My wedding ring hurts no more!

The principles illustrated here are the sensory adaptation and the senses of the skin. The text says that our senses are built to respond to change and contrast in the environment. When stimulus is constant or unchanging sensation tends to fade. Nerve cells (receptors) get tired and therefore, fire less frequently. So a “fitting” ring will feel as if nothing is on the finger.

But on the flip side, we can never get used to extreme or intense stimuli, and hence, can’t adapt to such stimuli. And just as in the case of a toothache or a strong odor, a very tight ring will produce very intense stimuli which we would be incapable of adapting to. Thus, we will not be able to ignore the tight ring as this will now cause a throbbing pain.

The skin not only protects our insides but also lets us identify objects that we can tolerate and those that we cannot. The basic senses of the skin include touch, warmth, cold and pain; nerve fibers in the skin are responsible for sensing these variations. Therefore, a fitting ring will fall under the basic sense of touch, while a tight ring will fall under that of pain.

Our brain is programmed to respond differently in these two cases of extreme and less frequent sensation as a survival mechanism. To begin with, we need to be able to ignore such unimportant sensations such as the fitting ring in our finger but, at the same time, be able to respond to extreme sensations such as a throbbing pain, a strong odor of gas leaks, and so on. Without this sensory adaptation, we would not be able to survive hazardous environmental conditions.

The text on the topic of sensory adaptation concludes by saying that the brain does require a minimum amount of sensory stimulation in order to function normally.

Notes:

Except where noted, the ideas in this article are adopted from a course text book (below) for general discussion purposes

Wade, C., & Tavris, C. (2011). Invitation to Psychology. 5 ed. New York: Prentice Hall.

Are there any differences between the brains of men and women?

There are anatomical and biochemical differences between a male and female brain as the text says. For example, a case study of autopsied brains showed that 11% of the female brain had more cells in the cortex, and brain scans that show larger frontal lobes and limbic systems in female brain and larger cortex and amygdala in men, or even some MRIs that show women using both sides of their temporal lobe in mental tasks.

However, I do think that any behavioral differences, as enumerated in the text, are as a result of stereo types and cultural roles or emphasis on gender roles. The structural differences in the brain do not result in behavior differences. The text points to a study in the rhyme-judgment task where both sexes performed equally. Another study on brain MRI scans on brains of women and men that scored equivalent IQ scores concluded that even though men had more gray-matter in areas associated with intelligence, they did however, score equally. Hence, the anatomical differences of the brain were no advantage to the men.

Moreover, men on average have a brain that weighs 11-12% more than women. But, men on average do weigh more and do also have head sizes that are 2% bigger than women. The collected from boys and girls of the same weight show no differences in brain size. (See Data from Dekaban, A.S. and Sadowsky, D @ http://faculty.washington.edu/chudler/heshe.html)

The reason I bring this up is because much has beeen said about a “correlation” between brain sizes and intelligence (especially in animals). Studies have shown that larger animals need larger brains to control larger muscles and to process more sensory information through their skin; this has nothing to do with intelligence.

Notes:

Except where noted, the ideas in this article are adopted from a course text book (below) for general discussion purposes

Wade, C., & Tavris, C. (2011). Invitation to Psychology. 5 ed. New York: Prentice Hall.

Women Rights! What do you think about?

When you hear the phrase “women rights,” what do you think about? Well, if you are like most Americans, you think of women’s rights outside of Economically Developed Countries (EDCs) as economically and educationally deprived women. But this image pales when compared to violence against women. Women are often subjected to abuses during armed conflicts, and are often subjected to spousal and other domestic abuses at their homes.

Females make about half of the global population, yet there is a wide gulf in socio-economic welfare of women when compared to men. For instance, approximately 5% of countries have women leadership, only 17% of women make up national legislatures, and a meager 9% of women make world’s judges. Furthermore, women’s disfranchisement in a few countries is astonishing. Thus, not only are women barred from holding office in various divisions of their governments, they have no say in governance whatsoever.  About 70% of women globally live well below the poverty line. Women are less literate than men since there is an attitude in some countries that educating women in not a priority - an attitude that is often reinforced by cultural and religious fanaticism.

“The image of men fighting and dying in wars while women wait safely at home is substantially a myth. In many armed conflicts, women noncombatants suffer much more than male soldiers and civilians…women’s bodies become battleground over which opposing forces struggle” (Rourke, 2008). Abuses in the battlefield include rapes, forced impregnation, sex slavery, sodomy, mutilation, and other horrific crimes. In fact, 80% of all refugees from armed conflicts are women and their children.

