Birds with Arms: Digital Rhetoric Edition?

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The Birds with Arms meme trend represents the archival nature of the internet. According to knowyourmeme.com, the earliest thread of Birds With Arms was created on August 11, 2008. In terms of the Internet as an archive, we are still able to see the first image of a bird with arms (that was posted, anyway), and the plethora of them that have been curated will exist on the Internet as long as it lives. As an archive, the collection of these images will exist even once the human population has long forgotten the meme itself.

The first known image of a bird with human arms

Naturally, the Birds with Arms theme represents the language of memes and their characteristics of being ubiquitous and viral. In terms of ubiquity, these remixes of the meme can be found across a plethora of digital platforms, there was not a single platform I couldn’t find birds with arms on, they are everywhere. With virality, these memes are everywhere and everyone can understand them and find the humor in them, it is through their ability to be universal that they have spread and reached the level of “viral.”There are multiple different remixes of the concept of birds with arms, with the same central element of humor being found in the idea of birds having human characteristics. Without the digital, I don’t believe these would be found as humorous on paper, except in games such as “What do you Meme?” where the digital is made physical.

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Had I not researched the origin of the meme, I would’ve never known where the assumed “first,” one came from, where it was located, or who was the curator. We see the birds with arms memes and laugh, we never consider who came up with it or why. With all of its reproductions and remixes, we have conditioned to see these memes at face level, and original isn’t seen as near as funny as the remixes. Therefore, the original and the author have lost their power and value in the digital society.

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Digital Ethnography

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1BDJkGjVG8pEiTOG8tGPdoeklxXvkJROH/preview

Social Media: My Hiatus and More

Being such a sentimental person, I was surprised by how much more I lived in the moment. Typically, I would take many pictures to try and capture the moments through Snapchat. This past week, however, I spent much less time on my phone while I was with friends. Additionally, I took and saved fewer pictures, but the ones I did take had greater significance to me. The reason they were taken had some sort of meaning, rather than greater numbers of less meaningful pictures.

I don’t think I could ever completely give up social media because I would feel very detached. Over the course of the week, I would be with friends and they would ask if I had seen so-and-so’s post, and I hadn’t, so I felt out of the loop.

That being said, I found my break refreshing, and realized how much I really don’t need it. Moving forward, I am going to try and limit my social media use. Basically, I want to only use it when I have a reason, rather than just as a time filler (even when I don’t have time). My greatest takeaway from it is that I don’t need it, and that I am so much more productive and have so much time freed up when I just take social media out of the equation.

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B) How do you think of Social Media re: Tribes & Anonymity 

I see Social Media as more of a social platform to communicate with people in their extended social circles, rather than a platform for change. As mentioned in Tribes, I see social media from the standpoint of slacktivism, it gives people the illusion of pushing for change and people stop at the illusion, rather than truly contributing to a change. That being said, if a group of like-minded people are connected and work towards a mutual goal, past simply sharing posts, it can be used to push change. It gives people the opportunity to experience life outside of their everyday circles and make the world feel so much more larger.

In terms of anonymity, there is no such thing. No matter the context, there is always a breadcrumb trail on the Internet that leads back to you. We feel like we can hide behind the screen on social media, but there are real life implications and consequences for our actions online. Like the example in the video, where an animal abuser posted “anonymously” online, and was arrested, proving anonymous doesn’t exist in the online sphere. On a smaller scale, we can say things we wouldn’t ever be able to say to someone’s face, ultimately forgetting there’s a real person behind the other screen.

The Truth About Roses

5 Reasons Roses Show Someone You Love Them

1. Symbolism

Roses communicate love. Regardless of the complexities of life and human relationships, beautiful, delicate roses are a sure way to tell them you love them. The different colors and variations of roses are said to communicate different meanings. Whether you are expressing romantic love with red roses, or thanking someone you love with pink or orange roses, roses are a sure way to show just how much you love them. The delicate petals and aromatic scent invoke feelings of love and tranquility, something our fast-paced world doesn’t supply us easily.

