Planting a Naysayer in Your Text

Yet some may challenge my view by insisting that drugs are drugs. Whether used for personal satisfaction or medical purposes people tend to contribute to drug abuse. Therefore drugs should not be decriminalized, because people are not responsible enough to know their limits. Drugs such as Marijuana impairs your thinking and decision making also. So it is risky to have compassion on the drug policy.

Arguments

Malls with over one hundred stores are better than malls with thirty stores or less, because of the variety, the probability of finding necessities and different activities. It is irritating going to smaller malls and cannot find anything. It is a greater possibility that everyone in the city will have what you have. In bigger shopping malls there is a greater chance of finding something different. You can shop eat and go to the movies a bigger shopping malls. Now a days some malls even contain hotels.

Research

The big research paper has been quite a journey for me. I have used Aum databases to find sources. It has been easy to find topics on "flipping the classroom." However it has been difficult to find sources that are in contrast to this. Basically I have to make the best with what I have.I have never done an eight page paper before. So this is quite a challenge.
Researching this topic has been very complicated  for me. I have used many different phrases to find useful content. As I  continue to gather different sources, I am sure that this essay will come together fine.Though I understand that this is an argument essay I am unsure about whether I am arguing using the authors point of views or am I allowed to throw in my two cents?
If I stop overthinking, I would be more than halfway done with the paper. The rough draft definitely looks like a rough draft. However, the final draft will be completely different and well put together.

Don't Blame the Eater: Response

To a certain extent I agree with David Zinczenko, however I cannot accept his point that there are not enough alternatives for teenagers. If teenagers are conscious to make their own decisions on where they'd like to eat, they also can make healthy eating choices. A person does not become obesed out of thin air. Also if a parent is allowing their child to eat fast food on a regular, he/she is contributuing to unhealthy eating habits as well. Though restaurants does not offer healthy food choices or appropiate portions of food, families can simply plan their own meals. The amount of money spent eating out is about the same as buying groceries. Basically, it is all a personal choice. If a child is not of age to choose what he or she eats, they have no choice but to eat what is provided. However, if a parents is concerned about the health of their child(ren) he/she will set better eating habits examples. Yes, children are enticed advertisements, but this does not necessarily mean that they should have it. That's like saying, there is an imitated powder grenade advertisement presented. Of course, kids are going to think it is cool, but I guarantee parents would say no. Why? Because the end results is a ton of mess and powdered furniture. This is the same with unhealthy eating. If one is aware that the end reults are not good, stay away from it.

Summary: Don't Blame the Eater

In "Don't Blame the Eater", a fitness guru, David Zinczenko asserts that obesity is at an all time high, because there is not a variety of restaurants to choose from that encourages healthy eating. Fast food eateries serve over the amount recommended. The failure of disclosing nutritional facts results in the consumption of more calories than needed. Of course, people are going to eat all of the food that is given. So, yes people are going to continue to sue McDonalds for contributing their obesity and or health problems.

MLA format Bibliography: "Books"

Szatamari, Peter MD. A Mind Apart: Understanding Children with Autism and Asperger Syndrome.

     New York: The Guilford Press, 2004. Print.


Seidel, Charles. Basic Concepts in Physiology: A Student's Survival Guide. United States:

     McGrawhill Companies, 2002. Print.


Wood, Karen and Thomas S. Dickerson. Promoting Literacy in Grades 4-9. United States: A

     Pearson Education Comany, 2000. Print.

Big Paper Topic; "Flipping the Classroom"

I found myself interested in Salman Khan's, "Khan's Academy." Being that I am majoring in Elementary Education, I have concerns about this career field in the future. Personally, teachers do not get paid their worth as is. One of my concerns, if students teach themselves at home and do the homework in class, what would be the teacher's job? Since the students would not necessarily need teachers, unless for assistance, will this result in the decrease of teacher's salary?

Therefore I have decided to educate myself on "flipping the classroom". I am more on the traditional side when it comes to learning. I believe that allowing students to indulge in technology while in a learning environment can be very distracting. I do not think that the students will be able to retrieve important information as they should.

However, I am open to finding research stating that  flipping the classroom can be beneficial to students and teachers. I am interested in knowing how effective this change will be. I am hoping to find lots of useful information on this topic whether an author agrees or disagrees with this new way of learning. Hopefully, an experiment on this kind of learning has already been conducted.

Andrew McAfee: Are Droids Taking Our Jobs?

I agree with McAfee that droids are taking our jobs or at least prohibiting us from being gainfully employed. McAfee gives several examples and they are evident in the world today. Today, an individual can take a picture of a check and this allows it to be deposited into the bank. Also in certain deposit stores and grocery stores humans are not needed at the register. Because  handheld technologies and self checkout systems are in place, workers are not needed to process a purchase unless the customer needs assistance. The development of technology is expanding and growing more complex as time pass. Take Salman Khan's idea of using videos to teach kids as an example. If kids are learning through the use of videos, will this eventually replace teachers? My personal opinion, teachers will only become observers or assistants.
There are so many examples and proofs that droids are becoming more popular than the actual use of human labor. I do not know whether this change will be helpful or harmful to society.

