Thursday, October 18, 2007

Group B: Martina (E-tivity 2)


Hi!
After searching for a while in Technorati, I came across two blogs which in my opinion may be useful for you too.
As I’ve already said in my presentation, I’d like to visit Scotland; so the first thing I searched for was a blog about…guess what? SCOTLAND! What a surprise! Joking apart, there were many blogs about this subject, but just one caught my attention, that is the one by Sandy Stevenson, a Scottish tourist guide who has been organizing and guiding small group tours of Scotland for the past 12 years. It’s a very thorough blog. He updates it daily and posts information and videos about Scotland and his tours through his land (there are beautiful photos but also extremely useful suggestions); then there are links to Scottish Events, Clans, Culture, History, Poetry, People, Humour, Cookery, Genealogy, Photos and much more. You should visit it!

The second blog I suggest you is about a more serious question: terrorism. I know, it’s a thoughtful reading, but unfortunately terrorism is a very current topic. For this reason, I’ve thought that this blog could be interesting for those who -like me- doesn’t know enough about the subject and wants to learn more, in order to understand some related problems. The blog is written by Amy Zalman, a policy analyst for Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), who has been writing about terrorism and politically motivated violence since the late 1990s. Her blog is well organized and you can easily find all the information you need. For example, she explains what terrorism is, which types of terrorism exist and then develops many related topics. Have a look at this blog!

Finally, just few words commenting on the style. Visiting the blogs, I’ve found out that the language and the style can vary a lot according to different topics. The first blog –about Scotland- has a quite informal structure: there are many photos and videos, there are also jokes and vignettes. However, the register is simple but quite formal; for example there are no contracted forms or words from slang. On the contrary, the second one is very different from that about Scotland. At the beginning, I didn’t understand if it was really a blog: it could rather seem a specialized article, or something like that. The text is divided into paragraphs, and the register is quite formal: there aren’t contracted forms and the words are quite specific, related to that subject. However, there are many links, both in and out the written text, so that the author creates a sort of hypertext, to help the reader in getting all the information he needs.

That's all folks!
Bye!
Martina














4 comments:

Marta said...

Hi Martina, I like the fact you always try to know more about the society we live in..so, I thank you for sharing your interest with us! Well, I visited the blog on terrorism, which I found very interesting for several reasons: firstly, as you said, it is not the kind of blog which just contains personal ideas or even rubbish news, but it actually reports true events, in a clear and quite detailed way. What is more, there are many links you can go to in order to get more information on the issue. Finally, I think it is really important to understand what's going on in the world, because we are all involved in these current events: having the chance to know more about our society is a means to try to improve it. However, I noticed that very few comments were left on the blog, and I wonder why..are the posts probably too long? Or are bloggers just not interested in this kind of news? Good question..What do you think?

:-) Marta

ElenaCosta said...

Hello Martina!
I simply fell in love with the blog about Scotland you suggested!I share your interest in this land: most people think that going to Great Britain means visiting London, but it is a big mistake, there is much more to see! Some time ago a friend of mine sent me a postcard from Shetland Islands: believe me, it was breathtaking! The waves and the grass of those endless fields had shades that I have never seen, they were so deep and vivid that I couldn't help hoping to have the chance to see that wonderful landscape with my own eyes. Now we are planning to fly there, I am excited! When I saw that you found a blog about how to organize a tour there I immediately plunged into it!
I agree with you, it contains everything one needs to know: in the right column there is a great number of very useful links, from the tours Stevenson organizes, to information about famous Scots, to the list of all the posts in alphabetical order to check them more quickly; on the left, there are many beautiful photos and videos that allow the visitors to breath the wilderness and the picturesque simplicity of the region. How can one resist to these temptations?
I noticed that generally no comments are left to the posts: the reason could be that the blog looks like a website about tourism in Scotland, so people just have a look around and pick the information they need. It is a real pity, comments are useful to exchange news and to enrich the blog itself. What's your opinion?
Love from
Elena

Sara DT said...

Hi Martina!
of the two blogs you suggested, I chose to visit that about Scotland. I have to admit that my knowledge of this country is limited to the Lochness lake, kilts and pipes, Braveheart and Sean Connery...
I found the blog very clear and useful (overall the links on the right) for people who, like me, is trying to know something more precise about Scotland. In addition, I had great fun reading the comic sketches on English and Scottish people.:-).
Then, I was really fascinated by the pictures of "Scotland autumn afternoon", and I really think that one of my next travels will be to this wonderful country.

Bye!
Sara

Sarah said...

Dear Martina,

Just a technical point. What's your last name? I've got several Martina's on my list, but none in Group B. You can stay here, I just need to know which one you are ;-)

Sarah