2. Greek Mythology

Aphrodite, the goddess of love, is said to have influenced the true meaning of roses. After rose bushes grew through her tears and her lover’s blood, Aphrodite kept and recognized the rose as a symbol of love and beauty. If Aphrodite herself recognized the rose as a symbol of love, that special someone in your life is sure to as well. If expressing romantic love is what you’re after, the red rose was given its color by Aphrodite, making the language of love unavoidable (p.s. roses are said to have the characteristics of an aphrodisiac).

3. Victorian Romance

In the 1800s, the Victorians developed the language of flowers (see symbolism above), and reinforced roses as symbols of love. At the time, people were still wary of publicly expressing feelings and emotions. Gifting roses, however, was a subtle way of expressing true love. Today, roses are a simple way to show someone you love them regardless of how much you say it.

4. Lingering Reminder

Ecuadorian roses, in particular, are known to be long lasting. With proper care, that special someone in your life can put their roses in a vase and have a visual, constant reminder of your love for them for an extended period of time. Whether on the counter, or on the dining room table, your special someone is sure to put them in a place for all to see. With that lingering reminder, they’re sure to find happiness and love in the sheer beauty of the roses and the meaning behind them.

5. Reflection

Have you ever heard the phrase “stop and smell the roses?” Whoever you are choosing to express your love to, they are sure to see (and smell) the roses and reflect on their relationship with you. Roses communicate love from all angles. Not only do they communicate love to the person receiving them, the person who gave them is likely to feel a sense of love and fulfillment. They would’ve had to feel strongly in order to give a gift with such a depth of meaning. In that manner, roses also communicate to ourselves the reflection on our lives and why we feel the way we do for that person whether it’s a friend, relative, or lover.

Chimborazo!

I Should Probably Start Looking at Things Other Than Snap, Insta, and Facebook…

Monday:

• Class 1:10-2:10
• Reply to Snaps
• Homework
• Band
• Snap “Band Bishes” chat
• Dinner then class until 9
• Back to room
• Check Insta and Facebook …both time out
  • (30 min a day Insta 20 Facebook… phone blocks them)
• Messenger with my friend

Tuesday:

• Wake up
• Reply to snaps, scroll through Insta until roommate leaves for breakfast
• Hw
• Spend a couple of minutes on Insta
• Class 9:40-2:40
  • Reply to important people’s Snaps between classes
• Gym
• Out to dinner
• Hw until roommate is back roommate has company, Facebook, Insta, and Snap until quiet again
• Hw with some snaps to important people… fade out of snapping people until bed

Wednesday:

• Wake up 6:45, reply to snaps before the gym
• Gym
• Breakfast, back to room, roommate wasn’t at lab for some reason so Insta and Facebook until she finally leaves
• Hw
• Reply to snaps and insta dms when she’s in the room
• Hw when she stops talking and singing…scroll through insta and facebook when she starts again
• Hw once she leaves for class and lunch
• She comes back early, I get distracted by snap stories
• Flip between facebook, insta, and snap until FB and Insta time out
• Class 1:10-2:10
• Office hours for a class discussion
• Starbucks hw session
• Band, snap “band bishes”
• Dinner
• Jazz Band and snapchat
• Snap and hw until bed

Thursday:

• Wake up and check snap
• Gym 
• Breakfast
• Insta
• Class 9:40-2:40
  • Reply to snaps between classes 
• Flip between Facebook, Insta, and Snap
• Homework and occasionally scroll through insta and reply to important people on snap 
• Dinner
• FaceTime for a couple min
• Went out with someone
• Bed

Friday:

• Wake up and drive home
• Facebook, Insta, and especially snap
• Insta times out
• Drive back to school
• Snap
• Class look at classes for next year
• Gym
• Early dinner
• Facebook and more classes
• Band sectional
• Homework with some snap
• Slurpee run with friend
• Hang out until late, occasional snap
• Bed

Saturday:

• Wake up check snaps, insta dms, texts, messenger, and lots of insta
• Homework
• Hang out with friends
• Go to Mt.P
• Homework
• Out for the night

Sunday:

• Wake up
• Facebook and Insta until timed out
• Homework
• Brunch
• Reply to snaps
• Procrastinate HW with Facebook and Insta (put in password for more time… oops)
• Library to do HW
• Dinner
• HW with intermittent snaps
• Search for Internships
• HW… still occasional snaps
• Bed

In summary, I spend far too much of my life flipping through Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. I definitely visit Snapchat too often, and I really need to stop directing boredom to my phone and laptop. I’m lucky enough that I am strict on myself in terms of deadlines, so it hasn’t had any effect on my work or school work.

