The Second Earth
Nope. I am not referring to the game of some sort. 
When William Gibson wrote the novel, “Neuromancer” in the 1980′s, it kinda sound uberly futuristic during that time. Hackers, brain computer interface, the cyberspace, cybernetic implants etc. dominated the novel’s theme.
When Masamune Shirow, the famous mangaka (author) who wrote “Ghost in the Shell” – it draws parallel to Gibson’s Neuromancer novel – the implantation of cyberbrains, the advanced usages of the cyberspace (so advanced – up to the point that humans are able to leave memories or ghosts in the cyberspace), cyberterrorism as perpetuated by the Laughing Man as well as the intertwining of ethics, law and morality issues with the use of technology.
Both authors described a dystopic view of world, along with the use of advanced technology in the everyday lives of the citizens.
By the way, their works paved way for creating another genre in literature and media: Cyberpunk.
Whilst today, in the different Barrio Sietes of the world, technology played a pivotal role in global affairs, crossing the nation’s boundaries and time. Look at what is happening in Iran. Even if the international journalists are having a hard time gathering the news because of the government imposed news blackout, the Iranians themselves have found a dozen ways to transmit videos, photos and thoughts through the internet regarding the election fallout in their country.
Even if you live in one of the 7,107 islands of the Philippines and half a world away from Iran – you can still share your voice with the Iranian people via Twitter and other social networking sites. Just hit “update” or “plurk”, and your voice will join the throng of protesters across the globe which are currently airing their sentiments over the election fallout.
Same picture draws back to the 1986 EDSA revolution. Even if there is no twitter or SMS that time, the radio and the television played the role. So did the EDSA Dos in 2001, where SMS, MMS, the internet and other mobile applications played the role in propagating not only information about the mass gathering but also text jokes about Erap and the senators who voted No to opening the 2nd envelope.
Not to mention also that the violence caught on video and photographs reminds me of the Mendiola massacre that happened during the Marcos regime. A handful of people died there and a number of brave journalists have covered the incident of hapless shooting of the protesters.
Technology, is indeed becoming a tool for creating social change. The internet, being the most gigantic of the technological innovations have created a second earth for all of us, earthlings. A second earth that provides an alternative way of existence for most of its netizens as well as the merging with the barriers of the real world.
A second earth that is somehow depicted quite utopic because of the freedom found in it – the kind of freedom not provided by the present governments today. A second earth, not governed by a regulating legal body but by its users – the so-called internet citizens. Iranians may found themselves suppressed by their conservative government but heck, there are a lot of web applications that they can use to show what is happening inside their reclusive country.
What Gibson and Shirow wrote years ago will no longer remain science fiction fantasies but are now becoming plausible or exist for real. As long as there are technological innovations, sky’s the limit when it comes to designing applications. Give the geeks and innovative technophiles 5 years or even shorter than that and we will see the dawn of various technological innovations that can make a huge impact to our society.
You maybe surprised to find out that your 5 year old daughter is even better than you in using the internet. Who knows where will technology brings us. Who knows what change it can bring us. As I have mentioned previously, technology is now playing a role in creating social changes – from fashion fads to reforming governments to pushing people’s agendas.
What seemed to be the usual homo sapiens will ultimately turn into homo sapiens 2.0 or homo googlus.
Technology also has proven itself as a key towards human evolution – from flint stones of the Stone Age to the tweets, plurks, blogs and SMS of the 21st century.
In another aspect, warfare can soon cross paths with the second earth. We are on the brink of seeing a futuristic kind of warfare, engaged in the cyberspace which can trigger multiple events in the real world. Some people may find themselves being under the eye of the mysterious Big Brother or perhaps a group of hackers and baddie technophiles that have the capabilities of releasing nasty attacks via the web. They can attack government databases that concern with information and national security – a huge security issue for the concerned nation.
Everything in this world can cross barriers towards the second earth that the Internet and other technologies have created for us. Even our personalities can cross the barriers too. It is no longer the realm of science fiction and other futuristic stuff, but an incoming reality for all of us.
As I have heard several times in the Warcraft: Frozen Throne game (from the Orcs’ leader, the Far-Seer): The future is upon us.
