Internet Hoax Analysis

Mike Sandman's Telecom Service has a website trying to sell their strange telecom services out of Chicago. At first glance, the site looks iffy and poorly put together, making me think that it could possibly be a fake. When I looked up this website on google, I found that if a man named Sandman tries to get you to check out his page at www.geocities.com/vienna/6318, dont go to it because it is a virus. But as for, Mike Sandman's Telecom Services, the site seems to pan out and is a legitimate source for this off the wall type of service. 


Save the Tree Octopus at first glance looked like a legitimate website that was trying to raise awareness for a species of tree octopi, but after further investigation, I found out that this site was a fake through a site called sqworl. This site was designed to point out and raise awareness for fake websites that could possibly lead to viruses.


RYT Hospital has a website that looks very well designed and communicates their modern day miracles to anyone who visits this site. It looks like a great place to contact if you or a loved on has a debilitating illness, but again, after further investigation, this website happens to be hoax. http://www.shsu.edu/~lis_mah/documents/TCEA/hoaxtable.html notes that this is an illegitimate website and even the website's disclaimer page says that they are not a real hospital and that any medical advise gained from their page should not be taken seriously.


The Dog Island looked fake right off the rip. It advertises a large island where dogs can get away from the stress of urban living and the outside world. From Snopes.com, there is actually a place called Dog Island somewhere off the northern panhandle of Florida, but by no means is it a resort for dogs and that this site was created by college students studying contagious media.  


Museum of Jurassic Technology has a very mysterious vibe to it. I did not even want to click on to the portal to the website because of how little information was on the cover page. When I looked on http://monkeyfilter.com/link.php/6058, I read that this website was used by a teacher to try and confuse her students into thinking that this was a real site. I did not trust this site from the get go and my gut was correct in this circumstance. 


Intractable Hiccups  sounded like a myth right off the bat by saying that by rectally messaging the patient, they cured his hiccups, but with further research I could find no proof that this website of Abstract was false. As far fetched as it seems, the credentials and  the National Library of Medicine seem to be a good source of information.


The Bigfoot Field Research Organization is an informative website about the on-going search for Bigfoot/Sasquatch. Although many believe Bigfoot to be a 400 year old hoax, this website seems to be a real source of information. It advertises remaining search parties for the remainder of 2012, talks about possible myths and facts around the story of Bigfoot, and by the research I did on the website itself, it looks like the Bigfoot Field Research Organization is the real deal.


The Ova Prima Foundation is a website dedicated to spreading the knowledge that the egg did indeed come before the chicken. In researching this website for authenticity, I came across a site that takes a very close look into the Ova Prima Foundation and concludes that it is not a real or trustworthy site. Dr. Forsythe, the main doctor on the page was crossed checked to reveal that the name must be an alias, bringing up no real person and leading the search back to the Ova Prima website. The dates of foundation do not match up (one saying 1876, and another saying 1887).It's authenticity remains in question because the material on the website cannot be supported by any independent research.


While Pawnee Indiana's website might look good at first glance to someone who has not seen the television show "Parks and Recreation", I on the other hand immediately recognized that this was a fake website. Pawnee is an entirely made up town, such as Scranton, Ohio from the office, therefore, this website is nothing more that a fun thing that the television show did for its' viewers.


As far-fetched as the Bowlingual Dog Translator sounds, it was easy to figure out that this is a real invention. The Bowlingual Translator is a walkie-talkie like device that can tell the emotional state of your pouchy as well. It also comes with a body language check list and a health check to continually monitor your dogs' health. This video shows how the device works, but as of right now, I can only find devices that translate into Japanese. 

My Tweeeeeeps!

For the My Tweeps quest, I complied some of the funniest actors I know. It was a childhood dream of mine to grow up and become a world famous comedian/actor, and although life didn't pan out how I thought it would, I still have much respect for the people in this line of work and what they do on a daily basis.

 @WillFarrell

I have been a fan of Will Farrell ever since he started out on Saturday Night Live. His ability to hold his composure during some very funny/embarrassing moments was always some that I admired. When his career took off, he started making fills with some big names such as Mike Myers, Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, and Zooey Deschanel. He has recently announced the long awaited sequel to his hit movie Anchorman, which will be opening early in 2013.

