Innovations and the Diffusion Theory

    According to Science Direct, the Diffusion Theory impacts "the spread of an innovation through a population," (Batres and Yasuda). The Diffusion Theory determines how people in a society are going to respond and react to a certain innovation or technology. This theory shows how people become used to living with certain technologies and how they impact our lives. While some individuals may be impacted by new technological advancements or innovations almost instantly, others tend to hold off too see how it truly makes a difference in our own society. It is all up to personal preference.

     An innovation that was incredibly successful was the creation of the internet. The internet gained its popularity because it allowed more people to communicate with one another, at a faster speed as well. People were now receiving different forms of communication, as sending letters and making phone calls were used during the time of the internet's invention, emailing was not also possible thanks to the internet.

 

    Through the Diffusion Theory, an early adopter is typically someone who is open to making changes happen and are excited when it comes to technological advancements and innovations. So many people were early adopters of the internet because individuals saw this as a new and exciting way to communicate with others, read the news, and share and receive information. The internet has a lot more efficiency compared to other forms of communication. 

    With any kind of innovation, there are going to be people who are late adopters. This means they will finally join the rest of society in regards to using a certain technology or advancement after a long period of time has passed. Some people were late adopters to using the internet because they did not feel like it was necessary to use in their everyday life. Some people enjoyed the way their lifestyle was and did not feel like any changes needed to be made. Others were also skeptical about the internet and wondered if it was truly one of the best ways to communicate and retain information. However, as time passed, the internet grew immensely and has one of the biggest impacts on humans in the world. Without the internet there would be no cellphones, apps of any kind, additional forms of communication, or ways to search anything up and get the answer in an instant. With all of the technological advancements formed because of the internet, it became harder for people to stay away. The internet is used in schools, the workplace, and it became so common in our everyday lives that it was almost inevitable for everyone to start using the internet, and the late adopters finally joined everyone else. 

    As it has been mentioned that the internet has a massive impact on societies everywhere, there are still individuals who do everything in their ability to avoid using the internet and have done so successfully. There are people who are never going to be adapters of the internet because they are afraid of how the internet is going to impact them. The internet holds so much information about everything, including your identity. People do not want to create an internet presence because then it can become incredibly easy to find your name, address, contact information, political party, etc. If you do even more research, you can find information such as someone's DNA test results, which you would never expect to be uploaded for anyone in the world to see if they looked it up. Some people are not comfortable knowing they can become so accessible to the whole world if they use the internet, so they do not use it at all. Or, especially regarding the older generations, if they do not understand how to use the platforms, some might not be interesting in learning and just stay off the internet overall. Since the older generations have gone most of their lives without the internet, they may not feel like it is necessary to use it and learn how the internet works. 

    As previously mentioned, using the internet can be harmful to individuals because it is so easy to find someone's personal information that they do not want to be shared with anyone. Along with this, the internet tracks your every move. The internet looks at your browsing history, your physical location, the apps that you use, and it can even listen into your conversations. It is all extremely invasive especially with the discomforting feeling of knowing that nothing posted on the internet is gone even if you think it is deleted. 

    However, some people love to use the internet because it allows you to communicate efficiently, and even with people who live all over the world. The internet has also improved our education systems greatly as it has become an incredible tool to use in schools. Individuals can learn so much because of what the internet has to provide for us. While the internet has its positive and negative impacts, what matters most is that people learn how to use it properly and in the safest way possible.

Each One Teach One: Printing Press

    From the Each One Teach One presentations that took place in class, I thought learning about the printing press was interesting and I gained a lot of new information from that specific presentation. The printing press was invented by Johannes Gutenberg and it was created for the reason of serving people and God. Every hour, the printing press was able to make 24,000 copies. I find it very intruiging to learn that the printing press was able to create thousands of copies each hour when this machine was invented in the 1400s. I feel that with these results, the printing press was a massive technological advancement for this time period. 

    Since one of the main reasons Gutenberg created the printing press was to serve God, thousands upon thousands of copies of the Bible were created and shared among those living in Europe (or Germany, more specifically) to help them learn all about God. While Gutenberg wanted to see the printing press come into action, especially for the reason of spreading religion to others, he, unfortunately, passed away before the printing press was put into use for the first time. Even though he was not alive to see the impact that the printing press held on society, his goal of sharing the message of God through his invention was created.

 

    However, the printing press did not just spread the message of God to those who were reading. The printing press would be used to spread news to one another and created a more knowledgable society overall. The printing press provided the citizens of Europe with so many new opportunities. While the creation of the printing press did unfortunately cause some people to lose their jobs, it also helped with the creation of new jobs as well. This meant that it was no longer necessary for papers and books to be written by hand, which would take months to complete. Even though the printing press took away those jobs for people, the printing press needed workers who could operate the machinery, create the finishing product and do the final touches, and to help distribute the books. While the printing press took away something from people, it also gave in return and helped to create a better and more efficient society. 

