Media Convergence Initiative

My daily routine: Wake up, check messages, check twitter, grumble about being awake, then finally get up. Recently I added another section to my routine and that’s learning about that days date in history. I just so happen to follow someone on twitter who re-tweets historical events of that particular day and my day doesn’t seem to truly start until I can avoid getting out of bed by reading some really interesting facts about the day so I thought I’d share with you all.

So on this day October 16th, Queen Marie Antoinette was beheaded in 1793, the first luxurious hotel in America, The Tremont Hotel in Boston Massachusetts opened its doors with a dollar-a-plate dinner. Things that seem standard in hotels today like private bedrooms with locks, complimentary soaps, indoor toilets, menus, room clerks, and bellboys made their first appearance EVER. Also, anesthesia was given its first public demonstration and the first American objects were launched into space; two aluminum pellets.

The most popular Kardashian sister, Kim, is no stranger to fabulous fashion. Since the birth of baby Nori, Kim has undergone a complete makeover. The most obvious change has been her new hair. The Kardashians are well known for their long dark brown locks. However, celebrity hair stylist, George Papanikolas, cut and dyed Kim’s hair blonde! Now that was a shocker for us all.

To go along with her new do, Kim is also rocking a whole new wardrobe. The Fashionista is now opting for lighter colors and less makeup. During her trip to Paris Fashion Week, Kim was specifically fond of long coats. She wore a long, caramel colored coat and a long, pink colored coat. She paired them with nude dresses, white tops and pants and denim.

A couple of nights she chose bolder styles that had everyone talking. On her last night in Paris, Kim wore a black Givenchy dress with a plunging neckline and several triangular cutouts near her waist. She paired the dress with dark plum lipstick and black heels.

Without a doubt, Kim has made losing weight after baby look easy.

Master Chef’s own, Josh Marks was found dead in an alley near his home Friday night, with the cause of death being suicide. Josh at 7’2 was described by family and friends as a “gentle sweet soul” who “loved life and loved people.” Known by many as the “gentle giant”, Josh had great potential and showed signs of becoming a very successful chef, which was evident by him being Master Chef’s runner up on his particular season. At just 26, Josh was very popular on the show, and had a very large fan base. But what many of his fans didn’t know was that behind that huge smile of his, was a serious mental disorder that he had been fighting with for quite some time. It was just a year ago when Josh was diagnosed with the bipolar disorder, but his family believes the disorder began to seriously affect him during the time he was filming Master Chef. Josh’s stepfather tells reporters of “the toll that being on a reality show puts on people” as well as how Josh was put on a ‘celebrity’ type pedestal, with the expectation from others that there was money and fame; but, his personal reality was that he was struggling mentally and financially.” During July Josh was arrested and charged with aggravated assault after fighting with Chicago police officers who were called to the scene by Josh himself after he suffered a serious facial wound from a self-inflicted gunshot. Josh’s mom, Gabriel Mitchell, believes this particular incident was “a call for help” but medical attention was not given to Josh because of the type of insurance he had. Josh’s mom recounted that “access to long-term, in-patient mental health care was extremely limited, which caused her to “feel as if her hands were tied.” Despite this, Josh’s mom was determined to get him the help he needed. Mitchell enrolled her son in an outpatient program that “was the best available through her insurance”, and it was this program that diagnosed Josh with schizophrenia on this past Thursday. Mitchell says “he was very distraught by this new diagnosis as he was just coming to terms with having been diagnosed with the bipolar disorder, but he just couldn’t handle this new diagnosis.” Because of this very reason, Mitchell stayed home from work on Friday to be with her son during this hard time, but left for a couple of hours to pick up her daughter from school. It was then that tragedy took place, because while stuck in traffic on the way back home, Josh’s mom received a phone call from her brother saying that a neighbor spotted Josh walking around in an alley with a gun in his hand. Josh’s mother knew she had to hurry and get to her son before he hurt himself but by the time she made it to him, she was too late.

Josh’s family “blames the lack of mental health treatment facilities and the easy access to guns as factors in his tragic death” says CNN reporters. Despite this unfortunate event, Josh’s mom has not given up. She tells reporters “I am not done, this is not over. I am going to make sure that Josh’s voice and dream live on by fighting for mental healthcare treatment.”

Technology has pushed our generation to greater heights in different avenues. From huge strides in our medical field to Google glasses and 4D movies but how has this changed the way we speak to each other? Texting is a form of communication but its been proven that speaking on the phone is almost non existent and doesn’t have as much importance. Texting or instant messaging are the biggest forms of communication but seeing and hanging out with people face to face is no longer the norm. But why?

In doing research for this topic it went from technology changing the way we communicate and how we behave to technology changing our actual personalities. According to goodtherapy.com people who text a lot are less likely to have meaningful conversations and uncomfortable in social situations. Even with video games, children and adults alike feel like they can connect more with a game or an avatar than with an actual person.