Helping the disadvantaged, without wires

For Penn students like myself, Internet use is second nature. After all, we all know how to conduct a careful background check on the guy or girl we met last Saturday night.

So the fact that Internet cables will soon be kaput is not surprising. Everything is going wireless around here -- the Wireless Philadelphia project is slated to begin in March, and plans for Penn's own wireless network are already underway.

But I often forget the real implications of the newest advances in technology because I am so accustomed to my seat at its forefront.

For students, the wireless Internet plan will eliminate the headache of trying to find an Internet network to piggyback off of at Bucks Coffee. But the real value of Wireless Philadelphia lies in the socioeconomic aid that the project provides.

Wireless Philadelphia will erase some of the obstacles that divide the upper and lower classes by helping Philly's poorer residents gain Internet experience and become computer literate.

From our seat, it is easy to remark on the seeming triviality of internet advantages -- sure, MapQuest is easier than using an actual map, and AIM is a helpful diversion, but this is pretty inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, right?

The People's Emergency Center, a nonprofit women's shelter in Philadelphia, was the first program to provide wireless Internet to some of the Philadelphia community. "The Internet offers opportunities for resources such as healthcare, schooling and jobs," said Corey Robinson, manager of the Center's Digital Inclusion program. "The city had an initiative and [Digital Inclusion] was a great program to look at. We were the first to do it."

In general, Robinson said, the level of Internet knowledge of the PEC's local West Philadelphia residents spans from those who have some basic Internet knowledge to those who have never had an e-mail address.

The digital divide is significant not just because it offers small conveniences to those of us who know how to use a computer; it is our daily use of these services that shows our technological fluency.

This "technological language" is increasingly important in all aspects of life in the middle and upper classes, especially in the higher educational systems.

"If people come from high schools with little or no computer skills, it will be hard for them at colleges where e-mail is the primary source of communication, and you use the computer often," said College and Engineering senior Shehzad Khan, who is the manager of the Program to Bridge the Digital Divide at Penn.

Many colleges offer online applications and important information online. Students who rely on pamphlets and phone calls for their information are at an automatic disadvantage from those with easy Internet access.

At college itself, online discussions, digital drop boxes and Power Point presentations would pose a tremendous obstacle for students who are not computer literate.

Fifty-five percent of Philadelphia families do not have Internet access in their homes. For these families, Wireless Philadelphia offers an invaluable resource to help them overcome the digital divide by offering cheap Internet rates.

Along with creating a wireless Internet network, the project will also provide computers and technological training to as many as 10,000 low-income families in Philadelphia.

For underprivileged students to have a shot at the computer competency that is a second nature to Penn students, they must have the computer access and training that we experienced growing up with such privileges.

At its completion, the Wireless Philadelphia program will offer inexpensive wireless Internet access through a 135 square mile broadband network funded by Earthlink.

Imagine Penn's efforts multiplied by a hundred and you've got some perspective on the sheer size of Philadelphia's project.

But the rest of Pennsylvania is controlled by a bill that restricts government-subsidized Internet services where private services are available. Private companies in these other cities are not going to set up wireless in poor areas similar to West Philadelphia.

In order for low-income families to attain Internet access, municipally provided Internet is necessary. In Philadelphia, families that meet certain economic requirements will get Internet access at about $10 per month, half the general cost of access.

Hopefully, the technological controversy will subside, and this advance will become a national trend. Other unrestricted cities, such as San Francisco and New Haven, already have plans for broadband networks. Such a trend would offer an invaluable advantage to families that are unable to pay for non-subsidized Internet access.

Internet and computer competency are the norm at Penn, but this does not mean we should lose sight of technology's real importance. This can sometimes be difficult for a generation of students who grew up simultaneously with the creation of the Internet.

So in a couple months when you find yourself in Rittenhouse Square typing away on your laptop, remember that the Internet is more than a tool for procrastination, stalking and surfing.

In Philadelphia, municipally provided Internet will help poor residents gain the technological fluency that we take for granted every day. A more equal technological playing field is the first step toward bridging Philadelphia's digital divide.

Anna Hartley is a sophomore comparative literature and French major from Palo Alto, Calif. Penn's Annatomy appears on Tuesdays.

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