ZeroFour

This week's studies deeply explored online identities, algorithmic identities, and how data shapes our digital selves. Through reading Cheney-Lippold's (2017)...

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This week's studies deeply explored online identities, algorithmic identities, and how data shapes our digital selves. Through reading Cheney-Lippold's (2017) "We Are Data: Algorithms and the Making of Our Digital Selves," I began to understand that algorithmic identity is not only constructed by our behaviors online but is also dynamically influenced by our interactions with digital platforms.

In our courses, we engaged in a series of experiments on understanding ourselves through data, exploring how data collection, categorization, and algorithms define and redefine our presence online. Sumpter's (2018) "Outnumbered: From Facebook and Google to Fake News and Filter-Bubbles - The Algorithms That Control Our Lives" inspired us by showing how algorithms could analyze and understand complex networks of personal relationships through categorization of our social circles. This week's practical activity involved using Teachable Machine to build and train models. Through this process, I not only learned how to operate specific machine learning tools but also gained a deeper appreciation of how machines identify and respond to our behaviors through learning from specific datasets. This activity made me contemplate how technology can unknowingly shape our understanding of identity and the social and ethical issues that may arise from this understanding.

We also discussed the problems that algorithm-driven identity perception might cause, such as those pointed out by Noble (2018) in "Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism," where biases in search engines could exacerbate social inequalities. This realization made me recognize that we should not passively accept the digital identities shaped by algorithms, but rather actively participate in the design and review process to ensure their fairness and transparency. This is not merely a technical issue but a profound social and cultural one. We need to critically think about and scrutinize the digital tools and platforms that define us, exploring more just and inclusive ways of digital expression.