The Trend Of Politicians on Twitter

                                           The Trend Of Politicians on Twitter is an Bad Thin or Not ?

                                 

    In this blog I am going about the new trend over couple past years that we are seeing from are seeing from
    are  politicians using social media personal and politics used. Also I  will discuss if its positive as many      
   negative scandals has come up wish has destroy many politicians careers therefore  I ask my self is this
   social networking site an self inflicted time bomb for politicians , as there behavior on twitter will be analyze
  and Judge.

Did you know the most powerful  Politicians like  President  Barack Obama , Prime minster David Cameron , Deputy Prime minster Nick Clegg and MP  Shashi Tharoor from India are members and use twitter
  regularly. Its well know that the current president Barack Obama use  social networking site in the US american election in 2008 to help  him push him in to office for example  Mr Barack Obama used Facebook in 2008  not just engage with voters and push his then unknow campaign literature as well as bring attention to his Youtube channel , and this said to be the main factor which help Obama enter the white house at the time it was very different and rare this was one the biggest developments in  american politics.

Many people  including myself agree e- democracy is the way forward when it comes engaging people to get involve in politics especially my generation as we all know young people really don't care or have interested in politics.  for example according to article from the BBC young people don't trust politicians or parties in this  article contains figure which shows research that  ''found there was a sharp drop in 18 to 24 year old voter turnout at the 2001 general election , it has been low ever since and spiked only slightly at the most recent election in 2010 even though it was a very close contest''.http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/18727320

                                           

I believe social  media like networking sites like Twitter and Facebook has play a big role in allowing politics and politicians to relate and reach the average person and also its made me personally feel that politicians are regular people even if they come across like spoilt brats however that view has changed now. Also I realize that they are many advantages that social media do  which makes  politics for me more understandable and closer like for example the advantages of politics working with social media is polls such as when politicians are debating new topics twitter has  increasing become one of the best ways to take a look at the reaction of the general public like you can tweet an topic which instanly  can been see by many people at once.

In addition where living in an time where soical media in polictis is very useful as the consequences of soical media in polictics is according Adam Conner manager for public policy in Facebook DC office and US elections social media Strategist , he states '' Social media puts pressure on government almost to the point of removing civil society /NGO s and mainstream media from the debate. Informing the great unwashed masses directly is by far the best method to keep both traction and momentum with any policy.''http://www.debatingeurope.eu/2013/01/22/how-is-social-media-changing-politics/


However many may agure that since politicians started using twitter and other  soical networking  sites  they have embrassed themselves to who new level and it has ended in them losing the carreers and respect and diginty. For example  over the years politicians have been involved soical networking sites scandals therefore many people may say that soical networking sites like twitter are like forbidden fruit to an politicans as  US politicans like Meg Whitman's , Anthony Weiner Lewd  and UK  policticans like Lord McAlpine who was rumored to be an child abuser on twitter. So the question I ask myself is soical networking sites are seen as the way politics can reach the common person as politicians trying show them selves as odinary people why do most of them draw in embrassing themselves on soical media site .?

The Digital World Globalization and Digital Divide Its Whats Its About

                         The Digital World Globalization and Digital Divide Its Whats Its About 

                                                                     

In this blog I am going explain what  the term Globalization and Digital Divide and.also I am going to describe what these terms mean in an digital culture aspect.  In addition I will  highlight the link between theses terms as one of the other has to happen for the other to occur like a process  .During my lecture and seminar classes I came across theses terms and I found it very interesting such as Digital Divide means refers to gap or the distance between people and the common access  digital information and digital technology for example access to computers etc some people have limited or completely no access at all around the Globe. Furthermore  Globalization which I am quite familiar with means essential means the process of how countries and societies    and cultures have came together through a international multi - network system of communication , transportation and trade .

First all  as you can see  Digital divide means certain are countries or societies more  equipped with digital technology than others such as for example an american teenager would naturally own and have access to computer. so the question myself is what causes this ? then I realized that Globalization plays a big role in this factor either in a goo way or in an bad way which leads to poverty. 

