Public Opinion

A response to Working in/at Public

On the first day of pre-season all of the fall athletes had a mandatory meeting about conduct and the NCAA. It went over all of the things you could not do as a student athlete like do drugs, take money or special treatment from someone, and never letting your credits fall below 12. But one of the things I found most interesting was how we were told to run our social media accounts. "Be careful of what you post. Every year I have a situation where a student posts something questionable on their social media account, and must be reprimanded." 

Just like the professor at Wisconsin, student athletes are held to higher standards. Normal students are never told that their institution may punish them for posting a drunk selfie on their Instagram or having a nude photo of them floating around. But because NCAA has higher standards, those who play NCAA sports are expected to be near perfect. 

Social media brings a lot of restraints to those who are in a sort of limelight. Expressing your opinion on politics and religion becomes frowned upon and even punishable. While there are differences between professors and student athletes the difficulty remains the same. Are overlying institutions taking away the freedom of speech for those who are within the system? It seems everyday someone is getting in trouble for something posted on a Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram account; seemingly making social media an unsafe place for those with an opinion or a lapse in judgement. While it is necessary to have some online patrolling happening, I think that it should be limited to online bullying and not necessarily someone's wrong opinion. 

The Art of the Starving Artist

Redefining Starving

WomenFreelancer Chat

On Wednesday September 23rd I was involved in a twitter chat by the @WomenFreelancer (or rather witnessed one because I had no idea what to ask), initially I assumed the stream would be about marketing. There would be some tips sprinkled in about how to better market yourself and developing a brand name and defining yourself; things that would apply to me getting a job.

I was completely wrong.

I found the holy mecca of "words of positivity." The twitter chat was filled with inspirational stories and women who had struggled trying to find themselves but prevailed and have gone on to be successful self bosses. There was one woman who I found really interesting as she was a book illustrator. I myself looked into being an artist but found that being a starving artist was not how I wanted to live my life. But if you really look at the idea of starving artist, it is one that is outdated. Now artists can market themselves online, sell their goods and ideas after hours; allowing them to both follow their passion and have stable job. The book illustrator, Emmeline, has her own blog(http://emmelineillustration.blogspot.co.uk/) dedicated to her illustrations, both commissioned and freelanced. There potential clients can go to see her work and even read blog posts about her though process and the way she goes about her work. Furthermore, Emmeline has a tab for those who are also artists dubbed creative tips. Her blog has made me rethink the direction of not only my own blog, but my career. I can market my own work online while still having a professional degree driven career which opens up my possibilities to the fullest.

The twitter chat was so much more than I expected. I thought that it would be boring and dry, but at the end of the chat it opened my horizons to so many more possibilities.

Making a Name in Ballet

     Andile Ndlovu is an African man from the Soweto townships, making a name for himself in the world of ballet in South Africa. What is assumed to be an elitist art form is being turned on its' head by a man with a passion for the art of dance. Ndlovu said it was difficult at first but was completely worth it, as he has now gone on to win prestigious awards in Boston and in Cape Town. 
     I find it interesting that ballet, a french art form has traveled all over the world to be enjoyed by everyone. And what was once an elitist form of art and entertainment has reconstructed itself to include anyone who has the passion and work ethic to achieve their dreams. 

The Evolution of Literacy- semi out of order

The Dysevolution of Man

Has culture and technology changed us?

       

Just last week, what is considered to be a human ancestor of ours was unearthed, Homo Naledi. Homo Naledi was discovered in a South African cave called Rising Star. The genus stands at an average of five feet and its brain no larger than an orange. Now of course there's the debate that people did not evolve from apes, but I think another interesting argument about human life itself is whether or not we are regressing or we can use the term dysevolution.
       In the early stages of human life some 2.6-3 million years ago, people were using basic stone tools to accomplish day to day tasks. Now in today's society we have the ability to find information in 0.21 seconds thanks to google and other search engines. But, has the availability of abundant information slowed our evolution? 
       A question posed by a peer of mine peeked my interest. While discussing H. Naledi's brain size he asked me if I thought human brains and skulls would ever grow to be bigger. This was a question I had never asked myself, but it is hard to believe that the human brain will ever need to be bigger when we have all the information we need at our fingertips. Whereas millions of years ago, the vast majority had to use their brains to problem solve and adapt to their surroundings, our culture today has made it unnecessary to change our bio functions. Take a look at some of the reasons people needed bigger brains: to track food patterns, to create tools, to understand weather patterns. But as culture as developed, the human race no longer needs to do these things. 
       Technology has seemed to halt our learning process. If we are cold we no longer need to find shelter or create it we can simply put on a jacket or go inside. I think a pivotal question to think about is what would happen if our modern technology and luxuries were taken from us?

No Time to Waste

No Time to Waste

Impatience 

Everything today is instant. We have become so accustomed to receiving the things we want in a short amount of time that when things lag we get frustrated. Instant gratification has done us an injustice. When the computer does not load at the speed I think it should or my phone does not refresh my twitter feed in under 2 seconds I begin to lose my patience. I bang the keys and tap the phone, I groan and roll my eyes; nothing is fast enough today. This feeling translates to everything we do today. People want to get their paychecks instantly, shorten their schooling, and have their food done in under two minutes or it's free. 

Is it really so complicated?

Its Complicated...

Has social media really changed our generation?

In the reading "It's Complicated" the author compared the technology of today with the technology of the past and in doing so noted the differences that arose in communication, high school life and social dynamics. Everyday we are flooded with articles, books and opinions about the heavy impact new social media has made on today's teens. But what most people forget to notice are all the similarities that have withstood this drastic communication change. Teens still face anxiety, still feel pressured to do well in class, and still feel it necessary to own the newest and coolest gadgets clothing and shoes. I am not saying that we have with gone the increase social media usage unscathed and unchanged, but there's a reason that so many 80's and 90's teen angst movies still resonate with us; we are not that far removed. Yes, many words have taken on slightly new meaning in today's young adults like the term creep (a person who looks at all of your posts-yes, even your first selfie from 4 years ago!) The feeling you get from a creep today and a creep thirty years ago is the same. So before we go talking about the major differences between today's youth and the youth of the past, let's remember how similar we really are.