• Question: What are your thoughts on social medias eg. facebook, instagram, twitter....?

    Asked by 05car to Colin, John, Kevin, Shikha, Triona on 15 Nov 2014.
    • Photo: Kevin Motherway

      Kevin Motherway answered on 15 Nov 2014:

      I like Facebook for banter with friends, especially those who’ve emigrated. I use Twitter but really only to follow things like Formula 1 news during races or the updates on the Rosetta mission in the last few days. I also follow people like Dara O’Briain and Ross O’Carroll Kelly who are really funny. Never actually used Instagram and only post the odd oh tot on FB.

      My crazy teenage days are long gone so I don’t have to worry about really embarrassing photos that could live on the Internet forever being posted and that’s the real downside of these sites that you can lose you privacy. We all screw up or make a fool of ourselves every now and then especially when we’re young and I shudder to think of a permanent record or database of my teenager years available to everyone to search through. Of course I have hilarious photos that get shown around when I get together with friends, but no potential employer has ever seen them thank god.

      The other big worry is bullying and how easy it can be to take what people re saying online to heart. When you see something in black and white it can be more hurtful than a remark shouted across the school yard. I have less than 20 friends on Facebook (and frequently turn down requests from people I barely know or don’t want them to be part of my online fun). and I suppose you have to bear in mind that “friends” on Facebook are not necessarily your real friends so don’t always pay heed to what they say. Facebook is a great tool to keep in contact with your actual friends and I’d hate to see it ever shut down.

    • Photo: Shikha Sharma

      Shikha Sharma answered on 16 Nov 2014:

      hi 05 car,

      I like these social medias 🙂 Just think, you are staying at a house alone in a very remote place where there is no one. And you have no mobile or any other communication device to contact your family, friends or anybody else. You can imagine how difficult the life would be!!!!! Social media is an innovative way to get in touch with people, grow your network, share your expression, keep yourself updated, know others, enhance your knowledge, make other happy, allow others to know you more. Nowadays, social media is being used very effectively to create fast social & marketing impact. A company wants to promote its newly launched brand; it can use social media to take the brand to million of consumer in just no time. Someone wants to promote a good social cause; you can publish it to social media and reach to huge population to support the cause. This is actually awesome!!!!! Only thing we need to be bit wise, honest and sensible to get maximum benefit of social media.

    • Photo: Tríona O'Connell

      Tríona O'Connell answered on 17 Nov 2014:

      I love love love twitter. It’s great, I follow lots of scientists and knitters, and many of them chat back and answer questions. I get to find out about awesome science that’s happening (following the Philae lander on twitter was great, it was like being part of a giant audience) and hear about great events that are coming up.
      I don’t like facebook. There’s not enough science on it, and a weird obligation to follow people just because you sat on the opposite side of a room to them for six years (there’s a lot of people from school that I just don’t talk to now, we have nothing in common). I use it because people seem to have forgotten how to send emails and send facebook messages instead.
      Social media is great for connecting people who might not meet otherwise, whether because of living in different countries, or not being physically able to leave the house.

Comments