Yet in society, women also endure noncombatant abuse. According to United Nations (UN) data, at least one third of all women have been beaten, forced into having sex, or abused at least once in their life. And depending on country, 40% to 70% of all female murders occur during domestic violence.

But all is not grim, there has been some progress internationally beginning in 1975 when the UN declared “International Women’s Year” as a kickoff of a decade for women. Later the United Nations Fund for Women (UNIFEM) began projects for women related welfare. And the adoption of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, CEDAW treaty of 1979, was instrumental in defining women’s rights on the international stage. Later, the fourth World Conference on Women (WCW) convened in Beijing, China. The convention had about 3,000 delegates from 180 countries. Moreover, there was parallel NGO convention with about 30,000 delegation representing about 2,000 NGOs that deal with women’s issues, at the same time.

So next time you hear of women rights, think again and do something.

NOTE:

Except where noted, the ideas in this article are adopted from a course text book (below) for general discussion purposes.

Rourke, T. John. International Politics on the World Stage. 12 ed. New York: McGraw-Hill., 2008.

jQuery and desktop to web applications

We had an amazing experience with jQuery as we tinkered with a few user interfaces (UI), and the power that the ready-made scripts can unleash. To begin with, jQuery was very easy to use on our blogs even for the least avid student. As a freelance Java programmer, I have always wanted to learn the tricks of coding light and portable interactive objects such as drag and drop, resizable, and so on, but always found myself creating resource intensive code that was not very portable. But with jQuery, that problem is addressed in a very neat and reliable UI; this is something that I will definitely incorporate in my web development; why re-invent the wheel?

On the question about what desktop applications would be perfect candidates for extending to web applications, the views of many students were as varied as there are computing applications. There were many who felt that desktop office applications like Microsoft office should extend to web applications. However, that is already available, in some form, in applications such as Google application or Zoho applications. Some also thought that a good graphics software program like Photoshop should be available online. Adobe has a graphics editing software online called Photoshop express that’s more like a light version that may suffice for even the intermediate user.  Other students, including myself, wished for online video editing software that has more advanced features that will yield professional results; a lot of what is out there is just too mediocre. I also suggested desktop printer fleet management software that is available as a web application.

Interactive site with JavaScript

This week we created interactive websites using the power of JavaScript. As I understand it, JavaScript is a lightweight programming language that can be used to code programs to run on the server side as well as run on the client side. However, my experience with JavaScript is that is used in handling dynamic content on the client side that HTML alone cannot handle. JavaScript can be used to display dynamic web styles and manipulate web content on the fly.

Above all, for a web site to be useful today there needs to be an efficient way to "persist" the data and access that data on the fly. JavaScript is one way of doing this; it has been around for a while and it is freely available without the requirement of setting up development environment with toolkits or compilers like those used in Java’s applets and servlets, Microsoft’s ASPs, and so on. And JavaScript’s longevity means that it has been tried and proven to be a reliable web programming language.

My ideal site in the use of JavaScript would be a search engine that sorts academic results and groups them into major categories or subjects e.g. sociology, philosophy, economics, mathematics, and so on. That would help in web research.

Is debt relief both an economic necessity and an obligation of humanity?

I was on the fence on this one for a while – we are talking about wiping (or not) $40 billion of debt owed by 18 of the world's poorest countries. Both options have very real effects on people who have little input in decision making since most of these states lack fair representative governments. Thus, on the one hand, if debts are forgiven the countries may or may not invest in programs that alleviate poverty, and the other hand, if the debts remain these countries will most likely not invest in the said programs. Therefore, I am willing to bet on the slim chance that money saved via debt relief will be put into good use. A good example given in the text is that of Tanzania, where freed up monies were used to fund educational programs that enabled about 1.5 million kids attend school.

Nevertheless, I think the notion that debt relief is an economic necessity and an obligation of humanity is correct. To begin with, current governments that qualify as a Highly Indebted Poor Country (HIPC) may have played little or no role in spiking their country’s debt; it may have been the work of dictators who were accountable to no one as they engaged in shady deals on shoddy projects.

