Friday, April 24, 2009

Abundance

View the video "Reality Check" linked on Dan Pink's blog. Did you find this video humorous? How does it resonate for you?

10 comments:

  1. It was funny. I too am amazed at how much we complain about waiting to fly but I do not like waiting seconds for the internet to hook my to a new page. I like turning the page of a book myself.

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  2. I didn't find it humorous. While I enjoy intelligent humor and wit, I have no patience for comedians or those who try to hard to be funny, but I do agree that many of us have too much and want everything immediately. I am constantly frustrated that it takes several minutes for my students to connect to our network; though I do appeciate how fast we can access information. Today we used several government websites to access information within a 40 minute class. When I was a student, the same information would be accessed in 6-8 weeks (if ever) after writing the traditional "business letter" and requesting that information.

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  3. While I apreciate his humor, it is perhaps a bit overdone. We live in an age in which we are dependant on technology. In many cases, this is not because we are simply too lazy to complete a given task the 'hard' way, as this comedian seems to be suggesting, but rather because there is no longer anouther way to do it. Or, the demands that are made on our time and resources make it entirely impractical. However, the points he makes which highlight the rapid advancement of technology are very true; this blog is a testament to that. Ultimately, I'm not sure that I fall into his target audiance.

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  4. While it was somewhat obnoxious, I can relate because I do think some kids overuse technology and "can't live without it". My daughter is constantly text messaging and sometimes does not hear me talk. I think many people take all of our technology for granted. I am still amazed with faxes which are old technology.

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  5. How is this for DESIGN and ABUNDANCE... Art That Fits allows you to select a reproduction and have it sized exactly the way you want it!
    http://www.artthatfits.com/Home.aspx
    As I was reading the May issue of Traditional Home (decorating magazine) I came across an article entitled "Let your RIGHT brain design your kitchen!" Rare that I remember seeing Right brain mentioned outside the realm of education.

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  6. I thought that it was very funny! I too remember having a rotary phone and my parents had the clunky credit card machine at their store. I am very impatient when it comes to technology. I'm used to getting information quickly and waiting those few extra seconds can seem like an eternity.

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  7. I found the video clip funny and yet filled with a great deal of truth. I believe many Americans have become so use to the overwhelming abundance that we are blessed with, we sometimes are too eager to have more too quickly. Just last week a new teacher in my building was complaining that the xerox machine was taking too long to print the 100 stapled packets she was collating--althought this whole process takes less than 15 minutes. I couldn't help but recall the days when we first did the "purple inked" mimeograph machines and thought they were the greatest thing in the world! I worry sometimes that many of the students I teach are too consumed with the materialism that has become so much a part of American society. This is why I am so interested in reading about Daniel Pink's empathy and meaning senses.

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  8. oh my gosh Brenda, I forgot about that crazy purple ink machine that helped me to ruin many suits (yes, we used to wear suits and heels to work daily in the old days) How funny. I love technology but tend to hate cell phones. When I see teens walking in a group, yet all on separate cell calls, I want to scream "Talk to EACH OTHER". I hate when people say "where have you been? I called you AND texted you. I think we should cut the electronic umbilical cords! How did we get to the point that we have to be talking to someone every minute?

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  9. Funny clip! It is amazing how much things have changed in my lifetime - rotary phones and party lines, getting cable and ATARI squash game, first VCR and microwave, Apple II computers and typewriters for typing class in HS, etc. Our world has become filled with ways to make our lives easier but we often get easily frustrated when we have to wait for something or cannot be in constant contact with someone. Our impatience fosters the "Rude American" stereotype.

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  10. Rapidly evolving technology is a love/hate relationship for me. I love the possibility of quickly accessing information, entertainment and digital tools. I hate the loss of things like the art of conversation and physical play that technology doesn't provide for children.

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