Do Teens Need the Internet?

Nadia Rangwalla

July 31, 2011

Persuasive Writing

Do Teens Need the Internet?

It was the last quarter; the score was tied one to one. Rain was mixing with the sweat on my forehead and the pain was starting to travel up through my legs, but at this point I couldn’t care less. My mind was only on one thing; defend my goalie. The referee blew the whistle, and play resumed. It was the state championship, and you could literally cut the tension with a knife. The crowd was in a competition of their own, which bleacher could cheer louder. But on the field the real fight was beginning, eye black smudged, bruises ready to appear, intensity all across the face, and twelve minutes on the clock. Second-by-second, minute-by-minute, time ticked on; the score stayed still. Finally the last two minutes came along, and as swiftly as fox number three dribbled up the field, she crossed the ball into the box and my teammates head angled it towards the net. Goal! We had scored. Now all that was left to do was defend. After what seemed like hours, but was only minutes the final whistle blew and we had just won the state championships, I thought I was dreaming. Tears of joy dripped out of my eyes, and my team happily boarded the bus. After fifteen minutes of pure delight on the ride home, a realization hit me. I was going to get home around 8 o’clock, my research paper on women’s rights in Afghanistan was due tomorrow, and I hadn’t started. I had no time to go to the library to research, and all I could think was Thank God for Google.

In previous decades teenagers have never been this busy. In this day and age high school and college students have so much going on. Not only do they have to go to school, and manage a part-time job anymore. Many if not most teens have some sort of extra-curricular activity such as sports, drama, clubs, and music. The Internet is becoming a necessity for teens worldwide in order for them to continue to excel at school while being able to attend everything on their busy schedule. Going to library, checking out books, and researching encyclopedias have become old fashioned. Teens have no time to sit and look to find the answer, they need it immediately. From my own personal experiences, I have learnt that without search engines like Google Scholar, and Bing I would never have had my essays in on time.

Internet usage is growing, more and more people are becoming able to access it through phones, iPods, laptops, and public computers. The constant advancement of systems and search engines on the Internet is highly beneficial for teens. In my opinion, the Internet helps teens control their busy schedules by allowing them to take less time on their homework so they are able to perform in their other activities as well as keeping up in school while still being able to have a decent nights rest.

Teenage dependency on the Internet is a rather controversial issue. Some people find that the Internet may not be helping the youth but rather harming them. A firm believer that the Internet is distracting teens is Sue Scheff, founder of Parent Universal Resource Experts. Her online website (http://www.sue-scheff.net/) discusses how the digital generation of kids may becoming addicted to the Internet, and gives advice to parents on how to monitor their children’s usage of it. She talks about how social networking websites such as Facebook, and MySpace are causing a constant distraction that can alter their social and educational development.

I do agree up to a point with Scheff. I cannot even count the amount of times I have gone to Facebook while reading articles, writing essays, and doing various assignments of the sort. In general people need breaks from boring activities such as homework, Facebook acts as my break. Social networking and gaming sites could occupy others break time. But these distractions are just simply just a break, if these sites were not available for people, they would resort to other distractions such as getting up to get food or talking on the phone to friends. This is why I would not go so far as saying that teen’s social skills and academic achievements are being affected by these online breaks.

The Internet is a valuable tool to all ages, but it is essential for high school and college students. Their hectic schedules demand a quick alternative to a trip to the library, which search engines and databases on the Internet are happy to provide. Though some people have mixed feelings on whether or not the World Wide Web is just distraction in disguise, I believe that for teens the Net is not just a want but a need.

Children In The Digital Age

Emily Glaenzer

July 28, 2011

I babysit my neighbor every Thursday night. Her name is Sydney, she is three, has short blond hair tied back in a bow and classic baby fat cheeks with big blue eyes. I’ve babysat Sydney for only a year or so, but already am noticing some major differences in how her childhood is beginning than how mine began. I’ve noticed how TV instantly soothes her regardless of the problem (scrapes, bruises, crying for her parents). I’ve noticed how much she loves her plastic pink cell phone and her Dora the Explorer cell phone and her baby blue toy laptop. I’ve noticed how much she hates playing with her blocks, the only simple toy in the house.

