Midterm paper - Fashionable Technology Lab

Quantified Self | The Body
Nadine Razzouk
Student in The Emerging Convergence of Mobile and Wearable Computing
20 Exchange Pl
Apt 309, NY, 10005
(832)205 6602 [email protected] N00357025 ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION
“If you can measure it, you can
As social beings, we are steered to
improve it.” With that slogan for a quantified
seek ever-deeper understandings of both the
self movement, the emergence age of self-
world around us and the world inside us. knowledge through digital self-tracking
A growing number of us do just that by
became so prominent, therefore the aim of
tracking the hours we sleep, the calories we
this research paper is to question the effects
eat, the miles we run, and many other types
of a quantified self onto our lives in terms of
of inputs, states, and measures of
privacy and interactive advertising, The
performance. This metrics minded pursuit of
paper is going to tackle the following
self-knowledge has in recent years spawned a
questions: How safe is our quantified self?
movement, known simply as the quantified
What are some privacy risks?
self.
KEYWORDS
Quantified self, Emotiv, Wearable
technology, fashion, Biometric Measures,
Interactive Advertising, mHealth,
personalized advertising, filter bubble,
Privacy
The Quantified Self is a movement to
incorporate technology into data acquisition
on aspects of a person's daily life in terms of
inputs (e.g. food consumed, quality of
surrounding air), states (e.g. mood, arousal,
blood oxygen levels), and performance
(mental and physical). The process of selftracking begins by collecting quantitative
data, which is then aggregated, processed,
and distilled into meaningful insight. Until
recently, self-tracking required keeping
potential customers. As consumers continue
notebooks or spreadsheets filled with
to integrate these new Quantified Self digital
numbers and observations. To extract
tools into their lives, the data collected by
meaning from this static record required
these tools presents new opportunities for
many potentially daunting additional steps,
CPG marketers to learn more about
such as input and analysis.1
consumers’ behavior and better reach their
Comparing
metrics with peers was possible, but usually
target audiences.2 The paper is going to
difficult.
tackle the following questions about
Quantified Self in terms of interactive
Wearable technology is changing all
advertising : How safe is our quantified self?
that. Self-quantification became highly
What are some privacy risks? Can we still re-
accessible and easily comparable, and are
invent ourselves if we never forget anything?
thus remaking measures of self-awareness.
I argue how the effects of that will result in a
Typically, they pair with services that store,
deeper filter bubble.
analyze, and even share the data for you—
often via sophisticated visualizations.
A national telephone survey
conducted by the Pew Research Center’s
Internet & American Life Project finds that
69% of U.S. adults keep track of at least one
health indicator such as weight, diet, exercise
routine, or symptom. However, almost half
are still tracking in their heads, the other half
are using self tracking digital tools.
THESIS
One of the most difficult challenges
facing advertisers today marks their ability to
capture instant brand responses to
advertising, and gauge in real-time how
To better understand this new
technology trend and assess its impact on
the future of digital media for CPG
marketers, Rocket Fuel conducted a
custom primary research study among
consumers in the U.S. In terms of comfort
level of sharing data to receive more
personalized digital advertising. Quantified
Self users are most comfortable with sharing
health and fitness, and food/diet data, and
least comfortable with sharing sleep and
mood/self-improvement data, although
comfort levels are comparable. Additionally,
when posed with the incentive of receiving
discounts and coupons in exchange for
sharing Quantified Self data, 75% of
marketing strategies are being perceived by
1
Boam, Eric. Frog The Qualified Self Going Beyond Quantification Comments.
2
Fuel, Rocket. “ QUANTIFIED SELF ”
Quantified Self users say they would be more
interests right now than people dying in
likely to share it. Even among those
Africa.”5 A filter bubble is a result of a
Quantified Self users who said they are not at
personalized search in which a website
all comfortable with sharing their data, one-
algorithm selectively guesses what
third (33%) say they would be more likely to
information a user would like to see based on
share their data in
information about the user (such as location,
exchange for discounts or coupons.3
past click behavior and search history) and,
as a result, users become separated from
Governments might be tempted by
information that disagrees with their
location and mobility data, and try to match
viewpoints, effectively isolating them in their
social graphs, location overlaps, group
own cultural or ideological bubbles. 6Prime
behaviors as well as Marketing departments.
examples are Google Personalized Search
One challenge self-quantifiers face in
results and Facebook's personalized news
deriving personal meaning from data is a
stream. The term was coined by internet
question of data ownership. With Facebook,
activist Eli Pariser in his book by the same
Twitter, and other social networking sites
name; according to Pariser, users get less
making varied claims to the content their
exposure to conflicting viewpoints and are
users upload, participants in Quantified Self
isolated intellectually in their own
carry a heightened awareness of terms of use,
informational bubble.
data ownership, and their freedom to export
and potentially delete data if the need or
whim arises.4
The filter bubble’s costs are both
personal and cultural. There are direct
consequences for those of us who use
RISKS
personalized filters. And there are societal
consequences, which emerge when masses of
When it comes to filter bubbles, Mark
people begin to live a filter-bubbled life.
Zuckerberg, Facebook’s chief executive, once
For example in the filter bubble, there is less
told colleagues that “a squirrel dying in your
room for the chance encounters that bring
front yard may be more relevant to your
insight and learning which will hinder
3
Fuel, Rocket. “ QUANTIFIED SELF ”
4
NGUYEN, Kevin. "The BYGONE BUREAU." Me, My Quantified Self, and I – The Bygone
Bureau
5
Pariser, Eli. The Filter Bubble: How the New Personalized Web Is Changing What We Read
and How We Think.
6
Ohme, Rafal, and Michal Matukin. "JOURNAL OF INTERACTIVE ADVERTISING
creativity. Creativity, according to Eli
Pariser, is “often sparked by the collision of
ideas from different disciplines and
cultures.”7 In addition to that, even though
the service of personalization may be helpful,
but it is often used not to our advantage.
Researchers at the University of Minnesota
discovered that women who are ovulating
respond better to pitches for clingy clothes
and suggested that marketers “strategically
time” their online solicitations. Ultimately,
the filter bubble can affect your ability to
choose how you want to live your life. 8 An
endless loop is how we are going to live our
lives.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, some areas need to be
considered before we give in to the
Quantified Self such as the possible risks that
Quantified Self scenarios can generate
especially considering its possible massive
use. The privacy risks combined with ethical
issues related to social control scenarios lead
up to a glimpse of dystopia in which in the
name of a “superior” is envisioned and the
individual is excluded from any
kind of the decisions, even minimal,
concerning him.
7
Pariser, Eli. The Filter Bubble: How the New Personalized Web Is Changing What We Read
and How We Think.
8
Haddadi, Hamed, and Ian Brown. "Quantified Self and the Privacy Challenge."
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