Whenever I hear the word “data” I always think of that robot that wants to be human on Star Trek, Next Generation. He’s such a character! Data has become more than a know-it-all robot. Data is now worth more than gold. What the heck is data, anyway?
Data is information, especially information that has been gathered and organized for analysis. It helps us to see where we have been, what has worked and what has not, and if we have enough of it, data will give us a peek into the future. What makes data worth more than gold, stocks, or some other form of wealth is that these kinds of wealth cannot tell you how to retain wealth nor can they tell you how to get more of it. Data can do both of these tasks.
“Where does data come from? Who owns data? Where do they keep data? What do they do with it?” You ask.
My, you have a lot of questions.
Using your credit card will log general data on your purchases such as where you shop and how much you spend. Any tickets you get, laws you break or moves you make are put into a data bank. More data is generated by your using the web. Every website you go to and every reaction and comment you have is logged in a database. Your phone is a rich source of information whether it is on or off. It can tell where you have been, who you talked to, what topics you talked about, etc. There are cameras at various points in the highways and byways that collect data on who has passed by taking pictures of license plate numbers. Cameras are also appearing in public places to collect data on who has passed and what they were doing. In short, data collection is everywhere, but not everywhere enough. We need to see more of you.
Who owns the data? Well, corporations collect a lot of it and so does the government. Corporations also have access to a certain amount of data through the government. Corporations and governments technically own all the data they collect and sell it to each other. That’s ok, right? The government is owned by the people, and data won’t be misused, right? Wrong. Corporations and very wealthy individuals actually own the government and by proxy they also own the data government collects. Both misuse data on a regular basis.
How do they store all this data? They must have a huge hard drive somewhere…Well, that’s almost correct. They have huge hard drives all over the place and are online to build a lot more because they collect a lot of data and expect to collect a lot more in the near future.
There are, according to the latest information, 5,400 data centers in the US. They use, as of 2023, 17 billion gallons of water in direct usage and 211 billion gallons for indirect usage. In addition, in 2023, electricity use was 176 Terra Watt Hours or 4.6% of all electricity. These are massive amounts of electricity and water and will be increased because more centers are slated to be built in the near future.
And you were wondering why your water and electricity bills were going up at an astronomical rate… Remember, you and all your conveniences and toys are responsible for it. If it weren’t for you, data centers would have plenty of electricity and water.
What do they need all this information for? Convenience? Do they need it so you can check out easier? So your home is smart and the door will open without you needing a key because the camera recognizes you? Perhaps it will be easier for a company to sell something to you? No. I say no.
Predictions and control are what it’s all about: the ability to know where you are and what you’re doing then using this information to predict or control your future behavior. Predictive policing is already on the rise. They want to predict a crime before it happens and arrest the future perpetrators before they even think of doing the crime. What a wonderful thing that will be! I’m sure it will be extremely accurate.
This system will be combined with the Universal ID and that will later be connected to the Central Bank through the digital currency they are going to offer you so it will be known what you buy and how much you paid for each item. Eventually, they will want to know everything about you. They even want to know when you go pee where you are peeing, how much you are peeing, what is in that pee, and which hand you hold it with. It’s all for your protection against terrorists and pandemics. Your convenience will also be served. We are going to be totally protected, and everything will be convenient so life will be easy!
Bull puckey and horse patooey on that notion. The object is not your protection or convenience. The object is to control you. If you don’t mind them and follow the rules and keep from saying things that are not the recognized “facts,” you will be punished. You will be told you can’t leave a certain area. Your money will not be accessible to you. Your phone will be turned off. OMG! Not that!
It kinda looks like the information you generate by living is not your information, but you’re the information.
The links below give the sources the information on water and electricity usage of data centers and the number of them currently operating in the US.
https://www.techtarget.com/searchdatacenter/tip/How-much-energy-do-data-centers-consume
https://cc-techgroup.com/how-many-data-centers-are-in-the-us