Post-Australia Apocalypse

I've been home from Australia for exactly three weeks now and I needed to write down how I'm feeling or I'm going to go crazy. I had been putting it off because I wanted to wait until I was far enough removed from the day I left that I could fully reflect and assess what effect the last five months have had on me.

As we were packing, getting ready to leave, I didn't think I was going to cry. Then Albert started saying his goodbyes. I don't even remember what he said, I'm not even sure if I knew what he was saying at the time he was saying it, all I know is that I started to cry. Then we had to pull away, leaving my friend--no no, soul mate--Gracie behind. I hated that moment more than anything. I still hate it.

When I was sitting on the plane, flying somewhere over the Pacific Ocean, I realized all the sudden that everything that happened felt like a dream. I thought I feel asleep on the plane ride there and had just woken up. The time didn't seem to be going so fast in the moment, but then all the sudden I was going home. To make it worse, when I got home, people didn't seem interested at all in hearing about my adventures, and it felt rude to bring it up on my own.

Going back to school was strange. Everyone complained about how much the semester sucked. I found myself avoiding eye contact with people--not wanting to see someone I know and having to stop and answer all the same questions, "How was it? Are you glad to be back?". Then, a girl a year younger was asking Claire and I all about it because she is considering going there for her study abroad, and I HATED that I had to speak in past-tense about it. I hate that it's all already over and now I have to figure out what the next big step in my life will be.

Now, I'm sitting here...BORED. I'm the type that is not quite comfortable just sitting and doing nothing all day. However, I feel like there's nothing to do but at the same time so many things I should be doing..(look for an internship, figure out what I want to do with my life...). I even took several career aptitude tests to see what my personality says I should be. I guess I should stop trying to shove myself in a little hole because I didn't like any of the suggestions.

I feel very trapped in this small town I live in, now that I know how big the world is and how much opportunity there is hiding in every corner. I also feel like I'm a very uninteresting person. Sometimes I wonder why people are friends with me because I feel like I have nothing to offer them. No interesting facts about myself, no special talents or hobbies or extensive knowledge on anything. I was inspired by all my friends I made in Australia and thought they all had such cool quirks about them and they've done all these cool things and know exactly what they want to do when they graduate. This is not me fishing for compliments, however. This is me saying that that is going to change and I'm going to visit amazing places and learn and do amazing new things someday very soon, and I want to do something that will help a lot of people, I just don't know what yet, but I'm confident that it will come to me. I'm genuinely interested in learning about people. I love hearing about where people come from, what they've done, and what they want to do.

All I want is to someday love life so much that I physically fight falling asleep.

5 months in 500 words

This blog post is going to be a summary of all the places I went, the things I saw, the things I did, and how I've changed in Australia. I was really excited to do this post because it really gives me a chance to look back and appreciate all the amazing experiences I had. I wouldn't trade it for anything. Here goes!

Where I Went

• Sydney
• The Blue Mountains
• Gold Coast-Surfers Paradise, Burleigh Heads, Coolangata, Currumbin
• Byron Bay
• Nimbin
• Brisbane
• Binna Burra
• The Australia Zoo
• Sunshine Coast-Rainbow beach, Noosa, Fraser Island, Whitesundays Islands, White Haven Bach
• Melbourne

Things I Saw

• Sydney Opera House/Bridge
• Aboriginal Performance
• Little old ladies selling "special cookies"
• A koala in the wild
• A huntsman spider
• Several snakes, including a python
• Lizards
• The mice living in our apartment
• Dolphins, sea turtles
• The Great Barrier Reef-cool fish, stingray, shark
• A dingo
• All different types of birds that make the worst noises in the world
• Brisbane botanical gardens
• Melbourne street art
• The caves in Noosa
• Mt. Warning volcano
• Natural water slide (springbrook falls)
• The Melbourne Aquarium
• Sunrises/sunsets on multiple beaches
• An AFL game
• The rainforest
• Crowne Casino in Melbourne
• Brisbane Music Festival-lazer light show

Things I Did

• Boat dinner cruise in Sydney
• Paddle-boarding
• White water rafting
• Zip lining
• High ropes course
• Hiking in the rainforest
• Kayaking
• Snorkeling
• Skydiving
• Bungee jumping
• Giant swing
• Cliff jumping
• Slept on the beach under the stars
• Musical bingo
• Drove on the other side of the road
• Longboarding
• Learned to cook
• Spooned a kangaroo
• Fed a big tropical fish
• Ate Kangaroo, tried vegemite (ew), Tim Tams=YUM
• Went to a couch surfing BBQ-met Canadian and Irish travelers
• Went up on skydeck in Melbourne and saw the city lit up from the 80th floor
• Held a koala

Did I Change?

