There's a new reason to stay away from Facebook, if a new study from Ohio PhD candidates is to be believed. According to the study, college students who use the social network have significantly lower grade-point averages than those who do not. The study surveyed undergraduate and graduate students and found that GPAs of Facebook users typically ranged a full grade point lower than those of nonusers. But the study also says that most of Facebook members did not believe there was any link between their GPA and their networking habits.
The authors clarify that the study does not suggest that Facebook directly causes lower grades, merely that there's some relationship between the two factors. "Maybe [Facebook users] are just prone to distraction. Maybe they are just procrastinators," said one of the authors.
Hmm, does the study indicate that I, and my 90 friends, are less intelligent? Or if not, are we procrastinators? Or are we easily distracted?
Other earlier studies have warned that social networks were "infantilizing the brain into the state of small children" by shortening the attention span and providing constant instant gratification. A new book, iBrain: Surviving the Technological Alteration of the Modern Mind, warns of desensitizing effects of social networks and other modern technology to reading real-life facial expressions and understanding the emotional context of subtle gestures.
The study may have its flaws and there are definitely other distractions aside from the social network sites. Facebook tries to defend itself by pointing out a study released earlier this month showing that personal Internet use at work can help focus workers' concentration and increase productivity. Facebook also said that "it's in the hands of students, in consultation with their parents, to define priorities and decide how to spend their time." That is equally true with the workforce and management. Facebook is saying don't blame us, blame the users.
People do spend a lot of time logged onto Facebook. A Nielsen report earlier revealed that social networks are the fastest rising segment of the Internet. Educators are iked with students who post messages more than listen to lectures. Management is equally up in arms. Offices have banned Facebook, etal., on their corporate computer networks. But there's no stopping this surge.
I found a lot of former classmates through the social networks, particularly Facebook. We are now happily reminiscing, catching up, and once again sharing heartaches, pleasures, ideas. Facebook did its function famously, it connected me with my past friends. It is the educators' and management's turn to find ways to do their jobs amidst these technological innovations.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Everything is connected
We are none of us alone; Even as we exhale, it is inhaled by others; The light that shines upon me, shines upon my neighbor as well; In this way, everything is connected to everything else; In this way, I am connected to my friend even as I am connected to my enemy; In this way, there is no difference between me and my friend; In this way, there is no difference between me and my enemy; We are none of us alone.
These lines are from my new favorite TV show, "Life", about a wrongly imprisoned cop who got his job back and now does police detective work with Zen. In this age of hyper-connectivity, with all the social networking sites and tools around, indeed now we are none of us alone.
Social networking is the new global consumer phenomenon. According to a Nielsen report, two-thirds of the world’s Internet population visit a social network or blogging site and the sector now accounts for almost 10% of all internet time. Social network and blogsites has overtaken personal email to become the world’s fourth most popular online sector after search, portals and PC software applications.
Facebook has become the dominant player in social networking sites. The phenomenal increase in the amount of time people are spending on these sites is changing the way people spend their time online and affects how people behave, share and interact within their normal daily lives. According to the same Nielsen report time spent on social network and blogging sites grew at over 3x the rate of overall Internet growth. In terms of audience numbers the greatest growth for Facebook, for instance, has come from people aged 35-49 years of age. My school mates and I belong to that demographics. It is not surprising that after more than 35 years we meet again online.
Among Filipinos, Friendster got an early foothold in the market. But its ornate design appeals more to the younger set. Some say it is 'jologs' and Facebook is the 'sosyal' version. I do have accounts in almost all the various platforms because I invariably accept all account invitations sent my way, but I actively maintain only my FB account.
I joined Facebook to keep in touch with fellows I met in a conference and to meet new ones that share the same passion for RSS for banks' online communications and other web applications. It is pure serendipity that I got in touch with elementary school classmates as well. With Internet search and social networking sites, I managed to track down several more classmates and friends and relatives. I hope that soon everyone will be connected with everyone, again.
These lines are from my new favorite TV show, "Life", about a wrongly imprisoned cop who got his job back and now does police detective work with Zen. In this age of hyper-connectivity, with all the social networking sites and tools around, indeed now we are none of us alone.
Social networking is the new global consumer phenomenon. According to a Nielsen report, two-thirds of the world’s Internet population visit a social network or blogging site and the sector now accounts for almost 10% of all internet time. Social network and blogsites has overtaken personal email to become the world’s fourth most popular online sector after search, portals and PC software applications.