Tech as the Self

In the digital age, the self is shaped by the social self described by James. Even in the days of Marshall McLuhan, technology was seen as an extension of the self. In the TedTalks, Saving the Self in the Age of the Selfie and Connected but Alone, both speakers saw technology as a necessity in life. It has become so engrained in our daily lives that it has become a part of us, a part of our self.

Technology has expanded on our life experiences and gives access to an entire new set of selves. For example, we are not who we are online, it is an entirely new self, yet even across platforms and groups of people, we are still different. In a way, it makes people question who we truly are. Take cyberbullying for example, someone could be vocal and vicious online, but be shy and calm in person. Additionally, the cyber bully could act entirely different to a friend or family member online than they would be with their victim, even how they acted between friends and relatives could be different. Further, societal rules and regulations of the Internet seem to be taken far less seriously online. People don’t seem to realize the consequences of their actions as much as they do in real life, and therefore may behave in an entirely different manner online than in person.

Not to mention, our selves are effected by the media we see daily. We are unique because we think for ourselves, but advertisements, for example are intended to sway and guide our thinking. Therefore, if our self is composed of our own thoughts, isn’t media manipulating our individual selves in a way?

In regard to the ship, regardless of how technology or media effects us, we are still ourselves because of our history, perhaps even more-so because of our inescapable digital footprint. Extending that concept to William James, John J. McGraw wrote “…experiences don’t create the self, but the self makes the experiences his owned history.” Basically, everything experienced through these mediums has become a part of our history and our self. The way I see it, life in the digital age has extended our number of selves and become an extension of our being.

Does BuzzFeed “work”?

Bot Checking #trolls

Not having a Twitter, I had to think outside the box in order to get around their restrictions. Therefore, I decided what could be better than Google searching the Twitter hashtag for trolls and fact, or bot, checking the accused.

Here are my results:

Alright, now this one requires a bit of backstory…

I came across a Tweet where one user exposed another as a troll, but both users were rated Problematic or Alarming.

Here is the tweet:

Here is the accused:

And here is the exposer:

All in all, bot like accounts tend to excessively post, even more than some of the most avid Tweeters. These tweets may have unrelated hashtags that don’t make any sense together, and most of them seem to be very private, there usually won’t be naming details or profile pictures, maintaining anonymity. Another good tell-tale is when they only have a handful of followers but may have a viral or near-viral tweets with thousands of likes and re-tweets.

The account in question may be impersonal, have crazy amounts of posts, have few followers with thousands of likes, or have excessive amounts of hashtags that are seemingly unrelated. Basically, if your conscience tells you an account seems sketchy, it is probably a bot.

Do We Really “Waste Time on the Internet?”

Goldsmith may not belong to my generation of being born into a world of easily accessible technology that provides instant gratification, but he seems to be more open-minded in comparison to his peers. I consider his claim to be reasonable that even if we are wasting time on the internet, it isn’t time truly being wasted. The truth behind it is that we are accessing volumes of information at the tips of our fingers. We are constantly consuming or creating, whether reading/skimming or writing online, it is still a productive use of time.

Although we may not see this behavior as productive when it interferes with getting work or chores done, we are still learning and processing information and not just staring at the ceiling. That being said, Goldsmith may be overlooking the fact that when people say wasting, they are likely referring to procrastinating and not accomplishing things with implicit or explicit deadlines. However, I still find that his claim is valid and that the time that we spend on the internet is not truly wasted.