I-pod Cheaters

Come on....we all saw it coming. Cheating has evolved over the years. People have used cheat sheets, written answers on the brim of their caps, programmed formulas into graphing calculators. Cheating is always around and there will always be new and innovative ways to do it. So what's the newest?



IPODS!

Yes students have begun using Apple's most famous product and putting answers or formulas into it's memory. Many U.S. schools have begun to ban Ipods and other MP3 players because of the problems that have occurred.

Schools across America are targeting iPods and other digital media players as the latest way in which pupils are cheating in exams.

The increasingly tiny devices can be hidden under clothing, with just an earbud and a wire snaking behind the ear and into a shirt collar to give them away, said officials.

Some students are using iPod-compatible voice recorders to tape exam answers in advance, hide them in the machine's "lyrics" text files, and then secretly play them back.



Source: US Schools pull plug on Ipod


Well you can ban a way to cheat.....but you won't end cheating. Students will find another way and another way and another way. It's the same thing that's happened in the past. I just found it funny.



Speaking of technological problems.....for some reason whenever I post on this laptop the blog says I post at 9:42 a.m. Weird.....but that's life.

Play Money Review

Well I can honestly say that the book "Play Money" by Julian Dibbell was my favorite of the course. I've long been aware of the world of MMORPG's because a ton of my friends play World of Warcraft or Everquest. Personally I never got into it because I didn't see the point in paying MONTHLY for a video game. Either way I never really knew about the intricacies of this world and how so many people can use it for financial gain.

It was really interesting seeing Dibbell start out as a noob in the world he really knew nothing about. He starts off just as a journalist trying to learn more but slowly he gets addicted. At first it's purely gaming. He enjoys leveling up and fighting monsters. Soon enough though....he's getting into the world of money making. He meets a few people who help him out and get him started. Teach him the basics. Show him the ropes. That helps greatly and eventually Dibbell becomes somewhat of an important guy. He's got big towers, nice houses, a steady income.....but it's all virtual.

That's one thing that really got me interested in the book. I thought it would be boring but following his character and hearing his thoughts throughout really made for a cool read. Him having a blog was a smart move and really helped his claim that this was all an experiment.

It was funny reading about "Radny" the kid who began to live in Dibbell's virtual home. I liked reading about the parts where Radny was asking the adult Dibbell on advice or bothering him with other childlike things.

Basically the book felt like I was just learning about a player and the world of gaming. It didn't really have many slow parts. It was eye-opening to learn about the people who use bots and cheat to get ahead. That really bothered me. I was also a little confused as to why people would just buy whole characters rather than start from new and build them up - isn't that the point of the game?


Anyway....good read. I'm glad we were assigned it.

Hawking in Space?

COSMOLOGIST Stephen Hawking soared into weightlessness today on a zero gravity flight that allowed the leading expert on gravity to briefly escape from his wheelchair.



"It was amazing ... I could have gone on and on," Hawking, 65, said after riding for two hours on a modified jet that flew a rollercoaster trajectory to create the impression of microgravity.

"Space, here I come" he said at NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. The British professor, who has spent most of his career studying black holes and gravity, hopes the flight will be a prelude to a 2009 voyage into space.



Source: Hawking Escapes Gravity


All I can say is WOW. That's awesome. Dr. Stephen Hawking is among the smartest men alive and many people know his contributions to the study of space. He's been famous for quite some time. One thing to note though, is that he is almost entirely paralyzed and has to use a computer in order to speak to others. This fact has pushed Hawking to want to venture into outer space. This trip that he's just gone on is seen as the first step to an eventual trip to outer space.

Going so fast that he was able to get about four minutes of no gravity really lifted Dr. Hawking spirits and has made him excited about the possibility of venturing into the stars that he has only talked and theorized about. I can't wait to see what happens next.

