What is Open Publication

The present chapter considers the computer not as a tool, or as a bicycle-for-the-mind, but simply as self. The authors argue that humans are becoming so enmeshed with the computer, in terms of how we think, act, and communicate, that soon it may no longer be possible to identify where the self ends and the computer begins, and vice-versa. It follows that if such a postulate holds any truth, computing systems must be carefully designed to preserve, and not to harm, human rights. Predicted by some are marvelous benefits for technology, in terms of enhancements to our social, creative, and personal lives. But already clear is that not all of the associated problems lie in the realm of speculation. One example is that the Internet is moving ever further away from the free and open system as foreseen by its original designers, whereby citizens are routinely censored, controlled, and spied upon.