Blogging has and still is becoming a major sensation around the world for expressing ideas, thoughts, feelings, and information. The modern blog evolved from the online diary, where people would keep a running account of their personal lives. Most such writers called themselves diarists, or journalists. Justin Hall, who began personal blogging in 1994 while a student at Swarthmore College, is recognized as one of the earliest bloggers. Early blogs were manually updated components of common Web sites. However, the evolution of tools to facilitate the production and maintenance of Web articles posted in reverse chronological order made the publishing process feasible to a much larger, less technical, population. Ultimately, this resulted in the distinct class of online publishing that produces blogs we recognize today.
After a slow start, blogging rapidly gained in popularity. Blog usage spread during 1999 and the years following, being further popularized by the arrival of the first hosted blog tools. Such hosted tools consist of Open Diary, created in October 1998, which soon grew to thousands of online diaries. Open Diary innovated the reader comment, becoming the first blog community where readers could add comments to other writers' blog entries. Brad Fitzpatrick started LiveJournal in March 1999. Andrew Smales created Pitas.com in July 1999 as an easier alternative to maintaining a news page on a Web site, followed by Diaryland in September 1999, focusing more on a personal diary community. Evan Williams and Meg Hourihan made blogger.com in August 1999.
Since 2002, blogs have gained increasing notice and coverage shaping news stories. For the first time in modern journalism, the financial and political goals of U.S. Israeli relations are being analyzed in depth. The Iraq war saw bloggers taking measured and intense points of view that go beyond the traditional left-right divide of the political spectrum.
Blogging might become even more popular then facebook and myspace in upcomming years.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Thursday, November 19, 2009
The swine flu vaccine
Many people are concerned about whether to get the swine flu vaccine. This vaccine is said to prevent the H1N1 virus from infecting the people who take it. There's two kinds of H1N1 vaccines, the nasal and the shot form. However, many side effects of the vaccine have been all over the news, such as 25 year old Deseray Jennings, who has a serious side effect known as Dystonia which is a neurological movement disorder in which sustained muscle contractions cause twisting and repetitive movements or abnormal postures. The poor girl can only walk backwards normally and when she runs forward, she can speak normally and run normally.
I honestly think it might be a load of bullshit, but who knows. I refused to get the vaccine because of the side effects it might bring. I would rather get the swine flu and be sick for a week, then have a rare neurological disorder for the rest of my life. A bunch of kids started getting the swine flu or the regular flu on my track team. So my mom was all worries and paranoid that I might get the flu, so I ended up getting the regular flu shot which wasn't too bad. I just have a little pain in my shoulder.
I feel like if people stop worrying about it so much, peoples lives would be a lot easier. In most of my classes we are forced to use Hand Sanitizer every day. Which in theory is good because it kills germs. But it also kills 99.8 % of germs which means a lot of good germs are killed thus making you less immune to getting sickness. Also, people may ingest it to get intoxicated.
I honestly think it might be a load of bullshit, but who knows. I refused to get the vaccine because of the side effects it might bring. I would rather get the swine flu and be sick for a week, then have a rare neurological disorder for the rest of my life. A bunch of kids started getting the swine flu or the regular flu on my track team. So my mom was all worries and paranoid that I might get the flu, so I ended up getting the regular flu shot which wasn't too bad. I just have a little pain in my shoulder.
I feel like if people stop worrying about it so much, peoples lives would be a lot easier. In most of my classes we are forced to use Hand Sanitizer every day. Which in theory is good because it kills germs. But it also kills 99.8 % of germs which means a lot of good germs are killed thus making you less immune to getting sickness. Also, people may ingest it to get intoxicated.
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Civil Liberties extra credit
Our civil liberties are becoming more and more pressured every day. Hundreds of people every day are subjected to civil liberty abuse. Our government always thinks of bullshit excuses to why they would ever need to violate peoples civil liberties and many people do not really understand or believe that the government is doing this.
Programs such as ACLU (American Civil Liberty Union), try to protect and expose the government for what they are doing. The ACLU's National Security Project (NSP) is for national security policies that are consistent with the Constitution, the rule of law, and fundamental human rights. "The Project litigates cases relating to detention, torture, discrimination, surveillance, censorship, and secrecy". They have been part of many major cases that opposed the governments security policies that violated civil liberties. Such cases were the AAR v. Chertoff and ASA v. Chertoff, ACLU v. DOD (Torture FOIA), Al-Marri v. Pucciarelli, Amnesty v. McConnell, and Doe v. Ashcroft.
