Technology....like it or not........

Do we control technology or does technology control us?  Those are very good questions and

I can answer yes to both.  Yes, technology is everywhere and we all use it every day in one way or another.  When I think about the many ways I use technology it sounds like technology controls me because I use it from morning until night. I use it as an alarm, to check the weather, bluetooth my phone calls to my car, online classes, and of course Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest as I’m rocking my youngest son to sleep.  In today’s society it’s almost impossible not to use technology.  Will technology eventually control us?  I believe that the answer to that question is also yes it will someday because as the old-school generations are becoming outnumbered by the younger generation and technology is all they know.  And it’s not their fault; it’s just the world that we live in today. This worries me because many of the younger generation already has a hard time communicating face-to-face and expressing emotions in ways other than text. It makes me wonder what the technology world will be like when my children have children.  The only way to make sure that we control technology is to control our time that we spend with it.

Taking the Good with the Bad

Technology has changed me in good and bad ways.  I’ll start with good; I love my smart phone and the ability to text my family members.  Yes it’s good to call and actually speak to them but when I just want to let them know that I was thinking of them and that I love them I give them a quick text. Being able to have Facebook on my phone is another great way to keep in contact with family that lives away.  The option of online classes was a wonderful feature of technology that has helped me go to school while having a full time job.  Probably the best thing about having internet at my fingertips is being able to look up anything that I have a question about. On the flip side however I’ve become really impatient with my computer or phone it’s not loading as fast as I expect it to.  With technology being so accessible I have the habit of picking up my phone and looking at Pinterest, Facebook, or Twitter when I have more productive things to do.  I find myself disciplining my son about not being on his Xbox or iPod and the next thing I know my husband has his nose stuck on Twitter or myself on Facebook.  That is a real slap in the face and I need to practice what I preach. 

The World Today

Computers, smart phones, and tablets….seems like everything is connected to the Internet. Some days I wish we could go back to the good old days we didn't have a constant need for an electronic device.  I think that “Alone Together” probably applies to just about every household.  Some nights I look around and my husband and I are both on our laptops working on homework, our nine year son is on his iPod or playing Xbox live, and our two year old is asking for mommy or daddy’s iPhone and I think this is sad.  This is the perfect example of our family being together but being alone.  However we are not actually alone because someone is tracking our every move; this is very discomforting as a parent.  

I feel like filter bubbles and Internet trackers go hand in hand.  Trackers are keeping track of you and your information and filter bubbles keep track of what your interests are.  I have noticed that when I am searching on Google it likes to guess what I am searching for and I don’t care for that at all. I feel that when a search engine is trying to guess what I want to research it is limiting me on what I could find.  I think that everyone is in some sort of filter bubble and we just don’t realize it.  The scary thing is that the Internet is so powerful now, what does the future hold?

 

Here We Go.....

Writing an informative research paper is exactly what it sounds like; you are doing research on a topic to inform your audience.  To begin you need to choose a topic that interests you so that you don’t get tired of researching and writing about it.  Your topic cannot be about any of the banned topics but does need to be narrow enough so that you are not overwhelmed with information.  Take time to really research use five or more sources, put all of the information together to will help you explain your topic well.  From there you need to start actually writing your paper.  The first paragraph is your thesis statement or a summarization of the whole paper without telling the reader whether you agree or disagree, you have to remember that this paper is to inform not argue your side.  The following paragraphs need to support the thesis or topic.  Your thesis statement along with the “body” paragraphs need to be well organized to maintain the clarity of your topic; remember the goal of this paper is for your reader to learn from you.  Within your paper you will need to use MLA-style in-text citations, as well as a work cited page.

Using the Library

This week’s blog was to learn how to use the Kent Library to research; this lesson was a repeat of my UI 100 class. After using search path I realized just how easy the Kent Library was to use, it’s a hidden treasure.  I plan to try and use the library before using Google.  I’ll probably have to review the tutorials a few more times before getting used to using it, but like all other things….it’s a work in progress.

I'm frustrated!

What frustrates me the most is the fact that I can explain how to write a rhetorical analysis in my blogs but then when it comes to writing the paper I’m stumped. I feel like my paragraphs support my thesis statement but I’m not comfortable with my flow of my paper. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong, I don’t know if I’m picking the wrong pieces to analyze or if the problem is just me. Regardless on which one is the problem I'm frustrated!

Some habits are hard to break....

The article “The Unathletic Department” that I chose for last week’s blog was something that I think that everyone could relate to. While the feelings throughout the article were familiar to me, the subject was foreign.  The article was about finishing last in the 500 freestyle swim meet and the 500 freestyle meet was something I needed to understand.  What I discovered was the 500 freestyle meet is a 500 yard swim that you have to use the perfect technique for balancing your energy. A swimmer can’t start out with too much speed because of the use of too much energy and also shouldn’t start the race to slow because they may not be able to catch up. My first instinct is to “Google” it to get a quick and clear answer, however I am supposed to also you the Kent Library.  Google was definitely quicker and easier to work but the library was just as efficient.

Everyone can relate......

The assignment this week was to select an essay to analyze for the Rhetorical Analysis and Response essay and paraphrase it.  The essay that I chose was “The Unathletic Department” by Meghan from Johns Hopkins University.  Meghan explains her memory of being on a swim team and finishing last in the 500 freestyle swim meet. As the essay starts Meghan sets a sad tone about finishing last and how her ribbon looks just like the first place ribbon. As the essay continues you feel sorry for her because we all have finished in last place at some time or another. She explains how she felt when getting out of the water the second to the last swimmer was already dressed.  Meghan says “However, as I walked back to my team, carrying the seventh place blue, listening to the splash of the new event’s swimmers, I could not help but smile.” After reading that sentence she made me want to read more to see what she meant.  What Meghan did was change the emotion from sad to grateful.  She was grateful for that lose because she realized there is more to life than finishing first.

I will begin to analyze the essay by telling the title and author.  Next I will summarize what the essay was about and whether I agreed or disagreed with the author and why. In the body of the analysis I will have details that explain why I agreed or disagreed and also note any structures or specific emotions. In the last paragraph I will again summarize the essay and give my opinion about how convincing the author was.

 

Works Cited

 

Meghan. "Johns Hopkins University Office of Undergraduate Admissions: Apply, Essays That Worked, Class of 2017." Johns Hopkins University Office of Undergraduate Admissions: Apply, Essays That Worked, Class of 2017. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Oct. 2013.

I'm Guilty

Our assignment this week is to find or write the longest sentence you can and rewrite it using fewer words without losing any effectiveness. After reviewing the Paramedic Method I knew that I was guilty of using the confusing run-on sentences. I decided to look through my previous blogs and found more run-on sentences than I care to speak about. The following sentence is an example of run-on that comes from one of my very own blogs.

My first step to writing a paper or essay is researching my topic, which probably takes more time than it should due to not narrowing my topic; next is browsing through articles, which turns into more researching because I’m not finding what I want; and finally printing them. (wow is all I can say) 

The revision:

Researching the topic and printing information initiates my writing process.

Revising a sentence using the Paramedic Method on my own is a lesson in itself, especially when it’s a sentence of your own. The paramedic method defines how to repair a long, confusing sentence within its name.  I now understand that the quality of words is more important than quantity of the words.  I have to admit that I used these sentences to help with my word count but now these sentences will be harder for me use.