Week 8: Iminent Future

Week 8: The Future of Technology

Dear future chilens,

Assuming you are not all dead, Hey. Lets see here, Technology is bad. It is mind control as seen in the covered-up Walter vs.Timothy case of 2034. Here in the past-present, people lock up themselves up and live. I swear, just yesterday I saw 12 people wrapped in heavy chains, locks and straight jackets. Anyway the heavy technology swing of 2026, is what finally trapped everyone in a worse wormhole than we past-presently are. Yup, I said it.

Assignment, http://www.pewinternet.org/fact-sheets/mobile-technology-fact-sheet/. Alright, done. This link tells you where we are in the past-present. Not enough words? Hmm. Okay… hi. History: I had to share a computer with my family until high school where I was given a poor-in-quality Chromebook. I did not receive a phone until after 8th grade. It was and is  Samsung Intensity 3…  I have no clue what my future holds, but I look forward to it. Whatever I end up doing will probably have some aspect of technology… or not. For now I will live day by day in my own wormhole with my drugs (medical), chocolate chip eggo waffles, my uke, my deck of cards and the hopeless life I live. And a lifetime supply of Coca-cola. 115 words.

I wrote a story here. It was good. It was 500+ words. But it… I… I’ll put it up elsewhere. Okay, It is under sites. over -----------------------> there under the fishes.

Dear future self,

Remember when you hated technology. And still do when you wrote this. Alright, before I start, you were stupid. People told you that you were smart but honestly a grade is just a number on the page. But as far as anyone cares, that number is like a stamp on the forehead that says smart-donkey or idiot. You don’t need a high GPA to run and manage a green and/or yellow apple orchard. Hey, how bout that wormhole? yeah. Swell. huh? Okay onto the cliche part. Technology has had a great impact on our life and will continue to do so for some time.

STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. We can from a line of engineers. if you don’t turn out to be one… I will be surprised but happy. You know what will happen. Our dream is STEM related though, in a lot of ways. It is like one of the most advanced of STEM, combining all to create a turning point in human history. But thanks to the government, that dream will never actually be realized. so… that wormhole.

Actual Information:

A STEM career is any career relating to technology, mathematics, engineering or science in any way. STEM careers include medical, finance and business, art and design, military, engineering, and education. STEM careers make up more than 20% of the workforce.

Link:

Week 7: Cyberbullying

Week 7: Digital Relationships and Respect.

Dear random person on the internet that is being bullied online, 1. Ignore it. 2. if it can’t be ignored, tell an adult. 3. If you are too scared to tell an adult, don’t go and get depressed and contemplate cutting or suicide, I mean come on.

-PleasentPeasent

My siblings, when I asked them is they had any advice for next school year, told me that i had to be careful what I said because what I might think is okay to say, might not come out that way. I have accepted the fact that I’m brutally honest with people. Sometimes I’ll catch myself, but most times I’ll notice after. I will pretend to be strong and pretend that I don’t care when, honestly, “the worst part about being strong is that no one asks if you are okay.”

Ichi: Ignoring It. This is the easiest thing to do. Close the computer, don’t go to that social media site for awhile, block the source, watch anime instead, move the emails to a different file… Anything that will distract you from it and help you focus on what is important. If it travels into your interactions at school or around town, play dumb. All the person wants is a reaction. So to Trent and Maya, if you hate eachother that much, just be quiet and keep it to yourself. We get it, you’re both annoying and have different goals in life. Alright? cool. (I will be available to be bullied at any time! Preferably through email. I don’t really go on facebook all that much.)

Ni: Tell an Adult. Okay, so you can’t ignore it any more, maybe there is just so much that throwing your computer out the window is the solution. Fine, but your parents bought that computer for you and you need to ask permission first. Two things could happen (at least in my house). One: they tell you to open the window first so they don’t have to pay for a new computer and a replacement window. Or Two: they will ask why. If they ask why, you would explain how you’re being bullied. Then being the parents that wield authority, they will fix the problem for you. Soon the problem is fixed and you are happy, your parents are happy that you are happy, and the bully is sad and angry that you are happy. And you only had to talk to your parents.

San: Depression and Death. For some reason you are scared to tell anyone. You think, but if I tell my parents then <bully> will think I’m a wimp. Well my friend, if you can’t (wo)man up, you don’t deserve to be happy. <bully> is right. … (ow!, stop pulling on my ear! fine, I’ll fix it!) Well my friend, (cliche) you are beautiful. That bully doesn’t know what they are talking about. You are much better than them and doing that would prove otherwise.

Link:

Week 6: Piracy, Copyright and Fair use

Week 6: Creating Multimedia Products

Videos are a pain. Especially on the chromebook. This thing is so restricting. The presentation software is limiting, as is Google sites and all of google. Don’t get me wrong, Google has opened large, heavy and rusted-closed doors. Maybe it is because of the School’s restrictions, but that won’t change anytime soon. Anyway, there will not be a video because, one: Wevideo stinks and two: I don’t have the patience nor do i have the time. I tried. I got frustrated. I gave up. It is the cycle of the teenager. Hahaha. “But don’t you have another computer or couldn't you have just shot it on your Iphone.” No Steve, because being the middle child, you don’t get the nice computer, your brother has it and he is playing minecraft. And the other one, is with my sister and she’s watching her TV shows. Me… I’m stuck with the Chromebook. Anyway, no video.

