In todays society it is difficult to go somewhere or do anything without someone else knowing. Ever go to a clothing store and while looking at an absolutely fabulous top, glance up and see a camera recording your every move? What about this situation: You meet an old friend for lunch and proceed to tell them about an awesome vacation when suddenly the stop you and say, "Oh I saw your pictures, looks like it was a good time." With today's technology anyone can know anything about someone. Have we lost our entire sense of privacy? The answer to this question can go in many different directions.
Personally, I feel that having security cameras and other things in public places quite acceptable. Say someone were to attack a person in a dark parking garage late at night. Without the security tapes the offender may never be caught. If you have nothing to hide then why worry about it?
When it comes to Facebook, I feel that there are definitely some flaws to the system. If you choose to set your profile to private, it should stay private. The fact that some companies and employers can get onto a social webpage and see what you write is unfair. I read an article earlier about a woman who posted a facebook status and was fired for it. Is it justifiable? You be the judge.
Word of advice: Keep an eye on what you say or do, you never know who may be watching.
When I first saw this prompt, I wont lie, I felt kind of lost. It was hard for me to really pinpoint what exactly would come up in my feed simply because I am interested in so many different things. After much thought I came down to the following four things; Itunes, Philadelphia sports, clothing/shoes and Ocean City, Maryland. Yeah, it's a little random, but they all explain my personality and whats important to me.
The first product that would be advertised on my feed would be Itunes. It is no joke to anyone who is close to me that I am addicted to music. I constantly have music playing and if I don't then a song is normally stuck in my head. Music has always been one of the main things that has been able to completely calm me down or pump me up and I truly believe that there is a song for every mood. By having Itunes in my feed I'd be able to keep up with the newest artists and buy the newest songs.
Next would be all Philadelphia sports news, updates, merchandise, tickets, etc.. I grew up in Lancaster which isn't a long drive from Philadelphia so making trips there was a normal thing that occurred quite often. My whole family is really into sports so watching and going to games is really a bonding experience for all of us. I am pretty girly but take me to a game and I will scream just as loud, if not louder, than the grown men around me. My daddy taught me well, and I will be a Philly girl for life.
The next thing that would be advertised on my feed would be clothing and shoe campaigns. I love everything about shopping and putting outfits together so having stores advertise their sales would be ideal for me. I'll even go as far as saying that shopping calms me down and can make my day better. For instance, last week was super stressful and I wasn't feeling well. I went home and before coming back to school stopped at the mall and picked up a few cute staples, which instantly made me feel a little better. Yeah, yeah, I know. I'm ridiculous but hey, it works for me haha.
The final advertisement that would be on my feed would be for the the beaches in Ocean City, Maryland. For as long as I can remember my family has been going to Ocean City every year, so I have many special memories there. We were even lucky enough to get a house there a couple of years ago and ever since I have spent my my entire summers down working and relaxing with friends. To say that summer is my favorite season is an understatement, so having ads that remind me of all of the fun and exciting things I'll be partaking in this summer would be amazing.
After reading the articles that were presented to our class this week I have finally realized just how tied to technology I really am. The idea of going just one short week without my ipod or cell phone made me uneasy. Doing the challenge would be eye opening, I admit, but there is no point it me lying to myself about whether or not I would be capable of succeeding in doing it. I feel as though many people my age would be going through the same emotions. We've out grown our baby blankets, and instead, now look to our cell phones as comfort items.
Even so, I found this quote from Thoreau quite memorable:
"I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life...."
While the majority of what Thoreau said made sense, this quote seemed to hit home for me. I recently have come to the conclusion that I am not living my life to the fullest and have started to over look the small details that make life important. Maybe if I were to try to get back to what really mattered, like nature and the simple things, I would be getting more out of life. Its just a thought.
Looking at the cover of this book gives me goosebumps. While i agree that, yes, my generation has become quite obsessed with new technologies ( take a look around the quad, more than half the people you would pass walking to class would have an Ipod, cell phone, or PDA out ) I would not go as far as saying that you couldn't trust us. It's a bold statement that I am not willing to take laying down.
"those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."
- George Santayana
I am a firm believer in this statement. Our country has gone through so much change and growth over such a short amount of time, that to forget where we came from and how we got here is absurd. Without history we would be lost when it comes to making decisions about our future, whether its to make a good change, or correct a bad one. We would never have a black president without the civil rights movement and we'd be speaking a different language if we had allied with a place like Japan during WW2. When a survey is conducted and a good portion of people my age can't answer these questions correctly, it makes me have to agree with the basic premise Bauerlein is bringing to attention.
In contrast though, I do have to say that my generation has a lot going for them. Education programs around the country are using these technologies to help us better understand the information that is coming at us. By using new technology to introduce and teach America's youth it is allowing more students to become interested in new topics more than they would be if a blackboard and chalk were in front of them. The people in the following video are real students and educators opinions of how technology is helping us.
Yes, we are more inclined to 'google' something if we do not know the answer, but once we do search it we are capable to apply it to other sources of knowledge that we have acquired over time. This also ties into the idea of an "information overload" that was discussed inCulture Jam. If so much information wasn't being thrown at us at one time maybe we'd be more inclined to remember more of it? Just an idea.
I feel as though the generations above us are putting too much emphasis on what we do not know, and not enough on what we do know. Yes, saying that American Idol is more important than knowing who the speaker of the house is, is out of hand, I do believe that we are not as "dumb" as you may think. We are making positive changes in our country and have been for awhile. We are more capable of finding a cure to a rare disease than we were even 50 years ago. Without technology, and our knowledge/ "obsession" with it these advances would be dismal.
So yes, Mr. Baurelein, my generation may be oblivious to some important information, but to point the finger and say that we are dumb is out of hand. Take a look at what we can do with our knowledge instead of what we aren't doing with it.
