Blog #5

New blog five assignment: Evaluate blogging as an academic assignment to promote critical thinking. Your answers should be constructed as arguments. That is, give your opinion (the conclusion) and then provide reasons (premises) for your opinion. Simply saying "I liked it" or "I didn't like it" isn't enough. Tell me WHY! Answer each question with approximately 100-200 words.

1. Compared to writing traditional essays as you have in other classes, were the expectations of the blog assignment easier, harder or just different? In other words, was it clear to you what the format of a blog was and how to produce one?

Before this class I had heard the word "Blog" but I thought there were just mini web sites, and I didn't know how to produce one. The closest thing to a blog I had ever done was change my facebook message or write on someone's wall. But blogging is so much more than that.

I liked writing the blog as apposed to just email the instructor my essays. I think it made me put more effort and rethink what I was going to post before posting. The fact that my words are on display for anyone to see and judge really makes you think twice before just submitting an answer just to get a grade. People are judged by their thoughts and ideals, and mine are now expressed for everyone to see.

2. Did the blog assignments, and the requirement to create a blog, relate to the class topics and course objectives? Why or why not?

Yes. Society and Technology intermix in all levels of our daily lives. Just like it states in the course Blog on the main page "One of the most profound effects technology has had on society is to give humans the ability to communicate through time and space. " We have been given the opportunity to express our thoughts and ideals and put them in a place that not only today's society can view, but for generations to come, people will be able to readily access my thoughts on a particular subject. That's powerful. I think that alone sums up how important technology has impacted society.

3. Did the non-text elements of the blog program contribute to your learning in this class? Did they get in the way? Or did they have no affect at all?

If by non-text elements you are referring to is the customization of the blogs than Yes. I felt that the opportunity to not only express my thoughts on a page but to put it in the context of who I am made it all the better. I think that sometimes getting the insight of who someone is helps relate to the message they are trying to convey.

We all come from different walks of life, and thus we all have formed different opinions about things. I have come across many things posted on the internet that I thought were absurd, but after learning about the person that wrote those words and giving thought to their lifestyle, age, ethnicity, location etc. it allows you to look at their words from another point of view, and with some critical thinking sometimes those words aren't so absurd.

Is a picture REALLY worth a thousand words?

I never thought of every picture being worth 1000 words. Take a look at this photo. To me this is just a photo of a guy wearing sunglasses. But maybe this was the first professional picture for this model. Maybe this was the first ad for a new sunglasses company and they were launching their new line that they have been working on for years. So I could see that the photo might be worth 1000 words, just not to me.

Here is another photo. Again, this is just a ridiculous looking picture. What is that thing on here head. Why is she wearing it to play a video game? Why is the TV there? Is it heavy? Is she having fun? I think this photo could raise 1000 questions.

Throughout time many photos have been taking of historic events such as Iwo Jima. This photo gave hope to many in a time of war that the USA was winning the war. You could write essays on this photo. A few more historic photos that are worth 1000 words, 911, moon landing, berlin wall, olympics or even Tienanmen Square.

But then there are the photos that are endless in words. Photos that could never be sold because the value of them is too great. Photos that endure the test of time and bring a smile to your face every time you see it. These are the photos that are worth 1000 words.

I tried using the voicethread software, however I didn't have a microphone, but neat program.
http://voicethread.com/share/1088759/

Spatula City

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Technology and Conspiracy Theories

According to Merriam Webster's on line dictionary a "conspiracy theory" is: a theory that explains an event or set of circumstances as the result of a secret plot by usually powerful conspirators. A conspiracy theory is different from folklore or urban legends, as these are usually tales that conjure up different emotions or fears in people. A conspiracy theory is a long drawn out set of events, conjured up by a secret organization or individual, to look like one thing but is actually another.

Famous conspiracy theories are wide ranging in story and time. One of the most recent conspiracy theory is that of 9/11. The theories on that subject alone range from "Our government knew about the bombings and did nothing to stop it so they could wage war on the middle east" to "a plane never hit the Pentagon" to "bombs in the buildings". Other famous conspiracy theories include "NASA faked the moon landings", "UFO's", "Elvis faked his death", "Who killed JFK", and even "Jesus Christ married Mary Magdalene".