Video Project

Well the project is still in the process of being finished. We were assigned with the task of making a 3 minute video on just about anything related with technology. Our group (Jessica, Jessica, Steve, Andy, and I) chose to make it about the advancements in technology from the original inventions. Our ideas came from the advances in telephones from old ones to the current cell phones that are like mini computers. We also mention computers, video games, and televisions and the advances that have been made in all of those areas.

It was a cool idea and I'm hoping the project turns out great. We are editing and plan on having it done soon. It's a good thing that I have experience with the type of software used for editing and also camera work because nobody else in my group really knew what to do. Overall the project was a fun experience and we'll probably dicuss it in our last podcast.

Lonely Gaming

I always find it weird when I see a hardcore gamer get lost in the virtual world. I've tried talking to my friends when they are in the "zone" and they just completely ignore me. Focused so intently on their game they don't even realize the world around them. So I couldn't help but wonder just what Julian Dibbell looked like during his 3 week vacation from reality. On pg. 145 of "Play Money" he writes:

Yesterday I put my wife and two-year-old daughter on a plane and watched them fly awawy for what will be three weeks apart. I haven't had real solitude like this in a while, and I like my solitude in general, but to my surprise this has so far been as much fun as a puch in the gut.

It's weird that he would have the opposite effect and actually miss his companions rather than dive right into the game. Eventually he gets into some hardcore gaming and has a goal to reach before his family returns - gain $1000 (or the equivalent of it in gold pieces). That's a hefty goal for a three week rush but in the end he just reaches his goal. Of course.....afterwards he's more intent on gaining more income.......and the addiction grows.

The Gold Farmers

Julian Dibbell has written a very interesting book about the world of online gaming. Specifically MMORPG's and his ability to make money out of playing them. I had encountered people selling "virtual goods" online in high school. A student in one of my classes told me about how he was selling stuff on Ebay for the game Diablo II. It interested me because I couldn't believe someone would pay real money for a sheild or sword for their video game character.

Now I get to learn about the ins and outs of the business. Dibbell starts off by selling maps that show where to mine gold in a game he begins to play. He says he starts the game to do more research into the mind of gamers....but then he quickly gets addicted. He wants the pride and the honor of being looked up to in a video game. So when he starts talking to Bob Kiblinger....a pro at the game.....his luck starts to change.

I liked how friendly some people were to him. They weren't mean and were able to help him learn the game and what sells and what doesn't. The thing that gets me though.....is the fact that Bob was using programs to run the game as many different characters. He wasn't controlling some of these characters and was essentially cheating in the game.

Should he really be able to make money like that? I disagree with it......but we'll see what happens in the future.

Religion in Second Life

Seeing as Passover has started and Easter is right on it's way I figured i'd post up a little news about Second Life that I read the other day. Now I can't believe this is happening.....but it's just one example of how Second Life is starting to become more and more of a social place like the Metaverse (from Snow Crash).

So what's been going on in Second Life? Here's a brief summary from the article:



In the real world, Palm Sunday began the Christian holy week that leads believers into the Easter story of salvation through Christ. Monday night, Jews celebrate Passover's ceremonial Seder meal, retelling the story of God freeing the Israelites from bondage in Egypt.

Meanwhile, in Second Life, avatars (animated characters that serve as users' "in-world" identities) will join in online prayer and praise.

Wherever the human imagination goes, so goes the spirit. Second Life is now also opening windows on religious and spiritual expression. Theologians and philosophers may debate the authenticity of religious life online, but out on the Internet faith frontier, believers are too busy to listen.

This week, Second Life will feature Easter events and Passover celebrations, as well as the usual meditation meet-ups, Muslim prayers and legions of gatherings for spiritual freelancers.

To me that's pretty interesting. I can't believe people would celebrate a religious holiday online with internet buddies or pray in a digital mosque.....but it's happening. Soon people will be spending all of their time on Second Life and be focusing more on that than the real world. I hope it doesn't happen soon.




source: USA Today article

Would anybody reading this try praying online?