Help Save Summer SI

Your Humble Blogger got the following email during the noon hour on Thursday. Supplemental Instruction may be canceled for summer classes, including MC101. If you believe SI should be saved, read the email below and send the emails it asks for.

Dear SI Leader and Instructors,

It has been brought to my attention that the GCC Administration will be cancelling the summer SI Program based on the assumption that students will not attend SI in summer due to longer class hours.

Those of us involved in the program know that the availability of SI workshops becomes even more critical to the successful completion of classes in the short summer session.

Many students have asked me how they can let the GCC Administration know their feelings regarding summer SI, so I am forwarding this information along.

If you or your students would like to have a voice regarding the cancellation of the summer SI Program, please send an email to:

Michael Ritterbrown (Dean of Instructional Services) at michaelr@glendale.edu.

And please include a "CC" to Dr. Mary Mirch (Vice President of Instruction) at mmirch@glendale.edu and also

Dr. Jim Riggs (Interim Superintendent/President) at jriggs@glendale.edu.

Below is the list of SI's which they are planning to cancel for the summer:

Accounting 102 (5 units)
Biology 122 (4 units) - 2 sections
Chemistry 102 (5 units)
CS/IS 101 (5 units)
CS/IS 112 (3 units)
MASS COMM 101 ( 3 units)
Math 100 (3 units)
Math 103 (5 units)
Math 146 (pending)
Physics 105 (4 units)
Psychology 106 (3 units)

If you or your students participate in SI and support the availability of the summer SI workshops, please ask them to voice their support.

Thank you for your continued support of the program,

Nancy

Field Trip Survey

Another semester of Mass Comm 101 field trips are in the books, and it is time to plan opportunities for the summer class. The July 4 weekend concert at the Hollywood Bowl is a highlight of the summer, but Your Humble Blogger is looking for other ideas. YHB has a Poll Everywhere poll to determine student preferences.

Questions...

•Which was your favorite field trip this semester?

•How would you feel about a field trip to the Museum of Tolerance?

•How would you feel about a field trip to the Grammy Museum?

•Other ideas?

Google Searching for an Image Boost

Millions, even Your Humble Blogger, have seen the trailer. Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson are watch salesmen left jobless when the tech revolution ate their business. So they decide to try for a really cool internship at Google, where they stand out as older, average guys. But the real star of "The Internship" is Google, which may have taken product placement to a new level, according to this Los Angeles Times story.

Questions...

•What companies have image problems, and why?

•Are there any negative aspects to this level of brand placement for Google or for the film makers?

•Have American movies grown too corporate? If so, how?

•Would it be good for Glendale to have a movie set here? Why?

Avatar as Workout Buddy

Obesity is a major health problem in the United States, and it is a particularly difficult problem to treat. And once dieters have lost weight, it is particularly difficult to keep weight off. Some turn to support groups.

But could motivation to get fit and maintain a healthy weight come from an avatar in the online site Second Life? It can, believes one researcher. NPR reports.

Questions...

•How is the online version of you (your avatar) the same as the physical you? How is it different?

•Can an avatar be a role model?

•Why do you think the Second Life weight loss plan works?

•Does vanity exist online? Does it matter what you avatar looks like?

•How else can the Internet help with your health?

Who's Watching Who?

TVs are getting smarter. They are watching what you watch, making suggestions about what you might want to watch, learning to recognize your face, changing channels with a wave of your hand, and showing you ads based on what you appear to like.

Welcome to the brave new world of television. The Los Angeles Times reports.

Questions...

•Are these smart TVs convenient or creepy?

•Who here is a "never connected"? What is that like?

•How do you find TV shows among the ever growing number of channels?

•Do ads bother you if they are for things you might actually want?

Future of Glass Not Clear

Google's "Glass" device is the most eagerly-awaited tech device since the iPhone. But in addition to generating a lot of positive buzz, it is also drawing some negative comments. Maybe it's fear of the unknown. Or maybe Glass will be nothing more than an unnecessary, annoying tech toy. Or maybe non-Glass users are envious. NPR reports.

Questions...

•Why the backlash against Google Glass?

•Will people ever be comfortable with having a camera pointed at them at all times?

•Does it matter that you can see the world through someone else's eyes?

