Digital World, Digital Life. A world more connected. A more digital life. We are exploring the living world via the digital one.
Our
world is changing rapidly. Much of the technology we use today was
unheard of five years ago. The technology can help us connect to others
around the world within a minute.
I have read a book about the digital world that we have to learn another side.
Born Digital: Understanding the First Generation of Digital Natives
Palfrey, John, Urs Gasser write aboutthe
first generation of "Digital Natives" - children who were born into
and raised in the digital world - are coming of age, and soon our world
will be reshaped in their image. Our economy, our politics, our
culture, and even the structure of our family life will be forever
transformed.
How aware are you of your digital dossier? Watch this video and find out
The problem with the rapid growth of
digital dossiers is that the decisions about what to do about personal
information are made by those who hold the information.
Palfrey and Gasser state,
“The information is held in many different hands, and every party that
has access to it is subject to its own rules about what can be done with
it. Young people are not asked to make informed decisions about the
data collected and stored about them, and even if they were, they would
be in no position to make those decisions. Nor can they do much about
the collection of the information alter the fact. Over time, the problem
only grows”
This
passage I think they are very useful for readers. We use and connect
the world in daily life, but we don’t realize about dossiers that can be
held in the wrong hands. We access the online, such as blogs, websites,
videos, musics, and more. We use mobile phone, computer, iPod, or ITune
to connect the world. Everything we do online we put so much personal
information on the web, whether online banking or personal photos on our
blogs. The information can be compiled by web providers and hosts.
Then, they can be stored by third party. Moreover, our data can be
stolen by hackers.
Thus, we should learn how to protect our private information.
Digital
technologies are changing our kids in ways we don’t yet understand.
This beautifully written book will set the framework for a field that
will change that. It is required reading for parents, educators, and
anyone who cares about the future.
The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains by Nicholas Carr
I have read this book, and I think It is very interesting. Carr describes what the Internet is doing to our brains. As we know, Internet has become the Universal source of information for millions of people, at home, at school, and at work.
There are three key points that I have found in Chapter of The Juggler’s Brain. click here
The first key point is that the internet control our minds. We
actually are on the internet and technology at large, not only for our
news and celebrity gossip, but more importantly for the ability to
work, communicate and connect with people personally and
professionally. The challenge is controlling our feelings. It changes our feelings and our attitudes. Our minds now expects to take in information the way the Net distributes them.
Another point is that Internet changes our daily lives. We need to remember life before the Internet .Our lives were simple. However, today's kids and young people have never known. Our everyday livesare changingas theInternet grows. There are many new tools for users. We interact with one another and the worldaround us. Whatever we are looking for, we will find it. We have to accept that the Net is a part of our daily lives.
The last key point is thatInternet
changes our brains. The online world is changing the way our brains
work. The Internet is a vast and complex network of interconnected
computers. We can describe internet as knowledge work. The
rapid growth of the huge data, images, and documents from the web has
been a major factor to alter our brains. When we search information from
online, there are too many links to other links. We surf the Net with a lot of drag and drop functions. The Internet may be getting too big. Information overload? More a situation where digital technology is changing the very way we think. We gain new skills and perspectives but lose old ones.
Carr
states, “You would probably end up designing something that looks and
works a lot like the Internet. It is not just that we tend to use the
Net regularly, even obsessively. It is that the Net delivers precisely
the kind of sensory and cognitive stimuli—repetitive, intensive,
interactive, addictive—that have been shown to result in strong and
rapid alterations in brain circuits and functions." This passage I think they are very useful for users. There is a big influence of technique on our daily life.We control the technology or whether we allow it to control us. We have to adjust ourselves and add more self-control to use it. Internet
addiction disturbs the brain and damages. It likes drugs. There are
some teenagers or other users who sufferers spend unhealthy amounts of
time online to the extent that it impairs their quality of life.
My own experiences with the second point that is exactly true. Internet
changes my behavior. I know that my life is not the same. My life is
totally connected to the world. However, it is better than in the past.
“I believe all suffering is caused by ignorance,People inflict pain on others in the selfish pursuit of their happiness or satisfaction.”said Dalai Lama from Nobel Acceptance Speech in 1989.
As
we know, we are in the same world and we are all born equal. Moreover,
nobody has the right to take another’s life. There are a lot of things
that we have learned in the past such as World War I and World War II.Nothing good comes from war.World War II or the Second World War was a global conflict that was underway by 1939 and ended in 1945. During
the final stages of World War II in 1945, the Allies of World War II
conducted two atomic bombings against the cities of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki in Japan
Ms.Akiko Takakura was 20 years old when the bomb fell. She was in the bank of Hiroshima, 300 meters away from the hypocenter.
