Julia Gillard is my Facebook friend - Learning Portfolio Task

Navigate around and discuss two of the following sites in terms of the kinds of involvement they encourage.

First up I approached http://www.pm.gov.au. It appears very structured, and with the strong use of blue, very official. At first glance I did not feel encouraged or invited to be further involved with the government. There are tabs for press releases and official photos. A blog tab, where there is an attempt at friendly style language. I had a giggle at the headshots on the Cabinet page, by keeping the images relaxed it gives an opportunity to see a bit of personality. What the government stands for and the policy it supports are clear. I do like the opportunity to contact the PM directly, however I’m not convinced Ms Gillard would be the person to respond. Bringing up again the concepts of authenticity and trust online.

Sign Up Now! is what you see when you open www.getup.org.au. Having no experience of the site, it felt a little like a command that some people might just blindly obey. Is signing up a form of involvement? Through the use of powerful colour and clear concise wording getup.org.au clearly articulates the campaigns it is currently running and ways to be involved. Through signing online petitions, donating money, volunteering you can be an active member of getup.org.au. The site shows clearly links to youtube, twitter and facebook thus utilizing social network sites to gather support.

cheers,

Sarah

God in Cyberspace: Learning Portfolio Task

How has the Internet been used to resist or counteract religious persecution and human rights abuse? As a start, navigate to the Falun Dafa Information Centre (you may use other examples).

A large number of organisations now utilize the Internet and its collaborative applications to share information and gain support for communities and peoples who are being victimised due to religious beliefs. Generally, these websites contain details of details of the injustice that is occurring and where these actions are taking place. The sites suggest ways that people can be involved, through online petitions, donating to the cause and helping spreading their word.

The Falun Dafa Information Centre site is huge. Prior to this topic I had not ever taken the time to find out more about their cause, even when handed a flyer. I just could not comprehend how a form of Tai Chi could be a threat to a country, obviously an uneducated viewpoint!  The Falun Dafa site’s layout is similar to a breaking news site, with rolling updates and links to ‘action’ images of the fight in progress. It acts as the information starting point and sharing point. Their word is spread from the site via other website, twitter and Facebook.
Fellow student Kathryne Wells explains
Falon Gong is a form of qigong with extra spiritual and philosophical content. Gigong has been encouraged by the Chinese government since the late 1940's when Chairman Mao proclaimed that ' a healthy peasant is a happy peasant. However the Chinese have removed all suggestions of spiritual content (Daoism, Buddhism and Confucianism)…A Tai Chi instructor with whom I trained, and who himself had been trained at the Beijing Institute of Sport, declared that he did not 'believe in chi' (energy) The Chinese government seem to consider the concept (of chi’) to be religious in nature and therefore to be stamped out.

Two Christian examples are:
International Christian Concern http://www.persecution.org/
Mission Without Borders International http://www.mwbi.org/

A non-religion based example:
I am a member of one.org, not a religious organization but a human rights organization that focuses on poverty and all associated with it. Currently they are campaigning heavily around AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis. ‘The beginning of the end of AIDS starts now’.


cheers
Sarah


Wells, Kathryne (2012), Group Discussion Board, Learning Portfolio discussion https://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_tab_group_id=_4_1&url=%2Fwebapps%2Fblackboard%2Fexecute%2Flauncher%3Ftype%3DCourse%26id%3D_40431_1%26url%3D

Health 2.0?

How, if at all, has the relationship between Doctor and patient been affected by the rise in the use of the internet in relationship to people’s health in everyday life?

The rise of the concept of Health or Medicine 2.0, has empowered people to be more involved in their own healthcare. Doctors fees are increasingly expensive and time is always of the essence within a consultation. Many people are reading up on their symptoms and are looking to their general practitioner for verification and medication more than diagnosis. This enables the system to cater to as many people as possible within a short time frame. It allows the consumer to seek second opinions and ask uncomfortable questions from the privacy of one's home. One major problem with self-diagnosis is potential misdiagnosis, which can lead to unnecessary stress on the patient or even inappropriate self-medicating.  In its' current state the Internet does not replace a doctor, however, there is definitely scope for more healthcare to take place online.  “The Internet has been a tool for users and citizens to get more involved and empowered” (Eysenbach 2008) in their health care. The relationship between doctor and patient/consumer has changed over time from a one-way relationship to more of a consultatory model. The availability of information online enables a patient to question their doctor, discuss possible alternative treatments and make informed choices. Support groups provide emotional and factual support online, point patients in the direction of alternative treatments and enable a person to be in control of their health, identifying them as an expert in the experience of their own health (Eysenbach 2008).  