Sydney is not alone. Children around the world are tuning into the digital age (or are becoming part of what Don Tapscott calls the “Net Generation”). Research originally done by the Seattle Research Institute shows that 30-50% of preschoolers have a TV in their bedroom. I find this statistic startling, while many kid’s shows are educational, I worry that they may be hooking themselves onto this media too soon. I’m worried that one day these kids may wake up to find that without their technology around they will not be able to function. I’m worried that this day has already passed.

We as a society are addicted to the Internet, to our smartphones even to our TV shows. And this is only within the past ten years. Larry Rosen states in “Teaching the iGeneration”, “Just as we don’t think about the existence of air, kids don’t question the existence of technology and media”. I speak from personal experience when I say I am regularly in communication with others and incessantly surrounded people using their computers, smartphones, and ipods. It has become a constant in my life.

However, regardless of the obvious flaws that technology has brought, it must be said that there are some pros to this ever-growing digital universe. Using our new technology we are able to help children with learning to read, write, even talk. A study by The Pearson Foundation shows that children are learning to read at a faster rate than ever before and that the new technology for learning is a way of communicating directly with their work leading to a more positive experience. Honestly, I could go on and on about the pros of the Internet for childhood education. From education consortiums to What To Expect When Expecting websites, there are many researchers and doctors claiming that the Internet is a fantastic source for teaching a child. However, there are cons.

Don Tapscott delves into more negative views of digital children in his book Grown Up Digital. He discusses the addiction to the screen, the loss of social skills and the lack of activities (why play soccer when you can play Wii Soccer), and that the Net Generation has become dumbed down. Tapscott is not the only one with claims to the ugly side of the Internet. People like Richard Carr (author of “Is Google Making Us Dumber?”) and Maryanne Wolf (author of Proust and the Squid: the Story and Science of the Reading Brain) claim that the Internet is harming us, preventing us from deep reading (and consequently in depth thinking).

I must agree with these facts. The Internet is harming us. Not only do I believe it is making us more impatient, but I believe it is keeping us in a sort of bubble. Preventing bad experiences, keeping us a little too clean.

My cousin, Tom, an app addict, was bragging to me about his new iPhone app where he can plug in his current location and his iPhone will tell him the nearest, cleanest bathrooms. I don’t know whether to think this is impressive and something to be envious (goodbye gross bathrooms!) or something to be shocked by. I find myself leaning towards the latter. As my mom said, “Tom needs to get a little dirty here and there”. The Internet is keeping us away from that gross hotel, making it easier for us to meet new people or finish our homework. But is there a point when things become too easy?

As Sydney plays with her toys, I come to realize that she is no different than Tom. She too is never going to get dirty; she plays with her toy laptops and cell phones. She is learning how to use them because for the rest of her life she will be around them. In fact, she even teaches me how to use them. Sydney at age three is more tech-savvy than me at age seventeen. However, when I was younger my parents taught me how to spell my own name. Leapfrog was only a crutch. My worry is that Sydney is too clean; she uses technology as something more than a crutch.

On the contrary, I can’t help but make myself see the pros to Sydney’s technological advances. I do cringe when she reaches for her laptop and I do feel guilty when I turn the TV on to prevent those incessant tears, however, it is because of that leapfrog machine that she could spell, talk and read at an earlier age than I could. Sydney is a smart child and some of the credit must be attributed to her gadgets. I will admit that Sydney needs to learn to use technology to grow up with her generation and I will admit that it has brought her miles in her education. However, it is how often it is used and the way it is used that brings me to a halt.

