"Tiny, automated cameras are latest ‘quantified self’ toys" by Hiawatha Bray | Globe Staff June 19, 2014
I live a boring life, and I’ve got the pictures to prove it.
Hundreds of them were shot in the past five days by two little cameras I clipped to my shirt that automatically took pictures as I went about my daily routine and assembled the results into a visual diary that I could share with others — a portfolio of the prosaic. The devices are the latest toys for the “quantified self” movement, in which millions of us document and even broadcast every little aspect of our lives using smartphones, fitness sensors, sleep monitors, and, of course, digital cameras.
As if anyone were really interested.
And what do the tiny cameras reveal about me? I spend too much time sitting in front of dinner plates and keyboards and not enough jogging along the beach. And I have lousy posture. I could have figured this out by glancing in a mirror; instead, I’ve got a permanent visual record of my shortcomings.
And so does the NSA.
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The true believers among them think we’re the first generation of humans truly capable of knowing ourselves — not through prayer and meditation, but from the unrelenting accumulation of data. The most passionate “lifeloggers” record every aspect of their existence — not just phone calls and e-mails, but heart rate and blood pressure. And of course, digital photos of every place and person along the way.
It might seem like distilled narcissism, but it’s easier than keeping a diary. It can steer people into a healthier lifestyle, help them manage their time, and preserve their best memories.
That is exactly what it seems like.
And it’s surprising how many people are interested. When a Swedish startup called Narrative asked for $50,000 on the Kickstarter crowdfunding site to build its camera, more than half a million dollars rolled in....
Most of it intelligence agency or government funds, no doubt.
My phone also runs Saga, an app that tracks every place I go — so where was I at 8:30 p.m. Jan. 17? At home, same as most every night, according to Saga.
Me, too. Contrary to government smoke, I'm not out planning subversive terror attacks.
Indeed, a quick survey of the app showed I spend most of my days in three or four places, doing three or four things. Anybody with a pocket calculator can quantify my life; there’s not that much going on. I realized this even before I clipped on these cameras, but a few hundred digital stills eliminated all doubt.
I look at my own and.... (blog editor frowns).... this is it.
Both cameras served up the same mundane images: photos of my wife, a kitchen full of dirty dishes, the interior of my old Ford, and the produce department at the nearby supermarket. Move along; nothing to see here except a relentlessly average life.
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Is it too late for me to change? Can I live a more exciting life?
I need more change and excitement, and the first step is to stop doing this.
--more--"
I suppose he would feel safe and not be worried about spying.
