#7: Before a year ago, did you know what Melamine was?

*All pictures taken from Melamine news articles*

“Cadbury Recalls Chinese-Made Chocolate As 22 More Are Arrested In Milk Scandal“, “"White Rabbit creamy candy" found to contain melamine”, “Two more samples fail melamine tests in Hong Kong”, “Taiwan bans baking agent after melamine detected”, “Japan finds melamine in egg powder”, “Judge Approves $24M in Pet Melamine-Poisoning Case”, “Vietnam finds 3 more melamine-tainted milk imports”, “U.S. company recalls cookies over melamine concerns”.
Does it scare you?

This example of the current milk problem China is facing displays how mass

media sometimes falls under the category of the Powerful Effects Theory, as well as use’s the Agenda Setting Function to send and

control its message.

Many different types of media’s are addressing this issue

worldwide through a variety of mediums such as newspaper, television news broadcasting and the radio. Through these mediums, the information is distributed fast and efficient, it is easy to announce updates, and the message strikes the audience hard as they tend to believe that “the media is always right”.

As a result of releasing this information, anyone who is aware of it, even the slightest bit, have an instant change in mindset when making consumable purchases. Common changes before making any purchases are, stopping to think whether it contains any milk, flipping it over to check the ingredients, then where it was manufactured / distributed / imported from, and even if the product doesn’t have the word China stated anywhere on the packaging, they’re still hesitant to purchase.

Although the public may think or say that they aren’t affected by the mass media for one reason or another, at times where it may concern “us” directly, we suddenly believe and break-a-sweat about it.

People start talking about it everywhere, in work, at school, on television, and it even becomes topics on our popular radio stations. In fact, there are even people on Yahoo! Answer’s posting up questions about it! (http://answers.yahoo.com/ )

When we think about media influence we think narrowly, in terms of perhaps fashion statements, a newly discovered healthy diet, global warming, plastic surgery, AIDS statistics or the thinnest mobile phone released.

However when a bomb goes off somewhere, or a couple countries have some food products recalled, everyone starts taking it personally and it becomes like worldwide gossip channel out there, where stories after stories get mixed up, next thing you know you’re being told that Chinese vegetables contain melamine, and you get all confused, so you decide to just stick to wheat or some other product you are “sure” is “safe”.

It is clear by now that the public are affected by this news, but now the question is why.

The mass media use’s the Agenda Setting Function to set the importance of this issue using by ensuring repetition of information to build up a heightened awareness which then leads to fear, side-by-side with priming,

so the message is conveyed across clearly with a strong impact.

An example of the repetition was obvious at the beginning of this entry where different countries with the same problem were being reported, however, even the same specific country with the same exact problem is repeatedly addressed as shown; “Melamine Scare Expands After Alabama Finds Tainted Chinese Cookies”, “Melamine Tainted Cookies Found in Alabama”, “Alabama Launches Poison Cookie Warning” and “Sparks: Melamine found in cookies sold in Alabama”.

At the time this concern first started hitting headlines the information was unobtrusive, where people were unable to moderate what they were witnessing because before then they most probably had never even heard of Melamine. After learning more about the topic from the volume of news coverage, the information became obtrusive to the point where people became cautious of what they were consuming, with the implication that there “just might be melamine in it”, even if their country had no occurrences. Take note that the tone of the media is cautioning, and suggests danger and threat to its audience. Even though some reports suggest that products have been taken off the shelves to ensure health, or that there are some products now passing the melamine tests, the reports still serve as a constant reminder to the public of such an issue, and that there is still the chance of sickness as products are still being “taken off shelves”.

Images have been shown of children who are affected, as well as products which have been found to contain melamine.

Pictures increase’s our fear significantly, as the saying goes “seeing is believing”, and pictures just state the facts bluntly, and assists to make a point that even the most harmless or common food items may contain a “potential sickness”.

Judge yourself, and ponder the question, “how affected are you really, by the media?”

