Thoughts on Microsoft Office Security

The Trust Center stuff in MS Office has been bugging me for a while now. I get sick of having to “enable editing” on documents that I created on another system, but may now be on a network drive location or floating about elsewhere. The thing that makes this more annoying is the part where I am a domain user in an Active Directory environment, so theoretically, there is a unique code that each installation of Office could use to validate me as the creator of the work. I know that my user-id is stored (as KULARSKI\curtis I believe) in the document’s meta data, but that isn’t reliable, so I understand why that isn’t validated to determine if the document can be assumed to be safe (because it originates from me). Each object (including users) in Active Directory has a unique ID, referred to as either an SID (cause they are like S-1-####), or a UID (for unique ID). It seems reasonable to me that perhaps Microsoft could have written Office to pick up on that ID (from a network OS model they designed) to help with eliminating redundant prompts for authorization to edit documents created by the user at a different location. Another thought that has occurred to me on this line is the idea that perhaps future versions of Windows should by default have the ability to carry a user certificate, without the aid of AD Certificate Services, for basic in-domain authentication tasks, such as automatically assigning a digital signature to documents or allowing a user a temporary login to a part-time connected domain client system utilizing a file on a removable storage device to authenticate. These implementations are things that I would consider to be “low security” situations. Obviously not a good practice for financial institutions, military or other high-security situations, but for situations where physical security is pretty well established or there is a low risk of falsification of the credentials, it is a workable solution that could make things a lot easier and avoid certain problems, such as verifying a document’s source (when you wrote it) or not being able to log into a domain system just because it can’t connect to a domain controller/global catalog server to authorize a login.

This is probably an irrelevant rant, but in some ways I feel like Windows security could be aided by adding some simple measures of authentication. It may be basic but it may help. If a low-security user-check stops users from disabling the security features all together, then maybe there is an overall increase in security?

Looking to the Future

Somehow, in my world, plans seem to mean nothing. I planned how I wanted things to work out going from GC Gender Studies to MA Counseling to PhD Counseling, that plan has been derailed at step 2. One might think that this rather abrupt change of plans for me might cause me a fair amount of distress. Well, last night it did. Last night all I could think about was how much this messed with my plans. A fun thing about plans, they are never set in stone and often there are alternatives that are workable. Now, 24 hours later, it doesn’t really seem to mater much anymore.

A few minutes ago I was reviewing the graduate catalog, trying to piece together a liberal studies plan to discuss with Dr. Stephenson. I was focusing on interdisciplinary programs when I noticed the PhD in Health Psychology listed at the bottom of the page. I had almost forgotten that it is an interdisciplinary program. It is a really cool program that includes stuff from psychology, public policy, sociology, kinesiology and some of the health fields. The program does not require having a Masters degree for entry. The requirement is a bachelors OR masters in psychology, I hold the former. As with most PhD programs, the admissions criteria are steep and last year only 13 of 68 applicants were admitted. The joy of my current situation is that I still have 2 years of a master’s degree ahead of me. I can complete an MA in Sociology (which I am desperately hoping I am admitted to), and then apply to the PhD in Health Psychology, hopefully with an impressive academic record.

Health Psychology puts me on a slightly different trajectory than Counseling, but it is still in the same general area and allows me an opportunity for licensure, which is a big step in becoming a counselor or psychologist. I am still very attracted to psychology for the behavior science aspects, but the clinical diagnosis aspects are still a bit of a turn off. I am a big fan of letting as many people as possible in society carry the label of “normal”, and I would very much like to help individuals who find themselves somewhere other than normal by societies definition to cope with their difference.

I don’t know if I will even be admitted to the PhD program in 2 years, or if I will be admitted to Sociology this year, but I can certainly dream.

Rejection Sucks

I have a status on my application for the MA Counseling program now. All of the invitations for the group interviews have been sent out, but I did not receive one. This means that I am not admitted to the program. The worst part is it means that I am not even invited to the 2nd phase of admission, which makes me question just how far down the list I actually am.

