mycklee-blog

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Easy Sleazy Please

It’s so crazy when you think about how many applications we have in this world today or in shorter terms “apps”. Turn on your mobile phone and what do you know, everything you touch in your phone is part of an app. Go to the App Store for android phones or apple store for iPhones and there’s another couple hundred thousands of apps that you can choose from that can satisfy your unlimited needs. Whoever these creator of apps are should be thanked by us the consumers yes? I mean after all, apps have made everything about technology that much easier to use. With all these apps out, one would think that there’s an app out there for every user regardless of interest or age but is that really so? How does apps out there really cater to the needs of the elders safely presuming that most elders aren’t as technology literate as the rest of the younger crowd. Smartphones are already complex enough as it is with the modern aged group so this can only create yet another obstacle unless there are creators who’ll look into this. 

There are several things that can be done to make this happen for those that are not part of the technology literate crowd and I mean that in a nice way of course. First thing I would think of when creating an app to help out families is the ease of access to the app itself. Make the app bold and readable! Be simple with the idea because the whole point is to make sure you know who your audience is and it’s older folks so you don’t have to worry about making flashy designs. Second, I’d set up the program where there’s not many steps when they have to sign in because the last thing I’d want is an app where it’s too hard for older folks to gain access to. The next thing I would do is make sure this app is available for all platforms whether it be on a tablet, laptop, or mobile smartphone. Along with this, I would make sure that there’s a strong security if need be just in case sensitive information have been put into the app. 

After all these prior steps are implemented and inserted, I think the most important feature is what’s in the app itself. The whole point of this process is to make it easier to help those families in need; particularly grandparents raising grandchildren. One of the top feature for the app should be that it’s free of charge to use and contain no fees whatsoever because as helpers, we should understand the needs and struggles for families in general and aim towards those specific areas. Another great feature for me to make this app inclusive is have it in different languages so that even if someone who’s not familiar with the English language can also use it with ease. Now within the app, it should contain several different programs whether it be videos explaining instructions or perhaps an animated tutor guiding the learner along the way with each steps. One last important thing I would want to integrate within this useful app to help families, is have professional help on the other side as well with the most up to date knowledge so that a family will never get out dated source or information. With all these ideas all put together, I think it’s hard to see the failure of it regardless of who’s using it.

So to reflect on what was talked about and discussed today, I was asked to see what I could do to help create an app that would be easy for any family to use mainly grandparents raising grandchildren. I went over a lot of important specific ideas that will not only make it easier for older folks who aren’t as tech savvy to use but to offer help in a way that’s also convenient for them as well. We know the world is always changing and that in order to keep up, we have to adapt as well but that doesn’t mean we leave behind the elders because they can’t comprehend technological advances. They are just as important and deserve to understand as well because one day, they might be the one taking care of your kids when you’re not around and when that happens, I'm sure you’ll want them to have a viable source to turn to. 

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The Know Nothing Gen

Dear Joe Soucheray,

I couldn’t agree more with the things you said in your press article. I too, think that we are losing grounds within these next few generation of kids. I’m not saying that all is lost but what I am voicing is that they lack so much knowledge in some of the best parts of our past. Every child out there should be familiar of what typewriters and dial phones are; they don’t have to know how to use it but  just knowing what they are can bring upon hope in a dimming world. We live in such a fast paced lifestyle that changes are often in action and with technological advances, there’s only so much we can do to save the next generation before our generation becomes ancient to them as well.

A question that does pop up in my mind about this rising problem is do we blame it all solely on the children or does adults deserve at least half of the blame too? Maybe adults deserve more of the blame because children will only know what we teach them and what they learn from each other. Parents, educators, and guardians are mainly the ones in charge of leading the way and teaching the young ones what they should and need to know in life. Of course, it’s up to the child if they’re willing to learn about our past technologies but our generation or the ones before us have to implement that opportunity first so that at least we can say that we’ve tried. 

Another thing we should take into consideration is perhaps making these information easier to access for who ever is educating our future youths just because a typewriter or a rotary phone isn’t always at their disposal. With this being said, the context in which these information are displayed should be presented in a way where it’s also easily understood regardless of the age of the children. Majority of the times, you only see these products in museum now so let’s try to expose this to the next generation of children as much as we can. 

