A few weeks ago I played with a cousin’s four-year-old daughter. “Look at the map!” she cried, laying out a Lego theme park map on the ground. “First we have to go through the ninjas, then we have to go get Hercules.” We ran around the park, her one-year-old brother wandering as we zipped by.Continue reading “Time to Focus”
Author Archives: Priya Kumar
Escaping the Trepidation Trap
In the first sentence of his chapter “On Recalling ANT,” Bruno Latour lists four things that “do not work” with actor-network theory: “the word actor, the word network, the word theory and the hyphen! Four nails in the coffin” (p. 15). Apart from its bluntness, this sentence stands out because Latour is one of theContinue reading “Escaping the Trepidation Trap”
A Crack and a Relief
It happened. The crack, when “you can no longer stand what you put up with before, even yesterday” (Deleuze & Parnet quoted in Jackson & Mazzei, 2013); when “one can no longer think things as one formerly thought them, [and] transformation becomes both very urgent, very difficult and quite possible” (Foucault, quoted in St. Pierre, 2014). ForContinue reading “A Crack and a Relief”
On Assuming Mental Paralysis
A fellow graduate student recently asked me how I approach literature reviews. This question of how to find, read, and synthesize a body (or more) of research is central to producing good academic work. Yet it brings to mind Bellatrix Lestrange’s vault in Gringotts, where every paper you read yields six more until you’re neck deep with noContinue reading “On Assuming Mental Paralysis”
Designing Resources to Help Kids Learn about Privacy Online @ IDC 2018
What types of educational resources would help elementary school-age children learn about privacy online? Below I share findings and recommendations from a paper I co-wrote with Jessica Vitak, Marshini Chetty, Tammy Clegg, Jonathan Yang, Brenna McNally, and Elizabeth Bonsignore. I’ll present this paper at the 2018 ACM Conference on Interaction Design and Children (IDC). WhatContinue reading “Designing Resources to Help Kids Learn about Privacy Online @ IDC 2018”
Co-designing Mobile Monitoring Applications with Children @ CHI 2018
What do children think about mobile apps that allow their parents to monitor children’s technology use? How would children re-design such apps? Below, I share findings and recommendations from a paper I co-wrote with colleagues from UMD’s Human Computer Interaction Lab (HCIL). Today, lead author Brenna McNally presents this paper at the 2018 ACM ConferenceContinue reading “Co-designing Mobile Monitoring Applications with Children @ CHI 2018”
Kids and Privacy Online @ CSCW 2018
How do elementary school-aged children conceptualize privacy and security online? Below I share findings and recommendations from a paper I wrote with co-authors Shalmali Naik, Utkarsha Devkar, Marshini Chetty, Tammy Clegg, and Jessica Vitak. I’ll present this paper at the 2018 ACM Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing (CSCW). What did weContinue reading “Kids and Privacy Online @ CSCW 2018”
Privacy Policies, PRISM, and Surveillance Capitalism in MaC
I recently published my first journal article in a special issue of Media and Communication (MaC) on Post-Snowden Internet Policy. (Unfortunately, the editors misgendered me in the editorial). In my article, Corporate Privacy Policy Changes during PRISM and the Rise of Surveillance Capitalism, I analyzed the privacy policies of 10 internet companies to explore howContinue reading “Privacy Policies, PRISM, and Surveillance Capitalism in MaC”
My Mission
When I was 13 or 14, my parents gave me “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens” by Sean Covey for Christmas. I devoured the book, re-reading it for the next several years. It was the first book in which I highlighted, dog-eared, and wrote notes directly on the pages. Habit 2 encouraged readers toContinue reading “My Mission”
Earn a Graduate Degree and Write a Thesis: Check
Last week, check marks sprouted next to two items on my bucket list: earn a graduate degree and complete an individual thesis. Before embarking on both journeys, I knew I loved to research and write. I felt like my mind, fascinated by such topics as journalism, astronomy, neuroscience, and colonial-era U.S. history, embodied the aphorismContinue reading “Earn a Graduate Degree and Write a Thesis: Check”
Priya Kumar 