My friend Gracie asked Cierra and I if we thought we had changed. I don't think I've changed that much, but I will have to see when I get home if people tell me I'm different. I have however noticed some things about myself:

• I am a lot braver than I thought-I mean I like roller coasters, and always knew I wanted to skydive, but I NEVER thought I would be brave enough to bungee jump or cliff jump. When did I turn into this person who wasn't afraid at all whatsoever to jump out of a plane or off a bridge or into dark unfamiliar waters? Or drive on the other side of the road?
• I am also a lot more mentally strong than I thought-I thought I would be really homesick all the time here but I actually adjusted fairly quickly.
• Which leads me to my next point...I definitely want to travel more. I always knew I wanted to travel, but it was more of an abstract thought that everyone has. I would even consider traveling alone, which before this experience I definitely never would have considered. 
• I am much more carefree-At home I worried a lot and was stressed out often, but the Australian "no worries" lifestyle has definitely taken over. This especially shows by my lack of concern when my apartments dishes are piled to the ceiling, and there are mice in our rooms.
• I'm also much more positive than I used to be-every situation here that wasn't so desirable, I was able to find the good in it and just focus on having a good time.
• Lastly, I'm much more appreciative-of America, of my parents, of my school, of my hometown, etc.

What will I do for the next few days?

• Spend every moment with the friends I've made and don't want to leave
• Cry
• Soak up every bit of sun I can get before returning to a freezing cold wasteland
• Try to find a job back home (I came here with $6500...I now have less than $500).

Thanks for reading and following me on this journey!

Dana

Melbourne Made Us Artsy

This weekend, I got to visit a place that gave me a little taste of the weather I've been missing back at home. It felt like fall in Melbourne, and I was loving every minute of it. Don't be fooled, though, there were still palm trees and other tropical plants you'd find in the tropics of Australia. How is this possible in a place that snows and there's rain every other day? I'm not sure.

Steph and I in front of some street art

I think I fell in love with this city because it was the perfect balance of what I was missing at home, and what I love about Australia. It felt like fall in NYC, but at the same time it was so different. One of the first things I noticed was how nicely everyone was dressed--it is a very business-y city, very unlike the completely laid back vibe of Surfers where everyone is in their "swimmers" all the time. I missed people dressing nicely, and I missed people smelling good--yay! no B.O stench in this city! The people were extremely nice as well, typical for Australia, and it was easy to get around.

I was a bit of a mess on this little trip, however. I was already thrown off and frustrated because I lost $65 by switching my flight back home to an earlier time when I thought I would be saving money...I guess this is where my lack of math skills truly shows. Then, as we were on our way to the airport, I realized I had forgot to pack a sweatshirt, a rain jacket, and shoes other than the flip flops I was wearing. This was a problem because it rains in Melbourne all the time and was quite chilly. I know bad things happen in three's, so I was waiting for this next one: I ended up losing my Australian phone. I wasn't worrying too much, I figured it would turn up eventually, I just wanted to focus on having a good time.

Sam and I in front of some street art

The first day, we took a tram just outside the city to a well-known street called Brunswick, a long stretch of a mixture of high-end clothing stores and thrift shops. I found a funky patterned pair of high-waisted shorts in a thrift store for $7! That afternoon we went to a nice little place for lunch where I got an amazing toasted salami sandwich on pretzel bread with pesto sauce, and the other girls got Bruschetta. Yum! That night, we decided to check out the night life on that same street. We found one bar that was fun to dance at, but quickly realized that it was tough being in a new city and not knowing all the right places to go on the right nights. So, being the American girls that we are, we quick found somewhere unhealthy to eat and headed home.

The next day, we ate breakfast in the Royal Arcade. It wasn't actually an arcade...but it was really cool! You could tell the building was really old--the architecture was beautiful, and it had a checkered black and white floor. It was filled with little specialty shops, including a store called Babushka, filled with Russian stacking dolls. I also noticed that this city has a very strong Parisian influence; many of the stores sold French specialty items, there were many French eateries, and a lot of the architecture was French.

The conservatory

What Melbourne is really known for is it's street art scene, which was my favorite part of the trip. There is one street in particular called Hosier Lane, where you are greeted by a huge ally with an explosion of colors and pictures and messages, followed by more and more allys until you're head is spinning so much from the fumes you have to leave. It was truly incredible to see--there are essentially no regulations, the artists don't get in trouble, in fact there were some tours we could have paid to go on lead by the artists! We even got to watch some artists paint. After taking 1000 artsy pictures of ourselves, we headed on to the Fitzroy Gardens.

In these gardens we actually found a fountain memorial for President John F. Kennedy, with a plaque that read, "This memorial signifies the grateful recognition by the citizens of this city for the service given by John F. Kennedy as President of the United States of America, 1960-1963". I'm not exactly sure what he did for the city, but it was very interesting to see. We walked on and found the conservatory which was beautiful, with all types of flowers and statues, and enjoyed a nice lunch with a view of the "Fairy Tree", a tree that fairies were carved into and painted, surrounded by little fairy cottages, too cute!

