The Caffeinated Carbivore

Pair this: Time's Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills are Killing us with this video

Educators across the globe have been deeply affected by the tragedy in Sandy Hook. We have seen multiple Tweets and Blogs about how to address violence in our schools. We haves seen parents, military personnel, and police officers camped out at our schools to make our children feel more safe. President Obama released a gun violence statement today before the NRA press conference – people are pointing fingers at the NRA, gun salespersons, even Call of Duty . In all the media blitz, we have forgotten that the families who lost loved ones must find a way to put their lives back together; regardless of whether violent games are to blame, they still lost their children. In memory of those students, Aflac has started a fundraiser to create a scholarship for survivors. Please donate today.

This new term has been flying across the internet, from creative to advertising mediums. So what exactly is a TransMedia project? A TransMedia project places content on multiple stages, such as Facebook or Twitter, and uses each medium to tell a part of the story. This type of storytelling offers a deeper appreciation for projects because of the varying strengths of these mediums. In this way, viewers often become more engrossed in stories or characters because they can interact with them on Facebook, get live and instant updates via Twitter, and watch new episodes on YouTube. This type of advertising offers strength in its variety; the message is sent to multiple audiences simultaneously and can be altered accordingly. One new TransMedia project is highly anticipated in the comedy world: I Made America . Particularly timely in light of the upcoming election, I Made America is a comedy sketch about a few founding fathers stuck in the mire that is our current campaign trail. The father...

The abundant elemental resources available to us often go unused (i.e., solar and wind power. Solar panels are too expensive! We could power most of the United States if we covered the entire state of Nevada in solar panels, but the trade-off between a hot shower for every American and thousands of acres of desert is clearly too much to ask Windmills cause visual displeasure apparently larger than gray smog and smoke stacks). Teachers complain daily of poor performers, American hunger is on the rise (what's worse, as food stamp usage increases, so does its abuse ), 1/3 of foster children are abused , juvenile crimes are increasing , the population is at an all time high, and scientists worry about feeding future generations. The idea of eating our own children is simply barbaric, so I have my own modest proposal* : Babies. Crawl, Baby! CRAWL! Too cruel? Exploiting children to make your clothes cheaper is cruel. Destroying habitats is cruel. Too illogical? Burning corn when half the...

There has been a great deal of speculation of the years about how the Internet is effecting the next generation of students: does it shorten their attention spans? Do they expect different lesson plans ? While technlogy in the classroom offers new formats for education, not all students are more tech-savvy than their older counterparts , nor do they always prefer to use technology (this is a stereotype of their generation that teachers should avoid). The implications of technology may extend past new technique or preference, however. Recent studies presented by the BBC found a correlation between a persons' Facebook friends count and the size of the "social", "memory", and "emotional" areas of their brain. The social impacts of social media may not be suprising. Dr. Ryota Kanai of University College, London, states, "We have found some interesting brain regions that seem to link to the number of friends we have - both 'real' and 'vir...

Abstract words are often difficult for students to define. Words like "love" change with time, your experiences, and your context. Many reserachers and educators wonder at the impact the recent anniversary of September 11th and the bleak outlook for the American economy has on current students image of America and patriotism itself. Depending on how you execute this lesson, this activitiy offers a unique opportunity for students to learn and excersise multiple skills: -Defining abstract words: Understanding that a word can have multiple meanings (both to themselves and others) and learning how to negotiate words' multiplicity. -Creativity: Understanding that words do not appear just in letters, but also images. Learning how images impact the viewer . -Basic letter writing skills (no, they are not a foregon art): Learning how to write a saluatation, introduction, and conclusion (this is also helpful when learning to write a self-narrative and basic paragraph). -Civic Engag...

Dr. Scholl's For Her (they sell those cushy high heel insoles) is sponsoring a $25,000 shoe donation to Dress For Success, a company devoted to providing underprivileged women with business attire. Women are STILL under-represented in many higher level positions, and worse, STILL make less money than men . In recent news, the Supreme Court threw out the largest sex discrimination case in history this week. Needless to say, this campaign is timely and desperately needed. You can vote for the shoes you want donated here . However, the shoe selections leave something to be desired. While I believe a woman doesn't have to hide her curves at the office, there is a certain sort of decorum that must be maintained in an office setting. This is important, as there are so many other things working against promoting women (they're too emotional, they'll get knocked up, and other ridiculousness) their dress should not be one of them. Thus, a short blurb on office dress code for la...