Facebook has become the dominant player in social networking sites. The phenomenal increase in the amount of time people are spending on these sites is changing the way people spend their time online and affects how people behave, share and interact within their normal daily lives. According to the same Nielsen report time spent on social network and blogging sites grew at over 3x the rate of overall Internet growth. In terms of audience numbers the greatest growth for Facebook, for instance, has come from people aged 35-49 years of age. My school mates and I belong to that demographics. It is not surprising that after more than 35 years we meet again online.
Among Filipinos, Friendster got an early foothold in the market. But its ornate design appeals more to the younger set. Some say it is 'jologs' and Facebook is the 'sosyal' version. I do have accounts in almost all the various platforms because I invariably accept all account invitations sent my way, but I actively maintain only my FB account.
I joined Facebook to keep in touch with fellows I met in a conference and to meet new ones that share the same passion for RSS for banks' online communications and other web applications. It is pure serendipity that I got in touch with elementary school classmates as well. With Internet search and social networking sites, I managed to track down several more classmates and friends and relatives. I hope that soon everyone will be connected with everyone, again.
Labels:
alumni,
classmates,
Philippine life,
school
Monday, April 13, 2009
Easter Master 4
Whew! Tiger was gone, so was Phil. With Kenny Perry up by 2 with 2 holes to go, I went to the office thinking that there will be no more drama to unfold in the Masters. Dead wrong. I have thought it was for Kenny Perry to lose. But I thought he'd lose it to Tiger. Kenny choked and lost it alright, but to Angel Cabrera, in a playoff. Seems people named Perry are in a funk nowadays. Sayang!
Labels:
golf,
Tiger Woods
Easter Master 3
Tiger bogeyed the last two holes to bow out of the championship. Phil also bogeyed the last hole to stay 1 up on Tiger. He still has a chance if the leader bungle it on the remaining holes. But I am equally rooting for Kenny Perry. With Tiger out of it, wtaching the game suddenly became less exciting. I expect less drama to unfold.
Time to prepare for work now.
Time to prepare for work now.
Labels:
golf,
Tiger Woods
Easter Master 2
Tiger birdied the 16th. Phil saved par. Both are now just 1 behind Kenny Perry, who is just missed a birdie on the 11th by less than the diameter of the ball. Tough. He is just 1 up on Tiger and Phil. This must be nerve wracking for him.
Tiger bogeyed the 17th. While Phil missed another one of those short putts and the chance to inch closer to the leader. He saved par but is still 2 behind the leader, Kenny Perry, who just birdied the 12th. With the missed birdie on the 11th, this one on the 12th and with Tiger and Phil failing to gain further ground, Kenny Perry should be poised enough to win this one. Go Perry, go!.
Tiger bogeyed the 17th. While Phil missed another one of those short putts and the chance to inch closer to the leader. He saved par but is still 2 behind the leader, Kenny Perry, who just birdied the 12th. With the missed birdie on the 11th, this one on the 12th and with Tiger and Phil failing to gain further ground, Kenny Perry should be poised enough to win this one. Go Perry, go!.
Labels:
golf,
Tiger Woods
Easter Master
Phil and Tiger just made another charge on the 15th hole. Tiger went for the eagle with a long but doable putt. he missed it with the ball passing the cup by just inches. Next up was Phil, he also went for an eagle, a much shorter putt than Tiger, but he missed it widely. Both made the birdies, though. With three holes to go, Phil is one behind, Tiger two. As I said this is for the leaders to lose. Tiger is just being himself.
Labels:
golf,
Tiger Woods
Easter week
I woke up not to get back top work after the Easter break but to catch the Masters live. Tiger is playing. There's got to be some drama.
Phil Mickelson added to the drama in the Masters by tieing the record 6-under 30 in the front nine of the last round, firing home six birdies in the first eight holes. He was just one behind the leaders but but he hit the water to double-bogey the 12th. Meanwhile, Tiger Woods continued to lurk closely behind the leader, silently firing a 3-under 36 in the fron nine. He birdied the 13th to suddenly be just 3 behind with 4 holes to go. I have a feeling this is for the leaders to lose. Tiger is back at his game this Easter.
Meanwhile, leader Kenny Perry was steadily matching pars through the first 8 holes to keep the lead against the surging Mickelson and Woods. He's got to have steely nerves to maintain poise as he hears the sound of the comeback, the oohs and ahhs in Phil's and Tiger's flight.
Who says golf isn't exciting?
Phil Mickelson added to the drama in the Masters by tieing the record 6-under 30 in the front nine of the last round, firing home six birdies in the first eight holes. He was just one behind the leaders but but he hit the water to double-bogey the 12th. Meanwhile, Tiger Woods continued to lurk closely behind the leader, silently firing a 3-under 36 in the fron nine. He birdied the 13th to suddenly be just 3 behind with 4 holes to go. I have a feeling this is for the leaders to lose. Tiger is back at his game this Easter.
