The Disruptive Power of Second Life

Second Life is defined as a 3D world where everyone you see is a real person and every place you visit is built by people just like you. (secondlife.com). I find myself often alarmed by Second Life as it relates to both social and educational settings. As a technology, second life can be very addictive to children and young adults who chose to participate in the 3D world which can also be very disruptive.

There are some very distinctive cons that Second life can pose to students in the classroom. One of the most important is that because of the “game like” appearance of Second Life some students may not take the work/lesson seriously. Dr. Thornburg states that a disruptive technology is a new technology with the same functionality but more efficiency and obsoletes than the existing technology.

Currently, I don’t believe Second Life has displaced any current technologies but I don’t think we are far off from its displacement of some social media outlets as well as computer gaming. I don’t see another disruptive technology taking the place of Second Life in the near future. I think it will take at least 10 years before another emerging technology attempts to replace it.

There are many social benefits to Second Life for some people. It would be beneficial for people that a limited physically or that cannot get around. Also, for those that are antisocial or do not mix well with crowds in person can fare much better in a 3D environment. In the hospital setting, Second Life may be beneficial in the hospital setting because of the simulation aspect of it. Being able to practice in a virtual world may be beneficial to both physicians and nurses before going into a major surgery.

Laureate Education, Inc. (2009). Emerging and future technology: Disruptive technologies. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Rhymes of History Technology

Thornburg states Rhymes of History is ‘New Technology is a fresh emergence of the impact left many years before from another technology” (Laureate Education, 2009).  I have noticed more recently that there are a number of gadgets today that have been built on the shoulders of more retro forms of the technology.

I chose today’s modern smart device as the perfect technology that continues to rekindle and retrieve from the past. There was a point in the past when you had to rely on a VHS recorder to record all of your video needs. While also utilizing a Polaroid camera to take all of your pictures. If you fast forward to today, this would seems like the longest process to get those things accomplished.  Currently most if not all smart devices give the option to record video and take pictures in the blink of an eye. The smart device rekindles most of the older communication methods as well. With email capabilities, people don’t have to rely on the post office to send letters. In most cases, you can shoot an email and get the message across in a much fast way.

At this point in technology, it’s hard to recollect where we can go from here as it seems we are at the peak technology advancement but I am more than sure in the next 20 years we will look at our current methods and wonder how we ever lived with this technology.

Reference:

Laureate Education, Inc. (2009).  Emerging and future technologies: Rhymes of History.  

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Emerging Technologies Tetrad

Emerging Technologies Tetrad

From year to year, there are constant changes that take place that almost always have something to do with technology. As I thought about a progressive technology, the first that came to my mind was the iPhone. Since its inception in 2007, the iPhone has completely revolutionized how consumers communicate on a number of different levels.

We have been focusing on Terad’s in my Emerging Technology class and they serve as a perfect example to describe the continuous progression of the iPhone.  Thornburg (2008) describes a tetrad as a lens to look at the life cycle of technology, according to McLuhan. Below are the tetrads for both the iPhone and the iPhone 6 from a comparison view.

Tetrad 1 – The original iPhone

Enhances The iPhone was marketed as a widescreen iPad. It was the first phone to sync all contacts from your PC or Mac	Obsoletes The palm pilot made obsolete desktop computers.
Retrieves The iPhone revolutionized that way people communicated back in 2007.	Reverse The iPhone was eventually replaced by 5 more advanced and updated models.

Tetrad 2 – the iPhone 6 Plus

Enhances The ability to communicate with a bigger and better display. Also enhances the power of the internal software of the device.	Obsoletes Totally makes all other iPhone models obsolete.
Retrieves The iPhone 6 rekindles the original iPhone look but is much bigger and advanced.	Reverse The iPhone 6 will totally enhance the scope of how people can communicate. It will also continue to be a leader in innovation.

Reference:

Thornburg, D. D. (2008b). Emerging technologies and McLuhan's Laws of Media. Lake

            Barrington, IL: Thornburg Center for Space Exploration.