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silver is the blogger behind Dare to Speak Out, a personal and commentary blog.She graduated with a degree in Industrial and Organizational Psychology. She posts blogs that ranges in different topics – from trivial to the political. She currently works as a freelance writer.
teka pare hahanap muna ko ng translator lalim ng inglisirs mo pre grave idol na kita mula ngayon—
tubeeeeeeeg—
nadugo ilong ko pati tenga—-
nyahahahaha.
ala pre, diko din ma access ang twitter pati plurk,ewan kainis.
pero infairness pre, yung huli naintindihan ko—”The future is upon us.” (translation: lunch time na, mangan tayon kakabsat)
Ngak! Hahahha….
Pasensya na parekoy. Sinaniban ako nung sinulat ko ito. Hahahah…
O eto ang tisyu parekoy at konting benda. Pampa-ampat ng pagdurugo. Tingala ka lang ng konti para humupa ang pagdurugo ng ilong mo. Whehe.
Okey, i have to adjust my kokote. biglang nag change ang ihip ng hangin.
Hahahhaa….
@Silver, I know. slow to adjust remember? pero kahit papaano cute pa rin ang tawa mo.
Note: Paki check na lang pareng Silver ung url link ng Dare To Speak Out dahil kulang ata ng out.
The link should be daretospeakout.wordpress.com. Ang url link is only daretospeak@wordpress.com.
Nah. I dont mean to insult your intelligence. I just remembered about the cyberbrain interface na nirereboot ang sarili due to information overload. Nalimutan ko kung saan part ba yun.
At sumesegway ka na naman sa commentary mo Darbs.
Although technology is a great advancement in our human existence, one could not help but look at the past with nostalgia: when the kids freely dove in clean rivers, where a bowl of hot soup was brought to an ailing grandmother, where conversation is face to face and you could almost feel the breath of a whisper. Advancement can be good but can also create a great disconnection between humans.
Of course Mahalia. There will be always the nostalgia kahit na lagi na tayong nausad forward with the current state of the world.
Yes, no turning back Silvs. We fashion technology, at first through imagination, and then technology in turn shapes the world even beyond those original imaginations you mentioned, in an ambivalent mixture of positive change and atrophy of some beautiful cherished values that Mahalia hinted on.
Pitch in ko lang part ng post ko on the power of the internet:
My Korean colleague confirmed that internet speed in South Korea is 100 times faster than that of the Philippines. Such a speed is quite a run down considering that the Philippines has a horde of highly competitive IT professionals in the world.
But my colleague also confirmed about a growing phenomenon that is socially alarming. Being host to the largest Pentecostal church in the world, the phenomenon is being outlined in pastors’ sermons – the phenomenon of “connection frigidity.” It is about students, who upon coming home from school, impulsively run to their computer rooms and connect virtually or play their bookmarked games. The same phenomenon is also infecting both office and non-office based personnel. Absence from their monitors, or even smacked by an empty inbox could make them frigid and fidgety. Something is amiss in the absence of a virtual connection and capable enough to make them restless. Nowadays, Korean parents are fabricating scarecrows out of technology to discipline their young – no computer games for 1 hour for a misdemeanor. Quite a divergence from the discipline of the days of old when tots were psychologically terrorized by the mere mention of policemen.
Dfish,
As far as I know about Koreans, they are the best Starcraft players in the planet. They take cyber games to the next level – parang pang-olympics na talaga, complete with corporate sponsorships etc. Excellent gamers in Korea are treated as rock stars.
What you have mentioned in your comments is indeed true. The internet has a huge impact into our lives – to the point of becoming fidgety or asar pag walang nageemail sa iyo.
The internet has brought social interaction in the next level – we can now interact at the push of a button.There is even a study that browsing the internet can add a few IQ points.
But of course, not all things are perfect. There is always the up and down sides.
Yep, ibang level sila pagdating sa games. Dito sa office, kaharap ko lang yung pastor na adik sa games. Pati mga websites nila, mapapa-wow lang ako sa ganda one could really see so much effort and imagination are being invested. They take web designs,contents and games really that seriously…
Oo DFish. Napakaseryoso nila pagdating sa internet.
I wonder kung tumaas na din ang insurance claims for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
Pagdating sa World Cyber Games, threat talaga ang Korea sa Starcraft. Hahaha.
Kaya dihens sila pumapalag sa akin. Sabihin ko lang – gusto kong mahawa sa mga internet habits nila hahaha…
Have you heard about Minerva? He’s the Korean blogger who got arrested ng government nila for acurately predicting the economic scenario of their country. He even predicted that Korea will also reel towards recession.
