Shrodinger Memes

This meme is used to suggest that something is not quite as simple as it might seem, but is often used in a satirical or funny way. I think it is very appropriate for the concepts of quantum mechanics which are not only complex, but very non-intuitive. 

This second meme is a more entertaining take on the ideas of quantum mechanics. Interestingly, the idea of zombies seems to come up a lot in relation to quantum mechanics, and especially Schrodinger's Cat. 

This picture looks like it was meant to be a pretend movie poster, it would have been a complicated piece of art to make, but I am really interested in the way that they gave Schrodinger a machine gun, I guess an action movie would probably sell better than a science documentary. 

Fleetwood Mac

This meme uses a popular meme from Lord of the Rings. The original quote is "One does not simply walk into Mordor." This meme is used to show that what someone sees as simple might be more complex then you think. In the meme I chose  it is showing that Fleetwood Mac's music is so complex because of all the harmonies and different voices in the band. When you have a band of five people who can all sing you get the option of having many harmonies coming together to make one song. So, one can't just sing "The Chain", you have to decide which part you are going to sing and that can be a hard decision. In order to understand this meme you would have to have knowledge of the popular "One does not simply..." meme as well as knowledge of Fleetwood Mac's music.

 

This is my favorite meme because I am both a Taylor Swift and Fleetwood Mac fan. This meme is ultimately what made me decide to do my project on Fleetwood Mac. In order to understand this meme you would have to have knowledge of the Buckingham Nicks love affair. Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham have a very romantic and tragic love story that continues to this day. They have been quoted in interviews saying thing like, "All of my songs are about Lindsey in one way or another." When you listen to their music this becomes evident, but when you watch them perform a song live you can feel the tension and see the love and hate that are in the words of those songs through their expressions. Taylor Swift is kind of infamous for writing about her exes but no one can do scorned lovers like Stevie and Lindsey. 

The image on the left is the original art work for an album that Stevie Nicks put out. On the right is the fan art that I found. Stevie Nicks believes in things like magic and I think that is what the artist was trying to depict in this image. They had to have used photo shop to make this image. They probably pulled Stevie from the original and added her to a new background then added all the changes in the hair, bird, ears and dress. I really liked this fan art because it shows that mystical side of Stevie that I have always been curious about.

Oh the Places You'll Go

Memes are fun. They make you laugh, think deeply, and suck you into an alternate time zone until you look at the clock and say, "Oh crap". But memes can also say something take for example:

This speaks strongly to the student in me. I think pretty much every student in the history of homework has had this look and thought at one time or another. But this memes does target a certain audience. While someone who hasn't been in school for fifty years might see this and find it interesting or funny, they won't connect to it in the same way as a student who has experienced this will. In a way in order to truly get this meme the person seeing it has to have been a student the more recently they were one the more impact this meme will have for them.

The above meme is humorous. But there are some that hit a deeper note. Like:

This meme hits at a persons compassion. When I saw this meme I thought of the people in the world who don't have shoes and what I could do to help them.

Far from the relatable humor of the first meme, this meme has a strong humanitarian message. That causes those who see it to relate to an experience they may have never had. I've never not had shoes. But I can feel sympathy for Frodo( the geek in me is demanding that I say- yes, Hobbit physiology is different then a humans and no, they don't actually need shoes) this meme helps me consider the people in the world who don't have shoes and that they still have to do really hard things with out them. This meme helps me see a different point of view.

Along with memes there is fan art. Of all different skill levels and styles. Like this piece:

While I'm sure there are more technologically difficult pieces of fan art out there this one is still pretty intense. From my beginners point of view I'd guess this picture has at least three layers to it. The picture of Mycroft, the picture of Sherlock, and the words. They also night have used an opacity? gradient on Sherlock to make it so you could see Mycroft. That's my guess anyway. This piece would not be easy to create and even if the creator knew the software, this piece probably would have taken a fair bit of time.

It's a cool looking piece of fan art and looking at it I can think of several different meanings it might have. For example this picture might be showing how Sherlock as a person has been impacted by having Mycroft as a brother. But that's my own interpretation. Which is fair I suppose, but I wish I could talk to this pieces creator and ask them what they wanted this picture to say.

