Links of Note: April 25, 2007
Social Media: Where is social media going? (Media in Transition)Vincent Maher separates citizen journalism from social media. "I see citizen journalism as the kind of thing you see on OhMyNews, not arbitrary videos uploaded on YouTube. In other words, the end product resembles quite closely the formats produced by journalists. Everything else is social media and this is a completely different kettle of fish."
It's an excellent point. Cit J centers on information. Social media centers on connections. There's overlap between the two worlds, but the differences need to be considered and explored.
Tech: Lamest Technology Mascots Ever (Wired)
Travel back through a marketing morass with Wired's collection of ridiculous tech mascots (including the digital realm's mascota non grata, "Clippy").
Blogging: College blogs tell it like it is (Boston Globe)
Universities are using student-written blogs to reveal the truth about campus life. In an unusual development, apocalyptic harbingers are not spewing from a fresh Hellmouth.
"The message from student bloggers isn't always pretty, yet college officials say the blogs are worth the risk. High school students can get unvarnished views of any colleges from Facebook, MySpace, or unsanctioned student blogs. They may be more inclined to trust a school they think is willing to show them real campus life, officials say."
Galactic News: Scientists find most Earth-like planet yet (CNN.com)
Dubbed "581 c" (sexiest ... name ... ever), scientists believe the planet's temperature is between 32 and 104 degrees and it's "probably full of liquid water." The downside: only one side of the planet points toward its sun, 581 c's gravity is 1.6 times heavier than Earth's, and Cylons use it as a galactic weigh station.
"Eventually astronomers will rack up discoveries of dozens, maybe even hundreds of planets considered habitable, the astronomers said. But this one -- simply called "c" by its discoverers when they talk among themselves -- will go down in cosmic history as No. 1."
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