jorge.cortell.net

After posting graphs and cold data (quite ilustrative, I believe), and the discussion it has generated (people, why don’t you use the “comment” instead all the other unstructured methods you are using?), please let me write a caveat about graphs and cold data.

In my high-tech gym, you have the option to have a lot of data collected, for your own, private and personal use. It seems like a great idea at first. For example, I can access via a secure web site real time stats of my workouts, such as the “fitness balance” (which shows my emphasis in weight lifting, and then swimming -some data greyed out for privacy purposes-):

Sounds great, doesn’t it? Not that fast.

The following graph (Workout Log) allows me to see how many times I have worked out. Since I tend to go to the gym everyday (but it is not always possible), an average of 4 times per week sounds reasonable, but what is that max. 8 times per week number? Why is there such a dip in mid February?

Data often needs to be contextualized, otherwise we might end up with the wrong conclussion (those 8 workouts per week happened to be visits to the gym to do a personal assesment and training routine design, added to my regular workouts; and the dip… just a long trip!).

But even worse things can happen:

In this case, an obviously strange abherration is showing in the graph. Somehting to be concerned about? Not at all: the scale of the axis make a slight variation (less than 1%, less than a pound) seem like a huge shift. And variables such as measurement thresholds, electronic glitches, etc must be taken into account when considering the validity and presentation of that data.

Let’s just keep in mind: however great quantification and visualization tools are (and I do like them a lot, and believe they can be very beneficial to the way we make decissions and understand the world and ourselves) they must be used with care. After all, this following map might show all the places I have traveled to… but it can not tell you about the experiences lived there…

While I am preparing a loooooong post about technology and privacy (with a provocative twist, for a change ), I have decided to play with face.com‘s face recognition technology.

What do you think? On target (hint: no, not on target, I am not THAT old, and definitely I AM a male)? Scary (hint: only if we are unaware of these technologies and their uses)?…

Atlanta’s Hartsfield airport has been having one of those useless scanners that show passengers naked for a while now. But the last time I was there, they were being tested, and most passengers did not go through them. 

Today, though, as I approached the security line, I saw that next to every metal detector, there was one of those scanners. “Wow, this is getting worse”, I thought, while seeing how almost everybody was going through the scanners. 

When my turn came, I stepped in front of the metal detector, and the female TSA agent in front of the scanner told me: 

– Sir, you need to go through here.

– No, I don’t. –I replied– I prefer to go through the metal detector.

– Everybody has to go through here – she replied while a very large woman, a child, and an old man were being told by another (male) TSA agent to go through the metal detector.

– Obviously that is not true – I reply, looking at the line being formed in front of the metal detector.

Sensing a growing discomfort in my interlocutor, and not feeling like the situation called for a confrontation, I decided to explain further:

– I have medical, political, and personal objections to the use of those scanners, particularly on me.

– This sign shows there is no need for concern, sir – she stubbornly tells me, turning a sign that was not readily visible by passengers towards me.

The misleading sign basically said (too bad she would not let me take a picture) something along the lines that the scanner was safe, and it software allowed TSA agents to guarantee our safety. No mention of political, privacy, misuse, or medical concerns.

– Still, I refuse to go through the scanner, and since the metal detector is right here, and working, I prefer to go through the metal detector like those people.

– You then will have to be patted down by a male TSA agent. Is that OK? –She says.

– I don’t see those people who have gone through the metal detector before me being patted down.

– Sir, those are the regulations: if you opt-out you need to go through the metal detector and you need to be patted down.

I decided there was no use in arguing with her regarding the correct use and meaning of the word “need”. I also decided that the accuracy of her claims could be checked later, because going through the trouble of doing it on the spot could make me loose my flight, so I agreed, and went through the metal detector.

The TSA male agent standing by the metal detector told me as soon as I went through (without a “beep” or issue):

– Sir, you need to stand here –right next to him and the detector; there goes the “need” again.

I obediently stand where he points.

– ”Male opt-out on line 14-15!” –he calls for through his intercom.

And I wait there.

And wait some more.

And he calls again.

And I wait. 

And in the meantime, several people go through the metal detector without pat-downs. All kinds of ages, races, genders…

And wait some more.

I move about 3 inches to check my carryon luggage, shoes, laptop, phone, watch and wallet, waiting for me at the end of the object x-ray scanner, to make sure nobody takes anything “by mistake” (since the people that are “taking care of our security” do not seem to care about our property).

– Sir, I asked you to stand right here –he reminds me, pointing to what seem to be directly my feet.

I don’t know if my look conveyed the “WTF” correctly. I wish I could have typed it on my phone’s LED screen app.

He calls again.

I wait.

And wait.

Some 30 minutes later (one thing one learns after decades of air travel and security checkpoints is that there is no point in worrying about missing the flight once you are “on your way”) a female TSA agent comes and says “you pat him down, I got the line”.

