Technology Archives - Queen's Journal

Technology and turmoil have fueled our obsession with astrology

Written on June 28, 2021. Posted in Lifestyle.

Today, astrology is so normalized that dating apps like Bumble allow you to disclose your sign. Let’s be real, who would want to take on the challenge of dating a Pisces man? Astrology is both a popular and polarizing topic. Some believe it’s a way of life and structure their days around planetary...

Blue light glasses: Do they actually work?

Written on November 6, 2020. Posted in Lifestyle, Student Life.

Staring at a computer for hours on end, only to take a break by switching to stare at your phone, is hardly the healthiest way to spend your day. Unfortunately, with online work and classes to study for, it’s the reality for many—if not all—students. Since the initial COVID-19 outbreak in March, most...

Too much technology use hurts our capacities to connect

Written on February 13, 2020. Posted in Editorials.

A great deal of university life relies on exposure to technology despite its negative effects—and it’s up to our schools to provide opportunities to limit that exposure. Earlier this year, after a poorly-timed computer breakdown, I was left with almost no access to my school work. That’s when I...

App unnecessary for better voter turnout

Written on November 2, 2018. Posted in Editorials.

An app pressuring friends into voting is the wrong solution to low voter turnout, but it’s a step in the right direction. Vote With Me, the latest app by The New Data Project, has recently faced criticism due to its perceived invasion of privacy. The application takes advantage of public U.S....

Are our phones listening to us?

Written on October 16, 2018. Posted in Lifestyle, Student Life.

The idea that everyone with an electronic device is under surveillance has circled mainstream society since George Orwell’s 1984. Though Orwell’s novel is fiction, hyper-tailored social media ads suggest our phones may be listening to us almost as much as Big Brother. One of the most prominent...

Recapping Apple's lackluster iPhone XS and XR reveal

Written on September 28, 2018. Posted in Lifestyle, Pop Culture.

This month, Apple announced a line of new products, including the iPhone XS, XS Max, and a more affordable alternative, the iPhone XR. If the tech giant’s release of new phone models is news to you, you’re not alone—the launch flew largely under the radar, and for good reason. Although Apple’s...

A guide to keeping your electronic devices clean

Written on September 18, 2018. Posted in Lifestyle, Student Life.

There are only a few moments in the daily lives of university students where we’re apart from our screens. We watch Netflix on our laptops while we eat, take smartwatches on runs, and if we don’t go on Instagram while on the toilet, we risk being labelled modern-day psychopaths. This omnipresence...

Meditations on the potential dangers of smartphones

Written on February 2, 2018. Posted in Lifestyle.

You’re waiting for the bus, walking to class, or lying in bed about to sleep — these brief moments to ourselves were once occupied with introspection, observation of our surroundings and reflections about who we are and what we feel. For me, I always needed to fill my time engaging in an external...

The good, the bad and the unnecessary: iOS 11

Written on September 29, 2017. Posted in Lifestyle.

Last week, Apple released the iOS 11, the iPhone’s newest operating system and it’s been slowly creeping its way onto most of our home screens ever since. For all my iPhone users out there, you’ve probably watched the shiny announcement video and heard rumblings about the new big features....

Coding should be available in classrooms, not compulsory

Written on July 31, 2017. Posted in Editorials.

Over the past few decades, coding has gone from an obscure skill to one of the most marketable abilities someone can have their resume. In an increasingly tech driven world, coding can and will definitely have some pull in the job market for a diverse range of industries. But this doesn’t mean...

Social media and academics don’t mix

Written on June 26, 2017. Posted in Editorials.

Although it’s important to maintain a healthy balance of our social and academic lives, students too often fail to draw a defining line between the two. Let’s be honest; its’ a hopeless undertaking to stay active on social media while also paying attention to a lecture. Although we would not like...

The Sims and stress relief

Written on February 10, 2017. Posted in Lifestyle.

If you were a computer-room-dwelling kid during the early 2000s, you likely ran into some incarnation of The Sims franchise. The game series is one of the most successful simulated reality franchises ever made, winning accolades from every avenue possible. Why are they so beloved? In my experience,...

Exploring virtual worlds

Written on January 27, 2017. Posted in Lifestyle.

I stood on an asteroid, visited a Nazi-era prison and got to be Pac-Man, all in just one day at the Isabel Bader Center for the Performing Arts. On Jan. 24, I attended i-ON Kingston, a session showcasing virtual reality technology. i-ON Kingston is a series from Interactive Ontario, an organization...

Queen’s unveils renewed nano-tech labratory

Written on January 20, 2017. Posted in News.

A short drive north of campus, Queen’s Innovation Park houses facilities for research and development. On Jan. 19, in a media-focused tour, they revealed a revamp and rebrand for their nano-technology lab. The lab originally dates back to 2015, when Innovation Park partnered with CMC Microsystems....

Face-to-face learning doesn't need replacing

Written on October 14, 2016. Posted in Editorials.

