Professional Documents
Culture Documents
tpasch@u.washington.edu
2603 Boylston Av E #2
Seattle, WA 98102-3236
206-391-0890
A research project in progress investigates the illusory nature of perfect privacy online
through a detailed exploration of personal information that search engines currently archive. is
work continues through proposing that a conscious creation of online identity is a more appropriate
and indeed, constructive option than the quest for total privacy. A detailed series of specific steps
involved in working with search engines towards constructing a positive online identity ensues,
designed to create an effective online profile that will emerge when the user’s name is searched.
My background in interdisciplinary critical theory serves as a conceptual framework for an
exploration of identity online, seen through the lens of race and virtual environments. Foucault,
Gramsci and Nakamura, along with Deleuze, Guattari and the works of William Gibson and Neil
Gaiman among others merge in my research during the search for identity and meaning in the
virtual. Moving from the rubric of theory into the latest developments in software and hardware
interfaces, this aspect of my research looks at issues of identity and race representation online,
language use in social networking, privacy and cybersecurity, web censorship, audio and video
production, and hacking the digital divide through the creation of open-source software solutions.
Seattle, 11/09/08.