 @KattPackAllDay

Katt Williams was a media sensation for a few years. While he has only played in a few minor roles and done voice overs for some animated films, his stand up comedy is astounding. Standing at a tower 5'5'', he commands the stage and the audience, moving and dancing and getting the crowd going with his original jokes. He has had three stand-up shows come out on DVD, but the last one being in 2009.

 @StephenAtHome

Stephen Colbert is a lot of thing, but humble is not one of them. He has been such shows as The Daily Show acting/writing and since 2005, he has starred in his own mock news show called The Colbert Report. It is a Right Winged angle to the Left winged stance that he used to write for in The Daily Show. He is hilarious in his demeanor and his interactions he has with his guests. 

 @louisck

Louis CK is a great actor/comedian and has even made his life into a show, much like Jerry Seinfeld did back in the 90's, but the comedy in Louis's show is very dry. Since 1995, he has been doing standing and documenting just how dull his life really is... but making some very good money while doing it. He is a unique character who has really found his niche in the comedy world. 

Subculture: Bodybuilders

For my subculture group, I chose bodybuilders. I frequent the gym about three to four days a week and am around people belonging to this group often. People of this subculture are very proud to be a part of the “bodybuilders” and have certain ways of showing one another and the outside world what they are doing to maintain membership to this group. People in this group take great pride on their appearance and how they look to the outside world. Many guys and girls in the gym work their butts off to achieve their desired physic. Bodybuilders also get tattoos to accentuate their bodies and stand out more then the next. Members of this group also like to wear very tight fitting clothing to once again show off their hard work. One of the people I interviewed happened to be my roommate. He has pronounced himself a body builder for the last 4 years. He is very much a type A personality. He is a stickler when it comes to watching what he eats. If he misses going to the gym more then two days a week, he gets all out of sorts and acts weird for a few days until he feels like he is back on track. To quote him, “The ritualistic aspect of a daily gym routine creates soundness of mind, body, and soul.” He says he does the average bodybuilders routine. Legs on Monday, back on Tuesday, chest on Wednesday, day off on Thursday, shoulders on Friday, arms on Saturday, and he takes another off day on Sunday. During the interview, he reminded me that 80% of bodybuilding is a healthy, high protein diet. He tries to eat six meals a day to keep his metabolism up. He says he enjoys sculpting his body very much. Not only does working out create endorphins and make him feel better about himself, but also his appearance to other bodybuilders and folks that do not want to “put in the work” as he says, is noticed quite often. Chris loves the compliments he gets from other people, as he was not used to them growing up. Chris has been sober for 4 years now and has used his past to help him succeed in his future career. In going to the gym, and being in recovery myself, I happen to notice that there are many people in recovery who also get involved in the body builder culture when they get clean.

I also interviewed my friend Tanner, who has been bodybuilding for 5 years now. He originally got into working out in high school while playing baseball. It was necessary for him to stay in top physical condition. He started training with a trainer to help increase his size and gain some knowledge about the human body. Tanner is a big fan of switching his workouts up to confuse his body, giving better results. Tanner has become enthralled with body builder competitions. He says the routine that he gets into becomes very addicting. He gains as much weight as he can for the two months prior to the competitions, lifting weights five times a week and doing cardiovascular exercises 6 days a week. Two weeks prior to the competition, he cuts out all complex carbohydrates and depletes his body of almost all of his fat cells. Along with getting his body cut and lean, Tanner also would go to tanning salons to get a bronze color to his skin to further accentuate his muscles.

This lifestyle takes almost all of his time and energy, not to mention money. Tanner and Chris, along with most other bodybuilders, buy and use a plethora of supplements to enhance their growth and gains. Before Chris works out, he uses a pre-workout supplement to enhance the blood flow to his muscles, giving him a better pump and making it easier to get in the mindset of lifting heavy weight. From talking to Chris and Tanner, this is one of the most common supplements used by bodybuilders. After the work, many bodybuilders use protein shakes to flush nutrients (mainly protein) back into the broken down muscle, usually within a half an hour after the workout. This causes very large gains because it feeds the muscles and causes them to heal themselves bigger then they were before, therefore creating stronger muscles.

