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If you are an inspiring artist, Google has a job for you. Doodle 4 Google is an opportunity for young artists to show what they've got and use their imagination to create a doodle for the Google homepage. The theme for the year is "If I could invent one thing to make the world a better place...." and the submissions must be sent in by March 20, which is fast approaching. The winning doodle will be featured on the homepage of Google for a day and if that's not enough, the winner will receive a $30,000 college scholarship and a $50,000 Google for Education technology grant for his or her school of choice. On April 29, the 50 finalists will be open for the public to vote their winner and the winning doodle will be revealed sometime in June. Only one doodle per student is accepted so if you are interested in participating (only if you live in the states) then you can download an entry form on their Doodle 4 Google site. I think this is a great idea for students to tap into their creative sides and think about how they can change the world. Full classrooms are encouraged to participate which is a great idea for teachers to spend the day teaching the kids how they can make a difference to the lives around them.

Twitter could potentially change our politics in multiple countries for better or for worse. This article describes how twitter has changed the landscape of voting for a president, party, or prime minister. Many countries have adopted twitter as a means of reaching and interacting with their voters. Some examples could be Barack Obama, who has a group of 100 people working on social media for his campaign. Mr. Pinera, the president of Chile has also made it mandatory for all of his cabinet members to get twitter so everyone can interact. Politicians though, have also abused this system by making either very rude tweets to anti-party members or making bland tweets to not offend anyone (causing less followers towards the party.) I would like to call this e-politics, and I believe it is change towards the better. Expanding into the internet for new voters is a genius idea that all parties should add to their campaign.

God bless America for the most technologically advanced trigger happy group of soldiers in the world. America is constantly trying to better their view of the battlefield so today BAE systems unveiled a GPS unit that can track, and see what the soldiers see's at all times. This is to be transmitted from an extra light garment like antenna to a command center where generals can have a better view of the battlefield. Bless America and its continuing fight against the fascist, the communist, the terrorist and the intellectual community. USA USA USA USA USA -Certified American Badass

The intellectual community?

Sarcasm, republican primaries have left me with some resentment. I feel if they get in charge we can say goodbye to american scientific innovation for the next little while.

This lifehacker article explains how to save money in terms of finding and purchasing the best deals on mobile apps. If you are someone who is either tired or annoyed by paying full price on an app that never really lived up to your expectations or your someone who just wants to find a good deal, then your in luck, because the best sales or price drops to find for apps is not that hard, it just requires a little patience. If you are a iPhone or Android user, the best way to track price drops easily and efficiently is to create a list so you can easily check on the price of an app to see if it's gone on sale or not. A particular nifty tool on the iPhone is when you add a interested app to your account of a created wish list, the App Shopper app will either send you an email or a push notification when an app you're keeping your eyes on drops in price. Another method in saving money while wanting to purchase apps for your mobile device is to hold out for common sale times. Both the iTunes App Store and Google Play love having sales around the holidays. Also, apps tend to go on sale after they hit the top of the charts to celebrate their success or after an anniversary of some kind. A third strategy is to look at the sale history or possibly a one-year anniversary to see if a possible sale is sure to come around soon enough. Overall, holding out for a good sale and knowing when those sales happen is a good way to keep your app purchasing budget in check. It's important to not waste your money on pointless apps or on ones that end up dropping in price the next day. Wait the extra day or two and save an extra couple dollars because in the long run, this will pay off both economically as well as feeling satisfied with how you shopped to make your mobile device experience that much better.

Here are some steps into getting some of the best deals on Mobile apps. Most apps are $1.29 to 99 cents and sometimes you think they're too overpriced and you just want a good deal! They're are two things about buying apps, you're always looking for the best deal on apps and hate paying full price, or you buy the app, and then find out the next day that the app goes on sale. Here are some easy ways to find out about cheap apps. 1. Set up price drop alerts and create a list of apps YOU want. This is great so you can track the prices of apps you want. 2. Set up notifs of price drops, for iPhone, there is an app called App Shopper where you can search for any app, and add it to your wish list, and when the price of that app drops in sale, you'd get a e-mail telling you the price dropped. You can do the same thing with Android, and those apps are called AppBrain and AppsFire. 3. Hold out for common sale times. Apps tend to go on sale during holidays like Christmas or Easter. Also, they go on sale after they hit the top of the charts to celebrate their success or after an anniversary of some kind. Many think apps aren't that big of a deal about prices, but when you buy a lot, the bill adds up. These steps great tips on how to get a great deal on apps! SO THIS BOOKMARK BETTER BEAT JASON'S BOOKMARK....but it looks like it didn't :'(

The article I am sharing is about how worldwide governments are beginning to pay more attention on social media and using it for better and for worse. I chose to share this article because as time continues, life is becoming more and more technology based. It is interesting to see how the government now sees social media as a way to reach younger people and help boost their campaign strengths. The Canadian government along with the US government are now more involved in our online actions. This worries me though because it feels that the government is watching us, and monitoring our actions which makes me feel insecure which is why I found this article interesting.