More street art

We were looking forward to this night all along, because we had heard great things about this one bar called The Croft, which was supposedly themed as an insane asylum. On our way there, we got asked by a group of Australian kids our age if we were going clubbing tonight. We said yes, and they asked us if we could help them out by going in with them to this one club that had a 50/50 rule (for every guy in the group, there had to be a girl too or they weren't allowed in). The guys said they would pay for us (how could we pass this up?! Too good to be true!). We couldn't believe it--these guys dropped $40 just to get into a club. We had so much fun dancing that we almost didn't want to leave, but finally decided it was time to check out The Croft.

On the way to The Croft

Of course, to get to The Croft, we had to walk through this dark ally with tons of creepy street art all over the walls. We walked in...and....we were very disappointed:[ The first floor was weirdly bright for a bar/club, especially one that was supposed to be scary. We also thought that maybe the people working the bar would be dressed up as crazy doctors with needles but...no luck. The only thing that indicated the theme were the chemical tubes and weird equipment on the shelves on the walls of the bar. We walked upstairs, hoping it gets better, but the theme virtually disappeared upstairs. The bathroom at least had a hospital bed, which we decided to take pictures on as if we were possessed. We then headed on to a rooftop bar called Cookie, where we danced to 50's music!

Luna Park at St. Kilda

On our last day, we went a bit outside the city to St. Kilda beach. The beach was beautiful, and out in the ocean sat heaps of sailboats. We walked through the street markets and found some great souvenirs for friends and family! We also were LOVING all the dogs there were! That night, we went to the Skydeck, the tallest viewpoint in Melbourne--the elevator shoots up to the 80th floor so fast that your ears pop and you feel lightheaded. It had a 360 view of the amazing city lit up at night. I felt so peaceful sitting and watching the city twinkle. Then, we checked out the Crowne Casino. We didn't spend much time there because obviously we have no idea how to bet and didn't want to lose what little money we have, but it was definitely a great experience. I actually won $2.50! Woo!

Me on the slots:]

The next day, Sam and I visited the Melbourne Aquarium where we got to see all sorts of Australian sea life. It was even cooler because it was the first time I had been to an Aquarium where I could say I've actually swam right next to some of these fish while snorkeling! And of course, the penguins were adorable:]

As I was getting on the plane to head back to the Gold Coast, I realized that the next time I would be getting on a plane is to go home to America...and I got really sad. Only two weeks left, I will definitely be appreciating every last moment I have here in Australia. A few friends and I are renting a car next week and heading back to Byron Bay and Nimbin one last time, where we plan on sleeping on the beach. I'm sure there will be some great stories to tell afterwards!

Cheers,
Dana

Me swimmin with the fishies in the aquarium

Spring Break in Australia!!

I'm a little sad writing this post because I'm still trying to comprehend the fact that the best week ever of my life is over. I really don't know how I'm ever going to leave this place! Considering tossing my passport into the ocean...

Me holding a Koala!!

The first day we went to the Australia Zoo, which is in memory of Steve Irwin. I've already done the zoo thing in Australia but this time I got to lie down right next to kangaroos and take pictures with them and HELD A KOALA! The photo I got of this is definitely my most prized possession. I won't lie and say that I liked holding this koala...I actually almost dropped it when it was placed in my hands because its butt was wet and I thought it was peeing on me...but sooo worth the picture.

We then headed to Fraser Island, which is the largest sand island in the world. This island is interesting because the vegetation goes from younger to older as you go across. You can literally see the trees getting older and older. We drove around in a giant vehicle meant for driving on the sand, so it was a very bumpy ride! But very fun. We saw a dingo as well and learned that these dingos have never left the island and have never been introduced to any other type of dog-like species and so are in their purest form. This island was known to the aboriginals as paradise and they said that anything that doesn't swim or fly is part of the paradise and should be protected.

White Haven Beach, Whitsundays

We then headed to a resort in Whitsundays. White Haven beach is the most photographed place in the world. We kept saying that we felt like we were in Pinterest...this place wasn't real, it was so beautiful. An aboriginal that was on this tour with us showed my friends Molly, Sam and I some sting rays and sharks which was really cool. We went snorkeling, which was a pretty big deal for me because for some reason I can't handle having any sort of mask put on my face, but I faced my fear and did it. The first breath under water was really scary and I needed a moment to calm down but after that I couldn't stop! Seeing all sorts of gorgeous fish and the reef was amazing, I felt like I was in an aquarium swimming with Nemo!

