Free Hacking Happiness by John Havens Page A

with one another. In a world of conscious consumerism, this might come in the form of an eBay power seller wanting to gain access to data about prospective clients from them. Or someone trying to establish credibility for renting their apartment on Airbnb may buy data from popular renters who are happy to monetize their expertise.
    People will also start to earn passive revenue from watching TV while allowing advertisers to monitor their responses to shows using sensors or other technology. A precedent for this model can be seen from existing online video streaming sites. If you want to watch a thirty-minute video, some sites will offer the opportunity to watch a longer pre-roll ad to see the whole show uninterrupted. Or you can watch a number of shorter ads and have some breaks in viewing where you can’t fast-forward over an ad. But the point is, you’re given a choice.
    Transparency combined with options in which people feel their data is protected means commerce can flourish because there’s no need to hide shady business practices.
    The Connected Choice
    I think we see privacy violations where there are genuine gaps between what companies think is acceptable and what consumers expect in terms of privacy. For example, most consumers think that when they give an app permission to collect their location information, it’s only that app that will get that data.
    I think consumers would be shocked if they learned that half of top apps turn around and give or sell that data to third parties. Yet this is a standard business practice on the Internet—and many companies are sincerely surprised when privacy advocates raise it as an issue. So a lot of my work is simply shedding light on these practices and trying to bridge these two worldviews. 12
    —SENATOR AL FRANKEN
    Hacking H(app)iness means breaking down old ideas of what can bring contentment in the Connected World. Fulfillment will only come when you recognize that your data is your own. It’s an extension of your identity. If other people are collecting it, you should know what they want to do with it and be a part of the transaction if you so choose.

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    MOBILE SENSORS
The idea that the smartphone is a mobile sensor platform is absolutely central to my thinking about the future. And it should be central to everyone’s thinking, in my opinion, because the way that we learn to use the sensors in our phones and other devices is going to be one of the areas where breakthroughs will happen. 1
TIM O’REILLY
    W HAT MYSTERIES are revealed by your behavior that you can’t see? What would you learn about yourself if you could see the data reflecting your words and actions? If all your senses left a trail, if your actions painted a picture in data, how might that feel?
    It would be magic.
    Seeing your life visualized in data can be extremely empowering. Instead of fretting about the unfinished items on your to-do list, seeing your data lets you revel in the experience of your “I am” list. There’s a weight to personal data, a permanence you can point to. The lines, curves, or numbers on a page, revealed in the form of data—that’s you . Want to see if you’re having an effect on the world? Visualize your output. It’s a powerfully rewarding experience.
    Sensors are the tools that interpret your data. Sometimes they’re simple, like a pedometer, which counts your steps. Sometimesthey’re complex, like an MRI machine, which measures brain patterns. But they both provide insights that prompt action.
    The first sensors we’re made aware of in life are our bodies. They’re highly articulated instruments, as they can feel, interpret, and respond to stimuli almost simultaneously. As children, we’re exposed to sensors in a doctor’s office, having our blood pressure taken and wondering why the scratchy black fabric of the monitor gets so tight we can feel our hearts beating in our arms. We get older and go through security and experience metal detectors. The