Akala ng internet users that Minerva is a hard core economist. Pero when they found out his true identity, he is just a simple 30 year old guy who happens to like blogging so much and yeah, read a lot of books and journals about economics.
yup yup pareng silver, dami nyang napeke hahaha yun pala tambay lang sa haus ang loko pero effective sya huh hahaha
Saludo ako sa isang yun. Mautak din ang isang yun.
Teka switch lang ako sa Pentium 3 ko na de-padyak. Bwheheh.
tyagain mo pre, damihan mo ng uling sabayan mo ng ihip at paypay para mas bumilis, dobol porpows pre, ihawin mo na rin dyan yung isaw na pulutan natin memya
That’s right – nagpanic ang Korean government dahil lang blog nya bwahahaha. Sa Pinas pa, no way magpanic si Jose Pidal bwahahaa…
Lee,
Oo nga parekoy. Heto ngat nagpapadyak na ako ngayon, sabay salang ng mga pulutan natin mamya. Lastek ang inet ngayon dito sa pinas. Haha. At least, yung PC naman ang aking bbq grill.
Puro uleng na ang mukha ko, gitata na ako sa pawis. Hayuff. Ang PC ko, parang nagslowmo na tila mala-matrix ang galaw. Hahaha.
Dfish,
Tawa nga ako sa kaengotan na yun ng Korean government. Dapat pa nga, ihire nila si Minerva as economic adviser instead na kinulong nila for economic sabotage. Haha.
Ewan ko kung nagbloblog pa si Minerva.
kaya nga e tngnan mo si iloveyou virus nung mahuli e nakakapit sa palda ng ate iyak ng iyak— nung sunung kong makita abah baha at nakapamewang na front page ng mag at hire na sya ng mga merikano
Oo parekoy. Yung si Iloveyou virus e matindi yan. Napenetrate nya ang pentagon. Thesis nya daw kasi yun noong college sa AMA. E ayaw maniwala ng prof nya na kaya nyang gumawa ng bayrus. Kaya ayun, gumawa at napagexperimentuhan ang malalakeng databases sa US. Hahaha.
Balita ko e sa microsoft nagtratrabaho ang isang yan at malamang 6-7 figures na ang sweldo.
readlly sa microsoft na nagta-trabaho ang gumawa ng iloveyou virus?? huwaw! sabi ko nga sa kapatid kong nag-aral sa AMA: yan naman school mo eh school na mga hackers at tiga-develop ng viruses.
hehehe!
@silver,
i would not be surprised kung excellent gamers in korea are treated as rockstars, pinasikat nila internet cafes dahil kahit na most wired country sila around the world, ayaw nilang nasa loob nang bahay and they prefer to socialize and play with groups
@Glo,
Yan ang chika chaka about Iloveyou virus. At saka it really takes considerable skills and knowledge in developing viruses and hacking.
As in uber geek talaga ang level ng knowledge.
@Reyna,
OO ganun na ganun ang mga koreans.
KESTYON:
Whatever happened nga pala dun sa drama nang Comelec to hack their machines for the upcoming elections para matesting kong great wall of china sila??? any news???
Parang wala akong naririnig about dyan. hahaha.
yaan mo pre pag yaman ko, sa winter padalhan kita ng snow made in china nagkalat sa kalye my mga kagamang intsik na virus lol
LOL parekoy. Hahaha.
Ilalagay ko nga yang made in china na snow na yan sa batya. Para otomatik na tubeg pampaligo din pag nalusaw na. lol!
naku Silver, lahat naman tayo eh tinitignan ni “Big Brother” in some ways, maybe nasusulyapan ang ating bawat kilos, pero sa tingin nya siguro wala namang mapala sa atin.
hehehe. so he/she moves on..
Hahaha….
Baka ibang version ng Big Brother ang nasa isip ko. Hahahha.
May lahing pinya si Big Brother. Ang dame nyang mata.
Glo,
ang pagkaka-alam ko, kahit na anonymous ka pa sa internet, there is a way to find and identify you. korak?
We are building machines with an attitude, networks with swarm/hive mentality – think about it, we could be out of control. Welcome to hyperreality;-).
That can be plausible art.