Facebook, launched in February 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg, is a social networking website which currently has over 750 million users. Facebook originated as a directory for photos and information about Harvard students. Its original name was Facemash and it was shut down days after the launch, due to the fact that Zuckerberg hacked Harvard's network in order to get the ID pictures of students. In 2004 the company became incorporated and Zuckerberg began writing code for a new website, originally called Thefacebook, with membership limited to people enrolled at Harvard. Soon after, it opened up to other Ivy League schools and eventually to nearly all universities in the United States and Canada. In 2005, the company bought the domain facebook.com, where it still resides. In the same year, facebook.com began to accept high school students, though at first it was only by invite. In 2006 it opened to everybody 13 and older, becoming the website as we know it today. Since then, facebook.com has been growing steadily and over 20,000 disallowed profiles are removed every day for various infractions. For 2011, the estimated revenue of Facebook is between $4 billion and $12 billion, up from $2 billion in 2010 and $52 million in 2006. Most of Facebook's revenue comes from advertising, with an estimated $2.2 billion coming from ad revenue in 2011.
In order to keep up with users' need to connect with friends and family, Facebook introduced video chat in partnership with Skype in July 2011. Beyond this, Facebook is working on integrating users' favorite music, movies, tv shows and other media into the website, in order to become a hub for various types of internet activities. In an attempt to take down their competitor, Google, Facebook hired a public relations firm to persuade reporters to write negative reports on Google's new service, Social Circles. This ties back to the ongoing struggle over privacy on Facebook. In August 2011, Facebook revamped its privacy controls yet again, in an attempt to quell the concerns of its users. In regards to advertising, Facebook Ads Product Director, Gokul Rajaram recently told reporters at TechCrunch that advertising was migrating from traditional ads to entirely network-driven ads. These ads, called "Social Ads" and "Sponsored Stories", are organically created from user content, instead of originating in a computer algorithm. This is important to Facebook since it has been predicted that a user will be more likely to purchase a product that a friend has recommended or "liked". With the user base reaching its saturation point, Facebook is looking to other avenues in order to keep revenue up and the user base interested. With the new competitor Google+, the people at Facebook need to stay on their toes in order to stay ahead in the game.
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Sunday, September 11, 2011
The E-Book: Revolutionizing the Way We Read
One form of media that has always been near to my heart is the humble book. This art medium has lasted over the centuries, and now it is transforming into an exciting, new form: the e-book. E-book readers have boomed in the past few years, and they are quickly changing how we purchase, read and search for books. In this article by Steven Johnson of the Wall Street Journal, this new technology is explored.
In the article, Johnson mentions several drawbacks, such as the lack of attention required by the new e-books, and the potential for authors to start writing for hits on search engines. While these issues are possible, I believe the e-book has many more pros than cons. Now when you hear of an interesting book, you don't have to wait until you go to a bookstore to buy it. Downloading books from an e-book reader is very easy, and much cheaper than buying a physical book. Also, the advent of e-books brings a wonderful addition: free out-of-copyright books. Classics such as Pride and Prejudice, Robin Hood, and Grimm's Fairy Tales are now free to download and peruse.
I believe that the coming of e-books will mark a rise in readers. People who previously didn't have the time to sit down and read a book cover-to-cover will be able to bring a lightweight e-book with them on the subway. Those who can't afford bound books will have many free and inexpensive works available to them. I also feel that with the ease and affordability that e-books bring, people will be more likely to purchase books that they previously might have not bothered to read because of expense and hassle.
Sure, e-books make it easier to multi-task while reading, so people may read in small chunks of time rather than in one long session. However, I don't see how either way of reading is superior to the other, and it seems like many have romanticized the idea of sitting in a sunny chair, sipping camomille tea and wiling the day away with a nice musty book. Certainly this can be attained (sans must) with an e-book. This new format simply offers the option to read on the go as well as at home.
E-books will open up a vast sea of information previously unknown or unavailable to the general public. We are on an the cusp of a new territory, where passages, quotes, authors and subjects will be easily searched for, and the we will be able to reach our potential to learn that much more easily.
In the article, Johnson mentions several drawbacks, such as the lack of attention required by the new e-books, and the potential for authors to start writing for hits on search engines. While these issues are possible, I believe the e-book has many more pros than cons. Now when you hear of an interesting book, you don't have to wait until you go to a bookstore to buy it. Downloading books from an e-book reader is very easy, and much cheaper than buying a physical book. Also, the advent of e-books brings a wonderful addition: free out-of-copyright books. Classics such as Pride and Prejudice, Robin Hood, and Grimm's Fairy Tales are now free to download and peruse.