It is because I’ve seen the kids addicted to their iPhones and Nintendos. It is because preschoolers spend three times more time in front of a screen than they do reading (the Kaiser Foundation). Sydney is not to blame for playing with her electronic toys. Nor are her parents, nor are the companies that make them. I believe that adults are struggling with this new idea of technology because it is something that they are not involved in. It’s like learning a new language: children pick up new languages within weeks, it can take adults years. When their child can learn something faster, be able to do something before they can, any adult will want to promote that. Even beyond educational reasons, digital media is an easy distraction, an easy way out for many stressed parents. What must be learned is pacing. If the Internet continues, it must be continued at a slower pace. Kids and adults need to learn the values of the Internet, but also what it can do to us. They need to learn that sometimes playing a game outside may be better than playing a game inside, even if it is educational. It’s not the Internet that’s bad; it’s the way that it’s been used.

Cyber Bullying Laws in New York State

Olivia McElwain
Cyber Bullying in New York

March 21, 2010. October 16, 2006. April 6, 2009. January 14, 2010. September 22, 2010.

March 21, 2010 sticks out in my mind. It was a Sunday, and I went to the tennis courts to see my friends. One friend told me he heard a girl died in our school. She was a senior. I asked my sister who was also a senior at that time if she has known her. My sister said yes, that they played soccer together and knew each other from elementary school. Her name was Alexis Pilkington.

The next day was a Monday, and we went to school not knowing what to expect. What were we supposed to do when one of our own has taken her own life? The school was devastated, to say the least. Teachers roamed the hallways, trying to be brave, but some broke down in tears and could not hide their emotions. Some teachers still taught and acted like it did not happen. In those classes, the students cried quietly to themselves, so no one would overhear. Other teachers allowed for the day off. They asked the students to share stories about Lexi, and to just relax for the day. The music wing was used as a grieving area for those who felt sad or empty. No one smiled that day. Smiling meant that you did not care or that you were insulting Lexi’s memory. Those who smiled did it privately and were scorned for being so ignorant.

Everyone in the school knew what happened. Everyone felt each other’s pain. The day was slow, depressing and filled with tears or “what if”.

New information began to emerge about Lexi’s suicide. She was cyber bullied, and the day after it happened, people began posting nooses on her memorial page on Facebook. They wrote crude things about Jews and how Lexi was stupid. Even after she died, these people would not let up.
Although her parents say that cyber bullying played a little role in her Lexi’s choice, it still played a part. Even if her choice to end her own life did not have to do solely with the Internet, the fact that kids decided to taunt her about her death in an indicator that she was bullied, and that it would never stop. If it was this bad after she died, what was it like before?

All of her friends were outraged by the rude messages and decided to do something about it. Our school now has a boycott against a website called Formspring.me. This website was the site where all the insults Lexi faced resided. Most of our school no longer uses the website, but many do, and many are constantly and anonymously taunted.

During all of this, New York State did nothing. No charges were brought up against the criminals who caused Lexi’s death. The school did not punish the students who insulted the girl’s death. Our school is still astonished even after a year. We’re still fighting for the justice Lexi’s young life deserves.

The other dates like September 22, 2010 or October 16, 2006 are the dates of those who committed suicide due to cyber harassment or cyber bullying. Those like Alexis Pilkington were placed in the bitter world of the Internet where one can post anything even if it is considered discriminatory. While some victims like Tyler Clementi’s or Phoebe Prince’s lives are being justified by the criminal charges being brought up against their bullies, Alexis Pilkington’s death goes unwarranted. New York State did not do anything about a seventeen year old girl killing herself because of bullying.

Formspring, Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Omegle, Oovoo, so many websites offer the chance to meet new people and say things. However, these websites also offer a chance for people to hurt others. Some can hurt publicly such as Facebook or Twitter while some offer to humiliate people anonymously such as Formspring and Tumblr. Now, most of these websites’ intentions were not for people to be hurt or chastised, but that is what this has come to.

