Blog 7 Reflection and Evaluation

Think about what you have done well and what needs improvement? What challenges are you facing with this class? What do you think you need to know right now to move ahead? How did you feel about the CAT-W practice? What question did you get and how did you answer it?

I'm doing pretty well in this class. I have a great teammate, plus our professor challenges us with too much work which I appreciate, as a non-native speaker i need to improve the language.  During the first blog I was expecting a very difficult class, but right now I'm enjoying this class. I'm getting more writing skills but  I need more vocabulary, we are facing journalism and technology together which resemble to be update. 

I still feel unsecured about the CAT-W practice. Mine was about the chocolate and it's benefits witch I don't have any idea what it's benefits are. I expect after this class I'll be able to pass it without any problem.

Blog 6 - The allegory of the cave (Brainstorming)

Think about something u believed and was not true.

I had two false beliefs when I was little. The first one, was the existence of the three Magic Kings which is the equivalent in America to Saint Nicholas and the second one, was that I believed in ghosts appearing in the darkness.

I got very disappointed when I found out that the three Magic Kings had never existed. At the age of seven, it was a complete surprise for me. I wished I've never known that reality, but It took me longer to understand and realize the non-existence of ghosts. Still being a teenager I used to avoid being alone in the darkness. Now I realize it was very stupid.

When we are kids, we are compelled to do and see what adults command us, most of the times for our own good. Unfortunately, there are things that we don't want to face as a reality. We rather keep believing, maybe because is more comfortable not  to see  what's going on outside the  "cave".

Actually I dare to write and say that many people follow false beliefs just for fear to face the reality. Eventually, my thoughts go further and question myself about the non-existence of all those religious things instilled in us since we are born. From the fact that I believe in evolution, I started asking myself, what if we believe in God just for the fear that if "He" really exists will punish us for not believing, so we rather remain  in the cave and not doubt. What's the use of reading a book (saint Bible), according to someone without any proof.  Who is trying  to keep us trapped into the ignorance and take advantage of our pseudo intellectualism.

On reflection, I would love to keep my faith, just watch what is reflected in the wall and listen to the echoes of what people read on the Saint Bible, in other words, remain chained to those beliefs.  Apparently  my curiosity flies sometimes and takes me to explore outside of the cave.

The allegory of the cave is a metaphor, it has multiples interpretations. This is the one I give in my modest opinion. Please, don't let my mother knows that I'm losing my values and conventional thoughts. 

Blog 5 Allegory of the cave

Plato describes prisoners who live in a cave chained since their childhood. They were completely fixed by their arms, legs and heads facing the wall, unable to turn their heads. Behind them there is a fire burning and a walkway. while looking at the wall they could hear echoes and see figures of men, animals  and objects that came from the walkway. As long as that was everything they could have ever seen and listened, it was their reality.

Plato renewed the story by releasing one of the prisoners. The prisoner would not recognize the reality. He could not name the objects that caused the shadows. He was dragged out  to the sunlight, but he was distressed, he still wanted to believe the shadows were the true. 

Blog 4 (Hype workshop)

Everywhere we turn we face with advertising in one way or another. Advertising has become an annoying situation. Ads appear in supermarkets, banks, street, store displays and television. Since we get up in the morning commercials are showing and convincing us to buy things we don't even need. Products are advertised as the thing everybody must have, to the point that people begin to feel they need to consume it. Products are advertised as the thing everyone must have, to the point that we need to consume it.

Aggressive advertising are annoying and most when they interrupt our life routine. My personal reaction when I get many choices, they confuse me and I'm more likely to refuse all of them. The more products I consider, the less likely I am to purchase anything. Marketers are also employing the principal audience by placing ads in the bathrooms. Ads in the mirror and urinals. They are being intrusive. The bigger factor of excessive advertising is showed most in TV and radio, where Advertising instead of decreasing is increasing.

There is a reality we have to post, publicity is essential for companies to be able to market their products successfully. Advertising is vital to the success of almost any business, but it is possible to get the exact opposite effect. 

Obviously The challenge of the future may be finding public and private spaces that are free of advertising. Everyday there is a new way to publish advertisements. There is no way to escape from them. Everyone is aware of the problem but no one tries to solve it.

I agree with Kale Lasn when he says on his article "Hype"   advertisements are a toxin, we are completely overwhelm by marketers trying to target people. They are so profound that can work even subconsciously and make us repeat slogans over and over.  

Blog 3 ( Hype Summary)

Advertisements have become invasive and annoying. From the moment we wake up in the morning until we go to bed, marketers are introducing commercials to our brains. Everywhere we put our eyes on  there is a commercial telling us to consume or buy something we don't even need.

As Kalle Lasn said in his in signs of life in the USA, everyday an estimated of 12 billion displays ads, 3 million radio and TV commercials are displayed into America's collective unconscious.

Buses, streets, Bank machines, there is no way to escape from such aggressive publicity.

Blog 2

• What did you get from thinking about annotations with the class?
  
  Annotation is important to get the main idea of the text. By this method we can connect and get familiar with the material. I use to mark everything i think is important in a text in order to retain the most possible information.

• What did you get from writing annotations for "Is Google Making Us Stupid?" with your partner?
  
  When I read about this assignment  we got to the point that we already can't live without it. We need to Google any concern or question we have, even though we learn less, remember less and understand less, we can't get rid of the advantages of having access to all the information i need. we are just adjusting to the convenience of changing the way we typically read to a more distracted and easy way. Goggling and surfing on the web don't develop our mind.

• What did you learn about the reading by annotating it?  

          How the use of electronic devices is distracting us from concentrating on readings.

• How may annotating make you a better writer? 
  
  Annotating I'm able to resume and get the main idea. It is much easier by simply underline or highlight passages I  get to the point of what is more important on a text

 

Blog 1 (Hype)

Every where we turn we faced with advertising in one way or another. Advertising has become an annoying situation. Ads appears in supermarkets, banks, street, store displays and television. Since we get up in the morning commercials are showing and convincing us to buy things we don't even need. Products are advertised as the thing everybody must have, to the point that people begin to feel they need to consume it. 

Aggressive advertising are annoying and most when they interrupt our life routine. My personal reaction when i get so many choices, it confuses me and I'm more likely to refuse all of them. The more products I consider, the less likely I am to purchase anything.

Marketers are also employing the principal audience by placing ads in the bathrooms. Ads in the mirror and urinals. They are  being intrusive.

Publicity is essential for companies to be able to market their products successfully. Obviously The challenge of the future may be finding public and private spaces that are free of advertising. 

Everyday there is a new way to publish advertisements. There is no way to escape from them. Everyone is aware of the problem but no one tries to solve it.