See Both Sides: Legalizing Marijuana for Recreational Use

On the issue of legalizing marijuana for recreational use, Coby and I do have some common ground. There are likely to be significant monetary savings should marijuana become legal, along with ample opportunity for revenue to be earned. If all the prisoners currently incarcerated for non-violent marijuana crimes were released, an average of $32,000 per prisoner per year would be saved. In addition to the money saved by releasing non-violent offenders, another $7+ billion could be saved in policing and prosecuting these offenders. After the cost savings, one also must look at the income that could be earned by taxing marijuana sales, just as alcohol and cigarettes are taxed. An estimated $6+ billion a year can be earned this way. This money would not just be divided amongst states that have legalized pot but also would aid the federal government. We both agree that non-violent offenders caught possessing small amounts of marijuana do not belong in our prisons and jails. The United States has 5% of the world's population but 25% of the world's prisoners. This increase in the prison population began in the 1970's when the war on drugs began in earnest. Also, it has been noted that these non-violent offenders are more likely to become violent offenders after being imprisoned. We also agree that there are no compelling studies that indicate marijuana is a dangerous drug. Alcohol and cigarettes are far more likely to cause both long-term health issues and death. There is no evidence that marijuana causes cancer and no documented cases of a marijuana overdose. These facts come from SaferChoice.

We feel like people on both sides of this issue can find common ground by accepting that ultimately marijuana use is a personal choice. We don't have to agree with the choice to use, just like many people don't agree with smoking cigarettes, but we don't condemn smokers for making that choice, as long as they are not endangering us or our families. Marijuana use, if legalized, will still be about individuals using in the privacy of their own homes, and laws for driving while intoxicated will be just as strict as they are with alcohol. Second-hand smoke from marijuana is a concern, but the current proposed laws call for private use only. It will likely be many years before public use of marijuana is considered.

3D Game Lab

I thoroughly enjoyed working with 3D Game Lab. Prior to taking this class, I had never heard of the concept of gamifying education and certainly would never have thought of the concept on my own. I agree, though, that changes are necessary in the education system. 3D Game Lab seems to be a great start.

I enjoyed the verbiage within the system, although I could see less dorky classmates not agreeing that the Star Wars references were “cool”. I posted on Facebook as soon as I became a Jedi Knight and can’t wait to post when I reach Yoda. I also enjoyed getting to make my own decisions about what, if any, mastery quests to complete, and the possibility of earning badges by going above and beyond what was expected. One idea, though, would be to give examples for some of the badges, like the Ansel Adams. What do you consider a great use of images? Examples of student’s work when they earned those badges would be great. Being able to get feedback directly related to the quests submitted and in a timely manner was helpful as was having the opportunity to view other classmate’s work (by requiring us to post to our blogs). I thought the group “report-card” was a great idea. I found myself not just competing to get an A but also trying to stay at the front of the pack. I actually referred on occasion to classmates as competitors, which my boyfriend thought was hilarious.

As far as the technology side of things, there only seemed to be a few small glitches from time to time and those were all readily resolved. Normally, I would never choose to take an on-line class because I have found I don’t have the self discipline to stay on top of the assignments. But this blend of on-line and classroom really worked. I can’t say I’m thrilled about spending so much time in front of the computer; I’m actually a bit of a techno-phobe. But I think what I learned was invaluable in terms of staying on top of the latest fads and trends and I feel like I won’t be quite as clueless when I have kids of my own and this is a part of their daily lives.

I am a member of a local gaming group, through meetup.com and I have a working relationship with the owners of a local gaming store, Game On! I have found myself talking to the owners about 3D Game Lab and to other members of my group. Everyone I have mentioned it to hadn’t heard of the concept before but agreed it was a fantastic idea.

The Believing Game: Gun Control

I believe in gun control; not removing all guns from all people but certainly more stringent laws than are in place in many states. So for this exercise I am going to (try to) speak from the perspective of an NRA-card carrying member who believes foremost in the right to bear arms.


