Haters and Trolls  Video A

1. “Disinhibition” means the opposite of feeling held back or constrained by something. When you’re “disinhibited,” you feel more free or able to do something. What does Alice Marwick mean when she says people can feel disinhibited” online?

2. Do you think that trolling is a reflection of our society? What can we stand to learn from trolls? 3. In another TEDx Talk presentation, Whitney Phillips points out that trolls and news outlets are

similar: They both stir up controversy and exploit tragedy for personal gain. For news outlets, that means making money off tragic news stories and sparking debate. For trolls, it’s personal “lolz” or laughs. What do you think about this comparison?

4. Andy Sellars says, “Anytime you give anyone the ability to speak, there’s always a chance that they can abuse that ability.” How do you determine when someone is abusing that ability? Is the right to abuse part of having the right of freedom of speech?

5. A common topic of debate is: Can the Internet facilitate people acting more cruelly online than they would offline? Or has cruel behavior always existed offline, with the Internet only making it more visible?

6. How do you monitor your own online behaviior? What kind of internal compass guides your actions? When or how does it get difficult to self-regulate?

 Video B

1. Why might people turn to social-networking sites to mourn the loss of a friend, family member, or community member? How might public greiving online help peple through a tough time such as this?

2. Put yourself in the soes of someone trolling a memorial page. What are your motives? What are you hoping will happen after you post something insensitive or offensive?

3. People may feel that it’s easier to say or do things online than in person. In what ways might this be a good thing? In what ways might this be a bad thing?

4. There’’s a common saying online: Don’t feed the trolls” ( meaning don’t react to trolls, because that’s what they want). Do you think people should ignore and report trolls on memorial pages? If people don’t, what might happen?

5. Have you ever read a social-networking site’s statement of rights and responsibilities? If so, what do you remember about it? If not, what do you think it addresses? (Then go check one out!)

6. Facebook mentioned “self-regulating” in its statement to ABC News, and then it talked about the tools and resources it gives users. What do you think about this? What would social networks be like if users didn’t get to regulate content?    

Would you #YOLO Video A

1. KK says that he and his wife make a 200-year plan because they like to live "larger than life." What do you think he means by this? Is living "larger than life" similar to or different from #YOLO?

2. KK says, "I really make decisions all the time about how I want to remember myself." Do you live that way, too? What can we gain by thinking about how we want to remember ourselves, about our own impressions of who we are and the decisions we've made?

3. KK shows an embarrassing photo of himself as a kid that his mom posted on Facebook and talks about how he asked her to take it down. "Maybe we are the first generation to understand the digital curating of ourselves...Maybe we are the first to actively even record our lives," he says. How do your friends and family members help create your digital traces? Are there things you've asked people to untag or take down?

4. If you were to create a painting of your digital life thus far, what would it look like? What things would you want to include?

5. KK says that he doesn't think of himself as moving forward in time. He thinks of his future moving backward toward him. As in a game, he dodges things and makes decisions as he goes. Can you think of parts of your future that are coming toward you? Things you might dodge? Things you might move toward?

6. What are three words you would use to describe the legacy you want for yourself? Video B

1. Juan compares today's digital presence to us having electronic tattoos. Others have called our digital records "digital footprints" or "digital breadcrumbs." What would you compare them to? Why?

2. During the past few decades, this type of digital coverage, publicity, and record — usually reserved for the famous — has been applied to you and me. Is this a good thing? Why, or why not?

3. What do you think are the pros and cons of facial-recognition technology? Why would Facebook buy a company such as Face.com?

4. Juan talks about four Greek myths: Sisyphus, Orpheus and Eurydice, Atalanta and Hippomenes, and Narcissus. What are the lessons he applies to today's digital life? Can you think of any other such lessons?

5. Do you agree that we are "threatened" by the immortality of our electronic tattoos?Why, or why not?

6. Juan says that tattoos shout. Think of your daily digital life. What might others think your electronic tattoo shouts about? What would you like your electronic tattoo to shout about?

Entrepreneurship    Video A

1. What is your creative outlet? Do you write, draw, or build? What or who inspires you? 2. Maya says, "Ideas can spark a movement. Ideas are opportunities and innovation. Ideas truly are

what make the world go round." Do you agree? Or, rather, is it what we do with our ideas that makes the world go round?

3. Maya says she didn't have a business plan when she was 8 years old. But she did have goals: She knew she wanted to make "pretty creations that were safe for the environment" and that she wanted to "give back." What kinds of goals do you need before setting out to do something?

4. How did the Internet help Maya's business?Do you think Forbes would have known about Maya without the Internet?

5. Gandhi said, "Be the change you wish to see in this world." How does Maya fulfill this idea? 6. Maya says, "I feel that I am part of a new wave of entrepreneurs that not only seeks to have a

successful business but also a sustainable future." What do you think the world would be like if all people in business thought this way?

