Why am I so uncomfortable with silence? I don't mind it when people talk and laugh around me but I have a problem when everything is so quiet. Whenever that happens, I make some noise by cracking jokes or bringing a topic up just to break the monotony. If all else fails, I whip out my cellphone and fiddle with it, stick earphones in my ears or look for a computer to surf the internet.
I think the trouble is that we were trained to always be on the go. We always have to be busy with something even if it's something that is not necessarily worthwhile. In fact, it's almost like we can't do just one thing - we always insist on multitasking. Even when doing our homework or reviewing our notes, we have to have the television on or talk to somebody on the phone. Sometimes I even catch myself texting someone while talking to another person which is something I used to consider very rude.
In this day and age, it does feel like we are encouraged to engage ourselves in many different pursuits at any given time. However, in doing so, it's like we spread ourselves too thin and are unable to give every task the attention and the effort it deserves. Now when we go online we have so many windows and tabs open, along with the online messenger and we get so distracted that we don't notice that we've spent HOURS online doing nothing.
Now whenever we talk to somebody, our mind is on something else and worse, our fingers are frantically dancing our cellphone's keypad or computer keyboard. Sure, telephones and internet has helped bridge gaps between great distances but on a smaller scale, instead of being means of communicating, these innovative gadgets have put up an invisible forcefield between us and the people that we are actually with.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Kids of the future
Kids nowadays are very much in touch with technology. They would get thelatest gadgets in the market every now and then. This is something good for them because they get to learn the newest technology. The latest (or maybe not) online community in the net is myyearb ook.com. this networking was created by two highschool students from US. They based their idea from myspace, facebook,multiply and friendster. However, the people who can access thenet are getting younger. They could be exposed to some internet crimes if they will not be careful enough. Parents should be aware of what their children are browsing in net. There are sites that provide guidelines for to avoid being involved in an internet crime. I think that there should be a subject in school about safety surfing. That's all....
kids + technology = ?
technology sure has come a long way. especially with kids in this generation. during our time us kids would normally just be playing in the streets with our neighbors or going to the park. we enjoy spending our time outside our houses during the afternoons. we could play basketball, patintero, hopscotch, piko, jump rope, roller blades and plenty more. we get a normal exercise and it would be a lot of fun. it takes our parents time to make us come into our houses.
but these days, so many kids have computer games, play stations,. psp's and cellphones. these days when kids get home from school they'd go straight to their computers and you won't be able to drag them away. even at school, during their breaktime you would see kids playin with their psp's or gameboys. the most interesting part is that children at this age already have their own cellphones. when i was a child i never had one and i didn't care if i had one. practically all the people i need to contact to come outside to play would be on the same street as i am.
even teenagers these days use their allowances that is supposed to be used for buying their food or in case of emergencies to pay the computer shop where they could play computer games. a lot of parents would be wondering why these kids are taking so long to get home from school and it's because they're playing DOTA.
most kids don't get the exercise that we used to get before because for them it is a lot more fun to stay home and play with their computers instead of go out and converse with their friends. kids can find them selves lonely at school when all they do is go home straight and play on the computer instead of play with their schoolmates.
even though these things are happening, we cannot blame technology for technology has done a great deal for everybody. it is very useful and helpful. i think that it is up to the parents and how they want their child to grow up. if they think that their child is spending too much time infront of the computer then they should be able to make them stop and do something else.
but these days, so many kids have computer games, play stations,. psp's and cellphones. these days when kids get home from school they'd go straight to their computers and you won't be able to drag them away. even at school, during their breaktime you would see kids playin with their psp's or gameboys. the most interesting part is that children at this age already have their own cellphones. when i was a child i never had one and i didn't care if i had one. practically all the people i need to contact to come outside to play would be on the same street as i am.
even teenagers these days use their allowances that is supposed to be used for buying their food or in case of emergencies to pay the computer shop where they could play computer games. a lot of parents would be wondering why these kids are taking so long to get home from school and it's because they're playing DOTA.
most kids don't get the exercise that we used to get before because for them it is a lot more fun to stay home and play with their computers instead of go out and converse with their friends. kids can find them selves lonely at school when all they do is go home straight and play on the computer instead of play with their schoolmates.
even though these things are happening, we cannot blame technology for technology has done a great deal for everybody. it is very useful and helpful. i think that it is up to the parents and how they want their child to grow up. if they think that their child is spending too much time infront of the computer then they should be able to make them stop and do something else.
Children and Cyberspace
The Internet is a double edged sword. Information at a press of a button is revolutionary at its best. However, too much uneeded information is also detrimental to the minds of people, especially young kids. Statistics show that more and more kids are connected to the net everyday, and less than half actually learn something beneficial.
Look at the Virginia Tech shootings. The perpetrator, using the internet was able to procure firearms and the procedures needed to make bombs online. A lot of people died that day.