I believe that the coming of e-books will mark a rise in readers. People who previously didn't have the time to sit down and read a book cover-to-cover will be able to bring a lightweight e-book with them on the subway. Those who can't afford bound books will have many free and inexpensive works available to them. I also feel that with the ease and affordability that e-books bring, people will be more likely to purchase books that they previously might have not bothered to read because of expense and hassle.
Sure, e-books make it easier to multi-task while reading, so people may read in small chunks of time rather than in one long session. However, I don't see how either way of reading is superior to the other, and it seems like many have romanticized the idea of sitting in a sunny chair, sipping camomille tea and wiling the day away with a nice musty book. Certainly this can be attained (sans must) with an e-book. This new format simply offers the option to read on the go as well as at home.
E-books will open up a vast sea of information previously unknown or unavailable to the general public. We are on an the cusp of a new territory, where passages, quotes, authors and subjects will be easily searched for, and the we will be able to reach our potential to learn that much more easily.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Introduction: My Interests and Mass Media
My name is Kelly Colwell, and I am a senior at the University of Maryland. I'm a major in Physics, concentrating in education and have a keen interest in animal care. I hope that once I graduate I can either work as a writer for an online physics magazine or become a caretaker at an animal shelter. Ideally, I would incorporate both in my life.
My primary interest in physics is getting information out to the layman. Most people when questioned on physics know very little, and think it is complicated and impossible for them to understand. My goal is to work towards making physics friendly for the "common man" and garner interest for the field. Technology is important in achieving this goal because most people have internet access and information is easily accessible via blogs, online articles, forums and other venues. This means that if a layman has an interest in physics, they don't have to subscribe to a magazine like Discover or Scientific American, which takes more effort and might not be worth it to them. With blogs and websites, casual learners can get more information about physics without having to expend the effort of getting the information in a physical format like a book, magazine, or lecture. Basically, technology (mainly the internet) reaches a new demographic of curious people.
A great website for people wanting to learn more about science is ScienceNow, which has breaking news on all sorts of research and fields in science. They also have a wide variety of RSS feeds on the main website, which belongs to the American Association for the Advancement of Science. My mother, upon learning my interest in physics, wanted to learn more herself and now frequently sends me links from this website. It is a fantastic tool for those interested in science but not pursuing a career in it.
Another tool for the casual science learner is educational television. A great example of this is NOVA. NOVA is a PBS program which shows documentaries of all types, and they are made to be very easy to understand. The show is very entertaining and does a good job of balancing information and excitement. Their website is also a wonderful place to go to use interactive tools (such as the fractal generator) and watch shows.
I am interested in learning how to blend mass media and learning, in order to create a fun environment for educating the layman in science, specifically physics. I would like to understand how people typically interact with the mass communication in order to optimize the availability of knowledge to those who are curious.
My primary interest in physics is getting information out to the layman. Most people when questioned on physics know very little, and think it is complicated and impossible for them to understand. My goal is to work towards making physics friendly for the "common man" and garner interest for the field. Technology is important in achieving this goal because most people have internet access and information is easily accessible via blogs, online articles, forums and other venues. This means that if a layman has an interest in physics, they don't have to subscribe to a magazine like Discover or Scientific American, which takes more effort and might not be worth it to them. With blogs and websites, casual learners can get more information about physics without having to expend the effort of getting the information in a physical format like a book, magazine, or lecture. Basically, technology (mainly the internet) reaches a new demographic of curious people.
A great website for people wanting to learn more about science is ScienceNow, which has breaking news on all sorts of research and fields in science. They also have a wide variety of RSS feeds on the main website, which belongs to the American Association for the Advancement of Science. My mother, upon learning my interest in physics, wanted to learn more herself and now frequently sends me links from this website. It is a fantastic tool for those interested in science but not pursuing a career in it.
Another tool for the casual science learner is educational television. A great example of this is NOVA. NOVA is a PBS program which shows documentaries of all types, and they are made to be very easy to understand. The show is very entertaining and does a good job of balancing information and excitement. Their website is also a wonderful place to go to use interactive tools (such as the fractal generator) and watch shows.
I am interested in learning how to blend mass media and learning, in order to create a fun environment for educating the layman in science, specifically physics. I would like to understand how people typically interact with the mass communication in order to optimize the availability of knowledge to those who are curious.
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