I done some research and I came across this book   Globalization and the Digital Divide By Kirk St. Amant and Bolande  Olaniran and according to this book it states '' The first step in addressing problems resulting from global digital divide is to improve understanding that is, organizations and individuals must understand what factors contribute to this global digital divide for them to address it effectively. This collection represents , coordinated actions needed to address such international problems effectively. This collection represents an initial step toward examining the global digital divide from the perspective of developing nations and the challenges their citizens face in today;s error of communication - driven globalization. The entries in this collection each represent different insights on the digital divide from the perspectives of developing nation - many of which have been overlooked in previous discussions of this topic.''

I fully agree with the opinion from this book on how to improve this digital divide problem. 

The Concept Of Flow

                                                             The Flow Flair !!!!!!!!!

                                                                     

During this week in my lecture and seminar class we spoke and discuss the concept of flow. In this blog I am going define what the concept of flow is I will highlight the man behind the idea of concept flow in addition i will explain the impact the concept of flow can have in school education.

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi is an well know Hungarian Psychology Professor who states the concept of flow who describes it as ''being completely in activity for its own sake. The ego falls away time flies, every action and movement and thought follows inevitably from the previous one , like playing Jazz. Your whole being is involved, and you're using your skills to the utmost ''. http://psychology.about.com/od/PositivePsychology/a/flow.htm

I done research online on does the concept of flow help improve learning in schools ? . Then I came across an question which is why students need flow in the classroom. I am very aware of one of the most common problems with pupils or students in the classroom which I think even affects me  today as an university student is that sometimes I get bored in some  class due for some reason am not interested in the material or  the boredom can from negative interaction with teachers in seminar classes.

According  David Shernoff , an educational psychologist at Northern Illinois University says student engagement - of which flow is the deepest from possible and that involves a combination of motivation , concentration , interest , and enjoyment derived from the process of learning itself- qualities that are essential to Csikzentmihalyi's defintion of flow.

I agree with Mr David Shernoff, if students want to engage and be excited about learning they need to be motivated to learn and enjoy how they do it many school institution are to focused on grades and test results and do not take advantages of kids and young people intrinsic desires to learn  new things and the if  concept of flow apply in the school environment can be very helpful and can stop students or pupils being bored  and not to stressed with there studies game base activities in the learning atmosphere can have make difference.

Mihaly  Csikzentmihayi's concept flow involves A challenging activity that require skills, clear goals and immediate feedback , concentration on the task on hand , a sense of control and also an loss of self- consciousness.

In this video of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi about the concept of flow in detail enjoy and talks about characteristics of the concept of flow.

What is Gamification Any Ideas ????

                                               What is Gamification Any Ideas ????

                                                     

In this blog I am going to discuss the term Gamification and what it means and it can relate to us in society
also I  am going to give my opinion about the idea Gamification in addition I will highlight if there is a need to apply Gamification in everyday life.

The meaning of Gamification is quite simple it basically means applying game theory concepts and techniques to non- game activities. I myself find that really interesting that we can turn everyday activities into game and this got me thinking and during my seminar class , about how many times from youthful days till now I have turn a situation into a game for example primary school days racing  from an certain distance and in my secondary days when waiting for teacher outside the classroom  so he can teach us maths me and my friends would play an game called pound up which is about who's one pound coin can travel the fastest and hit the wall.

This again got me thinking after thinking about situation I turn to games then I thought about what we get from it when applying Gamification in are daily lives so the question I ask myself was what kind of buzz or thrill we get when using Gamification ?. What I have learnt about the theory about Gamification is that its about   outcomes you want , basically Gamification concept  is central to the risk of rewards system.

 I done some researching  online on why people would apply this theory is it  not childish however.  I came across my articles  in which made change my mind  and  realised  why people including myself apply this concept as I thought about the most boring aspect of my life which unfortunately it was when I was working.
I work in sports direct and certain days it gets really boring and get annoy for example it could be the cause of very non busy day which means hardly any customers in the shop which means I have to stand around and do nothing for whole of my shift.  That would one place I would personally apply Gamification as it would make work fun , and less borning and stop me and others calling in sick.