New York State’s cyber laws are sanctioned into three parts. The three parts consist of cyber bullying, cyber stalking, and cyber harassment. However, New York State’s cyber bullying laws are hidden. Upon researching “cyber bullying laws” I did not find New York State on any list of states that offer consequences for cyber-bullying. However, when narrowing my search to just “New York State cyber bullying laws’, I found that the law is minimal. The New York State mandates that a person who is convicted of “cyber harassment” is sentenced as a Class A Misdemeanor (National Conference of State Legislature). This can mean a lot, or this can mean very little. A person can be sentenced to one year in jail or pay a fine of $4,000. This usually does not occur because most cases against cyber bullying are thrown away. New York State also dictates that “cyber bullying” is an educational law which means that the state dictates each public school must educate children on the effects of cyber bullying and offer sources on how to get help. Because cyber bullying is an educational law, no consequence exists for those who commit it. Lastly, New York State law also does not have any sort of law for cyber stalking.

New York State has a population of 18, 976, 457 people. Approximately 750, 000 people attempt suicide each year while 30, 000 end up dying from suicide (“Suicide FAQ’s”). Bullying victims are two to nine times more likely to commit suicide (“Bullying Statistic”). New York State cannot help those who die after being bullied. New York State cannot justify their death and put the bullies in their place. Instead, these bullies walk around free and ready to cause another teen to commit suicide. New York State’s bullying laws are rarely enforced with one assembly a year explaining the threat of cyber-bullying or a fine that goes on their criminal record as a misdemeanor. No seventeen year old girl should want to die from going on the Internet. New York State does not have a handle on bullies and their victims. Hence, their laws should be modified to fit the new coming age of cyber bullying.

While the Internet is a dangerous and free place to do whatever you want undetected, there must be some control. Some poor child is reading that they are a fat cow even if they are less than one hundred and fifty pounds. That is somebody’s daughter or son who can no longer face their peers because of the things written on the Internet. There must be some way to control those who use the Internet.
The scary thing about the Internet is that the only way we know that cyber bullying is happening is because of these suicides. Most would still have been ignorant on the subject if it weren’t for students killing themselves over rude and harmful messages. People will argue that the Internet falls into the First Amendment of the Constitution, but doesn’t the First Amendment state that if one slanders or puts someone into danger, they are violating the First Amendment and the citizen’s rights. So why do so many cyber bullies get away with it?

The Internet is easy because you can hide who you are. Kids will make up fake profiles to get close to someone, or they will post something anonymously. It is much easier now than it was before to taunt a person without getting into trouble. When one makes a fake profile, they hide behind them. The victim of this profile cannot find who they are easily, and the victim usually does not tell someone about being bullied. They try to deal with it, but sometimes it hurts too much.
New York State must take the initiative to control those who abuse the Internet. There must be a mandatory class that actually teaches kids the rights and wrongs of the Internet, not some annual assembly that most kids use as naptime. There must be a law passed that indicts the bullies with a crueler punishment than a misdemeanor. The bullies could be threatening a life or slandering a name. They must be punished. Furthermore, those bullies who pushed a victim to suicide should also be punished. Unintentional manslaughter should be an option for those bullies who helped someone choose to kill themself.

I agree that it is hard to control something as monumental as the Internet, but it must be done. These lives must be saved. No young child should be scared to use the Internet or explore the world. No child should think of taking their own life because someone called them a slut or a fat cow. New York State educators often tell parents that children are our future. We cannot be the future if we are scared and hurt by the Internet and by those who die from using the Internet.
The Internet is not to blame for these deaths. The bullies who abuse the Internet are at fault, and New York State must take that into consideration. New York State must control the young criminals before they take another life, a life that we all love.

Persuasive Writing: Developing a Map for your Essay

1. Building argument. Claim+ Reasons=Argument.

a. What point am I trying to argue? (Your claim: your thesis)

b. Why do I believe this point to be true? (Reasons for your claim)

c. What facts or examples could I state to support these reasons and validate my argument? (Evidence)

d. What other positions can people reasonably take on this topic? (Necessity) [Note: Take a position on about something worth arguing about. If you think people wouldn’t possibly disagree, why take the time to convince them?]