Resort we stayed at

We also went white water rafting...which would have been SO much more fun if we weren't being eaten alive by this certain type of fly that only comes around for 2 months out of the whole year (lucky us). There were literally millions of them and we all left with so many bug bites. We were definitely entertained by our guide though. He was a bit of a pathological liar...he told us that one of the other guides had a sex change, that another one is a registered sex offender and tries to grab girls boobs when they fall out of the boat, and threw in some very perverted jokes along the way. He also made us all lie on top of each other in pyramid formation at the front of the boat, going face first over a waterfall. He told us we wouldn't flip.....yeah, we flipped. But hey it was fun and something different from what all the other boats did!

Me skydiving!

The next day was the day of all days...I woke up at 7 in the morning knowing that in the next 24hrs I will have skydived and bungy jumped. I really wasn't nervous at all for the skydiving, but the bungy jumping...my stomach turned every time I thought about it. Sky diving was my absolute FAVORITE thing of the whole trip. I was the second to last person of my group to jump out, and most people hated watching the others jumping out but it actually pumped me up even more. We jumped out and began spinning and flipping everywhere, and finally we were free falling for 60 seconds which was insane! The only thing I didn't like was I couldn't get my ears to pop which hurt really bad, but other than that I saw amazing views and felt like I was flying! He even let me steer the parachute for a little bit! As soon as we got to the ground I wanted to turn right around and go again.

A couple hours later, we arrived at the place where we were going to bungy jump. Somehow all my fear of jumping off a platform at however many feet with just a cord attached to my legs disappeared. I was SO excited to do it! I'm very thankful that I went skydiving first, otherwise I don't think I would have been this relaxed. The initial jump and free fall was probably the most terrifying thing of my life...it was a very unpleasant feeling. I also thought that I jumped with a perfect swan dive form but upon watching my video afterwards I realized I basically ended up pencil diving, which snapped me forward and hurt a little but not that much. It was still a very exhilarating feeling! Next we went on the highest and fastest giant swing in the world, which was SO FUN! By the time we went it was dark out so as we were being pulled up we could see the city with all the lights, and then we were let go from however many feet, rushing at however speed, laughing and having a great time. It was a day filled with adrenaline rushes and definitely the best day of my life.

Me and my girls!

That night also ended up being a great time too! We were taken on a party bus to several different bars and got a free shot at each bar and there was a competition at each one. I ended up playing a game called Knights, Cavaliers, Vikings where you are with a partner, and when the caller calls one of those three positions you have to get into it as quickly as you can and if you fall over or get in the wrong position than you're out. My partner and I ended up winning!! It was so much fun and we won a free hour of wakeboarding!

Overall the craziest week of my life...not sure how I'm still alive...my next big trip is Melbourne at the end of October!

Cheers!

A Discussion of the Positives and Negatives of Children's Social Media Use

It’s no secret that the introduction of social media has greatly impacted the world we live in today and the minds of young people. But to what extent? Are the moral panics of losing the ability to communicate face-to-face real? Or are there more benefits from the use of social media than we initially thought? According to (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD, 2011, p. 800) 22% of teenagers log on to their favorite social media site more than 10 times a day, and more than half log in once a day. (Livingstone, S, 2002) made the excellent point: “Young people are at the point in their lives where they are most motivated to construct identities, to forge new social groupings, and to negotiate alternatives to given cultural meanings”. Basically, young minds are extremely impressionable, so we must consider what affect this extensive use of social networking sites has. According to (Correa, T, Hinsley, A, & de Zuniga, H 2010), 89% of teens report using a computer, and 14% report seeing something they do not want their parents to know about. This is alarming, but as (Livingstone, S, 2002) points out, these same types of concerns were raised when television and VCR were introduced. I will look at the arguments for the positives of using social media as well as the negatives, and weigh this against my own knowledge and experiences to form my own opinion.

(O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD, 2011) brings up many positives of using social media, including the ability to stay connected with friends and family, share pictures, and exchange ideas. In addition, social media brings opportunities for community engagement, such as raising money for charities and volunteering, as well as enhancement of individual and collective creativity, sharing artistic and musical endeavors, and the growth of ideas from blogs, podcasts, and videos. Shared interests lead to talking to others from more diverse backgrounds, through which adolescents learn the lessons of respect and tolerance by increased discourse about personal and global issues. A survey of teenagers ages 12-17 found that 62% of online teens get news about current events and politics online. There is an endless amount of opportunities to learn and grow and create on the Internet. In a survey from 2009, 38% of Internet-using teens say they shared content online, and all demographic groups are equally as likely to share content (Lenhart, A, Purcell, K, Smith, A, & Zickuhr, K 2010, p. 23). However, (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD, 2011) also states that all of these things will help to foster an adolescent’s individual identity and unique social skills. I disagree with this—many young people create alternate identities of themselves on the Internet, typically due to the fact that they are not happy with themselves in the real world and get pulled into cyberspace. This idea is further backed up by a survey I created and sent out to my peers, where I asked, “How accurately do you believe a person’s Facebook profile depicts their personality and their life?”, to which 0% said “completely accurate” and 76% said “somewhat accurate”. This shows that users of Facebook between the ages of 18-21 understand that people like to portray an image of themselves on social networking sites that are not always completely representative of their real selves.

