iPhones Through the Diffusion Theory

One of the several life changing innovations that would be beneficial to take a closer look at, specifically through the Diffusion Theory, would be iPhones. In todays world, majority of people that I know/see with a mobile phone, more often than not have an Apple iPhone.

In a study, it was found that the United States has a very large number of iPhone users, "with 60% of all cellphone users, using an iPhone". Why could this be? Well when you look at it through the lens of the diffusion theory, you can begin to understand why iPhone began to catch on and spread in the first place. The first category in the Diffusion Theory is known as pioneers, these are people that want to be the first to try something, they find new releases, like the iPhone new and exciting, and they aren't afraid to takes risks. This very well could have jump started the large expansion of the iPhone due to the fact that when they iPhone/iPod was first released, we had never seen a handheld form of communication that was touchscreen, in which also held so many different purposes. 

In the eye of the Diffusion Theory, you normally see the uptake of products/companies in the Early Adopters and Early Majority sections of this theory. In terms of the iPhone, it is likely that the people who would classify as Early Adopters played a huge role in the sales of the iPhone. There were probably so many Early Adopters for the iPhone due to the fact that these people really like to embrace change opportunities, and a new appealing technology like the iPod and iPhone spark a lot of interest in society when there isn't anything like it, so it is probable that these individuals were itching to get their hands on this new device. 

Of course with new technology, not everything can be perfect. There were and still are a large number of people that don't use iPhones, or were pretty late to hopping on the bandwagon; In the Diffusion Theory, these people would be known as Late Adopters or Laggards. It is to be expected that this has a lot to do with money. When the iPhone was first made and still to this day, the prices to own or buy an iPhone are incredibly high, so this sends a lot of people in another direction. 

Some negatives I see to the iPhone is that it has become extremely addicting for many people, and ultimately ends up consuming or controlling their lives. Although this can be true for other brands of mobile devices, the iPhone has much of society wrapped around their finger, with all of the utilities and thing they can access, via their iPhone. 

In my opinion, I do think that the positives do outweigh the negatives in this situation, mostly for the fact that extensive development of the iPhone have allowed us to spread culture all around the world, made contact with people that mean a lot to individuals much easier and quicker, and when used in the correct way can be an amazing learning tool. 

Something I learned from Tech. Presentations

One of the technologies that I learned a lot about in the day of EOTO presentations was the progression and history of radio. 

Learned that the idea began all the way back in 1890, and with a lot of work G. Marconi sent the first wireless morse code message in 1895. This was a huge step in the right direction because before this, WWI scientist from large companies were trying to figure out a way to get messages across long distances in ways other than morse code. 

As the presentation continues I also learned that in December of 1906 a Canadian inventor produced and hour long radio talk which was a major progression in the development of radio. 

Unfortunately there was a step back in all this work to make the radio more resourceful; During WWI the government forced radio transmitters off of the air which stalled advancements. As transmitters came back on and the radio became a more mainstream way of communication, it became and household staple, and in 1930-1955 about 60% of Americans had a radio in their house. 

As it was said in the presentations, the radio revolutionized communication, it allowed a faster communication of news, for example world leaders like presidents, MLK, Churchhill, important events and WWII battles were broadcasted so people could stay in the loop. 

Not just that but for entertainment purposes, music became extremely popular, sports broadcasting became more prominent, people would broadcast book readings and even plays. 

The Progressive Era

In terms of the Progressive Era, in this time society was fired up by WWI, and the First Amendment played a role in the expression of opinion about WWI. Now we reflect on todays, while the United States is carrying on military operations all around the world. 

As we all know, we have to right to our own opinion, and to express that opinion; but if many of you haven't noticed, it's getting more and more difficult to find media sources that share any and all opinions. For example, these two websites antiwar.com and The American Conservative, both display very strong and opinionated anti-war voices/opinions; but we don't see these shared on big news stations such as ABC or CNN. I believe that this is because the way society has handled controversy and 'touchy' subjects in the past, has shied people away from expressing their true thoughts. 

To continue, although everyone has a right to free expression and free speech, you don't see these bold personalities and charismatic people who have opinions different from the majority, as often as you see people who have the common opinion as the rest of the public due to the fact that people like the authors on the provided websites above, have received a lot of negative feedback and reactions for sharing such strong opinions on controversial topics, like war/anti-war. 

Development of Television

In todays day and age, there are so many types of technology, therefore numerous sources to use to relay information, and for entertainment purposes, but it all had to start somewhere. One technology that many people use on a daily basis is a television, also known as TV. 

Much of the world watches television, especially American television, and the beginning of this triumph can date back to "Philip Nipkow's 1885 patent for the idea of a television scanner". Since then there had been 3 different ideas all similar to what we know as a TV, all from 3 different people; but as a nation now, we really saw television take off in 1951 when people from coast to coast could connect by watching the same show/movie. If you were to conduct one google search, you would find that credit for TV would be given to Philo Farnsworth in 1927, when he patent the first real motion picture device and called it the "image dissector". After Philo Fransworth, born in Beaver, UT in 1906, developed the first TV, we quickly saw advancements from there. 