What I found most intriguing here is the part where you brought up the car because it was unaware to me that even sedans are fading away in favor of SUV, trucks, and mini-vans. I can definitely see your point when you said all kids refer a SUV to a car because it make sense that correct terminologies are also getting lost within each upcoming generation. Parents were just more hands on with children back in the days as where today, parents will simply handoff their cell phones to their children just so they won’t be bothered. It’s just hard to find handy fathers who are tool inclined that will teach their sons the way of fixing a car in todays age and time and I think that’s a characteristic trait that’s also being lost.

To reflect on your article Joe, I clearly understand where you’re coming from and yes, I’m sure every parent does with they still have an old telephone in their closet so they can show their kids how it was use. Heck, I bet some wish they still have old cassette and VCR players at home just so they can how sloppy resolution were back in the days. Regardless, this is something us adults or older generation need to help take initiative of and teach the next waves of generation. The future is only as bright as we can make it and if we hinder now, the future will only falter. I appreciate your article and your opinion. 

Thank you! Best regards, CK Lee

[mycklee-blog]

Money&Tech

Why is technology so darn expensive? I mean of course everyone knows why but still, we just want to ask that over and over like how we always question ourselves why life is so hard. Technology uses money and cost money to make money. Confusing it might sound yes but it’s also straight forward; it’s like saying freedom isn’t free. Perhaps it’s just something we love too much and because we’ve all or majority at least have all became so materialistic. We always want to be up to date with the trendy new tech that we’d give our arms and legs for it. Let’s use the new Apple iPhone 10 for an example, the product cost $1000 and only boasts a few new changes but people just got to have it. They neglect the price tag because they can afford it with monthly payments and probably because their favorite celebrity also uses the same phone. Are these investments really worth it in the end?

I think the first thing a family should ask themselves is, do we really need these new tech or updates? If you can live just fine with what you have then you don’t “need” that new phone or laptop or TV. Most of the time people just “want” the new things to feel like they fit in or because they’re following the modern trend. If what you have now is working just fine, then no need to to upgrade, however, if you must because you need a replacement or so then the next best thing is too look for the best deal out there. This is the time where you would go look online or perhaps ask friends or family where you can catch a good deal. You can almost guarantee to catch a deal online if you look hard enough. 

Another way families can keep their budget spending inline is to monitor their children’s technology usage, don’t let your kids use technology too much because that can lead to a lot of different variables. One, they can and will probably learn of the model of a tech product like a new game or game system perhaps and they will perceive to want that. Two, if your children plays too much game whether it be on a phone, tablet, or game system, they might be incline to want to use real money for online purchases because they might want that new character or a new map package from the “Call of Duty” game you just bought them. One thing parents have to remember is that technology uses a lot of electricity and that bill can definitely add up.I think a lot of times when people buy new technology products, it’s only because they really want them or it’s made on pure impulse decision. Me personally, I make a lot of impulse purchases so I know what it’s like first hand. 

Another advice would be just priority, know what you need first and get that instead of what you want. If your family needs food on the table and or the bills paid for, don’t go out and purchase that new TV. If your child needs new clothes but he or she wants a cell phone, obviously get them clothes first. With technology and money, we have to be mature and responsible with these decisions because you’d be surprise how fast you can become broke if you were reckless and careless. If you have money and can afford all the luxuries then by all go for it but if you’re starting to go broke and can’t pay for some of the nice things you once had then you need to start cutting some things out of your life so that it can fit your budget. Everyone should try to live livable life, not a comfy and lavish one.

The use of technology can lead to a lot of shopping online and with the ease of it now and days, shopping has become quite a convenient task at a swipe or click of your finger. This goes for everyone not just kids or adults. This can cut into a family’s budget almost immediately if not cautious. An article by Forbes shows just how much millennials shop now and of course it’s social media that creates the biggest influence to this. Teens and kids are gullible and are easily persuaded so parents will have to keep an eye out for that. There is a youtube video I watched in one our module in class where it talks about an app call “Chore Monster” and with that app, it basically makes a chores list for children to do. In completing that list, parents can reward the kids some things like maybe some time to use technology. It’s a great way to make kids earn the rights to use technology and if they don’t want to do any chores then it’s still a win situation because then they are less likely to waste money on apps and online. So there are many ways for parents to keep track of their budget in regards to technology, these are only a few that I discussed about but the most important advises I can give is don’t waste money for the leisure of a moment because money shouldn’t be spent on money.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimmyrohampton/2017/05/03/does-social-media-influence-millennials-shopping-decisions/#2adc49414cf3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCSq_3QHOHY&feature=youtu.be

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$tart Them Young!

