BEST BLOGGERS AND FINAL CONTEST WINNERS!

Apologies for the wait but I have finally finished grading and issuing comments on everyone's work and the final results are in!

THE BEST FEMALE BLOGGER IS Sophie Perrault for demonstrating accomplished versatility in both podcast and video and for her intelligent analysis of the social implications film conveyed in an engaging, conversational tone.

FIRST RUNNER-UP is Marian Fields for focusing her writing on campus personalities and continuing to refine her voice while tackling the complex issue of race. SECOND RUNNER UP goes to Sammie Le for her enthusiastic and authoritative coverage of K-Pop as well as her excellent photography. (Liann Harris came in a close third)

THE BEST MALE BLOGGER IS Daniel Mikelonis for using his initially laughable idea of a man becoming a dog as a launchpad for his hilarious but original takes on body alteration, human intelligence, animal abuse, and how to open a doorknob with your mouth.

FIRST RUNNER-UP is Maxon Foster-Mcalpine for mastering voice and authority over the video game realm and sharpening his skills and final blog into an impressive portfolio. SECOND RUNNER UP goes to Edward Kim for his engaging voice in podcasts and his concentrated focus on the world of B-boy dancing. (The Evans both came in a close 3rd)

AND FINALLY FOR THE WINNERS OF THE FINAL COMPETITION:

The $10 Visa Gift Card goes to 3rd place winner: 12 OZ. WRITER (Evan Wilson)

The 4GB USB Flash Drive goes to 2nd place winner: I LOVE MY SNES (Maxon Mcalpine-Foster)

And the Grand Prize IPod Touch goes to 1st place winner: WORTHY TO SAY (Kate Bosler)

Congratulations to all our winners! please contact me to receive your prizes.

Thank you all for a wonderful class! You should all take pride in your work and commitment this Jan-Term! Good luck and all the best in the years ahead.

Your professor,
Daniel Villarreal

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PS. Below is a list of all the blogs that got voted in the top 5 by our judges from highest voted to lowest:

Worthy To Say
12 oz. Writer
I Love My SNES
Robot Schizophrenia
Slight Figure of Speech
Meducomp
Broad Concepts
Hiptronic
Postmodernish
Black and Making it Too

20 NEW STUDENT BLOGS: Let the Games Begin!

My esteemed judges,

Below are 20 new blogs created by my students as a final exam. Each contains an introductory post with an accompanying photo, podcast, or video; a short news article; and a small feature. I would like you to check out each and choose five stands out in terms of:
- overall presentation
- engaging writing
- personality conveyed via the photo/podcast/video

PLEASE NOTE: Since blogs place their most recent post up top, I suggest scrolling to the bottom and reading from the bottom up to first get an idea of who the blogger is at the bottom-most post before looking at their other work up-top.

Please e-mail me a list of your top 5 choices (from first best blog to fifth best) and I will tabulate your votes and announce the winners this Monday.

My students and I thank you for your time and consideration,
Daniel Villarreal

Brittany Falafel

Debacle Debate

Meducomp

Black and Making It Too

Bitch-tits

Gooood Morning

Its Probably Fine

Boobtube News

Worthy to Say

Zoltron Zero

Come Right Out And Say It Now

Animation Expedition

12oz. Writer

Melon Adventures

Robot Schizophrenia

Broad-Concepts

Slight Figure of Speech

I Love My SNES* (*NOTE: Please only consider the FIRST THREE ARTICLES in this submission and none more).

Postmodernish

Hiptronic

Sci-Fi Blogging Internship for Dorks

Sci-fi website io9 is seeking an intern. Apply here, if you dare!

THE BEST IN CLASS BLOGGING!

BEST NEWS FEATURE:

- Sophie Perrault's "What Will It Take To Revive Wonder Woman On Screen?"

- Daniel Mikelonis' "What Can You Legally Do With Your Appearance, Gender, Genitals, and Death"

- Maxon Foster-McAlpine's "Will The 3DS Deliver On Its Promises?"

Honorable Mention

- Evan Harper's "Is The Reaction Against Graffiti Justified?"