Eli Pariser: "Filter Bubbles"

Although Pariser examples are not enough proof, I agree with his theory.  I have experience searching the Web for a specific topic and received different results than others. If the information we receive from online sites are based on location and other sources, this is limiting our knowledge on important information. It is basically saying, "You deserve this piece of information,because you are using a Dell Computer and live in Montgomery." At the same time, I believe that if a person wants more information, they will adjust their search. I can attest that it has become harder to find a lot of information on the Internet. There is not much to choose from after the first page. So, in so many aspects there are "filter bubbles" online. But are those filter bubbles far off from other's? Personally, I think that filter bubbles are based on your interest. I think that if a person is on a personal computer, the searches are saved or programmed specifically for the user. That can also be another reason why certain information is received. This is a debatable subject that we may never find accurate answers for.

Clay Shirky: "SOPA is a Bad Idea"

To a certain extent I disagree with Clay Shirky's idea about SOPA is bad. If people are using the internet to copy other people's content, that is not really being creative. However, if SOPA and PIPA are enacted this will force people to use their own creativity. Although everyone ideas build off of previous inventors, there is a difference in being creative and copying. In some form it is like plagiarism. When using other people's ideas in a paper, the writer must give credit to that person or cite the sources. So, if producers want to protect their content, they have a right to do so. Today, there are places that are not allowed to used certain characters and images, because of copyright. On the other hand, I believe that enacting these laws will decrease business profits moreso than ever. Users share videos, music and movies all the time. Prohibiting users from sharing will result in most media to be unknown or unpopular. Users will be drawn to something different. Everyone is not fortunate enough to pay for these activities. What people spend their money on varies from person to person. So before seeing a movie or buying and album, they may wait to see the reviews before purchasing. This may result in lack of interest in different media. In my opinion, I think some media users are using piracy as a scape goat, because they are not making enough money compared to others. So that each media producer can have a fair profit they are considering SOPA and PIPA. Is the SOPA and PIPA rant too much? Yes, to an extent,because artists that are making millions of dollars are not hurting or missing the money. But as I stated, "each producer have the right to protect their property."  Both sides have pros and cons.

Salman Khan: "Lets Use Video to Reinvent Education"

I agree to disagree with  Khan's using video to reinvent education. Personally, videos are good for learning, because the viewer can rewind the video for clarity. It gets quite annoying asking a teacher or instructor to explain a concept over and over again. Videos are also easily accessible, so this is helpful. Although Khan's plan is good for those who have disabilties and learn better through the use of videos, what about those who learn math better in a traditional setting? I sometimes find myself getting quite bored with videos. If I listen to videos or sit in front of a screen displaying videos for too long, I began to lose interest. I have a habit of delaying assignments, because of this. If videos are used to reinvent education, what are the teachers roles in the schools? Are they now observers? One of my concerns are, will students effectively learn the concepts of math? When a traditional math test is presented in front of the student, will he or she be able to remember those concepts they learned from the videos? Though Salman Khan make clever points, I still have some concerns.

Jane McGonigal: "The game that can give you 10 extra years of life"

I think that Jane McGonigal is overly optimistic about games. Her imagination is so far in neverland to the point of no return. She says, "when people are on their death beds, they regret not playing games." McGonigal used the top five regrets of people to conclude that. She really thinks that games will change people's lives. In order for me to be persuaded I need to see proof of study. Jane McGonigal gives an example of an experience in her life when she had a concussion. She turned her tragic moment into a game to get better. Personally, I think that was creative of her. However, in my opinion I think that was a temporary quick fix. I do not deny the fact that incorporating games in daily routines bring happiness and other good weird feelings. Besides the math McGonigal presented in the beginning, she will have to present a recent human study.

Nicholas Carr: Information Overload

In Carr's opening statement, I agree with the fact, "humans crave information." We would Google any question or piece of information that we are not sure about. We like to learn more about the things we do not know. I do not necessarily think that having access to digital technology is making us stupid. However, it does requires people to do less thinking. It depends on each individual , how they use technology and what they are searching for.  I agree with Nicholas Carr when he says, "working memory can only hold so much memory." Personally, I have experienced studying and taking a break to view something else. Instantly, I forgot the information I had learned. To an extent, I think that digital data can be a distraction. When we begin to check our phones and emails, we tend to shift our attention some place else. Carr had some good points. He also backed it with different forms of memories of the brain.

