:: Thursday, March 18, 2004 ::

Does your computer live in a bad neighborhood?

An article in today's New York Times captured my interest through the writer's use of metaphor. The article, describing a "malicious worm" that has invaded computers causing them to "engage in other shady activities common to the bad neighborhoods of cyberspace." Perhaps I'm behind on the lingo, but I've never heard segments of cyberspace referred to as "bad neighborhoods" While calling cyberspace neighborhoods is, I suppose, reasonable it does still attribute characteristics of the "real" world to understanding those of the virtual. Yet adding the descriptive adjective, which in fact changes the noun since "bad neighborhood" functions as an independent term in our vocabulary, further imposes a vocabulary used to describe "real" places on spaces which in our terms are in fact not places at all.


I suppose it isn't that strange to describe cyberspace in terms of physical space since we have yet to develop a linguistic system capable of encompassing cyberspace without the aid of the linguistic system of physical space (not of course including computer languages which function as linguistic systems distinct and separate from what we are discussing). However, I'm struck by "bad neighborhoods," a term that denotes a space rampant with criminals and criminal activity, a term that functions to marginalize groups of undesirables by confining them to areas that the wealthy no longer desire. Are we then trying to enforce a similar system of marginalization on our criminals of cyberspace? Are we creating a cyber-ghetto? And what about the realities of the physical "bad neighborhoods"? Will the bad neighborhoods of cyberspace be populated by the poverty-stricken of the cyberworld? And how will we define "poverty-stricken"? "Real" poverty often keeps the poor out of cyberspace entirely; so who will serve as this cyber-underclass?


To read the article click here.

:: Cat 8:31 PM [+] ::
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