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  • Video game found to help the blind navigate buildings

    (Reuters) – A video game that uses a computer-generated layout of a building can help to prepare the blind to navigate the venue in real life by improving their spatial awareness, researchers said on Wednesday.

    The game, based in a building at a center for the blind in Newton, Massachusetts, uses audio cues to help blind players find hidden jewels and remove them from the building without being spotted by roving monsters.

    After competing in the game, researchers found the players were able to find their way around the building in real-life, suggesting video games could help blind people navigate places they frequent regularly.

    “It is a tool to build a map of a place you have never been to before,” said Dr Lotfi Merabet, a neuroscientist at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary and Harvard Medical School, whose team developed the software used in the game.

    Merabet hopes the video game could be a first step in improving assisted technology for the blind, particularly teenagers who are very media and technology driven.

    The World Health Organization estimates there are 285 million visually impaired people worldwide.

    “It could be a whole new way to help blind people interact with this information and conceptualize space around them,” Merabet added in an interview.

    Merabet said the video game players were also better at finding alternate paths in the building than other blind people who had been taught the layout by walking through it.

    “The video game not only allows you to build a map in your mind, it allows you to interact with it mentally in a way that you wouldn’t be able to if you were taught explicitly (by walking through it,” Merabet explained.

    The researchers tested the game on congenitally blind people and those who had lost their sight. The players ranged in age from their teens to 45 years old.

    Merabet and his team, who wrote about the video game in the Journal of Visualized Experiments, want to include large-scale mapping in the next version of the game and to use tactile cues and items developed for the video game industry.

    But first he said they will have to demonstrate how long it takes to build the mental map, how complex they can make it, and the people best suited to learn this way.

    They do not see it as a replacement for how blind people learn but as a supplement to enhance a skill they need, and to build self confidence.

    “Somehow you become a better problem solver and you seem to somehow take in the information in a more robust fashion in this gaming scenario than if you sat down and we told you,” said Merabet.

    “Video games are not just for sighted people. Blind people can not only play them but interact with them and enjoy them, and they can also be used to do constructive things.”

    (Editing by Jackie Frank)

    source: Reuters

  • How to Stop New Trend in Cyber Bullying

    Gabriella Van Rij is an International activist and author she discusses the cyber bullying trend and gives advice to the victims, parents and school officials on beating the bullying epidemic and helping prevent future “bullicides.”

    Gabriella’s 3-Step Program to Halt Bullying:

    1. Become an Active Witness:

    “Children normally do not report incidents of bullying because they are paralyzed by humiliation and fear of retaliation if they snitch,” says Gabriella. “In my talks to classrooms, I urge both students and teachers to become ‘active witnesses,’ meaning that if they see something hurtful occur, they must immediately get involved and report it. Don’t leave it up to someone else to report and fix.”
    Parents and educators must also become actively involved and work together, as much too often they blame each other for inaction and shirk responsibility in addressing the bullying issue.

    2.  Learn the Signs:

    How do you know whether a child is being bullied? How do you know if a child is bullying others?
    “Although some find it hard to believe, the bully and the victim are mirror images of one another, who share the same fears and emotional insecurities,” says Gabriella.
    To recognize a child who bullies others, look out for occurrences of ‘acting out’ with aggressive behavior or comments, especially in public places or in the presence of other children. The bully’s behavior is based on fear and very low self-esteem. Every bully Gabriella’s interviewed acknowledged a major dysfunctional situation in their home.
    Gabriella says that a victim of bullying shares the same fear but acts out differently. In most cases, the victim has an unmistakably timid or frightened appearance, exhibits extreme anxiousness when going to school, seeks isolation, and often demonstrates signs of regressive behavior. Based on Gabriella’s research and experience, most victims also have dysfunctional families, as do bullies.

    3. Intervention:

    This step is where all parties (victim, bully, teacher, counselor) get together to end the denial and start talking about what’s actually been happening. Questions are asked to get both the victim and the bully to reveal their true, innermost feelings about the situation. A typical question to start the intervention might be, “Can you tell me what’s making you so sad?”
    Parents are not part of this process, as their presence would prevent the children from discussing any non-optimum situations at home which may be contributing to their behavior problems. At the end of the intervention, the children feel quite changed, as though an enormous weight has been lifted from their shoulders.
    “The thoughts and emotions of both victim and their abuser must be addressed to resolve the problem,” says Gabriella. “That is a new twist that allows for a lasting resolution.”

    www.gabriellavanrij.com

    source: indystyle.tv

  • Cyberbullying Law Shields Teachers From Student Tormentors

    image source: http://drpfconsults.com/the-disturbing-trend-of-cyber-bullying-teachers/

    Ganging up on classmates online can get students suspended.

    But sometimes teachers are the target of cyberbullying, and in North Carolina, educators have said enough is enough. State officials have now made it a crime to “intimidate or torment” teachers online.