Memes Attack Blog Post 4

This meme requires that you know the popular song "Call Me Maybe." If you don't know the song then this meme isn't funny. I think people like cats and they want to show the world how much they like them. It almost seems like bragging or showing pride in cats. Many people don't like cats, so people may make cat memes to make cats seem more likable. 

In order to understand this meme you would have to know about or seen "The Matrix." This is mimicking the scene where the main character chooses to take a pill to see the "real world." You also have to know that most cats do not like vacuum cleaners, so it would be very weird for a cat to not be afraid of vacuum cleaners. This could be making a deeper statement about how reality isn't perhaps what it seems. Who knows, maybe everything we have ever know is an illusion.

This image had to have been created in Photoshop or some other image manipulating program. The picture is a composite of a cat picture and a Halo image. I think people believe Halo is a gruff, war game where you shoot and kill aliens. The kitten is not threatening at all, unless you become the size of something a kitten would want to chase or play with. Maybe it's a statement about how people feel so tough in Halo or other video games, but aren't that tough in the real world.

Magical

I have never owned and may never own a Kindle or a Nook or any of those things. I love technology. I love that I have access to almost anything in the tips of my fingers. But reading books on a screen is not something that I enjoy. Reading is magical. Turning the pages, underlining my favorite passages, making notes in the margins. All of these things are irreplaceable. Reading literature on a screen takes away all of the magic. I hate that bookstores are becoming lost. No one buys books from bookstores anymore (except me, but even I go for the cheaper version when I can find it online). I have always had a dream of opening my own bookstore someday (my favorite movie is You’ve Got Mail) but that will never happen. I dread the day that books are no longer printed but only accessible through technology. How sad would it be to write a novel and get it “published” but not in paper form? That would be incredibly unfulfilling.

I stream all of my music through Spotify. It is, and may always be, the best ten dollars I spend every month. I have access to almost any song I want at all times. But if you’d have met my in my middle-high school days you would know that I spend the majority of my free time burning CDs. Illegally, most likely. I was an avid mixed CD maker (cassette tapes, sadly, were before my time). In my car I still have a very large CD case full of all my best mixes. Anyone who gets in my back seat picks it up and makes a comment about it. They then proceed to go through my horrendously named mixes and make fun of the girly handwriting I had back then. I always have those CDs on hand for the times I’m sick of Spotify. Like printed novels, CDs are magical.

I’d really like to talk about communication BUT we’d be here for hours because I have a lot of ideas on that...I’ll save it for another time.

Best of Both Worlds

I am one of very few people my age who owns and uses a vinyl record player. I don't have an extensive record collection but it is growing. I love the sound and vibe you get from a vinyl record. The pops and cracks are not something you will find on iTunes. When listening to music through an iPhone or iPod you lose the authenticity you get from a vinyl. But, because music is such a huge part of my life, I also listen to music on my phone. So, even though I don't get all the perks of the vinyl player I still can listen to my music. Some people probably don't like the pops and cracks of a vinyl so the mp3 world is better for them; I think it kind of depends on the type of music you listen to. Most of my records are "oldies" that I found at a thrift shop or yard sale. The music on these records was made for the record not the mp3 so it gives the authentic and natural feel when you are listening to the songs on vinyl.  I am just grateful to be able to have both vinyl and mp3 in my world.

When it comes to books, I prefer to have the hard copy of the book. There is just something about turning a page and smelling the paper of a new book. I have always loved to read and growing up I didn't have a kindle or an iPad to read books from. I do now own a kindle, but I only use it for convenience. I would rather buy a text book for class on my kindle then carry a giant book to school everyday, but when it comes to reading for pleasure I will always chose the hard copy. I think with both books and music the changes that have been made center around convenience. Say you go on vacation and forget to bring a book to read on the beach. If you have your kindle and internet connection you can easily download a book and enjoy your day reading. While on this vacation you realize your favorite artists just released their new album, rather then having to drive to the store and buy the cd you can download it straight to your phone.