Some argue, however, that foreign aid to Least Developed Countries (LDCs) is better than debt relief as it has a more direct effect on various socio-economic programs that improve living conditions. I disagree with this theory. I think that foreign aid is essentially “liquid cash” that is prone to abuse and mismanagement. And most of these countries employ extremely inefficient methods in raising taxes/tariffs. Furthermore, the little that is raised is often lost in the bureaucratic machinery. Therefore, in order to balance their budgets, most LDCs have become dependent on foreign aid. Foreign aid has been tried and yielded mediocre results; HIPC program is relatively new which might be just what LDCs need. 

NOTE:

Except where noted, the ideas in this article are adopted from a course text book (below) for general discussion purposes.

        Rourke, T. John. 2008.  International Politics on the World Stage. 12th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Military Approach and Terrorism

Military approach will only interrupt or delay terrorism. Terrorism is more complicated than just mere criminal activities; it is a violent response with a political agenda. Terrorism has many sympathizers and in many cases, state sponsorship. Therefore, on the short-term, terrorist targets can be pressured via intelligence activities and economic strategies such as freezing the assets of individuals and groups that finance these movements.

On the long-term, the root causes of terrorism have to be addresses. Terrorism is similar to America’s “war on drug” where efforts to combat drug use have failed miserably due to the lip service paid on the root causes. Therefore, terrorism must be engaged at the system analysis level, state analysis level, and individual analysis level.

At the system analysis level, global economics must be addressed in an effort to ensure an equal distribution of wealth. But that is just the work of academics; it is not going to happen as there can never be an agreed upon approach by all actors, and in good faith. However, an effort that will attempt to eradicate exploitation of LDCs by industrialized nations might just be a good start.

At the state level analysis, international actors should have little doubt that international policies by the polar powers are fair. For instance, it should be self-evident that policies applied on Israelis as well as the Palestinians are fair. We cannot pretend that unfair policies on either side will simply fly under the radar.

At the individual level analysis, the best that can be done is to support efforts on educating the masses. Illiteracy is still a major problem in LDCs for it is just too easy to “brainwash” uneducated people.

NOTE:

Except where noted, the ideas in this article are adopted from a course text book (below) for general discussion purposes.

        Rourke, T. John. 2008.  International Politics on the World Stage. 12th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Html Forms - The Easy Way

This week we worked on HTML forms on our websites. We used the services of JotForm.com. They have a free basic service where you can build a form in order to add some interactive features to your website. The best part about JotForm.com is its ease of use; it is essentially a WYSIWYG online form builder.

Basically there is a pre-designed form with most basic fields that might suffice for most feedback information. This form contain a heading, an email field,a name text box field, a feedback text area field, a drop-down or options field, a checkbox field, and finally, a submit button.

However, on your left, you can pick other common fields to add on to the form. These fields are arranged as follows:

·         Heading

·         Textbox

·         Text Area

·         Drop down

·         Radio Button

·         Checkbox

·         File Upload

·         Submit Button

You can also make the functionality of your forms more complex to cater for advanced usage. For example, whenever you click on a field that you are working on, more advanced options that are appropriate for that field appear at the top. You can, then, pick various function such as, field required, text prompt, field styling, and so on. And more importantly, you can input an email where you want the information of your feedback sent.

Overall, I give this service an A, based on its ease of use, its functionality, and its $0 cost. Having a program like this will enable most people with no programming skills build sites that are interactive. Try it and let me know how you like it.

Join Me.

I reviewed Join.me at https://join.me/ an online application that I find so useful when assisting clients with IT services like software configuration or other PC to hardware peripheral configuration. Most students in this class may not have any need for it as the use of this service make more sense for help desk type IT services. I had one responder who seemed to like it, but had no use for it.

I know that most of my colleagues at work use it. We find it easy to install and configure on the client side. Since, all the client needs to do is click once and read me a series of numbers then I can quickly connect to see their screen. And with the client’s permission, I can take control of their computer. I have learnt that there’s nothing more frustrating than having an irate client on one end, pressing all sorts of buttons, and a sympathetic IT person that cannot see what the client is doing.

Fast Pencil

 

I found http://www.fastpencil.com/ very useful for an aspiring author. It actually guides you in book writing and editing. And I guess for a few bucks, they can help you sell your book. It is very easy to use since it is designed just like an actual book. For example, you have a project area where you can brainstorm; then proceed to cover, table of contents and so on. You also have your chapters, and at the end you have your index. And as said I tried their editing feature and it works well.

I always thought of how frustrating it would be to use popular writing applications like word to write a book. Below is just a sample of what I wrote, however, I was not able reformat as original document due blog limitations.