The article that I have chosen to share for week 4 is about IBM and their new services to help eliminate fraud and financial crime. The article interested be because around 3.5 trillion dollars are lost per year to financial crime and fraud through technology. While the software is being marketed to big companies it also directly involves us, the consumers. For example when Sony's PSN was down thousands of peoples accounts were hacked and had money taken from their accounts. This new software interested me because now people can feel a little more secure using online programs knowing that their information can be safer. It is a new time where many things are bought through the internet and with better security people won't feel as worried about their security

The article that I have chosen to share for week 4 is about IBM and their new services to help eliminate fraud and financial crime. The article interested be because around 3.5 trillion dollars are lost per year to financial crime and fraud through technology. While the software is being marketed to big companies it also directly involves us, the consumers. For example when Sony's PSN was down thousands of peoples accounts were hacked and had money taken from their accounts. This new software interested me because now people can feel a little more secure using online programs knowing that their information can be safer. It is a new time where many things are bought through the internet and with better security people won't feel as worried about their security

This article talks about our famous #firstworld problems jokes on Twitter and other Social Networking sites. They may seem funny to you, but DDB New York sees them as creating an online atmosphere of neither sensitivity nor awareness to deal with real social and worldwide problems. So DDB decided to team up with the non-profit organization called WATERisLIFE. Together they traveled to Haiti to film locals reading aloud a series of these "problems" to show how ridiculous they are in comparison to real problems that people face in third-world countries like Haiti. In addition to the video they tweeted some of the original authors of the #firstworld problems saying things like "I'm sorry you were awoken by your cleaning lady. I hope today is better" as well as a call to action to donate money to WATERisLIFE which helps create water solutions and rebuilding communities.  This article relates to eLifestyle and how those posts may be funny to us they can also be insensitive to real problems world-wide even though we don't always intend to be hurtful. This also relates because it shows how the internet can be such a positive or negative thing worldwide. In this case out of an insensitive tweet people were inspired to create awareness for bigger issues and a way to help through a video and a few tweets online.  I think this shows a positive side of the internet where people can take something and turn it into a way of helping people world-wide and getting word out faster and to more people all with the power of the internet.

This article is about the ranks on YouTube videos. The Google-owned video-streaming platform is changing the way it ranks the results when you search something that you want to watch. It is looking to reward videos that receive the most watched time. Recently, YouTube added ''Time Watched'', so if you like to create videos, you can better evaluate the performance of your videos and channel. YouTube was already making moves in this direction, and back in August, it announced that it was updating it's discovery features with a view towards surfacing videos with the most time-spent on them, rather than the most clicks. The results is leading to bigger change, as it looks to keep people on it's videos for longer. This article can relate to many people because a lot of people upload videos to YouTube and even more watch videos on Youtube.

This post is about a new app made by McAfee which is meant to be an extra security for people's photos on Facebook. We know that even if we put our privacy settings on "only friends" there are ways through comments, likes and mutual friends that people you do not know can come across your pictures and download, print or upload them on a different site. This app helps protect by asking users to list who will get to view their photos. Only those people on the list will get to see the photo no matter who is friends with who, or who likes or comments on it. People not on the exact list will only see the photo blurry and barely visible. In addition to that nobody will be able to grab, print or download the photos even if they are on the list of people who can see the photos. This app is only in its development or "beta" phase, but it is already free to download and use on Internet Explorer and Firefox. The company is still working on versions for Chrome and mobile devices. Before concluding they did mention that there are still ways to photograph the photo with your phone, if you have a clear picture. I believe this app is a big step to having online security. This app can help stop the spread of your photos before it starts. People may not think about their internet security very often but it is important to know that once it's on the internet it's on there forever. With internet popularity growing and growing we must also know the dangers of posting photos and protect ourselves. Facebook allows so much public information to be revealed this app can ensure you have a more private account. In my opinion this is a great app and considering that it is free while it is being developed I think people should try it out. Although it's only available on Firefox and Internet Explorer it is already a leap in the right direction. However, as it was mentioned earlier you can still have people take photos from their phones. Nevertheless, if you chose the correct people on your list

