Homework #10
Cultural Occurrences in my Life
I have experienced many different cultural occurrences throughout my life. One that stands out from the rest happened last weekend at the Drive-in. A drive-in is a place for people to watch movies without leaving their cars. There is a big projection screen in front of a parking lot for cars. I feel that going to a drive in is an American Culture experience because it is a past time for most all Americans. I can remember going to a drive-in as a kid and I always have felt that it is an American based experience. I feel this is a unique American experience because Americans have always been trying to be the first and best at everything. They wanted to do something never tried before so they took two new technologies, and put them into one, hence, the drive-in.
Being in a group of people will change how the individual people act. This happens all the time with people in different clubs or sports. In my ski group in high school, we had a complete culture of our own. Skiers and snowboarders have a language all of our own. We have to understand different words and terms to be able to communicate with others on the mountain. It’s a unique language to our culture because it is only used when on the mountain. Individual groups of all kinds have their own unique traits that make them become a culture of their own.
As I went through my week, I took the time to observe people and what makes them unique. I came to find that the thing that makes people most unique is their style. You can instantly tell a lot about people and their individually by how their hair and clothes look. There are so many different types of clothes to buy, that the ones that someone chooses, are essentially a lot like they are themselves. Individual people and cultures are what makes the world so diverse, and a great place to live.
Homework #8
Ben Borst
1 –An International student who is transferring into IUP would find that life is different than how movies and TV portray it to be. Not all women are blond hair and beautiful, and everyone is not friends with everyone. The movies and film try to glamorize America so people will choose to come here.
2- The article stated that Americans are obsessed with time and time management. Americans are always concerned with what time it is and it is very important to be on time to everything to show respect. Americans are always so concerned about time because we fill our days with so much activity that we must remain on time to meet all our deadlines for that day.
3- The pamphlet states that Americans don’t line interruptions because a conversation is like tossing a ball back and forth; one person talks and then the other talks. I think interruptions are never acceptable. Each person should have their own turn to speak and wait until others turns are up to share their own opinion.
4- (This informal style can be perplexing.) I choose this sentence because it shows that in other countries it may seem odd how we use such informal speech all the time when talking. In other countries a more formal way of speaking is more commonly used.
New Policies of comsumption
1- Consumers buying more material items would result in alienation because it’s further disconnecting the human interaction experience. We humans already spend countless hours interacting with each other through social media. The more connected we are with material items, the less time we spend with each other, resulting in alienation between us.
2- If American households were to make more money, it would not solve the problem of alienation. If people have more money they are going to spend it on more things. The more “things” that people have, the less time they need actual people to entertain them.
3- Factors that encourage competitive consumption include, People’s homes, people spend way too much money on their homes to impress others. Gadgets, everyone needs to have the newest phone, iPod, and movie player.
4- Competitive consumption affects my life because I’m always working more or harder to make extra money so that I can buy new things. It affects my parents because they are always looking to save money to lease a new car or item they desire.
Moral Machines (Assignment 3)
1- I believe that an event such as the one described in the text is very likely to happen in our life time. The idea of new technology has always sparked an interest in many people. Industries are trying to produce the “next best thing” in technology so quickly that proper precautionary measures and safety system backups may be overlooked. Scientists seem to be so preoccupied with whether or not they can build these new devices that they never stop to ask if they should. When people rely too much on technology and automatic systems the human aspect is removed and our lives lie in the control of a machine. If a disaster were to occur I believe that the trust and reliability of robots would be lost and people would finally start to question if they really want their lives in the hand of a machine.
2- I believe that technology for robots that reason without humans is on the horizon. Technology is growing at such a rate that by the time something new is reveled, something else bigger and better is already in production. Robots that can reason without our help is a scary thought. We have all seen movies where the robot becomes smarter than humans and chaos soon follows. Our human identities would be almost shamed upon because we would no longer be a dominate species. If robots are in fact designed to reason without out us, who’s to say that they wouldn’t figure out that they could be behind the controls of us instead someday.
3- Positive examples of artificial intelligence are; medical reasons, security, safety, and production
Negative examples of artificial intelligence are; human vulnerability, control, and the unknown consequences of making super intelligent machines.
4- One time a machine failed was while I was at work as a cook. We have a machine that sends the checks to the back so we can see what the customer ordered. After a power failure one evening the machines would not send back the checks. So we had to read off hand written checks, deal with the waitresses, and hand deliver the food to the waitresses due to the calling system being down as well. In the end this caused a massive backup on food and service was lost.
Assignment #2 Morals
1 – When I first saw the list of the three people that were going to be discussed I initially focused my attention to Mother Teresa. Mother Teresa is admirable in many ways; she opened the hearts and eyes to many sick patrons to the power of Christ and prayer. She saved millions of lives through her efforts for a better world. She led a movement that in turn would lead many to see the world from a different perspective. However, after further reading into the article and understanding what really makes a person admirable I decided to turn to Bill gates. Some may just see him as a computer nerd who started the ball rolling for computer software. But looking deeper into what Bill Gates has truly created is a world where technology holds the key to the future. Without the innovations that Microsoft has created, we might not have the technology today that saves millions of lives. Equipment in the hospitals, labs, front lines of war, and classrooms, has changed how the world learns, produces, and protects. Bill Gates started a true revolution that has undoubtedly made this world a better place.
2 – Two people that I believe were most admirable are Tom Delonge and Martin Luther King. Tom Delonge is a musician who completely changed the way people see music. He showed that it truly is an art and show much can be accomplished through music itself. He speaks and writes about how to see the world we live in as a place to truly be alive. He speaks about finding peace and love and enjoying everything this world has to offer. He changed the way music is sold, marketed and heard by thousands of people and opened their eyes to something bigger than themselves. Martin Luther King Jr. was a man who also saw the world differently. He saw a world where everyone was equal, everyone accepted people for who they are. He started a movement that eventually led for the abolishment of racism. He put his life on the line everyday so that people would hear his message to make the world a better place. It’s because of people like Tom and Martin that each day is a day closer to a perfect world.
3 – I believe that mortality is indeed universal. During my research for my senior project in high school I read a lot about the behaviors of young children. I discovered that people’s genes initially shape them into the people they will eventually become. Inside everyone’s minds there is a sense of right and wrong. It is the people who still choose to do the wrong that end up altering their own mindset into believing what is right is wrong and vice versa. There is a sense of mortality however there are select individuals who choose to ignore this and deviate from the norm of society. So the mortality sense is indeed universal in us, however not all of us choose to listen.
4 – The five elements of mortality are harm, fairness, community (or group loyalty), authority and purity. I believe that Americans rank fairness first. Americans are all about equality in today’s world. Everyone has an equal chance to become successful. No child left behind act makes sure that all children will receive a proper education and have a fighting chance at a good career. America worked hard to become an equal nation so now we do all we can do keep it that way. All in all fairness is extremely important through the eyes of us Americans.