From the hotel balcony, I can see the beautiful canopy proudly showing all of its vivid colors of summer. The brick red spruce stands out egregiously like generous spurts of oil paint on a white canvas, with a few green pines breaking out of this pictorial masterpiece. Small birds hover from tree to tree, singing with resonance and dancing occasionally as if to impress their mates. The warm breeze unfurls a soothing and pleasing floral aroma of wild roses. Soon all the red foliage will wither away, and the birds will fly away. Then the angry dark skies will coat this land white with snow. And winter will begin.

It is summer in Holyoke, Massachusetts and I am enjoying a panoramic view of the foliage. The red spruce seems to be dominant expect for a few green pines. I can also see small beautiful insects moving from tree to tree. There is a warm breeze that is circulating a nice smell of wild roses. Yes. It is not fall; it is summer - a harbinger for fall. Fall is brief and winter stays too long. But this is New England; therefore, I am going to enjoy my summer while it lasts.

Brochure Maker

I also used http://www.mybrochuremaker.com/ This is an online design software for brochures, news prints, sell sheets, business cards and so on. While am sure I can do these projects on desktop publishing software, like Publisher, QuarkXpress or Adobe Indesign, these applications are usually very expensive to buy.

I also like the fact that mybrochuremaker has free services. I made the following news print on Timbuktu as my blogging idea for the week.

Ever heard of the phrase, “from Timbuktu to Kalamazoo” that’s used to demonstrate how remote a location is? I will go on a limb here and say that you have. Anyway, Kalamazoo is a city in the state of Michigan, United States of America while Timbuktu is a small town in Northern Mali, Africa; it borders Mauritania to the west, Algeria in the North, Niger in the east, and Côte d'Ivoire and Burkina Faso in the south.

But Timbuktu is not just a “faraway place that you cannot get to from here,” as used in 19^th century English literature by writers such as Lady Duff-Gordon, DH Lawrence, Agatha Christie, just to name a few; it is an ancient city and of historical importance. Timbuktu was once a prominent center for important trading routes in salt, gold, ivory, and other products including slaves, during the 14^th through much of the 16^th century.  

As an ancient wealthy city, Timbuktu has been a source of significant archeological finds of artifacts and information about the Iron Age’s cultural landscape. At one point, Timbuktu was home to 120 libraries; it is believed that about 14,000 books have been recovered – books on old science in Arabic and some other unknown languages.

Today however, Timbuktu is an impoverished dusty down that has seen its share of hard times compounded by its location in the southern edge of the Sahara desert. Furthermore, as recent as April of 2012, the power struggle in Mali has seen this “historical jewel” fall into the hands of Tuareg rebels. My only hope is that sanity can be restored for the sake of human rights and historical records.

Sources Consulted:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-17583772

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timbuktu

http://www.uh.edu/engines/epi2265.htm

As long as I can remember, I have always been fascinated by the idea of using compressed air to power vehicles – you know – just like in steam locomotives.  Interestingly, I watched a show that featured a compressed air car on the Science channel that made me feel sane again.

The idea of a compressed engine is actually simple. The motor is powered by compressed air that is stored in tanks that can withstand very high pressures of about 4500psi. The concept car that I saw on TV had 2 huge tanks to hold the compressed air. And the logic is that you can eventually have tanks that run an engine that, in turn, runs a compressor which fills more compressed air into the storage tanks. I mean that is very simple, right? Wrong; it more challenging than you think. There are scientific theories about air expansion/contraction such as the Charles law that come into play, and thereby affect our simple model. Without getting into technical details here which I hardly comprehend anyway, let just say that we have to install a heat exchanger. And people that have tinkered with this thing admit that it is one the most challenging items in the whole compressed air car technology.

Nevertheless, a car that runs on compressed air sounds very promising. For one, it will be as clean as the source the electricity that is used to fill the air storage tanks. But the car has zero emission, nonetheless. Also the cost of running this car will be minimal since all you have to worry about is getting those tanks filled up with air.

But as much as I would like to dream of owning one in the near future, reality check demands that I put a few things into perspective. First there are not so many serious contenders apart from Tata which holds the Motor Development International (MDI) license for India. And the consensus seems to be that pneumatic combustion hybrid is more feasible, and can, in fact, compete with electric vehicles.

