week 7

Final week of classes!

This week we got to present our projects on our assigned social media. We traced the history, uses, and effects of our different social media. Though we had discussed the positives and negatives of social media at large in cass, these projects allowed for a more in depth look at specific sites pros and cons. A lot of these, even for the sites I had used, were thing I had not really thought of or thought too much about. It was really interesting to watch each groups different take on presentation. A cool part was that groups were able to present about their social media on the site itself.

We also turned in our papers this week. I used Twitter for my summer project. I overall wasn't a huge fan of the site, but it was interesting to explore different aspects of my use these past few weeks. Writing my paper I realized some ways I could adjust my use of the tool to get more from it and enjoy it more.

Overall, I think one of my biggest takeaways from class, and from this week is that social media has a great potential fro connectivity and good, but that it has to be used in a controlled manner. There is always potential for evil with any technology, but one of the most common pitfalls of social media is just wasting time. So many hours and opportunities can be lost when social media is used in excess. I also think that the depressive and anxiety inducing side effects that can come with social media need to be watched out for. Social media becomes a problem when it becomes more important than real life instead of enhancing real life.

I really enjoyed this class and the things we got to learn. It has made me seriously consider how i use and will use social media and how I will encourage my future children to use it in their day. It was great to be able to take this class with a gospel lens. Thanks Professor Kinghorn!

Week 6

It's hard to believe almost the entire term has flown by. we've delved into many different areas of the psychology of social media: its origin, positives, and negatives.
One thing that has been evident, especially this week, is that social media is a huge platform for change. Different view points may view the change it illicites in different lights, but for better or worse, social media makes the world a different place. 
This week we talked abot social media and the Arab Spring. Not long ago it may have seemed incomprehensible that a website like Facebook would help bring about Revolution, but today it seems                 almost as hard to picture change being brought about without social media. A global platform for interacting and finding niche interests allows for connection like no other medium. 
The look up video we watched this week was also very interesting. We never know how much wee might be missing because we are tuning out the real world in favor of a virtual one.  I think of the moments that have been the most memorable in my life, the parties, vacations, and adventures, and I realize that none of them would have happened if I had been too busy on social media, or on my phone in general, to notice them.i think social media has a lot of great aspects, but it is also something that defiantly needs to be handled cautiously and used in moderation.
Another really interesting moment was the HER video trailer. It was very unsettling, and I think it is because it is alarming how quickly technology can take the place of human interaction in our life if we allow it. It is never really an adequate substitute however. It is simply a hollow imitation.