The worldview that underlies this belief is that of American superiority and the inalienable individual rights that come with being an American. This is most often linked back to the foundations of our nation, including, but not limited to, the Constitution and Bill of Rights. By holding this worldview, I believe that the government can not infringe on most individual rights including the right to bear arms. As a result, I am more likely to notice what is going on in politics, especially any challenges to the Constitution or Bill of Rights and I am more likely to vote for politicians who share my worldview. This is helpful because I believe I am ensuring the rights bestowed by our forefathers for future generations. Also, I tend to be more involved in politics and am more likely to vote because I am very passionate about preserving my rights. I want to ensure every law-abiding citizen that wants to can carry a weapon, and a concealed weapon at that, for personal protection. Gun control proponents say they want to keep guns out of the hands of criminals but I believe they want to take guns away from everyone and make it impossible for us to protect ourselves and our families. I will do everything in my power to ensure that doesn’t happen for it would destroy what this country is about.

As a card-carrying member of the NRA, I also have a large knowledge of guns and enjoy shooting, for hunting and/or recreation. This knowledge of guns allows me to be more likely to identify when someone around me is carrying, what type of gun they are carrying, and whether or not they are obeying the carry laws of the locale we are in. This knowledge can be helpful in protecting myself and my loved ones from any possible outside threats. If necessary, the fact that I am always carrying a gun will ensure I can act in self-defense or in the defense of my family.

This worldview is true in the sense that we are the only nation that was founded on the principles of democracy…government of the people, by the people, and for the people. Our Constitution and Bill of Rights are documents designed to protect a host of individual freedoms. Philosophers and men of learning have said for thousands of years that self-defense is a basic right of life and that without the ability to defend ourselves, we are not truly able to live as free men. If that is true, than my right to bear arms can not be infringed upon by any man or government.


I used a few different sources to help me understand the point of view of NRA members a little better. They are:
“Battleground America”; The New Yorker
The NRA's website
"The Second Amendment and the Ideology of Self-Protection"; Constitutional Commentary

Unpopular Culture: Portion Sizes in Restaurants

For this assignment, I tried to think of an aspect of popular culture that reflects negatively on most of us, not just certain demographics. Being that the majority of Americans eat at both chain restaurants and fast-food restaurants I decided to look at the impact of portion sizes on our health, and more specifically relating to the obesity epidemic. First, I'd like to establish that this is a problem. More than 80% of Americans eat outside of the home at least once a week. The number of restaurants in America increased by 75% between 1977 and 1991. According to the U.S. Surgeon General in 2003, our country is facing an obesity epidemic. In that year, nearly two out of every three Americans were overweight or obese and over 300,000 Americans died that year from illnesses related to being overweight or obese. Since the 1960's the number of obese children has tripled. There is overwhelming evidence that portion sizes in restaurants are, in part, to blame.

Beginning with the CDC there have been studies that show Americans are incapable of determining variances in portion size. They found that the more food we are presented with, the more we eat, often without being aware the portion size changed or that the amount of food we ate changed. This lack of awareness surrounding portion sizes ensures we eat more food and therefore consume more calories when presented with larger portions. And restaurants are presenting Americans with larger and larger portions.
- The average restaurant meal has up to 4 times as many calories as a meal made at home.
- In 1950, the average fast food burger was 2.8 ounces and 202 calories. That same burger in 2004 was 4.3 ounces and 310 calories (see image, "The New (Ab)Normal".

- A pasta portion in the 1950's was 1.5 cups. In 2004 it varied from 3 to 5 cups.

Americans also tend to mix up portion size with serving size. Serving size is the dietary guidelines for the amount of food that should be consumed in one meal. Portion size is the amount of food served to you by a restaurant or the amount provided in a container. We tend to assume the portion size is equivalent to a serving size but this is far from true. A study found that "A whopping 96% of America's chain restaurant entrees fell outside the range of the USDA's recommendations for fat, saturated fat, and sodium per meal...". Those recommendations are, per meal: 676 calories, 32 grams (g) of fat with no more than 12 g of that being saturated fat, and no more than 767 milligrams (mg) of sodium. Let's take a look at actual restaurant entrees.

