Ready, set, KILL them ALL

mission 1: You are Super Mario. Your mission is to collect all giant super nova stars and to acquire super mushrooms that allow you to grow twice as big. You must avoid giant turtles and other gigantic monstrous creatures. You must also avoid bombs that detonate when you step on them. You must jump, hammer objects, and skip on bricks. Good luck!(ha-hah.)

mission 2: You are a part of an elite international team. The U.S. government has received several alerts in suspicion for extreme terrorist attacks in the next twenty-four hours. You are to be assigned into squad X, under Lt. Colorado's commands. Your mission, with your team, is to cease the terrorist organization, whichever one it is, from detonating eight bombs located in eight different parts of the United States. Good luck, warrior. We are counting on you.

If you were a teenager, or any customer of any age, which video game would you pick as you ponder in a store? Without a doubt, the majority would be more interested in mission number 2.

"If it's not realistic, it's not worth playing," Larry Holland.
Unfortunately, this is true today. As to why this is so, there are many reasons. People, most especially kids, are fond of thrill, excitement, and adrenaline. They get a limited amount of these three elements in a cartoon fairyland. On the other hand, they get an exceptionally sufficient amount of thrill, excitement, and adrenaline when their minds get lost in a digital world that depicts a sense of reality. I truly believe that kids enjoy belonging and being part of an alternate realm or world, instead of being separate to it. This would also explain why gamers enjoy games that involve multiple online players. It integrates a further sense of reality to be combatting or teaming up with real people. Sadly, companies respond to these cravings and persistently adds on to them by bringing more action and violence into these video games. This brings up another issue that is constantly debated upon.

BANG! Too much violence?

Yes, i believe that these violent settings in video games do have a negative impact on the minds of the young population. Sometimes, these impacts may reach a far extent where kids may want to immitate these violent images just to be able to feel real thrill, excitement, and adrenaline. In smaller case scenarios, these children or teenagers may simply be blinded, as their minds are too bombarded with these images. The REAL violence in this ACTUAL world becomes undermined and ignored because these images become just another part of daily life.

HOWEVER...

As a teenager living in today's world, I APPRECIATE ENTERTAINMENT, and am personally not affected by it at all.

HOWEVER...

I am not implying that other people are not affected by it as well. It truly depends on childhood growth and education. I believe that parents, teachers, and guardians are responsible for the training and education that these children receive.

GOING BEYOND:

A lot of people focus their attention on criticizing these video games. Look around, people. I could honestly say with utmost confidence that the global violence around us today is composed of political instabilities, religious wars, lack of education, poverty, social injustices, and factors beyond just playing video games for entertainment.

IN CONCLUSION:

I STAY NEUTRAL IN THIS ISSUE.

GAME OVER.

iRonic Professor iPod

Technology develops so quickly in such a short span of time. Innovation is in itself fascinating in today's modern world, as people step into the dimension of imagination and creativity to seek for new ideas and products. Voila! A Professor iPod that could meet the educational requirements of many kinesthetic learners.
This innovation includes the concept of using iPods as a learning tool! Teachers can record audio or visual lectures, while students can upload these digital productions into their iPods and learn. As a Mary Ward student, I am highly exposed to self-directed learning, and am able to point out the needs of students like myself. A Professor iPod is definitely not a bad idea, but it may not be the best idea.
iPod videos can indeed be very educational and helpful to a multitude of students. Seminars and lessons are more accessible to the students -- with around-the-clock access. Hypothetical students, or students who generally process information slower can easily pause, rewind, and play. However, these advantages pose a question towards the value of discipline. Many students, if not most, have a tendency to procrastinate -- of which is evident in Mary Ward. Many children of this age have not realized the gravity of reality -- of real life, and of hard-earned cash that apparently do not grow from trees. They prioritize entertainment before responsibility. The irony within all this is that an iPod is an entertainment device. Think of the distractions an iPod can bring. A video iPod could also provide students with access to movies, shows, music videos, and much, much more non-academic pieces of entertainment. Within the Mary Ward community itself, major procrastination and distraction is evidently affecting the success or failure of the students. Interpersonal communication between students and teachers is still the best way for education, in my humble opinion. Nevertheless, a professor iPod is an excellent and witty innovation-- not only in an educational standpoint, but also as a marketing standpoint that would attract many students who want to look cool.

