NPR: Talk of the Nation -- Marc Comments

This is an audiopost created by Marc.

He called into National Public Radio on Wednesday's Talk of the Nation with speakers

*Michael Rubin - former political advisor to Paul Bremer and the Coalition Provisional Authority, 2003-2004. Visits Iraq frequently; was there for two weeks in September; will visit again in December after Iraqi elections; now a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, Washington, D.C.

and

*Sam Gardiner - retired Air Force colonel; has taught strategy and military operations at the National War College, Air War College and Naval War College

Marc sought more explanation of the US's role in exacerbating the conflict previous to the first Gulf War.

FACEBOOK -- the addictive phenomenon

So I've been using Facebook now for about a month and have found it very addictive and fun!

While fun, this social networking application is amazing and extremely addictive because you can look up friends from all over, some you haven't even seen in years (if you are more of an older person a few years removed from undergrad)

...and I have done just that (found friends from long ago)...and also have added friends I have met recently.

Facebook has many features that you probably would find in an online dating website like interests, looking for [insert gender]...or in a relationship....shows clubs and affiliations as well as hometown and age...

but Facebook goes a little further and provides more substance to your 'profile' like asking favorite books, movies, music, political and professional affiliation, and quotes. You can also list your website.

what I feel is really unique about Facebook is the networking aspects, like the ways in which you can search for friends via geographic region, school, or high school.

while facebook is an 'access only' website, meaning you have to have a university email domain, once you sign up, you can search for anyone and everyone and view people in your region or school. And if you know a person, it is very easy to add them as a friend (pending the 'friend's' approval) then view all of their info

Facebook makes it extremely easy to write messages to friends though a mailbox of sorts, but you also have a 'wall' which is a public view of comments people write on your wall. Facebook is a live/realtime application because after a party or before or any social event, people can write on your wall and tell you how much fun they had with you, etc. or they can tell you how much you missed out. So if you are friends with a friend, you can view their wall (pending they are viewable)...and see what their friends, including you, have written, which spurs more discussion.

This friend of a friend phenomenon can also explain the popularity of Facebook...by combining the intrinsic motivations to be accepted to know people or identify with people....you are constantly looking to see who are friends with your friends...and if they are your friend....and if you see those 'friends' in real live, many Facebookers want to 'collect' you on their friends list.

With just that aspect, Facebook could stand as a very popular application, but it also has a photo album feature. So if you have a photo with a friend in it, and you label that picture with your friend, it will show up on their profile for other people to view....as well as show up in your profile for anyone that knows you to view....it truely connects people!

You can also create events on facebook and people can join!...yet another way to learn about people.

when you strip the nervous tensions of meeting people face-to-face, Facebook undresses people's inhibitions on being themselves or saying what they want or just asking people to be your friend.

It is truely amazing what people will share on facebook as well. A PhD student named Fred Stutzman at UNC will also agree and has cool insight into what kinds of information you can retrieve from Facebook users (courtesy of Brian's blog)

check it out!!!

Slater snags his 7th world title!!!!!

Kelly Slater, undeniably the best professional surfer of all time has won an unprecedented 7th world title according to the Association of Surfing Professionals (the Governing Body of Professional Surfing)

Kelly Slater, like Lance Armstrong embodies many of the characteristics I strive to assimilate in my own persona. Although I can't quite pin down, aside from his good outlook and purity in life and his raw ability, what makes me look up to him so much, I can say I respect his innovations in a sport where he was very influential in shaping the new image of surfers from being drugged-beach bums to legitimate athletes, while also changing the outlook on scoring a wave.

I think I was surfing Ala Moana, Hawaii at a spot called Magic Island one time in the late 1990's and I saw first hand how awesomely good he was!! there were a lot of people out there surfing, but I couldn't help but notice this guy flying through the air and fanning out water like an ice sculptor...I was starstruck...and didn't even surf, but sat on my board watching the show!

He is very civically minded and does a lot for a lot of people.

So thanks Kelly and congratulations!!!!

