Archive for Uncategorized

Final Project: Miriam Makeba

Miriam Makeba brought change to her country and her life through the power of music. In a time of racial segregation and apartheid, Miriam Zenzile Makeba was born on 4 March 1932 in Johannesburg, South Africa to a Swazi Sangoma mother and a Xhosa father. No one could have predicted what influence little Miriam would amount to. Makeba helped expose the cruelty of apartheid to the world as well as introduced the rich and profound culture of South Africa simultaneously, all through her passion: music.

Her career began in the 1950s when she was featured with the Manhattan Brothers. She gave birth to her only child, her daughter, Bongi in 1950 when she was 18. Then she discovered she had breast cancer. However, she recovered and did not let that hinder her progress. She also became a member of an all girl group: Miriam Makeba and the Skylarks. After she moved on to become the lead of the successful South African musical, King Kong, helping to launch her international career. In the late 50s, she released her famous song as a single, Pata Pata.

Although she was usually pictured smiling and her songs were lively, Makeba faced tribulations and hardships in life. Makeba spent 31 years of her life in exile. She was on tour and wanted to return for her mother’s death when she discovered the South African government had revoked her passport in 1960. She was banned for her successful participation in the anti-apartheid film, Come Back to Africa directed by film director, Lionel Rogosin in 1959. Also, that same year she had a brief marriage to South African singer, Sonny Pillay. During the 60s, she rose to fame internationally. She met and performed with Harry Belafonte at John F. Kennedy’s birthday celebration in 1962 at Madison Square Garden. Later on in 1963, she testified against apartheid before the United Nations. In 1964, she wedded Hugh Masekela a fellow South African trumpeter, but the two divorced two years later. She went on to win a Grammy for her album with Harry Belafonte in 1966, becoming the first African to do so. However, her success in America came short when she married Black Panther, Stokely Carmichael in 1968. Although she was never banned or exiled, her concerts and tours were cancelled. Makeba was condemned for being a political activist and radical. Despite all the revolutionary and civil right influence in her music, she stated “I don’t know what the word means. People think I consciously decided to tell the world what was happening in South Africa. No! I was singing about my life, and in South Africa we always sang about what was happening to us especially the things that hurt us.” She only used what she loved to inform about her life and the injustices she experienced. During her marriage with Stokely Carmichael causing her lack of success in the United States, she relocated to Guinea taking the international stage in Europe, Africa, and Asia in 1968. Regardless of the backlash that she faced with her marriage to Stokely Carmichael, she said in an interview, “He was somebody I loved, who loved me, and it was my life”. However, their marriage was not everlasting and they divorced in 1973.

In 1985, Makeba lost her only child to childbirth. She was unable to be there for funeral due to her exile and was unable to provide a proper casket because of monetary issues. Due to poor advising, she lost most right to royalties on her big songs. She consequently moved to Brussels. Her ex-husband and colleague Hugh Masekela introduced her Paul Simon, then she went on the Graceland tour with him. Consequently, she signed on with Warner Bros. Records. Upon the release of Nelson Mandela, Miriam Makeba was granted a return to South Africa. Makeba said in an airport interview, “I’m very happy to be home, But I think I’ll be even happier when I can come back to sing before my people, where I’ll not have to explain my songs because they will understand.”

However, the great legend met her end after a concert supporting an author in his activism against the mafia’s organized crime in Caserto, Italy. She had a heart attack as she was leaving stage and passed away not so long after on 9 November 2008. She was 76. She left behind her two grandchildren, Zenzi and Nelson, and three great-grandchildren. She left behind nation who had come to love and appreciate her. She left behind her legacy. Miriam Makeba’s family recalled her saying numerous times that ‘”I will sing until the last day of my life”.
Throughout her life, she was exiled and abandoned by her family, awarded a Grammy, married five times, predeceased by her daughter and unborn grandchild, dined with great leaders, granted nine passports and ten honorary citizenships, released 30 studio albums and 19 compilations, and furthermost she did what she loved throughout it all and died doing what she loved: singing. Now her legacy and influence remains.

Preservation of my website: I will continue to update my site and keep it active. By updating and actively using the site, I will be able to create a most trustable and stronger source. However, I have multiple copies stored. I have a digital copy on my Google drive and as well as an external flash drive. I also have two hardcopies. And since the wix site copyright is until 2023, I do not have to worry about the site going out of business immediately.

