TOPIC 6: SOCIAL ORGANISATION PATTERNS / POLITICAL PATTERNS, BIG DATA AND DEMOCRACY

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    What is big data? Brief, big data is the processing of enormous amounts of information. The concept of big data is not new, but it has increased in size dramatically when tools have been improved and the cost of cloud storage has lowered.

    What is democracy?  Democracy implies that the power relies on the people and not only on a person as it would happen in a totalitarian regime. The right to vote is given to the population

    • Interfere big data with our freedom? It interferes in some way, because they take information from us to adapt it results to our tastes. We are conditioned to buy more since they put at our disposal more relevant advertisements.

    • For that we use big data? Among other things, it is used to determine information about the preferences of a person and thus create advertisements tailored to its tastes. It can be also used to increase athletic performance through sensors that calculate all the necessary data.

    Can robots buy (fridges..)? In the near future, many devices will be connected to the internet. This will bring many benefits, but also vulnerabilities that must be considered. When we have a smart fridge, it will be able to send orders to buy needed products.

    Robots can cook ( Thermomix, Robot Mcdonald's to cook)? It is true that lately there have created programs and technological kitchen machines capable of cooking for themselves. We still have not exploited all, but in a future not far distant, they will work in the kitchen of bars and fast food restaurants like Mcdonald's or Burger King. Another example would be that in some Mcdonald's there are machines that, without the help of any person, the customers can ask for what they want to eat on the machine. This means the reduction of salary and of jobs in places such as these.

    Reliable friends? Recently the German police urged the parents of the owners of a doll called Cayla after they detected possible hacks that would allow the intruder to control the doll’s microphone. This could lead to obscene scenes and not suitable for a child.

    In conclusion, in the future everything will be more easy thanks to the robots and to the improvement of the technology. With respect to big data, it is good because it sometimes helps you find things for your own interest, but also there are times that you'll be controlled, at least some of your freedom.

    Àlex Biosca Helena Garcia Oriol Navarro Ricard Terradas