In conclusion, I guess you could say I like to have the best of both worlds. I want to be able to go home and listen to my vinyl while I read an old novel that was originally my grandmas, but I also want to be able to bring my text book to class on my kindle and listen to music from my phone while I walk to class. I think that both of these types of media new and old can thrive in our world if people remember to appreciate the beauty of a vinyl record or an original print of a novel.

Keeping it Real- response 3

I recently read a story where a teacher from the year 1900 gave her students drawing supplies and told them to draw about growing up in a coal mining camp. When the teacher got the pictures back there were drawings ranging from one little girl learning how to make oat bread from her mother; to a boy who, at younger then ten, was already working in the mine sorting rocks out of coal when he wasn't in school.

As I read that story I heartbroken that there was no good way for those precious drawings to be duplicated so that they would have a better chance of surviving.

It made me realize how much I've come to rely on things like digital cameras that even dumb phones have now. With digital cameras we can take snap shots of whatever we want and, with almost no effort, scatter the places that picture is stored until there are so many duplicates of that picture that it has a much better chance of surviving.

In a way, the ease we have in duplicating pictures is a good thing. I wonder how valuable those precious pictures drawn by children in a mining camp would be if they had been easily duplicated. Looking at them now they would still have value as a unique insight into history.

Still, I sometimes wonder if we sacrifice worth, uniqueness, for security of that picture being so easily replicated? So easily replaced?

I'm still not sure.

On another completely unrelated note. Did you know that only 7% of conversation is verbal? The other 93% is non-verbal. I found this very gratifying because I prefer talking to people in person. Yes, texting is a lot less intimidating. But, when I'm face-to-face with someone I can look for those non-verbal cues that tell me wether what I said was understood in away words alone wouldn't be able to.

Have you ever noticed that sometimes when you write a text and read through it before sending it that it could be taken the wrong way? And then of you try and reword it so the text won't be taken the wrong way. But this new text could also be taken the wrong way. Eventually you give up on trying to fix it and you send it. Hoping, that the person receiving it will understand what you meant.

I do believe that something in conversation is lost when you don't talk face-to-face. But, I also think there are really good uses for the digital ways we have of communicating now.

For example: Skype. My family live three states away from Utah. Skype isn't quite the same as seeing them in person it's glitchy and sometimes it freezes. But I still get to see them. Which is really great.

So, digital communication has it's uses, but don't forget the worth of talking face-to-face.

Blog Post the Third

Books, articles, and magazines have drastically changed from just ten or twenty years ago. Many now are viewed or purchased online. They are read on Ipads, Kindles, and other electronic devices. Storing books now takes up less space. It's a lot easier to store a file on a device than trying to find room for another book on your shelf. This also makes books much more portable instead of having to lug them around everywhere. Sharing books, magazines, and articles online is much easier because you can just email it or purchase it online in the comfort of your own home. I personally don't like reading on an electronic device, it feels more impersonal. I don't feel as engaged with whatever I'm reading. I find myself zoning out more when I read online or on some device. There is definitely a tactile, physical element to reading an actual paperback book. Not to mention it breaks up the text, yes there are programs that allow it to seem like you are turning the page, but it's not the same. I think reading on electronic devices takes away from the actual experience of reading.

Music has changed quite a bit as well. CDs are not as common and iTunes is now the new way to get music. This does affect the storage aspect quite a bit. Now all your music can be stored on one, little iPod instead of trying to stack a bunch of CDs or cassette tapes. Sharing is quite easy now. You can share your music with several devices or people. You can also share music by posting links on facebook or other social media sites. Experience wise, you can listen to a variety of music all in one place and almost as much of it as you want. You don't have to go digging through CDs or switching out CDs in order to listen to the songs you desire to listen to. You can just look them up by artist or song on the iPod or shuffle the songs. I guess I'm kind of old school because I still like CDs. I do have my own iPod though, but for me I feel safer having a hard copy instead of just having it on iTunes. This way if something happens or iTunes glitches, I still have the music I want to listen to. I only do this if I like most of an album, though. If there is just one song I want from an artist, I download it off of iTunes. I use both mediums and they have their own place. I think a little bit is taken away from just having iTunes though, you don't get to read the lyrics physically along with the song.

