Facebook Addiction

If someone were to ask me one day what I was addicted to, I would have to say facebook.  Facebook today is known as the new myspace and is still far more popular than twitter.  My addiction to facebook is so bad that I check my account at least 5 times a day.  After clicking on the Internet Explorer icon or Mozilla Firefox icon I feel drawn to log in to facebook before any other website.  Facebook can be the blame as to much of my procrastination in my assignments for class or any other task that needs to be accomplished.  However, as much as I know that Facebook is a distraction for me, I don't really do anything about the addiction.

"The Dead Grandmother/Exam Syndrome" Response

The article "The Dead Grandmother/Exam Syndrome" by Mike Adams is a witty article on the weird correlation between college student's taking an exam and the death of one's grandmother.  I thought this article was well-written.  I liked how the author used specific data to describe this theory in more depth.  For instance,  in paragraph four of the essay, the author writes, "the mean FDR (family death rate) jumps from 0.054 with no exam, to 0.574 with a mid-term, and to 1.042 with a final" (178).  This gives the reader a good insight into how this theory is affected. Adams then goes on to correlate this data with tables and graphs.  The tables and graphs creates an interesting relationship between stating what the mean number of family deaths (data) is and then showing this with the visual aspect of the provided graphs.  The author does a decent job at trying to keep the audience in focus with what he is trying to say.  I feel that he is writing to a mature and whimsical audience. The author is very specific, and Adams uses a humorous approach to this article.  For example, I found it clever as he states in the last paragraph,  "In the interim, the problem is clearly far too important to be ignored.  Following the government's lead on so many similar, potentially catastrophic problems (global warming, the ozone layer, and ocean pollution), I propose that a commission be established to study the problem in more depth" (180).  Overall, I felt the article created an interesting depiction of this creative theory.

High Gas Prices

I find it hard to imagine why gasoline is so expensive. The average gas price for the Midwest region in the U.S. is $3.01/gallon currently. I find this price to be ridiculous, and it doesn't seem that gas is going to get cheaper anytime soon.  I realize that the events in the Middle East, the unsteady U.S. economy, and the high demand for gasoline are the reasons as to why gas prices are rising, but this is starting to get frustrating. Hopefully, in the near future the U.S. can catch a break from this troubling topic that we face today.

First blog assignment: Albert Einstein's essay

Albert Einstein's essay, An Ideal of Service to Our Fellow Man, is an essay that shows Einstein's view on  how people in society should view their own morals and beliefs.  Einstein states: "the individual feels more than ever dependent on society, but he feels this dependence not in the positive sense."  This would mean that individuals in society should not rely on each other, rather grow and learn from one's own experiences in life.  Setting "social goals" will help an individual grow and learn.  Einstein had this thought of "social goals," and by these goals I believe that he is pertaining to goals an individual sets himself or herself through their own experiences.  I think Einstein was correct in his ways of thinking.  Learning from good and bad experiences in life builds a persons character.  This way of learning can somewhat be a mystery as one will never know what will happen next, you have to learn who you are as you go.