Presentations 4/22

Michelle: Human Computer Interaction

Interesting topic - User friendly interfaces and designs of computers are helping creating a seamless transition from the real to the virtual space.

I like the idea of building stronger employee relationships within companies by using Second Life or something like it for meetings etc. I felt a little weirded out thinking that one day I could be sitting in an office having a meeting virtual avatar to virtual avatar and how I might forget to perceive that other person (who is possibly on the other side of the world) and never REALLY feel connected because I don't know what they really look like. Okay, a bit of a tangent but you get the idea. I wasn't really clear on your thesis bc I couldn't get my laptop up and running fast enough, but your examples were good in showing the transition from real to virtual to real.

Brittany Bogenreif: Mobile location based advertising

Although I can see (from your thorough researched examples) of new media advertising becoming more and more prevalent, I have to agree with others that I for one would not like to receive that advertising on my cellphone. It's bad enough that I get it in snail mail and in my email in box and website pop-ups and...well, you get the idea. I think pointing out the negatives of mobile location based advertising could really strengthen your argument.

Mark Belben: World of Warcraft – the cost of access

Although I was able to follow your presentation and reasoning well despite not being very savvy on the WoW stuff, I'm a little confused as to what your actual argument is. You have a lot of supporting evidence for why Blizzard shouldn't (or shouldn't have) changed the overall community feel of the game, but you might want to consider elaborating a bit more on why 3rd party companies are benefiting from Blizzard's draw back and Blizzard might do to gain a little bit of credibility back?? Do you want guild/community back? Is there something else that could be done to bring back that "learning" feeling? (ha! that sounds funny!)

Kris M.: A growing Digital Divide

I think you make a very good point in saying how the digital divide will still exist but by way of fragmented community. It never occurred to me that this could be the case. In my mind's eye it made sense that fragmented community and identity wouldn't be so much an issue if the access gap was bridged. You had some very good examples and I think you're on your way to a great paper.

Tues. presentations

Mark M. aka Quiet Mark: Online enabled environmental activism

Yes, yes, yes. It's good to see this happening - online environmental activism, that is. I liked the Ecosnoop app concept. It would be cool to see if you can find more examples of apps or sites like this that promote environmental activism. I think it would be a great focus for your paper to explore this avenue and to further compare/contrast how environmental activism has changed in light of new technologies available. (ok, maybe not compare/contrast wholly but make an argument how apps like Ecosnoop are the new progressive means of getting people involved??) In any case, your topic is original and very interesting.

Sarah: Presenting yourself differently in cyberspace vs. real world

I think you have some really good research going and I like that you have polled people in our class to back up your topic. As Julie mentioned, I think it would be interesting to compare/contrast the differences between how one conducts themselves on chatroulette vs. FB/MySpace in regards to the (lack of) digital tracing through chatroulette.

Cassie L.: Social Networking sites in the classroom

You definitely have something here. Social networking is changing the face of education and if used in the way you described, it can really help young people make learning more collaborative and interactive, but hopefully help mold them into people who are aware of the risks and rewards of Internet usage/social media etiquette. The only concern I had when listening to your presentation is a little bit of the digital divide. Katie recently talked about bridging the gap as computers are becoming more available in schools and public libraries, but to really make something like blogging effective for students and teachers, access to a computer/Internet is clutch.

Presentations Round 2

Katie Shaw: Digital divide in low income schools and bridging the gap between knowledge and access

I really liked the idea of presenting your paper as a proposal to bridging the digital divide gap between access and information knowledge. I have read a lot of material pointing towards technology and its effects on learning. Children today are queued to be literate powerhouses with the tools that technology provides. Assertively addressing this issue in our schools with teachers and administrators, students and parents and even our communities needs collective support and encouragement. The benefits to everyone is enormous.

Beau Yancy: Gaming…The final frontier

Great presentation Beau! It’s easy to overlook how much gaming in any form has been incorporated into our everyday lives, even for someone like me who doesn’t do much gaming in the video gaming sense. Ubiquitous computing puts various gaming skills into action. I think you’re right in saying that technology feeds off of the gaming community. What was once considered an isolating and non-productive past time has become a multi-million dollar industry with a means to a creative end. There has been extensive research how gaming actually helps with various learning and teaching aspects. The benefits continue to multiply as gaming theories and components are finding their way into areas of education and medicine. I liked your DaVinci example and I have seen other examples of how aspects of gaming are helping young surgeons succeed at new robotics in surgery.

