Jing Assisgnment

This is an overview of my blog which explains the gadgets and posts that are on there.

Finding a Web 2.0 Tool

1) The Web 2.0 tool is called cometdocs, and I could use it for Sistarenik's Chemistry class and use it to share documents and graphs with my classmates when working on a project.

2) I can share it to Mrs. Sistarenik and any other projects, such as the final exam project to her so that she can view.

3)I can look up other people's url and view their document if I want to download it and use that file for my project.

New mobile browser blocks ads automatically

• Adblock Plus, maker of the world's most downloaded ad-blocking browser extension, launched its own mobile browser on Wednesday.
• The German company says it wants to give people a way to block ads automatically when they surf the Web on their phones. 
• Improved battery life and save on data costs because less digital content loads.
•  Only available for Android devices at the moment. 
•  iOS version will become available in the near future.
• Ad blocking software has increased steadily to more than 144 million, or about 5% of global internet users, according to a recent study from Adobe.
• Smartphones don't allow for extensions, which is why the company released its own browser.

Diigo Questions

What's another way you can organize and store information on your computers?

By using files or using my bookmarking bar by favoriting each page that I want.

What have you learned from researching the above topics? What do you know now about 

those current events that you didn’t know before?

I learned how America is concerned about our issue about legalizing marijuana including their statistics. I did not know much information about the ISIS but now I understand why people are concerned so much about it.

What are other social bookmarking apps/websites?
Other websites are BibSonomy, Blinklist, BlogBookmark, and blurpalicious. 

Will you continue to use social bookmarking?

I probably will not be using these bookmarking sites at all. 

5/18/15 - Do Now

There are many things that ignite my desire to help this world be a better place. For instance, I believe that random acts of kindness can help others and improve their day. Not only do I want to lead a positive life, if I were to change my life around I can change others also. You cannot improve the world if you carry a negative attitude. If you help those around you, you can eventually feel satisfied with yourself including. Hopefully one day, I can find a career that I would want to contribute back to the world and make it a better place. Therefore, helping others can really make an improvement on yourself and on others.

Nintendo's first mobile game is coming this year

•  Nintendo only plans to make five games by early 2017.
• They said its games need to raise the bar to break in and keep a foothold in a marketplace that's wildly erratic.
• Coming up with games that have a new feel for the gamer.
• In March, Nintendo announced a partnership with mobile game developer DeNA. They're creating a new membership service that launches in the fall.
• Members can play new games on mobile devices, as well as Nintendo consoles (like the Wii U) and handheld devices (like the 3DS).
• The cost is not determined what it will be yet.

Discussion Questions

Why did you select the sites you subscribed to?

I selected these websites to subscribe to because these are websites that I am interested in the most and catch my eye.

Was it easy to find feeds and to subscribe to them?
It wasn't as hard, but sometimes, I had to type in on google the site name and 'Rss feeds' in order to find them.

Which sites were your favorites?
My favorite sites that I subscribed to were the hollywood reporter and martha stewart because I love watching movies and eating/reading recipes about food.

What else can you use RSS feeds for?
You can use RSS feeds to keep up with your school or town related news. 

How likely are you to continue to use RSS feeds in the future?

I might consider using RSS feeds in the future, but I might not because I use other social media sites such as, twitter. 

Do Now - 5/11/15

          If I was invisible for a day, I would commit crimes and help people out. Usually when people commit crimes, they are viewed as the villain and people want to throw them into jail as soon as possible. That is only if they are seen, but when they are invisible, no one will know what they are doing. If I were to be invisible, I would not commit crimes to hurt people, but help people. This way, I would be contributing good to the world rather than evil.
           For instance, I would go into rich people's homes and steal all their things to give to the poor. I would go through a window, and make it seem as thought there is a ghost coming in. Then, I would go through each room and steal all of their valuable things like jewelry, and tvs, so that I could trade them in for money. Finally, I would take that money and give it to the people of Paterson and Passaic. This is because they are the ones that are most in need considering the fact that people have trouble with money there. This is what I would do if I had an invisible cloak and wore it for a day.

These tiny robots have superhuman strength

• These micro-robots, which are about the size of a Matchbox car, can pull 2,000 times their weight.
• It's called Ground MicroTug
• They come in two sizes, and the smaller one can even haul items up glass walls.
• So far, the robots have just been used in the lab to haul around weights, drag a full coffee cup across the table and move objects up a wall, 
• The engineers said the robots could be equipped with CO2 sensors and then sent into a burning building to find survivors. 
• each one only costs about $20 
• Display next month at the International Conference on Robotics and Automation in Seattle, Wash.

