Assignment 6:Create Your Own Adventure

What interests you? What is your point of exigence? What's on your mind?  What do you want to chat about? Rant about? Learn about?

'Cause really, isn't it all about you? <wink wink nudge nudge>

This week, create three writing prompts that you find most intriguing. Then, choose one prompt and respond to it.

Note:
Please don't make the other prompts "dummy" prompts - I'll be revisiting these options later next semester.

Ready...

Go!

Due Sunday, October 5th at 11:59 pm

Assignment 5: For the Love and Hate of Television Corey McMullin

Television is one of the most important inventions that has been introduced in the past 100 years. It allowed for Americans to see their president live from all over, but more importantly to the masses it has allowed for people to see their soap operas and sporting events.

For me however, it has formed a connection to the bizarre masses as we discuss the latest episode of Survivor, or reminisce over old episodes of Drake and Josh. By providing a common, accessible form of entertainment, television has brought me closer to others. Television has given us these shared experiences that help us to form deeper bonds in an age in which we won't even talk face to face.

Lucas Soard - For the Love and Hate of Television, Assignment 5

      Television is definitely a prominent part of the American home, and the “Television and Health” source proves that. For me personally, when I do have free time, I like to watch TV. We like TV because it’s easy. All a viewer has to do is sit down, flip to whatever channel they want, and just watch. I usually don’t get to see the television during the week, so when I get that free time on the weekends, I try to catch up. This time of year makes it hard, because from noon until 1 in the morning on Saturdays, and 1 PM until 11:30 on Sundays, my time becomes dominated by football. And I know that’s not unusual.

      Sports, and football in particular, are a really interesting study because they dominate in ratings. Primetime football games routinely pound any program daring enough to challenge their timeslot. Sports leagues have also seen increased interest from sponsor’s who realize that people won’t DVR their favorite sporting events. That leads to more sponsorships and more product pushing, and healthier leagues. And frankly as long as we leave the product, I doubt people will care. 

TV was the first form of instant, visual information. It allowed us to see and hear what we wanted to and enjoyed perceiving. Sit coms, dramas, sporting events, news casts. You can get it all on television. Networks for your instant gratification; technology has spoiled us gradually with this ability. TV has also sky-rocketed the advertising industry, making it impossible to watch your favorite station without being sold a brand new vacuum cleaner.
In my life, TV is not a huge time consumer, other than the occasional Netflix series that I get hooked on. I think there are positive and negative aspects. The positives include an escape from the real world and civilization, but do not involve closer reliance on technology, like video games or your cell phone. It also allows someone to learn new current events rather easily. With digital TV, our need for instant gratification has only increased. This is where the negatives begin. We no longer have to endure commercials at all times or wait for next week's episode. The digital network allows us to bypass both of these obstacles. This laziness will only increase if we allow it to.

For the Love and Hate of Television. Mark O'Brien

I used to spend much more time watching television than I do now.  My life seems to have become busier and busier as I have aged.  The little television I do watch is restricted to the golf channel, UK athletics, and Game of Thrones.  I will admit Game of Thrones can be somewhat time consuming, but it only is on for ten out of the fifty two weeks in a year.  I love Game of Thrones.  I hate most MTV shows.  The idea that most of those reality TV shows are completely unscripted baffles my mind.  I have a very hard time believing that people can be that ridiculous without being prompted somehow.  If a normal person were taken out of there every day lives and put in front of a camera knowing that millions of people were going to watch their every move I doubt they would be CRAZY.

I do believe that television can provide a good form of entertainment.  I have numerous memories from my childhood that involve movies/television shows.  I do not think that it is just a convenient source of advertising, although I do think that was an ingenious  idea to advertise on television.  I do not think it is an insane use of time in most cases.  I do think that it can be all three.

