What I’ve learned so far about Stack Exchange is that thought-out, well-written questions are of “higher quality” and tend to produce better answers. It’s fairly straightforward communication — being to state something clear and concise so that others can understand and properly interpret the question at hand. Just reading what other people have written has taught me to read things a bit more carefully and also really try to dig deep at what people are really asking.

There is a pattern of questions that I’ve seen crop up, and those questions usually are very vague and general. They tend not to do so well, because by their nature, the responses will also be vague and general. Sometimes people have very set minds about a certain topic, and my impression is that the answer those people are really looking for is one way off their path of thinking. I don’t think it’s a really good idea to validate other people’s views especially when doing so doesn’t address the real issue.

Participation in Stack Exchange has also translated to real life situations for me personally. I get into this habit now of asking more questions when someone asks me a question (all the meanwhile thinking to myself, “this is a sucky question,” in my head) to really drill down to what another person is asking for and then trying to answer it.

I knew Stack Exchange would be a great place to learn about various subject matters, but I never would have thought it to be a place, especially given that this is the Internet, to learn how to communicate effectively. The whole community, its open nature, and participation system really makes it worthwhile to get involved.

I did a research paper on this topic while I was still in school, and what I found was that video games do have some effect on youth behavior but is a smaller factor compared to others. Social environment (and dispositions if you want to go there) play a bigger role in shaping what someone does. Video game controversy isn’t new either. I did a speech on the topic in sixth grade in the mid 1990′s. I don’t know exactly why it had become so blown out of proportion when I got older. I turned out just fine and so have a lot of other people. It’s unfair to mark one or two incidents, a few people in a huge population, as a sign that any particular culture is inherently bad.

The Child’s Play charity started in 2003 to improve the lives of children in hospitals around the world. I started donating to this cause because I could redirect my anger and outrage at the idea that “gamers are evil” into something good. I had a comfortable life growing up, and this was also another way for me to give back to the community. The fact that it was a game industry-based charity started by the Penny Arcade guys made it meaningful for me. It was something that that made me feel united with with other random strangers (and not just a few friends) who were also gamers.

Over the years, I have been on and off with donating to this charity, but I will always support it. I have made donations in various ways: sponsoring a friend’s annual gaming marathon; buying items on a hospital’s wish list; donating directly to the cause; or buying goods and items from some affiliate who donated proceeds to the charity. The charity may not mean anything to some people. I’m fine with that. There are other charities that I find hard to identify with. If anyone does feel inclined to make a small difference this holiday season, I suggest donating to Child’s Play.

What makes this so disheartening is that he was such a visionary leader. I can’t think of anyone else who has had such a HUGE and profound impact on technology. Whether you do or don’t like Apple and its products, there is do denying the influence he had on the industry and market. He’s like the Jesus of technology.

That man is definitely one for the history books.

I was expecting full closure but intellectually. LOST was a show that was very well written with its complexity in story, characters, and unfolding. It had a huge amount of depth that kept viewers hooked and guessing what would happen. With the past season, the questions I had still weren’t being answered. After the end, I’ve decided that my questions don’t need to be answered because ultimately I don’t think it really matters. The final hours of LOST were emotionally fulfilling as everything came together and ended the events that started in the first episode and continued being told throughout the series touching upon past, present, and future.

Directly answering any lingering questions that people have had would have been too insulting for a show like this. I don’t doubt that there is more backstory that just hasn’t been revealed, and if LOST hadn’t ended now then maybe we would have seen it. I don’t think the writers were jerking the audience around (for the most part), and I think there is a larger message that they wanted to use the show as a carrier for. I think it’s up to us to decide what to do or how to interpret it. That’s exactly how I felt when I finished watching Broken Saints, and its creator, Brooke Burgess, really touches upon an important point.

The first season shows us why the people do what they do, how their past establishes their present. Later seasons show us the effects of the present actions on the future. Answers just lead to more questions. Everyone, cast characters and audience alike, are constantly asking questions of why. The audience finds out why through flashbacks that explain the character’s actions. We may not agree with their actions, but we understand their intentions and end up judging based on that.. In reality, judging on actions and drawing up conclusions is faster “rational” answer because it is so very externally apparent.

What I’m taking out of the show is to never forget who, what, and why we are. It’s all there sprinkled in every episode in all the characters’ lives and how their stories are told. We identify with characters and their flaws, values, and self-worth. At the end, it all comes to an emotional close. Leaving everything else unanswered, I think, was intention to keep everyone guessing and having them draw their stories for themselves. It’s a mirror for our own lives. It’s not about being lost physically but spiritually, confronting ourselves, and finding the things we really need to be whole again.