Eysenbach, Gunther. (2008, August 25). Medicine 2.0: Social Networking, Collaboration, Participation, Apomediation, and Openness. Journal of Medical Internet Research. 10(3). Retrieved from http://www.jmir.org/2008/3/e22/.

Health online

Learning Portfolio task.

A good friends young son has recently been diagnosed with high functioning autism. There is a lot of press about Autism, but personally I do not understand the different types and what it means to be autistic.

Johnny is 5, and is completing his second year of kinder and will go to a mainstream primary school next year.

Interestingly, because I am not the parent I disregarded sites that operate like forums. I am more attracted to sites that appear factual and not first person based. I think that if I was closer to the person with Autism then I would be more interested in hearing direct personal stories.

First up, I googled ‘Autism in Children’.  I was very excited to find the first site that came up is the Australian site www.raisingchildren.net.au. Checking that the information was relevant to our country was going to be my next step! A large portion of self-diagnosis can be incorrect as the information comes from overseas, particularly in the case of illness that have a direct relationship with the environment like hayfever, sinusitis etc.

Raising Children offers parent forums, more information around Autism, signs and how a diagnosis is made. The information is clear ad concise giving the impression of truth. Being also a government supported site adds to the feeling of ‘real’ information.

www.autismspectrum.org.au - was the next site that I grabbed.  Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect) is a not for profit organisation providing support and services to people with Autism and their families. Aspect appears to be a great organisiation that offers parental support, in-school support and also special camps for autistic children. 

cheers

Sarah

Dating & Intimacy Online

Pascoe describes the use of technology by young adults as part of their romantic lives in a way that it is integrated into their everyday lives. Do you think the use of online dating sites can also be considered as a normal part of everyday life? Why/why not?

Young adults 'perform' their relationships. The online world gives young adults a wider audience and more access to their friends. Dating, friendships, flirting for a teen need a certain amount of feedback for them to find where their relationship sits within their world. We as adults,  think of intimacy practices as private however, teen dating behaviour is often public and collaborative. (Pascoe, 2009). Social Network Sites, instant messaging, mobile phone usage tends to feed this public behaviour.

Generally, an adult has already established their place within their social group. When using online dating they are looking to meet someone new and unconnected to their established ties, the opposite to what a teen primarily does online. I think that it is this that prevents online dating being considered a normal part of everyday life. Online dating is definitely an accepted way to find someone to date, however, meaningful relationships forming are not the norm. They do happen and many people have successful relationships from meeting online, but did they meet from an online dating site or from a community of like minded people gathering online i.e gaming, gardeners anonymous. Becoming intimate with someone who already shares many of your views is attractive.
Interestingly, on intimacy, a person with high self-esteem is more likely to use online dating than a person with low self-esteem according to research from psych central.com. They found that as it is in the offline world, a person with low self-esteem is not as willing to put themselves out there.




references:
Pascoe, C.J. (2009). Intimacy in Mizuko, I et. al. Hanging Out, Messing Around, Geeking Out: Living and Learning with New Media.


http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2009/07/23/who-uses-internet-dating/

...at work nobody knows I'm a wizard

What are the differences that Brooks observes between gaming in Korea and the United States? How does this compare to your experience of gaming?


One of the main points that Brooks (1:2012) makes is the cultural acceptance of gaming in Korea. PC Bangs remain popular in Korea whilst there are almost non existent in the US.  Brooks observes that Korea is one of the most 'wired' countries in the world. the population is primarily densely populated making is easier for a functioning broadband network to operate. Making the internet easy and faster to use, therefore gaming is a much more pleasant experience. The speed and ease of access, has helped encourage social acceptance of gaming as a mainstream form of entertainment.

