WHEN WAR MEETS VIDEO GAMES

War games are getting popular nowadays as it’s becoming a trend, there are so many games that are being released from this genre to a degree where one might see it as though these games are taking over the market and gamers are being forced into playing these games.

It’s not necessarily true that "If it's not realistic, it's not worth playing," since different people want and expect different things from games. Some specifically look at the graphics and the visuals of the game while many others just look at the game play and storyline of the games. Several people are very serious about their games and truly obsessive about it while other don’t care and are really at it for the fun. Yes, in certain aspects war games certainly desensitizing people of the true horror of war since the gamers don’t understand the seriousness of war, its impact on society, economy its aftereffects and the most horrific, the casualties and the deaths. Foremost of all, the true fact is that all the people don’t play war games to experience the truths of what really took place in history but are instead only played for fun and time pass.

Personally I feel that war games don’t really capture the essence of the wars that have plagued our society but instead make it look fun. I have never really played war games so I have no personal opinion about a certain game. And I doubt I’ll find out since I just lost interest in playing video games, I feel that I have grown out of that stage and age in life. Overall war games might depict some facts from different wars, but usually they don’t have an impact on the gamers that it’s not just a game but was a complete tragedy when it occurred.

An iPod classroom ?

Even though I feel that I’ am a mix of all the types of learners, visual, auditory and kinesthetic, I probably would learn well using an iPod. Keeping the lectures and seminars in the iPod will be very useful to view when I’m on the go. For instance when I’m taking the bus, instead of listening to music I can watch or listen to the seminars. It would be a great tool as a future reference, as many students tend to forget a few things or key facts that are mentioned in the seminar. For instance I attended a seminar for my grade 10 design course pertaining about recycling around half way through the school year. This December when I was trying to complete a unit for my grade 11 design course I had decided to write about recycling and when I was trying to include a certain key fact I wasn’t able to recollect the exact fact which was a percentage mentioned by my teacher almost a year ago. If I was able to download that seminar into my iPod I could easily figure out that fact which I had forgotten. All the down loadable seminars and lectures would be very useful and helpful during exam time, as they can be seen countless times to review if forgotten.

Of course Mary Ward with its self directed learning should embrace this technology for education. By doing this it will not only truly assist many students but also ruin the education of others. For the students who do very well in Mary Ward and like the self directed system will do great with this new technology. But the students who are always behind and slack off, this technology will devastate and spoil their education, since they’ll use this as another excuse to do the work later. Many students will decide not to go to seminars by saying that they can watch it on the iPod, and then they’ll postpone watching it on the iPod by telling they’ll do it later. By keeping on postponing, they’ll never get their work done. If this technology is used appropriately it will be great tool which we can add to our school.

When the GOOD meet the BAD

There are many things in this world that are both good and bad in its own ways, but technology is the one that we come across the most and has the greatest pros and cons. One should pay close attention to the pros and cons of technology as they can help us or destroy us, while they can assist us through hundred different ways they can also be addictive and harmful to ones health. The effects of technology is very important as they are not only revolutionizing the world they also play an enormous part in our society.

There are many forms of technology that we all come across every day, and some of them include transportation, TV, cell phones, and the one we use the most, computers and the internet. All these pieces of technology mentioned above are very valuable since many of use take them for granted. Through cars, trains and airplanes, we can travel far distances, TV keeps us informed of world issues through the news, and let us watch programs taken place on the other side of the world. We are allowed to communicate with others all around the world through the use of cell phones and telephones. Finally, the technology the rapidly improving and being used the most, internet and computers. With the help of computers we can word process, draw and design various things through the aid of programs like Auto CAD, Photoshop, and Illustrator. The internet helps us access millions of websites with an enormous collection of information. Now we can buy various items online, and even pay our bills. Technology truly helps us in numerous ways and will continue to as they continue to drastically change our society.

On the other hand the different types of technology mentioned above also have another side to them. Transportation and all its vehicles drastically damage the environment through their pollutants. By polluting the air with deadly toxins there is an increase in global warming as the temperature of the atmosphere is being raised. TV broadcasts many programs that intended for a mature audience but if there is no supervision even little children can watch it. Cell phone can ruin ones ears if overused through its transmission of radiation. Over usage of computers can cause many health problems including Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) and Cumulative Trauma Disorder (CTD). The internet can be used in many ways including a lot of negative ones. Some of the growing issues include hacking and pornography. Many sites are being hacked and people steal many personal information of other. With no parental lock on the internet many children are viewing pornography and this is becoming a big concern. There are also online predators that take part in online chat rooms and try to meet the people they meet online and when they do meet the results are usually kidnapping and sexual assaults. Overall technology has many cons and should be used wisely.

As it can be clearly seen, technology can be used for both good and bad, it can do wonders if used for good, but create destruction if its used for the wrong purposes and uses.