For the Love and Hate of Television- Samantha McGehee

Television. Otherwise known as the box of which all hopes and dreams die in front of. Not really. Television can be a great source of entertainment. For example, when I found out that one of my favorite shows, The Carrie Diaries ( that usually came on Friday nights and made me feel good about myself despite the fact that I spent my Friday nights in front of a T.V) got canceled I was so upset and irritated by the fact I wouldn't ever know how Carrie would meet Miranda, I actually went to the library and checked out the book the show was based after of. Yes, I was that entertained by the television show I was inspired to read a middle school level book. I am currently on page 216. Television can either be a nice way to relax and unwind or to have unlimited access to the news and what is going on in the world outside that magical little box or it can be a black hole for time and brain cells. There are a few shows on T.V nowadays that I watch on a regular basis. I enjoy keeping up with them and I usually record them and watch them when I have a free hour or two because if I try to watch them during the school week, I will one: not get anything done and two: go to bed at an unacceptable hour. Television shows explore worlds that are unfamiliar to us, interesting and addicting, but they can also be relatable in ways that not much else in life can be. For these reasons I don't think that T.V. is the epitome of evil in the world. It can be entertaining, funny, intriguing, heartfelt and impactful. But then again so can be other things in life. And like all things in life the key is moderation. Do not sit in front of that little 60 inch box every moment of everyday. Get your bum off the couch and explore the world outside that magical box because there are some things and moments that can't be experienced in 60 inch high definition.

A World in Pictures- Samantha McGehee

This photograph is part of a Pulitzer Prize winning series titled Trek of Tears. It records the ethnic genocide that characterized Hutu and Tutsi enmity in Central Africa in the mid-1990s. These people are fleeing their homes and villages for safety elsewhere. Many of the women have been raped or brutally beaten, or both. Many of the children are orphaned because their parents were murdered in their village. This scene of exile is not uncommon in human history. It is not rare that we have seen or heard of people being violently forced to make the long and excruciating journey away from their homes and all they have known. This picture is impactful when you think about all of these people having to pack up all their possessions that they could carry, all of their family and leave everything they know to go into uncertainty. Uncertainty because they don't know where they are going, just that they can't stay. Uncertainty because they don't know if they will survive the journey or if their family will survive. But despite this uncertainty, they preserve, because they have to. It is either preserve into uncertainty or don't and die. And if that isn't the essence of the human spirit, I am not sure what is. They were so incredibly brave.

Assignment 5: For the Love and Hate of Television

     Television often gets a bad rap, being given names like "the opiate of the masses" and "the idiot box." This confuses me, however, as I believe it to be as valid a source of entertainment as any other medium. The detractors that are applied to TV as a whole are found in every other source of entertainment as well. Yes, there are terrible TV shows about stupid topics. Yes, advertisers spend copious amounts of money to sell products to television viewers, and  yes, there is violence on TV. Examples of all of these, however,  can just as easily be found in books, movies, music, comics, and video games. For every Jersey Shore there is a live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender movie, for every 2 minute commercial break, there is a comic book that is half advertisement, and for every explosion on Breaking Bad, Aragorn decapitates a thousand orcs.
     I believe that the majority of the negative reputation of television comes from a pretentious, holier-than-thou standpoint based off of its widespread availability and popularity, and that some people may need to hop down off of their high horses.
  

For the Love and Hate of Television - Aislinn Langley

At some point in the last year, I stopped watching television. I decided there were more productive ways to spend my time, such as procrastinating on homework, sleeping, and making cynical comments about how capitalism is slowly destroying the world.
I grew up in a household where use of electronics was strictly regulated; my brother and I were allotted about an hour of electronic time - be it computer, television, or nintendo devices - each week. I've only come to realize in recent years how weird that was. Other kids my age talk about how cartoons from the early 2000s shaped their entire childhood while all I can think is "I think I saw that a few times."
This rule obviously grew increasingly lax as 'the broski' and I grew up. We had our favorite shows, set a ton of recordings, and filled up the DVR on a monthly basis. We watched TV for the same reasons most kids do: it's entertaining.
But nowadays, there are countless other things with which we can amuse ourselves. With the entrance of Netflix onto the scene (and the countless pirating sites that have been around for ages), it's become much easier to follow a show you've become emotionally invested in on your own time without the intermittent input from corporate America. It's gotten to the point that television is, in many households, just a time-killer.

