http://www.buzzfeed.com/charliewarzel/proof-that-technology-hasnt-changed-who-we-are
This article explains that we have not changed in our obsession with technology, simply the technology has changed instead. It is undeniable that our society is slightly media-obsessed, and many people think that has become especially true since the development of the smart phone which has provided an instant connection from your pocket to the rest of the world in a matter of moments.
The article shows pictures of people on our form of technology now, ignoring others when sitting with them, connecting themselves to others throughout the world, while neglecting to have a common interaction with an actual human being. There are then a slew of present-day pictures compared to those from the early 20th century, showing the similarities between the time periods.
Even in the early 1900's people were ignoring human interactions through their reading the newspapers, much like how people currently look to their phones. The article explains that even though the world is changing, and technology is becoming more and more prevalent in our everyday lives, we as humans are not changing the way we react to this new technology.
I thought that this was really interesting because when I think of technology, I never considered the newspaper to be one of them. But as newspapers became so common in the 20th century, people used them to get the news, much like how people currently use their phones to get the news online, or through some other social media outlet.
There is then this quote at the end of the article:
"The art of conversation is almost a lost one. People talk as they ride bicycles — at a rush — without pausing to consider their surroundings…What has been generally understood as cultured society is rapidly deteriorating into basebsss and voluntary ignorance. The profession of letters is so little understood, and so far from being seriously appreciated, that…Newspapers are full, not of thoughtful honestly expressed public opinion on the affairs of the nation, but of vapid personalities interesting to none save gossips and busy bodies."
-Marie Corelli, Free Opinions, Freely Expressed, 1905.
Clearly, with every new technology that is released to the public, we are going to become enthralled with, and have a period of time with pure obsession, and crazy tendencies when concerned with our devices, but this has happened to generations before our own, and will most definitely happen continuously into the future.
Thursday, December 5, 2013
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Is the Internet Making Us Crazy?
http://www.newsweek.com/internet-making-us-crazy-what-new-research-says-65593
This article explains the anonymous "nobody" gone famous in a very short amount of time, who eventually went crazy from his use of the Internet. Jason Russell was the man responsible for the Kony documentary of 2012, where he explained that the warlord of Africa, Joseph Kony had to be caught. The video was going to be published for 2012, but then deleted. Apparently within the first few days he only got two hours of sleep, perpetually checking and updating his Facebook and Twitter.
He was eventually diagnosed "reactive psychosis" which is a temporary form of insanity based on his overuse and obsession with keeping up-to-date with the social media. Apparently this is a new diagnosis, but it is very common with the prevalent obsession with the new technology. He was hospitalized for a few months, and was later released. The Internet has a deleterious effect on the mind's of many people associated with it, and this is proving to be very dangerous to many Internet users across the globe.
This article explains the anonymous "nobody" gone famous in a very short amount of time, who eventually went crazy from his use of the Internet. Jason Russell was the man responsible for the Kony documentary of 2012, where he explained that the warlord of Africa, Joseph Kony had to be caught. The video was going to be published for 2012, but then deleted. Apparently within the first few days he only got two hours of sleep, perpetually checking and updating his Facebook and Twitter.
He was eventually diagnosed "reactive psychosis" which is a temporary form of insanity based on his overuse and obsession with keeping up-to-date with the social media. Apparently this is a new diagnosis, but it is very common with the prevalent obsession with the new technology. He was hospitalized for a few months, and was later released. The Internet has a deleterious effect on the mind's of many people associated with it, and this is proving to be very dangerous to many Internet users across the globe.
Saturday, November 30, 2013
Creative Commons Licenses Finally Becoming More Common
Creative
Commons is a non-profit organization which aims to expand the variety of
creative works that are available for others to legally alter, build upon,
edit, and share with other individuals. The organization was founded by two men
we have learned about throughout the semester, Lawrence Lessig, Eric Eldred,
and Hal Albeson. Since the organization was founded in 2001, the licenses have
been supported by many people who support the act of the creators of works to
have control and rights over how they share and distribute their copyrighted
works to the public and licensees.
The Creative Commons licenses are the copyright licenses that the organization developed for the creators and owners of work to control what rights of the works are reserved, and which are best to be waived in order to benefit citizens other than the creators. These licenses are free to the public, and are very easy to read and understand, that are based on copyright laws. These Creative Commons licenses allow the copyright owner and the licensee to create their own negotiations under the section of the copyright law that states, “All rights reserved,” allowing to the copyright owner to dictate some of their own negotiation of rights.
Warbreaker is a fantasy novel that is an example of a work that falls under the Creative Commons licenses. The novel was originally written by Brandon Sanderson, who later released a few other rewrites of the novel, releasing one chapter at a time, and now the entire novel is available digitally through Sanderson’s online website. Because this novel is under the Creative Commons license, Sanderson had the ability of publishing the new additions to the book on his own website, rather than through a publisher, without concerns of the copyright laws.
