The Social Experiment: Students Try No Facebook, No Texting For One Week

Facebook and texting are like food and water for modern-day teenagers. They think in status updates, check e-mail before brushing their teeth and fall asleep while texting. But can they live without social networking for a full week? This article reveals how some high school teenagers faced the challenge of going cold turkey on “a trip back to 1995: no Facebook, no texting, no e-mail, no Instant Messaging.” (12/10/10 ABCNews, Ki Mae Heussner and Neal Karlinsky) … Read Article

1. What event inspired the “Social Experiment”? What did Nicholi Wytovicz say about “paper-and-ink book” during the experiment?

2. What is the relationship between video production teacher Trent Mitchell and the teacher from the rival high school, Shorewood?

Google to Face Off With Facebook?

With the recent news of Google’s plans to create a social networking site that could rival Facebook, many people have wondered how any site could overthrow the social-media giant. (8/4/10 ABC News On Campus, Amy Rigby and Danielle Waugh) … Read Article

1. According to the article, what do college students spend hours doing on Facebook?

2. What are some specific criticisms of Facebook by college students, according to the article? What will make a college student abandon Facebook for a counterpart by Google?

Students Buying Class Notes Online?

For the college student who has trouble writing notes while listening to a professor talk, or has skipped class and missed an important lesson, take heart — someone out there is taking notes for you. (7/22/10 ABCNews On Campus, Amy Rigby) … Read Article

1. A 2008 lawsuit claims that Class Notes violated copyright laws. Do you agree or disagree with the claim? Why or Why not?

2. “Founders of both GradeGuru and Notehall say their sites are meant to be a supplement for students who are serious about their studies.” Discuss what might be the pitfall of these sites for “serious students.”

(Video)A Graduation Engagement: A Sign of the Time?

Valedictorian Emily Hawley proposed to her long time boyfriend Josh Walker during her commencement speech at New Jersey’s Centenary College. (5/17/10 CBSNewsOnline

1. How fitting was Emily’s Valedictorian speech and her surprise proposal to her boyfriend? Do you think she wrote her speech with her proposal in mind?

2. Discuss how nontraditional Emily’s action was . Do you approve or disapprove of her action? Why or why not?

2.

Colleges Go Carbon Neutral

Just recently, Duke University joined more than 600 universities in releasing its Climate Action Plan, a comprehensive blueprint that includes a target date and interim milestones for achieving carbon neutrality. (12/1/09 ABC News On Campus, Adam Yosim) … Read Article

1. Discuss the potential relationship between a university’s colors and carbon neutrality.

2. Discuss how the University of Florida’s Gators is using athletics to promote low-impact lifestyle.

Happy Birthday, Internet?

While the actual date of the Internet’s birthday is somewhat debated, many say that the Internet was born 40 years ago today at the University of California, Los Angeles, when a computer to computer message was sent for the first time from the UCLA campus to Stanford. (10/29/09 ABC News On Campus, Ki Mae Heussner) … Read Article

1. Describe the event considered by Kleinrock to be “the first breath of life the internet ever took.”

2. When was Facebook started? By whom, and when did it “become an online force?