It’s easy to get distracted by fancy gadgets and the convenience of online resources, but face-to-face learning is more effective. Blended learning allows for students to spend less time in lectures and tutorials and more time completing their studies online. This could include anything from watching...

Banning electronics doesn’t guarantee engagement

Written on September 27, 2016. Posted in Editorials.

If a student is so easily distracted by their phones or laptops in class, maybe the change should be in the teaching, not the electronics. A majority of the reasoning for banning electronics in the classroom makes sense. Professors should have a right to make the call on how their lectures are run....

A picture's worth more than 1,000 likes

Written on September 16, 2016. Posted in Lifestyle.

“I love mornings,” my friend said to our group the other week. “I really do, I just can’t do them at all. I’m not a morning person.” This statement elicited a good laugh and we questioned how someone who “can’t do” mornings could claim to love them so much. After thinking for a couple of seconds...

Alternate realities can’t become permanent realities

Written on September 9, 2016. Posted in Editorials.

Hyper-realistic technology has the potential to change the idea of reality as we know it, but not without a cost to the physical world. The introduction of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) to game culture, healthcare, educational institutions, social media and even pornography is rapidly...

On the bending edge of innovation

Written on February 26, 2016. Posted in News.

The Human Media Lab (HML) at Queen’s University has gone viral on YouTube once again with 800,000 views on a video of the first flexible, wireless, full-colour and high-resolution smartphone. The smartphone — named ReFlex — incorporates multi-touch functions with bending gestures, allowing users to...

IT items to be sold at the Campus Bookstore

Written on January 29, 2016. Posted in News.

With the closing of the Campus Computer Store at the end of April, the Campus Bookstore will be expanding their selection of personal IT items. The University made the announcement in October that they would be closing the store. The Gazette has now reported that personal IT items will be available...

New drone technology emerges from Queen’s Human Media Lab

Written on November 27, 2015. Posted in News.

Researchers at the Queen’s Human Media Lab (HML) have unveiled drone technology that allows users to virtually construct three-dimensional structures. HML’s BitDrone system was unveiled earlier this month at the 28th annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology in Charlotte, North...

Take the bro out of brogrammers

Written on November 27, 2015. Posted in Editorials.

Technology will always be the future, and women need to learn to be a part of it. The technology industry is a man’s world. The idea that programming should be left to the “experts” has statistically left women in the dust, with 70 per cent of the U.S. technology workforce being made up of men. Even...

Alumni give hospital patients a CleanSlate

Written on November 20, 2015. Posted in News.

For newborn infants in hospitals, the smallest exposure to germs can be deadly. A new device, created by Queen’s graduates, ensures that smartphones are one less risk to an infant’s health. The device, called a CleanSlate, eradicates germs from a phone in 30 seconds using UV light — the time it takes...

Queen’s pulls plug on Campus Computer Store

Written on November 6, 2015. Posted in News.

Following a year-by-year trend of financial losses, Queen’s has decided to close its on-campus computer store. The University reported a growing deficit for the technological retail outlet in its review of ancillary operations during the 2014-15 academic year. Due to its findings, the review recommended...

Algorithmic love

Written on October 30, 2015. Posted in Editorials.

Holographic hook-ups? Swipes for sex? Technology is changing the way we build love and relationships in the modern world. Technology is often thought to dehumanize relationships, ironically making people more disconnected through its lack of face-to-face interaction. In my opinion, technology is...

Alumnus makes pitch on Dragons’ Den spinoff

Written on October 30, 2015. Posted in News.

Few entrepreneurs would turn down a $100,000 capital investment for their startup. But for Jawwad Siddiqui, Queen’s alumnus and CEO and founder of SharpScholar, it wasn’t enough. Siddiqui, Comm ’15, appeared Wednesday on Next Gen Den — a web-formatted spinoff of the Dragons’ Den television franchise...

Then and now: communication through the ages

Written on October 20, 2015. Posted in Lifestyle.

In 2015, getting in contact with someone is hardly ever a problem. From calling, text message and email to Snapchat, Skype and Facebook, there are a multitude of ways to chat. This generation is known for being in a constant state of interaction, but it wasn’t always this easy. Think about Romeo...

Tech gets trendy

Written on October 2, 2015. Posted in Lifestyle.

New technology has seeped intothe fashion industry with exciting and practical results. From sleek and portable heart-rate monitors, to eyewear with built-in cameras, it’s now trendy to incorporate technology into day-to-day fashion pieces. Fitbit Perhaps most common, the Fitbit wristband has become...

Students seek to make campus safer with new mobile app

Written on August 6, 2015. Posted in News.

Four Queen’s students have developed an app with the hopes of making campus a safer place at night. The app, called Walkly — formerly known as WalkSafe — tracks an individual’s location as they travel from one destination to another to allow a “trusted network” of friends and family to ensure they...

Tag: Technology

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