Modern technology has played a large role in the generation of conspiracy theories. Like the 9/11 theory, most of this theory is based on information gathered from sources on the internet. There are even websites with all of the information to support the theory, like www.patriotsaints.com, which supports its claim with video, pictures, newspaper articles, and reports from the commissions that investigated the events of 9/11.

Another reason why the internet plays a large role in the generation of conspiracies is that anyone with a computer on the internet can post anything they want. Just like I am doing now with this blog. I'm going to create my own conspiracy theory.

Elephants can fly! I realize that you may not believe me because you've probably never seen one, right? Well here is the proof. You see, circus owners and zoo keepers don't want you to know this because they can't contain flying elephants, so they've raised these elephants under low ceilings all their life so they could never fly. You can't build a cage to house a flying elephant, that would cost too much money, so instead they trained the elephants not to fly.

Now I've made a statement, given it some reasonable explanation and supported it with an image. Obviously this is a false statement, and anyone can tell you that the photo is a photoshop picture, and there is no real supporting evidence that elephants can fly. But the information that people have dug up on 9/11, NASA, JFK has some validity to it. Ted Goertzel published this paper in Political Psychology in 1994. He suggests that a person who believes in one conspiracy theory tends to believe in others; a person who does not believe in one conspiracy theory tends not to believe another. Internet sites like www.godlikeproductions.com give conspiracy theory believers to talk about other theories. Thus the internet has played a large role in sustaining and spreading conspiracy theories.

Who's Right??

Why are so many people uncomfortable with the idea that many problems don't have a single solution? Take for example the current Health Care Reform bill that is in congress. Without getting into weather I think the bill is good or not, there have been many heated debates and all across the media television, print and internet are more articles and reviews about this bill. The reasons some many people are arguing about this bill is because it does not address everyone's needs. If the insurance companies don't get their money they don't like it, if the rich have to pay more they don't like it, if the working man has to pay more he doesn't like it. When addressing an issue like health care reform, it takes on a meaning for a lot of different parties. While I believe everyone wants to pay less for there health coverage, the only people who are against low cost health coverage are those that benefit from the high costs, such as insurance companies. You have the American people, the doctors, the nurses, the hospitals, the drug companies, the insurance companies and all the other health care businesses that are looking for something to benefit from in this bill. That is why there is no right answer. So who wins if nobody is right?

So is there a single solution? Probably not. With all of the factors that go into health care reform, no one answer is the right one. That is what makes people uncomfortable. We live in a society that gives and takes and it seems everyone wants to take from this bill. People are uncomfortable giving up certain things when they don't know what they get in return, and the uncertainty of this bill is very much in question. Whether it does enough, does it reduce costs enough, will it provide better coverage for everyone, can everyone afford it? The answers again are different for every walk of life.

Spend or Save - Which is more Patriotic?

In these tough economic times people are hoarding money into savings accounts like never before (Bureau of Economic Analysis) , yet many economist are screaming for us to spend to jump start our economy (New York Times). While I've always considered myself to be patriotic and support our country and its interests, I have to wonder is our country doing the same for us? If the U.S. economy is based on consumer spending, then why did it fail? Americans spent everything, savings were at an all time low, investing was at an all time high. Our economy was thriving so much, they let anyone spend more than they had, and spending was the downfall of our economy.

So now the government and their economist want us to spend. We have seen increases in health care, gas and food, and a reduction in wages, jobs and equity in our assests, and they still want us to spend? Is it unpatriotic to look out for your family and save money for the future? When I talk about saving, I'm talking about old school, sticking money under your mattress saving. You can't invest money, the market is so up and down. You can't trust the banks, they are taking bailout money to pay bonuses to executives that made poor decisions. If I save money, will I be the cause of the failure of the economy?

Maybe, but there are solutions to this problem. Spend money to save money! That's right, you can actually spend money on things that will save you money in the short and long term. Buying a membership at a Costco or Sam's Club and buying in bulk will save you money. Installing a electronic programmable thermostat will save you money. Purchasing a more fuel efficient car will save you on gas prices. Buying energy saving windows and adding insulation to your home will save you money on energy bills. There are lots of ways you can spend money to help our economy and yet still look out for your family. Maybe we can be patriotic and save money at the same time. All hope is not lost.

I can't believe I have a blog!