In today’s world, money has become a symbol of power and trumps the world in almost all aspect. The rich gets richer while the poor gets poorer or so it seems to all of us (I’m sure there’s some truth to this). We spend money as quick as we earn it, maybe even faster. I know for sure I don’t act my wage and I’m an impulse spender which only makes things worse. But is this really all our fault or could it be because of something else? What can we do to help us and other people make better financial decisions so that everyone doesn’t become poor before their next paycheck? Fortunately, to avoid this catastrophe there have been many online sites and apps to help us out before it’s too late,

With the financial world advancing so quick and to help keep us up to dates with the changes, apps and websites have started creating games and other means to educate us on financial decision makings. One of the best way to help  avoid financial crisis is to teach our kids from youth the importance of money so  as they grow, they’re aware of it. It might sound a bit crazy given we’re trying to teach children complex concepts to which they might not comprehend yet but nonetheless, this is more beneficial than it is useless. Of course this isn’t always an ideal case because not all children learn at the same speed but that’s why these games have different levels so that each children regardless of their age or education level can be catered to. 

In class we went over this website that offers about 10 interactive financial websites that can help kids, teens, and even adults money management skills so that they can prep for their future if need be. Amongst those 10 sites, there was a few that caught my attention. “The Mint” was the first to grasp my attention as it’s catered to all age group and even for teachers, I mean how much better can it get? The site consists of games that are built around earning, saving, spending, and giving. I think one of the most important aspect of that game is that, it teaches its audience in general how money moves. Not only does it teaches that but it explains it in an easy to grasp language so that no one feels left out or behind. Another one called “Hands on Banking” is also intriguing because it’s really kid friendly and it teaches about the cycle of money, i.e. where money comes from, how to budget, and what checkings, savings, and credit accounts are. The site also uses special tools like calculators, math formulas, and explain atm usage details, not only that but it has a glossary for further assistance too! Talk about going the whole 9 yards just to help teach your kids the basic and essential fundamentals.

Me personally, my take on websites or apps offering help with teaching the basic fundamentals of financial decision making is great! I think we can use more of that around the world. To think if we ha these resources growing up, don’t you think we’d be more inclined to make better decisions when spending our hard earned money? Maybe or maybe not but it’s just the thought of having this knowledge growing up that could’ve helped made some changes. If I was a parent, I’d be all in for these sites and of course it will depend and differ by age but they have some that are suitable for a wide range go ages so that shouldn’t be a problem. We all know that finance involves a lot of math and let’s be honest, math is one of the, if not, the hardest subject out there because not everyone is good with numbers. We have more to gain from with these helpful sites and apps than we do have to lose. So to this, I’d say...START THEM YOUNG!

https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/10-interactive-financial-websites-teach-kids-money-management-skills/

Walker, S. (2018).Managing Family Health and Financial Well-being with Technology - Part 2. Retrieved from https://canvas.umn.edu/courses/77092/pages/module-10-readings-and-resources-finance-and-health?module_item_id=1200290. 2018 PowerPoint Presentation.

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We’re Having TECHnical Difficulty

           It’s crazy to see how much times have changed since the coming of technological advancement. Humanity have made strides we’ve never thought we’d make and in those great strides, we’ve accomplished and achieved so much. We have come a long way with each generation and each invention. You’d think with so much improvement compared to the last couple decades, there would be nothing but positive thoughts and happy endings but that’s not the case. Perhaps, we’ve landed on some sort of technological fantasy land that’s so great even we can’t escape it’s grasp. Just what does this really mean?

           Who would’ve ever thought that we’d become prisoners of our own creation, I know I didn’t see this coming and quite frankly, I’m sure majority of consumers didn’t either. We’ve become so drawn and attached to our smartphones, tablet, laptop, etc. that we’ve neglect what’s around us. Things have become oblivious to us and the scary part is that we don’t notice this sometimes. We’ve let technology change our lives and shape our world and although it does bring a lot of pros, it also leaves behind a lot of cons. Parents don’t even know how to parents anymore and children don’t even know how to go outside to play anymore as well. This makes you wonder how different life will become within the next couple decades.

