Data, Energy & Extraction with Self-Care in the Digital Era
Posner’s piece taught me about the modular system that dominates supply chains, and how companies “black-box” each component in a system. This includes the downplayed dark side of globalization, such as horrendous, industrial impacts on the environment. The benefits of technology amplify “selective blindness,” but I also learned how blockchain is a potential remedy for visibility in supply chains. Posner’s piece supplemented Cooper’s lecture for me, which further taught me about previously foreign language concerning cryptocurrency, rare earth mineral mining and data centers’ impact on the environment. As technology continues to advance, the need for rare earth minerals will too, reinforcing Cooper’s argument on how the “black boxes” must be open. Everyone is responsible for “the whole” rather than “the part” of their products’ systems.
Everyone is responsible for “the whole” rather than “the part” of their products’ systems.
Tim Maughan’s “The dystopian lake filled by the world’s tech lust” provides a snapshot of the disastrous collateral damage of technological innovation that is blind to the majority of mankind. Baotou, “hell on Earth,” contains mines and factories that produce essential minerals responsible for smartphones and the precious gadgets that run our lives. The Earth continues to take the beating from the rare earth industry, evident by the air “filled with a constant, ambient, smell of sulfur”. It was eye-opening to read about why China is the epicenter of the rare earth market due to their willingness to sacrifice environmental health when other nations are not.
We will all “Live Through This”
Ouellette’s “Live Through This” discussed an innovative platform, Rookie, that offers a space for teenage girls to express themselves and their universal yet painful personal experiences. Self-writing and relating to others about important issues like depression and body image is truly unifying for developing girl teens as well as for anyone. It is reassuring to share small acts of rebellion in a male-dominant society. The “Live Through This” column of the site is an essential survival mechanism, offering a space to share traumatic experiences. In relation to my own experiences, I self-write to stay sane as a young adult. I agree with Foucault’s argument about the importance of “caring for the self as a matter of pleasure, autonomy, and self-mastery in the present’’ (p. 100), and how it is necessary to practice introspective techniques offered by platforms like Rookie in order to live a beautiful life. When I was 16 and battling body dysmorphia, along with a hoax of other adolescent issues, I wish I had access to the “Live Through This” column, including the sisterhood that came with it.
Similar to Gressitt-Diaz, my “personal digital drug of choice” is Instagram. I have also been using IG Live streams for self-care purposes, specifically for workout videos and inspiration from my favorite influencers. Instagram is the platform I use for my caring for the self, particularly the fitness community, where the majority of influencers are recovering from eating disorders and offer daily, inspiring content beyond ways to burn calories.
The bittersweet relationship between digital media and society
Posner’s piece and Cooper’s lecture both impacted how I view the origin of my smartphone, including the labor, the silenced processes and environmental harm which led to its creation. This week’s readings were informative of typically foreign language for me involving data systems and supply chains.
Maughan’s piece changed my views on the measures society takes for digital media, specifically on the detrimental environmental harms behind the creation of iPhones. The man-made, dystopian lake is a potential foreshadowing of the future. If we allow the capital craze to replace our responsibility to the environment, our country will soon start to resemble Inner Mongolia. Similar to Posner’s views, cerium-polished iPhones are not worth the death of the Earth.
Lastly, Constine’s piece on how media has become more social inspired me to make the most out of social distancing. Our obsession with sharing our experiences has come to a halt, and we are forced to live in the moment with those around us as well as virtually. When the shelter-in-places are lifted, hopefully this newfound creativity is not abandoned.