BEST QUICKIES:

- Evan Wilson's "Traumatic Trailers"

- Rebecca Jones' "Run the Tape: Today's Vid Picks"

BEST INDIVIDUAL PODCAST:

- Sophie Perrault's "I'm Lovin' It: Toddlers and Tiaras"

- Edward Kim's "A Few Words From The Love Doctor"

- Evan Harper's American Vandals Episode 2

Honorable mentions: Liann Harris' "Wicked", Marian Fields' "Backhand", Daniel Mikelonis' Paws for Thought - Episode 2

BEST LISTICLE:

- Maxon Foster-McAlpine's "Five Games That Are So Bad They're Good"

- Sammie Le's
"Top 5 K-Pop Controversies, Mistakes Made, And How To Avoid Them"

- Sophie Perrault's "My Top 5 Favorite Sitcom Head Bitches In Charge"

Honorable Mentions: Laura Massey's "Five Movies To Inspire Your Thrift Store Purchases", Rebecca Jones' "5 Biggest Badasses in the World of Tarantino", Daniel Mikelonis' "Five Reasons Why Jared Loughner Wouldn't Have Shot Anyone If He Were a Dog", and Evan Harper's "The Five Most Successful Heists in the Last 100 Years"

BEST INTERVIEW:

- Laura Massey's "Jamie Fletcher; Differences Across Western Cultures"

- Daniel Mikelonis' "Minister of Modification: The Flesh and Blood Spirituality of David Hahn"

- Sammie Le's "I Don't Think What I'm Doing Is So Bad As Long As I'm Happy": An Interview With A Sasaeng Fan"

- Sophie Perrault's "My Interview with Feminist Frequency's Anita Sarkeesian"

Honorable Mentions: Marian Fields' "Your EXCLUSIVE Hoppin' Backstage Pass At The Pouch Club", Aly Tharp's "Vegan Chef Matty Kime Tells it Like it is", Evan Harper's "Interview With Lucas Henry; What Can We Learn From A High School Teacher", Edward Kim's One On One With A B-Boy: Sammy Kim

BEST INDIVIDUAL VIDEO:

- Sophie Perrault's Here Is A Vid & It's Sealed With A Kiss

- Aly Tharp's "The CN Tower Belongs to the Dead"

- Sammie Le's I Hate Windows Movie Maker

- Meghan Jones' "To The London Eye"

Honorable Mention: Cody Chavis' "Don't Hold It Against Me, Paying Homage to Britney Spears"

BEST EXTENDED GROUP FEATURE:

- Three Guys, A Girl, And A Blog "Sherman Serenity Group Provides Sobriety To Those In Need"

BEST GROUP PODCAST:

- While You Exist's "Colonialism without an Alibi": Peter Anderson on Apartheid, Africa and Education" and Selling Us to Us: Peter Anderson on Advertising, America and our Actions

BEST GROUP VIDEO:

- While You Exist's Smallapalooza Goes Big

Runner-Up: Three Girls, A Guy, And A Blog's "Skate Away From Friday Night Boredom"

FINAL EXAM: Updated Information.

Updated information about the final HERE. Please read before beginning.

DUE MONDAY: The FINAL Artist's Way Assignments

Hey gang, please finish reading through the remainder of The Artist's Way and do at least EIGHT of the following activities in your notebooks (I will take up notebooks Monday and have then Tuesday):

CHAPTER 8 (do at least 2)
x 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8
p. 144-145

CHAPTER 9 (do at least 1)
x 2, 3, 4
pg. 159-160

CHAPTER 10 (do at least 1)
x 4, 5
pg. 167-168

CHAPTER 11 (do at least 2 or 3)
x 1, 2, 4, 7, 10

CHAPTER 12 (do at least 1 or 2)
x 4, 5, 8, 9

Microblogging: Using Twitter To Share Your Ideas

Tomorrow we will discuss how to "microblog" using Twitter. Microblogging is exactly what it sounds like—a way to share your thoughts and media with others in a short form (in this case, only 140 characters).

Microblogging isn't a waste of time. It can be a great way to share quick ideas, to let people know what you're doing, and to find out about breaking news. During the so-called Green Revolution that erupted after Iran's recent election scandal, the Iranian government blocked social networking websites to prevent its citizens from communicating with each other. However, many students continued to use Twitter to organize, evade arrest, and speak with the media.

Here's a 9-minute basic Twitter tutorial about setting up your profile, finding people to follow, and directing messages to other. If you wanna put a link in your tweets, you can shorten long web addresses with a URL shortener like bit.ly. If you want to attach images to your tweets, sign up for a free account at TwitPic and upload your images there. And to learn more about retweeting and replying to other people's messages as well as adding hashtags to join in larger conversations, read this quick article.

And for advanced Twitter users:

Learn how to search for popular terms and breaking news using Twitter Search. You can publish your Blogger blog to Twitter using Twitfeed here.

Also, Tweetdeck is a wonderful and free program that will help you keep on top of what topics are hottest on Twitter, sorting the people you follow into different categories, and helping you update and edit your tweets. Learn more about it here. It even has Facebook integration and other tools to help you stay on top of breaking news.

Lastly, a quick Facebook tip. Did you know you can actually make RSS feeds of your friend's activity in Facebook so you can stay updated via Google Reader? It's true!