Blogs vs Wikis

Blogs and wikis are two powerful tools in the digital age. Blogs have given a voice to any who want to be heard and allow them to share their feelings and their ideas with the world. They allow for one to continuously share their thoughts or opinions in real-time, often hosting a comment section to allow readers to express themselves as well. This creates a conversational atmosphere to many blogs that facilitates the sharing of often differing ideas with engaged readers. With the rise in popularity of Twitter, we can see that blogs are generally no longer one person speaking to another, but rather a collaborative conversation where each individual gets to voice their feelings.

Wikis, on the other hand, are a collaborative creation where different parties work together to continually edit and update about a subject. Wikis are focused less on ownership and a single person's ideas, but rather often provides a more neutral stance on a subject. Due to the power of continual editing and refinement, wikis encapsulate all the nuance in opposing viewpoints of an issue.

In today's globalized world, convergence has played a huge role in enriching the lives of humans everywhere. At the touch of a smartphone, users can seek out information about anything they wish to learn about. Wikipedia, a free collaborative encyclopedia, has more information on any subject than one could read in one's lifetime. If, in fact, one stumbles across a topic that hasn't been talked about yet, one could simply be the first to voice their viewpoints about the topic. Wikis have allowed for a collective sharing of knowledge that in essence, has transcended any book or physical recording has had. Wikis allow for continual refinement of a topic as humanity learns more about it.


Sources:
https://teaching.unsw.edu.au/assessment-blog-wiki-or-forum-which-should-you-use
http://www.lrc.columbia.edu/blogs-versus-wikis-which-should-i-use/

Analysis of Social Networking: Disconnect in a World of Connection

For my project, I chose to take a deep dive into the world of social networking, particularly about how many people feel more disconnected from society, even though we are more connected in the modern era than ever before. Social networking has been extremely impactful on society, connecting family, friends, and even strangers across the globe. However, as more and more people join the ranks of those on social networks, we are finding that many people are feeling more isolated from their peers. We can also see the rise of a major phenomenon called FOMO, or fear of missing out, and I would like to address whether being so interconnected with each other is a ultimately a net benefit or deficit for members of society. I plan to also delve into potential remedies for this increasingly prevalent problem in our society, as well as why this phenomenon occurs in the first place.