2. Building evidence.
a. What sort of primary or secondary sources would help me to bolster my argument?
b. What are some key words that I can use while researching?

2. Using rhetorical strategies for persuasion.

Logos—appeals to logic
How can I make the argument consistent and logical?
How can I support them with the best reasoning and best evidence?
What studies or research, or facts and examples, can I bring in?
What other convincing evidence* can I bring in? (Note: *Evidence can be personal experience, observations, interviews, research, testimony, statistics, examples, etc.)
Is my evidence sufficient, accurate, typical, and relevant to my argument?

Ethos—appeals to authority
How can I gain my readers’ trust and enhance my credibility and trustworthiness?
How can I be (or become) knowledgeable and fair about this issue?
How can I present myself effectively? (Don’t try to be someone I am not!)
How do I want to come across as an author, a person in general?
What experts can I bring in? (use names, credentials, citations)

Pathos—appeals to emotions and values (your connection to your audience)
Who is my audience? How much does my audience know or care about issue? What are their attitudes, objections, and assumptions? (audience analysis)
How can I build a bridge to my audience, identifying with this audience?
How can I appeal to my audience’s values?
How can I engage my reader emotionally and imaginatively?
Which emotions do I want to elicit in your audience?
What scene or anecdote can you bring in to connect with your audience? (Using concrete language, narratives, specific examples and illustrations, can build emotional connections.)
What words can you use to evoke these emotions? (For example, notice how this sentence is emotionally charged: “Ignoring these ecological needs will leave us with a barren wasteland rather than a blooming, productive, thriving garden.”)

Kairos—appeals to timeliness or urgency
Why is it important to make this claim now?
Why is this issue important?
How can I express the significance of this issue at this moment in time and convey the urgency of considering my position?

Why Mac?

Nadia R

July 28, 2011

Why Mac?

I walk into Starbucks everyday, order my double chocolate chip frappucino and sit down. As I enjoy my treat, I take in everyone around me. Besides me a women is talking on her IPhone. On the other side a student is taking notes while jamming out to his IPod, and across the room a women is using her Mac book pro. It is clearly evident that Macintosh products are taking over; everywhere I look there is a small glowing apple. But why? Why is are more people choosing Apple goods rather than competing companies such as Dell or Vista?

Apple must be advertising its products in a unique way to get peoples attention, but how? Maybe it’s their modern, and sleek design that catches peoples eye. Maybe it’s their humorous ads filled with celebrity appearances. Maybe it’s their way of speaking toward the younger teen audience, rather than an adult. What is so special about Apple that makes people get up and want to buy their products?

In the past couple of decades Apple products have become a sensation. As the company grew stronger, their advertisements increased and became more popular. In my opinion the most memorable was the super bowl commercial that launched the Think Different campaign in 1984. Since then millions have viewed that and other campaigns of Apples, including the campaign introducing the first generation IPod.

Emily Glaenzer

July 28, 2011

I babysit my neighbor every Thursday night. Her name is Sydney, she is three, has short blond hair tied back in a bow and classic baby fat cheeks with big blue eyes. I’ve babysat Sydney for only a year or so, but already am noticing some major differences in how her childhood is beginning than how mine began. I’ve noticed how TV instantly soothes her regardless of the problem (scrapes, bruises, crying for her parents). I’ve noticed how much she loves her plastic pink cell phone and her Dora the Explorer cell phone and her baby blue toy laptop. I’ve noticed how much she hates playing with her blocks, the only simple toy in the house.

Sydney is no different from any other child born into this digitized generation. Research originally done by Seattle Research Institute shows that 30-50% of preschoolers has a TV in their bedroom. I find this statistic startling, while many kid’s shows are educational, I worry that they may be hooking themselves onto this media too soon. I’m worried that one day these kids may wake up to find that without there technology around they will not be able to function. I’m worried that this day has already passed.