As with any technology, there are always positive and negative effects on society. Some obvious positives that we have gained from TV is that it is a free from of entertainment and news resources. Anyone with a TV and cable can access countless amount of shows, movies, and news channels. Not just is TV a cheap form of entertainment, but it is a quick and easy relation of news as well. You can receive a news story, alert, emergency message etc. in the matter of minutes with television. 

Although there are many good things about television, there's normally always a downside to something we find so intriguing like technology. Since TV is a source of entertainment for a lot of people, it can easily become addicting for some. Some common effects that have been found when an individual may experience when becoming addicted to television include "negative body outlook among women, problems with sleeping, possible contribution to ADHD, as well as a sedentary lifestyle", which in extreme cases, can lower ones quality of life. 

Overall, there have been multiple notable contributions to the development of television, which have led us to today's where TV can come with various positives like quick relation of news, entertainment, and outlet for people, there can be a major downfall to loving a technology like this, if we are not careful. 

The Values of Free Expression

 One of the major aspects of your country that's make America, "America" is our right to freedom of expression, and therefore, The First Amendment. When looking over the first amendment and more specifically the evolution of the first amendment, we run into the Eight Values of Free Expression. These eight values show the process and memorable ideals given by noble historians to explain why free expression is so important. 

When looking over these eight values, the one that I found that resonated with me the most was "Individual Self-Fulfillment". This is described as individuals being allowed to express themselves, lead to people really learning who they are, finding what they stand for, a creating their "identity". This one stood out to me the most because I feel as if we were in constant restraint from speaking our minds, and had to speak in moderation all of the time, we would be confused with what we truly believe in. This would ultimately deter us from having enlightening conversations with others to come a real conclusion on our opinions and thoughts, leaving us feeling like we the people are lesser than our government. 

With all eight values holding high influence, there are multiple examples of the way freedom of speech or expression is being shown today. For instance, with social media likely being a part of many peoples routines, this is somewhere you see free expression shown every single day. To give one example, in the last few days it has been announced that Elon Musk has officially bought the social media app known as Twitter, but he has a purpose and goal behind this investment. When looking into Musks true intentions with now owning twitter, his main drive is to "address freedom of speech concerns".  In the linked article, it was said that Musks stated that he wants twitter to be a where a "wide range of beliefs can be debated in a healthy manor". 

In recent cases, pre Elon Musk buying Twitter, there were multiple cases of Twitter and other social media app banning or restricting certain people from contributing to the app, and therefore shutting down this form of free expression or free speech. For example, well known Kanye West was kicked off of Instagram and Twitter for "hate speech", but when looking deeper into, shutting Kanye West and other out from the public on the social media aspect, is just another form of restricting their freedom of speech, which ultimately is unconstitutional. All in all, this brings in another aspect of the 8 values of free speech know as "Promote Tolerance", of we shut out all controversial opinions and topics, we are weakening the public to deal with controversy and different opinions. 

History & Workings of U.S. Supreme Court

 When watching the two linked videos covering the History and duty of the supreme court, there were numerous aspects of the Supreme Court that I did not already know. Personally, I can admit I had no idea what the role of the Supreme Court was and how much our country relied on the Supreme Court, I can admit, prior to these videos I knew little to nothing about the Supreme Court. 

To give some specifics of what I learned: I learned that the Supreme Court consists of 9 justices (One Chief of Justice and eight Associates Justices). I also found out that the duties/tasks of the justices are long, thorough, detailed procedures that last week, sometimes even months. With each case the Supreme Court looks at or acts on, it is a multi-step process to reach a conclusion that includes vigorous decision making, debating, and work put in the court room as a team and in their individuals offices. 

It is difficult to say was the most important take-away point about the Supreme Court is, considering each decision and step they take when working on a case is crucial, but looking at the big picture, in my opinion the most important take-away is that these nine justices are experienced individuals, who are normal people just like anyone else, and they are on the publics side. The biggest goal for the Supreme Court is that the law and constitution is being followed to its utmost potential, and the Supreme Court rely's on us to keep their job going, just as much as we rely on them. 

The most surprising thing that I learned during this research on the Supreme Court is that they recieve petitions, asking the Supreme Court to question the rule of law in play to each individual case, by thousands each year. To put it into perspectives, it was said that the Supreme Court revives more than 100 cases every week, which amounts to around 7,000 a year. That would have to be the most surprising fact I learned, which really put things into perspective to me; Around 7,000 cases per year where the defendant felt the rule of law was not upheld in their case, is a scary but true instance. 

Overall, the videos, part 1 and part 2, changed my perception of the Supreme Court exceptionally. With not knowing hardly anything going into these videos, I learned the roles of the justices and how much pressure they amount to, with the nation relying on their difficult decisions they have to make. I have a new found respect and patience for our Supreme Court, now knowing what their obligations are, and the commitment and time they put into their work every single day, for the good of the country.