Blog 12: South Korea Is Surprised by Departure of Candidate

For the final blog we look to South Korea where the presidential election is drawing near. The two parties that are being represented are the liberal Democratic United Party and the conservative Saenuri Party. The Democratic United Party had a strong opposition by an independent candidate that was very similar to the candidate running for office from the Democratic United Party. This candidate, however, stepped down and dropped out of the race for president and in a surprise move backed the Democratic United Party member in an effort to prevent a split vote and in turn put that candidate in office. The candidate did this with the hopes to lower inequality in South Korea which has been brought on by conglomerations that are run by families with scandals and corruption surrounding them. Additionally, the candidate has hopes that by backing the Democratic United Party candidate, the income inequality percentage will decrease significantly. Currently the conservatives are controlling the country and the hope is that this backing will allow the Democratic United Party candidate Mr. Moon Jae-in to win and start creating policies that promote economic growth as well as a unified Korea.
Unlike previous blog posts, this one has a good undertone to it. Instead of problems not being addressed, there are people trying to solve the problems of a country. This is a great step forward compared to other countries where little is done to stimulate change. South Korea has the opportunity and the resources to make this change happen which certainly other countries may not have. However, this should not take away from the opportunities that are being offered and the efforts that are being made to improve the inequality in South Korea. Furthermore, it is great to see that two individuals can come to a compromise and sacrifice to work towards a common good. This is often not the case and in fact leads to further problems and conflicts within a country. Hopefully South Korea continues to improve its inequality gap regardless of who wins.

Eric Spriegel 11/30/12 4:20
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/24/world/asia/ahn-cheol-soo-unexpectedly-quits-south-koreas-presidential-race.html?_r=0

Blog 12 - Technology Helps Non-Verbal Autistic Kids Communicate - Caitlin Gault

The article that I read this week focused on an experimental use of iPads in a classroom for kids with severe autism at a school in Ontario, Canada (Beverly School). The goal was to see if the students would be able to use different forms of technology to learn to communicate, since language is a difficult system for children with severe autism to grasp. They are trying to figure out how to help non-verbal autistic students communicate and connect to their peers, families, teachers, etc. The teachers in this classroom used very low-cost applications that allowed students to point to the words that they were trying to use, which has helped eliminate some of the behavioral issues and frustrations that often occur in severely autistic children when they cannot express their desires. There have been some warnings against using technology in the classroom though, especially from Bridget Taylor, one of the founders of the Alpine Learning Group. She believes that “autistic children can become too focused on the devices… [and that] ‘kids are drawn to technology and…there could potentially be a reliance on it that’s not so beneficial in the long run'” (Lawrence, 2012).

             

This article was interesting because it was discussing the benefits of technology in the classroom, which is an interesting topic since we are constantly developing new technologies. I have often wondered about how beneficial iPads (and other technology) in the classroom really are, since they have the potential to be distracting. There are thousands (maybe even millions) of applications on these devices that have some use in the classroom setting, but having technology bombarding students, especially those who already have a disorder that affects communication and reception, like autism, can have negative outcomes. I believe that all children should have access to resources and technology, especially those which can positively impact their education; however, I think it is important to carefully weigh the benefits against the consequences before deciding to inundate children with even more technology, especially if detrimental or ineffective.

Lawrence, J. (2012, November 15). Technology Helps Non-Verbal Autistic Kids Communicate | Education News. Education News. Retrieved November 16, 2012, from http://www.educationnews.org/technology/technology-helps-non-verbal-autistic-kids-to-communicate/

 

Blog 12: Global Cyber Arms Race Engulfing Web - Defense Official

Cyber experts from across the U.S. government, speaking at a conference at Georgetown University, said organized crime, espionage and security activity on the Internet pose a rising threat to U.S. intellectual property, military superiority and critical infrastructure. "What we're looking at is a global cyber arms race," said Rear Admiral Samuel Cox, director of intelligence at U.S. Cyber Command, which was set up 18 months ago to protect Pentagon computer networks and conduct offensive cyber operations if the president orders them. "It's not proceeding at a leisurely or even a linear fashion but in fact is accelerating. I wouldn't claim that it's following Moore's law, but the curve looks kind of similar," he said, referring to a computer industry rule of thumb that computer processing power doubles every couple of years. Howard Schmidt, cyber security coordinator at the White House, said more than $8 trillion worth of transactions were carried over wired and wireless networks each year. "This is not just a national security issue," he told the conference. "It's a national security, public safety as well as economic." Officials said the most effective way to counter the threat is to adopt an approach that promotes collaboration among government agencies and reaches out to private industry as well as international partners. I believe that this is an excellent plan.  It is important when tackling such a large issue to collaborate with other institutions.   I believe that without the help of these other institutions, it is not possible to grasp how often problems are occurring and where these problems are occurring.  It is definitely something that needs to be taken care of, because cyber crime is a huge form of organized crime, costing millions of dollars each year.  This is something that needs to be taken care of and the best way to do it is most definitely collaborating with other institutions and sharing the different discoveries each has made.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/11/net-us-usa-defense-cyber-idUSBRE83A00520120411