Aside from social media, many young people use the Internet for health concerns such as STI’s and depression—providing a network of support where they know they’re not alone. According to a survey of teens ages 12-17, 31% get health, dieting or physical fitness information from the Internet, and 17% gather information about topics that are hard to discuss like drugs or sexual health (Lenhart, A, Purcell, K, Smith, A, & Zickuhr, K 2010 p.4). (Lenhart, A, Purcell, K, Smith, A, & Zickuhr, K 2010) stated, “The mobile technologies that teens use daily…have already produced multiple improvements in health care, such as increased medication adherence, better disease understanding, and fewer missed appointments”. However, this typically brings up the issue of inaccurate health information online.

As mentioned before, there seems to be typical fears and anxieties that are recycled as each new media comes about. Currently, questions raised about the Internet ask about violent, stereotyped, exploitative and pornographic content which are reinforcements of individualistic, lazy, prejudiced and uncritical activities (Livingstone, S 2002 p.5). It was found (Livingstone, S 2002 p.7) that these moral panics are generally not productive of good research: “You don’t find often teenagers turned by computer games into lonely, isolated addicts unable to communicate with each other—rather, they incorporate new media into their peer networks, using both face-to-face and online interactions, visiting houses to talk about and play these games like they used to swap comics”. Schoenback & Becker (1989) surveyed the impact on households of media introduced in the 1980’s (VCR and TV) and found little evidence of reduction in time or money spend on non-media leisure. It is interesting that in my daily life I have found that even my face-to-face interactions with people involve talking about things that we saw on social media—“did you see what she said? Did you see that funny tweet?” However, it is true that we definitely have the ability to find information much faster—if there is ever a question no one knows the answer to, the answer is always, “Google it!”

Something that is currently being discussed in Europe is 2.0 learning, which could be used to integrate learning to a wider community—meeting people from other age groups and socioeconomic backgrounds, exchanging knowledge, and increasing academic achievement (Redecker, C, Ala-Mutka, K, & Punie, Y 2010 p.7). 2.0 Learning encourages teaching and learning processes that are based on personalization and collaboration. Teachers become designers, coordinators, moderators, mediators, and mentors, while students take responsibility for their own learning progress and support each other (Redecker, C, Ala-Mutka, K, & Punie, Y 2010 p.8). This is a very interesting concept that definitely has very positive potential.

So, do the positives outweigh the negatives? One very prominent negative is cyberbullying, defined as “Using digital media to communicate false, embarrassing, or hostile information about another person” It is the most common online risk, and “Can cause profound psychological outcomes including depression, anxiety, severe isolation and suicide” (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011 p.801). Personally, in my hometown a young boy of 15 years old committed suicide because of people bullying him online, sparking a huge debate on education of cyberbullying in the curriculum.

Another negative is sexting, which is “Sending, receiving or forwarding sexually explicit messages, photographs or images via cell phone, computer, or other digital devices (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011 p.802). According to (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011) 20% of teens have sent or posted nude or seminude photos or videos of themselves, and some were charged with a felony of child pornography. I have definitely witnessed young girls’ reputations get ruined by what they thought was innocently sending a nude picture to a boy, who then sends it to everyone in the school.

A negative that may not be so well known is Facebook depression, defined as, “Depression that develops when preteens and teens spend a great deal of time on social media sites, such as Facebook, and begin to exhibit classic symptoms of depression” (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011 p.803). Acceptance by peers is so critical in adolescent life, and therefore they become at risk for social isolation and turn to unsafe sites for acceptance—sites that may promote substance abuse, unsafe sexual practices, or self-destructive behaviors (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011 p.803). In the survey I created, I asked the question, “Has the use of social media ever affected the way you feel about yourself (your looks, your economic status, your social status, etc)?” and 88% of respondents said yes, indicating the huge impact using social media can have on your mental health.

Privacy is another very big issue. Adolescents don’t understand the long-term repercussions of their “digital footprint”, and post inappropriate pictures and things that could cost them a college acceptance or a job. The online realm represents ‘their’ space that is visible to their peer group but away from parents. In my survey I asked, “Have you ever posted something on social media that you regret?” and 87% of respondents said yes.

Leading off of this, the use of social media has led to a much more self-absorbed generation. In an experiment by (Villani, S, MD 2001), a young girl discussed getting comments by “friends” on her pictures and said, “It’s like, quite nice, I think, when people say you’re pretty. I like when they comment me because, like, it shows that they care”. This truly shows how misled and egotistical this younger MySpace generation has become.