We as a society are addicted to the Internet, to our smartphones even to our TV shows. And this is only within the past ten years. What will happen to the kids who have been exposed to this growing industry since day one?

There are pros to the ever-growing digital universe. A study by the Pearson foundation shows that children are learning to read at a faster rate than ever before and positively impacts their opinion of learning so they are more eager to learn than ever before. In the end, I cannot tell you for sure whether or not this new universe will positively impact Sydney’s life. I cannot tell you if Cascio’s theory of our brains evolving will ultimately come true, or if Carr’s theory of our brains in due course malfunctioning will come true. I can tell you that Sydney is growing up in a different world than you or I did.

Catherine

The Net impact on Society

On the Net today there is a vast amount of information available for almost anyone to access. The internet has made it possible for more people to see more material and material they may not have otherwise been exposed to without the aid of the Net. With all this information and materials that people can reach on the internet it seems possible that the use of the internet may be changing the behaviors of the generation which has grown up with it. Due to advancements that the Net provides and the different form of entertainment and information that it possesses, it seems logical that the generation which grows up using it would act and behave differently than the ones before which have not. However, with both the good and bad cites the influence that the Net may have could be positive or negative. Present on the Net are cite where people can watch pornography, download music, television shows or movies illegally, and buy essays or homework assignments. On the other hand, there are also pages which hold research, information on school subject, news articles that tell current event around the world. The use of the Net and the materials on it has affected the behaviors and morals of society’s youth.
With the education information on the Net there is the potential that this new access to the vast amount of material on the internet has positively influenced the youth due to the ability to view intellect improving information created by the internet. Since people can now learn more information faster on the internet than they could before when merely using books, one could infer that this access to data the generation that grew up with the Net may be smarter. In addition due to the connection that the internet allows between countries all over the world, children that use the interne have the potential to be more informed about the world and global events which occur.

Nikhil Misra
7-29-11
Final Essay rough Draft/Brainstorm

The internet and technology has changed the world forever. It’s not something we can go back and eliminate, now that it has come about it will be here for a long time. It’s changed the way people consume information and has had some effect on the way people read. I think that it’s a good change and that in time society will see it’s a productive change, no different than the printing press was.

What life be like without the technology we have today?
There would be no transportation, different foods, and definitely an abundance of time. Due to internet and technology addiction we spend so much time in our lives on the net.

My anectdote:
Sitting on the couch, I watch my brother wander in to the room and mutter “your generation” skeptically. I wonder what he’s talking about and then I realize I am playing video games, listening to music, have my laptop open on Facebook, and I’m texting my friends. I realize what he means. That my generation revolves around technology.
What is Internet Addiction?

Will Taylor

Will Taylor
7/29/11
Final Essay rough draft

The Addictive Internet

I walk through the front door and stroll over to the kitchen. I grab a snack and sit down next to my brother who is on Gmail, chatting his friends. This is a regular occurrence so I don’t mind it. I go upstairs, and I see my sister on her laptop, noticing she is on Facebook. I intended to take a shower right away but the urge of the internet is too great. I open my laptop and log on to Facebook, then open a tab for YouTube, and then look to see if there is any interesting information on ESPN. Looking back on it, I realize how addictive the internet is.

Social Networking is a big reason why people are constantly on the internet. The combination of Twitter, YouTube, Pandora, Facebook, and email has caused people to always be on the internet. Some reasons to why these social networks are popular include, you can talk to your friends, you can constantly find new music, and you can stay up to date with people you are not with.

How the Internet Has Changed Journalism

Jonathon Venitz

6/29/11

Persuasive Writing, Clark

Journalism and the Internet

The Internet has changed the way we view journalism. News can be reported and published faster than previous methods and people can now access the news through multiple types of media anywhere and everywhere.

A few examples of the various ways we can get news now include Facebook and Twitter feeds, email alerts, news websites such as CNN and MSNBC, and internet blogs. The advent of blogs in particular has changed what journalism means. While before, the two main news sources were newspapers and TV, now with the advent of the internet, anyone can say anything they want through blogs and other websites, making the professionalism of journalism disappear.