There was also this story about a chemistry whiz who tried to recreate a miniature nuclear plant in his backyard. When the police found out about it, they also found out that the radiation levels in their backyard storeroom were off the charts.
I, myself, found an article online called The Anarchist's Cookbook. It was a fascinating read, but imagine a 12 year old kid having the same level of access to it. Imagine if he had no friends and hated the world. Imagine if he went to your school. Those images would be catastrophic.
Parents should be more hands on with their kids now more than ever. They should learn to limit and monitor their children's usage of the internet.
With great power comes great responsibility.-Uncle Ben from Spiderman
Look at the Virginia Tech shootings. The perpetrator, using the internet was able to procure firearms and the procedures needed to make bombs online. A lot of people died that day.
There was also this story about a chemistry whiz who tried to recreate a miniature nuclear plant in his backyard. When the police found out about it, they also found out that the radiation levels in their backyard storeroom were off the charts.
I, myself, found an article online called The Anarchist's Cookbook. It was a fascinating read, but imagine a 12 year old kid having the same level of access to it. Imagine if he had no friends and hated the world. Imagine if he went to your school. Those images would be catastrophic.
Parents should be more hands on with their kids now more than ever. They should learn to limit and monitor their children's usage of the internet.
With great power comes great responsibility.-Uncle Ben from Spiderman
My Surfing Experience
The Internet has been around for some time now and it is both a blessing and a curse. People’s lives have been made easier by the Internet. I mean, who among us has gone to the library to do research when there are tons of articles online? Who among us would rather walk to different companies just to hand them our resumes when it is easier to send them online? Truly, the advent of the Internet has made these tedious jobs far less tedious.
The Internet maybe connecting people from far away but so far, it is also destroying relationships that are near us, like families. We are a family of four: Me, my sister, and my parents. And sadly, whenever we go home, we just greet each other for a couple of minutes then head off to our rooms to surf the Internet. The Internet also made personal relationships less personal. Instead of giving something I wrote, I would rather send my father an e-card for his birthday.
These experiences have shaped how I use the Internet nowadays. Now, when I go on to the Internet, I make sure that I only do it when I really need to do something important, giving me more time to bond with my family.
I usually frequent sites that are good reads. Sites about religion, history, conspiracies, and new technologies are those that interest me. For basic browsing, I downloaded a program for Firefox called Stumble!
Stumble is a program that allows you to choose categories that you like. It will then present you with a random site based on the categories you chose. It makes browsing really easy for me especially when I am bored.
Sona
I for one am not satisfied with GMA's SONA. If you read the script of her SONA last 2007, they almost have the same words...same ideas.
First, the country's economic growth, while looks good on paper, still can't be felt by most people. GMA bragged about adding a million more jobs for Filipinos, but are those jobs fulfilling enough? Do they pay well? I think not. The salaries of most Filipinos are still really low when compared to other developing Asian countries. That is the main reason why even the most patriotic Filipinos would rather leave the country for better paying jobs than stay here and earn mediocre salaries.
Second, the construction of new buildings, classrooms, and the provision of tables and chairs while very admirable, still doesn't address the real problem whose only solution would be the increased salary of the teachers.
Lastly, I really admire GMA because she tried. But I don't think she tried hard enough.
First, the country's economic growth, while looks good on paper, still can't be felt by most people. GMA bragged about adding a million more jobs for Filipinos, but are those jobs fulfilling enough? Do they pay well? I think not. The salaries of most Filipinos are still really low when compared to other developing Asian countries. That is the main reason why even the most patriotic Filipinos would rather leave the country for better paying jobs than stay here and earn mediocre salaries.
Second, the construction of new buildings, classrooms, and the provision of tables and chairs while very admirable, still doesn't address the real problem whose only solution would be the increased salary of the teachers.
Lastly, I really admire GMA because she tried. But I don't think she tried hard enough.
kids using internet
i have a niece and a nephew who are so aware of the Internet and the latest gadgets we have. My niece is 8 years old and my nephew is 7 years old. At the early age, they already know how to turn on and off the computer, and they also know how to use it. Both of them has a friendster account (imagine, a 7 and 8 year old kid) and i don't know they want to have it. Also, they know how to use the Internet and find the latest games. They both have a Nintendo DS that makes them so busy every time they play with it. Sometimes they won't lend it to me because they were to busy playing their games. After they finished the whole game, they will ask for another one.
They got their Nintendo DS from their parents because they both get high grades from school. Before they only play with their toys and watch cartoons, but now they have a gadget and they know how to use the computer and the Internet.
Although they have good grades at school but the violence of some games are really not good for kids. There are games that are so brutal and kids should not play it. My nephew is a smart boy, he's good at school but sometimes he's lazy to do their kumon assignments and finished it on that same day. My niece is a smart girl also, she can control herself on how to use her time for playing and for school. Good thing that they have parents that could discipline them.
It's not bad that kids know how to use the computer, surf the Internet and play with their gadgets but parents should give discipline to their kids to balance the time of studying and playing.
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