Move Under Ground is a novel written by Nick Mamatas that is a mash up of a variety of other works including the style of Jack Kerouac, and Cthulhu Mythos by H.P Lovecraft, creating a horror novel with an interesting plot. Mamatas makes multiple references to Kerouac’s On the Road by mentioning the characters of the novel, using some exact phrases, as well as mentioning Kerouac himself. Through the Creative Commons license, this book is available to be read at its website for free download.
A Briefer History of Time, by Eric Schulman is a humorous parody of the original novel titled, A Brief History of Time by author Stephen Hawking. The cover of the book, as well as the title was parodied from the original, with Schulman detailing what he believed to be the fifty-three most important events of the earth, all characterized in one book. Ironically, I learned, Stephen Hawking wrote a sequel to his book a few years later, and that book he also titled, A Briefer History of Time, at first without realizing the parody that was written of his original novel. Schulman’s novel is aimed at teaching the public on actual events, while also allowing the reader to laugh and joke with the simplest aspects of life, such as “why, even though the Universe is expanding, it doesn’t get any easier to find a parking space,” (Schulman). This novel is available under the Creative Commons Attribution- Share Alike License, which I will go into detail about now.
The Creative Commons license is a public copyright license that helps enable the free distribution of the copyrighted work from the creator of the work to the licensees. There are four different baseline rights of Creative Commons licenses that are attribution, share-alike, non-commercial, and no derivative works. Each different type of right for a license has different icons that symbolize the purpose of the right. These are then used to create a total of sixteen different combinations, six of which are the regularly used licenses.
The six regularly used Creative Commons licenses are as follows: Attribution alone, Attribution- No Derivatives, Attribution- Share Alike, Attribution- Noncommercial, Attribution- Noncommercial- No Derivatives, and Attribution- Noncommercial- Share Alike. Each of these licenses controls certain rights for the owner of the copyright as well as the licensees.
The Creative Commons Attribution- Share Alike license allows individuals to share, copy, alter, remix and distribute a work so long as the altered work is attributed to the author or owner of the original that is specified, without suggesting that they supported the creation of your personal work. Basically, this means that you do not need to ask permission of the owner or creator of the original work, but you must give credit where credit is due, and acknowledge the fact that ideas, characters, etc. are from another individual’s work, not purely your own. Additionally, if the work is altered in any way from the original, that is, remixed, transformed, etc. the work may only be distributed if the license of the original work is the same, or similar in any way. Under each of the five others, the requirements are slightly different to apply to the different varieties of licenses.
I chose to discuss this type of Creative Commons license because it is one of the most common, if not the most common type of license used. The requirements for this type of license are basic. Each of the three listed novels above are examples of the Attribution- Share Alike Creative Commons license, accrediting the original versions of each, as well as allowing the distribution to occur on individual websites.
The Creative Commons licenses are useful and important because they allow the creator of a work to select which rights they reserve, and which can be waived to benefit the recipients of the work, or other individuals who wish to alter the work in some way. It is crucial to remember that these licenses are based upon copyright, not in place of it, because this is where many individuals accidently misuse the licenses. Lawrence Lessig strongly believes that work needs to be less strictly copyrighted so that individuals have the capability of making new creative works, allowing collaboration between individuals and already published works. The Creative Commons licenses provide potential interaction between the copyright owner and the licensees, and are becoming increasingly accepted by the public.
"Creative Commons." Creative Commons United States. 2013. 29 Nov. 2013
<http://us.creativecommons.org/>.
"Creative Commons." Wikipedia. 2013. 30 Nov. 2013.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creative_Commons>.
"History." Creative Commons. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2013.
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Remember Me?
http://mentalfloss.com/article/53792/17-ancient-abandoned-websites-still-
This is a list of seventeen websites that are once popular, now abandoned websites that still work, people just forgot about them. I personally remembered the Space Jam website as well as the Amanda Please website.
I think it's interesting that when something is placed on the Internet, or a website is created, like energy, it is never really destroyed. Even if a website is not maintained, or is not visited for years, it still exists, and someone can still reach the website if they are really trying to. I remember using Neopets, and other websites that are probably no where near as popular now as they were when I was a child, but they still exist.
The semi-permanence that websites have on the Internet is both appealing and frightening. Some websites should not exist forever, but they inevitably will. The website I created in middle school still exists, and was almost too easily found when I googled it. I wish that would stay far more hidden in the depths of the Internet. On the other hand, the Internet is so reliable in its ability to keep information and websites, that it is a great storage place so that information, photographs, etc. cannot be easily destroyed, even if a computer or piece of technology goes down.
