Facebook Depression (Follow-Up)

This is a follow-up to a previous post. You can read the first one here.

As I'm sure those of you who have read this blog know, I'm not a huge fan of Facebook. Last November, I wrote a post to that effect, and have thus far, kept my nose clean of that unruly social network. However, with the recent update of the Facebook for Blackberry application (now ver. 1.5), I felt pressured into rejoining my friends and colleagues in the interactive online community.

So, I purged my "friends" and my applications and my photos, and I started fresh, convinced that this time was going to be different. I even signed up with a new email address. It was as if I was a brand new person, starting a new life, in a "new" world, but with all of my previous knowledge. Knowledge that I thought would give me an advantage over my 2006 self.

I could not have been more wrong. I won't go into too much detail about what happened next, mainly because I'm not entirely sure myself what happened, but somehow, Facebook managed to suck me back in. The service that, just days before, I promised to treat like my beloved Twitter, gobbled me up and spit me out again.

I found myself accepting requests from people I didn't know, and making a lot of interactions and updates that just weren't warranted.

Now, I know the general concencus is that "Everyone's on Facebook", but I knew that that couldn't be true. So, I broke out Google and did a few searches. A lot of interesting and controvercial blogs, message board posts, and videos entered my radar, but I found one that deserves special mention.

This may come as a shock to some, but in February, ReadWriteWeb.com wrote a story about recent studies done at Stony Brook University in New York, that concluded that Facebook use by adolescent girls actually contributes to depression.

You can read the full article here.

Clearly, I'm not a 13-year-old girl, but this alone, much less the rest of the crap that Facebook brings to the table, is enough of a reason to keep me off of it. I will give it another week, even though I don't see myself liking it any less, and then I'll make my final verdict.

Any predictons?

See you in the comments, and oh, please give that article a good read.

Penny for Your Thoughts?

Back in July, I had the pleasure of traveling to Sydney, Australia for the World Youth Day events. Now, documenting that experience is a post for another day. Today, I want to outline something that is proving to be very annoying here in North America, that the people "down under" don't have to deal with. Pennies.

I know it sounds weird, to get frustrated over a few little pieces of copper, but think about it: they cost more to make than they're worth, they take up a lot of room in your pocket/wallet, and almost no one uses them, so they pile up, unnecessarily. Surely, there must be a better way.

Well, there is, and this is what I'm getting at. The Australian government has discontinued pennies as legal tender, and instead rounded up (always up) the sticker price of items in stores to the nearest factor of $0.05. I presume that you're thinking "Up?! But that's more expensive! How is that better?" Don't worry, they've thought of that. To balance costs for the consumer, they've reduced sales tax to roughly 10%. I think that's something that most people can be happy with.

I just think that this a great system that's convenient for everyone.

Do you think something like this would work in Canada/US? Leave your piece in the comments.

The Trade Talks

Back in January, I mentioned that I would be embarking on an adventure, wherein I would start with a single red paperclip, and use it to initiate a series of trades, that I hope will eventually lead to the ownership of an automobile.

As I mentioned then, I don't have much in the way of rules or a plan for the trading process, just that I wasn't going to rush or force a trade. With that in mind, I figured it would take a while to start the ball rolling, but I figured that it would be worth it. It has taken a while to get the word out, but fortunately, I was attending an E-Marketing seminar on Friday, and just through conversation, someone became interested in getting involved.

The man in the photo below is Jordan Wright, Manager of Programs at the Gardiner Center. He offered to trade my red paperclip (which, by the way, has been on my key chain for the past two months) for a book that was featured at the seminar: 101 Ways to Promote Your Website by Susan Sweeney, CA, CSP, HoF. Since the book is valued at just under $30, I thought that it was a terrific bargain.

As if that weren't enough, Mr. Wright also included a $75 Google AdWards Gift Card in the trade. I can honestly say that I didn't see this coming. I can tell you that I felt pretty weird just offering him a paperclip in exchange for everything. He must have great plans for that paperclip.

If you're reading this, Mr. Wright, thanks, and sorry for missing out on the afternoon.

Well, it looks like my experiment is off to a great start. I'm going to keep my eyes and ears open for potential trades, so remember to keep checking back as I will be documenting the entire process. Also, if you're interested in being a part of this adventure, drop me an email, and I'm sure that we could work something out!

