Online Stalking Made Easy

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            Leading up to my final blog post for The Go Blue Crew, I figured I needed to go out with a bang. Luckily, I came across the perfect topic at just the right time! It is no secret that our social lives, shopping sprees, academics and just about every other aspect of our lives today take place online. Throughout our internet explorations we leave behind an infinite amount of personal information: names, pictures, friends, hobbies, addresses, phone numbers, credit card information… You name it, and it’s most likely out there on the web. Collectively, society is becoming much more aware of the fact that universities and employers have access to all of this information about us. But it seems that people are forgetting all the other people that have access to this information. Thieves and stalkers are piecing together puzzles of who we are. We often worry about the negative portrayal we may be receiving from our online identities, but maybe the more dangerous portrayal is the accurate one. 

DJ Spooky

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            When Delia first told us we could receive extra credit for watching DJ Spooky perform and blogging about it, I thought this was perfect. Watching a DJ perform? Sounds like my Saturday night! However, upon watching DJ Spooky take the stage, I realized I was in for something quite different than what I was used to. What makes DJ Spooky so unique is his ability to combine different types of music; different genres, different generations, different instruments, you name it. He even went as far as to bring a string quartet on stage. As the string quartet played classical music, DJ Spooky began to remix the instruments with modern techno pre-recorded music.

            Something that DJ Spooky said really stood out in my mind. “The stone age didn’t end for lack of stone.” In terms of music, the evolution doesn’t come from lack of what is current, it comes from the need that people feel to progress and go further than anyone has before. He went on to say that “ideas are our most scarce resource.” He really got me thinking about the evolution of music in a more academic manner. Yes, I realized that rap was not always prevalent; but how and why did these evolutions occur?

            Being a DJ in today’s society, one would assume that DJ Spooky would have a great appreciation for the internet and technology. All of these new technologies that are available to us today just help to further evolve music and the music industry. With pre-recorded music and the ability to combine various sounds, tones and tunes there is no limit to what kind of music can be produced.

            Furthermore, DJ Spooky spoke a lot about civil rights and how music has affected politics and civil rights. The last remix that DJ Spooky played was a remix to the civil rights movement. He went on to explain how a remix like this has led to the first African American president. I don’t think it was really until this point in the lecture that I understood what exactly an academic DJ, as DJ Spooky described himself, was. There is much to be learned about the power of combining music and technology with societal issues. In fact, DJ Spooky got his name from the fact that he would walk off stage while music was still playing, which at the time when this technology was not as widely known seemed ghostly. It's amazing to see how far music has come since then, and I'm sure it will continue to evolve from here on.

Blogging about Blogs

Who knew blogging could be so much fun? Actually before I answer that question, who knew blogging was so popular? Before this class I knew about one or two fashion blogs and that was basically it. I had no idea that there were all sorts of blogs written by all sorts of people. Whether informal and friendly or professional and informative, there are all sorts of academic and non - academic blogs, enough to even create their own atmosphere. This blogosphere, which I was unaware of before entering this class, really informed me about another type of writing that I never would have experienced. In general, I thought blogging was for a specific kind of people. In other words, I did not realize that anyone at anytime could just create a blog and begin writing. It is a really cool concept isn't it? The ability to just be able to write your own opinions about any event you please? Unlike an essay that is planned out step by step with an outline, a rough draft and a finish product, blogging is in the moment which is what I find to be the most entertaining. In my opinion, each blogger's personality is shown through their posts. It creates an environment where the writers can just be themselves. Now going back to my first question about why I think blogging is so much fun...it is easy, quick, entertaining, and informative. It also contains a wide range of interactive elements for instance, most blogs have pictures, hyperlinks, videos etc.

Reflection on Blogging

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Signing up for a “new media” class, you’d think I would’ve known what I was getting myself into. When I first found out that we would be creating our own blogs, and blogging several times a week, I wondered how on earth I was going to survive this class. I had never read a blog in my life, aside from the occasional peak at Perez Hilton to keep up on all the celebrity gossip (we all have our guilty pleasures!) But since that first day of class, my views on blogging have changed completely. I now realize what a great outlet blogging can be for people who may not have the resources to write in a newspaper or publish a novel. These people, including myself, have something to say as well. Finally, there is a platform dedicated to just that.

When I first started blogging, I was a little hesitant to say the least. When everyone else started blogging they always came up with the wittiest titles for their posts. Needless to say, I’m not very skillful when it comes to the creative witty one-liners. This made me pretty nervous. I wondered how everyone seemed to already know what they were doing, while I was still trying to find my footing. It was hard for me to realize that I could discuss topics in a laid back fashion, while still coming off academic. Throughout the semester I’ve really begun to develop my own voice in the blogosphere. In doing so, I’ve realized that I don’t need to be as witty as my fellow bloggers, I can bring something different to the table. Overall, I think blogging has made me more confident as a writer. I know longer worry about what other people might think when they read my papers.