I think the changes to books and music are good and bad. There are some elements that are lost with making everything electronic like the tactile feel of a CD or book. It does make access to books and music easier than ever though. Change is kind of a double-edged sword.

Manovich Response 3

I think that the most interesting media which has been affected by the changing mediums on which it is transferred is that of music. The consumption of music has changed a lot as it has been switched over from tapes, to disks, to its current digital form. I personally do not even purchase or collect music in any form at all, I just look it up online when I want it. I can't figure out why on earth anyone would buy, or pirate/steal music when any and every song that I could ever want to listen to is readily available with internet access, which is almost ubiquitous in our culture.

Books have been changed in a very similar way, I am able to access more books than I could ever read for free online either through audio-books, PDFs, etc. Not only am I able to access all of this information in the form of books, but I also have access to more information than I could ever read that takes the form of news, Wikipedia articles, Scientific papers/studies, etc.

The internet has created a system in which there is little or no reason to pay for access to almost any form of information. There is however an important emphasis that I need to make here, and that is to emphasize the word access, I may look up Tchaikovsky's violin concerto on Youtube and enjoy access to an excellent quality orchestra performing the piece of music, but that access to the music via my laptop could never compare to actually attending a live symphony or orchestra at a hall of art and music. I may look up a facsimile of Van Gogh's Starry Night, which I have included in this post, but my experience of Van Gogh's work will not be the same as if I had seen the actual painting.

5 Key Principles of New Media

The first principle is Numerical Representation. This principle basically states that any new media object is composed of digital code. Because of this, all “media becomes programmable” and is therefore subject to change. Objects that are considered old media like photographs, paintings, and printed books, are incapable of change. It’s worth mentioning here (before we get into modularity) that discrete data is data that occurs in distinct units. In this section Manovich mentions that communication requires discrete units and without discrete units, there is no language. He then quotes Roland Barthes (who I love) saying, “Language is, as it were, that which divides reality (for instance, the continuous spectrum of the colors is verbally reduced to a series of discontinuous terms).” He goes on to talk about semiology (the scientific study of the life of signs within society (defined by Saussure who I also love)). Semioticians believed that any form of communication requires a discrete representation. This was later disproved because “photographs do not have any apparent units.”

The second principle is Modularity which he calls “fractal structure of new media.” Similar to a fractal, new media objects have the same modular structure throughout. New media objects can and are often put together into larger objects but they still maintain their individual identity. For example, a photograph as an individual object can be placed in a blog post and therefore becomes a part of a bigger object but still maintains it’s identity (separate parts of a larger whole, if you will). “Every element can always be accessed on it’s own.” This is why I mentioned discrete data earlier; it helped me better understand this concept of modularity.

The third principle is Automation. This is basically everything we hold dear in this computer driven world. Everything is already made for us. There are templates for web pages pre-set for our use. There are filters that are pre-made (because who wants to manually edit a photo?) And we wonder why our generation is so lazy? Everything is done for us!

The fourth principle is Variability. I kind of mentioned this earlier when I said that new media is subject to change. New media is almost dependent on this concept of variability. A printed photograph can be scanned into a computer and then manipulated/changed into whatever anyone wants it to be. Everything can be customized. “New media also allow us to create versions of the same object that differ from each other in more substantial ways.”

The final principle is Transcoding which is to translate something into another format. This is basically HTML. HTML code is typed and perfected but when it is presented as a web page it no longer looks like code it looks like a web page. Manovich says, “New media technology acts as the most perfect realization of the utopia of an ideal society composed of unique individuals.”

I think that the most important of all of these principles is Variability. We live in a world of constant change and in order for new media to stick with the times it has to change with the times. Growth and change are essential to new media.

Manovich Response 2

The first concept, that of Numerical Representation, is the idea that new forms of media, in particular anything digitized, may be represented mathematically. One good example of this is the way in which colors are represented by a series of numbers corresponding to hue, contrast, etc. Another thing touched on by Manovich is the idea that old media may be changed into this mathematical format. I cannot mathematically manipulate a paper photo, but I may scan that photo, effectively creating a mathematical facsimile of it which may then be manipulated.

