Halfway Done!

This week, while staying with a trend of discussion, definitely took a different turn. Learning about online dating seemed to be an eye opening experience for many people in the class. It seems that we were kind of ignorant of the topic until doing these different readings. It made me not be so naïve and judgmental of those who do choose to encourage online dating. I know in one the first discussions I said everything in today’s society seems to revolve around technology so it only makes sense that our romantic lives do as well.

One thing that EVERY single one of us needs to keep in mind if online dating is an option, are the scams we learned about. Although it seems the majority of people are in it for the right reasons, there will always be the people who are not. That is one thing we need to be very conscientious of while furthering our romantic lives.

Even though we never went into this topic, it constantly popped into my head during every single discussion I engaged in: To Catch a Predator. This show kept sparking into my mind, mainly for the reason that is was people in an online chat, looking for a romantic partner. It freaks me out knowing that there are communities specifically for men and women who are interested in underage children. Things like this need to be prohibited from the internet because too many people out there at a young age, who don’t know better are being brought into this creep world because of the internet. It just really irritates me and is encouraging me to make this the topic of my project. Something involved underage children on dating and sex websites and chats. This show also goes to prove that people can lie about who they are over the internet. The men on the other end always believe it is a 13 year old girl when realistically it is a middle aged man. You do not know who you may be dealing with and that is the scariest thing of all.

To get back on track with the topics of class, these readings also seemed to bring out people’s opinions more that last week’s topics. I do not know if it is because we seem to be a bit more comfortable in our discussions since we are now halfway through the class or if it is because everyone truly feels this way.

To elaborate on that, the discussion involving soul mates was one of these cases. I found that a trend in it seemed to be the boys including RYAN and JOEL seemed to be more convinced that a soul mate has to be someone on an intimate level, whereas the girls especially I and JENNIFER were leaning more towards the idea that it could just be someone who is a friend. It was funny to see the gender differences that occurred there and it led me to believe that it could be influenced by the different TV and movies we watch because JENNIFER and I both thought of the same example, Sex and the City. The quote we referenced here was, "Maybe our girlfriends are our soul mates and guys are just people to have fun with."

I actually like the discussions better when there is a clear separation of opinion that occurs, they seem to be more personal and it is easier to communicate back and forth. Just like JOYCE said in the beginning, as the class goes on doing 6 posts on one reading will become simpiler and the conversations will expand.

It is crazy to believe we are already half way done with the class! I am excited to see what this week and next week brings our way in terms of the discussions. I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend and enjoyed the extra day off!

Proof of Learning Week #1

To say that I thought this class would not require much effort was far from wrong. Although this class has been a bit time consuming and overwhelming in the beginning, I do have to say that I am very much interested in what we are learning about. I think that by starting this class off with the first video "How the Brain Works" was the best possible way to start the class. I was instantly drawn in when we were shown how each and every one us think in our day to day living. It really made me want to delve farther into this topic and gave me a new appreciation for science research.

From learning about the brain to technology, especially Facebook and social networking, I can truthfully say that there has not been one topic that I have not been able to relate to on a personal level, which is why I think I do not mind participating in the class discusses and doing the daily readings. Many classes that are taken throughout one's life often are consumed with the students asking, "When will I ever use this information?" and often, to be honest, we never do use it. I can see where this information and learning plays a role in my lifestyle and I love knowing what information I am obtaining, I can use in other settings. I even had my brother watch the video "How the Brain Works" and he enjoyed it as well.

The reading on Facebook that I found to be the most enlightening was "Social Capital" it made me question my social networking lifestyle as I read through it, and from reading other student's discussion posts, it is safe to say that I was not alone in my thinking. I actually went to my Facebook after I was done with the assignments for the day and removed people that I am not friends with in real life and decreased my FB friends by a drastic amount. I did the same thing with my pictures after reading the "Reputation Management" article. I was looking at my Facebook from an outsiders perspective and thought, "What would they think if they just saw my profile and had no idea who I was?" I was quick to remove some pictures and posts that would not be appropriate in a professional setting and realized I should be much more cautious and think before I post.

Like I have said in my other discussions, this one week of learning alone has put so many different thoughts into my head and made me view social networking in a different light. As it can be detrimental to our futures, it can also be so beneficial when used properly. It can form bonds in a professional aspect and truly form connections. Everyone just needs to be more aware that Facebook and other things such as Twitter are merely a fun way of communicating and should not be completely who were are as whole.

I look forward to see what the next three weeks are going to bring us in this classroom. So far I am excited about everything we have done. The beginning was confusing and a bit hard to grasp everything we were expected to do, but now as the weeks coming to an end I think that I am understanding it on a better level. It may have just been since we have to move at a faster pace than other classes and it is a different set up being that it is strictly all online.

Have a good weekend!