Although there are many real challenges to the compressed air car technology, it is important to note that this is, indeed, a leap in the right direction; for the engine has remained pretty much unchanged for more than 100 years.

Sources:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztFDqcu8oJ4

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compressed_air_car

http://www.gizmag.com/tata-motors-air-car-mdi/22447/

Will Democracy Succeed in Islamic Countries?

I think democracy is possible and can, in fact, thrive in countries where Islamic religion is a majority. I do not even think that the old guards in these countries have a choice. There’s enough evidence, like the so-called Arab spring, to suggest that the wind of change is well underway. The western world has always favored stability over the pains and the challenges that come with democratic ambitions. And this is more so in countries that are rich in natural resources like oil and natural gas. As a result, we have seen entrenched political rulers repress dissent by employing traditionalism which favors religiosity over secularism.

As an optimist that leans between liberalism and constructivism, I believe transnationalism and globalism will continue to allow people to exchange views, organize across borders, and even take political actions. A good example is the use of social media and other internet services that have been instrumental in the communication of ideas and news between dissidents inside these Islamic countries and emigrants overseas, including exiled activists. The text gives a good example on cultural globalization where CNN is viewed around the world and therefore, people in Islamic countries are able to consume western views, and western countries can consume middle-eastern views from its counterpart, Al Jazeera.

Transnationalism is forcing most people to re-examine their political identities. Thus, instead of seeing themselves as nationalists with singular identities, people can now belong to multiple identities. For instance, transnational organization like NGOs have been championing human rights and speaking against disfranchisement. As a matter of fact, Kuwait granted full women rights to vote in full legislative polls in 2007, while Qatar has allowed women’s vote in municipal elections. You can read more on this at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/4874990.stm .

However, I cannot ignore the fact that progress on democracy has been painstakingly slow or even absent in many countries. I found the evaluation of globalization study by Pew research in world regions disappointing. The study shows that in the Middle East, 35% think globalization is good, 25% think it’s bad, and 40% are unsure. But as an optimist, 40% unsure is not such a bad thing; it is actually the highest of all the regions surveyed by the study. This number implies that there is a willingness by a large population to consider new ideas and views that come with globalization. Furthermore, this study was done 9 years ago, and of course, much has changed.

I think we also get carried away by the misinterpretation and the false assumptions about the radicalization of Islamic regions. As the text suggests, much of what we see in the western media is often a reaction to western policies that have resulted in invasions and exploitation of natural resources; it also highlights what most Islamic countries see as hypocritical in the way western powers execute international policies. And these shortcomings get magnified by propagandists especially those that conform to a more militant Islamic doctrine and have had success in unifying like-minded ideologues against a common enemy, western states.

To the pessimists, you may need to look at Turkey, Indonesia, Mali, and Senegal for evidence of democracy; they are by no means US style democracies, but they are high functioning, nonetheless.

NOTE:

Except where noted, the ideas in this article are adopted from a course text book (below) for general discussion purposes.

        Rourke, T. John. 2008.  International Politics on the World Stage. 12th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

The Great Rift Valley

The Great Rift Valley is about 3,700 miles long stretching from near the Middle East down to Mozambique. The Rift Valley was basically formed as a result of lithospheric plate pulling and causing faults. These forces caused a chunk of the crust to sink between parallel fault lines which in turn, forced up molten rock in volcanic eruptions. The result is that you basically have parallel raised (rifts) landforms with a wide floor that strips along for thousands of miles.

I still have memories of driving along the Rift Valley, particularly the Escarpment in Naivasha, Kenya. Here you get to experience one of the most spectacular views of the valley – the breathtaking panoramic land formations that include a dramatic gradient drop, lakes, mountains, craters, and green hills; all in one view. And if you love taking pictures or videos of landscapes, the Rift Valley gives you one of the best scenery.

You also get to experience the wildlife of the Rift Valley – just by driving along the main roads - no need to veer deep into the wild. The most common wild animals that you are almost guaranteed to see as you are driving along are: zebras, giraffes, gazelles and baboons. And if you are lucky, you might see a cape buffalo here and there. If you are a bird watcher, you will not be disappointed either. You may be able to see, yellow-billed and maccoa ducks, pelicans, egrets and herons, black kites, white-crested turacos, verreaux's eagles, and of course, flamingoes.

