THEVOICE |

6

ou probably don't know

it, but you've already

voted in the next elec-

tion. What? Geographic
Information System, or GIS, along
with sophisticated analytic tech-
niques, allows Google analysts to
predict electoral
outcomes and
effects with in-
creasing preci-
sion.

It’s how
Google pte-
dicted Donald
Trump would
win the US.
election. While
majority of polls
pointed to Hill-
ary Clinton to
win, Google
searches of millions of Americans
suggested otherwise.

Langara College held its first
GIS day on Nov. 15 and currently,
the college offers courses in the
geography and geology, applied
planning and continuing studies
departments. Dr. Cheryl Hane-
wicz, professor in the Technology
Management Department at Utah
Valley University poses the ques-
tion in a TEDx presentation, “If we
are able to more accurately predict
election results and consequences,
what does your freedom of choice
really mean?”

For an accessible example of GIS
in real-time, search the word ‘op-
portunity’ into Google Maps and
compare the results with somebody
in a different line of work. Google’s
proprietary search engine is con-
stantly changing and using factors
like click history and social media
contacts to determine the ranking
and filtering of your results.

“,...whose worldview

is reflected?”
A lot of people are using GIS.

Politicians can develop campaign
strategies and learn about their
campaign constituencies with it.
When you update your Facebook

profile and include the location,

OPINION

DUNCAN
ANDERSON

THURSDAY, NOV. 23, 2017 |

_

Geospatial Matters at Langara College co

EDITOR DUNCAN ANDERSON

GIS: its mapping our lives

incides with Geographic Information System (GIS) Day, a celebration of mod-

ern technologies for geographic mapping and the study of human society. PERRIN GRAUER PHOTO ILLUSTRATION

you are geo-mapping. Drivers use it
to get real-time info on traffic and
road conditions.

We zoom through a 3D land-
scape complete with imagery,
placemarks and directions which
are all geocoded, geo-tagged, and
shared on social media. Our GIS-
footprint is now accessible to gov-
ernment officials to look into our
neighborhood which sets us up for
cutting edge gerrymandering.

Maps are awesome tools for re-
lating to the world around us and
they allow us to process informa-
tion in a different way but I think
we have to be cautious about our
security. It’s like Google is trying to
create a virtual mirror of the world
through GIS and we have to ask
the question of whose worldview is
reflected?

GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SOFTWARE IS USED IN:

» Technology
Anyone who checks Google Maps
on their phone uses GIS technology.

» Government

Federal agencies depend on people
with knowledge of GIS to advance
technologies and interpret data.

» Advertising

Advertisers target demographics
within a geographic region to find
where consumers will buy products.

» Medical

Because public health deals with
medical issues on a large scale,
ability to map out a region is impor-
tant to planning for health crises.

>» Environment

GIS technology helps with resource
management, mapping, surveying,
forestry management and impact
analysis.

SOURCE: WWW.GISLOUNGE.COM

Life goa

o to school, get a career,
buy a home, have a family
and retire. These are the

fundamental life goals that, for old-
er generations, determine a person's
success or failure in modern society.

The earlier they're achieved, the
more successful a person is. But
this cookie-cutter lifestyle has aged
with the people who value it. Life
goals are transforming, especially
for a generation known as millen-
nials. In a generation born from
baby boomers and a few generation
Xers, millennials have been labelled
everything from industry killers to
narcissistic tech-addicts.

According to a 2017 survey by
Ipsos MORI, a global research
market organization, millenni-
als are having kids much later in

life in smaller
numbers, buy-
ing homes at
a slower rate
than their par-
ents and have

less money

S. saved for re-
tirement.

OPINION =f cookie-

cutter — stan-

~MYRA.__ dards are

DIONNE markers of suc-

cess, then mil-

lennials have

been raised to fail them. Far from

being “lazy and entitled”, millen-

nials are overworked, stressed and
financially struggling.

According to the Ipsos MORI

survey they're statistically better

educated than their predecessors,
and yet it’s rare to find someone in
this generation landing a lifetime
career in their field of study.

“They're redefining
family norms,
pursuing careers
that align with their
personal beliefs...”

As a result, saying yes to every
opportunity has left many chas-
ing one job after the other instead
of sticking to one direct path. It’s
no wonder that in a recent study

Is changing for millennials

published by Environics Institute,
a research organization in Canada,
79 per cent of millennials surveyed
said they desire a balance between
work and their personal life more
than anything.

For this reason, millennials have
created a vital generational shift.
‘They're redefining family norms,
pursuing careers that align with
their personal beliefs and are seek-
ing education outside of post-sec-
ondary institutions.

They're choosing to engage in
causes more than their predecessors
and have successfully found ways of
eliminating debt, even if it means
forgoing a retirement plan. Millen-
nials are finding innovative ways to
live the lives they want and are rein-
venting outdated models of success.

Viewpoints

Bossy,
bitchy
women

esides her gender, Hillary
B Clinton was a typical politi-

cian. Passionate and agegres-
sive about what she could do for
her country if she was elected, her
political moves were comparable to
any male counterpart.

But she was female. While run-
ning for U.S. president, Clinton
was judged for her clothing choices,
laughed at for the sound of her
“shrill” voice and was told by her
handlers never
to appear bossy.

Most women
can relate to
Clinton as they
have witnessed
or have been a
part of this type
of gender dis-

parity at their OPINION

workplace.
a the work- LINDSEY
place, women LLOYD

can voice their
opinion just as
dynamically and aggressively as
their male colleagues but after-
wards, her colleagues will whisper
behind her back that she is emo-
tional or pushy.

Starting from a young age, wom-
en are expected to fit in, stay silent
and not challenge others to keep
order or risk offending someone.
Whereas men are praised for being
assertive, not needing to be pleasant
in order to be recognized.

According to Statistics Canada,
in 2015, 25.6 per cent of senior
managers in the private sector were
women. This is unsurprising when
women have to constantly face en-
trenched double standards in the
workplace. Women must balance
being perceived as likable with be-
ing strong-minded and assertive.

‘The entrenchment of gender dis-
parity in the workplace is shown in
yearly earnings, where Canadian
women still earn 25 cents less for
every dollar men make. Similarly,
Statistics Canada reports that the
gap in annual earnings between
genders has barely changed over the
last 20 years, even as the education
levels of women have surpassed
those of men.

We are conditioned to believe
that if we, as women, speak our
minds, our job security will be
threatened.

We don't want to be that ‘bitch’
in the workplace, so we compro-
mise our self-worth and beliefs in
order to maintain our jobs and keep
the status quo of the workplace.

We want to hear from you

Have a different point of view?
Write to us.

Have a concern with
something we've said?
Let us know.

Journalism instructor Erica
Bulman oversees The Voice.

The Voice is pub-
lished by Langara
College’s joumalism
department. Editorial
opinions are those
of the staff and

are independent of
views of the student

government and
administration. We
welcome letters to
the editor. They may
be edited for brevity.
Your letter must in-
clude your name and
phone number.

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