Video B 1. Think of something you created for fun when you were little. What did you make? What was the

process? 2. Why do you think Nirvan Mullick was so inspired to tell Caine's story? What about it initially grabbed

Nirvan's attention? What do you think made the story so interesting to others? 3. Nirvan noted that, "For me, the most inspiring thing was the wave of cardboard creativity inspired in

kids around the world[1]." Has something online ever inspired you so much that you've decided to do it yourself? If so, what was it?

4. Have you ever done something that has affected a lot of people in positive ways? Or have you ever been affected positively by something someone else did — a gesture, a project, an event? If so, what was it? What did it feel like to be affected?

5. What do you think about Cardboardchallenge.com? What kind of creativity challenge would you like to tackle?

6. Nirvan stated that, "The idea is not only to give kids the tools to build the things they can imagine but also to imagine the world that they can build[2]." What role does your imagination play in your life?

Copy – Paste Culture Video A

 1. What do you think about the real-world objects (for example, a sliding lock, a typewriter, and traffic

light colors) that inspired the iPhone's interface? Do you think people notice these everyday references?

2. Why do you think Apple chose to reference physical objects more literally in the iPhone (for example, with a book shelf, a calendar, and a tape deck)?

3. Can you think of any other real-world objects that digital products would benefit from mimicking? 4. Do you think it's OK for companies to copy the look and feel of other companies' products when

making their own devices? 5. What do you think about iOS 7's simplified, flatter, more iconic look?Why do you think this look

became popular? Who decides what's popular and what's not? 6. The filmmaker and narrator, Kirby, says, "Perhaps it's not fair for us to expect surprise and delight

from smartphones anymore. Perhaps, for that, we need a new frontier — a new blank slate." Do you agree? What do you envision?

Video B

1. If you had to sum up your initial reaction in one word after watching this video, what would it be? Why?

2. Are you surprised that Disney has recycled parts of old animated films for new ones? Why, or why not? Does it change your opinion about Disney's creativity?

3. How do you think they reused animated sequences like this? How do you think that process works? (Hint: Look up "rotoscoping" online.)

4. How do you think the animators forSnow White (1937) would feel if they knew animators for Robin Hood (1973) copied their work?

5. Does the fact that these are traditional animations (drawn by hand versus animated on a computer) make you feel any differently about their being copied? Why, or why not?

6. Some of the dogs from Lady and the Tramp are featured briefly in101 Dalmatians. Do you think these cameos are a form of copying? Or is Disney simply referencing its characters and movies again for fun? Is there a difference?

 

Movers and Shakers Video A

1. Tavi says, "It's weird to sit in school and think...only one person will see my homework, my teacher, but all these other people will see my article." How do you balance your responsibilities and hobbies in and out of school?

2. If you were to start an online blog/a print publication such as Style Rookie, what kinds of skills would you need to develop? What kinds of content would you want to write about? What kinds of decisions would you make about the blog/publication's look and feel?

3. One of the downsides to becoming well known online is that you can receive criticism and even hateful responses from other people. What do you think it feels like for people — especially teens — to receive that kind of negative attention? How would you handle it?

4. Tavi says that she and her staff don't write about things for "shock value" — they write about what's true in teenagers' lives. What do you think she means by "shock value"? Do you know of publications that write for shock value? What do you think about that kind of content?

5. Tavi says, "I think a lot of the sadness or angst or any problems teenagers deal with are often brushed aside because they are teenagers." Do you agree? If so, why? If not, why not?

6. Tavi's personal blog allowed her to create an online magazine that now addresses things beyond fashion, such as relationships and feminism. She wants the magazine to be an honest forum for teenage girls to talk about their experiences and struggles. How can an online magazine bring people together and express people's opinions in ways traditional publications might not?

Video B

1. Take a look at the tweets from @westhighbros. What kinds of compliments do you see? 2. @westhighbros became popular by word of mouth. How do you think something like this caught

on? Why do you think such "communities of kindness" are growing in popularity? 3. Jeremiah says so many people get cyberbullied online because "they're less than perfect." Do you

agree? Do you think there is a definition for "perfect"? 4. What do you think about the first tweet listed here? It says, "You don't need an anonymous Twitter

account to give people compliments."Do you think being anonymous makes it easier to give someone a sincere compliment? Does the anonymity change the impact of the compliment at all?

5. Take a look at Ally's message to Westhigh Bros. Have you ever thanked someone for an act of kindness? How important is it for people to show their appreciation for others' good deeds?

6. Have you ever had a cyberbullying-prevention assembly, discussion, or lesson at your school? How did it compare to a peer-to-peer initiative such as this?

   

Step Forward Video A

1. This clip is from the documentary The Dream Is Now, about immigration reform in the United States. What parts of this video struck you the most? Why?