Alternatively, the US population (much like Australia) is much more widely dispersed making fast and consistent Internet access difficult to guarantee. .  Therefore, according to the article, US gamers prefer game consoles such as the PS3 and x-box that use gaming discs as these do not rely on the internet.  In the US there is a stigma of gaming being seen as an activity for 'gamers', singling them out as non-mainstream similar to other cultural sub groups, like 'goths'.  As internet access becomes more of a political topic I am certain that the US will start to spend more money on ensuring good internet access across the board, not unlike our NBN. Perhaps, has Korea and the US are no cultural different in the first instance, their online gaming habits will never truly match up. However, as the gaming community grows worldwide it will be interesting to see if gamers are more accepted having a mainstream pastime.


The U.S is a large country, and people generally have more space around them to live their lives than in a small densely populated country like Korea. Does this inherently encourage more outdoor, perhaps, sports related activities' to be the norm as opposed to gaming?

I have never played a massive multiplayer online game. I have had a little go at casual games like bejewelled, dabbled in owning a farm in farmville. I did set up an account on Second Life, but I really didn't know what to do with it. Growing up, there wasn't too much focus on using the family computer for games at all. My sister had a console, the one that you play Alex Kidd on, but even that didn't last too long. I wonder if there was a lack of interest because I am female and have two sisters?


Brooks, G. (n.d.). Counting Rupees: Korea bangs | Joystiq. Retrieved June 10, 2012, from http://www.joystiq.com/2008/07/08/counting-rupees-korea-bangs/

Learning Portfolio task - Music

Review your experience of creating a profile on last.fm (or a similar site). If you had a profile already,  describe  how you use it in your everyday life and the role played by the internet on your music listening


I've always considered myself to be a fairly early adopter of new technologies. Not the first person in, but amongst the first in my circle. For online music consumption it has been completely the opposite. I'm not sure if we (my husband & I) are still suffering a hangover from previously having an indie music store, but, just recently we made the massive move to get all our CD's (hundreds & hundreds of them) online or at least on some sort of drive. From here, we have started to really discover online music. Early stages, but now getting to the point that if I hear something on the radio I will find it and get it. It seems very impulsive! 

Triple J have been talking a lot about being on Spotify so I have created an account/profile for this learning task. https://www.spotify.com/us/.  So easy to do. I've not joined before, because it bothers me that when you listen it seems to appear in your Facebook feed. Does this have to happen? Anyone use Spotify?  The site looks good, clean and easy to navigate. I will use the long weekend to play on the site and see if it captures me!
For the learning portfolio task I also created a profile on last.fm - http://www.last.fm/user/sareski, I did this has I have very limited working knowledge of music sharing sites, and really wanted to have a look at more than one. 

cheers

Sarah

Music: Analogue to Digital - The Change

From the moment music became more readily available its value has been on the rise. With the advent of portable music systems i.e gramophones, music became a consumerable for the people who set the trends primarily the youth . The progression from Vinyl single to album, to cassette, then CD and finally MP3 has been rapid. Each change has held resistance from recording companies and in some instances the artists. Recording companies concerned about controlling their income, artists concerned about intellectual property. The industry is again at a turning point, the move to digital now has the supporting web applications to reach all web users. Music of all genres, ages, languages can be tested, purchases and allocated to a personal 'mix tape' in minutes. It does seem like the shift to digital, through being so available has diluted the cultural segregations that once were so clear when it came to music choices. 

I will do some more reading on this....I think that music has traditionally been a major driver in many of the ways trends of kinds shift. Now that music consumption and distribution has changed, I'm interested in discovering how artists & their publicity machines convey the concept of what their music holds. For example, do young people watch video hits anymore? Does a film clip to a music track create the same excitement as it did?

'the intertwining between the private and public'. In particular young peoples bedrooms are spaces where public resources are utilised to help the teen create and play with their sense of self, identity and creativity. (Laughey D 2009)

Net102 - a new unit a new learning portfolio

And so, with a SP of Tertiary Learning Studies behind me and finishing up Web101 with a credit (phew) I embark on a new unit. Four assessments this SP, one being a learning portfolio.
Coming soon, my review and adventures of last.fm a music sharing site.

cheers
Sarah