A World In Pictures- Alex Cooper

            This picture is the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. This heart-wrenching photo is of a little boy probably sitting on what remains of his house, his life. Just because he is young does not mean that he does not understand the absolute devastation that this storm caused. He probably managed to find his bear hoping it would provide him with some kind of comfort and yet it is laying unused, not even the bear can take his mind of the horrible loss. Hurricane Katrina took at least 1833 lives and cause about 108 billion dollars’ worth of property damage. This storm caused a great many pain and suffering and one can probably never truly no how much unless they were directly affected by it. These people were going about their daily lives thinking the storm would never reach them when they were told to evacuate, but it was too late. The floodwater came and lingered for weeks, making rescues extremely difficult and destroying lives as it came and went.

http://simerg.com/modern-artistic-expressions-2/poetic-expressions-the-poets-and-their-poetry/nazim-bhimani-hurricane-katrina/

For the Love and Hate of Television

Does TV provide a good form of entertainment? Is it just a convenient delivery system for advertisers to send their messages to the masses? Is it an inane use of time? Can it be all three?

     TV provides a wonderful form of entertainment, is an extremely convenient delivery system for advertisers, and yet is a very inane use of our time. The programs and shows that are shown over television are great at providing entertainment, whether it be a comedy show, an intense action show, or a sad dramatic show, it entertains the audiences thoroughly. It also is a great way for advertisers to get their messages across. 36% of the average-hour long show, is commercials and therefore advertisers can get across a lot of information in that time period. Since so many people watch television, then that amount of people will view these advertisements. After all of this, we must still realize that TV is a silly use of time. People could be doing things productive in their life and live life to the fullest, but at the same time, people don't want to do that. At the same time, people need a break from doing productive things, and television gives them a great way to do nothing and be entertained. So yes, it can be all three.

For the Love and Hate of Television-Jacob Young

First of all, I'd like to somewhat respond to everyone out there slamming television for "killing useful brain cells" and "wasting everyone's precious time." To these comments, I'd like to say: chill out. Watching television is an activity that someone does by choice and for entertainment, it's not like watching TV 3 hours a day is in any way normal for most of us nor is it mandatory in any fashion. Television was invented for entertainment, in the past it would give a sense of relief from a hard days' work. Nowadays, however, things have changed a little. Not only is TV for entertainment, but also for news and spreading messages. If you think about it, pretty much everything that's on TV these days is either some form of news or some form of enjoyable entertainment. I think the concept of television is not at all a waste of time, however some people use it as an excuse to waste time. Because if you're going to waste time anyway, why not waste it watching a show or game that you enjoy watching? I could even go so far as to say that TV is directly backed up by the Declaration of Independence. In it it states that all Americans are entitled to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." I would say that television fulfills the need for the pursuit of happiness. People are happy when they watch TV, if they weren't then they wouldn't watch it. People have the instinct and the common sense to do things that make them happy and not do things that don't (except for mandatory tasks such as taking Calculus). So I guess what I'm really trying to get at is this: watch TV if you want to, it's your choice. If there's a show on that you like, go ahead and watch it if it makes you happy. If there isn't, then don't watch TV. TV is, in essence, the same concept as any other electronic device that can be used for entertainment. It is a medium of happiness. But all those comments and statements saying how TV is bad for you, that's not true. People have the choice whether to watch it or not. After all, it's not like we live in China, am I right?

