We’re not techno-hermits

Contrary to popular belief, technology is not leading to social isolation and people who use the internet and mobile phones have larger and more diverse social networks, according to a new study. Keith Hampton, lead author of the report by the Pew Internet and American Life Project and assistant professor of communication at the University of Pennsylvania said, "People's social worlds are enhanced by new communication technologies. It is a mistake to believe that internet use and mobile phones plunge people into a spiral of isolation."

The authors said key findings of the study - "Social Isolation and New Technology" - "challenge previous research and commonplace fears about the harmful social impact of new technology. There is a tendency by critics to blame technology first when social change occurs. 
  
This is the first research that actually explores the connection between technology use and social isolation and we find the opposite. It turns out that those who use the internet and mobile phones have notable social advantages. People use the technology to stay in touch and share information in ways that keep them socially active and connected to their communities."

  
The study found that six per cent of Americans can be described as socially isolated - a figure that has hardly changed since 1985. People's discussion networks (those with whom they discuss important matters) and core networks (their closest and most significant confidants), are larger among technology users. At the same time, the study found that Americans' discussion networks have shrunk by about one-third since 1985.

The study involved telephone interviews with 2,512 adults between July 9, 2008 and August 10, 2008 and has a sampling error of 2.1 per cent. Source: AFP, in Sydney Morning Herald, 5 November 2009. tinyurl.com/ydhy8sg

http://www.flickr.com/photos/luc/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Rage against the machines

Ariane Sherine laments the age of the machines in The Guardian. "When, last week, I asked a bus driver, 'Please can you tell me when we get to the hospital?' he replied gruffly, 'The bus will tell you. It speaks.'" The number of automated checkout machines at her local supermarket has quadrupled, from 4 to 17, "taking our jobs", while touchscreens in doctors surgeries are an ideal virus spreading mechanism. While technology is often seen as synonymous with progress, Sherine has some advice that may appeal to those of a human-centred bent: "progress doesn't mean replacing people with machines that copy us badly and rule out friendly human interactions, smiles, apologies and kindness...Progress, in this area, would be programming machines to do the things human beings can't or won't do". While us ergonomists may have some particularly practical uses in mind, Sherine suggests more novel uses for automated PA systems on public transport that dispense unspeakable social truths: "For the comfort of fellow passengers, will the man in the blue shirt please apply deodorant or alight at the next stop?", or "Don't just sit there like a lemon – stand up for the old man/pregnant woman!". Designers could even pit technology against itself: "Will the young man ostentatiously flaunting his new iPhone please put the bloody thing away – it isn't impressing anybody". Food for thought. Source: Guardian, 19 July 2009. tinyurl.com/lx9vee

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cesarastudillo/ / CC BY 2.

Facebook sorts out privacy mess

Following many privacy bungles, Facebook is overhauling its complicated privacy controls to simplify its users' ability to control which information they share with their friends, family, colleagues and strangers. Facebook is consolidating its existing six privacy pages and more than 30 settings onto a single privacy page with standardised privacy options for various pieces of content. Previously, users had to navigate page after page to exclude bosses or co-workers from seeing their photo albums, status updates or shared links. One of Facebook's most notable privacy mishaps was a tracking tool called "Beacon," which broadcast information about their activities at other Web sites. "They are learning how to listen carefully to their users," said Jules Polonetsky, co-chairman and director of the Washington-based Future of Privacy Forum and former chief privacy officer at AOL. He added that Facebook has learned from the past that suddenly making big changes, whatever they are, has not been the most effective approach. The site is also getting rid of its regional networks, which have led to users inadvertently sharing information with network members in an entire city or country. Source: Sydney Morning Herald, 2 July 2009. tinyurl.com/nxyazl

Five million days lost to Repetitive Surf Injury in Britain

More than five million days a year are lost to business as a result of workers injuring themselves through surfing the internet. "Repetitive Surf Injury" (RSI), which is thought to affect more than half a million workers in the UK, is being blamed for a surge in the number of people suffering painful muscle damage as they spend hours hunched over keyboards, balancing laptops on their knees or continually texting on mobile devices. Iain Thompson, the general manager of Yahoo! Finance Europe, said: "RSI-type conditions have been estimated to cost industry of up to £20 billion a year. Yahoo! has teamed up with the British Chiropractic Association to help internet users avoid RSI. Source: Telegraph, 02 May 2009. tinyurl.com/dky4uj

Have you forgotten your memory stick?

A report into the loss of a memory stick containing data on 6,360 prisoners and ex-prisoners found – predictably – that human error and procedural violation was to blame. The USB stick was being used to back up clinical databases at HMP Preston and was lost on 30 December. The data lost was encrypted but, in a classic example of how IT security actually causes users to bypass defences, the password had been written on a note attached to the misplaced memory stick. Source: BBC, 17 April 2009. tinyurl.com/dl3ceu
Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zlatanm/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

“You’re always on your @#$&&$ computer!!!”

Microsoft’s Bill Buxton reflects that, in the pre-computer age, we had specific rooms in our homes for certain activities. Nowadays, for many everyday activities, social cues have disappeared as activities are centred around a single digital device. And this causes all kinds of trouble. So how can we redesign tools and technologies such that they encourage behaviours, and visibility of activity, that are consistent with our places and values? Buxton suggests extending the “persona” concept used in user-centred design with the notion of “placona”, the canonical set of physical and social spaces within which an activity might be situated. “If one of the purposes of design and innovation is to improve our lives – for business, artistic, or familial purposes – then design that does not consider the larger social, cultural, and physical ecosystem is going to miss the mark.” Source: Business Week. http://tinyurl.com/d78nud

Blame the user? Pah! Bypass the user!

Security is often a hindrance to users, and this means that it is often bypassed. Bruce Schneier, IT security guru, argues that "security systems that require the user to do the right thing are doomed to fail." The solution? Assume uneducated users: to prevent them from changing security settings that would leave them exposed to undue risk, or – even better – to take security out of their hands entirely. Source: Guardian. http://tinyurl.com/bcr7h8

http://www.flickr.com/photos/nekonoir/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

All sites may harm your computer

The world's dependency on Google was brought into focus on Saturday, 31 January when users were unable to access search results, as the entire internet was erroneously flagged as malware. For a period, all results brought with them the warning that the site "may harm your computer", and advice to choose another hit. "What happened? Very simply, human error," wrote Marissa Mayer, Google vice president search products and user experience, on the Official Google Blog. When Google updated the list on in conjunction with stopbadware.org, it mistakenly flagged all sites as potentially dangerous. Source: BBC. http://tinyurl.com/bm8ahx

When one letter makes a big difference

Traveller Samantha Lazzaris was planning a holiday in San José, Costa Rica, filled with yoga, meditation, hiking and voluntary work. She ended up in San Juan, Peurto Rico. Waiting outside the airport, she asked the taxi driver to take her to her hotel, giving him an address in San José, Costa Rica. “He looked in amazement, speechless,” she said. “Then [he] laughed and said, ‘This is not Costa Rica. It’s Puerto Rico’.”’ How did it happen? Apparently, the Bristol branch of Thomas Cook had entered the wrong code. Both similar sounding places, with even more similar sounding, and looking, codes - SJO (San José) and SJU (San Juan). To make matters worse, San Jose is also known as Juan Santamaria. According to The Times, tourists looking forward to a trip to San José had also found themselves in San José, California. La Paz, Bolivia gets confused with La Paz, Mexico, and Santiago in Chile gets confused with San Diego, in southern California. Source: Times, 11 February 2009. http://tinyurl.com/c83vou

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/wallyg/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0