Florida's Must See Fauna

Florida panther. American alligator. Bobcat. Manatee. White tailed deer. Do you know what these are? They’re the must see animals of the Sunshine State. Even with their iconic status, they have still changed in the past 20 years. This is because of human activities, which affect their habitats, which in turn effects their populations. The FLORIDA panther is almost nonexistent in its namesake home because they have nowhere to live and were hunted way too much. The rest of the “Big Five” animals of Florida all have a similar story. Be that as it may, they are still around to be on the must see list, but you better hurry because they might be gone tomorrow. Who knows? Maybe in the next 20 years they’ll be extinct leaving the box shell tortoise, monarch butterfly, palmetto bug, squirrel, and the ferial felines that pace the ally ways as the Floridian animal identifiers. 

 

Source http://latimercolloquiumjournal.blogspot.com/

It's Not Just For Facebook

Stalking- a course of conduct directed at a specific person that involves repeated visual or physical proximity, nonconsensual communication, or verbal, written or implied threats, or a combination thereof, that would cause a reasonable person fear. Although both men and women can be stocked, 78% are women and 22% are men according to the National Violence Against Women (NVAW). Those who stalk can be ex lovers, friends, coworkers, or even someone you don’t know. The victims of stalkers suffer distress, fear, and intimidation. Sometimes the stalker does physical harm to their victims. You can prevent stalking and its escalation by becoming unlisted and having you mail sent to a P.O. box instead of to your home.

Being a young college damsel like myself makes me a prime target for being stalked, according to the stats, and I would not appreciate it. I already ponder on whether there is a “Big Brother” so I don’t need extra surveillance. I don’t want to have to worry if my private affairs are kept private or if I’ll be attacked because I’m not being a good little victim. I could raise awareness to other students about the dangers of stalking and being stalked, but there isn’t much more that I could do due to the fact that stalkers usually keep their extra curricular activities under wraps. However, if I do see it happening I would make others aware so it could stop.

To learn more about stalkers click here.

                                                           Source http://notreligious.typepad.com/notreligious/2010/11/stalking-god-steve-hamilton.html

Cyber Arsenic

            CBS News discusses the risks of having a Facebook profile in the article “Five Hidden Dangers of Facebook”. You are open to scams due to the fact that your information is shared with third parties, ads contain malware, and your privacy settings aren’t always the way you want them because of updates. Facebook wants to make your experience more personal so whenever you take a quiz or play a game through the site it will give your information away. Even if you think you’re very careful about your privacy settings, your friends may not be up to par. They could potentially be hacked meaning that a stranger could view your account.  About 40% of Facebook accounts are fake so the chances of someone with over 500 friends having a fake friend is very possible. These fake friends could steal your identity or take over your account. The dangers of having a Facebook are very real.

            I agree that having a Facebook account can be dangerous and that everyone should be careful, but it’s also a fantastic communication tool. I make sure that I am only friends with people that I know in real life and that I don’t put any personal information that could be used against me so that I will remain safe. People should use Facebook as a way to stay connected with friends and post statuses about important events to them or big news that they want to share with everyone, but they should not treat the site as their diary to write their moment to moment thoughts because it makes your security vulnerable and no one likes to have their news feed blown up by one person.

 Source- http://timesweaver.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/facebook_danger.gif

  

Preventing the Death of a World

In this advertisement from WWF it shows an instant photo of brilliant coral with glimmering fish darting through the waters. Written on the photograph are the words “ Protect the future of nature.” This is explained when you look into the background and see what was once a playground for the sea life is now a tomb of dead coral with the words “Don’t wait until it’s gone.” The contrast of colorful life and grey death put meaning into the poster. With the WWF emblem in the bottom left hand corner it would be safe to assume that this is an ad to save the environment in some way.