Television is the work of Satan

Assignment 5

Television is a very broad term. There are many different forms of television and genres; it's almost like talking about food, and much more complicated than talking about movies, because they can count as television. There are full TV series: ones with hour-long episodes, half-hour episodes, or other episode lengths; there are TV miniseries; there are the variety of sports broadcast on television; and there are TV movies. On top of these various types of programs, there are also various genres, and then the various forms of distribution: TV channels, DVDs, streaming sites (like Netflix), and illegal downloads on the internet. With such a broad category as this, the reasons people watch TV are numerous, as well as the quality of the television. Personally, I watch TV to entertain myself, and what kind of TV I like is based on what entertains me (which is many different kinds of shows). As you noted, traditional television (via cable or satellite) is a very effective means of advertising, and for this reason I generally prefer to watch TV on Netflix. The fact that it is used as a way to force advertising down the public's throat doesn't detract from the enormous capability of television to entertain. It has all the advantages of film media, with the added advantages of convenience, protracted storylines, and pilot episodes (a sort of test flight to check whether a show is worth your time and money). In conclusion, my title was misleading because I actually believe that TV is a wonderful form of entertainment.

For the love and hate of television - Jack Phillips

The fact that something like the Emmy's takes a higher importance than the Nobel Prize ceremony is something about our society that really bothers me, but it is understandable. For the common person, breakthroughs in molecular chemistry or nuclear physics have no immediate effects, but the common person spends hours in front of the television each and every week. This is not to say that these scientific breakthroughs are of lesser importance, because I believe that they are far more important than fictional television shows, but for the average person, this television has a much more direct impact. There is also the fact of economics. These actors that appear on these award shows are generating hundreds of millions of dollars in this industry of entertainment, whereas the scientists, philanthropists, and mathematicians who win the Nobel Prizes have a much less significant economic impact on the world as a whole, with some notable exceptions. This is why I think that the glitz and glamour of the Emmy's award show in comparison to the Nobel Prizes is a very bad thing, but it is appropriate for the way our society functions. TV does however have some positive benefits to it. There are several channels on television that can educate our nation's youth like the Science, Discovery, and National Geographic channels. Unfortunately these channels are becoming fewer and fewer as those like the History channel are abandoning factual accuracy and education for entertainment. But until television ceases to offer any medium for education, there will be people who advocate for it's educational value, even when it is apparent that a vast majority of television is simply mindless entertainment.

Assignment 5: for the love of television david chen

Why do i watch television? Could it be that i want to gain a deeper understanding of the human race? Would it be for a greater cause than myself? Maybe i'm using the television as a median to transfer onto me emotions deeper than what i can witness in my shallow daily life. Or maybe, i just watch television to entertain myself because that's what everyone else does. I love shows like South Park, Family Guy and comedy shows. I hate all infomercials because they are little spawns of Satan and are meant to only bore and kill me from the inside out at early morning hours. Television shows are a great source of entertainment because they offer a variety of good shows and some terrible ones. They convey messages quite easily and efficiently if used right. I can't think of how to make this blog remotely appealing to read for the reader since the prompt is so superbly bland. However, if i watched television more i could be inspired with new ideas and topics to insert in random places to spice up this blog. The reason the Nobel Prize ceremony doesn't get as much attention as the Emmy's is because it is no where close to being as popular or appealing to the viewers. Thus, it makes perfect sense to put it on some garbage backup channel instead of the spotlight. T.V. after all is 100% about entertainment and nothing else, i.e. Jersey Shore.

For the Love and Hate of Television - Charlie Grimes

It all started with Spongebob. Spongebob Squarepants - my earliest memories of any TV viewing, and also some of the best. Not only do I consider Spongebob to be a masterpiece, I consider it as playing a key role in developing my sense of humor. It was a large, important part of my childhood, and I still make references to it today as a 16-year old high school junior.

On top of this was the Today Show, which I have been forced into watching as I eat breakfast before school for as long as I can remember. The Today Show, which I inadvertently came to love as the years went by, keeping me informed on all the world's affairs.

Then it was Drake and Josh, The Simpsons, The Office and all of the shows in between that have given me countless good memories and quotes, as well as an effective outlet from school work.