Futhermore I search  online about Gamification used in the work place and find out about this article

http://www.jmorganmarketing.com/risks-gamification-enterprise/ 

In this article shows an game made for the work place which  has  a reward system.

Apparently one of the disadvantage and negative point of applying Gamification in the work place which i find out and I don't agree with is that '' with Gamification entering  the workplace , introducing  game mechanics game design into the application , processes,and work - related activities , there is a likely danger that the gender bias will be increased . While games are played by both men and woman, there is a stark difference in what types of games and Gamification approaches men and woman prefer . Studies have show that while men prefer games that emphasize competition, mastery  , destruction , violence , trial ad error , and spatial puzzles (amongst others ), woman prefer emotion ,nurturing , real world connection, learning by example , and dialog and verbal puzzles. In general women represent 42% of all video - gamers , while for mobile and social games women are the majority in the range of 60- 70%''.

http://enterprise-gamification.com/index.php/en/blog/2-news/95-will-gamification-increase-the-gender-discrimination-in-the-workplace

In my opinion I believe that the advantages or positive effect of Gamification out weights the disadvantage that I have highlighted above.  For example I believe I am an lazy person so  the other day I apply this Gamification concept to an situation when  I want to put of work I play an basic game I treat myself by as simple as agree to watch some film with my mates but if I  lazy I won't buy chocolate for the day.

                                                           

Inaimate Alice Is Really That Good For Kids

           

                                             Inaimate Alice Has An  Role!!!!!

                                         


In today's seminar we spoke about Inaimate Alice and I am going to discuss why Inaimate Alice should be introduce in the school curriculum. My first impression of Inaimate Alice it was some kind interactive book with gaming features and that was the case. As the formal definition  of this software is this software was ''created as an reading from the screen experience for digital generation, Inaimate Alice stands alongside the best novels for pre- teens and emerging teen readers''.

This software is very unique and different and structure is very creative what  I mean is the interactive videos I watch on the website looks like they are portraying some kind true story which it is doing research on the website. I find out Inaimate Alice is actually tells an true story about  young girl a grows to become an famous and brilliant video game designer. The reason why think its creative is quite obvious is that the story line would easily relate and appeal to its target audience which young teenagers.

This got me thinking and the question that came to me was would this Inaimate Alice software must been seen as great tool to help teach  topics effectively in schools in the curriculum.

I started analysing one of the interactive videos on the website it was the one called hometown episode 4  in the screenshots below you can seen the editing of the contrast or lighting of the first background  image which at the back of an alleyway which for instantly catches my attention straight away.  As the story is about an young girl getting peer pressure into going up an dodge stairs to get a good view to look at something. the quality of the resolution of the image is really good so this plays an part when I watch the video it gave me picture in my head.

To answer my question which is would  Inaimate Alice technology is essential and should be often use in the school curriculum as vital tool to teach. So I done some research  to help answer my question I  came arcoss an review by EdLab  about Inaimate Alice. When I  read his article it took my words out my mouth, I fully agree on his views on Inaimate Alice which is according to EdLab ''The website offers a series of episode following the adventures of Alice , a young girl who travels arcoss the world with her family. Each episode is an interactive multi-media presentation that includes text, images , music and video, and requires user interaction to advance the story . It's designed to provide engaging narratives for the age of digital literacy'' however his concerns are also my concerns which is the problem of Inaimate Alice can't be essential because its purpose and not on its execution such as the purpose is to teach digital literacy, but is this really something that needs to be taught in school ? I would guess that fairly often the students are more digitally literate than the teacher. I am uncertain how much these new resources supplement, and how much they distract from, the central task of teaching reading and writing. The games in particular don't seem to have much connection with the stories , or with reading . The games in particular don't seem to have much connection with stories or with reading. The pictures the music , the videos , all are emotionally effective but take up space at the expense of the writing.''
http://edlab.tc.columbia.edu/index.php?q=node/6432

World Wide Web Transform To Semantic Web !!!!!!!!!!!!