This is a list of seventeen websites that are once popular, now abandoned websites that still work, people just forgot about them. I personally remembered the Space Jam website as well as the Amanda Please website.
I think it's interesting that when something is placed on the Internet, or a website is created, like energy, it is never really destroyed. Even if a website is not maintained, or is not visited for years, it still exists, and someone can still reach the website if they are really trying to. I remember using Neopets, and other websites that are probably no where near as popular now as they were when I was a child, but they still exist.
The semi-permanence that websites have on the Internet is both appealing and frightening. Some websites should not exist forever, but they inevitably will. The website I created in middle school still exists, and was almost too easily found when I googled it. I wish that would stay far more hidden in the depths of the Internet. On the other hand, the Internet is so reliable in its ability to keep information and websites, that it is a great storage place so that information, photographs, etc. cannot be easily destroyed, even if a computer or piece of technology goes down.
The Internet's a Crazy Place, Kids
http://www.buzzfeed.com/ryanhatesthis/a-fifth-grade-teacher-wanted-to-show-her-students-what-happe
This article explains how a teacher of a fifth grade class was attempting to teach a lesson on what happens when you upload your picture to the Internet, a place where anyone can do anything to it. The lesson proved to be extremely valuable, since in a mere 24 hour time period, the photograph was shared on Facebook over thirteen thousand times, and many people from many countries spanning the globe have made alterations to the photograph, demonstrating the teacher's point exactly.
The series of photoshopped, and altered images began in a mild tone, with simple aspects changed. First the language of the text on the sheet of paper was altered, and slowly the images trickled into the person holding the sheet of paper to be changed. There were some animal face swaps, some radical sign swaps, and of course a series of Nicholas Cage swaps. People became very crafty, demonstrating very obviously to her students that the Internet is a very creative place, however it really is important to be careful what is uploaded to the Internet, because once it's out there, it is almost impossible to get it back with no one seeing it, no one altering it.
I think the idea of this teacher was a very successful one, because within 24 hours she showed all that can happen to one photograph being placed onto the Internet through the social media. I don't think this teacher anticipated quite the response that was gathered, further proving the lesson to be a success. The Internet is a wild and miraculous place, where truly anything can happen.
This article explains how a teacher of a fifth grade class was attempting to teach a lesson on what happens when you upload your picture to the Internet, a place where anyone can do anything to it. The lesson proved to be extremely valuable, since in a mere 24 hour time period, the photograph was shared on Facebook over thirteen thousand times, and many people from many countries spanning the globe have made alterations to the photograph, demonstrating the teacher's point exactly.
The series of photoshopped, and altered images began in a mild tone, with simple aspects changed. First the language of the text on the sheet of paper was altered, and slowly the images trickled into the person holding the sheet of paper to be changed. There were some animal face swaps, some radical sign swaps, and of course a series of Nicholas Cage swaps. People became very crafty, demonstrating very obviously to her students that the Internet is a very creative place, however it really is important to be careful what is uploaded to the Internet, because once it's out there, it is almost impossible to get it back with no one seeing it, no one altering it.
I think the idea of this teacher was a very successful one, because within 24 hours she showed all that can happen to one photograph being placed onto the Internet through the social media. I don't think this teacher anticipated quite the response that was gathered, further proving the lesson to be a success. The Internet is a wild and miraculous place, where truly anything can happen.
Faith in Internet Restored
http://www.buzzfeed.com/summeranne/stories-that-will-restore-your-faith-in-the-internet
This article is titled, "21 Stories that will Restore your Faith in the Internet," first implying that faith in the Internet has been lost along the way somewhere, and second, ensuring that these 21 stories are all significant in some way, which after reading the article, they absolutely were.
Each of these stories shows the capabilities that the Internet has to offer us that save, change, and enhance the lives of people/animals/society at large. My favorite stories began with the "Batkid" article, where a five year old child with cancer was given an entire day to be his favorite superhero, and save the city of San Francisco. The news spread on Twitter, the social media website of what was going to happen, and so many people wanted to help, that the entire city turned into Gotham city for the day, and this little boy's dreams came true.
Another story that I thought was particularly special was the Redditor who posted that his uncle with down syndrome was dying and always loved getting mail, so he would appreciate a letter or two from strangers who would be willing to send him letters to open up in bed. Not only did a few letters come to this man, over a thousand letters and gifts were sent to him, and he was extremely happy.
The majority of these stories were successful through the use of social media to reach a wide audience. If it wasn't for these social media outlets such as Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, etc. to find these lost dogs, the lost families, as well as to send out simple requests. The power of the social media is undeniable in that if word needs to be spread quickly, it will be spread through the overwhelming use of social media sites.