           In class we did an experiment where we had to log our technology use for 12 whole hours and let me tell you something; even though I’m not surprised at all about how much I touch my phone, I am VERY disappointed by how dependent I am with my phone. The second part to that experiment was writing an analysis paper reflecting and expressing any opinion about it and I’ve got to admit; perhaps I am addicted to my phone. If not addicted, then for sure TOO attached and that is honestly quite sad to say the least. You know, once you’re able to look back and see that the first thing you touch when you wake up and when you go to sleep is your phone, you sort of knock yourself for it. You kind of just sit there and try to comprehend how much you’re in denial of your need to hold your phone and just scroll through you social media network.

           Overall, this was a good experiment because it’s interesting to see how much I had to touch or use my phone at what time and how long at that specific time or what apps I used. Besides just seeing how much you touch your phones, you also notice how distracting it can be at times or majority of times in my case. Even as I’m working on this applied blog post, I’m constantly switching over to my phone as if someone’s constantly messaging me (which no one isn’t). You can say there’s some correlation with my grades and technology usage as I’m not using my time efficiently at all. Going off of this, we discussed in class that there should be some balance between work, school, family, and social life. Too much of one can lead to over stressing, jobless, or even failing classes if one doesn’t balance well between all spectrum of this weight scale. As humans it is important for us to spend some good amount of quality time away from our technology products and interact with those around us as well. We’re a species that’s meant to socialize and express our feelings instead of isolating ourselves from our sense of communities.

           To bring this to an ending, this whole experiment in class have taught me something valuable. It has shown me to never intertwine my usage of technology with personal and business life. As explained above how distracting this can be for me, I must learn when not to depend on my cellphone so much. There’s no way I can help other or even tend to my family in the future if I can’t learn how to control whatever it is I have with my cellphone. There’s a quote I read not too long ago from an article in class and it reads as follow:

“It’s so tricky because it is completely uncharted territory,” he said. “Social media accounts have never had this level of market saturation at any other point in human history. That’s inevitably going to bring up some new challenges for people.”

I believe this is why it’s such a challenge for us to stay off or away our phones sometimes but to leave this off of one note; to be able to fix a problem, we must first realize that there is one…and perhaps the problem lies in the palm of our hands.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/29/smarter-living/navigating-social-media-relationships.html?sl_l=1&sl_rec=mostpopular_sample_dedup&contentCollection=smarter-living&mData=articles%255B%255D%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.nytimes.com%252F2017%252F08%252F29%252Fsmarter-living%252Fnavigating-social-media-relationships.html%253Fsl_l%253D1%2526sl_rec%253Dmostpopular_sample_dedup%26articles%255B%255D%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.nytimes.com%252F2017%252F06%252F14%252Ftravel%252Fhow-to-have-a-destination-celebration.html%253Fsl_rec%253Dmostpopular_sample_dedup&hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=smarterLiving-promo-region®ion=smarterLiving-promo-region&WT.nav=smarterLiving-promo-region&_r=0

https://canvas.umn.edu/courses/77092/pages/assignment-personal-tech-log-and-reflection-2?module_item_id=1035431

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MonitHER and MediHATE (monitor & mediate)

I came across this video not too long ago in class and to sum this video up, it’s about a father with an adopted African-American daughter who was getting bullied and made fun of racially. So in a gist, it’s Caucasian kids being racist to this African-American teen adopted into a Caucasian family. Upon learning of this situation, the father who’s name is Brad, tries to crack down on this and contact the parent of those kids. When he does finally get of hold of the father, the father is eventually oblivious to it and shrugs it off as if it’s no big deal so this only infuriated Brad even more. Needless to say, Brad posted a video of this whole incident on the internet expressing his emotions regarding how the situation unraveled and how childish the other father was with the racism that was at hand.

           With the background to this explained, what and how do we feel about Brad reacting this way and taking this situation to the internet? Well if you asked me, I’d say you go Brad! I feel like Brad did a good job handling this situation. He definitely took care of this situation better than the father of those kids making racist remarks. That’s good parenting. There’s a lot of different ways Brad could’ve gone about dealing with this but he took care of it the way I think any good parent would. In contrast, there was a different video in which a furious father dealt with his situation totally opposite of Brad and that could’ve ended up with Child Protection Services getting involved. This way of positive parenting can lead to good rapport between him and his daughter. It’ll show her that her father does care and that he’s there for her protection thus creating a stronger bond as well.