While most cities provide hundreds, if not thousands of dining options, let's focus on the most popular restaurant chains. According to Forbes Magazine, in 2011 the most popular restaurant chains were (in order) The Cheesecake Factory, Texas Roadhouse, Olive Garden, P.F. Chang's, and Carraba's Italian Grill. The Cheesecake Factory offers a dish called pasta carbonara with chicken. This meal consists of 2,290 calories (more than a whole day's worth), 81 g of saturated fat, and 1,630 mg of sodium. Texas Roadhouse offers a 12 oz. prime rib with 1034 calories and 89 g of fat. Olive Garden has on their menu a Tour of Italy. This tour will cost you 1490 calories, 74 g of fat, 33 g saturated fat, and 3,830 mg of sodium. P.F. Chang's Crispy Honey Chicken has 1,180 calories, 30 g of fat, and 1,210 mg of sodium. And that's a lunch portion. Think a salad is a better way to go? Not at Carraba's Italian Grill. Their Insalata Johnny Roco seems good with 320 calories and 14 g of fat. But this salad contains 1800 mg of sodium, more than the TOTAL recommended daily amount.

Some Americans would argue that increased portion sizes don't matter all that much. But just an extra 10 calories per day can equal a pound of weight gain in a year. Make that 100 extra calories per day and that's 10 pounds od weight gain in a year. Looking at the extra portion sizes this way makes it clear the impact portion size has on the overall obesity rate.

Movie Poster Comparison: Sabrina

One of my favorite movies of all time is Sabrina. The original was made in 1954 and starred Audrey Hepburn, Humphrey Bogart, and William Holden. The remake was made in 1995 and starred Julia Ormond, Harrison Ford, and Greg Kinnear. I enjoyed both versions of the film, although the newer one more than the original. Below you will find posters from each movie and my interpretation of them.

1954

In this movie poster, the first thing you notice are the pictures of the stars. The second thing you notice are the names of the stars. The title is given the same billing as the star's names telling me that they considered the stars to be just as important as people recognizing the name of the movie (it was previously made as a play). This was only Audrey Hepburn's second Hollywood movie but she earned an Academy Award for her first movie, Roman Holiday in 1951. Humphrey Bogart was established as a huge star in the 1940's after starring in The Maltese Falcon followed by Casablanca. Bogart was near the end of his career when he made Sabrina, but was still a big star as evidenced by his Academy Award win in 1951. As for William Holden, his breakthrough film came in 1950 with Sunset Boulevard for which he was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor. He didn't win that year, but did in 1953 for Stalag 17. The thing I like most about this poster is the play between the pictures of the stars. Humphrey Bogart is watching Sabrina, with the New York skyline in the background showing us that's where he "belongs". He is also seen holding a ream of papers, thereby emphasizing his role as businessman in the film. Sabrina, meanwhile, is looking at William Holden, setting us up with the information that she is more interested in him. William Holden is seen looking back at Sabrina but his playboy status is clear as he sits in a convertible and you can see his mansion in the background. The other thing I find interesting is that Humphrey Bogart is shown smoking a cigarette so we can see how socially acceptable smoking was at that time in history. According to the National Cancer Institute, at the beginning of the 1950's "...the practice of cigarette smoking enjoyed nearly universal acceptance and widespread social appeal...". One could even say it was meant to make Bogart's character look distinguished and important. I also found it interesting how bright the colors in the poster are considering the movie was filmed in black-and-white. I think the studio used the bright colors to bring attention to the poster, but more specifically the beauty of Hepburn's dress and the similar color employed in Holden's suit, again leading us to see them as a pair over Bogart's blue suit.