The second concept is Modularity. This refers to the way in which the functions of a media may exist on multiple structures. In other words, a program may perform only one function for the user, but it may run multiple functions in order to do so. An example might be Pandora Radio, which runs the music, album photos, and text separately. Pandora uses different modules in order to run its website.

Automation builds on the concept of numerical representation, because so much of our new forms of media are mathematical, they may be controlled mathematically, even without the direct influence of humans. going back to our Pandora example, the program is automated because Pandora doesn't need to hire thousands of DJs in order to select new music for its users, there is no man behind the curtain controlling everything, it is all being done by a computer.

Variability, the next concept, means that the forms and capabilities of media can change, often for the better, over time. Digital photos are a form of media, but they may be manipulated by dozens of different programs, take many different file formats, and be converted between either one of these things. one good example is the way in which Microsoft Word changes with each update, The program remains a document editor, but as the version number increases, the medium, and the media taking the form of the program, changes.

Transcoding is the idea that each piece of digital media has two parts to it, the part that is designed to be understood and manipulated by humans, and the part that is meant to be understood and manipulated by the computer. The consequences of this are that we can send code, representing emails, photos, etc. across cultural barriers by transmitting over the date the computer understands, and allowing the receiving computer to reconstruct the human side of the information. One example of this is the way in which people often share code in HTML, Java, and other computer languages, even though they are not all building the same website or program. A general program such as a state machine may exist in the form of the exact same code for dozens of programs, even if the programs are different. Both a video game and a vending machine could use the exact same coding to fulfill the function of their state machine.

In my mind, the most powerful of these tools is the concept of automation. Automation, in my mind, has the most potential to change our future because it gives us the ability to create machines which perform work that would otherwise require humans to do. It is essentially the creation of free work value. taken to an extreme, and with the development of newer technology, we could develop a situation in which this automation would eliminate the need for most of the work done by humans, whether this will be good or bad will remain to be seen.

Manovich's Principles - Blog 2

The first principle is numerical representation. This means that everything we see on a computer is based on numbers. These numbers form images, websites, and other programs. If I were to look at the underlying base of a computer game then it would be made up of a mathematical pattern to create it. This could be a pattern based on the number of pixels that make up the landscape of the video game. The numbers are what give the video game the order and organization it needs.

The second principle is modularity. A program or a website is made up of certain modules or parts. These parts can be modified and changed. You cannot delete these modules however, or the entire system does not work. When I think of modules, I think of the International Space Station. It has multiple modules that are used for science, engineering, or other things. These modules have a similar shape and size. What makes them different is how they are used in the overall function of the space station. All of the components work together and without each module, the station wouldn't work.

Principle three is automation. This has to do with an industrialized approach. Automation basically means that there are certain parts or components that are automatically generated. This could be something like components or templates on blogs. You could have a template for a comment section or one for a posting feed. These templates have already been formatted so the user can easily select and plug them into their blog or website. They don't have to make it from scratch.

Variability is the next principle. This deals with the idea that code is changeable. It's not static, things can be changed and altered to a certain extent. There are some basic components that cannot be changed or deleted, but they can be customized. For example, lets say you want to change the font size on a level 1 header. You can do this through customizing a CSS page. It still has the basic and necessary code for a level 1 header, but the font has been customized. Variability also deals with the idea that things on the internet are changing all the time. Nothing is really set in stone.

Transcoding is the final principle. This kind of has to do with the first principle in that everything that you see on a computer screen is coded for. The code is the basis for computer programs. This also has to do with the idea that things are being stored in computer databases. This means that a person could basically go look up anything and find it online or in some sort of computer database. An example would be the article databases available at school that are rooted in computer code.

I think transcoding is the principle that is changing our culture the most. We can now just look up information online at any time. This hasn't really been the case. You would have to go to a library or memorize things in order to convey or learn knowledge. Information is more readily available than it has been. This is really changing and shaping our culture into a computer culture.

