Wednesday, October 19, 2011

B-Bop Down With Robot

    Wow, I was mistaken. I fell for the fallacious habit of generalization, after my survey circulated throughout as many examination of the gathered data I realized realizing it shames me. I had this stamp idea of who it was that made-up this countries citizenship. My results brought  me to a new level of thinking, the kind of thinking that i feel is needed more everyday.
    First, I discovered and was surprised that far greater number of people are more open to the notion of technology arousing problems within our communities than I had expected. However, location played a strikingly strong role in this very question. More liberal areas generally were slightly to extremely afraid of our next move. The next move is simple, we're going to start seeing ROBOTS in our midst. They'll be bopping across the cross walks, zipping down the path. I am afraid, robots amongst us? Where does that put us? Participants of my survey seemed to be mixed. Admittedly and often said in support of the little shiny R-Bots is that they got it all handled. Already, a robot walks through the produce section helping an elderly lady in need. This moment I'm typing, little shiny guy could be doing my laundry, dishes, and vacuuming all at one time. Yes, in support of the little evil tin cans with batteries, they can multitask, like the talking vacuum thing on the Jetsons, they could help. Up till we throw A.I. in the mix. That will be the end of man-kinds unique ability to reason. They will learn with Artificial Intelligence. Develop faster, retain more information, and need no resources hardly.
 There's many theories, ideas, and opinions on this subject and to see both the good and bad paints a nice level playing field for the Bots. So beware the Robot could be right behind you

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Virtual kidnapping of youth

What has happened to our youth? While cruising my two-wheeled, leg-driven self-propelled transportational device, AKA Bicycle, around I grow increasingly perplexed by the mystery of where the children have gone. Have you seen any lately? While occasional kids can be tracked down running through the hills, fewer are sighted out and about as each day passes. No good old "stick-ball games" bein' played, that's baseball for ya youngens, or wild-lookin,wolf-raised, mountain-goat-rock-hoppin, Indiana-Jonesin , little-beboppin kids jettin along the hillsides posing as Rambo.
    My proposed answer to this mystery, is that the exponential increase of gaming systems has resulted in todays youth planting themselves two or so feet from the television screen to play video games, rather than spending their play-time among the trees and infinite realm of nature. Furthermore, the ever growing cases of health problems, specifically diabetes and obesity, that recently has began plauging our younger humans is directly related  to the immense increase of stationary hours spent gaming, instead of running, jumping, ducking, and climbing, causing healthy heart beats they could potentially be thumping, if their choice was to play outside in the crisp, fresh air.
                                                
Beginning my investigation, a number of interviews was imperative in my collection of data. My first interviewee was chosen not because of documented credentials, but for his deep and passionate involvement in gaming in his own life. Daniel Ramsey is an extremely intelligent man, with consistent above- average academic test-scores, and a high level of literacy, or being very well read, he seemed an appropriate person for a look of the gaming world.
Starting off, Mr. Ramsey claimed there is a high level of intelligence required in a number of games. His  belief is that scenarios presented to an individual playing certain games demanded a lot of, critical thinking to complete the quest, or task that the gamer faced. I found this an interesting concept and was intrigued, so I dug deeper. I found that cognitive demands in games can be found easily, but how would a person experienced in dealing with these virtual problems be able to cope with the testing trials of reality. Mr. Ramsey supported his standpoint by explaining that repetition of these virtual situations led to an instinctive reaction in the gamers real life problems.
Mr. Ramsey presented some excellent insight into the benefits that could be gained from gaming; However, I still had serious problems related to the gaming implementation into our youths lives, specifically social and health issues.

Stay tuned for a further dig into the gaming worlds good and bad affects of our youth.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Empty-Gaze Full-Minded Place


                                                      Part One: Empty-Gaze Full-Minded Place
Do you know that you can be in two places concurrently? It’s true, there’s a place, secret, private, infinite place that’s within the minds of mankind. This is my favorite of all places. While in the physical world, my body resides, my mind can then zoom to another place of free thought. Do you know of this place that is yours alone? Have you ever been “here” but not really “here”? Or been asked, “Hello, Earth to … anybody home?” You were probably in your place. The beauty of my place is how free I feel, my mind victoriously races, possibilities are endless, and my soul is liberated while there. To title it, I’ll call it my empty-gaze, full-minded place. Do you get where your place is yet? As a fort is to a playing child, this free state of mind is to all persons individually. In this place anything goes, all barriers of reality crumble, no hindrances can ambush you. While in my empty-gaze full-minded place my trains of thoughts chug down limitless, twisting tracks. I grab inspired thoughts tightly with extended dendritic arms to drag them back into reality. Finite reality hurts me, my heart throbs and my brain aches; However, I can drift into my mental real, escaping into my empty-gaze and full-minded place. Where’s your place of freedom from reality?


                                                    Part Two:Problems with Answers
But lurking demonic thieves hidden in shadows, wait to steal the free-thinking of aging youth, and replace it with rigid, socially conformed ways of thinking. The lost cognitive drifting, and out-of-the-box thinking is what needs to be changed. We must protect the cognitive place that’s unique in the minds of all mankind. Socially, there are degrading terms that have been attached to this mental vacation like detached, distant, aloof, cut-off, or spaced. These terms show how unacceptable this way of escaping reality, even for a moment, is in our world today. To help protect our cognitive, unique places we must visit them. Don’t allow the heavily laden arm of social pressure tighten it’s grip on who you are, and we are what’s in our mind. Exemplify your place, be individualistic, think freely, stare into empty space occasionally, let your mind wander and share what you find. Do these things and you and your place will prosper. Don’t do this and you’ll develop robotic tendencies, programmed in ways of thinking, dressing, talking, following fads, or seeking the next rung of the social hierarchal ladder. Don’t be a robot and slap the hand of social pressure away, escape reality once in a while and be inside you, follow your mind.