1995

The remake movie poster is drastically different from the original in several significant ways. First of all, Harrison Ford is the only actor we can actually identify. And his name is the first we see at the top of the poster. The poster is dominated by the hidden profile of a woman, though, whom we can assume is Sabrina but who is meant to be shrouded in mystery. We see at the top of the poster Julia Ormond's name next to Harrison Ford's so although we can not identify the woman on the poster, one can assume it is Ormond's face we see. Greg Kinnear, who plays the third actor in the famous love triangle does not appear anywhere on the poster, and his name is only seen in much smaller type buried in the middle of a bunch of credits. The layout of the actors and their names goes to show the popularity of those actors at the time the movie was made. Harrison Ford took the role in Sabrina in the middle of a long line of successful films, among them the Indiana Jones series, Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger, The Fugitive and Air Force One. In 1997, Ford was named #1 in Empire's "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time". At the time Sabrina was made, Julia Ormond had only made one highly successful film and that was in a supporting role in Legends of the Fall. So while she was clearly the star of Sabrina, she wasn't known anywhere near as well as Ford. She is given equal billing on the poster, though, leading me to believe that the producers of the film knew she was going to steal the show. Greg Kinnear had only made one big film at the time of Sabrina, called Blankman, and it was not a commercial success. The fact that his name is buried in the credits goes to show that most people wouldn't have recognized his name as an actor but also that in this production of the film the producers wished to emphasize the relationship between Ormond's and Ford's characters. This is also emphasized by the text on the poster, "You are cordially invited to the most surprising merger of the year", telling viewers that there is going to be a merger and by the position of the characters on the poster, one would assume it is between Ford's character and the mysterious woman. The font and colors used on the poster I think are meant to focus our attention on the relationship of the characters and the mystery surrounding the female lead's character, as they are simple and almost mono-chromatic. And Ford's character is displayed quite differently than Bogart's was. Instead of being shown in a business suit in the city, he is shown wearing a tux and the wry smile Linus Larrabee's character was so well known for. This tells me that producers wanted audiences to focus on the "distinguished air" of the character and less on the ruthless businessman.

Everybody Googles

The next assignment for my Humanities class was to find using Google four images of documents and identify them.

1) Image:

The first search string I tried was "February 26, 1939 daughters of the american revolution mrs. roberts". The very first search string returned several hits on this document. The first link was from The National Archives. It identified this letter as being sent by Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt to protest the DAR's decision to not allow Marian Anderson to perform in concert at Constitution Hall in Washington D.C. At the time of their decision, Constitution Hall was segregated (as was Washington D.C.) and an African American had never performed on it's stage. The National Archives is a credible source as it is a U.S. Government web site and this document belonged to the wife of a U.S. President. In my opinion, the most credible source was the second site that came up on this search. The second site was the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library and Museum. I believe this is the most credible source as the letter came directly from the files of Mrs. Roosevelt.

2) Image:

The first search string I tried was "background map newark, nj little rock, ar four jailed". The very first search string returned one hit on this document and several unrelated documents. The first link was from the Virginia Library. It identified this document as being a Freedom Riders Map from 1961. This map showed the routes the Freedom Riders took and where violence occurred. The map was produced for syndication in newspapers around the country. The Library of Virginia is a credible source as it is a Government web site and they got the document from the Library of Congress. In my opinion, the most credible source is the Library of Congress.

3) Image:

The first search string I tried was "city of montgomery police department 12-1-55". The very first search string returned many hits on this document. The first link was from the web site Historical Thinking Matters. It identified this document as being the police report officers filed when arresting Rosa Parks for riding in the front of the bus. The bus driver was the complainant. This web site was created as a teaching aid for high school students. Its intent is to teach students to review documents using critical thinking. This web site is most likely a credible source because they list their sources and have received an award for excellence in education. In my opinion, the most credible source is the National Archives but they were the 17th web site returned for this search.

4) Image:

The first search string I tried was "roll call eighty-eighth congress house of representatives february 10, 1964 passed 290-130". The very first search string returned many hits on this document. The first link was from the web site Congress Link which is a teaching resource about Congress. It identified the date and roll call as pertaining to the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Act was passed by The House of Representatives with a majority 290 - 130 vote. This matches the information on the document although the web site did not have an actual link to the document. This web site is most likely a credible source because they list their sources and are supported by a non-profit educational institution, the Dirksen Center. and have received an award for excellence in education. I don't believe they are the MOST credible site though, in part because they didn't have an actual copy of the document. I didn't like any of the other web sites that came up on this search so using the new information I found, I searched again. This time I used the search terms "civil rights act roll call house of representatives february 10, 1964 passed 290-130". The first web site returned was Wikipedia and they did have a copy of this document. But they didn't cite where they got it from. They did have a link about the House Clerk who is the records keeper of all the roll calls. That link led me to the official web site for the House Clerk. The House Clerk is responsible for maintaining records of all roll calls of the House, but they only keep a few years directly on their web site. The rest are sent to the National Archives. It is here that I finally found the document.