The ad is a persuasive one. It wants us to see the consequences of not caring for the ocean and the effects it has on those who call the sea home. We need to act fast in order to preserve the beauty and life of the waters. This is told to us by the background image’s text and the text on the photograph. No one wants to be responsible for causing damage to the Earth so by showing us what will happen because of human negligence it will hopefully promote everyone to save the environment.

 

source http://biology1pisay2012.multiply.com/photos/album/7/WWFs_Dont_Wait_Until_Its_Gone#photo=3

Silence of the Sexes

The YouTube video Why Men Don’t Talk To Women was overall humorous and entertaining. The message that the author is trying to give is that women wont be interested in men unless they have money and they wont deny them kindly, but brutally that will destroy the man. (Hopefully figuratively.) Even if the man is not interested in the women they will react as if he wants to marry them and will rudely push them away. I don’t think that this short film is entirely accurate. Most women are rational, at least on the surface, and won’t react in this fashion to someone they barely know, most of the time. Also, women have as much opportunity to earn the same amount or more than a man resulting in the stereotype of every woman being a gold-digger becoming increasingly outdated. She can make her own money so she doesn’t need his. A few women obviously hurt the creator of this animation so he tagged all women as heartless creatures who only want materialistic things. Either that or he is naïve enough to think that romance comes from only being nice. Just because a few women can be beastly doesn’t mean that all women are like them all the time and it shouldn’t be a reason for men to stop talking to them.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d54TiN3t5_I 

SlideRocket Lift Off

For my Midterm Reflection part II I used the SlideRocket software. I chose this tool because I understood its format the best and I liked its appearance the best. It was difficult to use at first because the instructional video was too long and the only thing I could concentrate on were the ducks. Also they included information about the premium packs that I didn’t need to know about, but after that it was a breeze to work because it’s very similar to PowerPoint. If I were to revise this assignment I would include sound to it to make it more interesting.

Here's the link to my assignment

portal.sliderocket.com/BBGSJ/My-Presentation-1

The Hue of Life

          When it comes to paint an artist must choose wisely. The format and skill shown in the painting my be on the level of Daniel Merriam but if your medium is of lesser quality the work of art will look like the sole survivor of a flash flood. The biggest decision is whether to create masterpieces with oil paint or make all right art with acrylic.

     Nothing feels better than smoothly stroking a canvas with a brush loaded with paint and seeing vibrant shades trail behind. When using oil paints it feels as if you are painting with slightly melted butter and its consistency is like a dream. You can paint an entire scene with only a couple beads of paint and a well of oil. Although a hundred years war could pass in the time it takes for oil paint to dry it’s a valuable asset because you have as much time as you need to create the perfect blend. Acrylic paint, however, drains from your paintbrush after a few flicks of the wrist. The first stroke is a tease of how easily this paint is. After that it’s as if you’re painting across gravel, which shatters the color in an unflattering fashion. It takes globs and tubes of acrylic paint to complete a project and it’s in your best interest to paint in a whirlwind so the paint doesn’t dry before you’re ready. Using acrylic paint is an inconvenience to time management and decreases your skill as an artist, however while using oil paints it’s a breeze.

      Pigmentation is key to achieving the award winning painting. It sets the masterpieces from the macaroni mosaics. Oil paint is mixed with such rich and deep hues that it makes the on looker fall into the painting. Portraits appear to be living people trapped behind a window. Landscapes look like a photograph taken by newly weds on their honeymoon. Oil paint brings dimension to art and puts breath into it. The colors of acrylic, however, are dull and lifeless. It lacks the intensity that oil achieves and leaves the work feeling incomplete. Acrylic does not dazzle the critics, which is a shame because your painting should not be dismissed due to your tragic mistake of media.

     A memorable piece of art will have colors that electrify, creating vibrant bursts of rich color that will sizzle your eyes. The hardest part of creation shouldn’t be struggling with your medium. This is why oil paint is the more agreeable option compared to acrylic.  

Acrylic Paint

  

Oil Paint