TOW #13 - Nonfiction Text: “Why Do I Have to Call This App ‘Julie’” by Joanne McNeil

The thought of having a personal assistant is something several companies have taken into consideration. Today, companies like Apple and Microsoft have given their customers the ability to use the  built-in personal assistants known as Siri and Cortana. Named after women, these personal assistants follow a stereotype that predates the technology. Joanne McNeil explores this gender issue in her article “Why Do I Have to Call This App ‘Julie,’” making light of it through the use of facts and figures as well as an anecdotal experience. These artificial intelligences are dressed up with a feminine name and voice, and feminine pronouns.  Joanne points out that the reasoning behind the naming process, “It seems like developers decided on Julie, Amy and Clara only because these are common women’s names. These products, representing new technological possibilities, play into old stereotypes about what gender is best suited for administrative work,” (McNeil). This stereotype predates the technology, rooted in the female secretaries of office spaces. Now the steryotype can live on in your phone. McNeil points out that despite the advent of male versions of Siri, they are largely unused. Through McNeils use of such artificial intelligences like Siri, Cortana, or in her case “Julie,” McNiel points out the gender issue of having a “female” secretary. “ The product is an interesting idea and easy to use, but interacting with a fake woman assistant just feels too weird. So I shut “her” off. This Stepford app, designed to make my work more efficient, only reminds me of the gendered division of labor that I’m trying to escape.”

TOW #12 - Nonfiction Text: “How Terror Hardens Us” by Jessica Stern

Today the fear of terrorism is higher than ever, whether it be domestic or overseas, the fear of terrorism reaches far. The text, “How Terror Hardens Us” by Jessica Stern discusses this heightened sense of fear, the motives and different types of terrorism, as well as a theory regarding our reactions to terrorism, through the use of data and personal accounts, in an effort to distinguish different types of terrorism and help Americans better respond in the aftermath of a terrorist attack. Jessica Stern is a professor at Boston University’s Pardee School of Global Studies. Her article, featured in the New York Times,  discusses a theory that goes, “when people are reminded of their morality- especially if the reminder doesn’t register consciously, as happens after a brutal attack of terror - they will more readily enforce their cultural worldviews. If our cultural worldview is xenophobic, nationalistic, or moralistic, we are prone to become more so, “ (Stern). She backs up this theory through the use of historical examples. She discusses an interview with a perpatrator of a mass shooting, in which the motives of said shooting were discussed. From this Americans can gather the difference between static domestic terrorism and terrorism from a group, such as ISIS or Al Qaeda. Using this information, Americans can be better prepared in the aftermath of a terrorist attack, and give the proper reaction in order to properly fight terrorism.

Applying her theory, she states that with the rise in frequency of terror and domestic attacks, “the question has morphed: It’s not how did this happen, but how often will it,” (Stern). And the answer to the ever important question in dealing with terrorism she states is to “remember that the freedoms we aspire to come with great responsibilities. And these responsibilities involve not just fighting terrorists, but also managing our own terror.” (Stern).