Lovemarks: Coca-Cola

I completed the lovemarks quest using Glogster. You can click here to link or the poster is embedded below (the formatting is poor, though).

Now and Then

I interviewed Marsia Weeks who was my age in 1995. I put my findings in Voicethread, which you can view by clicking here.

We're All Doomed! 2: The Barbie Effect

I did the second part of this assignment on Cherice's opinion piece, "The Barbie Effect". The writer is writing an opinion but states a lot of the information as facts. I questioned if she had done her research which is why I selected this article. She got some of it right, but some of it wrong. Below is a breakdown of some of the main "facts":
Barbie Statistics:
- 6’ tall, 100 lbs., size 39-19-33.
According to the South Shore Eating Disorder Collaborative, who built the first ever “Real-Life Barbie”, she would be 5’9”, weigh 110 lbs. and measure 39-18-33.
- Average girl from age 3 – 11 owns at least 10 Barbie dolls and spends hours playing with them and dressing them up.
The information I found indicated Barbie’s are most commonly owned by girls 4 – 12 and that they will own an average of 7 in that time.
- In 1965, Slumber Party Barbie debuted with a scale set at 110 lbs, a book titled “How to Lose Weight” with the contents of “Don’t eat”, caused sales of Barbie to drop dramatically.
According to the New York Times, sales of Barbie began dropping in the early 1960’s and stayed low through the 1990’s. This Slumber Party Barbie was only part of the problem.

Eating Disorder Statistics:
- 8 million Americans have an eating disorder.
From the South Carolina Department of Mental Health. The National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders states that up to 24 million Americans have an eating disorder.
- 10 – 15% of them are men.
Also from the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders.
- 80% of females are under the age of 20.
I could not find this exact statistic, but according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration 90% are women between the ages of 12 and 25.
- Admitted they started worrying about their weight between the ages of 4 and 6.
I could not find this statistic, but according to the National Eating Disorders Association 42% of girls in first through third grade want to be thinner.
- Admitted Barbie played a huge role on their influence of behavior and looks.
I could only find one study done on a direct effect between Barbie and body image. The study results showed that young girls between the ages of 5 - 8 had lower body esteem after viewing pics of Barbies than girls who viewed pics of an Emme doll (size 16) and those who viewed no dolls.

People Want to “Be Like Barbie”:
- Have spent millions of dollars making their home like the Barbie dreamhouse.
I couldn’t find any stories on Google of people who had spent any money on a “real-life” version of the Dreamhouse but there is an architect in CA who was hired by Mattel to make the Barbie Dreamhouse, and it’s in Malibu. There are also hotels and spas around the world that have Barbie themed rooms.
- Sarah Burge spent over one million dollars to achieve the Barbie look.
Wikipedia states Sarah spent over 250,000 pounds, although some of it was to correct disfigurement after a vicious attack by an ex-boyfriend. According to the Mirror, a British magazine, Sarah hasn't paid for most of the surgeries.
I was really glad I did the research because, like I said before, I questioned whether or not the author's stated facts could be backed up with hard data. Her statistics involving numbers did come from somewhere, although they were in fact low but a lot of her statements about meaning and motivation couldn't be corroborated. This exercise has led me to a) be more careful about what I believe when reading opinion pieces and b) wish that the author had cited the resources she used to come up with this information.