Meanwhile, leader Kenny Perry was steadily matching pars through the first 8 holes to keep the lead against the surging Mickelson and Woods. He's got to have steely nerves to maintain poise as he hears the sound of the comeback, the oohs and ahhs in Phil's and Tiger's flight.
Who says golf isn't exciting?
Labels:
golf,
sports,
Tiger Woods
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Popoy's trauma with The Passion
This Maundy Thursday I made Popoy watch a slew of movies about Jesus Christ just to inject some spirituality into a six-year old numbed by endless cartoons and Marvel comics. First up was Jesus of Nazareth. That bored him. He wanted a faster moving story, ever asking when will they show Jesus on the Cross. So I decided to show him Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ.
Big mistake! A six-year old mind cannot stand all that blood, gore and torment of the NC-17 movie. Popoy said he's done watching and wanted to sleep already when the scene where Jesus was scourged was shown. Only when he cannot go to sleep that I realized that his young mind was bothered seeing all that. I had to explain that it was just a movie, that they were just actors acting out Jesus' life. That did not comfort him, and for the first time in years, the kid wanted me by his side to sleep. But he just cannot sleep. He made me promise that I will not put out the lights and that I will also not sleep. Sweet but not comforting. What have I done? He slept very lightly. He woke up several times during the night, asking will it be morning soon each time. He was still afraid.
His kuya Vito was chiding him the morning of Good Friday. It's just a movie Vito said. Indeed, Vito handled the movie better when he first saw it. But he was over eight years old then. Anyway, Popoy seemed to have recovered. I said we'll watch another Jesus Christ movie, Jesus Christ Superstar. I told him it's a musical and not scary at all. Into the movie, he said it's not Jesus, because He looks different from the ones we saw yesterday. When he aked if Jesus' flagellation will be shown and I said yes, he stopped watching.
Come sleeping time, Popoy again was having trouble getting sleep. Again he asked me to watch over him, making me promise to keep watch all night. He is sleeping better now. It's already 1:00am Black Saturday, he is still having a good sleep, so far so good.
The Holy Week-end bonding with my sons through spiritual movies did not turn out too well. It only traumatized Popoy. This might take a while to undo.
Big mistake! A six-year old mind cannot stand all that blood, gore and torment of the NC-17 movie. Popoy said he's done watching and wanted to sleep already when the scene where Jesus was scourged was shown. Only when he cannot go to sleep that I realized that his young mind was bothered seeing all that. I had to explain that it was just a movie, that they were just actors acting out Jesus' life. That did not comfort him, and for the first time in years, the kid wanted me by his side to sleep. But he just cannot sleep. He made me promise that I will not put out the lights and that I will also not sleep. Sweet but not comforting. What have I done? He slept very lightly. He woke up several times during the night, asking will it be morning soon each time. He was still afraid.
His kuya Vito was chiding him the morning of Good Friday. It's just a movie Vito said. Indeed, Vito handled the movie better when he first saw it. But he was over eight years old then. Anyway, Popoy seemed to have recovered. I said we'll watch another Jesus Christ movie, Jesus Christ Superstar. I told him it's a musical and not scary at all. Into the movie, he said it's not Jesus, because He looks different from the ones we saw yesterday. When he aked if Jesus' flagellation will be shown and I said yes, he stopped watching.
Come sleeping time, Popoy again was having trouble getting sleep. Again he asked me to watch over him, making me promise to keep watch all night. He is sleeping better now. It's already 1:00am Black Saturday, he is still having a good sleep, so far so good.
The Holy Week-end bonding with my sons through spiritual movies did not turn out too well. It only traumatized Popoy. This might take a while to undo.
Labels:
Holy Week,
Philippine life,
The Passion
Monday, March 30, 2009
Cheap Chow
An HK-Online Magazine item on its March 27, 2009 issue is causing the latest furor on the local blogosphere. The racist article from Chip Tsao; who usually defers to history, his former colonial masters, and world superpowers (shows how cowardly he is); is a blatant insult to Filipinos. The magazine has since pulled out the offending article and issued an apology. Some Filipino bloggers are wont to just dismiss it as satire and thus should not be taken seriously. Funny or not, I think all the outrage is justified. Mr. Tsao thinks he has a hostage when hostilities break out? He does not realize what his hostage can put in his coffee, even before the hostilities start.
Below is a screen-cap of the article before it was pulled out.
Below is a screen-cap of the article before it was pulled out.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Fw: TO ALL THE KIDS WHO WERE BORN IN THE 1950's, 60' s, 70's and early 80's !!