Has your point of view changed since before you considered the things “which do affect you”?

It is a common habit for people to think about all the things that don’t affect them, and conclude that they’re unaffected, but once you’re pointed out the things that do affect you, somehow, things tend to look different from there on.

Sources:

http://www.asiaone.com/Health/Eat%2BRight/Story/A1Story20080921-89066.html

http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/story/2008/10/18/lotte-melamine.html

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-10/18/content_10215780.htm

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/10/18/asia/AS-Taiwan-China-Tainted-Milk.php

http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Saturday/National/2378680/Article/index_html

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20081017TDY01306.htm

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/10/16/asia/AS-Vietnam-Tainted-Milk.php

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1066293/Chinese-biscuits-pulled-UK-shop-shelves-melamine-contamination.html

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5ijkqdP60dIBRNRNIddCL6G7ljaigD93SI7FG0

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AvgXWQiNxHponzf8wk1zYw8jzKIX;_ylv=3?qid=20081001155646AAEL3kg

What exactly is religion? Is it really that funny??

Religion is one-big-fat-joke.
Don’t agree with me??? Well neither do I.
Yet how come we see it as a large source of laugher and target for mockery?

After reading this excerpt “Religion on broadcast TV” from www.startribune.com, I decided to watch the movie Little Nicky. This is a short plot summery taken from imdb.org:
“Little Nicky is "daddy's little girl" in Hell. He's the son of Satan, who got the job from HIS father, Lucifer. Satan wants to retire, but none of his sons are good enough for the job. His two evil brothers Adrian and Cassius have just escaped from Hell and are wreaking havoc on an unsuspecting earth. His dad is disintegrating and it's up to Nicky to save him and all of humanity.”

Little Nicky isn’t the only film to use inaccurate and out of context stereotypes (think for a second, what do you consider IS accurate and in context??) to produce an entertainment piece, other such examples are South Park, Bruce Almighty, and Family Guy.
Although to some, these movies are seen as unethical (because it either goes against their religion, or because it mocks their beliefs), to many others it’s just a source of laughter.

What exactly is religion, who / what is god, and how do we know what is being followed (religion) by a substantial amount of people is even correct / true to begin with? How come so many suffer from ethnocentrism?
Your probably thinking, “how come she talks of what she doesn’t know / understand!?”, but do you even truly know?
Does anyone, including the people whom we quote from in our Bibles and Korans???
Yet there is so much Prejudice between different religions, it’s like society can’t run unless everyone is at war with someone else (even if it isn’t personal).
Religion can be doubted, but not proven (whether it is true or not). So what keeps it going through all these generations?

Perception and Interpretation of Reality (in accordance to culture) keeps religion alive, along with fear.
The one thing all religious people fear is hell, but who really knows what hell is?
I hear that it is sinful to question faith / religion, causing Anxiety and Withdrawal, therefore no one dares to ponder these questions.
Is that what religion is all about? Fear?
In marriages, conversion is a must, if not it’s a sin. Your family and god will look down on you.
Sex before marriage, I quote my friend’s mother when I say “shouldn’t you test the merchandise fully before making a purchase?” as in some marriages, sex is looked upon as another common ground.
Religion, is it guidance? Because I thought it’s a person’s choice whether or not they want help, and from whom they seek it from. However, if you convert you will go to hell?

Muslims for example, a few of their no-noes are that they can’t eat pork, drink alcohol or have sex before marriage (those which I mentioned above). These are very basic, surface things about their religion. Yet how many Muslim’s actually follow by these simple rules? I’ve known many Muslims and have heard about many others. Surprisingly, almost all of them have completely different versions of what makes them Muslim. Is there an Assumption of Similarity? Lots of them have tattoos, piercings, aren’t married but aren’t virgins either, and are high (on drugs / alcohol) every weekend; nevertheless they are “Muslim”.