New Media- blog two

Numerical representation: Media can be represented useing math and by representing it in such a way it can be cleaned up using mathmatical principles.

Modularity: New media objects are composed of groups of something( like pixels) that make up the whole of the new media object.

Automation: By using Nurmerical representation and Modularity a new media object can be made "automated" or in other words the human can be removed from control and the new media object will still function.

Variability: A new media object can alter as needed to match changing equations.

Transcoding: Because of the computerization of media, the media must be "recoded" to fit in a computer format.

The change from old media to new media has had a significant affect on all areas of society, especially the arts( including writing). Artists have had to adapt how they use their art to be able to disseminate it to the public using computers.

Man Oh Manovich

Manovich's first principle of New Media is Numerical Representation. I automatically think of the Matrix because it shows that all new media can be represented by numbers, ones and zeros. These numbers are used to transfer data and information from one computer to another. So, when you create an image on your computer it builds the image based on a language of ones and zeros. You can then open the same image on another computer because it transfers the universal language to the other computer.

The second principle that Manovich discusses is Modularity. This is the idea that several individual parts make up the whole. When you watch a video you often see images and audio. This principle comes from the idea that if you were to take away the images from the video you would only have a song and no longer have a video. Each individual part is necessary in order to have the whole be what you want it to be.

Automation, Manovich's third principle, helps to improve quality and minimize errors. It could be seen as a template or a fill in the blank. It is a way for the person creating the media to simplify and magnify all the different parts. It also allows you to change the elements of a program. An example of this would be a blog template. You are given different sections to fill out with things like blog name, authors, about me, etc. What you put in the template then creates the blog and from there you can edit and change styles, themes, colors, etc.

Manovich describes Variability as all the different versions of the same media. When new media is created it has infinite alterations, anyone can take it and edit it the way they want.It can also be a software update or a new add on. An example of this would be a group picture. Say you take a picture with all of your friends and each of you posts it on Instagram, but you post it with a border, Sally posts it with a design on it and Sue crops Sally out before she posts it. Each person posted the same picture, but it was altered in various ways.

Manovich's final principle is Transcoding. This principle describes the process of taking one form of media and turning it into another. A simple example of this would be turning a word document into a PDF. Another idea would be taking a form of old media such as a vinyl record and converting it into an MP3 file. A project that I did for my grandpa over the summer.

The principle that I think is most applicable to our culture undergoing computerization is variability. Things are constantly changing and it is important for us to be updated and have all the latest software, even though it only has one change. Every where I go something is being updated. My apps on my phone are constantly fixing bugs or adding new features. We live in a world where we are striving to constantly be better and faster, this is why I think variability is so important.

Social Media: Positive and Negative

What do you feel is the biggest positive change the prevalence and dominance of the internet has brought to culture or everyday life?

The biggest positive change that I see is the ability to so easily keep in touch with someone. I could tell you what nearly every member of my family did this weekend according to Instagram and Facebook. The majority of my family is connected through the internet, even my grandmas. It has become so incredibly easy to know what is going on in someones life. I even feel like I know some of my cousins better thanks to social media. A cousin that I normally do not keep in touch with, is now one of my close friends because we connected on Facebook and started chatting and keeping in touch. This connection that we made on the internet brought us together and caused me to form a friendship with a distant family member. 

Contrarily, what do you feel is the biggest new cultural/social problem that has come with the internet?

I think that the biggest problem stems from the positive change. Because it is so easy for me to keep in touch with people via the internet I lose some of that face to face interaction. It may seem like I know what is going on in someone's life, but do I know them? Actual human contact and conversation is crucial to getting to know someone and having a relationship. The internet can remove this from our lives and harm our relationships.

Access and Frustration

What do you feel is the biggest positive change the prevalence and dominance of the 
internet has brought to culture or everyday life?

Access to information. I think about what my life would be like if I couldn't look up the definition of a word on my smart phone (I have a weird obsession with looking up definitions to new words and words I already know the meaning of). We have the world in our actual hand. I remember in middle school one of my teachers made us write an entire paper using only information from the encyclopedias in the library. How limiting is that? I could open Google right now and type "kennedy assassination" and I would get millions of pages of information on it. Not all of that information would be accurate but I could easily figure out which pages were accurate. (Although, history isn't really 100% accurate anyway because we only get certain perspectives and how different would our history books look if we had many different perspectives? We won't get into that.)