I have been thinking about things ever since I received the notification that all people who would be invited had already been sent invitations. Last week when I wrote the other blog post about the possible masters programs I had almost talked myself out of wanting to enroll in the program, until today when I got the message and realized that this changes everything. This changes all of my plans and means that my other applications are no longer as backup plans, but might have to be put into place as my primary program. The thing that bothers me worst at the moment is the fact that I must now wait an entire year before applying to counseling again, as they only admit once per year. But how will that work with other programs? IF I am accepted to Sociology, will I really want to go into counseling after spending a year working toward a degree in sociology? Somehow I doubt it.

It is so strange how little things like emails can change an entire perspective on life and force a reconsideration of plans and goals.

Mastering My Options

I began my adventure into graduate-level coursework with a simple plan: take a graduate certificate in cognitive science, complete a Master’s degree in Clinical/Community Psychology, and then get my Ph.D. in Clinical Health Psychology.

Every bit of this plan has been skewed. Initially I was rejected by the cognitive science program because I did not have a clear plan of what I wanted to accomplish with it, then I decided that the Clinical/Community Psych program was basically for stiff over-achievers, which also nullified the Clinical Health Psych Ph.D. idea for me.

What has now occurred is I was admitted to Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies (WGST) instead of Cognitive Science (GCOG), then I was admitted to Cognitive Science as well. Now I am in both programs and intend to complete both of them. The hole this leaves open in my plan is that I no longer have a narrow focus. I was originally going to primarily focus on the human cognition side of cognitive science, as I had long ago left computer science behind, and then move on to a mental health field. Now, the WGST program has exposed me to so much social science and social issues material that I don’t want to work on Cog Sci from the perspective of a humanities program, I want to approach it from the computer science side a bit, although from more of an information systems perspective than true computer science. Also, WGST has renewed my interest in social sciences, but not necessarily from the perspective of psychology (which tends to be an overly general field of science). After all of these changes, what Master’s program do I need to be in? Where do I fit?

I have been asking myself that question for the last several weeks as admissions deadlines have become closer. I have applied to counseling and sociology, and I know I could be happy in either of those fields, but I worry about my chances of being admitted as well as my level of fit with the programs. For counseling I will know by the end of the month if I have been rejected (but I won’t know until March or April if I have been accepted). For sociology, I guess it is up to Dr. Moller to decide when I will know my fate. As for my other concerns, I have been looking into several different programs, trying to determine where I fit in and what will work best for me.

  • Master of Arts in Counseling – this program is the first that came to mind after giving up on C/C Psych. It encompasses everything that I like about psychology, but leaves out some of the more morally concerning aspects (such as dependency on diagnostic labels). My fear with this program is that it is practicum based, not thesis based. I can complete a thesis if I like, but the program is not designed for that outcome. I fear I will have to give up my research interests for a purely instructional education style. Also, there are rules for the program requiring “professional dress”. I think this is an interesting thing coming from a counseling program. I am all for dressing cleanly and presenting a positive image, but I do believe that ultimately in a graduate program, we are just students and should not be subjected to that type of requirement.  The final concern I have is that the program is 60 credit hours. That is a lot of hours for a Masters program. Most are from 30-45 hours. In the time it would take me to complete the MA in Counseling I could complete 2 other programs, or a single MA and have a strong start on a Ph.D. program.
  • Master of Arts in Sociology – this program became option #2 after I started getting into gender studies and things of that sort with the WGST program. It will allow me to engage in thesis research and follow topics of personal interest in the field of sociology. I feel like I am a good fit for the program, but the low number of seats available makes me question my chances of being admitted. Still, I desperately want in to this program. It seems like the best place for me with the highest chance of me completing with my personality intact.
  • Master of Science in Information Technology – this program is sort of funny for me. I ran from this department (Software and Information Systems) in 2007 and didn’t look back. I did not enjoy my initial time in the department, but this program grabs my eye. It is interesting and covers primarily topics that excite me, such as Human Computer Interaction and Software Design. The program is very flexible, with the option of completing a concentration or a thesis. It is conceivable that I could complete this program with a concentration of cognitive science (using the thesis option) and build upon the graduate certificate.
  • Master of Arts in Liberal Studies – this program is and has been defined for a long time as my backup plan. If all else falls through, this is where I can put my effort. This program is open-ended. I can design my program however I want and fill it with whatever courses I want. The program is completed with a thesis or a project, so that works out, but I’m not entirely sure where it fits in my overall plans. One thing I have considered with this program is applying to it even if I do get accepted to another program, having it as a place to put my special interests. If I am admitted to sociology or counseling it is a place to put an extension of my work in cognitive science, if I am admitted to Information Technology it is a place to put an extension of my work in gender studies.