During my research, I found a quote that really sums up what needs to happen in order for social media to be beneficial to adolescents: “The challenge to adults who deal with children, either personally as parents or professionally, will be to monitor media use in ways that foster curiosity and the positive aspects of the ability of media to teach, yet simultaneously protect children from spending too much time with media at the expense of human interactions…” (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011). Basically, everything in moderation—social media use has many positive aspects, but when taken to the extreme it can be detrimental to a young person’s mental health and put their futures in danger.

References

Correa, T, Hinsley, A, & de Zuniga, H 2010, ‘Who Interacts on the Web?: The Intersection of Users’ Personality and Social Media Use’, Computers in Human Behavior, vol. 26, issue 2, pp. 247-253, viewed 26 August 2013, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563209001472.

Lenhart, A, Purcell, K, Smith, A, & Zickuhr, K 2010, ‘Social Media & Mobile Internet Use Among Teens and Young Adults’, Pew Research Center, viewed 25 August 2013, http://web.pewinternet.org/~/media/Files/Reports/2010/PIP_Social_Media_and_Young_Adults_Report_Final_with_toplines.pdf.

Livingstone, S 2002, Young People and New Media: Childhood and the Changing Media Environment, SAGE Publications, viewed 30 August 2013, http://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=e4AHeRPLs0oC&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=social+media+impact+on+young+people&ots=myiQwM0sIC&sig=VciCLnprTIsb5hvCCE-tSJEU0zs#v=onepage&q=social%20media%20impact%20on%20young%20people&f=false

Livingstone, S 2008, ‘Taking Risky Opportunities in Youthful Content Creation: Teenagers’ Use of Social Networking Sites for Intimacy, Privacy and Self-expression’, New Media & Society, vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 393-411, viewed 30 August 2013, http://nms.sagepub.com/content/10/3/393.short.

O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011, ‘The Impact of Social Media on Children, Adolescents, and Families’, Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, vol. 127, no. 4, pp. 800-804, April 1, viewed 26 August 2013, http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/127/4/800.short.

Redecker, C, Ala-Mutka, K, & Punie, Y 2010, ‘Learning 2.0-The Impact of Social Media on Learning in Europe’, Institute for Prospective Technological Studies, viewed 28 August 2013, http://www.ict-21.ch/com-ict/IMG/pdf/learning-2.0-EU-17pages-JRC56958.pdf.

Villani, S, MD 2001, ‘Impact of Media on Children and Adolescents: A 10 Year Review of the Research, Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, vol. 40, issue 4, pp. 392-401, viewed 24 August 2013, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0890856709603877.

It didn't rain in the rainforest...

Our little nook!

When I first heard the program I came to Australia with organized a group trip to the rainforest in Binna Burra for the weekend, I pictured giant trees with monkeys and parrots and tigers everywhere. Looking back on that now..why would I think there would be tigers roaming around Australia..BUT this weekend was just as amazing and, don't worry, I saw just the animal I wanted to see:]

I also thought we were going to be sleeping in dirty bug-infested log cabins, but I was very pleasantly surprised! Claire and I had this cute little nook complete with coffee and tea and shampoos and things. Reading that now it doesn't seem that cool but if you've spent the last couple weekends in hostels you would understand. In fact...even our dirty apartment at uni is no where near as nice as these cabins.

Claire and I

After settling in, we realized how completely starving we were. It was about 4:30 and dinner wasn't until 6:30. We started joking around that they better have a feast for us...and if all they had was "American style hot dogs" (these weird red hot dogs that they try to pass off as American) than we would slap them in the face with it and say "NO". Well..be careful what you wish for, because by the end of it we were begging them to stop bringing out the pizzas. We were a little skeptical at first because there were only three tiny pizzas for both large tables of hungry Americans, but once those were gone they brought out more...and more...and more..until our program advisor literally asked them to stop. Just when we thought we couldn't eat another bite, though, they brought out the ice cream. Ok, us poor uni kids aren't gonna pass up free ice cream, so naturally we ate that too.

Just hanging around

The next morning, I still wasn't even hungry, but forced myself to eat because I knew I would regret it if I didn't with the activities that were to come. We were split up into two groups, one going to the high ropes course and the other on a guided hike through the rainforest. My group did the high ropes course first. Luckily I'm not afraid of heights, but the first course we did was a lot more difficult than I expected it to be. We had to walk across a wobbly wire, reaching for ropes hanging down along the way. The next one I enjoyed much more because I could actually stop and look around and appreciate the view, because it was basically a horizontal ladder you could easily walk across. As we were being belayed back down, each member of my group did spider-man poses in the air. It was so much fun!

