Media...That's Enough!

Recently the music world lost one of the greatest singers this world has ever seen.  Without a doubt the loss of Whitney Houston is absolutely devastating.  I want to be very clear this blog is not to minimize her death but to use it as an example of how technology can  over-saturate us with information.

When Ms. Houston’s body was discovered it was on every news station, every news website, twitter, facebook, radio stations and newspapers.  For four days straight there wasn’t a single media outlet that wasn’t completely saturated with the news of Whitney’s death.  By the end of the weekend I was disgusted and sadden with the constant reminder that the music world had lost one of the best singers in history.  At the end of the weekend I was sick of hearing about it.

Technology has provided endless outlets for news to be shared which is good and bad.  It is good because as a society we are kept well informed of news as it is happening.  It is bad in that, when there is disturbing news to be shared it is in our face whether we like it or not.  I feel for Houston’s family,  during their toughest time of mourning they couldn’t turn on the tv, computer, phone or even radio without reliving the details of their loved one’s death.

Virtual Collaboration

I have been working for the last three week on a group project with two individuals that I have never met.  We all come from different backgrounds, live in different places and have different work schedules.  Yet, through the use of wimba , skype and google docs we are able to share information, ideas and collaborate on work.  I have no doubt that at the end of this process we will have produced a great project.

Virtual collaboration has endless opportunities for scientists to share medical research, teachers to generate new 21^st century learning ideas, investors to develop new financial tactics and so much more.  The tools in which the world is able to connect are endless; one of my personal favorites is skype. 

I use skype for work, to show my mom how big her granddaughter’s is getting and now I am using it to collaborate with classmates on a group project.  Skype is a free tool that allows you to video chat or call one another.   Who knew such a simple connection tool could create so much opportunity.  Imagine what I will be using 10 years from now to connect with family, friends and co-workers around the world?!?

Resources Galore!!!

As I think back to my years in elementary school, high school and even college I am amazed at the difference of educational resources that were available then verses today.  Today we have an overwhelming abundance of resources available at our finger tips.  The internet, along with global communication, has created educational avenues that simply didn’t exist before.

Of course availability of information at your finger tips has it pros and cons.  One of the biggest cons is that there is a lot of false information out there.  How is one to decipher what is is garbage and what is fact? I have found that cross checking information with various sources is a good way of verifying that your resources are not a load of bologna! 

Another good tool is utilizing your local library.   Many of us, myself included, are guilty of only using google or some other search engine as our main outlet for research.  This is a lazy mistake.  Our guided tour through the Stockton College virtual library database reinforces my point.  Not only is there an abundance of very good information available through the library’s database, you don’t have to worry about sifting through the garbage.  Someone has done that for you.