Finally it has come to HBO, which has been one of my greatest investments of all time. In the summer of 2013, I began what I can confidently say is my favorite show of all time - The Sopranos. It was one of the most incredible shows I've ever watched, in the way that TV can make a viewer empathize and emotionally connect with a family of violent mobsters. The completion of this show then led to The Wire, an unflinching, often brutal look into the drug scene of Baltimore, and how it affects everyone in the community. These two shows were incredibly influential in my opinions on some of the world's important matters, and I am so glad I took the time to watch them.

Television is so much more than just a stress reliever from school. I believe it is an art form that you can consume exactly like any other art. I have watched all of those shows listed above, as well as probably 50+ more, and many more to come. Do I feel that I have "wasted" all this time watching them? Not at all.

assignment 3- logan cox

I don't believe in absolute good and evil. Good and evil are based on ones perception and opinions. For example, people in the organization PETA think people that hunt are evil but people that are not in that organization may not think that hunters are evil. Good and evil are based on peoples opinions and their values. There is a war between good and evil but its not set in stone which side is which. its based on which side you are on and what you believe in. Good and evil must exist because without one, the other wouldn't survive.  If there was no evil then everyone would be good and it would just become normal. It would no longer be special to be good or do the right thing because it would just become normal. Good and evil are different for different people but they both must exist to counter balance each other.

For the love and hate of television- Sloan Warner

Television provides a great form of entertainment. In this day and age, we have over one thousand cable television channels which is insane considering, when television came out a couple decades ago, there were under ten channels. The television industry has erupted in the recent years with some sports networks making deals in the billion dollars range. It is a major source of entertainment for sports fans, history nerds, and everyone in between. However, I don’t believe that it is great for advertisers. I, personally, just record all of my shows during the week and watch them over the weekend so I can fast forward through all of the commercials. The mute button has also changed the game of television advertisement. With that said, I don’t believe television advertising is worthless in all situations. An advertisement for the Super Bowl is one of the best investments you can make. Some people watch the Super Bowl just for the ads these days. Unfortunately, television can make you much less efficient and some people get addicted to television. There are pros and cons to television, but it definitely is a grand form of entertainment.

James Apo Assignment 5: For the Love and Hate of Television

I watch television for a variety of reasons. The main reason I watch television is because I do not have anything in particular to do, and so being lazy and watching several episodes of a show in a row seems like a great time consumer and alternative. There is such a selection of shows, that any mood you are in you can find the according show. If you are feeling happy go lucky, you can watch a comedy like the Big Bang Theory. If you are wanting a good drama, you can pick from so many different networks to watch an assortment of choices. The beautiful thing about television is that it continues to expand and each channel has unique shows that no other network shows. AMC has many blockbuster shows, the big four networks have their titles, and so on and so forth. There are some types of shows I love, like game shows, sitcoms, some dramas, and a couple reality tv shows. Examples of these are Jeopardy, Family Feud, Two and a Half Men, How I Met Your Mother, Breaking Bad, Big Brother, Hells Kitchen, and several more. Types of shows I hate are soap operas, and although I do not hate political shows, I rarely find myself watching one of them. I know some people do not watch television, but it is a nice component of my life on practically a daily basis.

James Apo assignment 4: A World in Pictures

This picture shows a firefighter carrying a critically injured infant after the domestic terrorist attack upon the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995 occurred. Before this picture was taken, an enraged, over the top gun rights activist named Timothy McVeigh had just planted and blown up explosives in his car at the building as a means of showing that he believed the government was being too prohibitive on said rights. The 9/11 tragedy was more than 6 years away and at the time of this event, an event of such magnitude had never occurred in America. This really makes me wonder how an American could do that to other Americans, and especially treat the childcare center right next to the building with such collateral damage. The firefighter in the picture looks very dejected, and fortunately you cannot see the traumatized child's face. The crucial scene not pictured is the fact that 168 people died and over 680 suffered various injuries.The whole situation was chaotic and it really opened up our eyes to terrorism on American soil, in particular even potentially from our own citizens.

