combs

Changes I Have Made

For the assignment regarding Wikipedia I decided to focus on nuclear studies. I added the following sentence to the definition of the Atomic Bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki:  “However, contemporary historians contend that a demonstration was not the only option many believe that changing the surrender terms, relying on Japanese peace feelers, waiting for Soviet intervention, and or relying on conventional weaponry would have been just as efficient.” This correction is located at the end of the first paragraph of the section entitled “Opposition to Use of Atomic Bombs.”

Comment#1: On History Carnival it is stated, “The goal of these carnivals is to provide a regular showcase of the best blogs - well-known and not so well-known - in their fields.” After reading this statement I immediately wondered who was in charge of determining what is included on the list of blogs. Thankfully in reading further this was answered through the following statement: “It must be stressed that it’s not just for academics and specialists, that entries certainly don’t have to be heavyweight scholarship. But they do have to uphold certain standards of factual accuracy and integrity in the use of sources. All submissions will be vetted by the host, whose decision is final.” However I was not thoroughly convinced. In some ways this class has made me more skeptical about certain aspects of the internet; however I must admit that it has enlightened me as well.

Comment#2: One of these so-called enlightenments occurred concerning blogging for academics. With the onset of this course I had no previous skill or knowledge concerning blogging. Bloggers, I believed, were movie fanatics, star trek lovers, or individuals completely fascinated by computers not professionals, students, or professors. The idea of an academic blog seemed strange and out of place within a medium devoted to retail activities and online dating. However my view has changed substantially. Located within The History Blogosphere is a link to Sharon Howard’s Early Modern Notes. Under her blog posting “So, Why Would I Champion Academic Blogging” Sharon states “And why do I blog under my own name? The simple answer to that is because it didn’t occur to me not to.” This intrigued me because from the outset Sharon’s outlook on blogging was the antithesis of my feelings on the matter. Ok this may not seem interesting, but it is because it directly relates to preconceptions individuals may have in regard to who would or would not be more accepting of new mediums or forums. One would assume that as a twenty-two year old I would be more apt to start a blog and that Sharon (not knowing her age, I am assuming because of her occupation that she is older than I am) would be more apprehensive. In this case the opposite is true.

Comment#3: The Diary of Samuel Pepys led me to ponder the issue of mediums regarding memory and how that, in the face of emerging technology, has changed considerably. Journals are kept on paper usually bound and in some cases locked; in effort to keep prying eyes from seeing there contents. Now it seems so many individuals have not only begun recording their daily routines/thoughts using computers, but that they are willing to share this information with the world via the internet. Sites such as My Space have thousands of subscribers who on a daily basis trade comments with friends online regarding their weekend plans or thoughts for the day. As previously discussed in class sites such as these have led to prying by university officials, employers, and parents. Online diaries bring a completely new dimension to the time old tradition of a mother snooping through their child’s sock drawer in search of a diary; now they explore the internet. At the beginning of this course, the idea of blogging was strange to me and the concept of maintaining a diary or journal online had never crossed my mind.