Along with supplements, bodybuilders have to buy a lot of food to keep their bodies well nourished. It is common for my roommate Chris to spend upwards of $400 dollars at the grocery store every month just on himself. He tries to stick with high protein foods, but also is conscious of buying live foods, or foods that were once living. He says that these foods with little or no preservatives in them can be used by the body much more effectively, in turn, letting the body absorb what the food has to offer easier and leaving less left over garbage in the body.

One thing Chris admitted to me was the fact that he used to do anabolic steroids to gain mass, which is not uncommon even though it is illegal without having them prescribed by a doctor. He does not use them anymore, being in recovery, but he knows many people that are still on steroids. These people appear to be huge, but in Chris’s and many others eyes', they are very noticeable and are considered to be cheating to get the results that others are getting without the use of illegal substances.

So from what I have learned from studying the subculture of bodybuilding is that it is much more than just going to the gym. This subculture puts a lot of work into what they do and how they look. They put in a lot of time money and effort into how they look so they can keep their status in the subculture.

Lovemark

Last year when I was looking around the used car lot, I stumbled upon the Subaru section. I remembered growing up, my dad drove a Subaru Legacy and was very proud of his machine. I recalled all the commercials of the people visiting exotic destinations and viewing scenes that supposedly only a Subaru could allow you to see. These Outback and Impreza commercials came to mind when I walked on the lot.  This is what I wanted. A vehicle that could give me access to the most uncharted areas on Earth. Before I even stepped foot inside that car, I was imagining myself traversing the back roads of the Sierra Anchas. Powering through off-road tracks for miles on end, knowing that my vehicle would have no issues getting me to my destination, no matter where I was.

From the roar of the engine during the test drive, I was sold. I was so happy to finally be a Subaru owner like my dad was 20 years ago. I was imagining all of the amazing places I would be going to as soon as I drove off the lot, but the reality was that the car and I stayed on pavement and city streets for the first 3 months that I owned her. Then the day came when a huge snowstorm hit. I finally saw what all the hype was about Subaru’s. I was plowing through the snow with ease, while passing large trucks that had gotten stuck in the snow or ran off the road. My fleeting empathy for these wrecked cars was soon overwhelmed by my pride and love for my Subaru. I finally had a brand of car to which I gave my undying loyalty. I soon started taking my car all over the state seeing places that I could not have seen in just any old car.

Although other cars could have made it through that storm perfectly fine, because of my mental picture of Subaru’s, I felt as if my car was better then all the rest. Kevin Roberts defined this phenomenon as a Lovemark. This car might not be made better then a Toyota, or handle better then a Mitsubishi, but because of my years of being shaped and trained to love Subaru’s, I had an innate draw towards these vehicles. The advertisement worked on me know by being able to conquer the land, and when I am older, by ensuring me that it is one of the safest models of car that money can buy. I don’t want to say that Subaru’s will be the only car I will ever drive, but because of the experience I have had with one, I am going to be drawn towards these cars for a very long time.

Pop Music Website Analysis

For the quest “Pop Music Website Analysis”, I chose my favorite band Circa Survive’s website. Circa Survive is a band started by the lead singer, Anthony Green. They have been around since 2005 and have used their fans as their main source of spreading their music. To start, the main page has a large mural with a style similar to the artwork on their albums covers. Seeing this mural immediately reminds the viewer of their unique artwork that captivated me each time I bought one of their albums. Very cool touch! Along with the great artwork, the Band’s logo also appears at the top of the page. It is a symbol of a safe camp, insinuating that the listener of their music will be at rest and safe from worries. I believe this to be true, as I reach a sense of relaxation while listening to Circa.

The main font used on their webpage seems to be a Lucida Fax. It is a very edgy, boisterous font, which I believe ties together very well with the music of Circa Survive. This font says to me, “read this and take heed”, similar to the energetic assertiveness of the band’s music. Although the font creates a strong simile to the music, the color and size of the words do not. Their main font is a creamy white, having an almost standoffish effect. The rest of their news real contains a plain white color and also a different, more boring Geneva font. This does not scream out Circa Survive and if I did not know the band, I would have no idea what they sounded like while reading their newsreel. As for the 10-point font used on most of their page, I do not agree with as it lacks the power that band normally expresses. Aside from the boring newsreel font and color, it contains some cool pictures of the band and informs the reader of what’s been going on in the life’s of Circa’s members. The reel also contains some pictures of recent shows and future events that they will be playing, including a photo of a recording session and a hint toward an upcoming album! This was a very cool find while checking out the site.