Find Your Tweeps

For my next homework assignment for Humanities 101, I needed to find two experts in a field I am interested in and follow them on Twitter. I am interested in a lot of different things so I was having a hard time narrowing down what to search for. But then I decided to use the class as a starting point and that led me to think of Philip Zimbardo. Zimbardo is the psychologist who gave the TED talk, “The Demise of Guys?” and co-wrote a book by the same name. I am interested in following Zimbardo (@PhilZimbardo) because the information he shared in his talk really spoke to me. I believe he put a lot of thought into his ideas and did quite a bit of research, as well. For another assignment, I looked into Zimbardo’s research and I found most of it came from extremely reputable sources. Zimbardo himself could be thought of as a highly reputable source. He is Professor Emeritus of Psychology at Stanford University, has been the President of the Western Psychological Association and President of the American Psychological Association. He also has taught at Yale, Columbia, and NYU, has received many awards, and hosted a television show on PBS titled “Discovering Psychology”.

The second expert I decided to follow isn’t an expert; it’s a team of them. Ars Technica (@arstechnica) is a technology magazine started in 1998. In 2001 it became the first magazine to offer a digital subscription and was also the first to become available in digital forms and as an eBook. The thing that really stood out to me about Ars is that they aren’t “just” about technology. The name Ars Technica, Latin-derived, means art in technology. They are about “…news and reviews, analysis of technology trends, and expert advice on topics ranging from the most fundamental aspects of technology to the many ways technology is helping us discover our world.” This isn’t something I would have found interesting before this class, but now that we have been introduced to Web2.0 and have been learning about all the different ways technology is redefining popular culture, I want to know more.

We're All Doomed!: Video Games and Porn

For my Humanities class assignment We’re All Doomed! I watched the TED Talks video Philip Zimbardo: The Demise of Guys? at http://www.ted.com/talks/zimchallenge.html. Zimbardo’s thesis is that guys are failing academically and in forming relationships with women and video games and porn are almost certainly the cause. Zimbardo offers a wealth of supporting evidence, as follows. 1) Boys are 30% more likely to drop out of school. 2) Girls are now outperforming boys at all levels from elementary school to graduate school. 3) Boys are less likely to get BA’s (44% vs. 56%) and graduate degrees (45% vs. 55%. 4) Boys make up 2/3 of special ed. students. 5) Boys are 5 times more likely to be diagnosed ADHD. 6) Jane McGonigal: by the age of 21, boys spend 10,000 hours gaming, 2/3 of that in isolation. 7) Cindy Gallop: guys don’t know the difference between making love and doing porn. 8) Average boy watches 50 porn clips a week. 9) Porn industry is the fastest growing industry in America. 10) For every 400 Hollywood movies made, 11,000 porn movies are made. While researching the supporting evidence, I got lucky. I found the website, http://www.demiseofguys.com/resources/, which lists all the resources Zimbardo used to come up with the above evidence. If a specific web site wasn’t listed, I simply used google.com to search the keywords. The statistics on education (#1 – 5) come from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Zimbardo actually cited this web site, http://www.pbs.org/parents/raisingboys/school.html, but THEY got their info from the NCES. Jane McGonigal’s data (#6) came from her web site janemcgonigal.com. She has a research page at http://janemcgonigal.com/learn-me/. Cindy Gallop (#7) presented a talk at a 2009 TED conference. View the video here: http://blog.ted.com/2009/12/02/cindy_gallop_ma/. For more, visit her web site, makelovenotporn.com. The porn statistics (#8 – 10) are from http://internet-filter-review.toptenreviews.com/internet-pornography-statistics.html. I appreciated that not only did Zimbardo do his research, but he made it easy for others to find the same information. There were many other web sites and papers cited, all that provided some evidence that Zimbardo’s concerns are valid. The sources of most of the statistics were reputable organizations, like the National Center for Education Statistics, or experts within their fields, like Jane McGonigal. What I found most interesting about this exercise was that Zimbardo used some resources and/or experts who didn’t agree with his thesis but that still provided data that he was able to use to support his belief. For example, Jane McGonigal is a game developer who believes that video games can and are changing the world… for the better. But Zimbardo found that her information on boys playing video games in isolation fed into his thesis. His use of the research this way was fascinating and helped me look at how I do research in a different light.