For the Love and Hate of Television- Ji-Hae Kim

I watch TV because it's entertaining. It's a convenient way to kill time and rest. It's sometimes an easy way to get away from what's going on around you. One can just simply sit down, press a button, and dive deep into a different world and life. You can laugh or cry along with the people in the big, flat box and have fun doing it. When you have nothing better to do, you can just watch TV. There are so many different genres of shows to choose from. Once you're bored of one, you can start another.
TV certainly is a convenient delivery system for advertisers to send their messages to the masses, but that doesn't necessarily always have to be a bad thing. I think that's just an irreplaceable method of efficient marketing.
When I have a lot of things I need to do, every minute I spend watching is an silly waste of time. But when I have those times when I am free (and bored out of my mind) it's fun and it gives you something to talk about to friends who watch the same shows as you.
I think that TV can be all three (entertainment, a delivery system, and an inane use of time). It's an easy way to quench the ever thirsty need for something to do in today's society. It's not exactly like reading a book, but it something.

For the Love and Hate of Television- Jamie Smith

Television, in recent years, has seemed to take over society. I personally don’t watch television much. Occasionally, if I need to relax for a bit, it is nice to have something that I don’t have to concentrate too hard on that still takes my mind away from the rest of my life. My parents worked hard throughout my childhood to make sure I didn’t watch too much TV, or play on the Internet too much, so it is just not a part of my daily life in the same way it is in many other people’s lives.

That does not mean I think it is a bad thing. In fact, television can be a great stress reliever. Watching TV shows puts you in the mind of the characters for a while so you don’t have to worry about everything going on in your life. It is a nice break.

However, too much TV can be harmful. If you are so focused on the lives of your favorite characters that you forget to live your own, it is hard to argue that this is beneficial. At this point, it becomes an insane use of time. 

Overall, television is just like all other technology: if you use it well it can be very helpful, but if you use it too much it can turn very quickly into a bad thing. It’s all about finding the balance.

A World in Pictures(generic&boring)

I ran out of creative ideas so i'm going to do this on the Holocaust. Very sad and terrible, yes i know. This is one of the many pictures depicting the tragedy of this event. Millions were very sadly killed during this event. To add a little background and take up space, the Holocaust took place in World War II under Germany's Emperor Hitler. He sent people of the Jewish faith to work camps which without the jews' knowledge weren't mainly used for work but for thinning their numbers. The picture is taken from a work camp and shows a healthy boy and his mother being separated from someone, likely a close member of the family. Pictures show us what we cannot understand from an outsider's view. Emotions pretty much have to be gained from a deeper level of understanding to be experienced to the full extent. The emotions are transferred from the child's face in case it wasn't clear.

For the Love and Hate of Television

               T.V has given society a new tool to express itself. A new way to show sadness happiness and creativity, all in a little colorful box that sits in your living room. All this new culture and experiences have been opened up to us as an audience. A way to travel around the world and go to new places, as well as learn practical information and the goings on of both your town and the globe. No one can deny the amount of change T.V has inspired, creating a more connected world in combination with other innovations like the internet. The T.V should be looked at as a turning point in the way we live our lives, a turning towards a better life. However as is common, people tend to emphasize the bad amongst the good, and this is no different for television. But still, even the criticisms can be stripped down to the raw facts that turn out to be crucial cogs in the social, and economic machine that runs our society today.

