Part 3 of my Assignment.

Factors to consider when buying a laptop for college.

I am currently shopping around for a laptop for Christmas. I went into PC world and asked for advice to guide me on what laptop would best suit me and my needs for this college course. I also resourced information on the internet.

What do I need in a laptop?
I will need it to support Photoshop for multimedia. Microsoft office including word processor and PowerPoint for presentations. I will also want to use the laptop for recreational purposes, iTunes, Skype, video, calendar etc...

How much memory do I need?

To support the software I want in my laptop, I will need to have sufficient RAM. I want over the minimum and at least the recommended requirement. The following chart provides a general idea of how a system will run with various amounts of memory.

•Minimum: 2GB

•Optimal: 4GB

•Best: 8GB

What speed do I need?

In addition to the amount of memory installed in the laptop, the speed of the memory will impact the laptops performance. When comparing laptops, I will be sure to check both of these pieces of information. Laptops on the market today typically use DDR3 memory. Which ranges from fastest, [DDR3 1600] to slowest [DDR2 400]

How much money am I willing to spend?

This is one of the most important factors to consider, Money matters and you get what you pay for with a laptop. As a student I will make a fixed budget and find the best possible laptop to suit my needs. Fortunately for me, a basic laptop with good memory and a support for Photoshop would suffice.

Links to sites useful to our course

http://www.psychologicalsociety.ie/
The Psychological society of Ireland

https://auth.athensams.net/?ath_returl=%2Fmy%2F&ath_dspid=ATHENS.MY
My Athens

http://psychology.about.com/
Complete guide to Psychology for Students, Educators & Enthusiasts

http://www.apa.org/
The American Psychological Association

Bach&Sacks

Officially On My Christmas List..

Lets face it, we could all use it..

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Psychology-Dummies-Adam-Cash/dp/0764554344/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1321798725&sr=8-1

Gestalt Theory, CAT OR MOUSE?

GESTALT: The whole is greater than the sum of it's parts.

Gestalt psychology, (founded by Max Wertheimer)

 We are built to see things as organised and structured wholes rather than the sum of their individual parts. We add structure to percieve things so as they fit in with the principles of Gestalt,

eg..

Law of Pragnanz

Law of Closure

Law of Similarity

Law of Symmetry

Belated Introduction, ALICELOVE

As did many others, I started my blog withOUT an introduction. How rude of me.
I'll quote Lewis Carroll, cause he is the Best, 
If you've not already read the classics 'Alice in Wonderland' and 'Through the Looking-Glass' i recommend them to the reading list... there are many myths and misunderstandings about Lewis Carroll, critiques and speculative psychoanalyses tell of a man who was a drug abuser, socially inept and had an unhealthy interest in children.. But sure he had the craic, ha

`What do you know about this business!?' the King said to Alice.

`Nothing,' said Alice.

`Nothing WHATEVER?' persisted the King.

`Nothing whatever,' said Alice.

`That's very important,' the King said...

The White Rabbit put on his spectacles. `Where shall I begin, please your Majesty?' he asked.
`Begin at the beginning,' the King said gravely, `and go on till you come to the end: then stop.'

Social Media Propaganda Posters (Article Two)

http://design-milk.com/social-media-propaganda-posters-by-aaron-wood/

https://plus.google.com/107101208158314368393/posts/5R5KDeXak4U#114468593663912084118/posts
Found The artist Aaron Wood on Google+

I think these graphic design posters are Looovely,
& since we're doing a Psych/Tech course I think they're really relevant to us as regards to social networking and the psychology behind them and their users. Also, they tie in with Multimedia and graphic design in our study of attracting and influencing an audience with graphics and typography.
The artist Aaron Wood calls them Social Media Propaganda posters, They recreate political propaganda posters used to persuade an audience to a certain way of thinking. Reminicent of Goebells propaganda campaign for Nazi Germany, Propaganda in Soviet Russia, Conscription in Britain and Ireland and other worldwide successful poster campaigns that have influenced masses throughout history.

Could social networking be the new medium for brainwashing, loss of self or even cult of personality?
 Watch out ;)

Internet Troll (Article One)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/sep/13/internet-troll-jailed-mocking-teenagers?fb=native&CMP=FBCNETTXT9038

Summary.
This article is from the Guardian newspaper 13/06/2011. It is about a 25 year old internet troll, Sean Duffy who was jailed for posting videos and messages taunting dead teenagers and their grieving families who were left behind.

One such 15 year old girl had died instantly when hit by a passenger train near her home, her brother of 17 made her a Facebook tribute page and the troller posted comments such as ''i fell asleep on the track lolz''. Five days after the young girls death he made a YouTube video called 'Tasha the Tankengine'. I can only imagine how horrible these malicious online communications were to her family, especially since the troller was a complete stranger to the victim.

On appearing against magistrates in court, they examined other cases of online trolling concerning Duffy. It was found that he had been involved in numerous cases of disturbing online behaviour involving young, recently deceased teenagers. Duffy was given a custodial sentence and a five year antisocial behaviour order prohibiting him from social networking sites such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and others.
The court said that 'the case served as an illustration of the harm and damage that malicious use of social networking sites could do.'

Duffy's lawyer told the court that he has Asperger's syndrome, he lived a ''miserable life'' and ultimately that his condition made him unaware of the effect he was having on the family and friends of the victims.

Depth

●
I’m almost never serious, and I’m always too serious. Too deep, too shallow. Too sensitive, too cold hearted. I’m like a collection of paradoxes.
                                                             ~ Ferdinand de Saussure

Physiological responses to emotion..

Anger - Heartrate increase, Rush of hormones 'Adrenaline' generates energy strong enough for vigorous action.

Fear - Blood goes to larges skeletal muscles eg. Legs , making it easier to flee. Face goes white as blood leaves. At the same time, the body freezes, if only for a moment, perhaps allowing time to guage whether hiding might be a better reaction. 'fight-or-flight'

Happiness - A brain centre inhibits negative feelins and fosters an increase of available energy. Quietening of those centres that generat worrisome thought.

Love - Tender feelings and sexual satisfaction entail 'parasympathetic' arousal - the opposite physiological state of 'fight-or-flight' shared by fear and anger. The parasympathetic pattern, (dubbed the 'relaxation response') is a set of reactions that generates a general state of calm and contentment.

Surprise - Lifting of the eyebrows allows the taking in of a larger visual sweep & permits more light to strike the retina. Offering more visual info about the unexpected event, making it easier to figure out what's going on and concoct the best plan of action.

Disgust - Around the world expression of disgust looks the same = Something is offensive in taste or smell, or metahorically so. Upper lip curled as nose wrinkles slightly, suggests an attempt to close the nostrils against a noxious odor or to spit out poisonous food.

Reference, 'Emotional Intelligence' by Daniel Goleman