Sympathy and the Problem With Power

My class is reading the book "How We Decide" by Jonah Lehrer. The author discusses the different ways our brains work and how those parts of our brain affect our decisions, both large and small. In Chapter 6, The Moral Mind, Lehrer speaks about morality and how it is basically the structure of our brain that helps us make moral decisions. On page 187 Lehrer discusses a built-in problem with sympathy: "Once people become socially isolated, they stop simulating the feelings of other people." This sentence literally stopped me in my tracks. I was stunned by the implications of this simple statement and decided I wanted to know more. Lehrer cites a paper written by UC Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner in which Keltner discusses how people come into power and how that power then changes them. I read Keltner's paper, titled "The Power Paradox" and found it extremely interesting. Keltner speaks about the positive attributes one must have to take power, things like being able to pick up on the feelings and needs of others, and having social intelligence. The more a person has these positive traits the more likely they are to be put into a position of power. The real problem with power occurs not in gaining power but after having been granted power. Once these people who previously displayed strong levels of sympathizing with others and reconciling conflicts gain power, they seem to lose their ability to do those very things that boosted them into power to begin with. People in positions of power begin to act selfishly, rashly, and without concern for what their subordinates think about their decisions. In some cases this behavior can make for effective leadership, such as being willing to take risks that are necessary to continue to move a business forward. But overall, these traits make them more likely to experience a fall. They tend to end up making poor moral decisions (how many sex scandals do we see in Congress and the White House every year?) and being disliked by the very people who gave them their power to begin with. Keltner believes if we want effective leadership we have to rethink how we view power, how we treat people once they have power, and what behavior we are willing to accept from them. If everyone read this article, I believe we could have a revolution in our thinking. If we stop accepting the bad behavior of the people we grant power to, we could see a completely new way of leading emerge. And if we actually had people in power that we could look up to and respect? The way our country selects leaders and the expectations of those leaders would be dramatically different.

Alien Tour - Sculpture Garden

I will be missing class on Wednesday, June 20th (because it's my birthday) and so I am completing the in-class assignment on my own. The assignment was to give an alien a tour of a certain part of campus and explain to them the purpose of it. I chose to tour the sculpture garden. Our Q&A after the tour went as follows: Me) This is the sculpture garden. It is where we go to see beautiful things. Alien) Why? Me) Many people take pleasure in looking at beautiful things...both nature and what we call art. Alien) Why? Me) Well, we live in a tough world where there's stress and pain and suffering and looking at nature and art can help us relax and feel better. Alien) Why? Me) There is something inherently peaceful about nature and certain types of art. That peace can be gained sometimes just by being around it. Alien) Why? Me) That's hard to say. I think it's because we have removed ourselves from nature and art by surrounding ourselves with technology which is usually far from peaceful. So returning to nature, which is where we used to live, we are returning to a simpler, quieter world. It is clear by reviewing the above dialogue that I hold certain assumptions about sculpture gardens, and nature and art in general. First, I hold the belief that people enjoy sculpture gardens for their beauty and peacefulness. Our sculpture garden on campus supports this belief in a few different ways. First of all, in addition to sculpture there are loads of trees and a variety of flowers. This tells me that people enjoy the nature as much as the sculptures. Secondly, there are benches and seating scattered throughout the garden... and not just in front of the sculptures. It is clear that the intent is for people to sit and stay for awhile. Lastly, the sculpture garden is in a part of campus away from the main traffic areas. It is tucked in behind the performing arts center which isn't used on a daily basis. This tells me that part of the point is for the garden to be quiet and peaceful. The other assumption I made is that people find art intangibly valuable. The school took the time and money to build the garden, and several donors gave their time and money to support it. I doubt the school would have bothered if they didn't believe that people would appreciate having the garden there. And they wouldn't have been able to find people to support the cause if those people didn't also believe that people would use the garden and appreciate it being there. Overall, these assumptions colored everything I said to the alien and perhaps made it impossible for me to clearly explain the why's and how's of a sculpture garden because the alien didn't share my worldview.

Podcasting

I created a podcast using cinch.fm. It's not interesting...I didn't do it for the pop culture tour, just as an introduction to the techonology. But here is a link for my instructor to have a listen.

My Pop Culture Tour

I completed my pop culture tour in Voicethread, so it's like a Powerpoint presentation. I discuss books, music, and smart phones. If you would like to take a look here's the link: http://voicethread.com/share/3195010.