This is just my understanding of identities within cultures, and I’m honestly not sure if all I’ve said are facts, it’s just what I’ve been told from the “religious”.
So if I’m wrong, how many of you might be too?
Are you sure in your sense of self?
After all, I am just quoting what I hear.

*Perhaps there was a miscommunication in the language and message making between our understandings of each others cultures?*
Just a thought.

Source:

http://www.startribune.com/entertainment/tv/30714804.html?page=2&c=y

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=little+nicky+full+movie&emb=0&aq=f#

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0185431/

I am not racist or anything of the sort (response to Singaporeans in COM class)

I would just like to state that I am not racist. Lol

I don’t think Singaporeans are rude / not nice or that everyone’s always in a rush (although yes, from what I’ve heard from friends, Singaporeans are certainly more go-go-go then those in other countries such as Australia, which is more relaxed)
I was merely stating a stereotypical point of view (my instant reaction when being singled out by the teacher, and not having any thoughts on the matter at the given time).

What I said in class, was not specific, nor clearly stated, as time doesn’t permit a lengthy explanation.

Also, if you’re looking for a western perspective, I am not the best person to turn to, as much as I may seem to be. I was brought up in Asian societies my whole life, so as far as “What I think of Singaporeans”, it’s not that I’m comparing them with my self-biasness of western culture(if that makes sense), in fact I consider myself more Singaporean / Asian than of any other western heritage.
I guess, in terms of my response that “Singaporeans are rude”, it’s most likely just my personal opinion when compared to myself and my interaction circle (rather than any particular cultural society). Also, people tend to remember / recall the negative things (in life, in a person, in an occasion etc) rather than the positive, as the effects are more imprinting. Therefore, perhaps my response is to do with the people I encounter daily whilst taking public transportation, those who I bump accidentally (that get angry with me, as if I did it intentionally), those who bump me (and get angry at me ANYWAYS.), those who deliberately stand directly in front of the MRT doors (instead of at the side of either door, so passengers can leave the train first) just so they can get into the train faster, even if they have to literally stare right into the faces of those trying to get out.

I just wanted to state:
• My reasoning for what I said earlier in class today,
• That I’m not racist,
• And that, when I give an opinion, it’s not necessarily a “cultural” based one. I’m just an Asian who perhaps grew up in a different education system to you, and looks different to you. But when it comes to a “Cultural aspect”, I still grew up in the country as you, and I’m exposed to the same people (public) as you. If anything, I’m more confused then you, growing up in two very different Asian societies, surrounded by international students (Western and Asian), and now being in a some-what local education system (at least the most local I’ve ever attended) rather than “international schools”



* Know not to judge me by what I say without reasoning, because, I always have reasons to why i say what I say * (confusing) * It just means i didnt have time to explain my point of view *

#5 China's milk is infected. Let's all have Australian milk instead...?

You know how people say "a picture speaks a thousand words"?
Well this one will only speak 300. (hehe sorry, I just couldn’t help myself... yes i know, lame! =P)


The other day while I was in a bus, I noticed this advertisement (the bus had stopped at a bus stop, hence the photo's unprofessional shot hehe), and I took a photo of it because it made me laugh -not with the intention to use it on my COM blog-.

Note that the advertisement is very basic, consisting of a company logo, 4 words (which clearly isn’t even the company slogan), and a picture of items most households have in their fridge.
So what makes this advertisement special, or even worth publishing?
Timing.

With China's milk market hitting news headlines titled "Another China milk product withdrawn - www.theaustralian.news.com.au", "Taiwanese 'brawl' over bad milk - news.bbc.co.uk" and "Tainted Chinese milk products found in Russia - www.iht.com", there is no better time for this simplistic yet effective advertisement.
The simple and subtle use of effective intentional non-verbal communication is apparent in the above advertisement, yet goes unnoticed by its intended audience.

The placement of this advertisement for a start, being at a bus-stop, the intended audience is the general public that are on the move, for example those we would walk by the sign, car’s that may be in traffic, or buses stopping to load and/or unload passengers.
Secondly, important to note is the layout of the poster. As the audience are those on the move, the message being transmitted has to be able to reach the receiver in the given amount of time (whether it being 3 seconds or 1 minute) as well as ensure accurate decoding, hence the poster’s simplicity.