    

The Progressive Era

       When exploring the websites antiwar.com and The American Conservative, I noticed that a lot of the topics of discussion are not brought up as frequently in the mainstream news. I believe that these websites are not too popular in the United States because it goes against the values that the United States government holds and that it shows a poor representation of our country and what we stand for. While we do have freedom of speech and we are allowed to post whatever we like online, the government can still control the amount of exposure a website receives. 

    The government may spend time blocking websites or even removing some content to avoid any controversies. The government wants to do the best it can to give the United States a good image. If United States citizens are criticizing the country and the way it is run, this can harm the reputation of our country greatly. When American citizens are displaying that they do not like or agree with the country they are living in, this gives a negative impression to those living in other countries. 

    For example, if there is any poor communication with the United States military, the government will shut down that information instantly. The United States is against anti-war because the military is one of the things our country is known for and it also has a huge economic impact on our country. Billions of dollars are spent funding the military, so government officials are not pleased when there is backlash regarding the way the government spends its money, especially on the military overall. There are also so many Americans active in different parts of the military such as the Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, etc. that this proves we are living in a country that is pro-war and the government will do anything in its power to maintain that image. 

Each One Teach One: Radio

  

    In the year 1895, Guglielmo Marconi invented the radio. It was previously known as the "wireless telegraph." Marconi invented the radio in his parent's attic, and he was able to convert radio waves into morse code. The device that he used later on to achieve this was the radio. The radio was originally used to contact ships at sea in the early 1900s. Even though the Titanic had an unfortunate ending, the Titanic did use the radio while at sea to stay in communication with those on land. Individuals on the Titanic were able to use the radio to communicate to people on land that they were experiencing issues. However, it was not until WWI and WWII that the radio became more popular. During WWI, the radio was used to communicate with soldiers, especially to warn them about any poisonous gases that could cause them harm. As WWII came around, the radio was affordable which resulted in over half of American households owning a radio. Radios during this time were used for both one-way and two-way communication which gave them more purpose and increased their popularity. The radio was used to give families updates on the war, current news, and the Top 40 music countdown also became very popular during this time. 

    The radio has a huge impact on technology. The radio has been used for news, music, sports, and would even spark the idea of podcasts so listeners can tune in at any time they desire. Since the television was invented after the creation of the radio, the radio was the very first way that people would be able to important news live. It became a more efficient way to send a mass amount of information to everyone in the country at once. People would hear news instantly rather than wait days for any updates in the newspaper. The radio was also the very first way to share news with individuals regardless of where they lived in the United States. The invention of the radio also boosted the popularity of the music industry overall. Musicians were able to share their music with people all across the country for the very first time. This also meant music genres were expanded and gave musicians more inspiration and creativity to flow. While there are not many negative impacts when it comes to the creation of the radio if there is bad weather it may be difficult to have good-quality sound when listening to the radio as it can cause some technical difficulties. This is not as wide-scale of an issue anymore but had more of an impact, especially during the radio's first few years of creation. People have also been concerned that radio waves would have an impact on your health and cause cancer, many studies have been conducted that report that radio waves do not cause any sicknesses. Radio waves are transmitted through the air and if they enter our bodies they can be reflected and retracted to change directions, which does not cause damage to our bodies.

Eight Values of Free Expression

    Individual Self-Fulfillment is a value of expression that I resonate with the most out of the Eight Values of Free Expression. This value is the most important to me because this value is what allows individuals to express themselves. It allows people to create any identity they want for themselves as this becomes an aspect of who we are as individuals and it is how we define ourselves. If we were not allowed to express ourselves in the ways in which we desire, there would be no diversity in our population. Everyone would dress the same, act the same, and do the same jobs. But, with Individual Self-Fulfillment, I am comfortable enough to express who I am to others and not feel judged about it. This also gives me the power to change my identity at any given point in time. Also, I believe that Individual Self-Fulfillment can be seen in action today. The younger generations (such as Millennials and Generation Z) have started to step out of their comfort zones and express who they truly are for anyone to see, especially with the help of social media. This is the time when individuals of different races, religions, sexual orientations, etc. are being accepted for who they truly are. Without the value of Individual Self-Fulfillment, this would have never happened. 