Molly and I doing the flying fox:]

Next, the groups switched and it was time to do the rainforest hike. The group who did the hike before us said they didn't see any koalas on the hike, so I wasn't really expecting anything, although I certainly had my hopes (it is actually very rare to see koalas in the day time, they typically only come out at night). So, we are walking along and our guide is telling us about all the poisonous insects, plants and animals in Australia (if you're wondering what they are it's EVERYTHING..literally don't touch anything in Australia, it WILL kill you)--and our guide stops for a moment and says "Ok, three free Tim Tams to the first person who spots it". Everyone looks around and there it is...you guessed it...a cute little furry nugget of a koala taking a nap in a tree!! My time in Australia was made. We also got to see a huge black python just a bit off the hiking trail. I can now say I'm not really phased by insects or snakes considering what I've come into contact with here. Just the other day there was a huge green python in a bush about 10 feet outside of my apartment...the snake guy had to come get rid of it. Just you're typical Aussie day.

Black python

That night, we had a bush dancing lesson. When I pictured bush dancing, I thought we were going to be painted and dancing around a fire with bongos playing...again, my expectations were way off. Bush dancing is basically just line dancing. We learned the different steps and danced to the upbeat music and it was SO much fun! We also played a game called knights, mount, cavaliers, where you have a partner who you dance with as the music plays and once the controller of the game stops the music and calls out one of those three positions, you and your partner have to get in that position and if you are the last couple than you are out. My partner Hailey and I along with Claire and Cierra made it to the finals--so of course we had to have a dance battle. The controller of the game was impressed by Claire and Cierra's synchronization but equally impressed by mine and Hailey's hair flipping and robot, so he called it a tie (we still won though, obviously). The rest of the night was spent sipping on wine in a cabin with some of the greatest friends I've ever had:]

Koala!!

Claire and I on a vine swing

The next day was zip lining, or flying fox as they call it here. I've never zip lined before and I loved it! We went right over some trees and a pond. We also had the option to go a second time, and we could do two people at a time if we wanted, so my friend Molly and I went. When you go with two people, you have much more momentum so you go even faster and you hit the stopper that moves you back in the other direction even harder. As we rapidly approached the stopper we screamed and laughed and grabbed onto each other to brace ourselves and SMACK! Back we go. I wish I could have done it even more times! The rest of the afternoon was spent taking in the amazing view of the overlook back at the lodge. It was so clear that we could see all the way to the Gold Coast.

As we were driving back, we spotted some people paragliding over these gorgeous mountainous views, and now we are determined to do it! I can't wait!

Cheers!

Brizzy

Seeing as it's only an hour away and only costs $5 to get to, Gracie, Cierra and I decided to take a little day trip to Brisbane. I never expected that I would completely fall in love with it. You see, I've never considered myself a city person...but I've realized that's because my only reference of a city I've ever known growing up is New York, which really isn't like most cities. I'm not a fan of New York because it's dirty, smelly, loud, and the people aren't so nice. When we first got to Australia, we were in Sydney, which I definitely liked much better than New York but Sydney was very business-ey and uptight (compared to Surfer's Paradise, where almost no one wears shoes and I've never cared less about what I look like in public). Brisbane was the perfect mixture of a clean, friendly city and could satisfy my nature-loving needs. 

Pink bunny symbolizing the music festival

Walking along the bike path at the gardens

When we first arrived, we were on a desperate search for coffee. We found some in a crepe shop in the suburb just outside the city (Gracie had never heard of a crepe which I found horrifying and saddening). We found a spot to sit and enjoy our coffee with the view of the river right in front of us and the city just across the river. We were having a nice chat and I casually revealed that I used to eat wood as a child. In fact, my parents had to throw away my bed because there were so many bite marks. On our way to the bridge to cross over the river to get to the city, we passed some kind of wooden sculpture and Gracie asked if I wanted to eat it to which I replied, "I could definitely go for some mahogany for lunch!"

Little lizard friend!

Anyway, our first stop in the city was the botanical gardens which were GORGEOUS. I don't think I can express how happy I am when I am in a park like this. I began to mentally plan my wedding in this exact spot. There were all sorts of flowers and trees--some very interesting trees in fact called "African Sausage Trees", which really do look like they have wooden sausages growing from them. There are also some lilly ponds, where we kept seeing these giant lizard things! The best part is they basically didn't move at all so it wasn't scary--in fact they let us basically shove cameras in their face and they didn't move a muscle. However, when there was sudden movement, they would stand up on their hind legs and run which was hilarious.

Waterfall in the gardens

We then decided to take a peek in an art gallery just across the street from the gardens. One exhibit featured an artist who took broken or damaged figurines and put them back together, with a few extra touches. One I remember in particular was a couple delicate girl figurines with the corsets and big dresses and hats that the artist then painted camouflage and glued some plastic guns and knives in their hands--very funny and ironic! We then went into another exhibit that I believe was supposed to be a commentary on society's relationship with food. You walk in and on a big video screen is a super close-up of a strawberry, with gloved hands using tweezers to carefully pick off each individual seed on the strawberry. Then, there is another video of a watermelon being cut open, and gloved hands using tweezers to pick around until they pull out a tumor (a passionfruit). It was so closeup that you forget you are looking at a watermelon and not actual brain surgery. It was crazy!