So the male TSA agent, very professionally explains to me the whole procedure (his explaining took about double the time the procedure itself), and asks me several times if I understand and if I am OK with that, adding that we can go to a private screening room if I feel uncomfortable going through that in public.

I do feel uncomfortable in public, pat down or not, so the private screening room does not offer me any relief.

Then my luggage gets “screened” and a particle sample taken from my clothes is run through the explosives detector.

All that because I dared to choose? to exercise my rights? to speak up and stand up for what I believe?

I don’t care how difficult fascism (yes, I understand the severity of the word, know its history, and chose it accordingly) makes my life. I will fight, take it, or flee. But I am NOT jumping through their loop. And I will not keep quiet.

[Note: I am writing this while I wait to board my plane. On the TV screen, the news of yet another school shooting. And the CNN anchor woman asks "time for students to carry guns in campus to protect themselves?" WTF!! Yet, no word about the annoying uselessness of outrageously expensive airport security, who by the way NEVER stopped any "terrorist attempt"]

To top it off, I have missed the CUNY Graduate Center talk “The Brain” by Richard Axel and Lawrence F. Abbott.

Do you want to improve your online privacy? Go ahead, install HTTPS and Collusion.

Thanks to Sara, there is a very easy way to add code to your site to protest against SOPA:
Drop the following code in between your two <HEAD></HEAD> tags on your site, your users will be redirected to the blackout page that describes what you are doing and why.

<script>
window.location = "http://protestsopa.org";
</script>

Then, when the protest is over, simply remove the added code. The protest is starting at 12am on 1/18, and lasts 24 hours.

First things first: thanks to whomever thought I would be interested in joining MCA through RiseUp, BUT…

• Don’t subscribe me to a list without my consent
• Don’t do so without at least letting me know who you are
• Don’t assume I might be interested in something because it sounds related to my interest
• Don’t align me with “scientific socialism” when I am a declared anarchist
• Don’t make me waste my time on a list where the first 20 or so messages are split between arguing troskist, marxist, rose of lenburguist, bujarinist, bakuninist, leninist, hotsiminist, guevarist, maoist, castrist… and people who want to be taken off the list

So, thanks (and I show it by talking about your project here), but show a little respect for other people’s rights, please.

Muy pronto (si no es que lo están haciendo ya) las grandes empresas filtrarán grandes cantidades de datos públicos (esa es la guasa: que se lo ponemos en bandeja) de las conversaciones y actividades en redes sociales de sus clientes, para determinar precios. Por ejemplo, si hablas mucho en twitter y facebook de velocidad, motores potentes, saltarse leyes, adrenalina, etc, te subirán lo que pagas por el seguro.

Lógicamente eso llevará a que las mismas normas de discreción, moderación, hipocresía, disimulo, etc que empleamos en nuestras interacciones físicas, las traslademos, por fin, a la promiscuidad informativa sin límite parente que son hoy las redes sociales.

La borrachera se acaba. Prepárense para la resaca.

Con esta herramienta se puede interrogar a Twitter y ver en un gráfico las respuestas.

También lo puedes hacer directamente, pero será mejor que aprendas la sintaxis de interrogación.

Ahora imaginad lo que se puede averiguar con un montón de datos flotando en la red (BigData) y herramientas potentes de interrogación (como BigSheets de IBM).

Aunque los resultados no son estadísticamente válidos (por canal, muestra y población), la “verdad” (como consenso pseudo-objetivo), la “relidad” (como constructo social) nunca ha sido más accesible, y a la vez, los ciudadanos nunca hemos sido más manipulables. Ponte las pilas, o bájate los pantalones. Tú decides. Lo que no vas a poder es escaparte de esta lucha, porque ya ha empezado, y tú formas parte de ella.

Comentario absolutamente edípico y embarazoso que una madre pone en el muro de Facebook de su hijo:

Por si a alguien le hacían falta más motivos para dejar las redes sociales (o pasarse a una con “círculos”).

[Nota.- Via uphaa. Si no sabes lo que es una MILF, UTFG ] LOL!!

El imperio se sostiene sobre dinero y armas. Las armas se compran, con lo que queda el dinero.

El dinero el imperio lo apropia (impuestos), lo impone (intereses), o lo roba (expropiaciones), pero en cualquier caso depende de su instrumento: la moneda (en forma física o digital) emitida por una “autoridad” (aunque esta dependa de otra entidad, sea o no supranacional, no gubernamental, privada, como la Fed, FMI, BM, etc).

Pero ¿y si retomamos el control de la moneda? Ahí acaba el poder del imperio y comienza la posibilidad de autogestión, autoregulación, y libre colaboración.

Esto es sólo un esbozo, un inicio, pero… bienvenidos al futuro, donde la utopía sigue viva porque no permitiremos que la maten ¿verdad campanilla?. BITCOIN.