                Advertisements are a good example of a negative aspect, that when examined with a broader viewpoint can be seen as an important life line for our economic wellbeing. Advertisements on T.V are by far the most effective means for a company to sell its products. The ability to instantly reach millions on T.V networks like FOX and CNN, to make your message heard is an invaluable asset for companies around the world. There is a reason why companies invest so much time and money in research and advertising development that are meant to locate and appeal to the best possible audience. Without advertisements, companies would be unable to get their product out into society, resulting in company bankruptcy and economic depression. The stark reality is that our world now revolves around the buying and selling of goods and services, and in order to accomplish this companies need to be able to circulate their products. To connect the complex web that stretches the globe and serves us all. Think about this the next time you start to complain about a commercial that is too long, or doesn't interest you.  Remember that even if you will never buy into it, it is necessary to keep our economic engine oiled and cleaned, so that it may better serve you in producing what you need to live a better life. 

For the love and hate of television

Personally, I do not watch TV. However, this was not a choice I made myself; my parents decided against having cable during my brother’s childhoods and mine. Many of my most prominent memories are of me sitting in front of the TV and watching one of the few channels we received, in hopes of catching my favorite shows- Arthur and Dragon Tales. Having grown up without access to consist TV shows, it’s not a vital part of my routine now. Occasionally I will watch a show on Netflix or some other “illegal site”, but rarely on an actual TV. This being said, I am a huge movie fanatic and see at least one a week in theaters.

                  For those people who have the time to watch TV, I think it’s a wonderful form of entertainment. If I had more time, I feel certain much of it would be devoted to series and reruns. Obviously, it is a major source of advertisement for companies, but I don’t think that’s the primary goal of television.

                  I know many people who lose track of time and fall behind in school and other commitments because of it, but I think if one is careful in their consumption, it can be a nice relief from stress.

For the Love and Hate of Television- Weiran Liu

Television. You might as well call it America's current favorite pastime. According to NY Daily News the average American watches 5 hours of television a night, with the average only increasing as one ages. So why do we let such a thing consume such a big part of our lives?

Personally for me, I don't get as much time anymore to watch television, but I am really glad for the chances that I do get to. It - along with other non-school related activities - keeps me sane. A daily dose of the Big Bang Theory and Modern Family gives me that short, blissful, comical break from my busy schedule. Watching shows allows us to stop our constant worries and thoughts relating to our academic/work/personal lives and just relax. Not only that, when you are able to find a show you love so much that you find yourself finishing seasons in (what may be an unhealthy) short amount of time, there's a certain kind of pleasure that goes along with that. Before you even know it you find yourself intertwined within the plot of a story and oftentimes relating to the characters.

That being said, there are a lot of shows that make you question what our society values (...Here Comes Honey Boo Boo??). It is sad that the hard efforts of renowned scientists, professors, and other great world leaders are being overshadowed and even cast away in the light of the "hottest new celebrities." That being said, there are always pros and cons to everything. It is more in the hands of the viewer to decide what they themselves choose to watch - whether it be National Geographic or Toddlers and Tiaras. The shows are there to reflect our interests.

A World In Pictures - Charlie Grimes

See that tiny white dot to the right side of this image? Among all of the vast darkness of space, that is Earth. Planet Earth.

While the significant implications of this image, taken by the Voyager I space probe, may not be immediately apparent to you, I encourage anyone reading this to stop and think for a moment. As Carl Sagan says in his novel, Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space: "That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines..." The incredibly large scale of the darkness of space juxtaposed with our diminutive planet is extremely humbling, and shows how insignificant we are in the grand scheme of things. While this image is incredible to marvel at, it is also chilling. For the moment, we are alone. There are no signs yet of any other inhabitable places for humans to go. We must take steps to preserve, protect and appreciate our only home within the massive arena of outer space. We also must realize that our self-importance is non-existent, and we are only a tiny fraction of what is, and what may be out there in the universe.

At any moment, Earth is susceptible to a cataclysmic event in outer space, such as a gamma ray burst (GRB) that flies off of its path, obliterating Earth in seconds. I say this not to be morbid, but to point out that the world (or should I say, the universe?) doesn't revolve around us.