However, I do recommend that you visit the many lakes and national parks along the Rift Valley for a more exciting wildlife experience. Some examples include, Lake Naivasha, Lake Nakuru National Park, Lake Baringo, Lake Bogoria, Masai Mara, and Hell’s Gate National Park, among others. And by the way, Lake Bogoria is also known for its beautiful hot springs and exciting geysers.

Can Nationalism Go Too Far? The Case of U.S. Minutemen:

Yes. I think this a classic case drawn from the dark side of Nationalism. I would care less for the Minuteman Project since clearly this is a right leaning political outfit. However, the larger issue is whether this group and many others like it can lay a claim to nationalism or patriotism for that matter; I think they can, and that is where I see a problem.

The many problems of nationalism include an ideology often modeled on exclusionism, exceptionalism and xenophobia. These groups fit this model perfectly. I remember years ago when Bosnian refugees were settled in this country without much controversy. But just a few years later, the settling of Somalia refugees caused uproar from similar rightist groups. So, you have two identical situations with completely different reactions. I would argue that the Somalians were simply seen as different and hence the sentiment that “they” needed to be excluded from “us.”

And when it comes to the Mexican border, those crossing illegally (or legally) elicit all sorts of emotions that often include xenophobia. For instance, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is just as concerned about illegal crossings from the Canadian border as they are about the Mexican border, yet you hardly hear of any controversial measures such as building walls or “community” watch groups in the north. There is a certain stereo-type of an illegal immigrant that is wedged deep in the American psyche which highlights many salient features that never seem to blend in. The text puts it better, that we “ignore our many and manifest similarities and perceptually divide ourselves into [groups]” (Rourke, 2008).

The human race has always been on the move in the search of a better life. That is why the native Indians crossed present-day Alaska from northeastern Asia around 12,000 to 15,000 years ago, during the glaciation of the Ice Age. A few thousand years later, Europeans followed with their own valid reasons…you know the rest of the story. The point is that we have always moved to better pastures. And who knows, a few hundred years from now we’ll all  probably move back to Africa after ruining this place with over-mining, over-crowding, and pollution. My only hope is that our fellow Africans will let us back in.

NOTE:

Except where noted, the ideas in this article are adopted from a course text book (below) for general discussion purposes.

        Rourke, T. John. 2008.  International Politics on the World Stage. 12th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

The Power of CSS

Web designing has come a long way. When I designed and published my first website, which is now probably owned by some scammer, web design software and markup coding were still in their infancy. So the safest way to go was by basic Html coding, and therefore, that I got used to this method.

A few years later CSS (cascading style sheets) came along, however, there were many compatibility issues across web browsers that I stayed away from it. Well, that was then, today I just finished working on a small website, http://annunziato.org/student12/ for course, “Exploring the Internet.” I was skeptical about using CSS at first, given my previous experience (or in experience), but I was quickly drawn to its sophistication in handling Html’s mark-up and repetitive tagging particularly in font styling and table layouts.

Although I have been late to the party on this one, given that I lost interest in web design altogether, I can still recall the pains of having to code every tag; for every different font style; for every table style; for every image used.  Multiply that by the number of web pages required for the website, and you get the picture. And when a client thought that they now needed something with more pizzazz, you basically had to do it all over. Fortunately, with CSS in my tool kit, I can look them in the eye and proclaim, “Certainly! Just give me a few minutes and I’ll get us something we can both work with.”  Yes. For the hand coding bunch, web designing has come a long way.

Tribute to Mr. Ray Bradbury

I chose to write about a blog by Kasia Cieplak-Mayr von Baldegg, of the Atlantic, titled “Ray Bradbury Struggled for Years before He Got Famous.” The blog is a small tribute to Ray Bradbury, a great science fiction writer and author of the “The Martian Chronicles” and “Fahrenheit 451” who died recently. More importantly, the blog contains a 25 minute documentary video; a short biography where he talks about his thought process as he embarks on a project, and about his own philosophy on work.

I love reading biographies of great people who leave a “footprint” in my path. And Ray is, undoubtedly, one of them. Ray was a much disciplined man. At the age of 17 he already knew what he wanted to do. He was extremely focused, passionate, and excited about his work. He believed that we must be excited about what we do in order to succeed. And he meant it, in deed, the first and the second year of his career he made nothing; the third year he made 10 dollars. He continued to make a meager income and by the eleventh year he made 8,000 dollars. When asked about how he survived on such a small income, his answer was clever and swift, “Just get a part-time job! Anything that's half way decent! An usher in a theater ... unless you're a mad man, you can't make do in the art fields.”