           Besides those kids being ignorant and racist “maybe” even ill knowledge of what they were doing, you can say this was caused by the lack of technology or social media monitoring from the father of those kids. You can even say that Brad and his wife could’ve found out sooner if they were aware of the context in how social media worked these days but then again, with their daughter being in high school already; keeping strict tabs on their daughter’s personal life could’ve been too overwhelming for her as well causing a downward drift. Going back to the father of those kids; which is extremely bad parenting, especially when a father calls you concerned about the actions of your kids and you only reassure that it’s ok and that you also display the same actions as kids yourself. In class we discussed something related to Parent-Child relationships and technology and in regard to that there are four parenting processes, they are monitoring, mediation, management, and model. These four processes are quite relatable to the video I mentioned because had these steps been implemented, the situation could’ve been avoided especially by the kids and their ignorant father. Sometimes, all it takes and I’m not saying you have to be on this a lot but just be a good role model when using technology, mediate how much your child/children uses their technology, and monitor enough so that you’re aware of what they’re doing online so that cyber bullying can be prevented. Can it cause conflict? Yes, but it can also prevent a deeper problem in which case, happened to be racism and bullying.

           There’s this article called “Parents, Teens, and Digital Monitoring” by Monica Anderson and in this article, they discuss all sorts of correlation regarding teens and their technology usage with the actions performed by the parents. There’s a good section that read as follows:

“A Pew Research Center survey of parents of 13- to 17-year-olds finds that today’s parents1 take a wide range of actions to monitor their teen’s online lives and to encourage their child to use technology in an appropriate and responsible manner.

Moreover, digital technology has become so central to teens’ lives that a significant share of parents now employ a new tool to enforce family rules: “digitally grounding” misbehaving kids. Some 65% of parents have taken their teen’s cellphone or internet privileges away as a punishment.”

This is a perfect example and it only enforces what I stated earlier when I feel that parents should get involved more in the lives of their kids and technology. How will we ever know what’s going on in the lives of our children if we never make an effort to get involved and how can you prevent a situation if you never knew there was one in the first place? In all honesty, sure there will be some conflict when a parent is trying to mediate and limit the technology usage of their teens but that’s just how it’s going to be in some household.

           Going back to Brad and his story, I wouldn’t exactly know what I would have done but it probably be something along the line of what he did. I’m glad he took it to the internet and was able to gather a lot of supporter whole back him up. That’s positive parental development along with just positive parenting in general. Everyone should know that technology is not a right and that it’s a privilege, especially for kids and teens.

https://canvas.umn.edu/courses/77092/files/4049371/download?wrap=1

https://canvas.umn.edu/courses/77092/files/2852802/download?wrap=1

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Protect & Preserve What is Yours

It’s not uncommon anymore these days to see couples fight, whether it be inside their homes or out in public but the reasons behind their fights are what’s rather interesting sometimes. There could be hundreds of reasons behind their squeamish and rage roaring verbal battles but there is a one that is becoming quite common. One that is the stem and root to where it all begins. Technology!

What do I mean when I say technology? Well it’s quite self explanatory. Technology or if we want to get more technical and deeper than smartphone or cellphone is becoming the sole source of these fights amongst couples that are arising more and more. I’m sure you’ve seen your homeboy or homegirl get into it with their significant others whilst on the phone or in person in which the fight has something to do with the very single cellphones in their hands as well. Perhaps even you have been in this very exact situation time after time. I’m not saying it’s your fault or theirs. I’m not even saying anyone is a bad person here. All I’m simply doing is bringing up a topic that has come to my attention and that is worth talking about because as humans, sometimes we aren’t fully aware of what we do because it’s not intentional. Cellphone usage has become a big part of our lives whether it’s for a job, school, communication, or simply just entertainment. Life today is so different from life yesterday and we’re just so technological advance now that our cellphones keep us up today with our lives and work. It’s almost like we’ve become prisoners to our own games and this is where we have to start realizing and start making a change so that we can save ourselves and our relationships.