Many people are taken for years and tortured for being false accused of being a terrorist or being a threat to national security. Such as Zacarias Moussaoui who was almost given the death penalty for being falsely accused of being the 20th hijacker of 9/11. Also, after the terrible terrorist attacks of 9/11 the government authorized for many people to have their phones, computers and pretty much all of their civil liberties violated because they were "suspicious". Still after the authorization happened not a single on of those persons were proven as terrorists.
People need to realize that their government might not always be the protector of the people. They need to start to question the intense amount of secrecy and censorship that the government has kept over the people. Its important to question the reasons and drastic moves that the government makes and to not always trust in everything the government does. Even if they say that their intentions were "for the national security of the people."
Programs such as ACLU (American Civil Liberty Union), try to protect and expose the government for what they are doing. The ACLU's National Security Project (NSP) is for national security policies that are consistent with the Constitution, the rule of law, and fundamental human rights. "The Project litigates cases relating to detention, torture, discrimination, surveillance, censorship, and secrecy". They have been part of many major cases that opposed the governments security policies that violated civil liberties. Such cases were the AAR v. Chertoff and ASA v. Chertoff, ACLU v. DOD (Torture FOIA), Al-Marri v. Pucciarelli, Amnesty v. McConnell, and Doe v. Ashcroft.
Many people are taken for years and tortured for being false accused of being a terrorist or being a threat to national security. Such as Zacarias Moussaoui who was almost given the death penalty for being falsely accused of being the 20th hijacker of 9/11. Also, after the terrible terrorist attacks of 9/11 the government authorized for many people to have their phones, computers and pretty much all of their civil liberties violated because they were "suspicious". Still after the authorization happened not a single on of those persons were proven as terrorists.
People need to realize that their government might not always be the protector of the people. They need to start to question the intense amount of secrecy and censorship that the government has kept over the people. Its important to question the reasons and drastic moves that the government makes and to not always trust in everything the government does. Even if they say that their intentions were "for the national security of the people."
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 was released November 9th, the day before veterans day. As an avid "COD 4" user, I was skeptical about the game at first because Call of Duty 4 was one of the greatest games of all time and it would be very hard to top. However, after playing it after I got home from school, I couldn't help but tear from the eyes. It was honestly the most epic and fantastic game I had ever played.
They enable you to choose from tons of new and futuristic guns. There are hundreds of challenges and achievements you can do making the game a challenge. You can't beat the game in a day. It had more than $310 million of sell-through sales in North America and the UK, or about 4.7 million units. And that’s just within the first 24 hours. In comparison, Halo 3’s launch scored $170 million in its first 24 hours back in 2007. (That was just in the U.S., and it was only available for one console.) Grand Theft Auto 4 sold about 6 million copies worldwide in its first week in 2008, with sales topping more than $500 million. Those sales make it the biggest launch of any form of entertainment since the dawn of mankind.
The online and campaign are out of this world, the graphics and the cutting edge tech involved in this game was out of this world. The game utilizes the in-house IW 4.0 game engine, which is claimed to be a generation beyond the capabilities of the engine used in Call of Duty 4.
Aside from new weapons, equipment, and perks that are now able to be upgraded to pro versions , 15 different kill streak rewards can be unlocked and selected by the player. Among these is the ability to receive a supply drop after achieving four kills in a row, order a predator missile strike after five kills, and call in an AC-130 gunship to strike from the sky after 11 kills. Another new feature is the in-game host migration. If a match host leaves the game, the current game no longer ends as a host migration delay allows a new host to be selected and the game to continue on. These are only a few of the many changes and advancements that Modernwarfare 2 has accomplished.
They enable you to choose from tons of new and futuristic guns. There are hundreds of challenges and achievements you can do making the game a challenge. You can't beat the game in a day. It had more than $310 million of sell-through sales in North America and the UK, or about 4.7 million units. And that’s just within the first 24 hours. In comparison, Halo 3’s launch scored $170 million in its first 24 hours back in 2007. (That was just in the U.S., and it was only available for one console.) Grand Theft Auto 4 sold about 6 million copies worldwide in its first week in 2008, with sales topping more than $500 million. Those sales make it the biggest launch of any form of entertainment since the dawn of mankind.
The online and campaign are out of this world, the graphics and the cutting edge tech involved in this game was out of this world. The game utilizes the in-house IW 4.0 game engine, which is claimed to be a generation beyond the capabilities of the engine used in Call of Duty 4.
