Collective Memory

I finally got around to checking out some of the links we were given to check out back in October. The post about Collective Memory was very interesting, though I didn't read the given Wikipedia article because it cited no references or sources. It's also important to note that the retelling of events from different perspectives can cloud one's original view of what happened and lead them to mix up their details with others'. I often find myself adding elements I've picked up online or from word of mouth into my own stories, and struggle to separate them from my own.

Also linked was the YouTube video The Machine is Us/Using Us, which I found fascinating. It actually triggered and refreshed some memories of my high school HTML authoring class and taught me a bit about RSS feeds.

I consider myself a mild computer geek; I've taken several computers apart and upgraded components myself. My insomnia leads me to stay up all night learning more and more about my computers each night, and my constant desire for the most modern technology leads me to research the newest processors, video cards, etc. However, I've never really been an Internet geek; I've had the odd blog here and there and have posted on forums, but I'm not at all savvy on the social networking front. I use Facebook constantly, but still cannot get the hang of Twitter. It seems to be such a useful tool, but I honestly just don't understand it. Myspace was given up years and years ago. I don't really read blogs unless they're assigned for this class, or linked to me from peers. I know that, as a future educator, knowing what's new and developing in the education world is crucial. It's been many years since I left high school, and I couldn't tell you what's changed at my previous schools since then.

It's practically the end of the semester, but I think the teachings of this class are finally starting to "click." I'm actually curious to read the status of federal funding, budget, and plans from the Obama administration for the current year. I've become a lot more political in the past year, and I definitely have a lot to catch up on.