Site link: http://choz3n1.wix.com/mama-afrika-makeba

Published in: Uncategorized on May 8, 2013 at5:15 pm Comments (0)

HW 14: Blockly

I don’t like video games, although it is not a video game this assignment reminded me of one. The first few levels were very easy to clear. It got complicated when Blockly started placing limitations on how many blocks I could use from the tool box. I was about to quit on level 9 but then I had a breakthrough and was able to solve it.

Screen Shot 2013-04-29 at 2.12.35 PM

However, I could not clear level 10. I am not an advanced programmer and I am okay with that. I made it all the step and I couldn’t figure out how to the Pegman to turn left, move forward, turn right, move forward.

Published in: Uncategorized on May 1, 2013 at3:20 pm Comments (0)

HW #13 Archive of Favourite Website

BBCNews

I like the BBC News website. I found myself interested in the mid 2000’s model (2003-2005). I like the typing out the latest news feature, as well as the three column layout.

20090910_bbc-news-97 Model from 1997

BBC News launched online in 1997. I did not like the earliest models in the 1990s. But, I did appreciate the simplicity of the layout. My least favourite was the 2000-2002 layout . It was condensed and crowded, plus the layout was word heavy. And the graphics were subpar.

Screen Shot 2013-04-24 at 12.21.35 PM Current 2013 header

The navigation of the current BBC News layout is easy to understand. The graphics are clear and detailed. I like how the top news stories are made bigger, so the appeal to click on them is stronger. I also like how the links to news stories in different continents and subjects are neatly lined on top. I’d have to say this is my first favourite out of all the designs. I suspect it heightens in favour because I am used to seeing this layout.

Published in: Uncategorized on April 24, 2013 at4:26 pm Comments (0)

HW12: Wordle!!!

My Wordle exhibits the Back-to-Africa movement that helped create the country of the Republic of Liberia. The hardest part with this Wordle was and still is trying to make the sense of what the words are trying to convey. The numbers separated so it is hard to tell the historical landmark dates of the movement.

http://www.wordle.net/delete?index=6602740&d=XMTK

Published in: Uncategorized on April 17, 2013 at5:00 pm Comments (0)

HW11: Slideshow of Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965

I enjoyed this assignment. I chose immigration because it is an important part of American history. This act was underestimated by the entire Johnson administration, yet forever changed history.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1HuCSaCR83dNFoIg3OZ-ijGFu8IoKXWRUrWFfUJMYK7o/edit#slide=id.gddcfcce4_054

“This bill that we will sign today is not a revolutionary bill. It does not affect the lives of millions. It will not reshape the structure of our daily lives, or really add importantly to either our wealth or our power.” -President Lyndon B. Johnson

Published in: Uncategorized on April 10, 2013 at5:23 am Comments (0)

HW #10: Google Charts (not my favourite)

chart

chart-1

Published in: Uncategorized on April 3, 2013 at6:06 am Comments (0)

HW #9: Maps

I created an interactive map detailing countries that have been through a civil war in Africa.

https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=218266351627153551926.0004d8e12868c8dd67608&msa=0

Published in: Uncategorized on March 27, 2013 at8:45 am Comments (0)

#6 Oh the places I’ll go with so much still to know

Oh The Places I Go

The coloured states are the places I have visited before. The uncoloured states are the places that I have yet to visit. My goal is to visit all 50 states. And visit all of Europe, Australia, many countries in Africa, and some global wonders.

Published in: Uncategorized on March 20, 2013 at2:07 pm Comments (0)

#5 Can We Trust What We Read?

In class we have been talking about credibility of websites. We reviewed what domains reveal about a website. For instance, .edu are registered to collegiate education institutions, .gov are registered to government agencies and .org are registered to non-profit organisations–however it became open to anyone who purchases one. For this assignment, I choose to research Internet History Sourcebooks Projects. The site has credibility because it is an .edu. However, the site has not been updated since 4 November 2011 and it was created in 26 Jan 1996. The IJSP Credits show many contributors and their biographies and links to contacts that adds to the sites credibility. However, Halsall’s personally information is not on the site and his name links to an email, rather than a biography. He states himself as the editor and not the creator. The site has credibility and seems like a reliable source, though they are slight discrepancies that make it fall short of a great source


Domain Name: FORDHAM.EDU

Registrant:
Fordham University
FordhamIT, Dealy 118
Bronx, NY 10458
UNITED STATES

Administrative Contact:
David Whitney
Fordham
Fordham University, Dealy Hall 118
Bronx, NY 10458
UNITED STATES
(718) 817-3768
@fordham.edu