    Chip Douglas knew something was up with his 10th-grade English class. When he was teaching, sometimes he’d get a strange question and the kids would laugh. It started to make sense when he learned a student had created a fake Twitter account using his name.

    “It was awful,” he says. “It had this image of me as this drug addict, violent person, supersexual, that I wouldn’t want to portray.”

    Douglas told the kids he planned to call the police — because under the new North Carolina law as explained by Connecticut Bail Bonds Group serving Avon area, the student behind the tweets could spend a month in jail and pay a $1,000 fine.

    “It’s the first statute that exposes 15-, 16-, 17-year-olds to potential criminal sanctions for a dumb mistake they make, something stupid they say,” says Chris Brook of the ACLU of North Carolina, who adds that the law is too broad.

    The law prohibits students from creating fake online profiles for teachers. But it makes it a crime to post real images or make any statement online, even if it’s true, that provokes harassment.

    “That is a terrible message to send to students … that accurate critiques of governmental employees could land you in criminal hot water,” Brook says. “And no one should be comfortable with that.”

    Legal experts say North Carolina’s effort is just another twist to a series of state laws that criminalize speech.

    “There has been a lot of this stuff suggested in legislatures and sometimes adopted, or sometimes prosecutors have interpreted existing laws so broadly,” says Eugene Volokh, a UCLA professor who specializes in First Amendment and cyberspace law. “It’s something of a trend, but once those laws are challenged, they’ll be struck down.”

    Click here to read the full article

    source:  npr.org / 

  • Web goes truly worldwide with smartphones

    In the past five years we’ve grown accustomed to a fundamental shift in the nature of the online space. That is, online went from a place you accessed from your desktop, to a place you accessed from anywhere. And it all happened, of course, via the smartphone.

    It’s hard to believe that it’s not yet six years since the launch of the iPhone. In that short time, mobile internet has transformed the way we shop, consume content, communicate with one another, navigate through our cities, monitor our health, manage our schedules – the list is endless. Now, the smartphone wars – the battle for control of the smartphone market – rage like a never-ending thunderstorm: witness the recent wall-to-wall coverage of the launch of Samsung’s Galaxy S4.

    So mobile internet has changed the way we live. But consider this fundamental fact: we’re still closer to the beginning of the journey than the end. If on-the-go access to the global brain has transformed our lives already, consider how much more it will do so when everyone has a smartphone.

    Now, key signs show that we’re at the tipping point that will take us to that moment. The research firm Comscore say smartphone penetration in the US and Europe ticked over the crucial 50 per cent threshold in December 2012: for the first time ever in those regions, more people own a smartphone than do not.

    But the movement is being fuelled by the staggering uptake of smartphones in emerging markets. In 2011 there were around 70 million active smartphones in China. Now, according to the research firm iiMedia, there are 330 million; that’s more than the 320 million registered in the US. It’s estimated that China will reach 500 million smartphone users by the end of this year. No wonder Apple is reputed to be working on a low-cost iPhone for China: a move that could further accelerate uptake across Asia, South America and Africa.

    Click here to read the full article

    source:  The National / 

  • It’s not just women: everyone lies on Facebook

    It’s not just the ladies out there lying away on Facebook and Twitter. Men are at it too. For, why would anyone want to project a negative image of themselves on networks designed to make people brag about their lives, asks Emma Barnett.

    According to a new poll, women consistently lie on social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter, in order to present the best versions of themselves.

    Well first things first: the said survey only questioned women. Sadly OnePoll, the company asking the questions, did not extend their queries to men.

    However, I did. Using my social profile on both Facebook and Twitter, I did my own very unscientific poll and found that most women and men agreed – people aren’t lying per se. Both genders just ain’t sharing the bad stuff about their lives on their respective social networks and so the‘humble brag’ was born.

    You know the statuses I am talking about because we’ve all done it: “Just checking into the VIP lounge at BA”, or “OMG just met Rob Lowe #blush”, (that second one is actually my own and I included a photo with the status – garnering some 37 likes or so). Come on it was Rob Lowe and we were in Wales at the Hay Festival.

    But why would you share the bad stuff in your life in a status update? These digital networks, which now dominate most people’s lives, weren’t designed to encourage people to share negative news.

    The clue lies in the name: ‘social’ networks. As one of my wise female friends on Facebook wrote (herself an avid sharer of information, photos and location updates) in answer to my brilliant poll question: “I don’t think women lie. I just think that there might be an imbalance of emotion-sharing on Facebook. No-one wants to look like a nutter, so sadness is usually dealt with privately, whereas happiness is shared.

    “It can appear deceptive as it means Facebook doesn’t display the whole truth, I suppose, but should everyone really share everything on Facebook? Women would go for coffee or make a phone call when in need of comfort or reassurance – no matter how many ‘likes’ you get, a physical hug can’t be replaced!”