One of the, if not, the best advice out there someone can get from all this is communication! Communication is key to everything, not just technology or cellphone related but everything in general. Often times, we don’t communicate or open enough with our partners so when this happens guess what follows? Miscommunication. When things are miscommunicated, it can lead to fights of course. Along with communication being an issue, another huge one is trust. Always have trust in your partner and should that trust ever be taken for granted, at least you know it’s not your fault because you trusted them. Coming off of that, a relationship can never function or gel well without trust. If you’re always snooping around the back of your partner’s back because you think he/she is hiding something that can lead to insecurity and that fault would be yours. Next thing I'd advise is to protect each other and what you have. don’t let others and outside sources dictate how your relationship should be or how you should love each other because most of the time, it’s coming from invalid sources and or opinions of people who have failed at their own advices. Don’t go looking for help through your phone when the first thing you should do is communicate with your significant others should a problem arise. Last to this short list would be give each other attention please. I’m not asking nor telling you to be with them all day every day but just give them a bit of your time each day. Have a technology free time to talk about each other’s day and this shouldn’t be just for dinner. We all know work and life is important and that might be involving your phone for the most part but take some time off just to look at your partner in the eyes and ask how they are doing sometimes...because sometimes we have problems we want to talk about but no one talks to us.

 Somethings to go off from in our class powerpoint and discussion related to this issue with couples is for one, people expect check-ins periodically throughout the day especially teens and younger couples. When it doesn’t go this way, that partner starts to feel some type of way perhaps a bit negative. Mistrust can arise and that can lead to overstepping boundaries. According to some Pew researches, majority of couples whether married or dating 10 years less/more feel that their partner was constantly distracted by their cellphones. Now in contrast, a New York Times article called “How to Navigate Social Media Boundaries in a Relationship” there was specific sections that read “Prioritize quality time without social media” and “Check in before you post” and in a gist, what these sections talk about are basically give some quality time to your partner and think about his or her feelings too before you post anything. At the end of the day, we’re all humans still so we need some nature and attention. We’re emotional creatures and so we need to love and to be love. We should never let technology especially our cellphone come in between our relationships...EVER!

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/29/smarter-living/navigating-social-media-relationships.html?sl_l=1&sl_rec=mostpopular_sample_dedup&contentCollection=smarter-living&mData=articles%255B%255D%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.nytimes.com%252F2017%252F08%252F29%252Fsmarter-living%252Fnavigating-social-media-relationships.html%253Fsl_l%253D1%2526sl_rec%253Dmostpopular_sample_dedup%26articles%255B%255D%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.nytimes.com%252F2017%252F06%252F14%252Ftravel%252Fhow-to-have-a-destination-celebration.html%253Fsl_rec%253Dmostpopular_sample_dedup&hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=smarterLiving-promo-region®ion=smarterLiving-promo-region&WT.nav=smarterLiving-promo-region&_r=0

https://canvas.umn.edu/courses/77092/files/3722165/download?wrap=1

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Swiper, No Swiping

Dora the Explorer was my niece’s favorite tv show when she was a young child. I remember when I had to babysit her and all she wanted to do was go on adventures with Dora. In the tv series, there was a fox named Swiper who always tried to get in the way of Dora’s plans. If you couldn’t help Dora say “Swiper, no swiping,” three times before Swiper got to the item he was eyeing, then Swiper would be successful at sabotaging Dora’s plans. Fast forward 12 years to the present day. My niece is now on her own adventures without Dora, but I can’t help but notice the parallels between her beloved tv show and her real romantic adventures. Instead of a fox delaying her on her quest, it’s a dating app that uses a swipe feature called Tinder.

Tinder is a dating app where users have the ability to swipe left or swipe right on a profile. Swiping left means that the user is not interested in having a conversation with the individual while swiping right means that the user would be interested in getting to know the other person better. Both parties must swipe right on each other’s profiles in order for it to be a match and for the app to allow conversation to happen. The user is making a decision solely based on the other person’s appearance. I’m sure lighting, filters, and different camera angles may help one get matched. Is this how the new dating experience should be? I think back to the timeless love stories that have been shared with me over the years. The start of a relationship wasn’t just with appearance. It was with romantic gestures. It wasn’t reduced to a single moment of someone trying to be what that person thinks others want them to be. I understand that technology is meant to make things easier. Although this dating app provides and opportunity for people to meet who otherwise might not had a chance to, the whole premise of this app reduces the dating experience to something similar to online shopping. It’s more about self-marketing instead of being a real person. If a person is truly seeking a serious, intimate relationship, Tinder will do nothing but only delay one from reaching that goal.