Clay Shirky: "How Cognitive Surplus Will Change the World"

In Clay Shirky's, "How Cognitive Surplus Will Change the World," he discuss how people should volunteer and contribute to large global world projects. Clay has some good points. He states that, surplus is made up of free time and talent. I think that if millions of people get together with different ideas something would come into form. If we have a lot of free time on our hands, why not use it for constructism? I found it interesting that  the world has over three trillion hours a year of free time. I'm inquiring, how did Mr. Shirky come up with that? Personally, I think that it depends on a person's schedule and lifestyle to determine how much free time one would have. Another interesting statement Clay Shirky made is, "There is a spectrum between mediocre and good." What I interpreted from that is, one have to start from the bottom to eventually improve. It takes practice. No matter what it is, doing something is better than doing nothing. If ideas are not put into action, one will never know what he/she can discover. For an example, the LOLcats. Clay did not declare the pictures of cats with quotes pointless. He stated that, "it is creative." I am witness of seeing pics as such surfacing the internet and I think, "What bored person in their free time create something like that?" However, Clay convinced me to be more open minded about creativity.  His statement, "technology is not only used to consume, but to share" supports this. Even though some things appear to be worthless, it is creative--intinsic motivation. The daycare scenario was also intriguing. One would think that parents would stop being late, because of the late fees applied. However, more parents start being late picking up their children. Overall Clay Shirky is pretty optimistic.

Steven Johnson: "Everything Bad is Good for You"

  In Steven Johnson's  "Everything Bad is Good for You," he present his beliefs on how pop culture is positive. I agree that it requires a lot of intelligence to invent ideas and software for entertainment. However, there is some truth to George Will's quote. I do not necessarily think that adults playing games or watching movies on their computer is a problem or define one's intelligence. But from my interpretation, adults are becoming more absorbed in technology versus interacting personally. In my opinion, certain technology is a nice little "dress-up" to make things easier and is used to occupy time. Often people really do not play games to expand cognitive thinking. Nine times out of ten people probably would not take the positive things they learn from games and apply it to life.
 On the other hand, his sarcasm about the phone, comparing it to his nephew figuring out the Simms game was quite intriguing. I think Johnson's point was that some things are common sense. The game involved more complex thinking than learning how to use a dial tone phone. After that Steven discuss how complicated games are today and it requires patience, decision making, probing and telescopic thinking. Then he takes that and compares it to reading. I agree with some of his points on that and others not so much. Overall I think that Steven did good at explaining why games can be good. The questions are-- are they good enough to apply in reality? How many people actually use cognitive techniques learned from games to reality?

Jane McGonigal "Gaming Can Make a Better World"

    In Jane McGonigal, "Gaming Can Make a Better World," She stated many points about how gaming can be positive and increase human problem solving. Although her statements hold some truth, it is still difficult to believe that the complexity of gaming can influence problem solving skills in reality. I agree with the fact when gamers play video games they are more attentive and hopeful than in reality. I think this have something to do with morale and perception. A gamer can collab with other gamers to figure out complicated levels in games.This gives them confidence or hope to achieve goals. However, in real life if one does not have any guidance, one must rely on self. This can be frustrating. People tend to be impatient with real life problems. There is something annoying about encountering the same problem in reality versus the same problem in gaming. In real life, one may fear that there is not another chance, which results in stress and hopelessness. On the other hand, in gaming, it is evident that there are chances after chances no matter how many times you have failed.
    In contrast, I have to disagree with Jane on the statement , "turning virtual heroes into reality heroes." Here is my explanation. To  my knowledge, there are not many games that people are interested in today that is reality related. Those that are, people may not be familiar with. Most games that this generation participates in are in conjunction with sports and wars. In order for a gamer to save the world, there need to be more real life problem solving games. These games need to be invented for game systems also. I think Jane should have been more broad explaining her statement. Furthermore, I do not find the statement that "gamers like to work hard" to be quite true. If gaming is all a gamer knows, gaming is going to be a consistent routine-- it is the mystery of gaming. That does not mean one is working it hard, it means they are enjoying the entertainment. Lastly, I think Jane should have been more specific about what particular aspect of gaming can enhance real life problem solving. In conclusion, if there were more real world situation games, maybe gaming, in some form, would be helpful and applicable to real world problems.

Video Games and Technology

I chose this class, because it is a requirement. I am not big on games, but from time to time, I play them . However, I am into technology.Technology is actually the world's most popular invention right now. For an instance, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are all technology based. It helps people to communicate and network with others. Unfortunately, of all these I only have Facebook in which I had to recently reactivate for this class. In my opinion technology is going to replace the traditional aspects of doing things. For an example, people rather send an e-mail or text before communicating in person. In addition, board games have become less entertaining and video games are played on a daily basis. Even in public places, in some cases, patients have to sign in on a computer. So the constant changes kind of force people to have some type of technology literacy. With that being said, I try to become knowledgeable about new technology. Although I am not a gaming fanatic, I put forth the effort to engage in it when curiosity arise.