- There are many famous social networks. Name one. What do you know about this network?
- Why have social networks exploded in popularity over the last 15 years?
- How do social networks make money?
- Which social network(s) do you use personally or at work; Facebook, Mixi, LINE, Twitter, Wordpress*, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, LinkedIn? What kind of things do you read? What kind of things do you post? How much time do you spend using social networks?
- Do find this/these services valuable and/or entertaining? Why?
- Why do you think there are so many people concerned with how much and how often young people use social media? Is there a member of your family, or is anyone you know, obsessed with, addicted to or far, far too engaged in social media?
Question 1
Myspace. It's an American social networking site, offering similar services to Facebook. It was the largest social networking site in the world from 2005 to 2008. Now it's usually the butt of the joke in conversations about social networking.Question 2
I have no idea. Personally, I find them creepy. I much prefer speaking with someone privately via email or direct message. I don't understand why people feel the need to broadcast their thoughts and experienes for all the internet to read. I don't need to see the latest cat video that made you laugh and I don't care what you had for breakfast.Question 3
I don't rightly know. I have heard it said that if you are using a service and you aren't paying for it, then you are the product. I don't fully understand that but I think it means they take the information you post about yourself and share it with advertisers. I have no idea if the advertising is working on me – I like to think it's not but who knows.Question 4
I use LINE every day to talk to people in Japan. I use Facebook to keep in touch with a few people overseas. I watch YouTube videos almost on a daily basis – I like to watch gaming videos and stand-up comedy – but I rarely read the comments or leave comments of my own. I use WordPress at work, to communicate with both EP! staff and students. I don't think I spend that much time using social media but it is probably more than I think it is.Question 5
Yes, I do. Both valuable and entertaining. WordPress makes many aspects of my job much easier. Both LINE and Facebook allow me to stay connected to the important people in my life. YouTube is endlessly entertaining to me. I feel lucky to have access to all of these services but I am always cautious about how I use them.Question 6
I think people's main concern with using social media is that users are becoming more antisocial over time. As a fairly asocial person myself, I can't really speak to this. I'm more concerned with how freely we volunteer information about ourselves to the cloud. Once it's out there, it's there for anyone to use, for good or for bad reasons. It worries me how carefree my wife seems about this when it comes to our daughter. She is always posting pictures and status updates about her. It makes me uncomfortable and I wish she would stop doing it.Tough Vocabulary
| - English - | - Japanese - |
|---|---|
| butt of the joke | 冗談のお尻 |
| don't rightly know | 何も思いつきません |
| keep in touch with | と連絡を取り合います |
| on a daily basis | 日常的に |
| aspect | 局面 |
| stay connected with | との接続を維持 |
| engaging | 魅力的 |
| cautious | 用心深い |
| antisocial | 反社会的 |
| asocial | 社会的 |
| carefree | のんきな |
I know how you feel about your wife putting personal stuff on the net. I am worried about those types of things too.
I use social media almost exactly the same way that you do: I use LINE to communicate with people in Japan. I use Facebook to keep in touch with a few people overseas. I sometimes watch YouTube videos. I use WordPress at work.