There’s a video clip I watched in one of my module for my class assignment called “The Beautiful Truth About Online Dating.” by Arum and Dawoon Kang and in this video, there’s these two young asian females who talks about the correlation between what attracts one gender to the others with some variables in play. Kind of similar to Tinder except Tinder was merely showing how people look instead until both parties swiped right. On the other hand, Aziz Ansari, a comedian who also wrote a book called “Modern Romance” and also featured in one of our video clips in class set out onto seek how we as humans seek love or our soulmate in today’s age. All these new dating sites and apps are here to help us MEET people not to date them right away. The way we view others are so quick to change because of how we perceive them or perhaps on the first impression. Sure of course first impression matters but what do we expect when we just met this person online not too long ago? We ought to give people more time to get to know them so that we can view them differently the longer we get to know them. These apps and sites are our doorway but it’s like we’re using them as a means of desperation to land the big catch we all dreamed for and that’s just now how it works. So we shouldn’t all swipe right away because we need to put in more time like how Dora put time in her adventures regardless of our end goals.

“The Beautiful Truth about Online Dating” by Arum & Dawoon Kang

https://youtu.be/mRWPqwyukGY

“The Secret to Finding Love Online”

https://youtu.be/PUag3GpCBig

[mycklee-blog]

Fast News is Breaking News

The speed at which we learn about or hear about something has become something rather interesting to say the least. Just think about all the breaking news you see on TV and how quick we learn of it being thousands of miles away. Some probably don’t care too much about what happens around them because it doesn’t involve them or affect them directly. So is fast news a good thing or a bad? Well I guess that really all depends on what the news contain and how it is being perceived or how major or how big the news are. 

Think about the times before we had all these technological advancement and think about how news were relayed back then, how slow or how long it took for news to get from one end to the other. Look back at the revolutionary wars when messengers had to relay informations via horseback or even Noah using a  bird to find land in the middle of no where on his ark. These are all simple examples of how slow and long it took for us to receive or give information before technology. Fast forward to today, we can open up our smartphones and see breaking news right there and then. Whatever we want to look up or know about it, it’s one touch away. That’s just how fast information are being thrown out now a days and yes, it can be great to learn of something right away so you can perhaps be prepared for it. Take a look at mass shootings and the 9/11 incident, all breaking news with many casualties. I remember being in gym class in 6th or 7th grade when I heard of the twin towers being hit in New York. Mass shootings are going live these days from victims using their phones in those horrifying situations. 

The speed at which we receive these news and details are astonishing despite the tragic incidents. There’s a lot of these natural phenomenons we have around the world like hurricanes, tornados, and earthquakes etc. We learn of these right after it starts or hit and we follow along for days as the results of them slowly unravel. During these times, people can call their loved ones right away if they so happen to be or live in that area and that’s one benefit we have for fast information. One student in my class spoke of a story regarding her grandmother living out of country and when she learned of a volcano going off nearby her grandmother, she called her right away and to her grandma’s knowledge she didn’t even know until she was told to look outside and see the change in color in the sky. This certainly does prove to be one of the pros about having instant news whether it be through your smartphone, TV, or you laptop. Being fast isn’t so bad right?

So what if you’re not about natural disasters or you want to look up an answer for your homework or you’re not in need to talk to your love ones right away, does fast news really matter then? What if the news that was traveling fast was about you instead? What if nasty rumors and embarrassing images of you were flying throughout social medias? If there was one thing I guess that celebrities hate, I'd choose the things I just mentioned. I’m sure we all hate it when something untrue is said and it spreads like wildfire and before you know it  or can explain it, the damage has been done already. Fast news can hurt our image quite bad and might be able to destroy us too. Cyberbullying or just bullying are evidence that fast news can become ugly as there has been numerous teen death from it. That girl killed herself because these other girls spread a false rumor and that caused her to be so depressed that she took the wrong way out. Quick information can only be good then if it’s not bad and it’s not hurting anyone. 