Aside from new weapons, equipment, and perks that are now able to be upgraded to pro versions , 15 different kill streak rewards can be unlocked and selected by the player. Among these is the ability to receive a supply drop after achieving four kills in a row, order a predator missile strike after five kills, and call in an AC-130 gunship to strike from the sky after 11 kills. Another new feature is the in-game host migration. If a match host leaves the game, the current game no longer ends as a host migration delay allows a new host to be selected and the game to continue on. These are only a few of the many changes and advancements that Modernwarfare 2 has accomplished.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
What should you do if an apocalyptic zombie invasion plagued the world?
What should you do if an apocalyptic zombie invasion plagued the world?
"The Zombie Survival Guide", by Max Brooks is the only real guide to protecting yourself from the undead. I have read this book several times and feel that it is an adequate book. But, it lacks the direct step by step instruction that is necessary to fight and survive the hoard. The fools and the bigots could not possibly be able to navigate and understand Max Brooks nifty changes throughout the guide. However, I have a basic strategy guide that can lead people through the threat of the undead.
Zombies are a supernatural power or spell that according to voodoo belief can enter into and reanimate a corpse. Though the definition seems nonthreatening, zombies also contain the characteristic, the need for the consumption of human flesh. Though they can not run fast, the immense population that will be created will be able to over power the fact that they walk slow.
The threat of a zombie attack is high because we are approaching 2012 and who knows what that year will have in store. Due to the amount of new and foreign diseases such as the H1N1 virus and traces of new forms of other diseases all around the world present the possibility of a possible zombie invasion.
The Will Fugina Survival guide:
1. Make sure that your home is prepared for a Zombie Invasion. Food, supplies, and weapons are necessities for survival.
2.Wait out the initial wave of zombies, especially if you live on a place like Long Island. You will perish if you try to leave during the anarchic, dead zone. Barricade your home, you should hide on your highest floor and then destroy the stairs.
3.Once there a really only the walking dead left, travel at night in silence and speed. Move with only a small group of 5 to 8 people. Used silenced guns, blades or anything you can get.
4. Use bikes, or small maneuverable vehicles just in case of a car pile up.
5. Leave the urban areas and try to get as isolated as possible. The wilderness is the best place to go or even a secluded island.
6.Make sure to make a supply bag for hunting and camping out. During the day lay low and during the night move. Never stay in one place for too long.
7.The city is a death trap. Go in groups to get supplies and always check for infection among the group. If any one group member has the infection they can bring down the whole system. Kill anyone who is infected.
8. The last step is to survive and to wait out the invasion. It could take years.
"The Zombie Survival Guide", by Max Brooks is the only real guide to protecting yourself from the undead. I have read this book several times and feel that it is an adequate book. But, it lacks the direct step by step instruction that is necessary to fight and survive the hoard. The fools and the bigots could not possibly be able to navigate and understand Max Brooks nifty changes throughout the guide. However, I have a basic strategy guide that can lead people through the threat of the undead.
Zombies are a supernatural power or spell that according to voodoo belief can enter into and reanimate a corpse. Though the definition seems nonthreatening, zombies also contain the characteristic, the need for the consumption of human flesh. Though they can not run fast, the immense population that will be created will be able to over power the fact that they walk slow.
The threat of a zombie attack is high because we are approaching 2012 and who knows what that year will have in store. Due to the amount of new and foreign diseases such as the H1N1 virus and traces of new forms of other diseases all around the world present the possibility of a possible zombie invasion.
The Will Fugina Survival guide:
1. Make sure that your home is prepared for a Zombie Invasion. Food, supplies, and weapons are necessities for survival.
2.Wait out the initial wave of zombies, especially if you live on a place like Long Island. You will perish if you try to leave during the anarchic, dead zone. Barricade your home, you should hide on your highest floor and then destroy the stairs.
3.Once there a really only the walking dead left, travel at night in silence and speed. Move with only a small group of 5 to 8 people. Used silenced guns, blades or anything you can get.
4. Use bikes, or small maneuverable vehicles just in case of a car pile up.
5. Leave the urban areas and try to get as isolated as possible. The wilderness is the best place to go or even a secluded island.
6.Make sure to make a supply bag for hunting and camping out. During the day lay low and during the night move. Never stay in one place for too long.
7.The city is a death trap. Go in groups to get supplies and always check for infection among the group. If any one group member has the infection they can bring down the whole system. Kill anyone who is infected.
8. The last step is to survive and to wait out the invasion. It could take years.
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