Repetition of idea is the main focus in this advertisement, as all 3 parts (logo, words and picture) circulate around the key idea, which is (Australian) Dairy products.
The logo, which says “Dairy Farmers” emphasises that this advertisement is about dairy products, and is most likely not from China because it is in English.
The wording is restricted to 4 bold point-making words “Weekly Airflown from Australia”, which clearly states that it’s Australian (indirectly targeting the “China media frenzy”) and fresh (“Weekly” subtly hints at fresh in the readers mind).
The eye-capturing part about this advertisement is not the smallish logo, or the 4 boring mono-coloured words (which are both effective, just not as captivating), but the main picture of the many different types of dairy products offered by the “Dairy Farmers”. This part of the poster repeats the main idea by visually illustrating the advertised dairy products.

Not once did they mention China, or their current milk problems, yet this advertisement still remains as effective (and perhaps even more so, because it’s less wordy; considering the intended audience).
This is just a mere example of the power of effective non-verbal communications.
Just imagine its possibilities.

#4 Does my Psych Group suffer from Groupthink???

KEY : * = Refer to end of entry for examples

On Friday (26^th September), my psychology group stayed back to do some work on our up-coming presentation. Even though a few left early, 4 of us stayed back until 4pm (since 11am) trying to organise all our compiled information onto PowerPoint slides. During these 5 hours, we escalated from relaxed systematic revising, to caffeine driven ecstatic debaters (who were reduced to having to put our hand up to talk, to avoid the constant cut-ins).
While I was on the way home, I was laughing thinking about the events of the day, and thought how great it would be to use for my COM blog. As I went through the slides seeing where today’s scenario fit in, I came across the symptoms of groupthink as my topic.

The first symptom of groupthink is an illusion of invulnerability.

However, it doesn’t apply to “us” as the initial reason for forming the group was for an educational purpose and therefore not for any personal social motive. Meaning, the reason for the grouping was part of a requirement rather than a choice.

Since we didn’t really know anybody during the first week of school, we chose our members based on who “just so happened to be around”, rather than through the process of evaluation.

Therefore, our group’s potential is not based upon how well we have done together in the past (where, if we always scored high in the past, we would tend to assume we are always right); but on learning what each of the current individuals can contribute to the group (no reason to assume that our “group” is better)

*

At one point “we” almost unknowingly resulted in a minor case of belief in our group’s own morality.

We got caught up in a prolonged, in-depth, opinionative, argument trying to analyse a single Research Article (which we need to use to illustrate our presentation).

Each of us had (accidentally) completely disregarded the fact that if none of our group members shared the same understanding from the article, then how will our audience?

In turn, this could have led to our audience interpreting that our group only believed in its own actions and beliefs.

The third symptom, shared stereotypes, is not a problem interfering with our group, because we only state what is right, but don’t necessarily state who or what is wrong.

We encourage questions, and will respond factually. If there are no facts to back any specific answer, we will give a possible opinion, but state that it is simply an opinion.

The symptom that has had the most relevance with our group is collective rationalization.

We spent over an hour, trying to make sense of the same “single Research Article” as mentioned earlier. During the hour, we changed the way things were worded, incorporated our perceptions with each of the other member’s understandings, tried out different approaches via trial and error, and resulting in us drawing a conclusion based upon numerous mixed up bits of information, which were in fact inaccurate, and we were aware of it.

**

It is hard to say if our group suffers from self-censorship, as everyone seems open about their opinions, as well as the fact that I can’t read into their minds to see if they’re keeping some things to themselves. Personally, I know that I’m very outspoken, so if there is anything on my mind, I am likely to say so. However there was a small case in the beginning, when we picked the topic to present on. One of our members said we should do “Conditioning”, and the others agreed, but I wasn’t really interested in that topic, and found that it require a lot of work. I decided not to voice out my opinion, because I felt that it wouldn’t be right for me to try and change the topic for a selfish reason being that “I didn’t like it”.