5/5/15- Do Now Writing Prompt

       If I had to add a class to our school curriculum that we don't have, I would recommend to have a class based on life skills. I feel like this is essential for students to learn considering they need to learn skills for the real world that is mandatory. Students would meet every lunch period that they have for half of the period and count it as a class. Students would learn how to read bills, look for a car, or buying a house, etc. This is important for people when they go to college or if they are looking for a job.
    We would also have things like talk about daily problems or issues that teenagers are currently facing. I would have worksheets for the students, and put them in group activities, so that they gain trust and communication skills. Basically, I will be putting students to work together in order for them to learn how to work with different people. Overall, this is how I would set up the class so that students would learn or pick up on essential life skills.
         

This robotic chimp could one day roam the moon

• A design from the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (also known as DFKI) in Bremen, Germany, has landed on the chimpanzee as its model for unmanned lunar missions.
• Its design -- called the iStruct Demonstrator and nicknamed "Charlie"
• Ape's quadrupedal stance without losing the chimp's versatility in climbing, grasping and moving over all types of terrain.
• The chimp's greatest asset is that it can choose which form of movement best fits the situation.
• The project has also built Lunar craters in a lab to test the prototype.
• Like a real chimp, the robot's feet and hands have multiple sensors and multiple points of contact.
• 3 individual force sensing resistor (FSR) sensors.
• Six additional FSR-sensors used for collision detection.

'Connected' babies = more sleep for you

• Boston-based Rest Devices, which launched in 2011, has developed a tech-enabled onesie, which tracks babies' breathing, body movements, sleep patterns and quality and transmits that information in real time to a smartphone app.
• The $199 Mimo kit includes three onsies, each with sensors embedded into the fabric.
• Parents can customize settings depending on their baby's age and where they are with the sleep training.
•  Mimo aims to give parents peace of mind about their baby, although she acknowledges that there are tons of baby monitors that do the same thing.

Wiki Dissection and C.H.

1. What is the purpose of this Wiki? - The purpose of this wiki is to talk about disruptive technology or in other words revolutionary technology. 
2. When was the last post? - October 21, 2006
3. How was this Wiki created? - The wiki was created by making an account on wikispace.com
4. What would you add to it? - I would add other technologies created such as, the search engine bing.com.
5. What did you learn from it? - I learned that I could use different technologies like search engines, blogs, social media sites, etc. that could benefit and connect me. 
6. If you had to create a Wiki with a team, what would be the specific topic(s)? - Dog breeds
7. How can Wikis be used in the classroom or in education? - You can use the links to other websites as our resources for projects, research papers, study guides, etc. 

Wikipedia Post

I think that Wikipedia is a great source for finding information. I think that Wikipedia is a reliable site, but at the same time anybody could change what is on there. But then again, there are citations at the end of each Wikipedia page so that the reader can check if the information is reliable or not. There are administrators all over the world, so they are the ones that can change anything that they believe is not completely true. Things like Britannica are much more reliable where you can find more information and websites like IMDb (internet movie database) if you want to look up information on famous movie actors. So then again, there are other sites and sources that you can use, but you can use Wikipedia by checking their sources also.

Spring Break 2k15

          Over spring break, I went to the mall with my family and then I went with some friends. When I went with my friends I saw the movie Insurgent which was the sequel to Divergent and is based off the best selling novels. I thought the movie was great and then hung out at the park. I also celebrated Easter with my family which was fun and dyed a lot of eggs. After dying the eggs, we even ate some of them which were really good. That was my spring break so far for the first few days.

           Then I even had track practice for a few days that week. Track has been something that is really challenging for me, but I was able to persevere through each day that I went. We even went to track meets which was fun, but I did really badly considering I am new at the sport. It has been fun so far and I am even more determined to accomplish more while running. Overall, my spring break was interesting and fun for the most part.

Reflection about an Article

This article talks about how experts are giving advice to people who join any social media site. They recommend things like building up your online reputation  as how you want others to view you as. Not only that, but they want you to post more so that people out there feel like they can interact with you and have posts that even go viral because of your well known popularity. Social media privacy is very important because some sites like Facebook change things everyday so you many never know when your things are private or not, so its best to always be aware what you are putting out there. Also, when putting stuff out there don't insult other people or cause drama through the social media site. Especially, omitting any cursing because anybody out there can view it. Overall, its best to handle negativity well and post things for the right reasons so that you contribute something good out there.

