Surfing the Web on a Daily Basis.

The internet… To be honest, I visit many many websites.
I actually had to think pretty hard to pick a handful.

My day, like many other college students, begins with Facebook. The pictures my close friends update (especially on a Monday morning!), check my inbox, wall, comments, etc… the usual.

Then, I often check the NY Times website. I like having the ability to go back one week in time and still be able to check out the front pages of each day’s newspaper.

I love youtube! Being able to catch any footage, any video, is incredible. I sing in my free time, and I love watching aspiring artists share their original songs or covers.

Deezer and Pandora are two pretty good websites, where you can listen to basically any song, make playlists, and actually find songs according to the genre you usually search for… A good way to discover new artists!

I am almost always on the Manhattanville website, whether it is for blackboard or my email. The library database is also very useful, and I often wish I used it more than I currently do.

Surfthechannel is probably one of the most entertaining ones I visit. I am a fan of Desperate Housewives, and since I do not have a tv in my room, I often just watch the episodes the next day on the website. It has every tv show, documentary, film that could possibly be imagined, usually uploaded through megavideo, dailymotion, etc…

FML is the website I go to when I am extremely bored. The “Today, I…” anecdotes are usually hilarious, and make you realize that your life isn’t THAT bad compared to those who post their entries. It is pretty funny to scroll through the posts…

Stringers – A Betrayal?

Stringers are part-time or freelance correspondents for the news media. Many prestigious writers have been found to depend on these correspondents in order to write articles that seem authentic, even without having to actually be on the scene of the event. Rick Bragg, a very talented writer for the New York Times was suspended because of his habitual use of stringers and then ended up quitting because of the pressure of his offenses.

The question is: Does it really alter a writer’s potential? In my perspective, as long as a writer has talent and can actually write something meaningful and knowledgeable, there is no reason why it should shock anyone. The stringers are on the scene and catch every detail that is present, informing the writer. Therefore, nothing is false, nothing is invented, nothing is exaggerated or off.

Of course, I recommend reading a piece by Bragg to actually understand. He wrote a piece on Haiti, and the precision with which he writes about the scenery, the people, the horrors… everything is very genuine and conceivable. I enjoyed reading it, and after finding out about the stringers… even if the article has or has not been reported by stringers, the finality is the same: he is a talented writer who wrote about a significant cause in the best possible way.

Of course, I agree with those that say that the best way to describe is to “be there”, get a feel of the environment, the people, the atmosphere… but a writer cannot always be present, and stringers are helpful. They are the ones who cover the area and capture it; the writer uses the information to create a meaningful article. So ethical or not, in my opinion, there are way worse offenses that can be committed by a journalist.

Tap Water a Possible Danger to Citizens of White Plains

Clean streets, quiet atmosphere, and solid security—these are the decisive factors in choosing to live in the Suburban city of White Plains. From college students living on campuses to large families owning homes, it is evident that the quality of tap water has never been considered an issue. Since 2003, volunteers have been gathering with Sandra Darling, organizer of the water monitoring team, to test streams in order to monitor the water quality of White Plains; In the past years, it has had the lowest average water rates among fifty Westchester County water purveyors. On September 18th, 2009, numerous volunteers showed up once again with Darling to monitor local streams for World Water Monitoring Day.

The little city of White Plains, situated 25 miles of Manhattan, is the home of nearly 56,000. Although streams and rivers are all in compliance with all applicable State drinking water operating, monitoring, and reporting requirements, there have still been some variances and exemptions. “Cryptosporidium is a microbial pathogen that has been found in surface and ground water in White Plains streams. Although White Plains uses a water treatment that is known to filter this pathogen, it is not a hundred per cent guaranteed”, Sandra Darling, a professional in the water testing field, says. This pathogen is a gastrointestinal infection that may provoke nausea, diarrhea, and abdominal cramps.

“Giardia cyst, another microbial pathogen, is the most prevalent in the White plains streams, found in 46 out of 52 water tests that were completed in 2008. Through disinfection and filtering, we can “kill” the microbe, but it is not a guarantee that it is harmless, and may still contaminate individuals”, says Darling. The ingestion of this pathogen may cause Giardiasis, an intestinal illness. Although these pathogen statistics may be worrying, according to Darling, it is not a danger at the moment. “The White Plains drinking water exceeded state regulations last year”, she says, “but some individuals, including those who have gone through surgery or transplants, the elderly, and children, may be more vulnerable to disease causing pathogens, therefore must filter their own water to be safer.”

The Westchester County Citizen Volunteer Monitoring Program was first established in 2003, through the Safe Drinking Water Act funding distributed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, in order to create a baseline of water quality data on streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes. These aquatic resources support many things-- a drinking water supply for Westchester and New York City, recreation, wildlife habitat, commercial transportation, industrial uses, and commercial and sport fishing. “Our volunteers collect samples, learn physical and chemical parameters, and identify water critters while having fun”, says Darling. “Volunteers are a necessary component of the program, because government agencies do not have the monitoring resources to collect water quality information on all water bodies”.