    Quite. And while this particular survey found some women were writing fibs, pretending they were out on the town, (when really they were sat at home on the sofa eating crisps while frantically refreshing Facebook with updates about the life they could be arsed living), most people I know don’t lie to that extent. It’s more about selectively sharing the best bits of their lives so the perception of their entire lives being one big party becomes a lie – but no actual lying.

    Click here to read the full article

    source:  The Telegraph/ Emma Barnett

     

  • Irish American Facebook friends discover they’re related through a status update

    Paula O’Brien and Abbey Donohoe discovered they are aunt and niece via Facebook

    Abbey Donohoe and Paula O’Brien discovered through Facebook that they’re more than friends, they’re aunt and niece Photo by KWQC News

     

    When Paula O’Brien and Abbey Donohoe met at a party four years ago, people instantly began to comment on how similar they looked. However, last week, a Facebook post from O’Brien would lead to the revelation that the two were in fact related.

    WQAD in Iowa reports on the chance encounter between the two Irish Americans.

    On March 6th, 2013, O’Brien posted as her status: “On Sept. 19, 1982, my very first niece was born and given up for adoption. I know it wasn’t an easy decision for my brother to make, but it was the right one for that baby girl. Hope you can take a moment to read this & be thankful for the selfless sacrifice of adoption. I know many families whose hearts are full because of it.”

    Donohoe, who had met O’Brien a few years prior, saw the post and quickly messaged O’Brien saying, “You sure it wasn’t 1983? Because that’s my birthday & I was adopted…. crazy!”

    O’Brien privately messaged Donohoe with the parents’ names, to which Donohoe responded, “Oh my goodness, it sounds like you’re my Aunt!”

    Donohoe had never searched for her birth parents, citing that she always felt that she was so loved and never felt the need to.

    However, O’Brien, who was just 10 years old when her niece was adopted, and her family never forgot about Abbey. She says she and her family observed Abbey’s birthday every year even after she was adopted.

    “We experienced that loss and we never forgot about that baby,” said O’Brien of the adoption almost 30 years ago. “We never gave up on her. We observed her birthday every year. It never left our minds.”

    Donohoe, who said the entire situation is “surreal,” said “It’s been nice reading emails and starting to get in contact with people and ‘friend’-ing new aunts that are in the area.”

    “This is truly a miracle,” says O’Brien. “We just feel like our prayers have been answered.”

    Paula’s mom is planning to come to visit from Arizona next week to see her granddaughter Abbey for the first time since she was born.

    source:  IrishCentral

  • Food and Social Media: Reaping the Benefits!

    It was a gloomy Saturday morning as I entered the Dentist’s clinic and headed to the waiting room to wait for my turn to go through torturous pain (read: root canal). As I settled into the stainless steel chair, I looked around to check my fellow victims, a twenty-something female sat with her head bowed down, phone in hand.

    On her right was a middle-aged man, again looking down with phone in hand. Surveying the rest of the room, I noticed all present were busy with their phones, which wasn’t an uncommon sight, but it got me thinking of how our lives are being affected by these devices and the social media we are almost compelled to be on all the time.

    Social media can most easily be defined as a network of various websites where people meet, share and interact.

    I remember Orkut, MySpace and Hi5 – what fun we thought they were, the perfect way to spend the ‘extra’ time we had.

    Then there are Twitter, Instagram, Google+ and Facebook, totally addictive examples of social media, where users just ‘have’ to check for updates every other minute! From uploading photographs of every (and any) event happening in our lives, to sharing ‘memes’, to stalking relatives and friends, to adding/following anyone we’ve ever said hi to, to bringing revolutions and creating hate groups, to marketing for business ventures, for home entrepreneurs  – social media has it all.

    There is a difference of opinion on the advantages/disadvantages of social media.

    The main argument of those against it is that one is glued to a screen all the time, causing physical repercussions; and due to the fact that all interactions on it are virtual, this reduces a person’s social skills. Obsessive use of such media may lead to detrimental physical and mental effects.

    On the other hand, the benefits of social media are many, from marketing your brand, to establishing a business from home, to increasing your customer base, to shortening distances worldwide; social media has for sure brought about a change globally. Anything can be made popular using social media.

    For the love of food

    Lately, things related to food are very popular all over the social media, and food promotions on this platform are rampant.

    You see almost every other person tweeting or Instagramming the meal they just had (that includes me too). Somehow the trend for sharing the food we just had or are making on social networking websites has become very common now.

    People all over Instagram, Twitter, Facebook etcetera, are posting pictures almost every other hour. There are various groups on Facebook which are dedicated to food, where people share the reviews of their favourite eateries specifically highlighting what they liked or disliked.