This article (written by Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai) is an interesting analysis of a general trend in the tech industry and demand for people with coding experience. The article states that now is the best time to dive in to coding because it has never been cheaper/easier to do so, with the introduction of Codeacademy - used in ICS20 - in early 2012. In less than 5 months, Codeacademy had stated that it reached over 1 million registered accounts, including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Many web-based companies, even the titans that are Facebook and Google, are always looking for people with coding experience. Jobs in programming are also more lucrative than most jobs, even at entry level positions (15 of 21 San Fransisco Developer Bootcamp students were offered jobs in coding, with an average annual pay of $79 000.) The industry is severely lacking in female programmers as well, with only 1:10 ratio of women to men in the industry. This relates to Economics, eLifestyle and ultimately the ISC20 class because as the industry develops, there will be a higher demand for people with experience in coding; 2012 has been widely concerned as the best year for coding because many people who start coding now will most likely be secured for a positon right out of University, which can be very securing to young people who may not be sure of their future. Evidentally, the title says it all; if you are looking for a job, it would be wise to pick up coding because this a newly establihed market; most jobs in computers didn't exist twenty years ago so many people believe that coding will eventually become a societal necessary education, like math or grammar skills. This article shows how we are in a somewhat technological revolution, where we are creating new jobs where all the others are already full.

Apple has done it again. They've just announced a new pair of apple earbuds, once again, trying to brainwash apple fanboys in buying their extremely overly priced product. "EarPods", they call it. They say the EarPods have been in development for three years now, making this the "perfect" apple accessory. Although the EarPods, compared to the old apple earbuds, have majorly improved in comfort and sound quality, it's just not something I personally would be crazy for. For 30 bucks, I can honestly and hands-down say that this is a total rip-off. When buying apple products, keep in mind that you are paying around 30% for the product and 70% for the name, Apple. Im not saying that Apple products are bad, I just think it's unfair to have to pay such a high price for products you can get for a lower price and better too.

The Walking Dead season 3 has much more zombies than in season 1.  This mind blowing, butt kicking, entertaining tv show is back on amc every Sunday.  Andrew Lincoln, who plays Rick Grimes, is back and better than ever.  At the New York Comic Con, Andrew Lincoln said "They said there are more zombie kills in this episode than in the whole of Season 1."  Rick's son, Carl, is played by Chandler Riggs and he now fights walkers with his father and is no longer the little boy who hides.  Another new addition to the tv show is Danai Gurira who plays Michonne and is the katana wielding hooded person who was shown in the season finale who left everyone wondering who she was.  This is the most anticipated tv show and it hasn't let anyone down yet.

This post is about Online Universities and why they don't compare to the real thing. Products like Saba LMS, Moodle, and iTunes U have made e-learning mainstream, and most universities offer and allow some or most of their coursework to be completed online. First off, the concern with many online universities and colleges is post-graduation employment statistics. Most have very low graduation rates. A government recruited states that "it's not ideal. It doesn't set a baseline expectation, for me or for the people he or she will meet in the field. If I just need to check off a 'degree' box on a requirements form, online will do, but if two candidates are similar, I'm going with the one from Stanford or UVA." Moreover, the differences come down to two things: brand and social interaction. Traditional schools can clearly understand reputations, strengths and weaknesses. Without historical data and a history of success or failure, the online schools' GPAs, class standing and other performance metrics are just numbers and statistics. The author of this article also states that "Giant online schools that accept pretty much everyone may be democratizing education, but they're not helping employers or anyone else separate out the best and the brightest." This can hurt the prestige, and ultimately the graduates of the school. This issue relates to the "eLifestyle" tag because in the end it will definitely affect not only the students, but the regular citizens of a country. The graduates of universities, online of traditional,  will be the leaders of the future, and I believe that traditional universities and colleges are better because professors can get to know and understand students at a different level. It is hard to judge or mark a student based only on online text. For instance, you will never be able to distinguish a student that truly tries and works hard but cannot understand the information properly to a student that understands it but is lazy and slacks off.

What started out as a minor distraction is now an issue that parents are beginning to take notice of. Popular electronics are becoming more than just a form of entertainment, it is also believed to negatively affect a child's mental development. Since kids these days are relatively less active due to technology, this problem also affects the kids social skills, education, and physical health. Social networking sites such as Facebook are also a problem because parents worry that their kids may be too young to have an account on Facebook, Twitter, etc. and therefore, post inappropriate pictures or see posts that others post that is not suitable for kids.  Jim Steyer, the Common Sense Media founder, help parents better understand the new media by providing a review of video games, movies etc. This way, parents can gain insight  on the newest and popular video games, movies etc. The Common Sense Media website also provides suggestions on how to deal with children and teenagers when it comes to being too addicted to mobile technology. There is another popular method that is simple: ban you kid from using Facebook.

