Globalization vs. Americanization

Lam describes a world where people move from country to country for numerous reasons (i.e., to escape war; to find work; etc.). He views geography as cultural rather than physical and notes in the last sentence that geography no longer defines a person's destiny.

1. If Lam is correct and people are able to move from one country to another, what will globalization mean for the individual? Will there be only one human culture, a mixture of all ethnic/racial cultures?

2. If globalization does happen to the extent that Lam describes, will the experiences of culture shock and acculturation be dimished, if not avoided?

Left for Dead by MTV

Coyle describes in his article how easy and inexpensive it has become to create a music video, because of advances in technology, such as the DSL camera. On the Internet, there is no censorship (in theory) so artists can create and post videos designed to generate a response from the viewer.

Questions:

1. If you were to make a music video, what song would you choose?

2. What story would you tell in the video?

3. Would you create a video to shock, inspire, enrage, or convince others?

This is Your Brain on the Web

The title of today's reading is a paraphrase on an anti-drug public service announcement, "This is Your Brain on Drugs," which was first broadcast in 1987.

1. Why does Ms. Rosen choose this message to link to the topic of reading online vs. reading traditional print?

2. Do you think e-readers like Nook and Kindle will bring the two reading styles (reading vs. scanning) together?