Assignment 5: For the Love and Hate of Television

The Emmy Awards (aired about a month ago) are kind of a big deal. Not a big deal in that life-altering-kind-of-way, but a big deal in the sense that a lot of celebrities dress up, that a lot of companies pay more money in advertisements, and a lot of people stop watching reruns.

The Emmys are not the only award extravaganza of the season though. During the first week of October, without the advertising, paparazzi, or celebrities, the Nobel Prizes are announced. But how many people are listening? With the Emmys comes television's fall lineup, but what does the common person get after the announcement of the Nobel Prize in physics?

So, what are your thoughts? Choose one or two or all of the following prompts:

Why do you watch TV? Why do you not? What shows do you love or hate?

Does TV provide a good form of entertainment? Is it just a convenient delivery system for advertisers to send their messages to the masses? Is it an inane use of time? Can it be all three?

What does it say about our society that the Emmy's have so much glitz and attention and the Nobel Prizes are quietly announced in the news? Is this bad? Good? Appropriate?

Check out these sites for more information:

Turn off your TV

Television and Health

Positive Benefits of TV on Toddlers and Children

Due Sunday September 28th at 11:59 pm 

a world in pictures

The picture above shows three African Americans who were peacefully protesting in the Civil Rights Movement in the 60s. In Birmingham, Alabama, these three teenagers are being hosed down for protesting. These are high powered hoses, as you can see it penetrating the guy on the right's back, obviously not meant to be used on humans. Blacks in America were tired of being treated unequally, and stood up against the "separate but equal" policy. As you can see, they tried to suppress the protest by any means necessary, like hosing innocent people down, but this only fueled the spark of the protest, as more and more people joined in on the cause until there was equality and justice for all African Americans. These people had an incredible amount of courage and bravery, and paved the way for the future of social equality, so that people are to be judged by the content of their character, rather than the color of their skin.

A world in pictures (literally)

This is quite literally the world in a picture, but this picture represents so much more. This photograph was taken by William Anders as they orbited the moon on the Apollo 8 mission in 1968 on Christmas eve and saw the earth rise above the horizon of the lunar surface. This spaceflight was the first to leave earth's orbit and reach the moon, and represented the success of the American space program, and while it is often overshadowed by the success of the moon landing in the following year, this has been acclaimed as the most influential nature photograph. The astronauts that saw this were so inspired by this scene of the earth rising that they began to read from the book of genesis, and it reminded them of how insignificant everything seemed, and in later interviews they said that it was extremely humbling to be the first crew to orbit the earth, and even more humbling when they realized how small the earth was, and how precious it seemed. From this photograph, we got the first glimpse of the beyond, before this nobody knew what it was like to be this far away from earth and be able to look at all of life as we know it in an area no bigger than a marble. This is one of my favorite photographs of all time because it makes me wonder at how precious our little piece of rock that floats through space really is, and it is an extremely beautiful picture that represents not only our abilities as a species when we put our minds together, but also it shows our relative insignificance, which to me is a humbling thought.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Apollo_8_genesis_reading.ogg

A World In Pictures: Bad BP

Source: time.com
This is a picture of a pelican covered in crude oil that was released into the Gulf of Mexico during the 2010 BP oil spill that began on April 20 of that year. An oil rig exploded and sank, causing almost five million gallons of oil to flood into the ocean. Eleven people died and many surrounding ecosystems were severely harmed or destroyed and the infant mortality rates of dolphins went up by 600%.
Following the incident, many people were quick to make promises to never return to a BP gas station, claiming that they would never support a company that allowed something like this to happen. Why is it then, that even if BP had to continuously pay for a spill like the one that occurred, their daily profit would still exceed $70 million? To me, it seems comparable to the #StopKony campaign and public relations fiasco concerning the Chick-fil-A owner's comment on homosexuality. All caused public outcry that lasted a very brief amount of time and in the long run did very little. It seems to me that if people are so upset about a topic they would give up their delicious chicken sandwiches and their convenient gasoline and do what they could to express their disapproval.