News Report # 2
“Apocalypse in 2012? Date spawns theories, film”
A Pawlowski, CNN.com
1/27/2009
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/science/01/27/2012.maya.calendar.theories/index.html?eref=rss_tech
Everyone remembers the approaching of year 2000, and the whole Y2K drama, well now that that is a think of the past, we have year 2012 to worry about. According to the Maya calendar, the world is doomed on Dec, 21 of 2012. The Mayans are an ancient civilization known for their advanced understanding of astronomy. Many scholars believe that this is just a trendy thing that is completely being blown out of proportion. The date does coincide with the winter solstice that is to occur on that date. When the earth lines up with the center of the Milky Way, this causes people to really believe that the doomsday will occur. There are websites online advising people on what to wear on doomsday, there are survival guides and special schools to prepare people for this day to come. Some people are saying that the solar system will trigger volcanic eruptions, while others suggest that the earth will begin to rotate the opposite direction. It all sounds like a big sci-fi thriller; in fact they are creating one out of all the assumptions. Most scholarly people are saying that the basis of this evidence is coming from popular Mayan books. A professor of astronomy is in the works of writing a book to explain all the fabrications and misunderstandings of this so called calendar. He believes that year 2012 will indeed be a transformative year, but assures us that there will be no apocalypse. He also says that it upsets him that people are mixing up this very interesting culture and solely focusing on 2012.
When I first heard about this whole idea of the world ending in 2012, I was very upset. Just the thought of the ancient Mayans having already predicted the tsunami, and other world tragedies put me on edge. After all the negative reports, movies, and followers of the Mayan calendar, I was very relieved to read this article. I have been waiting to see something like this for some time now. My biggest fear is the ending of the world, so seeing that an astronomy scholar and other credible sources say it’s completely fabricated and elaborated puts me at ease. After 2000 when there was no Y2K, people should start to reconsider this whole ancient Mayan calendar dilemma. That didn’t happen whatsoever, as well as many other supposed tragedies. I think the whole “survival guides” and websites on what to wear and where to go on doomsday is just ridiculous. People are getting way too carried away with the idea of this apocalypse. Perhaps there will be a volcanic eruption, or a forest fire, or maybe even a random tornado that no one saw coming, but I highly doubt the earth will start to spin the opposite direction. If astronomy experts are saying that this is false information, and we shouldn’t believe it, then I think it’s best if everyone just stop being so concerned with it. I won’t be going to the movies themed on the ending of the world that are due out these upcoming years, nor will I read articles or stories that are promoting the idea of a possible apocalypse.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Reading Response # 2 “Can Wikipedia Ever Make the Grade?”
When I first started using Wikipedia, I had no idea that it could be edited by anyone. I believed that all of the information was entirely credible and was shocked to see the little edit icon under the information. In the beginning of this article, when it talks about Mr. Halavais and the total fabrications he was posting to various pages, I was very interested in seeing how the situation turned out. I was relieved to learn that his lies were found within mere hours by Wikipedia fact checkers, and removed. I’m happy to know that there are indeed people checking recent entries, and promptly correcting them. I understand completely that Wikipedia still is receiving mixed feelings and grades; I only refer to it with insignificant queries, and rarely for academics. I like that many professors and scholars are beginning to contribute more to the site. Wikipedia should give scholarly, and professionals a password for the site, and weed out the whole “anyone can edit” policy that they have now. Other websites also, should not be using Wikipedia for their source of information. Looking at the case of John Seigenthaler Sr. it makes you wonder what exactly we can trust on the internet. I believe that there should be more professional editing going on with the site, and even then I’m not sure if people will give the criticism a break. Ill continue to use Wikipedia most likely no matter what… but like I said before, I wouldn’t trust it 100%.
