Drum Break Down
I must admit when “The Amen” video started playing I did not know what to expect. The first few minutes when the narrator spoke of the beat I found myself searching my brain trying to discover which beat it was talking about. If it is used so often how could I not automatically think of the sound? Once I finally heard it, of course I recognized the sound right away. But why couldn’t I think of it at first? I know this is going to start to sound like paranoid rantings but all I can think of is subliminal messaging.
It reminds me of a movie I saw once where they were putting messages into pop music so teenagers would buy certain products from a certain company. Yes it was a silly movie and it seems like a silly notion. But having this same drum beat underneath so many different types of music makes you wonder. Could it be one of the things contributing to these different style of musics success? People do tend to be drawn to things they are already familiar with. So even those rebels that think they’re different from everyone else. could be listening and attracted to the same basic things we all are.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0)A Researchers Struggle
“Anyone can create a Web site. It is important to find out the author’s identity and his or her qualifications or expertise in order to determine the credibility and reliability of the information.”
As a frequent researcher, the most frustrating thing is the internet. It is incredibly easy to find information that is perfect for your topic, whatever it might be. All you have to do is type in your essay topic to Google and you will get a million hits. Everything you could possibly need to complete your essay. Then there is that sinking feeling as you realize you are reading information that is not credible. You can’t find a recognized author, the website has a “.com” after it and it is obvious that most of the information is biased toward your side of the argument.
http://www.wikipedia.org/
Wikipedia is a prime example of this. Everyone can find almost any of the information they need on this website. The catch is, almost every college student has been prohibited from using it as a cited source in research projects. However, wikipedia does still serve a purpose. Conveniently, wikipedia usually lists the sources where they get their information. It provides a very convenient link to find other credible sources. So even though we can’t use wikipedia directly, at least they have catered to the college student disability of having to use scholarly sources.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0)Final Project Topic Ideas
1) What is the history behind the Black Sox scandal of 1919?
2) How did bootlegging develop during the prohibition?
3) What were the legacies President Franklin Roosevelt left after his death?
Making the Past Digital
“An astonishing amount of the analog historical record has already become digital in the past decade.” (Digital History). It is true that today anyone can look up most of the historical past on the internet. In one site or another you can typically find the information needed to give you a general background of an event. However, as I began to advance within my history degree my professors were no longer looking for general information but specific sources from primary text. I quickly discovered that the only way to find these sources was typically either by purchasing them online, doing extensive searching for a free way to receive them that might not be reliable, OR to go to the library.
The Fairfax city library has provided easy access information for me over the past year in a way that the internet has never been able to. While surfing the web I typically feel lost. Like there is so much useless information I need to sift through to find the valuables I don’t even know where to start. But the library has sources I know I can trust no matter what and the librarians are an instant way to find what you are looking for. While many people may consider this an old fashion way of researching, I still assert that it is the only way to find free and true primary sources. As a history major this is something that can not be replaced.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0)History of the Internet
In the video, The History of the Internet, I find it quite fascinating how new developments in computer technology were fueled by the fears of the time. For example, in 1957 when Sputnik 1 was launched there was an intense fear of a missile attack from the Soviet Union. This pushed the United States to begin the organization DARPA and really begin to reach beyond the single tasking computers they had already created. It is amazing what a little competition can do to further people’s education.
It makes me wonder if today the USA would excel further if just presented with more challenges. With each decade we are slipping further behind in each category of education. When this “space race” with the Soviet Union began we were so motivated to be the best we could be. While many people like to continue the saying that “America is number one”, in many ways we aren’t anymore. Perhaps it is simply a lack of competition, challenge, that keeps us from making the sort of progress we were able to in those trying times.