By not voicing out my opinion about the topic chosen to present on, I found that we had suffered from a little illusion of unanimity. Turns out that most of the members just agreed because they didn’t mind anything, not particularly because they wanted to do that specific topic.

Most of us are very debatable, opinionative and aren’t shy to fight it out with each other (in terms of our views and reasons). The quieter members do an equal part in the deciding by listening, evaluating and responding to the information being debated. As a result, our group doesn’t suffer from “pressure on dissenters” because everyone is actively involved without any apparent fears.

The last symptom, mind-guards has the least impact on our group, as the information we are using are all based on facts. If there is any information we are unclear of, we can always look in our textbooks, within the Research Reports we are analysing, or as a last resort we can ask the lecturer. Thus the only “outside information” (other than stated facts) is that from our lecturer, which we’re likely to take advice from.

It is clear that the effects and likeliness of these symptoms occurring greatly depends on what type of group is being evaluated. Social groups are likely to have varying results from education based groups, as work groups are likely to have varying results from certain religious groups. Even though a lot of these symptoms are interlinked, it doesn’t necessarily mean that groups suffer from all 8 of them at any one given time. As some are overcome, others may present themselves.

(*) This is an example of the way our group formed.
Christine in class -> Random Girl(RG1) late for class sits next to Christine because it was the closest seat.
End of lesson, teacher say’s group members names need to be submitted -> Christine turns to RG1, “want to work together?”.
G1’s JC friend (GUY1) self invites to group, based on past friendship with RG1.
Random guy (RG1) spotted sitting alone-> RG1 askes him to join group.
2 girls who are friends have no group -> ask if they can join us.
Random girl 2 (RG2) walks up to Christine and asks if she can join group.
Our last edition to the group Late Guy (LG) joined 3 weeks later – 3 days ago – because he hadn’t realised there was a group project until GUY1 mentioned it while sitting next to him in ESL.

(**)

The scenario was that, we had to find a single article that compared two different methods using the same experiment. When we were unable to, we drew a conclusion that maybe it was impossible to be done, and were willing to state that during our presentation, even though the teacher had specifically asked us to talk about an article that does compare. Later on we decided that since it wasn’t factually stated in any given text book or Research Report that the comparison was impossible, it wouldn’t be correct to state it during our presentation. So now we are back to square-one looking for an article that does (sigh).

Interpersonal Relationships - Changing over the years?

Did you know that in America, approximately 38% of couples aged between 20 and 24 are getting divorced? When compared to Singapore, which is only 10%, this is an immense difference. Reading an article on www.women.timesonline.co.uk that talked about “What couples argue about - then and now”, I thought about the role of communication in relationships by DeFleur et al; the 3 processes.

The article is about “Relate, the nation's largest provider of relationship counselling” (which is celebrating its 70th birthday this month), analysing its archive data and comparing it with current notes and statistics. “It began offering counselling in 1943, and in the first five years saw more than 8,000 clients. But marital crises proliferated: in 1942, there were 12,000 petitions for divorce; by 1947 this had more than trebled to 50,000. Our current divorce figure is around 149,000, says the latest confirmed government research”.

In Relates earlier days, it was noted that a lot of the problems were to do with “Bad sex, jealousy, interfering in-laws, suicidal husbands, loose wives and spouses hiding in boxrooms”. However, in current trends, it has been observed that “One fundamental change since the Forties is the trend away from marriage towards cohabitation”. Two other major factors in changes that are likely to impose reason for more conflicts are “working lives and technology”. For instance, “Nowadays both members of a couple are probably working, so that creates pressures on both sides of the relationship, and problems with finding balance.”