As always, keep learning, keep teaching, and keep blogging fun.

I took this picture at the entrance to the little "hallway" leading to the bathrooms in our local nationwide-chain coffee shop. I find it odd that they expect blind people to feel their way around, 7 feet in the air.

For anyone reading this now, I'll post more later, I just thought it was really funny.

2b or not 2b?

Last semester, during a pre-calculus class, we were just beginning to tackle a particularly nasty type of equation, when my friend John aske rhetorically, "Why did they invent math?!". This query, which left most of our class without an answer, though they were in complete agreement, got me to thinking... would math exist without us?

I know that you're probably thinking that even if superior intelligence-enriched homosapiens didn't exist on earth, two apples on the ground would still be one apple plus one apple equals two apples, but I'm referring to graphs, formulas, quadratic equations and radical numbers.

Personally, I think math would exist with or without us. In theory, anyway. The first thing that I would consider in my evaluation is whether or not humas can create and/or modify things that can't be seen, touched, heard, smelled or tasted. Well, we know that no matter what, one plus one equals two. Human beings didn't create that, we just came up with a way to represent it using symbols: 1+1=2. We could apply this rationale globally, and say that we can't create something that can't be sensed in any way, shape or form. Math is simply a number of theories and ideas, represented by numbers, and put into practical use by humas. Much is the case with all rational/irrational numbers, formulas, graphs and equations.

My only wrinkle is with negative numbers. I think we invented negative numbers. Logic would suggest that you can't have aany less apples than zero, or anything else. This begs the question "Why would we create numbers that have no place in reality?" My only answer (in which I have no confidence) to this applies to the field of physics. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think negative numbers are used to illustrate what I call "reverse velocity"... going backwards.

In conclusion, I think math is around whether we like it or not, but just be glas that we didn't invent it. If we did, then it could be postulated that we could destroy it. Though I'm sure this would suit John and most other students just fine, I think it's just too important to pass up.

These are my views. This is my place. Dig it.


P.S. This might be my new sign off phrase, and I would just change the last part every week. I'm going to try it out, and you guy(s) let me know what you think.

Go for Green!

In recent elections, the hot-button issue always seemed to be the environment. Politicians claimed to care and made promises to take action against polution, but to be honest, I don't remember seeing much being done.

Late last year, the folks over at the CBC decided to do what the guys up on the hill claimed they'd do; do something! They organized the One Million Acts of Green campaign, the tagline of which is "One million acts of green, one act at a time". With George Stroumboulopoulos at the helm, the idea was to encourage Canadians (and beyond, hopefully) to adopt practices to help the environment. The program officially launched on October 21, 2008, and came to an end on February 3, 2009, clearing the goal of 1, 000, 000 acts!

Individuals and groups from coast to coast came together with their various acts, from things as simple as using a travel coffee mug to things as involving as insulating the attic or basement. Read more about the initiative here:

Personally, I think this was/is a fantastic idea! It seems to be a general concencus that one person can't do anything to help the environment. I think this program proves otherwise. It proves that together, we can all make a difference. What I love most is that it delivers this message without implying that we need to buy a new electric car, or recycle and compost everything we use, but that the simplest thing that you can do can make a difference.

Feel like you're not contributing positively to the environment? The challenge isn't over! New goals are being set all the time, and there are always acts to be done.

Whether you contributed to this cause or not, leave a comment here telling me about an act that you've done to help the environment!

Life in the Trades

This morning, I was listening to Q on CBC Radio. As part of Jian Ghomeshi's introduction to a story, he mentioned Kyle MacDonald, a man who managed to trade one red paperclip for a house. Not directly, of course, but he traded the paperclip for a pen, the pen for a doorknob, the door knob for a Coleman stove, and so on... 14 trades later, he became the proud owner of a house in Kipling, SK. You can find Kyle's story here:

This story inspired me to attempt my own experiment. Starting today, I plan to trade a paperclip for a car (I tried to make my adventure original, but I couldn't think of anything more "worthless" than a paperclip). I have no idea how it's going to happen, but I plan not to rush or force a trade. Part of the fun is seeing where I end up!

I will include photos all along the way, so please check back!

Here is my first item!

Who knows what's next?