Posting here, from a forwarded email, memories of the simple life:
=================================================================
TO ALL THE KIDS WHO WERE BORN IN THE 1950's, 60' s, 70's and early 80's !!
First, some of us survived being born to mothers who did not have an OB-Gyne and drank San Miguel Beer while they carried us.
While pregnant, they took cold or cough medicine, ate isaw, and didn't worry about diabetes.
Then after all that trauma, our baby cribs were made of hard wood covered with lead-based paints, pati na yung walker natin, matigas na kahoy din at wala pang gulong.
We had no soft cushy cribs that play music, no disposable diapers (lampin lang), and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, no kneepads , sometimes wala pang preno yung bisikleta.
As children, we would ride in hot un-airconditioned buses with wooden seats (yung JD bus na pula), or cars with no airconditioning & no seat belts (ngayon lahat may aircon na)
Riding on the back of a carabao on a breezy summer day was considered a treat. (ngayon hindi na nakakakita ng kalabaw ang mga bata)
We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle purchased from 711 ( minsan straight from the faucet or poso)
We shared one soft drink bottle with four of our friends, and NO ONE actually died from this. Or contacted hepatitis.
We ate rice with star margarine, drank raw eggs straight from the shell, and drank sofdrinks with real sugar in it (hindi diet coke), but we weren't sick or overweight kasi nga......
WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!!
We would leave home in the morning and play all day, and get back when the streetlights came on. Sarap mag patintero, tumbang preso , habulan at taguan.
No one was able to reach us all day ( di uso ang cellphone , walang beepers ) . And yes, we were O.K.
We would spend hours building our wooden trolleys (yung bearing ang gulong) or plywood slides out of scraps and then ride down the street , only to find out we forgot the brakes! After hitting the sidewalk or falling into a canal (seweage channel) a few times, we learned to solve the problem ourselves with our bare & dirty hands .
We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 100 channels on cable, no DVD movies, no surround stereo, no IPOD's, no cell phones, no computers, no Internet, no chat rooms, and no Friendsters....... ...WE HAD REAL FRIENDS and we went outside to actually talk and play with them!
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no stupid lawsuits from these accidents. The only rubbing we get is from our friends with the words..masakit ba ? pero pag galit yung kalaro mo,,,,ang sasabihin sa iyo..beh buti nga !
We played marbles (jolens) in the dirt , washed our hands just a little and ate dirty ice cream & fish balls. we were not afraid of getting germs in our stomachs.
We had to live with homemade guns " gawa sa kahoy, tinali ng rubberband , sumpit , tirador at kung ano ano pa na puedeng makasakitan..pero masaya pa rin ang lahat.
We made up games with sticks ( syatong ), and cans ( tumbang preso )and although we were told they were dangerous, wala naman tayong binulag o napatay.paminsan minsan may nabubukulan lang.
We walked, rode bikes, or took tricycles to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just yelled for them to jump out the window!
Mini basketball teams had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't pass had to learn to deal with the disappointment. Wala yang mga childhood depression at damaged self esteem ek-ek na yan. Ang pikon, talo.
Ang magulang ay nandoon lang para tignan kung ayos lang ang mga bata, hindi para makialam at makipag-away sa ibang parents.
That generation of ours has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers, creative thinkers and successful professionals ever! They are the CEO's, Engineers, Doctors and Military Generals of today.
The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
We had failure, success, and responsibility. We learned from our mistakes the hard way.
You might want to share this with others who've had the luck to grow up as real kids. We were lucky indeed.
And if you like, forward it to your kids too, so they will know how brave their parents were.
It kind of makes you wanna go out and climb a tree, doesn't it?!
=================================================================
TO ALL THE KIDS WHO WERE BORN IN THE 1950's, 60' s, 70's and early 80's !!
First, some of us survived being born to mothers who did not have an OB-Gyne and drank San Miguel Beer while they carried us.
While pregnant, they took cold or cough medicine, ate isaw, and didn't worry about diabetes.
Then after all that trauma, our baby cribs were made of hard wood covered with lead-based paints, pati na yung walker natin, matigas na kahoy din at wala pang gulong.
We had no soft cushy cribs that play music, no disposable diapers (lampin lang), and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets, no kneepads , sometimes wala pang preno yung bisikleta.
As children, we would ride in hot un-airconditioned buses with wooden seats (yung JD bus na pula), or cars with no airconditioning & no seat belts (ngayon lahat may aircon na)
Riding on the back of a carabao on a breezy summer day was considered a treat. (ngayon hindi na nakakakita ng kalabaw ang mga bata)
We drank water from the garden hose and NOT from a bottle purchased from 711 ( minsan straight from the faucet or poso)
We shared one soft drink bottle with four of our friends, and NO ONE actually died from this. Or contacted hepatitis.