"I remember red, black and brown,
but, but, nothing else. Many people on the street were killed
almost instantly. The fingertips of those dead bodies caught fire and
the fire gradually spread over their entire bodies from their fingers.
A light gray liquid dripped down their hands, scorching their
fingers."
The atomic bombs were exploded over Japanese cities. The controversy has revolved.
The
United States military officials believed that such a massive
demonstration of U.S. military power was the only reasonable way to
force an unconditional Japanese surrender.
On
the other side, the atomic bombings took many innocent lives. And many
survivors have long suffered from the after-effects that should be the
first and last to be used in combat. read more
However, I think that the voices of testimonies are important to tell the world about world peace. Nothing good comes from war.
We cannot bring peace by anger. It is necessary to bring coolness, tolerance, and contentment.
Many people have different view of meditation. Buddhist may think about a group of monks sitting together in silence and keep on following footsteps of Buddha. What is Meditation? Why Meditation? Many people have different view of meditation. Buddhist may think about a group of monks sitting together in silence and keep on following footsteps of Buddha.
Christianmay think to use meditation to get closer to God. If you never try to it, you may still be wondering “Why meditate?
Meditationis a means of transforming the mind.
There are many things in life that are beyond our control.
We learn to turn our focus within and stop our minds jumping around.
Meditation is the way to develop wisdomand insight; we need a calm, clear and concentrated mind.
We can learn how to transform our mind from negative to positive and from disturbed to peaceful.
“Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle,
and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by
being shared,"said Buddha.
Sharing is great. "Life ends when
we stop dreaming, hope ends when we stop believing, love ends when we stop caring,
and friendship ends when we stop sharing." this proverb is also wonderful.
And " We are to be generous even to our
enemies." I have heard from a church leader.
I always believe about that. Life is sharing. When I was a child, I gave my
clothes and food to poor people. Those feelings still are on my mind. I keep continually
doing good things, and I know these are my real happiness. I never stop my
sharings. Luckily, I can expand my sharing to the world rapidly in this century.
There are several new technologies that I can use to connect the world, such as
computer, iPhone, or iPad. Then, I have spent a lot of time to learn more about
social media. MDST 485 Communicating with New Media is the great way that I
have learned how to connect the world. There are three experiences that I have
gained my knowledge from the class.
First, learning from classmates is good. Discussions in the
classroom and learning from my classmates’ blog posts help me expand my
knowledge. Participating in topics that instructor provide us are amazing.
Then, we follow to discuss the topics. For example, a story of Kony makes me
feel surprised. My classmate posted a video about Kony, and I made my comment
on his blog. After that, we shared our ideas in class. Moreover, I have learned social
media make people know Kony more. There are over 80 million viewers that watch
the video on YouTube.
Social media is
very powerful to expand the story. The technique to create the video that is
good to learn from them, such as how to make story to draw attention viewers.
Learning from others is wonderful to wide my ideas and skills.
Second, learning outside a classroom is good. Life is leaning, and learning is life.We can gain our knowledge that is not limited to
childhood or the classroom. We can learn throughout life and in a range of
situations. When I study the MDST 485, I have to search for more information from different resources. In addition, I also use my experiences from the whole of my life. I have post several blogs on the class blogspot. These are several ideas from different authors that I gather and organize them into my blog. For example, I write about Internet changes our lives.
I have to read a book and go online to search for the relevant article to support my topic.
Moreover, I have learn to create my own new media account, such as Twitter, Wiki, Blogspot, Facebook, Posterous, and more. I spend time to learn from social media, and I also share my comment to others. It is amazing to connect people around the world.
Life outside the classroom never ends. I have learn from real world. Life is not always smooth. I have learned more from my mistakes than my
success. “Without pain, we would not
have compassion, without death, we could never have life.” I have found this passage from other blog. I keep reading and learning other blogs that make me to improve my skills. Learning from the outside is amazing.
Last, it is great opportunity to get involved with people. My group project assignment make me learn from real world. I have to interview many Hmong people.
They have different culture from my country. When I interview them that make me understand and know more about Hmong lifestyle
I
also went to their community, such as Hmong American Partnership, Hmong Village, and Hmong Farmer Market. Those experiences make me encourage meeting people. I can share my
opinion to others. Relationship never ends with sharing.
Finally, learning MDST 485 help I gain knowledge.
I have improved my skills from the class discussions, other online resources,
and people. I feel brave to connect the world with new media. In addition, I
have plan for my bright future to involve with Hmong community and others. My
learning never ends. Life is sharing