I have to say that one of my favorite aspects of blogging is not just the fact that you can create your own tone, but all of the other forms of media that you can bring in to support your claims. Only on an online source like this can you provide simple links, videos and pictures for your readers to reference easily and immediately. As I grew as a blogger I began to use more and more outside resources to my advantage and I feel that these different sources helped me to convey my point more efficiently, while still appealing to the reader on a grand scale.

I conclude that blogging is the perfect prescription for a nervous writer or even any writer just trying to get their opinions heard. There is no better platform for this than the blogosphere! 

Cross Grocery Shopping Off Mom's List

So we all know we can do almost anything that we can do in the "real world" at the comfort of our home, desk, even bed, as all we need is internet access and the world becomes our oyster. Shopping for clothes, reading books, reading the newspaper or daily news, scratching music to make new beats, shopping for music, and so much more can be done with just a few clicks of a mouse and keyboard. Well, while were at it, why don't we cross grocery shopping off a mother's list of chores? The quintessential mother has 3 main jobs, other than her own career (if she has one)- to take care of children, take care of the household (buy groceries, clean, buy furniture, etc), and to cook. To make life easier, Fresh Direct is making things easier for mothers all around New York City. They sell everything from cookies and milk to fruits and veggies. They even have prepared meals that can be sent straight to your door! Kosher? Vegetarian? no problem! Fresh Direct has solutions for everyone. And as if things couldn't get any easier, after placing an order once, Fresh Direct saves "your favorites" and remembers them for each consecutive time you order to make things go by quickly and smoothly. I have ordered from this website before, and surprisingly, the fruit is always fresh and drinks are always cold. I don't have any complaints about this website- except for the fact that if it gets too big, what will become of grocery stores and the people working in them? Will they go extinct and out of jobs?

CollegeACB: The Burn Book to a Whole new level

Can anyone guess the movie reference in the title?  Anyone?  Well its Mean Girls.  Now down to business.  College is a time when people find out who they truly are, and for anyone posted on CollegeACB.com, college is a time when students can get bashed not only behind their back, but on a forum so the entire University can see.  Its actually a great concept, creating a place where students can talk, but has taken a tail dive with recent forums titled "what aepi boys are cute? (obviously they all are)", "HOT MALE Athletes" and "Hottest Girl at Michigan".  But regardless of the topic, the one constant is bashing, mental abuse, and of course, rumors.  Back in the 90s rumors were spread the old fashioned way; word of mouth.  But now rumors are sent online, as if they weren't bad already, but now they can literally be seen by anyone.  In terms of New Media this is the rumor quadrant, simply being put that anyone can make fun of anyone.  Well the one thing for certain about collegeacb is simple, that anyone can be bashed if someone wants to take the time to write a paragraph.  

Reflection On Blogging

I'll start off by saying the semester really did fly by. I clearly remember working on creating The Go Blue Crew page, but now it's filled with tons of great blog posts by our five authors. Before I started blogging, I thought that the only people who blogged were weirdos who sat in their basement because they didn't have anything important to do with their lives. Now that I have been exposed to many different kinds of blogs, I realize that many brilliant and educated people blog. Also, not all blogs are just for fun, some are very academic and are only open to people who the authors deem fit to contribute to the conversation. I also realize that blogging is a process. You can't try to plan out your blog post or think too much, blogging is spontaneous, and that's what makes it so great. The best bloggers are people who are able to sit down and write about whatever is on their mind while hitting the backspace button as few times as possible. I find that the best blog posts I wrote, were the ones that I was most interested in writing and were edited the least. The one thing I did have to be mindful of, was not letting my blogging style of writing carry over into my academic writing. There were more than a few occasions where I was writing a paper for another course and I had to remind myself that this wasn't going up on Blogger.

In terms of how I feel about myself as a blogger, I think I have come a very long way since the beginning of the semester. Originally, I was a bit technology shy, and was afraid to insert images, hyperlinks and videos, partly because I was unsure how to do it. Now, I have many of those things embedded in all of my posts and I think it makes them far more interesting to read. I also realize that as I started to blog more frequently, I began to develop my own voice in my posts. It's becoming more clear to me what kind of blogger I am, and with each post I make, I am gaining more confidence as a contributor. In the future, I would very much welcome an opportunity to contribute to a blog, whether it be in a course at Michigan or for something else. One of the reasons that I have become confident in my blogging ability, is that in this class we blogged about topics ranging from Facebook and Google to the earthquake in Japan. This has helped shape me into a versatile blogger and an overall better writer than I was before this semester started.


Citation: http://www.sushidating.com/images/blog.JPG