James Cavanaugh: Gaming

I really liked your correlation between the blind and Braille/gaming and (3D) learning. Games are proving to be useful in developing new areas of the brain, how we learn and how that ties into our community and cultural understanding of gaming. The attitudes that teachers and school administrators have towards the effects of gaming is beginning to shift and I think you could find tons of information on this.

Hans Wellenbrock: Social networks bridging the chasm

Wow Hans…you look just like your Granddad, only whiter! You had some really good ideas in your presentation but I really felt like the connection between you and your grandparents was a great example of how the generational gap in the digital divide could be bridged. I know my grandparents have computers and cell phones, but I don’t know their extent of use, if it’s any more of a pastime to them or just another gadget to log into occasionally. (We still only talk on the phone even though my grandma has a FB page.) Maybe focusing on that aspect of social networking/bridging the gap is the way to go? Great presentation though!

Spencer Towne: Do games generate better soldiers?

Wow! What a great presentation. Since I’m not much of a gamer I cannot fully relate to the immersion that takes place when engaged in any video game, but I think you have a great topic that holds a lot of weight. It never occurred to me that the military might possibly make use of the gaming community for possible recruitments and how gaming might affect training. That is to say, I have no doubts that simulation programs are available and used in military training but to what extent and to what effects? You made some very good points about potential risks and consequences and I think you have the makings for a very good paper.

Blog #11: Presentations Rd. 1

I know it was a little nerve-wracking for the first group of presenters yesterday, but they all did a great job and have some interesting topics to discuss. I’m not really sure what to blog but I’ll give it my best shot.

Lorena S.: Internet censorship in China
Ever since the whole Google thing with China there has been much interest and debate about internet censorship. Lorena posed some very good questions about Internet censorship that Chinese citizens face. The idea that the Internet is censored on governmental and private levels is a little mindblowing. As Americans it’s easy to see how we can take our freedoms for granted. We have access to any amount of sites and information we choose to seek out, regardless if there is a certain amount of censorship. But for Chinese citizens, everything is limited; everything is taboo. Without effective change censorship could possibly have global effects on the digital divide.

Sheila N.: Traditional gender roles found in meatspace are reinforced and perpetuated in social networking sites FB, MySpace, StarDoll
The most interesting aspect of Sheila’s presentation (as discussed in class) was Club Penguin’s genderless social site for kids and how participants enforce their own gender roles by making a shout out to others. (“Say ‘I’ if you’re a boy!) I had also been aware of the StarDoll site, but think that Club Penguin provides a wonderful platform for further exploring her topic. Their purpose in providing a genderless site and getting gender filtering from participants was surprising. Are there more sites like Club Penguin? Are other sites like Whyville applicable to how gender is further perpetuated in online & in meatspace?

Maurice S.: Modern cell phones and connection to cyberspace are closing digital divide but is changing how agriculture is done in rural America.

Very interesting topic Maurice. It never occurred to me how rural citizens are affected by the digital divide. Perhaps it's bc I don't have to worry if I have access or not. Knowing that mobile technology not only helps farmers save time as well as money is huge! With the way today's economy is (even on a global scale) having the edge on weather patterns can make or break a farmer and their livelihood. It's a great example of how mobile technology is changing the way many businesses are done, especially from a rural perspective. I especially liked the example you used of rural African farmers gaining an edge at market bc of mobile technology.

Corrinda L: Education thru gaming
Can children thru gaming: what do or don’t they learn? My son isn't really into video games yet but does have a fascination with computers. It will be interesting to see how my son responds to a site like Funbrain.com and if he'll be fascinated enough between the content of the site and using the computer to stick with it. (He's only 3 after all)
I have been inundated with information concerning the importance of reading to and with my child since before he was born. I am constantly questioning if I'm doing this enough. I think kids are indeed changing the face of learning and since you're an educator you get to experience first hand some ways that gaming is helping children learn. You have a very good topic and I would be interested to know the conclusions you come to in your paper.