Jay Z Reveals Plans for Tidal, a Streaming Music Service

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/31/business/media/jay-z-reveals-plans-for-tidal-a-streaming-music-service.html?ref=technology&_r=0

• On Monday, Jay Z, the rap star and entertainment mogul, announced his plans for Tidal, a subscription streaming service he recently bought for $56 million.
• Facing competition from Spotify, Google and other companies that will soon include Apple, Tidal will be fashioned as a home for high-fidelity audio and exclusive content.
•  Jay Z’s strategy is that a majority of the company will be owned by artists.
• The move may bring financial benefits for those involved, but it is also powerfully symbolic in a business where musicians have seldom had direct control over how their work is consumed.
• Tidal, which makes millions of songs and thousands of high-definition videos available in 31 countries, will have no free version. 
• Instead, it will have two subscription tiers defined by audio quality: $10 a month for a compressed format (the standard on most digital outlets) and $20 for CD-quality streams.
• Jay Z described his vision for Tidal as an outlet where musicians and fans “can all just camp out and listen to music,” and where artists would “always be on album cycle,” meaning in constant promotion mode.

Livestream your life with this new app

• The livestreaming app was the "SXSW sweetheart" this year, despite having only launched on February 27.
• Even people like, Jimmy Fallon is streaming his life using Meerkat.
•  Rubin decided to dedicate his entire team to work on Meerkat after the app's popularity exploded.
• Several people said it broke their record for the longest Meerkat stream they had ever watched. 
• The app branching out to work with other platforms, like Facebook or Tumblr.

Contact lens with built-in telescope could help people with blinding disease

• Scientists are developing smart contact lenses embedded with minuscule mirrors that can magnify your vision by almost three times.
• The 1.55mm-thick lenses incorporate a thin reflective telescope made of mirrors and filters; when light enters the eye it bounces off the series of mirrors and increases the perceived view of an object or person.
• It is hoped that the lens will improve the sight of people with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) -- the third leading cause of blindness globally.
• A key innovation with the lenses is the added ability to switch between magnified and regular vision through a complementary pair of glasses.
• The battery-powered glasses use LCD technology to watch the movement of the eye and a simple wink can alter their polarization and determine whether light entering is magnified or not.
•  A strategic wink will enable users to keep an eye on their periphery, such as cars approaching them as they cross a street, whilst also being able to zoom in and recognize the faces of those around them.

The evolution of hacking

• Computer hacking was once the realm of curious teenagers. It's now the arena of government spies, professional thieves and soldiers of fortune.
•  In 2012, Iran ruined 30,000 computers at Saudi oil producer Aramco.
•  North Korea's cyberattack on Sony Pictures last year.
• Computers were destroyed, executives' embarrassing emails were exposed, and the entire movie studio was thrown into chaos.
• The whole concept of "hacking" sprouted from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology nearly 50 years ago. 
• These new hackers were already figuring out how to alter computer software and hardware to speed it up, even as the scientists at AT&T Bell Labs were developing UNIX, one of the world's first major operating systems.
• Hacking became the art of figuring out unique solutions. It takes an insatiable curiosity about how things work; hackers wanted to make technology work better, or differently.
•  They were not inherently good or bad, just clever.

Computers that know what we want

• Instead they'll be proactive, using your history, location and other data to offer up information and execute tasks automatically, before you even ask.
• "In many instances, the machine kind of already knows what you're going to do because we're creatures of habit. If I walk into Starbucks and always order the same thing, I shouldn't have to say it," said Raj Singh, CEO of Tempo AI, an anticipatory app that plugs into your calendar. 
• It was developed at SRI International, the same place where Siri started.
• The new Tesla will start up for you in the morning before you enter the garage, using information from your calendar and past departure times to figure out when you usually leave. 
• The Nest smart thermostat uses your heating and cooling history to keep your home at an optimal temperature without wasting energy.

Cepheus, the poker-playing computer program that can't be beat

• Cepheus is a poker-playing computer program, set up by researchers at the University of Alberta.
•  the program learned from its mistakes, according to the team's website.
• By teaching the Cepheus to play with itself.
• With each hand it improved its play, refining itself closer and closer to the perfect solution," the website says.
• All it took was 4,000 computers doing the math on 6 billion hands every second for several months.
• The researchers say it's a breakthrough in artificial intelligence and game theory, which can have applications in other areas.
• Programmers potentially could use it in computer systems for airport security checkpoints or Coast Guard patrols.

Feel the vibration: The next phase in virtual reality

• Physicist Shahriar Afshar created a vest called KOR-FX that plugs into an audio jack.
• It is the key to making video games, movies and music more immersive, emotional experiences. 
• Turns sound into chest-rumbling vibrations, which mimicks what your vocal cords do.
• The $150 KOR-FX feeds sound to the two transducers on the front of the vest. 
• Uses less power and is portable.
• Vibrations in the body make the brain interpret experiences as more immediate.
• Gadgets like this vest could provide an additional physical, tactile element to virtual reality.