Okay, onto the topic at hand: Copyright. “Copyright is a set of exclusive legal rights to reproduce, publish, sell, or distribute something tangible (ideas don’t count). Almost anything can be copyrighted. Having something copyrighted means that others must ask permission to reproduce, publish, sell, or distribute said copyrighted thing. Intellectual property is property that derives from the work of the mind. Copyright is established as soon as the work is created. Permission need to be granted before someone else reproduces, publishes, sells, or distributes the work.” (Ignition Module 6) Copyright is the reason you can’t find some anime on a certain cite or that videos like the AOT OVA2 were taken down from youtube but you’re lucky because you saw it before it was taken down.

Lesson from last week: Steal all you want as long as you cite it. Lesson from this week: Be a teacher, steal all you want. Another part of Copyright is Fair use. “Fair use is an exception to copyright. it supports freedom of speech and new creations. There are four main types of Fair usage. First with news reporting, crediting your sources is necessary to use copyrighted material when reporting news. Secondly for educational use, using copyrighted materials for school projects and citing sources. Third is for critical commentary, the process of using copyrighted material to try to prove a point. Lastly in terms of a parody or the imitation of material to create something new.” (ignition Module 6).

A Link: http://creativecommons.org/
Another link: http://www.copyright.gov/

Oh Joy.

Week 5: Internet Resources and Credibility

Week 5: Credibility and Citations

As a private school student there are things that we must do that public school students don’t. At first you don’t realize it because us private school students are used to it. We are used to the work, being stereotyped as rich, and being smart donkeys. Cheating is wrong. We are taught this from an early age. Don’t do this, don’t do that. And we do as we are told. We are scared to take risks, scared to go against the rules, scared to stand up to authority for fear of punishment. We cry a single demerit. The mass majority of us fit the model. God damn it. (private schools themselves are great though. please don’t punish me… SEE WHAT I MEAN!? )

Anyway, what does this have to do with this week’s topic of credibility and citation? Easy. 1. If you don’t use a credible source you’ll look stupid. (think of your reputation of being smart man). 2. If you plagiarize you will end up crying your heart out at being suspended, expelled or other (courtesy of the Honor Code Council) And finally 3., if you don’t cite where you got the information (really bad example, you peasant) [gosh, way to be mean] you could end up in a lawsuit.

(“Okay… so now what?“) [“Well my friend, If you payed attention to this week’s assignment page: ‘create a guide for others about finding and using credible sources’ (MDL Week 5).”] (“But like you said in the paragraph above, ‘We are taught this from an early age.’ (PleasentPeasent). I already know this.”) [“Look here you, Let me just remind you then.”] (“Why?”) [“ugh! For the grade of course, look at how many lines we've already wasted. God they probably think I’m a weirdo.”] (“Who?”) [“The other people in this course who care enough to read to this point in the blog post. *points at reader*”] (“Oh wow, *waves* Hi, have you heard the music at the top of the blog yet? No? What a shame! The writer is lonely and wanted to make the play list for you.”) [“Dude!?”] (“What!?... Look, at least you cited your sources earlier in this paragraph.”) … -_-

In the order to use internet sources. “Make sure the website is well maintained and current. If the url has a domain of .biz, .net, or .org, it doesn't mean you need to do do more digging. Check out the author’s bio -- make sure he or she is an expert in the field. If the author is biased for or against something, tread carefully. You don’t want to be stating opinions as facts.” (Words to live by, by Ignition module 5). For example, if you wanted to use this website for some reason. Step 1: The website is well maintained and updated at least once a week. Step 2: .com is sketchy. Step 3: this site is just managed by a high school blogger. (“HaHaHa, this person looks stupid and emotionally unstable.”) [“Hey!”] Step 4: the first paragraph… yeah… no.

If the site matched up to the criteria, feel free to use it. But don’t copy and paste, because that would be plagiarizing. Instead there are two things you can do. First you can use a direct quote. This means that you copy and paste the information, use quotation marks and give a citation after it. This mean that you copy and paste, put it in quotation marks and then at the citation to the end of it. Secondly, you can paraphrase. Paraphrasing means that you rewrite what the author said and then cite where you got the information. The most important part of this is that you add a citation to the bottom of the paper or photo. The citation tells where you got the information from. The citation, which usually appears at the bottom of the paper, tells the name of the source and the author that you got the information form. An easy way to get this is by using a tool called www.easybib.com. The reader, or in your case, teacher will be able to see where you got the information from and usually trust the student, especially if it is a private school, that the sources are safe and legitimate.

Dear grader: This post is over 750 words. Out of all the randomness, there is more than 325 words of actual information in the last two paragraphs. Count them.  Most all the information was found on Ignition and I consider Ignition a tool or aid in the class. Gomennasai! Peace! Bye.

