User:Zrwoodward

Introduction:

The Google Glass technology is an up incoming technology that has been released for public use for many years. The wearable computer has sparked much controversy as the public has flocked to one of two sides: approval or deep concern. Scholars on the side for Google Glass have made the comparison to that of the original spectacles. Critics of Google Glass have drawn upon the ethical and security risks that arise from this new technology.

For those that approve of the new technology, the argument is made that “if Google Glass follows the same path as regular glasses, its usefulness will soon outweigh its problems” (Hurt). Regular glasses have helped millions of people since their creation and the scholars on the side of Google Glass hope that this will be the same case. If this is to happen, they argue that the ethical and security concerns that people have about Google Glass will be outweighed by the usefulness of the technology. Critics of Google Glass argue “about violating the privacy of their fellow humans” (Hurt) and that this is going to be used as a “device that allows its users to record people without their knowledge, pretty much anywhere and anytime” (Hurt). If this becomes the case, the Google Co. must address these concerns and add increased security measures for the public to accept this new technology. Overall, the benefits of such a technology far outweigh the criticisms of the ethical and security risks.

Current Use:

The Google Glass technology is currently designed to function as a regular pair of glasses, but has computer functions added to it. The technology has a “small prism-like screen tucked into the upper corner of the frame” (Tsukayama) of a regular pair of glasses. One of the newest features of Google Glass is that Google is introducing “prescription lenses into some models” (Tsukayama) which will open a new market for Google. Regular wearers of glasses who couldn’t use Google Glass are now able to use them with their current prescription glasses with the added computer use.

Google Glass does not function as a smartphone, so users still need to connect their smartphone to the glasses to get the computer functions that the glasses have. But once they have done this, many features are readily available to them. The Google Glass technology is designed to let users check “e-mail, calls and other notifications” (Tsukayama) without having to take out their phones. Instead, they can look at the prism on their lenses and scroll through their notifications, check emails, and take pictures/videos from the lenses. With this new technology, there are many security concerns that arise from this.

Security Aspects:

Since this new technology gives the wearer the ability to record both audio and video from the glasses in a more concealed way than with their smartphone, critics have called upon this as a major security risk for the public. This concern has been a massive concern in the journalism field. For most journalists, taking pictures and recording what people say is a massive part of their job, so Google Glass will make that easier to do without having to take out additional cameras and microphones which takes time and additional operators to use. But journalists suffer from scrutiny from the public before Google Glass.

Journalists can only publish information they gather “under the PCC code. In this case, a journalist could only use images in the public interest, and only if the material could not be obtained another way” (Thom). Journalists can only obtain and publish information if they have consent, so critics have argued that “there’s nothing to stop a journalist walking down the high street with Glass video running, in the hope they happen upon a celebrity or a bank raid” (Thom) so they argue about the security for the public.

Journalists are not the only security criticisms that Google Glass has. Like regular smartphones, Google Glass can directly upload information to the cloud. While the glasses are waiting to store information on the cloud, “data is sitting on servers waiting for somebody to steal it” (Hyman) which raises the concern of hackers. This risk is a big factor that has still not been addressed by Google and needs to be before this technology becomes as big as Google wants them to become. Security risks are not the only concerns that critics have. Ethical and social risks have also been a big topic.

'''Ethical, Social, and Legal Implications:'''

Since Google Glass offers users the ability to record audio and video of their surroundings, as well as looking up information from the Internet, critics have targeted this as a major concern for privacy of society from an ethical point of view. Since Google Glass can browse the Internet without the need to take out the smartphone, there is an ethical concern for their use in schools. Critics argue that the glasses “create opportunities for cheating in school” (Seitz). Since Google is incorporating prescriptions into their glasses, some students will need them for sight, but there runs the risk of cheating on tests. Other than ethical concerns, social concerns also arise about this technology.

There are two major social concerns about Google Glass. The first one is the possibility for people to record audio and video around other people. Critics say that Google Glass “has the potential to make everyone a spy or a creep” (Seitz). This raises the concern of if someone is “having a conversation with someone wearing Google Glass, how do [they] know [they’re] not being recorded” (Seitz). The second major concern has to do with the pornography industry. The new technology raises a major concern of “if people will use Google Glass to stream porn” (Seitz) where they should not be allowed to. Google not only has these major social concerns to deal with, but also legal concerns.

Patrick Seitz, a writer who has published work on Google Glass, compared them to the Segway Transportation invention from a legal standpoint. The Segway was debated among lawyers and congressmen on whether it would be allowed to be used on roads or sidewalks. Seitz argues that like the Segway, Google Glass will have the same kind of debate. The main question that Seitz raises is “If cellphones are illegal for drivers to use in many places because of distracted driving, what about Google Glass and their eye-level computer display?” (Seitz). This question is a heated topic that most people are on the side of making Google Glass illegal while driving. Another legal concern is that there are “potential problems where cameras are not allowed, such as movie theaters, museums, gym locker rooms and many kinds of meetings” (Seitz). Unless Google can address these concerns or laws are passed to address them, Google Glass will not be as popular as many other products and will not be able to progress into the future uses that they have planned for Google Glass.

Future Use:

Google Glass can already be seen as a technology of the future, but there are many advanced ideas that the Google Company already have planned and in their prototype stage. Two in particular are revolutionizing modern life in very different fields. The first new technology is augmented-reality glasses. These augmented reality glasses “will be collecting everything people see, everything people say” (Hyman) which raise issues all their own. Other than the issues, these glasses are bringing the Google Glass technology to a new level. Augmented reality glasses are not only Google’s idea; other corporations are also developing their own versions of augmented reality glasses. In July of 2012 “Apple applied for a patent for its own version of AR glasses that the press is calling ‘iGlasses,’…four months later, Microsoft did the same” (Hyman). With these two major technology companies competing in the same field to release their ow designs for virtual reality glasses, prototypes should be released in the coming future for the public to test and compare to the already released Google Glass.

The other technology is in the medical field, a new style of ambulance. There are many features to the new ambulance. It is wider and taller, seating five medical personnel instead of the current three, more storage space for equipment, and a technology that has never been seen before on an ambulance, Google Glass (Ruiz-Branch). Google Glass, which will can provide information on the windshield of the ambulance, gives ambulance drives on screen directions to the nearest hospital and update traffic to make the trips quicker. Inside the ambulance, Google Glass will also be available for paramedics to access the Internet to communicate with the hospitals on what has/needs to be done to the patient, making the transition quicker and giving the patient a better chance of survival (Ruiz-Branch). With this amazing technology, the medical field will be revolutionized to help more patients quicker.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the future uses and current technology of Google Glass outweighs the security, ethical, social, and legal concerns that critics have. Having the technology to stream the Internet and record audio and video hands free will give people better access to information. Google Glass takes away a lot of the time that people need to take out their smartphones.