Garret A. Morgan

Since it is Black History Month, I will use this week to talk about African Americans who helped our country make major advances in technology. Garret Morgan was an inventor in the early 1900's. He invented the gas mask and is most famous for inventing the traffic light.
    As an entrepreneur early in his life, Morgan started a clothing company with equipment he invented himself. He also started a newspaper company. As a son of slaves, Morgan was able to purchase his own home and car through the success of his own businesses.
    
    Garret Morgan came up with his idea for a stop signal after The Ford Motor Company was founded in 1903. He witnessed many accidents and sought to make a difference. Morgan received a patent for his idea in 1923. He also had his idea patented in Great Britain and Canada. Prior to Morgan's invention, traffic signals only showed stop and go. Morgan invented a signal which allowed caution time where no one was had the right of way. This allowed cars to exit the intersection and prevent unnecessary collisions. This invention later gave birth to the yellow light.

Facebook is Planning a $10 Billion IPO

    Before the end of this year, Facebook is planning the largest technology IPO ever. The previous record holder debuted in 1999 as Infineon Technologies AG, raising $5.23 Billion. Facebook plans to almost double the record. With an investment of$1.5 Billion from Goldman Sachs in January, Facebook will be going from a projected $50 Billion in worth to $100 Billion.


    Does this mean that it is time to delete our Facebooks? When you look into Facebook going public, we have to realize that Facebook will change forever. I'm not talking about the layout or the new feeds. I'm talking about the ownership and the goals of the company. Instead of being the great time waster which is free and helps you stay in touch with your friends, Facebook will turn into a multi-billion dollar public corporation who's only goal is to increase stockholder wealth. We will have to live with the fact that Facebook will make its money off of selling our personal information and also by selling our interests to ad companies who want to target us to make profit. Just something to think about. That is all.

How Much is Facebook Worth?

     After the recent announcement of Facebook's official IPO, investors have pondered, "How Much is Facebook Worth?". When compared to other top companies in the computing era, Facebook has the potential to follow the footsteps of the like of Google, Microsoft, IBM, and Apple. As leader in their prospective field of computing, revenues range from 188 billion(Google) - 424 Billion (Apple). 

      You're probably wondering, how can Facebook can be compared to such large computing firms when it barley has a track record? We must keep in mind that Apple leads the industry with almost 430 Billion in revenues. Apple has also transformed from strictly a computing firm to the world leader in mobile and hand-held devices. Their highest selling devices are the Ipad, Iphone, and the Ipod. Facebook is the leader in social media worldwide and is readily accessible as apps on the top selling mobile devices in the world. Just by sheer numbers, Facebooks can sell ads and piggy back off of Apples success. I think Facebook will enter the billions but has no chance in passing the likes of Apple, Microsoft IBM or even Google. The big unknown for Facebook is longevity. There's no way to tell how long the Facebook fad will last. It could last twenty more years or three, depending on what new for of social media will take the reins. Who knows, maybe I will make that my next tweet.

RFID Chips

     So I stumbled upon an article today and it spoke about the Good, Bad, and the Ugly when it comes to new ways of using RFID chips in today's fast pace society. It mentioned a few points that I felt were very interesting. Stores may come up with a tracking and surveillance system that monitors who takes certain items off the shelf and will also notify the store if that person walks out of the store without paying for that item. This may seem like a good idea but the author of this article mentioned that this system does not account for a customer who picks up an item and eventually leaves the item in a random place. He also mentioned how this system will also encourage customers to steal from other shopping carts within the store.
    I am very leery of RFID chips because I think that they have the potential to take away from our civil liberties and also develop a new avenue for crime that is harder to regulate. How would you feel if companies had a system that identified your face along with your buying habits. If you pay by credit card, they will also know where you live. This is valuable information for the marketing departments of every food selling company in existence. I would not feel comfortable being watched and tracked like a lab rat. Also, imagine if it got to the point where people walked around with implants of their credit cards and social security information on an RDIF chip. This could lead to more violent crimes and even kidnapping situation.

So how do companies come up with a way to implement RFID technology without taking away civil liberties and without creating new ways of shoplifting?