As this article focuses on the results of 70 years of “Marriage Guidance Counselling”, it targets mainly the Relational Dissolution process (the last stage of 3 processes) by DeFleur. Some of the relational challenges about in this article are differences, boredom, change, poor communication skills, unrealistic expectations and especially actions that undermine trust.

It is clear that over the years, the elements of the 3 processes by DeFleur have changed gradually when looked into on a deeper level which is demonstrated by the differences mentioned above. Even though the Engagement stage involves the general idea of exchanging phone numbers, hanging out to get to know each other, and in turn getting together as an item, a lot of the context is different. With modern technology it’s harder for girls to subtly brush-off guys by simply giving them a fake phone number, because now with the invention of the hand phone they tend to “check” the number by giving it a missed call. To get the interest of another is complex as there is more than one aspect to base upon, some of which are physical appearance, similarity, proximity and complementarities.

As always, the Maintaining Stage is difficult and requires a lot of attention, patience, and understanding. This stage is where most of the self disclosure occurs naturally, conflict is bound to happen, and relational needs are to be met either by satisfying them or coming to a mutual understanding. Over the years so much change has developed through interpersonal communications that different cultural beliefs have merged to produce an even more diverse society.

Therefore, as illustrated the casualness of counselling and divorce is now a widely accepted topic in comparison to earlier years where “counselling itself was thought at the time to be rather absurd. You had to be careful when people asked what you did for a living. Many people thought it was ridiculous - that you were a quack”.




Article Link : http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/relationships/article4786340.ece

At what expense is the possibility of taking a person's life worth?

“Near-death experiences: What really happens?”. The title of this report struck me as interesting, but as I continued to read my perception on the article changed from natural curiosity, to utter shock and disgust. “Now scientists aim to study what really happens to the brain and consciousness when someone is on the verge of dying”. The first thing that came to mind when reading this was that if the person was on the verge of dying, wouldn’t you be trying to save them rather than studying what’s going on in their brain?

Perhaps I don’t have all the facts as the article was rather vague, and I’m guessing it’s just an initial announcement about the possible upcoming research. However, from seeing that the idea is that “doctors will examine patients in hospitals in Europe and North America who reach a state called cardiac arrest”, I wouldn’t think my perspective on the topic would change much from reading any further.

"Cardiac arrest is a process that begins when the heart stops beating, the lungs stop working and the brain ceases functioning”. It doesn't matter whether this patient was an average patient in a hospital, or a volunteer for the benefit of research, we have to ask ourselves, where is our ethics, and how far does “science” have to go before we decide to make a public stand? If cloning people for the benefit of “better-health-insurance” is disapproved world-wide, then how come studying the brain and mind of a dying person to satisfy our curiosity is even a subject of a possibility?

It’s obvious that I’m against the implications of this article, but it could be my own personal perception based on my character, environment, and knowledge of similar topics. Other’s may agree with this article, although I can’t possibly see any light there is to shed in this topic other then selfish curiosity to explain something that is currently unexplainable.




Article Link:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26675999/

It was MSNs fault!!

*this entry is for entertainment purpose only*

Over the weekend i remembered why i don't use MSN. To me, i find that mainly bad things come from it (At least when it i use it, lol).
When i was in highschool, I'd log on for "just a minute", but once you start chatting, you forget about time. By the end of the night, I'd be ready for bed, with no school work done.
Yesterday i logged on MSN for the first time in months.....
And to put things simply,
Now I'm blonde (or a yellowy, orangy, burnt apparently type of colour)!


Full (Silly) Story Below :
So, i decided i was a bit bored with my hair colour (which usually happens for me).
I thought that maybe some minor hightlights would be interesting yet subtle.

As I'm quite experienced with dying my own hair, because i've been doing it for many years now, i take out my "trusty" bleach confidentaly and start applying it in strands on my hair.
10 long minute later, after i've carfully lifted strands by strands of hair and applied this aweful smelling, wet, hair destroying product, ive got quite a bit of excess bleach left.
It seemed so little that i thought to myself "heck, why waste a handful, might as well use it".
So, i dipped my fingers into the bleach, transferring sheets of this terrible product messily over my hair, hoping to achieve the "rebel" highlight look.