    The value of expression that I see in action today is the third value, Stable Change (aka Safety Valve). Especially when it comes to politics, we have seen in the past years people are becoming vocal regarding their political values and who they like and dislike in office. While this can lead to a lot of anger if someone disagrees with these thoughts and opinions, there are other instances where the ability to "vent" has been incredibly beneficial for an individual, or for society overall. Especially on social media, people are feeling more inspired to share their thoughts and feelings even on topics people may not be comfortable listening to. A lot of individuals will discuss problems going on in today's society regarding the lack of rights for African Americans, women, and people part of the LGBTQ+ community. The more these topics are discussed, the more people become aware of the issues and the likelihood is higher that change can be made. It is also a lot more common to see discussions on how to improve the world around us, on how we can make an impact on climate change and global warming. While not all "venting" especially on social media is positive, it can cause changes to be made which is a compelling right for us citizens to have. 

    To continue with the idea of Stable Change, in the news very recently the world has found out about a shooting that left three dead and five wounded at Michigan State University. Due to Stable Change, people are given the right to "vent" about the issue whether they experienced it in person or heard about it on the news or through social media. Gun control is a huge issue in the United States, and this incident proves it again. This is giving people the opportunity to use social media as a platform to express their thoughts and feelings to hopefully make a change regarding this massive issue. Social media has become an amazing tool to help create change, and people are already communicating about this issue greatly. 

The Founding Era

    Something that I never knew and that stood out to me from the documentary is that sometimes the opinions of the Supreme Court Justices can change. Since the Justices are very well-educated in the field of Politics and American history, it is interesting to hear how a certain case can change an opinion or belief a Supreme Court Justice has. Even at times, the justices will switch sides and the majority becomes the minority. It makes me want to learn more about the Supreme Court and about the cases that stood out to the Justices to make them change their viewpoints. 

   A big takeaway point about the Supreme Court which I found really interesting is when a Supreme Court Justice mentioned how compromise is inevitable. This statement resonated with me because not only will the Justices have to compromise with one another when making a decision about a certain case, but no matter what, you will have to compromise with others in many different situations in your life. It helps to show that other people can bring up great points and collaborating with others can lead to better outcomes than just working alone.     

   The most surprising thing I learned in the second part of the documentary about the Supreme Court is that when they release a decision on a case they have been working on for months, the information can be spread onto the news within minutes. I have always been aware that news can travel fast, but I was impressed at the speed that something so significant such as a Supreme Court decision would be released to the public. It also interested me to learn that the court normally waits to release their decisions and the release of their opinions is announced at the end of their term, which is in late June. While I am aware that the Supreme Court holds a lot of power and can take a long time to formulate an answer, this shows that the individuals on the other side of a case may be waiting for almost a year to be given back a statement regarding their situation. 

   I always knew the job of being a Supreme Court Justice was difficult (especially considering how hard it is to obtain), but the videos really put into perspective for me how challenging the job can be. These videos have shown me that you need to have a large amount of patience as a Supreme Court Justice because if they decide to work with a certain case, it can take them months to even complete a statement. Also at times these statements can be up to 80 pages long and go through many different processes of revision from different staff members all the way to the Justices themselves. The videos gave me a lot more respect for the Justices as it showed how dedicated each Justice has to be towards their career and they all take it so seriously. 

Privacy, Online and Off

    The issue of government surveillance is such a large issue for every single person on the planet. Juan Enriquez's TedTalk showed how there are 18 billion faces online on websites such as face.com. This means that there are multiple pictures of every person that can be used to not only access your name but your social media pages, your address, criminal records, credit cards, etc. A complete stranger can find out so much about you, without ever meeting you in person or having a conversation with you. Along with this, Catherine Crump in her TedTalk gave the audience a reminder that the government knows more than we think and that they are always tracking us. The government will take pictures of your license plate to find out where you are going and who you are with. While this can be used in order to track any charges someone may have when driving, the government likes to keep this private information just in case you may commit a crime in the future. These invasions of privacy not only impact me but my friends, family, and everyone else in the world because it is truly a reminder that nothing that you do in your life is private, even if you think it is. It shows that we need to be careful with what we post online and do in public because it can all have consequences without us even knowing it. 

    The government should be putting an end to websites such as face.com and shut down websites that display an individual's private information for anyone to see. However, since the government does keep tabs on every single person living in the United States, this unfortunately does not seem like a realistic answer. While there are changes that should be made to make our privacy more secure, I do not feel like we will be seeing any changes because the government wants to ensure that they have access to information on anyone they want at any given moment. 

    According to the TedTalk by Christopher Soghoian, he mentions how encryption on cell phones makes it harder for the government or any other intelligence service to listen to your phone conversations or track what you are doing on your cell phone. Apple iPhones have encryption services on their messaging app, as well as for FaceTime calls. WhatsApp is also very secure and can be beneficial to use when you are communicating with someone who is located in a different country. Sticking to these apps as your main form of communication is the best option because other communication platforms or social media apps may have wiretapping and the government listening into your conversations, as encryption makes the government's job 10 times harder when trying to get access to your phone calls and text messages.