Contrarily, what do you feel is the biggest new cultural/social problem that has come 
with the internet?

Ohhh, the problems we have. Technology has made us lazy and very, very impatient. My phone dies and I have no way of looking up the thing I wanted to look up and now I'm frustrated. I'm in an area where these spotty service and that spinning dial at the top of my phone goes around and around for what seems like three hours but in reality it's three seconds. I get so frustrated with technology when it doesn't work as fast as my mind does. Shouldn't that be a thing? We're in the twenty first century. We should have speeds as fast as the mind by now. 

Rachel's Blog Post 1

1. I think one of the most positive changes the internet has brought is the ease of access to information. It's so much easier to do research online now with many databases that contain a wide range of books and articles. The internet allows us to find answers to questions almost instantaneously. This wealth of knowledge is available with just a few clicks of a mouse.
2. I believe one of the major social problems with the internet is that people are struggling to communicate face to face. It's so much easier to email or message someone on Facebook. You can delete and edit what you are going to say as many times as you want before you actually send it. Talking in person is much more difficult because once you say something, it can't be taken back. There isn't a way to edit a live conversation. People are also so involved online and in their phones that they don't even talk to each other. I think this is creating a lot of problems, especially in regards to forming lasting relationships. It's a lot easier to chill on the computer than go meet new people.

DAta DuMp - blog post 1

When I was little I had a time limit for my daily internet use. I remember waiting impatiently as the page I wanted to look at would take five minutes to load. Then I turned fifteen, got my own computer and lost the oh so useful time limit. Now the internet owns my life.

Ok not really. I go to school, have a job, all that beginning to live the American Dream stuff. But I also spend a ton of time on the internet. 

Spending time on the internet isn't necessarily a bad thing. The internet is filled with all kinds of useful(and useless) information. As long as you're careful about where your information comes from you can learn practically anything. Even how to program a computer or the basics of chemistry. 

I think the sheer amount of information available on the internet is one of the best things about this new digital age. If someone asks me something and I don't know the answer then I'll suggest they google it. The twilight zone moment of that phrase for me though is when my mom tells me to google something.

Although we can get so much information off the internet. I think a lot of times the usefulness of the internet is ignored in favor of using the internet for more useless things. which, again, isn't a bad thing. But when you get onto the internet to do something, get distracted, and then look at the clock two hours later saying "Dang It!" There internet has stopped being useful and has become a time vampire.

So, I think the best thing about the internet is the sheer amount of things you can learn a lot about on it. The worst thing about this digital age, to me at least, is the vampiric quality the internet takes. It sucks my time till I have none.  

  

Time Limit

My favorite website? It doesn't exist. And I kind of hope it never does exist because then I'd never leave. Everything in my life would be forgotten.

So I won't write here what my perfect website would look like because then someone would make it and all of my time would be wasted.  Everyone should have a time limit when it comes to digital media.

Morgan Brian

My name is Morgan Brian and my favorite website is BuzzFeed. I love the format and voice of the stories. I also love that you can find any type of story on there from the billions of posts about Beyoncé to what's going on in Ferguson right now. It's a good shmorgishborg of things to kill time reading.

Hi, I'm Rachel Fifield. I think it would be cool if there was an aquarium website that had live video feeds of all the tanks. Then it would feel like you were swimming with the marine life.

Brandon Springer Introduction

My name is Brandon Springer, and my favorite website is YouTube because of the vast amounts of easily accessible information that can be found there. I often use it to listen to music, to learn more about ideas or concepts that interest me, and just for plain old entertainment. In my experience, YouTube is a good site for watching comedy routines, listening to symphonies, learning physics from the deceased Richard Feynman, getting news from political organizations, and watching dogs greet homecoming soldiers. 

Here's a picture of a puppy...

The firth

My favorite website is ff.net. It's free, there are some surprisingly good stories, and it's a great place to practice my editing.