Web 2.0: Multimedia Blog Pre-Posting

                I am currently taking this year English II and the teacher that is running the course is Ms. Wallach. Ms. Wallach has an interesting personality which is outgoing and knows exactly how to grab the class's attention. When this class first started, I was hoping to read some interesting books that I haven't read before. At first, it was kind of boring and dull at first considering the type of books we read about which were racism. The next topic we are on now is about feminism which is equality among all the sexes. Which I like because I think I support this issue and everything about it. So far, Ms. Wallach has the ability to talk about things and discuss important topics that are needed to be brought up about. All in all, my experience with her has been truly something special.
            My teacher's grading policy is quite different in comparison to other teachers. We do things like speaking orally together as a group in a circle, which are called Socratic seminars. Her seminars usually involve books or stories that we have read as a class. Those who participate and volunteer to ask a question earns more points to their grade. Also, we have things like weekly vocabulary where she makes us complete packets and then have a test on the Friday of that week. I like the projects that we do in that class such as, the farm project, which is based on the book 'Of Mice and Men', that we did where we were put into groups and had to design our own farm and create our own budget. I found it fun to design out own farms whether it is crops or animals. She usually chooses projects that have to do some relation to the books that we read during class. We also did another project recently that we read about based on a story that was called 'A Rose For Emily' where we filmed a video. Therefore, this is Ms. Wallach's grading policy.
         Technology is also used in the class. For the video project that we did, we used cameras as our technology tools and computers to edit the video. We filmed the video productively with smooth transitions within the video which made the presentation more appealing. So far, Ms. Wallach's class has been fun considering the projects she chose for us to do as a grade. She has the ability to capture your attention and make the class more engaging by using technology to do it. Technology was important to make our project which made it even better. Overall, English class so far this year has been fun and I am looking forward to learning more.

Microsoft's insane holographic vision of the future

• "Windows Holographic" is Microsoft's insane vision of the future of computing. 
• With Windows Holographic, you can see and interact with 3-D images all around you. 
• Pinch them, pull them, tap them and flick them away. 
• "Select" a hologram just by looking at it, and you can walk around them in 3-D space.
• To see and "touch" the holograms, you have to wear a special headset called the "HoloLens."
• The HoloLens is itself a computer, equipped with a special chip called a holographic processing unit. 
• It understands where you're looking, recognizes your gestures and voice, and it can map your surroundings.

Welcome to My Blog!

            Welcome to my blog where you will find many interesting things on here. I have many likes such as, things like food such as, pizza, spaghetti, or even my mom's cooking. I also like going on social media sites or using the internet in general. Things that I dislike are bugs or anything that crawls. I am very close with my family and as well as my friends. I always like hanging out with my close friends either after-school or during the weekend. My favorite subjects that I look forward to learning include U.S. History I, Algebra II, and of course Web 2.0. ;) Hopefully by the end of the school year I can find a job that will satisfy me. In the future, I plan to attend college and finish school overall as one of my goals.

Do Now - Educational Technology and Copyright Law

In this article it mainly talks about the importance of the copyright law. Things that you create can be copyrighted so that no one can steal or copy off of your ideas. However, you should not copy off of other people's works because if you do, you must cite it and basically use it according to the fair use regulations.

This brain hat helps the paralyzed make music

Musician, Eduardo Miranda, met over eleven years ago a patient with locked in syndrome and was inspired to invent a new way for those who were paralyzed to create their own music. He calls his new invention as the brain computer music interface (BCMI) where they are able to make their own music by using their own eyes. The system is able to tell where you are directing your eyes by connecting electrodes in the back of the head. You are also able to select snippets of music that represent as flashing icons on the screen. At the same time, a musician plays the selected music that the patient chooses. Miranda even says that they are able to amplify and analyze very faint electrical signals. For instance, if you were to have two icons flashing on the screen, where one was flashing 10 hertz and the other at 15 hertz, if you were to look at the 15 hertz, they are able to pick up on it. He even mentioned that they are able to detect up to eight different frequencies.
His latest composition is for a string quartet where there is an interaction between eight people all having different jobs. Four are generating music, while others are playing the music as its being generated. By using the BCMI, musicians have to be highly skilled at reading the score since it is a computer monitor instead of using a regular music sheet. It had a profound impact on Miranda, as a musician, that he was able to give them a voice to use. What these paralyzed patients really missed was the interaction with other people and not with other machines, which was why the machine was created.