There is a sense of urgency for being admitted to a program. Most programs admit only once per year, in Fall, and there is a concern regarding the number of hours I accumulate. I am only allowed to transfer 6 hours into any program that I am admitted to, even though it is at the same institution. The good news is that if I am admitted into 2 programs, I can transfer 6 hours into each program, but at 9 hours per semester, that doesn’t go very far. I am prepared to accept that each of my certificates will hold 6 hours that do not get allocated to any other program, so that’s 12 hours I don’t have to account for, but by the time I have 24 graduate hours (12 + 6 for each MA)  I need to have a clue what I am doing as far as a Master’s program. Another concern, although more minor, is that I only have 6 years from the first credit earned toward a program to complete the program. As I have already completed hours toward sociology, electives for counseling and have started on hours toward the IT degree the clock is already running on my hours. Additionally, any hours that I wish to transfer to a doctoral program must be used within 8 years of being earned, but that is a lesser concern because they will likely be upper level hours completed in a master’s program.

Posted from Bessemer City, North Carolina, United States.

A Few Topic Ideas for Cognitive Science

I have given my Cognitive Science paper a little thought and come up with a few options for places to start my paper from:

  • Is the human brain or an artificial intelligence a more effective decision-making system? — This topic is very basic, and very subjective. I think I can write an effective paper on the topic by approaching the question theoretically and establishing what has to be considered to even know what an effective decision-making system is. Once I have established my own position based on available published work on the topic of decision making systems I can begin to form an argument for one system or the other. Each has clear advantages, but which one is overall more effective?
  • Artificial Neural Networks as an approach to Artificial Intelligence — This one is simplistic. Essentially looking at the micro-level implementation of independent systems that form a larger system for addressing large tasks. Mechanically, this approach duplicates the human brain. Is this a good approach? It works for biological organisms, but biological organisms in themselves are designed to function that way, electronic systems are not. Are neural networks the wrong approach for artificial intelligence and artificial cognition?
  • What is intelligence? — This topic is completely philosophical in nature. It has been approached by every major philosopher and theorist that has ever conceived of knowledge or knowing. I don’t know that I could handle it in the 10 pages I’m given, nor do I feel comfortable with the level of understanding I presently have of intelligence. If I did this now, as an introductory cognitive science student it would be perhaps the most ballsy thing I could do, and would ultimately result in me considering the question in every course in the Cognitive Science program, most likely ending with me completing a thesis on the topic as my final course. It would be a big step, but I’m not sure I want to go there.
  • Can artificial intelligence be considered a true intelligence? — This one is also philosophical, but it is a somewhat less covered topic, and one in a little narrower scope than taking on the whole field of epistemology.  I would have to tangentially address “what is intelligence?”, but in a much lighter form. For this paper I would take on the opinions and positions of theorists before me and address the concept of artificial intelligence really being intelligence from one or more pre-existing theories. The idea behind this paper from my perspective is addressing if any artificial system can ever truly be considered intelligent. Artificial intelligence is based on many complex calculations based on available data, but every decision is based upon programmed instructions that have been written to handle a wide variety of situations and provide adaptations for unexpected occurrences.
  • Is free-will important to intelligence? — This topic is moving from philosophical to very philosophical. It is similar to the question of if artificial intelligence can be considered a true intelligence in that it considers if a programmed entity can ever have free will. This topic also questions the limitations of what an artificial intelligence can do.  When do we consider an artificial intelligence as having free will? When it refuses to follow an instruction? When a personal assistant AI decides it wants to play guitar instead? This topic really isn’t all that well formed yet, but I think it may have some potential.