Technical Contact:
David Whitney
Fordham
Fordham University, Dealy Hall 118
Bronx, NY 10458
UNITED STATES
(718) 817-3768
@fordham.edu

Name Servers:
IT-DNS02.FORDHAM.EDU 150.108.28.20
IT-DNS01.FORDHAM.EDU 150.108.27.20

Domain record activated: 05-Jun-1991
Domain record last updated: 31-Oct-2012
Domain expires: 31-Jul-2013

Published in: Uncategorized on February 27, 2013 at9:07 am Comments (1)

#4 Credibility of Sources

Whois.com Exercise

history.com Registry Whois
Updated 1 second ago – Refresh
Domain Name: HISTORY.COM
Registrar: CSC CORPORATE DOMAINS, INC.
Whois Server: whois.corporatedomains.com
Referral URL: http://www.cscglobal.com
Name Server: PDNS1.ULTRADNS.NET
Name Server: PDNS2.ULTRADNS.NET
Name Server: PDNS3.ULTRADNS.ORG
Name Server: PDNS4.ULTRADNS.ORG
Name Server: PDNS5.ULTRADNS.INFO
Name Server: PDNS6.ULTRADNS.CO.UK
Status: clientTransferProhibited
Updated Date: 13-mar-2008
Creation Date: 01-nov-1994
Expiration Date: 31-oct-2015
history.com Registrar Whois
Updated 1 second ago
Corporation Service Company(c) (CSC) The Trusted Partner of More than 50% of the 100 Best Global Brands.

Contact us to learn more about our enterprise solutions for Global Domain Name Registration and Management, Trademark Research and Watching, Brand, Logo and Auction Monitoring, as well SSL Certificate Services and DNS Hosting.

NOTICE: You are not authorized to access or query our WHOIS database through the use of high-volume, automated, electronic processes or for the purpose or purposes of using the data in any manner that violates these terms of use. The Data in the CSC WHOIS database is provided by CSC for information purposes only, and to assist persons in obtaining information about or related to a domain name registration record. CSC does not guarantee its accuracy. By submitting a WHOIS query, you agree to abide by the following terms of use: you agree that you may use this Data only for lawful purposes and that under no circumstances will you use this Data to: (1) allow, enable, or otherwise support the transmission of mass unsolicited, commercial advertising or solicitations via direct mail, e-mail, telephone, or facsimile; or (2) enable high volume, automated, electronic processes that apply to CSC (or its computer systems). CSC reserves the right to terminate your access to the WHOIS database in its sole discretion for any violations by you of these terms of use. CSC reserves the right to modify these terms at any time.

Registrant:
A&E Television Networks, LLC
Domain Admin
235 E 45th St
New York, NY 10017-3305
US
Email: @internationaladmin.com

Registrar Name….: CORPORATE DOMAINS, INC.
Registrar Whois…: whois.corporatedomains.com
Registrar Homepage: www.cscprotectsbrands.com

Domain Name: history.com

Created on…………..: Tue, Nov 01, 1994
Expires on…………..: Fri, Oct 31, 2014
Record last updated on..: Fri, May 25, 2012

Administrative,Technical Contact:
A&E Television Networks, LLC
Domain Admin
235 E 45th St
New York, NY 10017-3305
US
Phone: +1.2124247000
Email: @internationaladmin.com

DNS Servers:

pdns3.ultradns.org
pdns1.ultradns.net
pdns5.ultradns.info
pdns4.ultradns.org
pdns6.ultradns.co.uk
pdns2.ultradns.net

Register your domain name at http://www.cscglobal.com

Wikipedia Source Research

19th President of Liberia, William V.S. Tubman

President Tubman

Image provided by Google: President William V.S. Tubman

The entry about President Tubman is short. It has a very brief history on his early family life. Many of the sources are dated. The oldest source was published in 1942. The page is created on 11 Aug 2003 and last updated on 10 Feb 2013. The article is not locked. Some of the sources are from old Time magazine articles that are only available to subscribers. Another source links to Britannica, another editable site where the article is also unlocked.

However the article does highlight the achievements of President Tubman and his foreign and domestic policies. It provides a decent general description of his presidency.

Jane Browning Assessment

Jane Browning’s blog was mixed with reliable and unreliable sources because her topic was so out there. It seemed really hard to research because it was a little known myth. She had to separate facts from truth. She seemed really dedicated to finding evidence to prove her argument. Although I did find out later that it was a hoax assigned by Professor Finn.

Published in: Uncategorized on February 20, 2013 at7:52 am Comments (0)