Pigeon Post Wiki

Pigeon Post, or commonly known as carrier pigeons, was first known to be used by Noah.  It goes back over 3,000 years of history to deliver messages using a domestic breed of pigeons.  They were very useful throughout history, especially World War I, World War II, and the Vietnam War.  They are still in use today by the U.S. to spot shipwrecks from helicopters, they are raced in France, and used as drug carriers by traffickers to carry ten grams of heroine between Pakistan and Afghanistan to escape detection.  

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/01/30/style/30iht-blume_ed3__1.html

Wiki: Message in a Bottle

A very old media used to communicate at sea was the message in a bottle.  The use of this communication goes back to the 300s B.C.  Messages of this sort have been used for a variety of reasons.  Christopher Columbus said he had thrown a messaged bottle out to sea recounting his discovery of the New World, requesting it get delivered to the Queen of Spain.  It was also used in war times to give information about military positions.  The message in a bottle was well-known to be the message of men lost at sea, sent to their loved ones as a final farewell, or to send message of location like an S.O.S.  People are still finding these old treasures today.  

An article in the Daily News wrote, "The oldest message in a bottle spent 97 years and 309 days at sea," Guiness announced.  "The bottle was discovered 9.38 nautical miles from the position it was originally deployed."

Cave Paintings Wiki

An old form of the media is the cave painting.  Cave paintings have been dated back to over 30,000 years ago during the Paleolithic Era.  Most commonly, the images depict animals that lived during the Ice Age, but they have also been known to contain other patterns and figures as well.  The purpose of the cave paintings is unknown, but many believe them to be a source of religious practices or a form of communication among each other.  These paintings have been found in various caves and rocks throughout the world.  

http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/chauvet/chauvet_cave_art.php

Digital Adam

We are surrounded by many different media and technologies.  The advancements in technology are beyond what could ever have been imagined at the turn of the twentieth century.  We have advanced so much, in fact, that we are now at a stage where we wonder if our technology may surpass us in the near future.
There was a movie that came out in 2008 called Eagle Eye.  It is about a piece of technology, created by the government, that develops a mind of her own.  She is able to control almost everything through a series of networks of technology that are all interconnected.  Could this happen?  Could our technology surpass us to the point that we are useless to our world?  Technology has already been undertaking the project of a human computer, known as Digital Adam.  The idea came in the 1990s to take a male cadaver and turn him into a digital textbook for medical advancement, breaking down his anatomy into billions of bytes of data.
It almost seems as if something has gone too far, but do we turn ourselves into pieces of technology every day?  We create avatars and computerized versions of ourselves and communicate through several mediums of technology on a daily basis.  We created the framework for a Digital Adam.  Will this be our next evolution?  Have we gone from the Gibbon, Gorilla, Man, to Digital Adam?

What is Fiction? What is Fact?

What comes to mind when you think of a vaccine?  Have you ever really thought about what is in that vaccine that you've been mainstreamed to think is safe?  Is it safe?  The documentary The Greater Good provides a lot of great insight into whether or not these vaccines that we are given since birth are actually helping us.
It follows the stories of several individuals and families whose lives have been altered as a result of getting a vaccine.  Those opposing the vaccines are not necessarily saying that all vaccines are bad.  They simply believe in the choice, or "free reign," as far as if they want their child vaccinated or not.  The vaccine manufacturers and those who support vaccinations argue that none of these people can prove that these vaccines are unsafe or that there has been a rise in disabilities in people over the past several decades.  There is also speculation as to the harmful substances that are in these vaccines, such as mercury, aluminum, and other antigens that have arguably led to autism, brain damage, and chronic diseases.  One side says there has not been enough research done to know for sure whether or not these drugs are safe, and another that says there is historical evidence that these vaccines are safe and people should trust them.
Which of these statements are true?  Are any of them?  Who can you believe to tell you the truth about such disturbing information?  We are constantly bombarded with information every day and forced to decide for ourselves what is fiction and what is fact.
The supporters of the vaccines take on an age-old utilitarian approach.  This means choosing ethical standards that will procure the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people.  What if one day we are all mandated to take all of these vaccines, as was the case in Texas?  Are you willing to believe that some evidence exists that these vaccines are, or at least can be, potentially dangerous to some or many people?

You must decide for yourself what is fiction and what is fact.

Are We Our Thoughts?

Gautama Buddha said, "What we think, we become."  Is this true?

In my Media Literacy class the other day, my professor Rob Larson asked, "Are we our thoughts?"  It would seem almost simple to just say that we can think many things, but it doesn't matter unless we act upon them.
Does it?
Does it matter if what we think can completely engross our minds to the point that we think about acting upon it?  I think it still matters, but it may or may not be such an extreme issue.  Thoughts are put into our heads every day by our friends, family, teachers, and the media.  The media have such a large influence on us all every day.  It is because of the media that we are able to learn about many of the things that we now know, but didn't before.  So just seeing all of these new issues, products, music, movies, etc. through the media make you think about them all the time.  I can't even think about how many times a catchy commercial jingle, fun fact, or even something disturbing has been burned into my mind.  In my opinion, just because you think about things, doesn't mean that they are what you believe in.

I would never have thought that I would write a blog about thinking.  It is a weird concept to think about thinking: how often you do it, why you think of certain things, etc. Maybe that's the point.  Maybe, one day, I will have understood.