•Will Glass be a hit or a miss for Google?

TV Meets http:

As television critic of the Los Angeles Times, Robert Lloyd has seen a lot of shows come and go. But until recently he was pretty on the basis concept of what television is. Now he's not so sure. Furthermore, we used to have a clear sense of who the TV networks were. And until recently, Amazon wasn't one of them.

But the world of television is changing dramatically, as Lloyd's recent commentary in the Times indicates.

Questions...

•What do you think of Mr. Lloyd's definition of television? Is it accurate? Is it unnecessarily broad?

•How is Amazon TV better than traditional TV? How is it worse?

•What are all the ways Amazon can make money off their new TV series?

Updated Post, On-Campus Field Trip on May 9

Los Angeles crime novelist James Ellroy will speak in the Glendale College Auditorium on May 9, the day after our Getty Center field trip. You can receive field trip credit for attending if you complete a short (200-300 words) written assignment about the talk. Answer the three questions below. They are based on the tenets of Media Literacy that were part of the Chapter 1 lecture. Review your Chapter 1 notes and PowerPoint if you have trouble understanding what the questions mean.

•All media messages are constructions. How was Mr. Ellroy's author presentation a construction?

•All media messages are targeted. How was Mr. Ellroy's author presentation targeted and who was it targeted to?

•All media messages want to sell you something. What was Mr. Ellroy selling, both on an obvious basis and on a less obvious basis?

Below is the original information about the event by its organizer...

The Demon Dog of Crime Fiction

*****JAMES ELLROY*****

Bring BOOKS have them SIGNED by the author!


Thursday, May 9th, 2013

12:20pm-1:30pm

GCC Auditorium

LA WRITERS READING SERIES PRESENTS:
WITH THE GENEROUS SUPPORT OF GCC Ancillary Adjunct Fund and the English Department

JAMES ELLROY

author of bestselling books, The Black Dahlia, L.A. Confidential and the true crime memoir, My Dark Places. A prolific writer of true crime fiction, noir, neo-noir, memoir, and postmodern historical fiction, Ellroy has had a profound influence on Los Angeles literature.

Friday Flix!

Students have recently asked Your Humble Blogger what the remaining Friday Flix are this semester. The schedule below may have changed (Friday Flix is not run by YHB), but the dates, time and location should be correct.

Media Arts Professor Mike Petros has released his schedule for "Friday Flix," a series of movie screenings and discussions. MC101 students can earn field trip credit by going to any one of the Friday Flix screenings this semester. Students can of course attend additional screenings, but not for additional credit.

FRIDAY FLIX SCHEDULE FOR SPRING 2013

May 10 – The Rules of the Game (1939)

May 24 – Paths of Glory (1957)

June 
7 – American Graffiti (1973)

DISCUSSION TO FOLLOW

ALL STUDENTS, FACULTY, STAFF, FRIENDS AND FAMILY ARE WELCOME

All Friday Flix presentations are held on Fridays at 12:30 in San Gabriel 334

Film selections and accompanying presentations brought to you by Media Arts Dept. Chair Mike Petros.

A Test for Online Education

Academia can move pretty slow, but change does occur. An example is online courses. It has taken a while to catch on, but improved technology and budget problems have led to more online courses--including Massive Open Online Courses, or MOOCs--over just the last several years. And many more are to come. The Los Angeles Times reports.

Questions...

•In the 1930s we had the honor system at Glendale College during tests. The teacher left the room and students policed themselves. What do you think changed? It's hard to believe that people are inherently better or worse, so what is it?

•Is our system of tests out of date in the computer age? What could take its place?

•How much do you see online education growing? Is it the new model for higher education, or will it always be only for some?

Blessing or Curse?

We've got a 24/7 link to an entire world full of information, opinions and entertainment. Any fact, idea or story is at our fingertips.

But is that good? Or is it a gigantic distraction that keeps us from being productive, both at work and at school? NPR reports.

Questions...

•Would you be a better student, or a worse student if you did not own a computer or a smart phone?

•Does the online world make you a smarter person or a less smart person? How?

•How should schools evolve in order to capitalize on what is good about online communications?

•How should the workplace evolve in order to capitalize on what is good about online communications?