Another example of how the Internet affects journalism is how quick and accessible the news is now. Instead of waiting for the paper to be published each day, we can get alerts through our phones and emails, giving us the latest breaking news updates as they happen in real time. Witnesses of events can now update their Twitter pages as they happen, such as a man who kept a Twitter page documenting the entire capture of Osama Bin Laden as he watched from across the street.

Websites now allow us to get what we want to know about our news fast and easily, without having to skim through a whole paper, or sit through a TV broadcast. We can skip over what we don’t want to read, and simply get the most important facts. This has created a more fast-paced society.

The internet allows us to be more aware of the world around us. It has changed how we receive our news, whether it be for better or for worse.

Socializing on the internet vs. Socializing in real life

Neil Sharma

Persuasive Writing

Cheryl Clark

29 July 2011

Socializing on the internet vs. Socializing in real life

Social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ have not only changed the culture of the internet and how we communicate, it also has changed socializing in general. This is because the internet now provides people with a mask to hide behind.

When meeting people on the internet versus when you meet a person in real life, it can be seen that there are major differences. For example some people are more outgoing and say a lot of things good or bad. But when meeting the person in real life they might turn out to be the polar opposite of what they appear to be on the internet. This is because they use the internet as a way of disguising themselves and that allows them to say or do whatever they want. And this in turn allows them to mislead people about who they really are in real life.

This can be both good and bad at the same time. It is good because it gives people who are normally quiet in real life to have an outlet to express them and allow them to be heard, since in real life they are not able to do that. But it also has caused some people to abuse the power of these social networking sites. This is because some use the internet to bully others and making fun of them without any known authority knowing about the horrible things they are saying to these victims. These websites can also lead to what is commonly referred to as cyber-bullying. Recent acts of cyber-bullying not only hurt people personally, but also mentally, which have caused suicides.

Technology and National Security Outline

Robbie Dawson

How has the development of technology affected national security?
Has it made a positive or negative impact?
What impact will technology have on national security in the future?

China spying
Internet security
Cyberwarfare
Military usage of robots and UAVs
Patriot Act
NSA
Satellites
　
Interview professors
Internet sources on
DoD
NSA
FBI
http://www.issues.org/national_security.html
http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/2011/03/22/major-industries-vulnerable-cyber-attack/
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-501465_162-20018124-501465.html
http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,159220,00.html
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2011/07/world-week-ahead-july-11.html
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/72954.html
　
　
　
　
"Getting at sensitive data through someone inside an organization -- who has all the access rights they need -- is not only the most effective way to breach a hardened perimeter defense, but also a great way to obfuscate the attack. Organizations will need to be on the lookout for "middle man" hackers who may serve as mercenary forces for veiled attacks by other countries."
　
　
　
　

Internet and Business

Curtis Lin

Cheryl Clarks

7/29/11

BU Summer – Persuasive Writing

Internet and Business

Internet has transformed business by making it easier and quicker to communicate between businesses, businesses and customers, as well as the chain of command within businesses themselves.

For example, the internet includes:

· Email

· Websites for the company

· A new front for advertisements

The internet also includes search engines such as Google, which allow advertisements and also expand a company’s awareness in a market.

From business to business, email can be used to contact branches across the seas, increasing the speed and rate of contact between different branches around the world for a specific company –and also makes it easier and cheaper at the same time.

Email and the internet can also be used for quick relays between different branches and chains of command, and also is able to notify workers in case of an emergency.

Email and the internet can be used to work at home, in case a person needs to stay at home, but desires not to miss any work.

Data about companies can be easily gained from the internet, so that companies can increase their own awareness of what their company stands for, sells, and does. This also aids the stock market users who tend to research companies before buying their stock. Also, it’s possible to create a favorable image with a website.

Overall, the internet makes it faster for businesses and consumers to communicate, and creates a faster world of information flow.