LG released its newest refrigerator called the Smart Thing.which as you can guess, is a "smart" fridge. The fridge can communicate and interact with your Android phone to complete or help complete some of its tasks. This fridge can tell you what is in the fridge, scan barcodes of food products, suggest recipes based on the user's preferences and lifestyle, notify expiration dates, and count your calories. All these features can be done on an Android smartphone. Everyday, technology is improving itself to be better than its predecessor and allowing us to live simpler, more automated lives. This fridge is bringing computing into the kitchen by allowing us to do more things with our fridge other than just store food. We can now have our questions like "when will the eggs expire?" answered automatically by this new fridge. It appears as time goes on, the implementation of computers into our daily lives will be more and more prominent. The LG Smart Thinq is an amazing appliance because it is redefining the refrigerator entirely by making it so that modern fridges should soon have built-in computers. Yes this fridge is expensive at about $4500, but over time this price will drop to something more reasonable and also influence other companies to make fridges just like this one. Though this is a cool fridge, I still wonder who would buy a $4500 fridge.

We all know how dreadfully horrid Internet Explorer can be, especially older versions. Many have us have grown accustomed to cleaner, more versatile browsers such as (and pretty much only) Google Chrome. With the release of Windows 8, Microsoft has produced IE10. Microsoft is painfully aware of their browser's reputation, and has taken advertising it in a humourous way. The video depicts a typical basement dweller sending "IE sucks" comments and replies to forums, videos, twitter, and the like. Eventually, he comes around when IE creates a new "Karaoke standard" for the web, changing his point of view to "IE sucks... less." The ad directs to www.browseryoulovedtohate.com. Although many of us may never use IE voluntarily, the browser has come a long way from being the decrepit, slow "browser for people who don't know any better." It has made progress, and that is the driving force of technology. Who knows? Perhaps IE10 will be a bit more bearable than its predecessors.

The smartphone market has been dominated by Apple's iPhone and Google's Android devices, but with this dominance many people think they do not have any other options when it comes to smartphones other than Apple and Android. Yes, there have been other companies that have tried to combat the powerful hold of Apple and Android but they have faltered and ultimately could not dethrone these smartphone giants. Now the Finnish company Jolla plans on competing against Apple and Android with its new OS, Sailfish which they claim is an alternative to Apple and Android. Jolla also partnered itself with Chinese phone retailer D.Phone so Jolla would have phones that will run Sailfish. For many of us, we are stuck with the decision of buying either an Android or an iPhone since any other phone trying to appear differently was simply forgotten. But the release of Sailfish phones would completely change the smartphone market by giving consumers another option when considering buying a new phone and releasing some of the control that Apple and Android have. It could also be possible that Sailfish phones will be more revolutionary and better looking than Androids and iPhones but still cost less which would attract many consumers who want an innovative but low-cost phone. I think Sailfish will have a large impact on the smartphone market since it uses many gestures that makes the OS unique. Whereas Apple's iPhone and Google's Android will eventually lose their popularity due to Apple and Android's lack of innovation, the Sailfish phones could possibly have the same effect the first iPhone had on the world and become the new dominant smartphone. 

It has been over a year now since we heard about RIM's plans to release a 3G Playbook. We final get to see the Playbook.Much like its LTE sibling, it comes with 32GB of memory, and gets the same faster 1.5GHz processor too. (The original was 1.0GHz.) People say that they can't even compare it to the IPhone. Everyone knows how bad RIM has been doing and they feel like the Playbook will boost their earnings. However, statistics show that what RIM is hooping for is probably not going to happen. People are paying more attention to Apple's products more than RIM. Unless they come up with a better marketing idea. RIM will come to an end.

This article talks about exploration in the Antarctic's ancient glaciers.  NASA is exploring these areas of the world because they are isolated, have not been disturbed, and are similar to conditions on other planets, such as Mars.  NASA's exploration into this glacier discovered some "very hardy bacteria" that was able to survive in this harsh environment.  NASA's robotic submersible could have disrupted this otherwise untouched ecosystem.  This perfect ecosystem also could house bacteria that could be harmful to humans, and was only surviving here, isolated from everything.  NASA's robotic submersible is still disturbing untouched ecosystems, and this could have serious consequences to the species that are surviving there. To keep these ecosystems form being destroyed NASA could use smaller robots to view these ecosystems, similar to the technology that enables doctors to put tiny cameras inside of people.  This could limit the effects of human interference in these unique ecosystems, and it would be better than sending a baseball bat sized camera.

 This article is about a new 3-wheeled car about to go into production. But this car is not like any other car in production. Instead of picturing large robot arms shooting sparks to make a heavy car this one is 3-d printed,strong as steel, and half the weight. This car is only 1,200 pounds. Although part of the car(named Urbee) is printed plastic, the engine and the rest of the chassis is made of metal. Despite people thinking it is not as safe as cars on the road right now, the makers of the Urbee are claiming to be as safe as those in races. Personally I believe this will be the future of car production and 3d printed cars can a lot better for society.