July 13 class: Social media

What is social media? Define it with your classmates and give some examples. Do you participate in social media?
Here is some information about social media from webtrends.about.com:

What is Social Media?

The best way to define social media is to break it down. Media is an instrument on communication, like a newspaper or a radio, so social media would be a social instrument of communication.

In Web 2.0 terms, this would be a website that doesn't just give you information, but interacts with you while giving you that information. This interaction can be as simple as asking for your comments or letting you vote on an article, or it can be as complex as Flixster recommending movies to you based on the ratings of other people with similar interests.

Think of regular media as a one-way street where you can read a newspaper or listen to a report on television, but you have very limited ability to give your thoughts on the matter.

Social media, on the other hand, is a two-way street that gives you the ability to communicate too.

Now, let us discuss some examples of social media. The 2012 summer Olympic games is said to be the "socialympics." What ways could the Olympic games use social media?


Here are two more examples:

1. taskrabbit - a site where you can hire someone to do something for you.

2. CouchSurfing - find a place to stay overnight when you are traveling - for free!

There are mobile apps for some of these sites too, which makes them all the more attractive.

What examples can you think of?

July 20 speaking test, July 13 unit test, and Blog #6

Speaking test
You will have a 5-10 minute speaking test in pairs or threes on July 20. It will take place in the Communication room (Chuo 6F). I will ask you to speak with a partner about two or three of the sentences we studied in the vocabulary sections of Units 1, 4, and 8. You should prepare for a discussion on the contents and vocabulary of two or three of the following:

Unit 1 (p. 3)
1. Some parents admire famous athletes as strong role models, so they name their children after them.
5. Some parents are concerned about discrimination. They don't want their children treated unfairly because of their names.
7. Women in three generations of my family have had the name Sarah - my grandmother, my mother, and my sister.
8. When I hear the name Barbie, I see an image of a tall, blond girl.
10. A name can be a symbol of identity, especially for celebrities.

Unit 4 (p. 33)
2. There are many expenses in running a restaurant. An owner needs to balance his or her desire to make money with the customers's desire for good prices.
3. Delicious food and comfortable chairs are two components of a good dining experience.
4. There was a big contrast between the two restaurants. One had great food; the other's was awful.

Unit 8 (p. 73)
4. The intended use or purpose of a mall is a place to shop. A cafe's intended use is as a place to eat.
7. A building must serve the needs and purposes of the people who use it. If the building does this, then the architect has met the objective.
9. Frank Gehry's designs often use irregular angles. It's important to stress, however, that the designs are still structurally sound.
10. Frank Gehry was resourceful because he liked to utilize chain-link fence, plywood, sheet metal, and other building materials that were easily available to him.

We will decide your speaking partners and the test schedule on July 13. For the speaking test on July 20, you may not refer to any materials. I will prepare what you need during the test.

Unit 8 test
On July 13, we will have the unit test (listening test) for Unit 8. For the Unit 8 listening test, you may bring one page of handwritten notes to refer to as you are taking the test. No other materials will be allowed.

Blog #6
Choose from one of these topics to write your blog: Japanese culture (including pop culture), business, or food.
The blog deadline is July 23, 17:00 and the commenting deadline is August 6, 17:00. Do a good job of posting and commenting, and do not be late for either!

Refer to your blog schedule for Blogs #7 and #8 - you should do them during in August and September. The topics for these blogs are free. Do a good job!

A bet on the sun: sample summary

This article introduces a solar powered thermal plant called "Ivanpah" that is being built in a California desert and will be the biggest solar power plant in the world. It will cost $2.2 billion and provide electricity for 140,000 homes. It is a unique project, as there are only a few places in the world where such plants operate effectively. But there are supporters and opponents of such plants: the supporters think it is a good way to produce a lot of high-quality energy. The opponents think it is risky since some companies, such as Soyndra, have gone bankrupt, despite getting a loan from the U.S. government. Therefore, critics say that the costs are overwhelming for this technology to be successful.