Ray was fascinated by technology and of the contradiction it presents. He laments, for instance, that atomic energy beats cancer but also kills [humans], and airplanes carry passengers or bombs. In other words, there’s a darker side to technology – a side that much amused Ray. In fact, he says that he never starts out writing a story; it comes to him through observation and association – like during a walk or a ride by the river. Or what he likes to call, “giving the subconscious time to think.” It’s during one of those bike rides along the Venice that he observes a telephone box on the telephone network. And so he develops a plot for a story, “Dial Double Zero.” The plot is about a grating voice of an intelligent being that lives in the telephone network – almost like a computer virus that propagates when you call from an “infected” phone.

As we mourn Mr. Ray Bradbury, the take home lesson from this short video for me is: “It doesn’t have to be the greatest; it just has to be you.”

References:

Baldegg,. K., C., M. (2012). Ray Bradbury Struggled for Years before He Got Famous. Business Insider, Retrieved June 5, 2012, from http://www.businessinsider.com /financial-advice-for-struggling-artists-from-ray-bradbury-2012-6

Watch a 25 Minutes Video Documentary of Ray Bradbury

The Effect of the Internet on Established Media

The internet has greatly affected how the established media does business by forcing it to change how it gathers and distributes news and information. In the past, traditional news media relied on advertisers’ dollars; they sold their news prints cheap in order to attract bigger audiences, and in turn, the advertisers rewarded them with a good stream of revenue - life was good (Koen, 2011).

Enter the internet and readership shifted. More and more readers began to shift their focus on a wider array of media platforms. And younger people especially, who grew up with internet and mobile phones, are a major factor for this big shift in media consumption (Gibson, 2006). This shrinking audience continues to be the major reason why many advertisers pull ads or cut ad spending on traditional media. But Larry Kilman, of the World Association of Newspapers, thinks that there is actually an increase in audience if we account for all platforms. He affirms, “It’s not an audience problem – it’s a revenue problem” (quoted in The Economist, Koen, Victor, 2011).

Established media has been forced to grapple with the realities of the internet. They are learning, rather quickly, how to make revenue on all platforms. They are beginning to treat the internet for what it is; a dynamic and interactive type of medium. For example, those companies that simply transfer static content of their traditional news prints to the web are not faring well. But those that treat the internet as a separate entity with its own unique qualities and challenges are doing very well. Media companies like the Tribune have lost this battle, while others like the New York Times and Dallas Morning News are adopting pay content models on targeted audience. Apart from the added subscriptions revenue, these models seem to work well since advertisers are able to track and actually see what is working for them and what is not. For example, Google’s revenue model for “clickthroughs” although not new, has worked well compared to pay per impression which offers little or no meaningful data on targeted advertising.

The best examples for new media borne of the internet are the social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. The effect of these new media was apparent in the “Arab spring” revolutions that have seen the ouster of various dictators in countries like Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, and Yemen.  Due to the “blackout” of foreign journalism in these countries, protesters have continued to rely on these social networks in sharing and distributing information beyond their borders.

References:

Gibson, O. (2006). Changing Media. The Guardian, Retrieved June 5, 2012, from http://www.lexisnexis.com.libproxy.uml.edu/hottopics/lnacademic/?verb=sr&csi=8422&sr=lni%284JHN-6760-TX37-G286%29

Koen, V. (2011). Reinventing the Newspaper. The Economist, Retrieved June 5, 2012, from http://www.economist.com/node/18904178

Internet and Communication

It seems that almost everyone agrees that the internet has had a huge effect on communication. There have been many good things and some bad things about this effect. I have summarized what many of us agreed upon.

Speed and ease-of-use is what most of us picked as the most important contribution of the internet to communication. We can now write and talk to each other instantaneously through chat, video conferencing, and in some cases, through email. The internet is also easy to use due to advanced computing technologies that allow us to point and click at highly intuitive graphics.

The internet has also brought down the cost of communication while increasing the scope and scale of content. Most services are available at no cost to the user. For example, Skype has a free service for video conferencing, and social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are available at no cost for basic services. And most web email services like Gmail, Yahoo mail and Hotmail are also available at no cost for basic services.

Most of us seem to agree that the internet has also brought us closer together by bridging the geographical gap that existed before the highly interconnected world we live in today. We can now talk, video conference, or chat with friends, relatives and even strangers thousands of miles away.