When I first started using Wikipedia, I had no idea that it could be edited by anyone. I believed that all of the information was entirely credible and was shocked to see the little edit icon under the information. In the beginning of this article, when it talks about Mr. Halavais and the total fabrications he was posting to various pages, I was very interested in seeing how the situation turned out. I was relieved to learn that his lies were found within mere hours by Wikipedia fact checkers, and removed. I’m happy to know that there are indeed people checking recent entries, and promptly correcting them. I understand completely that Wikipedia still is receiving mixed feelings and grades; I only refer to it with insignificant queries, and rarely for academics. I like that many professors and scholars are beginning to contribute more to the site. Wikipedia should give scholarly, and professionals a password for the site, and weed out the whole “anyone can edit” policy that they have now. Other websites also, should not be using Wikipedia for their source of information. Looking at the case of John Seigenthaler Sr. it makes you wonder what exactly we can trust on the internet. I believe that there should be more professional editing going on with the site, and even then I’m not sure if people will give the criticism a break. Ill continue to use Wikipedia most likely no matter what… but like I said before, I wouldn’t trust it 100%.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
News Report #1
More Chinese Teenagers Lost in Cyberspace
Kitty Bu, MSNBC.com
01-20-2009
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28754678
The youth of Beijing is slowly but surely becoming addicted to the internet. Many teenagers in China are only children, and use the popular internet cafes as an escape from the heavy expectations of their parents. This addiction is no joking matter; many teens are suffering with the same symptoms of anyone dealing with addiction, such as depression, anxiety, and lack of sleep. Treatment centers in Beijing are becoming very popular. The treatment for internet addiction consists of medical and psychological therapy and costs about 1,500 dollars a month. The typical length of treatment is about two to three months. Many internet addicts are also referred to psychiatric hospitals and treated with OCD. A doctor at the treatment facility said that new patients are becoming less and less sociable, making it harder and harder to help them. Many patients appear to have lost social skills outside of the internet world. The conditions of the addicts have continued to worsen and become more serious in the recent years. There are 200 organizations offering treatment for the addiction to this date. In some therapy sessions, patients are told to set up toy figurines in a scene of their choice. Many patients create violent battle scenes when they are first admitted, but they often have a more peaceful outcome by the time of dismissal. One girl said that when she played the video games, she believed that she was the character in the game. She made friends playing video games that she couldnt make in real life.
I cant believe that there is actually a serious condition where people are addicted to the internet. It doesnt surprise me that it is happening in China, that seems to be the place where technology is most advance. I have never personally heard of someone being "addicted" to the internet, and dont see how one could spend up to 15 hours on a computer per day. The treatment centers seem to be working for them, its like rehab for computer geeks. It makes sense to me that most of the internet addicts are treated with OCD. Maybe they cant stop playing a game until they have won, and then get obsessed with the game. The part of the article where it talked about them setting up scenes of choice with figurines was a bit disturbing. I dont like to think that violent thoughts are running through peoples minds after playing so many battle games. If they are willing to pay 1,500 dollars a month for treatments then it really must be a serious problem. It seems like the over use of games and internet activities can be dangerous for not only people playing, but anyone else as well. With such disturbing thoughts running through their minds, who knows what danger they can imagine, much less create. Hopefully this growing problem/addiction will never sweep the United States.
More Chinese Teenagers Lost in Cyberspace
Kitty Bu, MSNBC.com
01-20-2009
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28754678
The youth of Beijing is slowly but surely becoming addicted to the internet. Many teenagers in China are only children, and use the popular internet cafes as an escape from the heavy expectations of their parents. This addiction is no joking matter; many teens are suffering with the same symptoms of anyone dealing with addiction, such as depression, anxiety, and lack of sleep. Treatment centers in Beijing are becoming very popular. The treatment for internet addiction consists of medical and psychological therapy and costs about 1,500 dollars a month. The typical length of treatment is about two to three months. Many internet addicts are also referred to psychiatric hospitals and treated with OCD. A doctor at the treatment facility said that new patients are becoming less and less sociable, making it harder and harder to help them. Many patients appear to have lost social skills outside of the internet world. The conditions of the addicts have continued to worsen and become more serious in the recent years. There are 200 organizations offering treatment for the addiction to this date. In some therapy sessions, patients are told to set up toy figurines in a scene of their choice. Many patients create violent battle scenes when they are first admitted, but they often have a more peaceful outcome by the time of dismissal. One girl said that when she played the video games, she believed that she was the character in the game. She made friends playing video games that she couldnt make in real life.
I cant believe that there is actually a serious condition where people are addicted to the internet. It doesnt surprise me that it is happening in China, that seems to be the place where technology is most advance. I have never personally heard of someone being "addicted" to the internet, and dont see how one could spend up to 15 hours on a computer per day. The treatment centers seem to be working for them, its like rehab for computer geeks. It makes sense to me that most of the internet addicts are treated with OCD. Maybe they cant stop playing a game until they have won, and then get obsessed with the game. The part of the article where it talked about them setting up scenes of choice with figurines was a bit disturbing. I dont like to think that violent thoughts are running through peoples minds after playing so many battle games. If they are willing to pay 1,500 dollars a month for treatments then it really must be a serious problem. It seems like the over use of games and internet activities can be dangerous for not only people playing, but anyone else as well. With such disturbing thoughts running through their minds, who knows what danger they can imagine, much less create. Hopefully this growing problem/addiction will never sweep the United States.
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