So what of fast information and what can be so good and so wrong about it? Like I’ve stated earlier, it’s all on the news that’s being relayed. If the news you got right away is good news then all is smiles but if the news being spread is bad, then one can say that it is a tragedy. Take the movie “Crazy Rich Asians” for example, the beginning shows how fast everyone knew about the main actress all from one picture and a lot of smartphone touching. Yes technological advancement has been great and it has made our every day lives so easy and convenient but on the other hand, it has also hurt so many lives too. 

[mycklee-blog]

Are Laptops a Must??

So here we are once again having this ongoing debate whether laptops are essential in classrooms or more of a distraction. There are many ways people can go about this decision and truthfully, there aren’t any right or wrong answer here. Everyone has their own preference after all and who’s to say that one can learn more and less by having or not having a laptop to use in class. A lot of colleges are leaning away from technology use in class and that could mean that we as a nation are starting to see the use of having students with their own personal laptops in classrooms, of course, every instructor still have their say as well. 

What are the pros and the benefits of having your own laptop in class? There’s a lot to list off from this list for sure with the top one being that it makes note taking so much easier than writing. Don’t get me wrong, every student is not a typer so I get it but just think about not having to dig through your backpack for a pencil or pen. Not only this but you can organize your notes easier if you’re the neat freak type for instant, instead of having to carry physical folders, you can just create a folder in your laptop in organize it from there. Going off from not having to carry your folders around, you also wouldn’t have to lug around several notebooks too and some of those notebooks are big and bulky. Talk about the strain on your shoulders after carrying around those all day on top of your heavy textbooks as well! Less notebooks, folders, and textbooks means less paper and less paper means we’re help saving our environment. Just take a moment and think about how many trees we can save if we cut back from using notebooks, textbooks, and folders. I can only imagine a lot. Not only can we save the world but having laptops in class can help those students who suffers from a learning disability. Laptops are so universal and advance these days that many programs can be installed in it to help students at every level. You go to class and your instructor teaches a lecture through powerpoint but you happen to sit far back so you pull out your laptop to follow along because you couldn’t read the slides, how convenient is that? You classmate happened to miss class that same day but he didn’t mis much because the slides are online and you can just share the class notes with him through you laptop as well. There’s many more points we can add on to this column but I think this is sufficient enough. Laptops aren’t so bad.

After all those points mentioned above, what can be so bad about having laptops in class right? Well every time there’s something good, there’ll always be the bad to it too. What can be the cons and mistakes about having laptop usage in class? One obvious first one that we’ve mentioned in class is that laptop can become a big distraction! I mean c’mon, you have you laptop with the world wide web right infant of you so there’s so much you can do. All the shopping and movies and messages and social media websites you can surf or visit during class can be nothing more than a distraction. So having a laptop means you don’t have to worry about notebooks, textbooks, and pencils etc. right? Wrong! you still have to carry around your charger and perhaps even a mouse because you might not like the track pad on your laptop, imagine not having your laptop charged and it dies on you. That becomes a big inconvenience for you so now you have to charge your laptop and oh wait, now you have to find and sit close to an outlet too. This can cause such chain reaction because now your charging cord is in the way of people and might pose a safety hazard if someone trips over it. It’s also been proven that looking at a laptop screen for too long can be harmful to your eyes as well because our eyes aren’t equipped to handle the blue light that the screen emits. So in another scenario, imagine being in lecture where your instructor have dimmed the light. The student infant of you have his laptop screen on so bright that it bothers you as well, sure you can probably ask for them to dim it down but what if they can’t for certain reason? That can become a nuisance and affect your learning capabilities as well. Laptops can become the center of attention and for the wrong reason thus leading students to lose focus of why they're in class and for what.

At the University of Minnesota, they don’t ban laptops usage here and I do stand on that decision because personally I feel like laptops are more beneficial  and for obvious good reasons. I’ve always had my laptop with me and it has not hinder my learning abilities at all rather it gives me a sense of efficiency in what I do and how I go about it in class. We’re in college now and every college student here is an adult, we make our own choices and from that, we need to be mature enough to make responsible decisions too. Whether you agree or disagree with this post is it’s up to you. Everyone have their own capabilities and skill level when it comes to learning so choose which ever works best for you. Just know one thing, it’s not the laptop’s fault, it’s the user, the laptop is merely a tool for us to use in advancing our learning.