In the world we live in, there is a near-universal social norm that says greater connectivity, a more global web, and more pervasive digital networks are an inherent good. We see this sentiment reflected everywhere, from the obvious manifestations in IoT devices, cellphones, and Facebook, to more implicit forms, such as in the fights for greater digital security, more censorship-resistant communication, or more distributed control of these networks. As communities involved in shaping the future of these networks, and whose futures will in turn be shaped by them, it seems worth asking: Is a more networked world really always what we want?
Rather than try to answer this question directly, we will instead provide a short introduction to the topic, then help guide an open discussion, focusing on what it means in practice for us involved in the development of these networks.
Interested in attending the sprint July 16-18: Y
Interested in a community billet: N
Presenter Bio
Justin works as a graduate student at the University of Waterloo's CrySP lab. His research focuses on network simulation, with an emphasis on simulations of the Tor network. Previously, he worked on file system analysis at UC Santa Cruz, where he was also involved with a local community meshnet project built around CJDNS.
Cecylia is a graduate student at the University of Waterloo. Her research addresses broad issues in privacy and more narrowly focuses on censorship resistance in its many forms. She spends the majority of her time designing systems to circumvent state censorship.
What Do We Want?
Description
In the world we live in, there is a near-universal social norm that says greater connectivity, a more global web, and more pervasive digital networks are an inherent good. We see this sentiment reflected everywhere, from the obvious manifestations in IoT devices, cellphones, and Facebook, to more implicit forms, such as in the fights for greater digital security, more censorship-resistant communication, or more distributed control of these networks. As communities involved in shaping the future of these networks, and whose futures will in turn be shaped by them, it seems worth asking: Is a more networked world really always what we want?
Rather than try to answer this question directly, we will instead provide a short introduction to the topic, then help guide an open discussion, focusing on what it means in practice for us involved in the development of these networks.
Type: discussion
Length: 1 hour
Additional considerations: N/A
Session Objective
an enjoyable discussion relfecting on what we want from our projects
participants should take away more questions than they came in with
Material and Technical Requirements
No materials required. A space that lends itself to discussion would be preferred.
Presenter(s)
Name: Justin Tracey Email: j3tracey@uwaterloo.ca Twitter: @jtga_d
Interested in attending the sprint July 16-18: Y
Interested in a community billet: N
Name: Cecylia Bocovich Email: agogagave@riseup.net
Interested in attending the sprint July 16-18: Y Interested in a community billet: N
Presenter Bio
Justin works as a graduate student at the University of Waterloo's CrySP lab. His research focuses on network simulation, with an emphasis on simulations of the Tor network. Previously, he worked on file system analysis at UC Santa Cruz, where he was also involved with a local community meshnet project built around CJDNS.
Cecylia is a graduate student at the University of Waterloo. Her research addresses broad issues in privacy and more narrowly focuses on censorship resistance in its many forms. She spends the majority of her time designing systems to circumvent state censorship.