I don’t know why but for whatever reason I am convinced I am 100% nocturnal. I just feel like basically everything is better at night…except pretty much sports without lights (obviously). I don’t really understand my obsession for the night, but I think it can be traced back to my youth.

When I was a little kid I constantly would stay up and try to pull the all-nighter. It was like the most epic of accomplishments for a young kid to defy all odds and stay up all night. My friend Hank and I would constantly try but we usually failed when we were very young. When we were in about 5th grade I would say it became a habit. We would always just pull the all-nighter watching movies and most importantly on our to do list beating videogames (like the old school streets of rage game for sega).

I really don’t understand my love for the night though. I am starting to think that maybe I should stop saying that because thats what keeps me from going to bed during the night–the fact I have convinced myself I am nocturnal this semester. It really doesn’t make any sense to me because I am a very loud person that likes to spend my time amongst friends and at night I am just alone. Alone typing on a computer at 5 in the morning haha. Then again maybe it is a good break/escape for me and I am starting to realize that more and more. During the night you can just be by yourself (Which is a rare occurrence when your a college student thats dorming). Everything is so peaceful at night though. Right now its 40 degrees out (Awesome weather for any Western New Yorker) and just as quiet as can be on campus. All that can be heard is the whistle of the wind and I must say I dig it. 

To me night-time has become my time. Laying in bed, sometimes listening to music, and just being alone with myself and my thoughts…It is a good time. Well and sometimes being on the computer surfing the web….or getting into LOST on abc, the most addicting show ever. Regardless of how much it stinks having to get up at 8:30 in the morning for calculus….I really do love the night time and it makes me think when I am older I should definitely look into taking the night shift.

Video games have become a very popular form of entertainment especially for young kids and teenagers. People spend hundreds of dollars on video games, systems, and accessories each year. Not only do people spend a lot of money on video games, but they also spend an enormous amount of time on these games. So if people are spending so much money and time on video games, shouldn’t they be buying the best video games available?

Everyone has different tastes in video games. I personally prefer first person shooter video games. Games such as Halo 1-3, Golden Eye, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Not only do I prefer these games, but also I feel these games are the best video games you can buy. Although I like all of those first person shooter games I mentioned, I believe the best video games are Halo 2-3.

Halo 2 and Halo 3 are by far the best first person shooter video games and might even be the best video games ever made. These games have great graphics, a good campaign mode, and most importantly the ability to play multi-player online. All of these characteristics are common of basically every first person shooter video game, so what makes Halo 2 and Halo 3 that much better then the rest?

The first thing is the ability to make choices in the multiplayer setting. The success of the Halo video games was all about the ability to let its gamers make choices. You could choose your character (Alien or Human), The colors of your character, the character’s symbol, the type of game you play (anything from a free-for-all to capture the flag), the map you play on, and the best choice of all: choosing the weapons that are on the map. These choices allow players to play the same game in many different ways, so the game never becomes dull. Another one of the great successes of the Halo video games was the multi-player.

With the ability to play online now video games are more fun then ever. No longer do you need to go over to a friends house to play video games, now you can play video games in the comfort of your own home with your best friends thanks to the online capability of games. The Halo games had a great online multiplayer and still allowed people to make the choices they made in multi-player offline. Also, in the Halos online you could use your headset and talk into it in order to talk to your teammates so you could strategize or (my personal favorite) you could talk into the headset while pushing a button and it enabled you to talk to everyone in the game and harass your enemies. Also, if your teammates were trying to kill you with friendly fire you had the option to boot a player so that they did not ruin your game. The Halos were known for their great online play, which made them one of the most successful first person shooter games of any system ever.

Video games are a very fun hobby, but you have to make sure you get a video game that you will be happy with for a long time since they are quite expensive ($60.00). In order to get the best video game (A first person shooter) make sure that it has the capability to play online, allows the gamer to make many choices, and see if other people have enjoyed the game.

Halo 2 and Halo 3 are among the best choices because they went above and beyond all other video games, which is exactly the reason they were so successful. They allowed the gamers to make choices and also gave them an easy online game play. Obviously, the Halo video games were by far the best first person shooter games ever made.

This is in a book on popular culture because racial profiling is a very common issue in our culture today. It effects people of all races especially racial profiling in colleges and for jobs. Also, our culture today is very paranoid since the attacks on 9/11 especially with people of Arab nationalities. We are constantly being cautious of people with Arab nationalities because we are scared that they might pose a terrorist threat. Racial profiling is also one of the biggest and most controversial topics that effects the U.S. today and it more than likely will be a conflict for a very long time.

Research Question: Do video games really make children more violent.

What do you know: I know that many parents feel that videogames are making their kids violent and that many people are trying to restrict children from playing violent video games through video game ratings. Also, I know that Japan is a major manufacturer of violent videogames and they are much less violent then the U.S.

What don’t I know: I don’t really know how the ratings work and I don’t really know the studies done and if they have shown kids that play violent video games are more likely to be violent in the future.

On the other hand there was my batman costume. I wore a batman costume to my preschool during halloween. Underneath my black suit though I had just got a temporary tattoo the night before of a lion and a woman and I think it was the coolest thing ever (it was on my stomach). Being not only proud of my costume I was proud of my tattoo, so while everyone was showing off their costumes I did the same then showed some people the tattoo I had on by lifting up my shirt. I was an outgoing kid to say that least and I thought everyone would think it was the coolest thing ever…unfortunately for my 6-year old self it wasn’t. Everyone started laughing at me! I immediately started crying and hid under a desk. My teacher came over to try to make me feel better, but it was hopeless. She told me, “Batman doesn’t cry!” and that only made me feel worse. It was a sad halloween for this batman back in preschool! I still loved the costume though!

CD- Why should kids be getting in trouble for downloading illegal music and not the companies that sell the software that kids are stealing this music with?

USB CORD- Why is internet so expensive if anyone can go into a coffee shop and get free internet? Should coffee houses be allowed to do this?

FILM- Are phones with cameras an invasion of privacy? Also, are paparrazi invading the private lives of stars?

DECK OF CARDS- Should we lower the gambling age to 18 with this increase in the popularity of poker and gambling in general.

CANDY- Should candy bars be allowed to sell a king sized snack for just a little bit more than the regular size with this increase in childhood obesity?

MENU- Should all items on the menu include nutritional facts on it, or at least a calorie count?

POSTCARD- Are people too technologically dependent where they can’t express themselves without there phone or e-mail?

Television is constantly helping to construct ideas of gender. Commercials for cars are commonly advertised towards men because men are typically the decision makers when it comes to purchases for a household. Also, men are commonly given a first person point of view, especially in alcohol commercials with attractive women, so that it will satisfy men and appeal to their fantasy of being with a women with no commitment. Women are constantly being attacked by diet ads because diets and the overall concern of ones attractiveness seems to be a common concern for women. Also, women as the “marked” sex must always be competing with other women, so in society it is often viewed that the skinnier or more attractive girl “wins”. Most commercials for household products are advertised to women because most often they are housewives that stay home and maintain the house. Even the timing of commercials….commercials viewed towards women are during the day (when the household moms are watching their television shows) and most television shows aimed at men are played during sporting events or the weekend (when the men have time or are actually watching television).