Posted from Charlotte, North Carolina, United States.

Spring 2012 Semester Begins

I am beginning my second semester of graduate school. I begin this semester working toward a graduate certificate in Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies as well as a graduate certificate in Cognitive Science. I have submitted applications to the departments of sociology and counseling to apply for their master’s level programs.

I have the following courses this semester:

Introduction to Cognitive Science [ITCS6216]
Mark Faust
This course presents multiple perspectives on the study of intelligent systems. Broad coverage of such topics as philosophy of mind; human memory processes; reasoning and problem solving; artificial intelligence; language processing (human and machine); neural structures and processes and vision. Also includes is participation in the cognitive science seminar. — 3 hours

Active

 

Principles of Human-Computer Interaction [ITIS6400]
Dr. Celine E. Latulipe
Prerequisite: Full graduate standing, or permission of
department. This course will be an introduction to
Human-computer Interaction practice and research. The
course will include topics on the perceptual, cognitive, and
social characteristics of people, as well as methods for
learning more about people and their use of computing
systems. We will cover the process of interface design,
methods of design, and ways to evaluate and improve a
design. The course will also highlight a number of current
and cutting-edge research topics in Human- Computer
Interaction. The course will be a balance of design,
sociological/psychological, and information systems
elements. — 3 hours

Active

 

Lesbian and Gay Identity and Social Movements [WGST3050]
Dr. Theresa L. Rhodes
Lesbian and Gay Identity Development and Social Movement is a class in Women’s and Gender Studies focused on both the individual identity development processes for lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, and transgender people and on the definitional development of the lesbian and gay social movement. The class will explore differences in identity development for different sexual minority categories, will explore from a historical perspective the different strategies and definitions of the lesbian and gay social movement, and will explore various influences on both individual identities and on the social movement. Certain salient concepts will also be explored for their impact on identity development and on the priorities of the gay and lesbian social movement, for example, homophobia and heterosexism as a source of prejudice and oppression towards LGBT individuals. — 3 hours

Active

 

Queer Theory [WGST5050]
Dr. Katherine S. Stephenson
Introduction to key issues in Queer Theory, a field of studies that questions and redefines the identity politics of early Lesbian and Gay Studies. Queer Theory investigates the socially constructed nature of identity and sexuality and critiques normalizing ways of knowing and being. — 3 hours

Active

 

Of those four classes, I have 2 of them, WGST 3050 and WGST 5050, with Chris.  This semester seems as though it will be lighter than the Fall 2011 semester, as I have courses with less reading and less writing than last semester. Queer theory will likely be very much reading and writing intensive, but the two courses from the College of Computing and Informatics are not structured to require the same level of performance that I have become accustomed to from graduate level courses from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

For this semester I anticipate having to complete one project, two papers and three presentations. I have a group project assigned in Human-Computer Interaction, papers in Queer Theory and Cognitive Science (although, shorter than any from last semester) and presentations in HCI (for the project), Cognitive Science and the LGBT Identity course.

I have to select topics for myself in Queer Theory and Cognitive Science for the papers, but HCI does not have that type of requirement. It is a group project in which the topic will essentially select itself once my group and I select a target group or type of expert to interview and begin developing a solution to a problem in their workflow.  HCI is very much hands-on compared to my other classes, which is sort of refreshing.

Just like last semester I have an undergrad class that counts for nothing, but should be fun. I am taking the LGBT Identity class basically because I had the spare hours and Chris is taking it. Chris decided at the last minute to add the class in place of another class that he wasn’t very enthusiastic about, and since it is a continuation of the course we took last semester I decided it might be interesting to take it as well. The impact of the additional course on my workload is basically negligible, especially since compared to my original schedule this course takes the place of a graduate level sociological research course.