The Darker side of Technology

Technology--A word of infinite possibilities. The reliance on technology has increased dramatically, whether it is simply computers, televisions, cellular phones, or whether they are electrocardiograms, geostationary operational environment satellites, or orbital docking systems. Human beings rely on communication technologies and computing devices so much that it has integrated itself as a common part of every lifestyle. Technology is now a central power that fuels the rhythm of daily life. Today, the darker side of technology, of which typical human beings tend to neglect, will be unveiled. The ever so essential instant messenger, television, and computer will be discussed in this journal. Perhaps it will open the eyes of many to face reality. And the reality is, humans are ignorant! MSN Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, iChat...do these terms ring a bell? Instant communication, just a click away! How convenient... These softwares are quite helpful, don't get me wrong. Even I have to admit i go online 24/7 to chat with my friends to hear the latest gossip or to get help with the utterly annoying units that we rush to get in for the next target date. With that, I pause and sigh a long sigh... Well, that's beside the point. These instant messengers are quite addictive and distracting (and you think to yourself, don't we all know this?). Moreover, they are quite dangerous for the young clueless children of society (think of those pedophiles! *gasp*!). In addition, instant messaging threatens the very basis of our grammar and spelling (lyk u kno wat i mean! lol). What we do not see, however, is that our reliance on these instant messengers serve as barriers for interpersonal person-to-person relationships. I mean, where is the emotion, the tone, the eye contact, and the presence? Well, let's make it a little bit more personal and think of it this way... Imagine that your boyfriend/girlfriend cheats on you (knock on wood). He/she would obviously prefer to say sorry on MSN than in person or on the phone...Where's the courage in that? Where is the true emotion, or the expression... It's like having a job interview over the Internet! (So if anyone wants to ask me out on a date, ask me in person, ok? NOT ON MSN!*cough cough!* or call me! *wink* I'm just joking around...)To cut it short with the Romeo and Juliet dilemma, what I'm trying to say is that we isolate ourselves from other people, and this is obviously very unhealthy. Moving along to our next victim: The TELEVISION! The television is a major source of entertainment and it does occasionally give us useful and important information. Stepping over to the dark side, the TV is bad for our eyes, it influences violence and the usage of nasty language, and it is a cause for procrastination, laziness, and distraction... No wonder I get grounded ever so often. SHHhhh! Our age group is stupid. Don't get mad at me, please. Really, we are stupid. We would buy anything they show us on TV through excellent advertising techniques! The next time you see a commercial, do remember: WE control what is cool, NOT the TV people! Keep in mind that technology was designed for us to control, not for them to control what we do and how we live! Furthermore, the television creates social injustices through stereotypes and discrimination. Blondes are stupid, super skinny annorexic people are sexy, and Chinese people are weird thrifty people (oh, i am insulted! *sniff*). These stereotypes can be really harmful and are evidently affecting the minds of human beings. Last but not the least, I will be discussing our all-time-favourite device: The Computer! Thank goodness for the computer! Super long essays are not a problem, and photoshopping my pictures make me look prettier (kidding!!). Quick access to information and E-class itself are very convenient! I will not be discussing threats to privacy, security, and the computer's addictivity (We all know these things!). Instead, I will be discussing how bad total reliance on the computer is! First and foremost, not all information presented on the Internet are positive ones! Second of all, the world would collapse without a computer. Lawyers keep their files on computers, banks keep databases and store all account informations on computers, and politicians need instant polls! Do remind yourself that computers don't last forever. In fact, Canada alone is experiencing energy problems. Imagine a total blackout in the very near future. We wouldn't survive! At least I know I wouldn't! We are all so relaxed right now that such a catastrophe would shock us all! Technology--A word of infinite possibilities; the question is, how far should we go with it? Well, in instant messaging terms: cya ppls! ima be on msn all nite long! bye!

Stabbed by the Media

A Letter to the Media
by: Anna Neuheimer

You paint our faces and put on our clothes,
You make our personality and invent our roles,

You silence our voices and create our fears,
You don't see us calling,
You don't see our tears.

You control our self-esteem and kill us inside,
You've destroyed us enough now we want to guide.

See our ways, our souls, what's real,
From now on we'll decide how we feel.

We'll show you how we really are,
Your image of us has gone much too far.

birth of this blog

September 16, 2006; period 2 @ media class; this blog was born =)