The main discussion topic for group 1 was biofuel being a replacement for fossil fuel. The for side argued that biofuel is a cheaper, cleaner and a more advance alternative source of power. Some key points mentioned was that biofuel is environmentally friendly as it uses food crops. Countries that adopt this technology could also generate jobs and revenue through the ever growing biofuel technology. However, biofuel also have its cons; it is not 100% environmentally friendly as it may cause water pollution.Furthermore, a large area of land and fertilizers is needed for the cultivation of the biofuel crops. Therefore, biofuel technology is not very applicable to small countries such as Singapore. Based on the discussion, I feel that biofuel technology is mainly resource dependent making it less attractive; meaning it requires lots of land resources, manpower and time to cultivate the biofuels.
The second group discussed about green chemistry which involves "green" recycling of materials such as plastics.By adopting green chemistry, wastes such as gas emissions and pollutants from power plants could be bio degenerated into a more useful material such as strong carbon microsphere. On the other hand, the against side disagreed to the advantages of green chemistry due to cost and effectiveness. They argue that this technology is expensive and difficult to sustain especially during economic crisis times. I agree with the against side as economic influence is a major contribution to decide on a particular technology. In this case, green chemistry is too expensive to start with.
Th last group discussed about low-pressure carbon filter process technology. Basically it is a form of carbon capture and storage. The for side suggests to implement this technology so as to reduce the carbon dioxide emission from power plants and other carbon dioxide emitting industries. They also illustrated the schematic diagram of the technology and explain how it could extract useful carbon dioxide and recycle them for use in enhancing oil and methane recovery. However, the against side argued the the sustainability of this technology. This technology involves a great deal of restructuring and advance infrastructure. One of point of argument was the complexity of the pipelines network; it could cause leakage and disasters if not well maintained and sustained. Both the for and against sides have good points of arguments however, the against side's points were not concrete enough. They fail to explain and give examples of how the technology is a failure. On the contrary, the for side did a better job in providing facts and example of the advantages of this technology.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Summary on Pillows.J, 2007, “PRIVACY ISSUES (RFID)” and Grisso.M, 2009, “Is Placing Microchips in Humans the New Slavery?”
Little that we know Radio Frequency Identification Tags (RFID) has been widely use around the world. Further development of this technology such as RFID implants and RFID embedded passports has given rise to controversies regarding privacy and security.
Jasion Pillows explained it well in his article “PRIVACY ISSUES (RFID)”. In his article, he briefly explained the RFID technology and its history. One interesting fact that he pointed out was that the RFID technology was developed from the British’s Identity friend or foe (IFF) system used in WW2 to detect friendly forces. A brief explanation of the RFID technology highlighted its benefits and uses. He explained the types of RFID transmitter and transponder devices and the pros and cons of each type. He then explained his main idea regarding RFID privacy issues. His overview on “Human Chipping” tells us about the uses of RFID for healthcare (plant RFID in patients for quick data reference) and public places (chip VIPs for recognition and transaction). He also explained the controversies that link to the uses such as vulnerability to data alteration and virus infection on RFID chip. He ended off by stating his stand, a neutral, “I am not an advocate for either side; I am simply discussing the issues” (Pillows, 2007).
Another article is by Michael Grisso titled “Is Placing Microchips in Humans the New Slavery?” In this article Grisso explained the motives of planting microchips in humans. One of it is the ploy to get terrorist prospects implanted with microchips so they can be tracked. Like the 1st article, he also explained the risk of having this technology (ability to retrieve invaluable data and information). However, he also briefly explained the consequences if a criminal is planted, he cannot escape from the eyes of the satellites while having the microchip. A quote from Grisso (2009) “In the end we will all be puppets in the bigger picture” suggest that he is against the idea of this technology as privacy can be intruded by authorities.
After reading the two articles, my knowledge about microchip implantation in humans broadened. Both articles are useful in my preparation for the roundtable discussion as both articles highlighted the pros and cons of the technology. They also gave quite similar points of arguments, intrusion of privacy. However, I would say that the 1st article is more elaborate about the uses and the consequences. It also gave more examples to relate to the technology.
Five words/ phrases:
backscatter data – deflection of data
daunting – discouraging through fear
malicious code – designed to take an action that, if the end user knew about, s/he would not permit to happen
prospects – an apparent probability of advancement, success, profit, etc.
mandatory – authoritatively ordered; obligatory; compulsory
References:
Pillows.J, 2007, “PRIVACY ISSUES (RFID)”
http://citebm.business.uiuc.edu/TWC%20Class/Project_reports_Spring2007/Privacy%20Issues/pillows2/pillows2.pdf
Grisso.M, 2009, “Is Placing Microchips in Humans the New Slavery?”
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/802923/is_placing_microchips_in_humans_the.html?cat=15
Jasion Pillows explained it well in his article “PRIVACY ISSUES (RFID)”. In his article, he briefly explained the RFID technology and its history. One interesting fact that he pointed out was that the RFID technology was developed from the British’s Identity friend or foe (IFF) system used in WW2 to detect friendly forces. A brief explanation of the RFID technology highlighted its benefits and uses. He explained the types of RFID transmitter and transponder devices and the pros and cons of each type. He then explained his main idea regarding RFID privacy issues. His overview on “Human Chipping” tells us about the uses of RFID for healthcare (plant RFID in patients for quick data reference) and public places (chip VIPs for recognition and transaction). He also explained the controversies that link to the uses such as vulnerability to data alteration and virus infection on RFID chip. He ended off by stating his stand, a neutral, “I am not an advocate for either side; I am simply discussing the issues” (Pillows, 2007).
Another article is by Michael Grisso titled “Is Placing Microchips in Humans the New Slavery?” In this article Grisso explained the motives of planting microchips in humans. One of it is the ploy to get terrorist prospects implanted with microchips so they can be tracked. Like the 1st article, he also explained the risk of having this technology (ability to retrieve invaluable data and information). However, he also briefly explained the consequences if a criminal is planted, he cannot escape from the eyes of the satellites while having the microchip. A quote from Grisso (2009) “In the end we will all be puppets in the bigger picture” suggest that he is against the idea of this technology as privacy can be intruded by authorities.
After reading the two articles, my knowledge about microchip implantation in humans broadened. Both articles are useful in my preparation for the roundtable discussion as both articles highlighted the pros and cons of the technology. They also gave quite similar points of arguments, intrusion of privacy. However, I would say that the 1st article is more elaborate about the uses and the consequences. It also gave more examples to relate to the technology.
Five words/ phrases:
backscatter data – deflection of data
daunting – discouraging through fear
malicious code – designed to take an action that, if the end user knew about, s/he would not permit to happen
prospects – an apparent probability of advancement, success, profit, etc.
mandatory – authoritatively ordered; obligatory; compulsory
References:
Pillows.J, 2007, “PRIVACY ISSUES (RFID)”
http://citebm.business.uiuc.edu/TWC%20Class/Project_reports_Spring2007/Privacy%20Issues/pillows2/pillows2.pdf
Grisso.M, 2009, “Is Placing Microchips in Humans the New Slavery?”
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/802923/is_placing_microchips_in_humans_the.html?cat=15
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