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  From: Jonah Bossewitch <jb2410@columbia.edu>
  To  : <CPC@emoglen.law.columbia.edu>
  Date: Fri, 27 May 2005 19:00:40 -0400

Paper #2

(slightly belated).

Have a great summer everyone.

enjoy,
/Jonah

Jonah Bossewitch
Computers Privacy and the Constitution
Prof. Eben Moglen
Paper #2, Spring 2005

Unforgetable In Every Way (and forever more):
Personal and Social Implications of Pervasive Omniscient Surveillance

“He told me: I have more memories in myself alone than all men have  
had since the world was a world. And again: My dreams are like your  
vigils. And again, toward dawn: My memory, sir, is like a garbage  
disposal.”
- Funes, the Memorious[1]

Millennium Flux

The physical sciences make frequent use of a measurement known as  
flux: the rate of flow of “stuff” passing through a given surface.  
The flow of particles, fluids, heat, and electro-magnetic fields can  
all be quantitatively described by this analysis, yielding  
interesting generalizations and predictions[2]. The description of  
this flow has a geometric representation that is useful for imagining  
the logical space of possibilities. Important laws have been  
formulated based on the rate and net passage of “stuff” across the  
boundaries of the surfaces being studied[3].

This form of analysis can help us conceptualize the quality and shape  
of the surveillance society that we are in the midst of co- 
constructing.  While the sheer quantity of information changing hands  
is certainly an important factor in the current transformation we are  
witnessing, arguably as important is the gradient of the information  
flow, and whether the flux is negative, positive, or neutral.

Consider our “personal information clouds” as metaphoric enclosing  
surfaces[4]. The information flux is all the information that passes  
through this boundary. We are incontrovertibly on a trajectory  
towards a world where data collection and analysis is ubiquitous and  
pervasive[5]. However, there are three variations in the net flux of  
information whose future character is not yet determined.

Simply put, regardless of the quantity of the information being  
captured, identity-space can be divided into three possible outcomes,  
in geometrical terms: 1) Others know more about you than you do —   
likely corporations, governments, or the power elite. 2) You know  
more about yourself than others do — e.g. the BioPort[6]. 3) Everyone  
has equal access to everyone else’s information — total transparency[7].

A corollary of this detailed and permanent history is an increasing  
ability to predict and foretell future behavior[8]. Again, the  
variations of information flux will determine who has access to these  
predictions, potentially impacting our traditional understanding of  
determinism and freedom, and in turn, personal responsibility.

We will return to these three possible futures after we explore some  
of the personal and social consequences that might accompany a world  
where memory is permanent, and forgetting is a thing of the past.

Secrets and Lies

The relationship between Memory and Identity has been a mainstay of  
Science fiction, psychology, and philosophy for centuries[9]. The  
terrain most often explored is the connection between the loss of  
memories or amnesia and the ways which this compromises and threatens  
personal identity[10]. However, an exploration of permanent memories,  
the flipside of memory loss, has been sorely neglected. This is the  
specter raised by total surveillance, and is an idea that we ought to  
focus our imaginations on sooner rather than later. Permanent  
memories are sure to have implications as severe and disruptive as  
any of the ones depicted in the classical treatments of this theme.

Freud and his followers postulated a depth model of psychology in  
which suppression, repression, and the ability to forget is a vital  
aspect of our psychological makeup. These defense mechanisms, which  
allow us to maintain our sense of self, rely upon our ability to  
selectively recall and subconsciously filter the personal narratives  
that are consistent with the reality we want to believe. Our ability  
to cope with trauma and stress depends upon the function of  
forgetting. I doubt I am alone in contemplating the horror of  
revisiting the details of grade school with the precision of modern  
day surveillance apparatus.  And yet, this is the world that we are  
on the verge of establishing, without the slightest consideration of  
the consequences, for every child born in the 21st century.

Perhaps more shocking than memories that can’t be filtered and don’t  
dissipate, is the impact that surveillance might have on deception.  
Arguably, modern day society is founded on lies[11], ranging from  
small little white lies between friends and neighbors, to corporate  
advertising and marketing, to Orwellian political spin, to the lies  
we tell ourselves to preserve and maintain a likeable version of our  
self (in spite of any evidence to the contrary). Pervasive  
surveillance threatens to rip apart the fabric of deception that  
currently binds together social groups, nations, and individuals.

Demonstrating the central role of deception in our society is beyond  
the scope of this paper, but consider a few categorical examples.   
Consider the power of shame and embarrassment evident in blackmail  
and the tabloids. Consider the cover-ups and disclosures that ruin  
relationships, careers, and reputations. Consider the importance of  
secrecy in business and love. All of these forms of deception could  
potentially be impacted by the transition to a surveillance society.  
Instead of allowing these changes to overtake us by surprise, we  
should actively be studying and anticipating their effects.

