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Above is a spreadsheet, which is how I chose to record my data journal: as a list of some of the ways I generated data this past week.<\/p>\n
Data<\/strong> simply describes the data; some are specific, like Amazon purchase history, whereas some are more general, such as Browsing History. I attempted to categorize the data into \u2018types\u2019, as seen in the Category<\/strong> column. For example, location data was classified as Privacy, whereas my steps seem to be health data. Medium<\/strong> is the technology or method by which my data is collected, the container, or the transmitter, so to speak. Passivity<\/strong> tracks whether the data is generated automatically, or if I choose to track or type up my own data (Active). Notably, only the two sources of data that I choose to track myself are guaranteed to be private to only me; other sources are able to be leveraged as part of larger datasets, such as my google searches or email statistics.<\/p>\n I addressed the question of access in two different ways: the columns of Viewable<\/strong> and Editable<\/strong>. Viewable means that I can view the data, whereas Editable means that I can choose to delete (most important!) or change the data in some way.<\/p>\n Impetus\/Specific Example <\/strong>is a column for me to note what incidents prompted me to write them down in this data journal, and Blocking <\/strong>is a column for me to note down how I can create gaps or otherwise disrupt the recording of my data, if I choose to do so.<\/p>\n Notably missing from this log are interactions with non-digital things, or in-person conversations. If I wanted to create maps or visualizations of this data, I think I would have to more clearly define categories (problematic in and of itself, since categories never encompass a full range of information), and have some way of locating physical locations or relationships to conduct geographic or concept mapping.<\/p>\n Also problematic was the Editable<\/strong> column; for example, I marked Google searches as editable because I can delete them, but are they truly deleted, or do they continue to exist on Google\u2019s servers somewhere?<\/p>\n I found that two loci of digital data were my laptop and my phone. This data journal presents an incomplete version of my interests filtered through these two mediators; me as a pixelated person fails to include aspects of my life that do not interact with the digital, like what I eat for dinner or the way my room is set up.<\/p>\n In addition, I also wanted to explore a different way that I’ve been represented as a pixelated person, by Google. As I search things and visit websites through their search engine, my data was being collected and analyzed, to better target ads. Google provides this data in the Ad Personalization section of my user bio, and they offer the option to turn it off.<\/p>\n Below is a list of what Google thinks I’m interested in or who Google thinks I am, based on my past search history and interests. Notably, some demographics and interests are wrong (e.g. I’m not in a relationship, and I’m not interested in all American Football, just college), but just as unerringly, some demographics are correct (age, status as current college student, for example).\u00a0 In contrast to some of the other data that I noted in my Data Journal, Google’s pixelated ad-version of me is ahistorical – there’s no sense of time. Google thinks I’m interested in Hotels and Accommodation, although that’s probably an interest specific to when I was searching for places to live last summer. Additionally, there’s no sense of place: this pixelated version of me is also interested in Australian football, although that’s likely just a remnant of my time studying abroad. While this pixelated person is a fairly comprehensive list of my interests, it only represents those that have been filtered first through Google (and thus, the digital).<\/p>\nGoogle’s Pixelated Me:<\/h3>\n
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