Although I use the Internet and social media websites everyday, I still find it strange that they have such power to do amazing things in our everyday lives. For some people, the Internet can completely change their life, whether it helps them find their long lost family, or helps them fund a tremendous want or need, or enhances their life in some other way. The Internet can be a cruel place with bullying, and strangers being mean for no reason at all, but it can also be filled with trust, hope, and people who genuinely want to help the world, and this article really helps us remember how.
This article is titled, "21 Stories that will Restore your Faith in the Internet," first implying that faith in the Internet has been lost along the way somewhere, and second, ensuring that these 21 stories are all significant in some way, which after reading the article, they absolutely were.
Each of these stories shows the capabilities that the Internet has to offer us that save, change, and enhance the lives of people/animals/society at large. My favorite stories began with the "Batkid" article, where a five year old child with cancer was given an entire day to be his favorite superhero, and save the city of San Francisco. The news spread on Twitter, the social media website of what was going to happen, and so many people wanted to help, that the entire city turned into Gotham city for the day, and this little boy's dreams came true.
Another story that I thought was particularly special was the Redditor who posted that his uncle with down syndrome was dying and always loved getting mail, so he would appreciate a letter or two from strangers who would be willing to send him letters to open up in bed. Not only did a few letters come to this man, over a thousand letters and gifts were sent to him, and he was extremely happy.
The majority of these stories were successful through the use of social media to reach a wide audience. If it wasn't for these social media outlets such as Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, etc. to find these lost dogs, the lost families, as well as to send out simple requests. The power of the social media is undeniable in that if word needs to be spread quickly, it will be spread through the overwhelming use of social media sites.
Although I use the Internet and social media websites everyday, I still find it strange that they have such power to do amazing things in our everyday lives. For some people, the Internet can completely change their life, whether it helps them find their long lost family, or helps them fund a tremendous want or need, or enhances their life in some other way. The Internet can be a cruel place with bullying, and strangers being mean for no reason at all, but it can also be filled with trust, hope, and people who genuinely want to help the world, and this article really helps us remember how.
Sunday, November 17, 2013
Amazon on Sundays
http://www.buzzfeed.com/sapna/amazon-will-start-sunday-deliveries-in-new-york-and-los-ange
This article explains that the world's largest online retailer has made a deal with the United States Postal Service so that packages will now be delivered on Sundays as well as every other day of the week.
Because the U.S Postal Service has lost billions of dollars throughout the past few years now that sending mail is less prevalant. Amazon charges $79 a year for it's Prime Users who pay for 2-day express shipping, so Amazon wants to be able to ship packages on Sunday to fulfill that request of the customers.
This year in particular is a smart time for Amazon to partner with the U.S Postal Service because like the article states there are six less days between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, so the competition for purchasing gifts is going to be higher than average. Amazon made this deal at the perfect time because people will be more likely to make purchases from Amazon knowing that they can receive packages on Sundays rather than waiting extra days to receive them. People will also be more likely to join the Prime Membership so that they can receive the 2-day express shipping during the holiday season, and can receive these packages on a Sunday if they were purchased on a Friday.
I thought this article was interesting because the Internet that changed the Postal Service so much, is now mingling with them again, attempting to find a happy medium between the two different outlets. The Internet, or Amazon specifically, is not only trying to help themselves, but is also trying to help the Postal Service earn back some of the money loss it has acquired over the last few years, to once again becoming successful, and a reliable, easy way to receive purchased goods.
This article explains that the world's largest online retailer has made a deal with the United States Postal Service so that packages will now be delivered on Sundays as well as every other day of the week.
Because the U.S Postal Service has lost billions of dollars throughout the past few years now that sending mail is less prevalant. Amazon charges $79 a year for it's Prime Users who pay for 2-day express shipping, so Amazon wants to be able to ship packages on Sunday to fulfill that request of the customers.
This year in particular is a smart time for Amazon to partner with the U.S Postal Service because like the article states there are six less days between Thanksgiving and Christmas this year, so the competition for purchasing gifts is going to be higher than average. Amazon made this deal at the perfect time because people will be more likely to make purchases from Amazon knowing that they can receive packages on Sundays rather than waiting extra days to receive them. People will also be more likely to join the Prime Membership so that they can receive the 2-day express shipping during the holiday season, and can receive these packages on a Sunday if they were purchased on a Friday.
I thought this article was interesting because the Internet that changed the Postal Service so much, is now mingling with them again, attempting to find a happy medium between the two different outlets. The Internet, or Amazon specifically, is not only trying to help themselves, but is also trying to help the Postal Service earn back some of the money loss it has acquired over the last few years, to once again becoming successful, and a reliable, easy way to receive purchased goods.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)