African sausage trees

After that somewhat off-putting experience, we made our way to the music festival. There was an aboriginal performance that was really cool to see, as well as a choral performance and some acoustics. When it got dark, the lazer show began. I had never seen anything like this before! Across the water the buildings had lazer lights on them that went along to the beat of the music playing. There was also a structure that water came down from, creating a screen where lights were projected onto it in all sorts of patterns and colors. 

I definitely can't wait to visit Brisbane again. This weekend I am going with the IFSA-Butler group to our adventure weekend in Binna Burra! 

Cheers!

Lazer light show

Progress on Research Paper

For my New Communication Technologies class, I chose to write my essay on the topic:

Does the extensive use of social media have a positive or negative impact on the health of young people. What are the most recent academic papers on this topic? Clarify what all sides of the argument claim and only then offer your reasoned opinion based on facts.

To write this essay, I researched several journal articles and books written on the topic of social media and the impact it has on children and adolescents, with differing viewpoints on whether it is a more positive or negative feedback. I also used my survey on the impact of social media on youth created on SurveyMonkey to bring in my own findings. After evaluating the information and pulling in my own experiences with social media, I form my own opinion based on these facts.

Some of my research:

• 22% of teenagers log on to their favorite social media site more than 10 times a day, and more than half log on once a day. (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011)

• Some positive effects of social media-staying connected with friends and family, opportunities for community engagement such as raising money for charities, enhancement of individual and collective creativity, dialogue with others from diverse backgrounds and the sharing of ideas and knowledge. (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011)
•           A Survey of teens ages 12-17 found that 62% of online teens get news about current events and politics online. 31% get health, dieting or physical fitness information from the internet. 17% use the internet to gather information about topics that are hard to discuss like drugs or sexual health. (Lenhart, A et al. 2010).

• Some negative effects of social media-cyberbullying, sexting (20% of teens have sent or posted nude or seminude photos or videos of themselves online), Facebook depression, and privacy issues (O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011).
• Studies have attempted to use personality as a potential predictor of use of social networking sites. Three of five personality factors were found to be typical of those who use social media: extraversion, neuroticism, and openness to new experiences. 
•          Those who were extraverted had many connections online as well as in the 'real world' and had higher self-esteem
•           A study of college students found that people who used Facebook less frequently felt less satisfied with their lives (Correa, T et al. 2010).

In my survey, I asked the question "Has the use of social media ever effected the way you feel about yourself (e.g looks, social status, economic status, etc)? and 88% of respondents said yes.

I also asked, "How accurately do you believe a person's Facebook profile depicts their personality and their life?" No one said "completely accurate", and 75% said "somewhat accurate".


References

Correa, T, Hinsley, A, & de Zuniga, H 2010, ‘Who Interacts on the Web?: The Intersection of Users’ Personality and Social Media Use’, Computers in Human Behavior, vol. 26, issue 2, pp. 247-253, viewed 26 August 2013, http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563209001472.

Lenhart, A, Purcell, K, Smith, A, & Zickuhr, K 2010, ‘Social Media & Mobile Internet Use Among Teens and Young Adults’, Pew Research Center, viewed 25 August 2013, http://web.pewinternet.org/~/media/Files/Reports/2010/PIP_Social_Media_and_Young_Adults_Report_Final_with_toplines.pdf.

Livingstone, S 2002, Young People and New Media: Childhood and the Changing Media Environment, SAGE Publications, viewed 30 August 2013, http://books.google.com.au/books?hl=en&lr=&id=e4AHeRPLs0oC&oi=fnd&pg=PP2&dq=social+media+impact+on+young+people&ots=myiQwM0sIC&sig=VciCLnprTIsb5hvCCE-tSJEU0zs#v=onepage&q=social%20media%20impact%20on%20young%20people&f=false

Livingstone, S 2008, ‘Taking Risky Opportunities in Youthful Content Creation: Teenagers’ Use of Social Networking Sites for Intimacy, Privacy and Self-expression’, New Media & Society, vol. 10, no. 3, pp. 393-411, viewed 30 August 2013, http://nms.sagepub.com/content/10/3/393.short.

O’Keeffe, G, MD & Clarke-Pearson, K, MD 2011, ‘The Impact of Social Media on Children, Adolescents, and Families’, Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, vol. 127, no. 4, pp. 800-804, April 1, viewed 26 August 2013, http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/127/4/800.short.

My Library on Diigolet: https://www.diigo.com/user/danadrahos