Monday, October 3, 2011

Mother Earth.... Who?

It was good to be home again. I hadn’t seen my home or my parents for almost four years. Like I had never left, I was jolted awake my first morning back by my dad’s relentless, out of tune, attempt at singing. His bellowing voice was beyond welcoming, actually it was downright torture. Springing from bed like a drunkin ninja and stumbling out of my old room I staggered past my pops and yelped, “Going for a run, hour or so!,” Hopping desperately toward the back door, I slid on my new trail running shoes and was off. Outside, oh I love it, I feel light and free. I’m further awakened with every breath of fresh air as I warmed my legs up with a steady cadence. I knew just where to go, the canyon. Three falls canyon is what most Hurricane, Utah residents call it, Gould’s Wash for those over seventy, but for me and my motley crew, we simply called it the canyon. Picking up my pace I closed in on my re-union with the memory bearing gouge in Earths Crust, ah the canyon. As I reached the cul-de-sac where the synthetic, man-made world ended and the wondrous world of nature began, I halt. No, my legs never stop. Like the drumming bunny commercial, they keep going and going, but stop? Where’s the trail? What used to be a bustling dirt highway for pumping legs of kids, teens, and rarely seen adults, was now an overgrown, snake-like cut in the overgrowth. It was obvious that the trail was either forgotten by it’s youthful travelers, or most the kids had disappeared. Just then a song echoed between my ears. It was Peter, Paul, and Mary singing, “Where have all the children gone?….” With my arms spread wide, face skyward, I sang along while swaying back and forth jostling the trees alive while I let it go, “Where have all the children gone?”









The lack of nature’s gifts and powers being explored, learned, loved, used, and respected, by our youth has become a rising epidemic. Upcoming generations are going to fill the seats of our current leaders, and what they learn today, in their youth, will echo as the deciding factors in which today’s youth runs our nation in our near future. Often, in our current times, elders lack the attitude of impressing the importance of our natural world upon the youth; Furthermore, the youth don’t receive enough encouragement to go outside, and experience nature’s humbling gifts while playing. However, I feel as though society can win this crucial, but overlooked, battle with and for our youths future and our own. One household at a time we can instill the awareness, joy, and benefits of nature into our youth’s minds. Commonly it is thought our youth are safer indoors than out; however, typically and directly related to the physical inactivity of this idea of it being safer for our youth inside, are life-threatening health risks. Health risks such as diabetes, heart issues, obesity, and a multitude of other life-taking threats are increasing in our youth, many of which have not been found in individuals at such young ages untill the last decade or so. Sure, the food industry can be part to blame, but that along with an inactive lifestyles of today, creates a devastating recipe for the young lives at hand. Furthermore, some might argue that playing in the outdoors has many associated health hazards, but trading a broken arm or collar bone for heart disease is an easy trade to make. Not only is health an issue, but spending an inordinate amount of time inside creates a dependency for our children, they have little need to adapt, or develop self-reliance that the outdoor playground can deliver. Nature offers a playground that fosters physical exercise, mental awareness, and the growth of imagination and creativity. Personally, the scales tip in favor of the youth playing outside, rather than sitting inside. Indoor activities temper detachment from social settings as well. Directly linked to the increase of indoors being used for play, is the advancement and rapid growth of the gaming industry. The numbers are staggering and continue climbing upwards in mind-boggling fashion. From the number of households with gaming systems to the number of hours played on average per child, it’s an obvious problem. It’s one thing to have a gaming system, I’m not condemning them, but to not put restrictions on the youth and allow them to have free reign of how much time they blast away with a gaming paddle in their hands is not the proper way to foster a brighter future for the youth, ourselves and the planet we call home, planet Earth. A large portion of these games that our youth are glued to are said to be entertaining. Entertaining? A likely story, many games promote unimaginable scenarios, typically be allowed to even watch on a movie. Hours can be spent by youth sitting in front of a television while relying on an electronic current that’s running through wires and circuit boards contained within a plastic box letting it be creative for them. This is a serious problem for these indoor-playing youth, eliminating imagination, real-world problem solving, independent thought, and most of all, their development of critical thinking skills at an early age. Moreover, this brain consuming entertainment steals the opportunity of experiencing nature from youth who innocently fall victim to these mind binding traps of technology, and builds a barrier between the kids and nature. They grow up lacking the priceless days of wind, tree-climbing, hiking, and the infinite adventures like climbing Everest or fighting evil villains on top of sky-scrapers, inches away from falling to the concrete streets, which was conjured up by their free-minds.






The answer? Encourage and participate actively in developing respect and awareness of what nature has to offer. Act as a guide for the youth, and when they’re ready, cut them loose. Take them on hikes, to the lake, even better, take them camping. Showing not only what they can get personally from the necessary world of nature, but also that nature is to be respected. We are nature, just merely another animal meandering around on earth, and to be honest, the human species is has been getting and increasingly is getting out of control. We must pass the imperative knowledge of where we live, planet Earth, and the fact that we share this spinning rock with countless other species. If our youth forgetscausing the downfall of other parts of Earths delicate house of cards, then it will be the end of our existence.