Ales 204

Hello everyone!

We are nearing the end of the semester, and the last day of classes has come and gone. It is time for us to reflect on the things we have learned this year in our Ales 204 Communication class.

Walking into this class, I was very skeptical of what we would be doing. I had been strongly opposed to Twitter, and had vowed to never sign up for it. Imagine my dismay when I realized that I had to use Twitter for in class participation! As we learned about the different social media platforms throughout the semester, such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and also online references such as Wikipedia, I began to realize how important staying connected was. Our world is becoming increasingly competitive, and it is important to make yourself stand out in every aspect, including having a good online profile. The internet is a good way to promote yourself and also gain knowledge, if you know how to look. One part of this class I really learned from was the Pecha Kucha presentations. I have always had trouble with public speaking, and being forced to present to my lab was a good way for me to really step out of my comfort zone and practice public speaking. The Pecha Kucha is also a great way to plan presentations that can keep the audience engaged, and not bore them to death.

Figure 1: Social MediaFrom 1st Web Designer Blog (2010). [digital image]
Retrieved April 13, 2012 from:  http://www.1stwebdesigner.com/freebies/integrate-social-media-your-website/ 

Another experience I really enjoyed was editing our own Wikipedia stub. It really taught me how to be critical of what I was reading online, and also improved my researching skills. Usually, when I want to learn something, I first go to Wikipedia to gain a brief understanding of my topic, and go off from there. However, this time, there was no Wikipedia to refer to! Editing Wikipedia was a struggle for me, since I was unfamiliar with their formatting. It really made me appreciate the many users who go out of their way to share their information on Wikipedia.

However, while I did enjoy this class, and learn a lot, I must agree with my classmate NutritionStudent, that a lot of the things we covered in class were intuitive, and things we could have learned on our own. As a generation that grew up with the internet, I believe that we are quite capable of navigating and learning how to make use of these different platforms. While I did enjoy this class, I think that a lot of the things we did in class could have been homework assignments, while we discussed more things during class time.

Overall, I enjoyed this class, and the fact that there are no quizzes or exams is a plus! There were some aspects that I felt we could have spent more time on, such as learning how to write memos, public speaking, learning about different online databases to find information, etc. Things such as Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn were fun, and made the class more interactive, but were things that we could have all done on our own time. I found the blog a great way to express what I learned in class, and also to learn about the thoughts of my fellow students. I've had a great semester in this class, and it was a pleasure reading the blogs that everyone has written!

Here are some of the blogs that I really enjoyed reading, and wrote comments on:

• Cassandra Holte 
• Jenna Patterson
• Lindsay Gervais
• Becky Bohlender
• Marney Steadman

 Thanks to Jess and all the TAs for everything they have taught us this semester!

Memes

Hello! Surfing the internet has always been one of my favourite hobbies. You never fail to come across something interesting or quirky. This past year, I have begun to take notice of an internet phenomenon that is becoming increasingly popular - internet memes!

I'm sure all of you have come across an internet meme at some point, whether you knew it or not. Memes are concepts that become viral, and spread through the internet. They can be in the form of a picture, video, phrase, a recent fad. They spread quickly using many of the social media platforms we talked about throughout the term, such as Facebook and Twitter. The term meme was coined by Richard Dawkins, the author of The Selfish Gene. In it, he talks about how Darwinian principles can be applied beyond genes - they can also be extended to cultural evolution. Dawkins uses the word meme to refer to cultural entities that can be replicated, combined, refined, or modified, and thus evolved over time. While memes are often silly and humorous, they are a reflection of the culture of today, and it is undeniable that they have a significant impact on us today. Some examples of memes that I'm sure you have all seen or heard of are Rebecca Black's 'Friday', and planking, a recent fad. Rebecca Black is an example of how powerful internet memes really are. Overnight, her video became an online sensation, amassing millions of views and earning her millions on iTunes. However, while she did have a lot of publicity, it was mostly negative. She had over 500,000 dislikes on her YouTube video, and generated a torrent of hateful comments and parodies mocking her.

As can be seen in Rebecca's story, memes can be used as a tool for promotion and branding yourself. However, in her case, it might not have given her the kind of publicity that she wanted. Marketers are quickly catching on, and using memes to advertise and promote their products or ideas. It is an inexpensive and trendy way of spreading an idea. However, it is also very unpredictable, with no way of knowing what will become the next trend. Another example of a meme success story would be that of blogger Eric Nakagawa. He created the internet meme lolcat. They are pictures of cats with humorous depictions. This may not seem very impressive, but his website is now worth $2 million, and has millions of hits everyday.

The University of Alberta has its own meme page on Facebook, where students can post memes related to their classes, professors, and their university experience in general. The great thing about memes is that they are easy to change so that they can be applied to you, and the vast amount of different memes out there let you use them in many different situations. I was studying in the library one day, and left to get a drink. When I came back on my computer, I found a meme waiting for me on my desktop:

Figure 1. Y U No Internet Meme
From Chau Chin Yo (personal collection. April 13, 2012)

While internet memes can be hilarious, it is also important to realize that sometimes we are laughing at someone else's expense. You never know what can become an internet meme, and this is another reason to be so careful of what you post online. You might go online one day and realize that overnight, you have become famous - and sometimes not in a good way.

Another way memes can impact us is through language, and how we communicate. Check out Cassandra Holte's blog to read about txt spk and communication today!

Thanks for reading guys, and hoped you learned a bit more about memes today!

References:


Arandilla, R. (2011, Sept). The Power of Internet Memes. Retrieved on April 13, 2012 from:  
        http://www.1stwebdesigner.com/design/power-internet-memes/

Wikipedia (2012, April 7) Internet Memes. Retrieved on April 13, 2012 from:
        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_meme