YouTube

Okay, I will admit to using YouTube. I have watched videos of stupid cats, funny looking dogs, and ridiculous children. I have watched clips from TV shows I missed and I have seen favorite musicians perform. With that said, I do not get the millions of people who upload videos of themselves talking to a webcam. Or singing to a webcam. Or doing stupid things in front of a webcam. Aren't we already narcissistic enough without having yet another way of thinking it's all about us? But I wanted the 5 xp so I made a YouTube video; I have to tell you, I felt like a total idiot doing it. And I really can't see myself doing it again unless forced at gunpoint. So I've decided I'm not even going to post the link here. I really hope the video dies a quick death and goes straight to YouTube hell.

Toondoo

Toondoo.com is a web site that allows you to make comic strips. It's really easy to use; you pretty much just drag and drop. Or you can import photos and have them "tooned". I made a simply comic just to practice using the site. Here's a link: www.toondoo.com/cartoon/5063545

Glogster.com

Glogster.com is a web site that allows you to make interactive posters using video, audio, web links, pictures and more to tell a story about whatever you are interested in. I made my first poster about bipolar disorder. Here's a link if you want to take a look: http://tabbycatt.edu.glogster.com/bipolardisorder/.

Gamifying Education

So I watched this video on the gamification of education (here's a link: http://www.penny-arcade.com/patv/episode/gamifying-education). It was really interesting although meant for teachers who are trying to come up with new ways to motivate students to learn. Basically, the video encourages teachers to incorporate gaming principles into their classrooms to encourage students to look at learning in a new way following three gaming principles: grading, sense of agency, and external motivators. This video made a lot of sense to me. I can see how traditional classrooms and learning have let students down. Gaming seems to work as you can get kids to sit for hours in front of a game and they just keep trying until they succeed. By gamifying education you are incorporating the principles that make it possible for kids to do this, except now they are spending hours gaining knowledge and they enjoy learning. The points-based grading is exciting. I am already thinking about all the things I need to do to earn an A instead of the minimum needed to get a C. And requiring quests to be completed before you can move on to the next badge is going to ensure I don't start slacking and skipping assignments, as I am wont to do. Overall I think this is a great idea and I am looking forward to how it plays out in this class.

Voicethread

So I tried out a new technology called Voicethread. It allows you to make presentations, similar to Powerpoint but I found it even easier to use. Plus you can use web sites, pics, or videos at the click of a button. You can then add video, spoken, or text commentary to each "slide". I don't have a camera or microphone hooked up to my computer yet but I still made a brief presentation using text commentary. To take a look click on this link:  http://voicethread.com/share/3163935/. Hope you like this brief intro to me!

To Tweet or Not to Tweet

Let's talk about me and Twitter. I know a little about Twitter. I know it's popular with celebrities, and that they (celebrities) are always either a) saying stupid things, b) getting into fights with other celebrities, or c) all of the above. This did not endear me to the concept. So when I saw the quest to create a Twitter account I became very frustrated. I was therefore very relieved to be told that I only had to complete four of the six quests (ie. I could choose not to select the Twitter quest). But then I looked at the other five quests and to be completely honest, am not happy with any of them. They all involve using some sort of web site to communicate with the rest of the world. Podcasts, glogs, youtube, YUCK! So I felt sorry for myself for a few minutes and then I just decided what the hell. I am going to do all of the quests and once and for all join the 21st century. I don't promise to like any of it but I'm at least going to try and keep an open mind about all of it. So I have signed up for Twitter (my username is @cattabitha) and will be tweeting throughout the duration of the class. On to the next quest!

First Post Ever

This is my first post ever to a blog. I am not crazy about the idea of blogging...I don't tend to use the internet very often so this class will be challenging my dislike of modern technology. With that said, I am looking forward to the rest of this class and exploring popular culture as I tend to be disconnected from a lot that is going on around me. I know blogging is a huge phenomenon in our culture so I hope to explore others' blogs and figure out why they are so popular. One good thing I have discovered so far is that blogging is quite easy as is editing a post. Yay for small favors.