation in Digital Cultures, about social media and privacy. Although this was not an explicit topic in the syllabus, we did discuss it twice during the tutorials. The reason that this topic came up was due to the release of Netflix’s documentary The Social Dilemma. I found out that I am intrigued by all the ethical and moral aspects that come up in terms of social media usage. I am interested in how the algorithms of these platforms are created to manipulate people in using social media, and how people’s psychological states and privacy are impacted by this.
All in all, I really enjoyed my first period of Media Studies. It was great to discuss each week’s topic together with my peers and we often ended up engaging in really interesting and deep conversations about digital technologies and their impacts on society. I’m looking forward to the new courses in our next period!
Dear Rebecca,
AI and robots are indeed an intriguing topic, whereas with many fascinating things to research about. Therefore, the fact that you already have in mind that you want to relate it to gender bias, takes you on a step forward. A potential research question could refer to the gender-neutral design of AI in terms of Swierstra’s technomoral change and Verbeek’s Mediation Theory. Of course, a case study may help you further.
Additionally, the topic you mention regarding social media and privacy sounds also promising. Online platforms are indeed based on algorithms that they “know” more about us, than us! It would be interesting though to search maybe also on what scale people engaging with these technologies in their everyday life are aware of it, what they mean for them using them despite knowing the truth regards their data be exposed (almost all of us!) and how/why they choose to behave towards the issue.
Best regards,
Katerina.
Dear Rebecca,
I really like your idea of avoiding further stereotyping of the norms and values that we have in our society in terms of gender. That’s exactly why we should do more research on gender issues in all fields, especially in mass media productions which have great impacts on our way of receiving ideas and concepts towards the world.
And as robots becoming more common in our society, gender issues related to robots should definitely be studied and awareness about these should be raised as well. Moreover, the relationship between robots and human society are also vital as aging problems are more common in all countries.
Lastly, social media and the algorithms are things that will beyond human control and expectations in the future if regulations are not well established, however, as individuals, we can only protect our privacy to a large extent and raise awareness of the technology that might take over our daily social life.
I am really like your ideas about all these topics, and I think being curious about the world we live in is the best way to avoid the disadvantages it brings.
Best wishes,
Jingwen