2. Erika says, "We were literally pushed to start learning how to change the system, how to change what was happening." How would you describe Erika's journey to becoming an activist? How did she start? How did her efforts grow?

3. After Erika posted her video online, what series of events happened?How did her message continue to spread? How did these events lead to her mom not being deported?

4. How can social media help people champion or support a cause? How are such online efforts different from those that can happen in-person? What are some of the limitations or drawbacks of using social media for activism?

5. How would you describe the difference between "activism" and "slacktivism" (the use of "feel good" actions that ostensibly support an issue or cause but require minimal effort)? Is "slacktivism" a bad thing?

6. Activism promotes a cause based on one's own perspective or point of view. How can you learn about the opposing side of an issue to get the whole picture?

Video B 1. What do you think about the different examples in this video?Which one moved you the most? 2. What do you think Ben meant when he talked about the "disruptive power" of social media? What do

you think about the idea of social media's "disruptive power"? How can it be harnessed? 3. What do you think about the difference between a bystander(someone who stands by when

something happens but doesn't do anything) and an upstander (someone who stands up and takes action to help a situation)? Have you ever felt torn between being one or the other?

4. There's a saying that "less is more." How was that true for Change.org's features and offerings? Why would a more "focused experience," as Ben calls it, be better for users?

5. Ben says, "People today have more power to make a difference because of technology than ever before in all of human history." Do you agree with him? If so, why? If not, why not?

6. Ben asks, "How do we build tools to empower not just momentary successes but long-term movements?" How would you help him answer this question?

Internet Hoaxes Video A

1. Elan's tweets were all part of a big prank — Diane doesn't even exist!How do you feel, knowing this now? How would you have felt if you had shared Elan's tweets with your friends before discovering it was all a hoax?

2. The Huffington Post is a Pulitzer Prize-winning news blog. What kind of responsibility does it have to make sure that what it's reporting is true?

3. Do you think there's a difference between lying and pranking? 4. Stories can go viral quickly. Do you ever check a story's facts before believing it's true? How do you

check? 5. Do you think kids today will be more skeptical and cynical of what they read, hear, and watch in the

news than kids of previous generations? Why, or why not? How is today different? 6. There's an old adage: "Buyer beware." What could be a similar saying to encourage viewers to be

critical consumers of online media?  Video B

1. Is it fair for a company to fund a hoax video such as this? Why, or why not? What might be the benefits for the company? What might be the disadvantages?

2. What is your impression of this particular company, Hi-Tec Footwear, now that you've seen this hoax video? Positive or negative? Why?

3. How did the film crew and producers make "Liquid Mountaineering" seem so realistic? 4. As you can see, there are a lot of people who tried "liquid mountaineering" in real life after seeing

this video. How do you think they felt after learning it wasn't real? 5. What responsibilities do media producers have when creating for a public audience? What

responsibilities do you have as the viewer? 6. Do you think kids today will be more skeptical and cynical of what they read, hear, and watch in the

news than kids of previous generations? How can you become more critical as a daily consumer of media?

         

Online Tracking  Video A

1. Kovac says that the Internet has “pened up each and every one of us to the world” and that “the price we’re being asked to pay for all this connectedness is our privacy.” What do you think he means?

2. Do you think most users of the Internet are aware they’re tracked by companies online and that the advertisements and content they see are targeted toward them specifically?

3. What information are you unwilling to share? 4. Which habits do you not mind sharing with compancies and corporations? What might be some of

the benefits of online tracking and targeting? 5. How do you ensure your private information is staying private? 6. Are you curious to see what Lightbeam (formerly Collusion) would show about your own behavioral

tracking profile? Why, or why not?  Video B

1. What do you think about Eli’s point that platforms tailor your results by using an “invisible algorithmic editing of the Web”? What are the downsides of only seeing posts from the friends you click on the most? What are the upsides?

2. Eli says, “There’s no standard Google anymore.” Did you know that sites such as Google will show different people different search results, based on the information collected about their previous online activity? Do you think this practice, this “filter bubble,” is problematic?

3. Eli provides examples of many news sites. But companies, too, are playing around with “dynamic pricing” online, wherein prices of products change depending on the users or the time of day. Some airlines, for example, will charge more for flights depending on users’ overall online purchase history. What do you think about this kind of tailored content?

4. Eli says, “The algorithms don’t yet have the kind of embedded ethics that the eidtors did.” What do you think is the difference between human gatekeepers and algorithmic gatekeepers? How can we ensure a flow of information necessary to support a “functioning democracy”?

5. Many users already are taking steps to manage how and when websites collect information about them. Eli doesn’t mention them in this video, but can you think of any strategies you might take to limit how you’re tracked and targeted online?

6. What di you learn that you didn’t know before? How can you make sure that your horizons are broadened and not limited?