A website:

Week 4: Viruses and Internet Security

Week 4: The Viral World.

There are three main types  of viruses. There are Viruses, worms and trojans. Viruses can come onto the computer though downloads of any kind or through a flash drive. These viruses can disrupt the normal working capacity of the computer or could delete files and the hard drive. Trojans usually come onto the computer in the form of local storage and cookies. These trojans can send your information out to companies and possibly criminals. Trojans are the cause of most spam emails and, when you look at a product online for example, the related ads on other webpages. And finally, the worms. These so called worms are the hardest to catch and the easiest to get. The worm, instead of clicking a link or downloading something, results from just being on the internet. All three can cause havoc and can lead to serious problems. How to avoid them? Don't click suspicious links or downloads. Update your software. Never turn on your computer. or throw your computer out the window, after opening your window so you don’t have to pay extra for breaking the window and the computer, while shouting “Izaya! I thought I told you to stay out of Ikebukero!”. [Get it? Throwing appliances? No? Okay. :(

Like last week, it only takes one person to share something for it to possible spread like wild fire. The same thing can happen with viruses and all information in general. Because of this, anyone who creates anything to go on the web or sent to someone. Once something is published or sent, there is no way to delete it or take it off the internet. This is especially important with social media sites. If someone were to hack your account they would have access to a great deal of information and this could lead to identity theft. Once again another reason to get rid of all technology and go out and live in the Italian countryside farming and drinking wine with no distractions

A game: http://www2.b3ta.com/realistic-internet-simulator/

Week 3: The Viral News

Week 3: Wireless Communication

A guy ran his Car into a Chick-Fil-A on Jefferson today (5/10/14). I was in that area and I was wondering why there were a bunch of fire trucks surrounding the Chick-Fil-A. But we went about our business, went to the patrick henry mall, got… Chick-Fil-A, went to the car in the pouring rain and witnessed a car smash into another 50 feet away and when pulling out. Anyway… Wireless Communication and the Viral Internet.

The question of how to get a video to go viral is hard to answer. First of what does it mean to go viral? "Going Viral," comes from "The Selfish Gene" by Richard Dawkin, in which he outlines the meme as it is understood today. In "The Selfish Gene", Dawkin says that memes are "cultural constructs that act like viruses, moving from one person to the next, replicating itself in a means to expand the culture from which is was created." So, in other words, if something goes viral, it has reach meme statues, and is now acting like a cultural virus. How does this "virus" spread? Usually someone famous. But in general one person shares the item whether it be a video (Double Rainbow), song (Pink Fluffy Unicorns), or story (A Guy Crashed into the Chick-Fil-A on Jefferson). If someone did not tweet that someone crashed into the place, I would never had known what had happened. Also if no one had phoned 911, the amber-lamps would not have come to the car crash within 3 minutes of the event.

Using technology to share these incidents benefits the community. These events won't go viral, but they are examples of how something goes viral. One person shares with another, that person shares it with others, those people share it with more and those people share it with even more people… and so on. Soon there is a community that shares this inside joke or something in common. There are plenty of these communities out there in the world and on the web. The shared goals and interests of these people can create close-knit friends and can lead to amazing things. An example: http://thenicestplaceontheinter.net/. The internet is a place that can bring people together.

Every second on the internet: http://onesecond.designly.com/

An Infographic: http://digitalbuzz.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/A-Day-In-The-Internet.jp

Week 2: Computers in the Future

Week 2: Choosing a Computer and Cloud Computing.

Cloud computing is the online storage of files, documents and other things in online databases that can be accessed anywhere on any computer. There is no longer a need for saving the file because it is backed up in the cloud. Using the cloud is cost effective and the data storage is now unlimited. Although there can be security issues and other technical difficulties, cloud is an easy way to collaborate and save files. With the creation of one of the first cloud service providers, Salesforce.com, the use of cloud computing soon became popular. The most popular platform of cloud computing today is Google. With the drive, gmail, maps, chrome and millions of integrated apps digital literacy has never been easier.

Computers and technology in general has greatly improved in the last century and will continue to do so for years to come. There has been a rise in the popularity of touch screens, detachable PCs and two in one tablet computers. Soon there will no longer be a need for mice at all with the the developing technology of gesture and eye control as used in some phones and the Xbox Kinect. Forget about all your worries and your strife because the bare necessities are some of the first features to be updated and improved on in the upcoming devices. Better resolution and the speed of the processor will be some of the first things to be developed. The battery life of any device will become extensive and the future batteries will last all day. Still the Wi-Fi speeds will become faster, faster and faster still. Technology, not just computers, will always be enhanced and added to in order to complete simple tasks better and hard tasks easier. Whether it be leisure or work related, technology will never stop growing and being improved upon.The video below gives an outlook on the future of technology and the people involved talk about gaming with virtual reality, human and computer connection, new open source software, improvements of CPU, the cloud, and they even mention the Holodeck.

A website: http://ces.cnet.com/

Another website and a Hour long Video: http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2014/01/06/we-geeks-takes-look-future-computing