Searching for Podcasts

I usually use iTunes to search for Podcasts. I have been subscribing to podcasts for some time now. I subscribe to shows that I often listen to on the radio on NPR, but often end up missing. I also subscribe to shows that I don't have access to, such as Real Time with Bill Maher, which comes on HBO, a station I don't get at home. I also subscribe to a few podcasts that help me with my job such as Language Lab Unleashed. I listen to these podcasts on iTunes on my computer and using an iPod. I found getting the NPR podcasts from the NPR page was quite confusing. I kept looking for a button that said "Subscribe", but couldn't. I found subscribing to the RSS feed to my Google Reader much easier. I am taking a Spanish class right now, so I subscribed to a Spanish learning podcast called InstaSpanish. I really enjoy saving these podcasts to listen to when I'm doing something tedious like gardening, or burning CD's at work, or doing housework.

Igorot Video from YouTube

Here is a video that I found on YouTube that is of a parade in Bontoc, the provincial capital of the Mountain Province on Luzon in the Philippines. It shows people in the traditional costume of the area, playing traditional music and doing the traditional dances. If you're not used to it, it probably just sounds like people banging on pots and pans, but it makes me feel very homesick for the Philippines. It's also reassuring to know that I can see the place any time I want.

I've been using YouTube for a long time now, and whenever I'm feeling nostalgic for a certain place or time, I can usually find something evocative. I also use YouTube for finding information, such as gardening advice and technical advice that I use for my job--things concerning language technology. I often use YouTube to see things that I missed on the news. If everyone is talking about some scandalous political ad that just came out, I can always see it on YouTube, since I rarely watch TV.

lang-ay street dance

This is a parade in the town of Bontoc, the provincial capital of the Mountain Province where my family and I lived

Learning Spanish

Here is a Spanish file.

Wikis

I'm just experimenting here

I really like wikis for certain things such as planning a project or a class, but I really don't trust using them for getting information because anyone can go in and change them around. I really would be dubious about looking up anything to do with a politician, for example, because the politician's opponents could just go in and put in false or incorrect information. Even in a work situation, a jealous coworker could amend the contribution of a colleague that he/she wants to undermine. Wikis are wonderful in an idealized trusting world--a true intellectual community.

Posting Photos

This is a picture of one of my favorite places on earth. It is a little village in the Philippines on the island of Luzon. I have been there several times with my family.

Technology in the Language Lab

Technology has seriously changed the role of the language lab. It used to be a place where people would go and listen to cassette tapes of canned dialogues when I was in college. It was the only source for this audio material. Nowadays, the cost of a CD is negligable and most language textbooks come with the language CD included. Other textbook companies don't even have it on CD's anymore. Instead the audio content is available on their web site. It used to be the only place where students could have access to voice recording equipment, but almost any camera or phone or iPod has that now too. So, everything is becoming more and more decentralized in terms of technology and content. The language lab is now a place where students come to gain exposure to the sounds of their target language and get assistance in how to use the technology to do so. We also provide assistance to the faculty who either haven't learned the technology or don't have the time to put it into practice. We help students put together video montages for their comp presentations. Find TV content that is relevant to what the professor is teaching in his/her class, and many other services.