ENGR101/HUM 200: Technology and Society November 10, 2005

Agenda Discussion of change to syllabus schedule –Next unit exam on Tuesday 11/22 Review of mid-quarter evaluation Go over Data Collection assignment Exam results Lecture: “Would you chip your pet? Would you chip your child? Would you chip yourself?”

Mid-quarter Evaluation Readings –Triage! Review session –Goals of review sessions

Introduction to RFID Method of identification Tag and Reader –Tag holds information –Reader draws information from the tag Low cost, small size Tracking device (stuff, people)

RFID Radio Frequency Identification Passive tags (retail uses) Active tags Broadcast/read range varies Read only or read/write Accuracy varies –Depends on other tags in area, material being tagged, speed of reading, etc.

RFID Systems Tradeoffs: –Price –Size –Performance –Storage Tradeoffs???!?

Supply Chain Use of RFID What is a supply chain? Getting stuff from Point A to Point B –Really, though, it goes from point A to point B to point C to point D and then to point E to F to G to H to…. RFID vs. barcodes –Barcodes rely on people to do the scanning –RFID offers possibility for further optimization Can identify the actual can of coke –Expiration dates, stolen or lost goods

Possible Privacy Concerns for Retail Use Retailers tracking consumers’ purchases from one store to another RFID tag scanning is invisible, so consumers might not know they have bought tagged goods Tags may not (purposely or not) be deactivated Potential misuse of collected data

Analogues Loyalty cards –Frequent flyer programs –Hotel loyalty programs –Grocery store discount cards E-Z Pass OnStar Tivo

What would make you feel better? –Ability to “kill” the tag yourself upon purchase What would make you feel worse? –“Smart medicine cabinet” If cell phones already surveil, what’s the big deal? –Who benefits from RFID? Consumer or business? Why should I make the tradeoff in the first place?

Make it Better? Naming! –“He who names it and frames it, claims it” (Ted Koppel) Point-Counterpoint of Koppel and Roberti –Concerns about defining the pluses and minuses –Who defines when and how the tech works? –PR!

Would You Chip Your Pet? Cost: $50 HomeAgain! In 20 years, over 30 million animals have been tagged Tagging cattle since the 1980s, livestock since the 1940s –Cattle, salmon, housepets

Of Course I’d Chip My Pet!

Every month, 6000 lost pets are in the US are reunited with their owners! (It’s all in how you frame the story)

Would You Chip Your Child? It’s a dangerous world –Vulnerability, risk What constitutes a right to privacy? –What is privacy, anyway? –I’m not doing anything wrong, why should I care if you know where I am? If I do care, then it must be because I am doing something wrong

Brittan Elementary School Kindergartners through 8 th grade given id badges –Subset tracked live in test run Tracking that students get on and off the school bus Badge with photo, grade level, and name. And RFID tag Readers installed at classroom doors and bathrooms To ease taking attendance

Tracking Kids for Attendance What makes a tradeoff worth it? “A technology in search of a solution” “Our children should never have been tagged like pieces of inventory or cattle”

Would You Chip Yourself? Cost: $150 Size: Grain of rice Time: 20 minutes Process: syringe, no stiches VeriChip –Nightclubs in Barcelona

My Health is Priceless! Health vs. privacy –Approved by the FDA in October 2004 for human use in the US (medical records)

Ongoing US Passport Debate Embed biometrics or RFID tags in US Passports –Pros: security, efficiency, counterfeit protection –Cons: invisibility of scanners, privacy concerns, autonomy over releasing personal data, targeting Americans abroad (skimming)

What Are You Willing to Trade for a Chip? What privacy would you sacrifice? What autonomy would you sacrifice? What control would you sacrifice? How can technologies be developed to accommodate the concerns of privacy experts and the rights of individual citizens?

Next Week Monday: Prof. Boriello –RFID background Tuesday: Emma Rose –Prototyping (crucial info for Make It Better assignment!) Wednesday: Prof. Boriello –Social issues and RFID Thursday: Sunny Consalvo (Intel Research Center) –Privacy issues Friday: Make It Better group meetings