                                         World Wide Web Transform To Semantic Web !!!!!!!!!!!!

In this blog I am going to define what the semantic is and the advantages of it and what it means to the World Wide Web. Semantic web concept  is basically came from the idea of Tim Berners- Lee an inventor that believes that the web as whole can get smarter to improve users searching.

When researching and thinking about this topic they question that I started to ask myself was do we as a society want and welcome the semantic web ?and also other question was how  and it works and what is the advantages of the semantic web.  I believe the reason why we need the world wide web to become the semantic web is that semantic works by adding data referred to metadata, application can drive more meaningful data from the web.Furthermore when  I was introduce to this topic by teacher in class I really find it very difficult to understand until I search online and find a video on YouTube which explains the concept of semantic web really well.

according to to the website ehow.com it says that ''the advantages of semantic web depend on the fact that data isn't just stored, it's understand'', this an great example of the purpose of semantic web.
http://www.ehow.com/info_12014339_advantages-semantic.html 


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGg8A2zfWKg

They are many types of advantages which has led people to believe that semantic web is the future did you know one particular which is big advantage to me personally is semantic web lies in tagging as new blogger myself  I usually  tag many posts with a few key important words about the topic I am talking about . This in turn helps others to find and similar posts.

The Usefulness Of Wikipedia !!!

                                                                   

                                                         
 They Always Tell Me Never To Use Wikipedia Like Its Some Kind Of Forbidden Fruit !!!!!!!

In This blog I am going discuss about the problem everyone has against Wikipedia the so called forbidden unreliable website. First of all during my seminar class we spoke about the many things that relate to Wikipedia also as much as I myself used Wikipedia very frequently against  everyone wishes advising me not I never actually never quite knew what Wikipedia was I until know when I done some research in class and find out the formal definition  according to the website  Whatls .com/Wikipedia Wikipedia is an free, open content online encyclopedia created through the collaborative effort of an community  of know know users  know as Wikipedians.

The reason I  myself and many students  enjoy  using Wikipedia is not because were told its bad so it made us want to use it the real  reason why it so popular and we visit it allot it is so easier to you use and I see this as of the strengths and also the weakness of Wikipedia but for now I concentrate on the strengths of this website  which  I regard very highly when doing research work. Wikipedia is very accessible all you got to do is type in what your searching for with Wikipedia at the end in your search engine and instantly your if Wikipedia which they likely to have it will come up. Furthermore one of the common strengths and which makes it  able to have some information on many types of things us as users are looking for is Wikipedia can bed edited by anyone who has the proper permissions and this can attract smart individuals put the input in a certain topic , in my own opinion reminds me of a early old school social networking site instead of swapping  messages and photos like Facebook you swap information.

In addition the weakness and criticism that Wikipedia is the the opposite of being useful such due to the reason that what makes Wikipedia what is being able to edit and change information makes it easy to be corrupt with bad information.

according to Jason Scott an Archivist  says  ''Wikipedia  can be useful reference resource and if you understand how it works or doesn't work in both theory and in practice often very different things can be even more useful. Of course , it's a resource , not the resource. Sadly , many users don't realize this and don't use a wide variety of research and reference tools that are available on the web or via library web site . it's all about the right tool at the right time. Wikipedia is far from perfect this is the case with any reference work but we also have concerns about how it operates''. http://www.infodocket.com/2012/12/12/important-read-archivist-jason-scott-has-a-lot-to-say-about-wikipedia/

Also an video from called The Great Failure Of Wikipedia made by Jason Scott

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AxtypXLSl0 

However many people may argue that if Wikipedia gives out non - accurate information  and it seen as not useful in getting information so when the Wikipedia blackout occur in January 2012 why did affect so many people? its reported it affect an minimum of at least 50 million users.


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2087673/Wikipedia-blackout-SOPA-protest-US-senators-withdraw-support-anti-piracy-bills.html