The net flux of information described earlier will have a significant  
impact upon the constructs that form the basis for our current model  
of western society. Depending upon whether the net information flux  
is negative, positive, or neutral we will begin to see dramatic  
shifts in the balance of knowledge and power that exists between  
citizens and governments, consumers and corporations, and even  
individuals and others.

Preliminary Conclusions

Considering what is at stake, we have an obligation to proceed with  
rigor and caution when introducing technologies whose implications  
can potentially disrupt the structure of our personal identities and  
social networks. The differences between a negative, positive, and  
neutral information flux need to be analyzed in greater depth.

Intuitively, it seems that knowing more about yourself than anyone  
else does is something that we have traditionally taken for granted,  
and may even form a central aspect of our identities. The  
perturbation of this traditional balance has implications we are just  
now beginning to perceive.

It also seems clear that a technology like the BioPort, which allows  
individuals to maintain a positive information flux, describes a  
markedly different reality than a transparent society. A society in  
which the flow of information is centered around the individual, as  
opposed to away from them. Prevailing currents are attempting to  
steer this flow away from the individual, into the waiting hands of  
those who would benefit from the power and control that this negative  
flux would provide them.

I am not optimistic that under perfectly free market conditions, a  
transparent society would effectively provide every individual with  
choices mirroring their best interests. Herbert Marcuse has argued  
that the Western liberal democracies are, ‘totally administered  
societies’ permeated by the values of consumerism, in which the  
manufacture and satisfaction of ‘false needs’ serve to prevent the  
working class from gaining any genuine insight into their situation 
[12]. I am deeply concerned that a negative or even a neutral  
information flux will compound this situation, and result in  
increased domination and subjugation of the oppressed.

This preliminary analysis indicates that maintaining a positive  
information flux is essential for us to maintain any semblance of  
autonomy and freedom. Even with this condition met, the quantity of  
information will undoubtedly alter our sense of self, as we lose the  
ability to hide information from ourselves, and collectively embark  
on journeys of self-discovery. The application of predictive modeling  
to our own behavior, will also allow for greater opportunities for  
reflection and planning, and provide us with a greater understanding  
of the consequences of our actions.

The future is still up for grabs.

[1] Borges, Jorge Luis. Funes, The Memorius. Labyrinths. (NY: New  
Directions, 1969)
[2] Halliday, David, and Robert Resnick, Fundamentals of Physics (New  
York,: Wiley, 1974)
[3] e.g. Newton, Issac. Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica  
(1687), and Maxwell, James Clerk, "On Physical Lines of Force". (1861).
[4] Personal InfoClouds is a term introduced to describe the data  
that person interacts with daily, which accompanies them wherever  
they go. Sometimes attributed to: Mik Lamming and Mike Flynn. Forget- 
me-not: Intimate Computing in Support of Human Memory. In Proceedings  
of the ‘94 Symposium on Next Generation Human Interface. Feb, 1994
[5] Jay Stanley and Barry Steinhardt, Bigger Monster, Weaker Chains,  
The Growth of an American Surveillance Society, ACLU Technology and  
Liberty Program, January 2003.
And, Robert O'Harrow, Jr., No Place To Hide (2005).
[6] Introduced in the first part of this paper: Becoming Your Own Big  
Brother: A Paradoxical Approach for Retaining Control of Personal  
Freedom http://moglen.law.columbia.edu/CPC/discuss/77.html
[7] Chris Nolan, Can Exposing Personal Info Preserve Privacy?, e- 
week, December 2, 2004 http://www.eweek.com/ 
article2/0,1759,1734667,00.asp.
[8] Computer Scientists and Artificial Intelligence researchers have  
been working on this problem since the dawn of the discipline.  
Simulations, Games, Time-series analysis, Markov Models, Neural  
Networks, etc, are all the precursors of predictive behavior  
modeling.  All that is missing is the input data, which we are in the  
process of remedying.
[9] A seminal 20th century analytical treatment of personal identity  
is: Reasons and Persons . Derek Parfit. Oxford University Press.  
Oxford Scholarship Online. Oxford University Press. 1986
[10] Memento (1996), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), La  
Jetée (1962), Twelve Monkeys (1995), Vertigo (1958), Total Recall  
(1990), Paycheck (2003), etc etc.
[11] Or, more accurately, founded on bullshit, balderdash, and lies.  
Frankfurt, Harry. "On Bullshit." Raritan 6 (1986): 81-100.
[12] Herbert Marcuse. One Dimensional Man: Studies in the Ideology of  
Advanced Industrial Society. (1964) Boston: Beacon Press, 1991.


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