Kathleen C.: Old school vs Internet changing the way we see politics
I think you have a very good foundation for your topic but I got the feeling it was more of a report rather than an argument. I don't have a strong suggestion on how to pose an argument for this paper, but exploring how the Internet has really changed the way politicians are reaching out and relating to their constituents is very interesting. Voting in an African-American president was no doubt a landmark in American history, but his approach in using blogs and social media to relate and communicate with American citizens put politics in a new realm. I liked your comment about politics being a marketing campaign. I think it's always kinda been a marketing campaign but again, the Internet changes how it's done. It also leaves politicians in a vulnerable position; they are putting themselves in the hot seat for tight public scrutiny. Will the Internet make politicians more honest then? Hmmm...

Shirky Part 1: It takes a global village to find a phone

Global village meets Internet activism. I don't think I would have even considered going through the lengths that Evan took to track down a cellphone. Granted today's smart phones are probably worth the trouble (if you don't have the nifty insurance offered by your provider for replacement) but the real issue here is the building of community and activism through the Internet. The expert group I participated in was social media and Shirky's first chapter is a mirror of social media and Internet activism at work. Shirky wrote that, "Group action gives human society its particular character, and anything that changes the way groups get things done will affect society as a whole." (Shirky 23) I'm willing to bet that we all agree this statement to be true. What was once considered complacency in the realm of social or political activism has turned into a sort of aggressive activism in light of social media. Shirky points out that although the tools (digital technology/social media) provided the space, it was the message that inspired interest and, even grander, confidence. The notion that the Internet can inspire confidence is monumental for someone (anyone) who has ever felt that their feelings or opinions didn't amount to a hill of beans because, as we've begun to learn, there are others out there willing to listen, to relate, and to encourage us all.

Blog #10: Break me off a piece of that Killer bar!

I recently worked on a presentation project with a fellow classmate (Lorena S.) about social media for another class. In researching for our piece of the pie, Lorena showed me a video that parodied a Nestlé KitKat commercial released by the environmental group Greenpeace. Greenpeace is an organization that has been around since 1971. "We exist to expose environmental criminals, and to challenge government and corporations when they fail to live up to their mandate to safeguard our environment and our future." Living up to their promise to be a voice for the environment and the earth, Greenpeace launched a campaign (including an incorporated logo replacing "KitKat" with "Killer") pushing the Nestlé food corporation to end ties to the Sinar Mas Group (the largest producer of palm oil) in Indonesia and the destruction of the rainforests and carbon-rich peatlands. Palm oil is used in products like chocolate, bread, margarine, cosmetics and the production of biodiesel. As a member of the Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), Nestlé is just one of the companies that has made a commitment to finding alternative ways to making palm oil more sustainable. Although Nestlé has denied that they do business with the Sinar Mas Group, Greenpeace released a report entitled "Caught Red-Handed" revealing information (with over 70 entries as sources of evidence) about Nestlé's association with the group. Sumatran rainforests are home to endangered orangutans. Because these rainforests and carbon-rich peatlands are being leveled to make way for palm oil plantations, orangutans are forced to live off young palm trees for sustenance. This conflict of interest puts them at a larger risk of extinction.

The reason I chose to use Greenpeace vs Nestlé is because it was the video Greenpeace released via YouTube to begin their campaign. We have talked extensively about the impact social media has had on how we communicate in today's digitally connected world. I can't think of a better or more recent example of social media aiding in political activism than this. Because their parody commercial went viral when it hit YouTube, Nestlé has felt the rippling effects of Internet political activism at its best; not to mention feeling the effects on their Facebook page as well. Nestlé's first response began with asking YouTube to pull the commercial citing copyright infringement in hopes of silencing Greenpeace. But it was too late. As you probably know, once a video goes viral there's no way to keep it under wraps. Greenpeace re-posted the video anyway on Vimeo.com and used Twitter to get the word out that the video was back up. On Nestlé's end the response on their Facebook page from consumers was astounding. They currently have over 96,000 friends and the number continues to grow. They have made several postings in the last few days in response to all the negative hype surrounding the Greenpeace video and maintains their commitment to used certified sustainable palm oil by 2015 and posted comments saying, "We care and will continue to pressure our suppliers to eliminate any sources of palm oil which are related to rainforest destruction. Read more: http://tinyurl.com/nestlepalmoil."


Although Greenpeace has been around long before the Internet and social media, using these tools to their advantage and is proof that social media gives even the most complacent of activists a chance to voice an opinion from the comfort of their homes. It's unfortunate for Nestlé that Internet political activism has changed the way people stand up for the rights of the earth and all it's creatures, but I guess that's just the way the KitKat breaks.