    Click here to read the full article

    source: Spider Magazine / Tehniat Aftab

  • Students seek cyber-bullying input

    Young prefer to learn about online care from peers not authority, conference told

    Young people should be consulted on Government policies affecting cyber-bullying, a secondary school student conference was told today.

    Some 150 young people from over a dozen Dublin schools attended the ‘Empowering our Generation’ conference organised by Drimnagh Castle secondary school student council.

    A preference for learning about taking care of themselves online from peers rather than looking to authoritative figures was one of the major issues discussed among students.

    The council organised the conference to allow for input of young people on the best way to tackle cyber-bullying, student council spokesman and sixth class student Warren Farrell said.

    Speakers at the conference were cyberpsychologist Mary Aiken of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Brian O’Neill of the DIT School of Media about cyber-bullying statistics.

    “We promote students teaching parents [about cyber-bullying] and we think education is key,” Mr Farrell said.

    The young people also discussed issues around parents monitoring their online activity. “Students said it was their social space ….when their parents were young they would not have expected to be followed,” Mr Farrell said.

    Another issue discussed among students was that cyberbullying seemed to be more prevalent among girls, Mr Farrell said.

    As part of an interactive session students wrote messages on a ’post-it’ wall about how to solve cyber-bullying, which will be compiled and sent to Minister for Education Ruairi Quinn.

    “We wanted students to know how get the message out to the Minister about what young people think,” Mr Farrell said.

    The meeting was part of a range of initiatives by the student council of the all-boy’s secondary school to try and combat cyber-bullying.

    source: The Irish Times

  • Woman arrested after trying to sell her kids on Facebook

    Covered in detail by Oklahoma’s News 9 station, a 22-year-old woman named Misty Van Horn was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly attempting to sell both of her children on the Internet. Using Facebook messaging as her communication medium, VanHorn first attempted to sell her two-year-old child for a price tag of $1,000. However, she upped the price to $4,000 after including her 10-month-old child as a package deal. According to Oklahoma investigators, she offered this price to an unnamed woman living in Fort Smith, Arkansas through a standard Facebook message.

    misty vanhorn facebook kids

    Specifically, VanHorn wrote “Just come to Sallisaw. It’s only 30 minutes away and I give you all her stuff and let y’all have her forever for $1,000. But I have to have it before next week.” VanHorn was referring to her hometown of Sallisaw, Oklahoma, a city close to the Arkansas state line.

    VanHorn claimed to have needed a quick influx of $1,000 in order to bail her boyfriend out of jail. After the Facebook message was sent, an acquaintance of VanHorn notified the Oklahoma Department of Human Services and VanHorn was quickly arrested.

    When asked about VanHorn’s attempt to sell her own children, Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics spokesman Mark Woodward stated “It’s very disturbing to hear of a case like this, and certainly very tragic that somebody would treat their own children like a commodity.” When asked about this type of crime, Woodward continued “A lot of the deals, interaction, conversations will take place on social network sites where people can basically hide behind a computer screen, and they can hide their identity.”

    At the moment, Van Horn is being held at the Sequoyah County Jail on a significantly higher bond than her current boyfriend. Facing a complaint of trafficking minors, VanHorn will have to come up with $40,000 in order to get out of jail prior to her trial. Both children are now in the custody of the state of Oklahoma and the case is in the hands of the district attorney.

    source: DIGITAL TRENDS

  • How Twitter and Social Media Impacts Mexico’s Drug War

    Austin, Texas — Twitter, but increasingly Facebook and YouTube, are becoming essential elements to the way ordinary people in Mexico protect themselves from the war on drugs, according to experts sitting on a panel at South By Southwest Interactive called, “Life on the Line: Tweeting the Drug War.”

    Panelists included University of Texas at Brownsville professor Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, and journalists Melissa Del Bosque and Sergio Chapa.

    Correa-Cabrera spoke about a study she’s been doing specifically on the border state of Tamaulipas, which she said is characterized by being the “cradle” of the Zetas cartel, having more bridges to the U.S. than any other Mexican state, and especially the city of Reynosa, which has seen much more violence than other areas.

    After Mexican President Felipe Calderón declared war on the drug cartels in 2006, and then in 2010 when the Zetas and Gulf Cartel stopped working together, the violence exploded, Correa-Cabrera said. Consequently, journalists stopped covering the issue all together to avoid being killed, and so social media emerged as the go-to medium for information.

    “The formal media was not reporting these events. This is a war, even if the Mexican authorities don’t call it [that], we’ve seen many manifestations of war in the country, like the number of people who have been killed, the number of places we find them — and social media users are doing this work,” Correa-Cabrera said, noting that social media is the only way she could get info about territorial control of the drug cartels in Tamaulipas.

    Click here to read the full article

    source: POLITIC365  /  Sara Inés Calderón