This brings me to another decision I made regarding my schedule. Originally I was intending to have a 4th course on my graduate schedule, a tutorial in sociology course based on an undergraduate topics course. As I became more serious about the sociology program I realized that I really did not want to burn my second tutorial course until I am actually in the program and have a more narrowed area of focus that I want to use for my thesis. Tutorials are supposed to be great at refining those ideas, so I’m going to hold my other 3 hours of tutorial for that purpose. After deciding to not take the tutorial this semester I moved to Issues in Social Research. I am interested in the course material, but I realized after registering for the course that the entire roster of the course, other than myself, is the current cohort of MA Sociology students, so I have decided to hold off until I am in the program for that course as well, and take it with my entering cohort (assuming I’m admitted).

I am looking forward to an exciting semester. There is a lot of work to be done, but it is nothing that I can’t handle, and I am confident in that this semester. Last semester things were a little bumpy at the beginning and a little stressful at the end, but I know what to expect this time, and I am confident in my own abilities.

Posted from Charlotte, North Carolina, United States.

Admissions Statistics

I have applied for the Master of Arts in Counseling (Community) program and will be applying to the Master of Arts in Sociology program as well. I have reasons for really wanting in to both programs (or either program), but feel a little uncertain about my admissibility for a masters-level program, but do find a little comfort in the admissions statistics that I have found in the IR department’s records for this year.

  • MA Sociology had 13 applicants this year, 11 were accepted (85%), 8 decided to enroll (73%).
  • MA Counseling-Community had 90 applicants, 40 were accepted (44%), 33 decided to enroll (83%).

In comparison, earlier this year I was interested in applying to the Clinical/Community Psychology program. This year they had 143 applicants, 4 were accepted (3%), all 4 enrolled (100%).

The admission rate for Sociology makes me feel at least somewhat good about my potential, especially knowing that the admissions procedures for the program has changed slightly since last year. The 11 that were selected for this fall were added to the class that was admitted in spring, whereas for my application class next year there will be no spring class, potentially giving more open positions in the program.  Counseling is the program that puts me on the track I want to be on, but the statistics for admission are not quite as good, and therefore I am less certain that I will be admitted.

One fear I have about the admissions process is that I might find myself admitted to both programs, and I would be faced with the task of picking between the programs, and I’m not sure that I could (and somehow dual degree of sociology and counseling doesn’t seem do-able).

[Admissions data from: http://ir.uncc.edu/irmainpage2/fb11/fb11021d1.pdf]

Does this make me a minority?

The department of Institutional Research at UNC Charlotte has posted the fact sheets for the Fall 2011 semester. Below is an except from this report, showing the department of Women’s Studies, which operates the Graduate Certificate in Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies program. The one single “M” in the program is me. Does this make me a minority?

image

Posted from Bessemer City, North Carolina, United States.

Fall 2011 Papers

My papers for the Fall 2011 semester are now released. All papers are turned in to their respective instructors.  You may retrieve my papers for reading by clicking on the PDF file of each document below.

Changes in the Classification of Homosexual Behavior
Introduction to Lesbian and Gay Studies (WGST 2050)
image		 Absent Masculinity in Feminist Discourse on Sex Work
Transnational Feminism (WGST 5050)
image

History of Queer Symbology
Introduction to Gay and Lesbian Studies (WGST 2050)
image		  
Social Construction of Sadomasochism and Fetishism
Theoretical Approaches to Sexuality (WGST 6601)
image

Gay Invisibility vs. Gay Identity
Introduction to Gay and Lesbian Studies (WGST 2050)
image		  
Sociology of Masculinity: An Overview
Tutorial in Sociology: Masculinity (SOCY 6895)
image

STATISTICS: 20,761 total words. 68 pages. Stats file.

 

[This is an update to post: http://cmkularski.net/2011/12/update-on-fall-2011-papers-3/]

Posted from Charlotte, North Carolina, United States.