Now that i've happily drentched my hair in something i cant stand the heaty-throat-gagging fumes of, im off to my computer.
I see MSN on my desktop, and think "ill just check who's online...".
Next thing i know, im happily chatting away with 3 different friends about i-have-no-idea-what.
Time flies as usual, untill suddenly i catch a glimpse of myself in my bed-side mini mirror, and to my uttur shock i see golden-like strings flowing down my neck from the hole's (pores) in my screaming scalp!! =O

Oh my gosh! I dont think i've ever jumpped out of my bed and into the shower that fast since....
Well i cant even think of the last time i was that "eager" for a sudden shower. -_-"
And here i am now.
Blonde (?) unintentionally.

Guess i might as well try it out! =D

World of Warcraft : More than a game?

World of Warcraft currently holds the Guinness World Record as the worlds largest Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG), with approximately 10 million subscribers.
Players range greatly in age, from 10 year olds who play after school until their parents kick them off the computer, to parents with full time jobs, who still somehow manage to find a way to fit gaming into their busy schedule.
Many of these players are considered addicts, either as a passing comment because of how much they play, or as an actually serious illness which requires professional help.
It is easy to become “addicted” to this game because of its wide social network and a surprisingly broad set of in-game goals which are slowly achievable over time.
Calling someone an addict is generally a negative term given to a player based on the frequency they play in comparison to yourself, and it is of no surprise that you fail to take into account what benefits can be gained, such as learning how to interact on a mass scale.

One of the major concerns in relevance with this game is that it “removes people from the outside world”, and therefore we worry about them socially.
What do we define communication as? And since when was it limited to a physical aspect?
Although yes it may be true that with the introduction of electronic games, children find it more fun to sit at home in front of the computer, rather then to go outside and play catch. However, in this case, shouldn’t online gaming be seen as a step up, rather then another target for criticism?
As anti-social as an online gamer might seem, in reality they are interacting with a wider range of people then can be achieved in the physical world at any one time.
So is it fair, or even accurate, to perceive an online gamer as antisocial? No, because you are judging them based upon something you don’t completely understand.

World of Warcraft is practically a reliable interactive model ("Models are simplified versions of very complex processes" - Thinking Through Communication. Fifth Edition. Sarah Trenholm) of the physical world we navigate in on a daily basis, or in simpler terms, a miniature less complex version of the world. It is run by an economic value which we refer to as “Gold” rather then “Dollars” for example. In a comical way, you can look at it as a Finance Management course for kids, in a fun first-hand experience way. We learn that there are many ways to many Gold, such as by our choice in Professions, what we sell in the Auction House (Which include deposits that must be made, and only get returned if the item is sold, as well as Auction House Cuts, which take a percentage of the money made from a sale for each item sold) and how we invest our money.
Children will be learning how to make money, manage their money, and use their skills to their advantage, and all this without even noticing.

As clearly stated, this game is extremely interactive, and a player’s success is dependent on how you communicate with others in the given environment.
No one in the real world wants the company of a mean, annoying, unreliable person whom has nothing of any intellect to share. So why would it be any different in the virtual world?
Children are forced into realizing that being rude wont get you any friends or help in the game, and not being reliable (for example saying you’ll be on every Saturday, but never making an appearance) wont get you invites to groups where attendance and being able to depend on players is important. Such as a school group project, every member is an essential edition to the team, so if one person is always late, or constantly cancels, they’ll soon find themselves without a group and no one willing to assist them.
People in general enjoy having power, but don’t realize the responsibilities that come with it. In WoW, its easy to become a leader, it’s whether you choose to take on the role, or not. Being a Guild Leader, is sort of like being the leader of a community, where all that follow look up to you for guidance, help, and organizational skills. Opening your own guild is as simple as just selecting a name for it, yet so many people choose to follow a leader, rather then become one themselves. When I ask people how come the don’t open a guild themselves, they often reply “I did, but it was so hard to manage, its so much easier being part of one instead, and letting them do the hard work of maintaining it”. Therefore, to an extent they do get to experience first hand the duties and responsibilities of having power, and whether or not they can cope with it.