The webpage is very music oriented, just as the band is. At the top of the page is a sound cloud bite from one of their albums, making it very easy to peruse the website while listening to some of my favorite music. Along with sound cloud, they also incorporated a tab with a link to a YouTube channel with videos that one would be unable to see if they just searched for Circa on YouTube; a nice added bonus. On this YouTube channel, you can see interviews from the band all around the world. You are able to be a part of these musicians’ lives and get to see and experience what they do, if only for a brief few minutes.

The site is quite manageable and easy to navigate through. There is no flash and bang. It reminds me much of the band. Having met Anthony Green last year in Tucson and having been a fan for many years, I can attest to the humility of him and the band and it is reflected well in their website. Although at some points the Band’s page can be a little shy and uninteresting, for the most part, I think it is as good as the band can do in comparing and conveying their very intricate and complex style of music. Go check them out!!!

FADS AND TRENDS!!!

5 Fads:

1) Live Strong - Everyone and their mothers had a live strong armband while I was in my teenage years. The band came out in 2004 after Lance Armstrong's tour de France effort. These bracelets sold for a dollar and are still in circulation, but the fad has died out over the years and less and less people are wearing them. 

2) Osiris Shoe were huge when I was in middle school. If you didn't have a pair, you weren't that cool (I didn't have a pair). Osiris brand is still around, but that style of shoe is no longer sought after by youth skaters. The fad ended in my world around 2005.

3)  Tamagotchi was a huge hit with younger kids back in the late 90's. These small electronic toys required care and affection or else they would die. Too bad that after a couple years, not only did the computerized animal die out, but that fad did as well.

4)  Beanie Babies were a huge deal in the mid to late 90's. Ty Warner Inc. turned into a 6 billion dollar corporation in the matter of a few years, creating thousands of different collectibles, each with increasing value. After they tried their comeback in the early 2000's, TY Inc. realized that their dynasty was coming to a halt.

5) Pokemon cards were all the rage, coming to America in '98. You could no go into any corner store or grocery market with running into a pack of Pokemon cards. The card game kept people entertained for years. Unfortunately, you can give most of these cards away today (I saved all mine hoping they would be worth something someday... Still Waiting!).

5 Trends:

1) Snowboarding was a fad beginning in the early 70's, but has slowly progressed to a trend of my generation. As more and more people getting into snowboarding, it has become a widely popularized sport, gaining entry into such competitions as the Olympics and having the spot light in the x-games. It is a sport that has truly changed a time period.

2) The iPhone was first introduced in early 2007 by Apple. This phone, which was supposed to combine the best of what Apple computers could offer and a sleek cellular phone, soon became the number one selling cell phone, selling over 100 million devices. This has been the phone of our generation.

3) Tanning beds came into the scene in the U.S. in the early 80's. Although having proven negative effects on users health, these beds have become a very popular thing over the past 30 years. Being tan has become a much desired look in my generation, and there is no easier faster way to achieve this look.

4) Subwoofers came around in the mid 60's to increase the low end sound quality of home theaters across America. By the late 1980's subwoofers started crawling their way into car stereos and have been being installed ever since. There is no question that subwoofers increase the sound quality of music and will continue to do so for years to come.

5) Bumper stickers have made a huge mark on society ever since World War II. Originally used as propaganda in the United States, bumper stickers have been used for politics, advertisement, religion, humor, sports and everything in between. Bumper stickers have been a trend allowing drivers to express themselves and will continue to do so for a long time.

Click on My Pop Culture Tour to hear my wonderful presentation!

First Blog Post Ever!

Hello world! My name is Mathew (one t because my mom's from Canada) Beyak. I would like to start by saying that I am a little nervous about online classes because I did horribly in one a couple years ago, but I am going to try a lot hard at this one. Bold. Bold Italics!!!