Turn up the heat!!??!!

So for the past few weeks I have been in agony!

It is freakin hot!!! I dont know if there is a furnace under my floor or an invisible wall keeping the heat in my room from the windows and doorway, but it sucks....and I have tried everything to expell the heat, from opening all the windows and door and blaring the fan from every possible permutational configuration, while also trying to get the housing staff to see what the problem is.

I usually don't complain; growing up in a house where my parents love 80 plus degree warmth...but, but, but....my room (no exaggeration) is probably upwards of 95 degrees F.

So I have this routine of stripping down once I enter my furnace and wake up every few hours to rehydrate so that I dont wake up in the morning with a profound headache and soaked sheets. I even ration the time I spend on the computer.

So this post is just a vent, literally, of my frustrations of living in a terribly hot environment....I just hopes it gets really cold soon outside, so the head subsides in my room...

The Dichotomy of the Web

dichotomy in anything is usually a cliche...but usually true.

I watched dateline tonight and they caught some really disturbing and scary people: Online Sexual Predators of children.

Why!! why does this exist in society?

When the world is at your fingertips, why do people dive into pornography, hate, crime, drugs, and predation?

It is truely sad, both limiting the positive potential of what great things can be done online as well as making luddites in a generation of technology, information, and communication, not to mention the obvious emotional and physical damage to the children and families.

It is great to know that there are groups out there that are taking action, namely http://www.perverted-justice.com which is a group of people who guise as young teenagers and expose the online predators.

here is the dateline blog with the information about tonight's show:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9878187/#051103a

Ahhh...Smallville

When I rarely get a chance to watch regular television, most of my time is spent on the food channel...or now, more recently, Smallville on Thursdays...man I need some help! Smallville is soooo addictive!

I think I know now why I don't watch too much tv! I am very prone to become very involved in the shows. When I went home about a month ago, my father bought seasons 1-4....and catching the season finale of the 4th season....I couldn't stop there!!! So I end up watching the whole first season in one sitting, then moving on through the rest throughout the month of October.

Its a good show! Check it out!

¡traductor del google!!!!

So you're wondering if I can speak spanish now, eh?

Actually I can speak many languages:

Google の訳者用具は実際に素晴らしく, 私は完全にそ れに回転を与える!

L'outil de traducteur de google est vraiment intéressant et je lui donnerais certainement un mouvement giratoire!

Das googleübersetzerwerkzeug ist wirklich nett und ich würde ihm einen Whirl definitiv geben!

All kidding aside, I do not have a firm grasp on any foreign language, but now with this new google translator, you can decode or encode your language into french, german, italian, japanese, chinese, portugese, and, of course, spanish!

check the site out! http://www.google.com/language_tools?hl=en

Google now has an online aggregator!

I am on so many different computers at so many different times of the day, it's hard for me to download my own aggregator, so I have opted to use the online aggregators....Bloglines has been great to me.

I do use a lot of Google stuff though, like gmail, google groups, the search history, google earth, etc.....and the other day I found out that google had an aggregator.

To the right is a screenshot of it in action:

I do like the google reader for a few reasons.

1. There is a lot of the same functionality as gmail and google groups in that you can star your favorites and of course the searching capability. The labels from gmail are also utilized in here.

2. the interface is fairly easy to use (might be because I am already accustomed to gmail and google groups)

3. It is tied into my google account (which might be a little scary that google knows all about me, but hey, i dont have things to hide, right?)

4. Some sites have multiple feeds for multiple things, google reader lets you add them all with ease.

Things I didn't really like:

1. It is totally up to you to find the news feeds, albeit you can search in the top search bar for feeds, but still, Bloglines provides much more ease when concerning things you want to subscribe to.

2. The way to find feeds is a little basic, and I would like to have seen more ways to search for feeds.

3. Although the scrolling through recent feeds is nice, the fact that they are all lumped together on the home screen is a little confusing...although, to be fair, google reader does have the subscription view.

But all in all, I like the google reader and will use it for a little while and see if its as convincing as Bloglines.