Over the 2 years I have been playing WoW, I have made a lot of friends, who surprisingly are married with children of their own, or are children who play WoW with their parents and love it.
As much as online games may seem to be ideal for the independent type of player, there are a lot of people who enjoy the game as a means of family entertainment, or even a way of bonding. I have met a married couple who enjoy playing together, where they back each other up, or compliment each others skills by picking characters that work well together (for example a healer –heals- and a tanker –specializes in taking large amounts of damage-). Another girl I’ve met plays with her mum and sister and are very happy doing so. Perhaps it can be a source of comfort to have your family be there for you when you need them emotionally, as well as can be there virtually to back you up when bullies pick on you in-game. I personally find that that would be really awesome!

In conclusion when you are a long term player of World of Warcraft, it does become more then a game, because of the responsibilities, interaction, and real life happiness it can bring to you. Playing the game is like submitting yourself to becoming part of a whole new version of the fast pace world we already live in. To me, that deserves a lot more credit then it’s being given, and a lot less outsider criticism then it already has to deal with.

Introduction to me and my blog.

** Ms Kam Lin, don't mark this =O **


Hey all! =D

My name is Christine (we're not meant to put our full names right?) and this is just a little (informal) introduction to me and my blog.
A guide to reading this entry : If you want to only pick up the main points about me, then don't bother reading what's in brackets.
But if you want the whole "Christine" experience, then i hope you have the time. Ill help you all, by putting some stuff i think is interesting in Italics hehe. (because bold is too attention seeking
First of all, i assume that most of the people that are viewing it (hopefully there are people viewing it, besides the lecturer) are fellow student members of SIM University in Singapore, therefore you'll understand more of what I'm ranting on about -_-"

A bit of info about me before you start reading my opinions and perceptions on various topics, issues, critiques, and other random things i tend to ponder about.
I'm sure that my point of view will be quite different to a lot of many other peoples points of view on any given subject, and this brief intro is (supposed) to help you understand why i think the way i do. [Edit in: I say this because I believe that my lifestyle and experiences so far have been so much more intense then that of any other average young adult.
In short I'd say, "I am who I made myself, more then anyone will ever understand"]

I'm half Singaporean, and half Australian, but practically grew up in Indonesia.
I'm a single child, but have always asked my parents since young (especially when they asked what i wanted for my birthday present) "can i have a brother/sister please?", and i still consider asking them that question every now and then.
I can assure you that my personal life will be strikingly different from most of you reading this, even if compared when stripped down to the basic categories.
~ For example: ~

1. Family
2. Childhood
3. Experiences so far in life
4. My personality
5. My mind-set on life and everything that goes else that goes on in what we call "life". (this can get quite tiresome listening to, i suggest you don't ask me about it. lol)

A little about my personality:
- I'm honest. (most of the time, too honest for my liking and anyone else)
- I'm usually REALLY hyper! =D Like super-duper crazy hyper. aka energetic.
- I'm creative, but mainly when its to do with coming up with crazy idea's (that I'm not going to share with you =P *embarrassed look*)
- Ive always got my best intentions, so if i sound harsh, or accidentally ignore you, chance's are i didn't mean to. So give me a tap, put on a sad face and I'll apologize and rephrase =)
- And last but not least, as you can tell, I'm very expressive. Whether its by the way i say things, my facial expressions while telling a story, or all the emoticons i use in SMS. You'll always be able to tell if I'm interested in what I'm saying =P lol.

Ok, well i guess that's all for now...
I hope you'll continue to read what lies ahead, because I'm already curious about what I'll write about.

~~ Christine

P.S. I'm very open, and love to chat! ^_^