We ate rice with star margarine, drank raw eggs straight from the shell, and drank sofdrinks with real sugar in it (hindi diet coke), but we weren't sick or overweight kasi nga......
WE WERE ALWAYS OUTSIDE PLAYING!!
We would leave home in the morning and play all day, and get back when the streetlights came on. Sarap mag patintero, tumbang preso , habulan at taguan.
No one was able to reach us all day ( di uso ang cellphone , walang beepers ) . And yes, we were O.K.
We would spend hours building our wooden trolleys (yung bearing ang gulong) or plywood slides out of scraps and then ride down the street , only to find out we forgot the brakes! After hitting the sidewalk or falling into a canal (seweage channel) a few times, we learned to solve the problem ourselves with our bare & dirty hands .
We did not have Playstations, Nintendo's, X-boxes, no video games at all, no 100 channels on cable, no DVD movies, no surround stereo, no IPOD's, no cell phones, no computers, no Internet, no chat rooms, and no Friendsters....... ...WE HAD REAL FRIENDS and we went outside to actually talk and play with them!
We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no stupid lawsuits from these accidents. The only rubbing we get is from our friends with the words..masakit ba ? pero pag galit yung kalaro mo,,,,ang sasabihin sa iyo..beh buti nga !
We played marbles (jolens) in the dirt , washed our hands just a little and ate dirty ice cream & fish balls. we were not afraid of getting germs in our stomachs.
We had to live with homemade guns " gawa sa kahoy, tinali ng rubberband , sumpit , tirador at kung ano ano pa na puedeng makasakitan..pero masaya pa rin ang lahat.
We made up games with sticks ( syatong ), and cans ( tumbang preso )and although we were told they were dangerous, wala naman tayong binulag o napatay.paminsan minsan may nabubukulan lang.
We walked, rode bikes, or took tricycles to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just yelled for them to jump out the window!
Mini basketball teams had tryouts and not everyone made the team. Those who didn't pass had to learn to deal with the disappointment. Wala yang mga childhood depression at damaged self esteem ek-ek na yan. Ang pikon, talo.
Ang magulang ay nandoon lang para tignan kung ayos lang ang mga bata, hindi para makialam at makipag-away sa ibang parents.
That generation of ours has produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers, creative thinkers and successful professionals ever! They are the CEO's, Engineers, Doctors and Military Generals of today.
The past 50 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas.
We had failure, success, and responsibility. We learned from our mistakes the hard way.
You might want to share this with others who've had the luck to grow up as real kids. We were lucky indeed.
And if you like, forward it to your kids too, so they will know how brave their parents were.
It kind of makes you wanna go out and climb a tree, doesn't it?!
Labels:
Philippine life
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Face yourself
Do you believe that your personality is written all over your face? Jean Haner, an expert in understanding facial features believes so, and in fact has written a book about it. The author of "The Wisdom of Your Face" says your face is the blueprint of who you really are.
Haner says people who undergo surgery to remove wrinkles could actually be doing a disservice. "There are good wrinkles and bad wrinkles," she says. "We are supposed to get some, and if you erase them it's not healthy, you might have to learn certain life lessons all over again."
Some of the tips Haner gives to women in search of the perfect man:
But her analysis of a hairline that goes straight across - that guy is a rule breaker and paradigm shifter; big ears? they are a positive trait: they suggest a strong sense of confidence and the ability to take risks.
The last time I looked in a mirror, I have a hairline that goes straight across and I have big ears.
Haner says people who undergo surgery to remove wrinkles could actually be doing a disservice. "There are good wrinkles and bad wrinkles," she says. "We are supposed to get some, and if you erase them it's not healthy, you might have to learn certain life lessons all over again."
Some of the tips Haner gives to women in search of the perfect man:
- -Behind a guy's big mouth and full lips is a sensitive man who is emotionally available.
- -Spiritually sensitive guys have a bony nose [and] sunken or hollowed cheeks.
- -An upper lip much thinner than his lower one on guys is a sign they're more hedonistic and have a tendency to be unfaithful.
- -"Back away slowly from the woman who plucks her eyebrows into a tiny line. That's suppressed rage."
But her analysis of a hairline that goes straight across - that guy is a rule breaker and paradigm shifter; big ears? they are a positive trait: they suggest a strong sense of confidence and the ability to take risks.
The last time I looked in a mirror, I have a hairline that goes straight across and I have big ears.
Labels:
face analysis,
personality
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