As for the not-so-good stuff, most us complained that the internet has “cheapened” relationships by creating virtual realities. For instance, you can have a few thousand “friends” or “followers” on Facebook and Twitter. That actually creates many impersonal relationships and therefore, meaningless.

Privacy issues were also raised by some - where companies are actively mining personal data for marketing or electioneering purposes. We also tend to give up a lot of our private data rather willingly; sometimes we have no knowledge that a computer program, malware/virus or social engineers are stealing this information.

Can World War III be averted?

I am very optimistic that World War III can be averted even with the present anarchical system of international politics. A realist would most likely disagree as realism’s core principle is that humans are, by nature, selfish and competitive. And that the lack of an overarching authority that is supposed to ensure security and order, and conflicting national interests, creates an environment where world conflict is inevitable. Hence, realists are inherently pessimistic in their international political outlook.

But to a liberal (not to be confused with a “left-leaning” ideology in US politics), countries are not actively engaged in power struggle as realists contend. In fact, countries can interact through mutual cooperation, friendship and even altruism. Moreover, unlike realists, liberals believe that international politics need not be a “zero-sum” game where one must lose in order for another to win; rather, it can be a “win-win” situation where all actors gain. Such views saw the formation of the League of Nations by an American president and idealist, Woodrow Wilson. The main idea was to foster a partnership of democratic nations; an ideal that is still cultivated by the United Nations.

Constructivism puts forward an important theory that is very different from that of realism and liberalism; it is a different way of thinking in that we tend to label and define political structures that trap us within the borders of our imagined “stable” states. We then form mental pictures of who we are based on this presumed stability. A good example is the collapse of USSR where a political identity disappeared rather quickly. However, constructivists also believe in an interactive process that is open to ideas and keeps the lines of communication open among its agents. These agents can be individuals, groups or other political structures. And these processes lead to treaties, laws, and international organizations such as the UN, WTO, and IMF etc.

My view is more pragmatic. I find myself careening between liberalism as well as constructivism. As said in the text (below), democracies hardly go to war with each other. Therefore, as countries begin to shift to more democratic systems, then views about the real cost of war, for example, will take center stage in debates.

I also tend to think that as more countries become richer and more interconnected then the actors will all have a stake in international affairs. And the thought of wiping a civilization will be a tough sale.

Furthermore, technology and education will continue to have an effect on how people view each other, and how well nations can manage scarce resources. For instance, as solar technology advances, oil, coal and natural gas might just be a thing of the past. Many conflicts over such resources will cease as the sun is readily available to all.

NOTE:

Except where noted, the ideas in this article are adopted from a course text book (below) for general discussion purposes.

Rourke, T. John. 2008.  International Politics on the World Stage. 12th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Internet's effect on News

I think that one of the most important things that the Internet brought to news is availing the written word on demand. I can remember the days when you bought a newspaper to catch up on yesterday’s news, stock quotes, futures, and so on. Although television was, and still is, able to broadcast news and other data instantaneously, it is very limited in terms of content, scope and depth. The Internet enabled news organizations, including individuals, to broadcast vast amounts of both static and dynamic data and video content without the severe limitation of television’s bandwidth or the print space of newsprints.

But even more revolutionary is the effect the Internet had in taking the “keys” away from the gatekeepers that are the big media organizations; it thus, lowered the barrier in the dissemination of news and opinions. For example, all one needs is access to a computer or some other device that is Internet capable to create news or share one’s views through blogs or commentaries. In fact, some news organizations like CNN have come to value such contributions to their news gathering with sessions such as iReporter.

Furthermore, the Internet provides many sophisticated search capabilities that allows users to pinpoint only the news/data that interests them. Thus, instead of perusing through a bunch of printed materials or microfiches, we can search through a mountain of data with lightening speeds. And even data that has been archived statically can now be scanned via OCR and made dynamically available via the Internet.

Introduction

My name is Moses Kibara. I am currently enrolled in Information Technology at Umass online. I just started my third year this semester. I work as a technology technician tasked with servicing production MFPs and networking/connectivity.

My expectation for this course (91.113 Exploring the Internet) is to open up my eyes about the internet. I hope to discover new tools about exploring the internet as well as enhance the skills that I currently employ in utilizing the web.

My hobbies are travel, reading, music and sports. I also love to eat different cuisines and sample beers on weekends. I try to drink a different beer every week. My favorite beers are from microbrewers.

I hope to get to know most of you.