Practical 3

Back here for Practical 3!

Activity 1

1. Study the Internet resources that you have retrieved in Practical 2.

2. Identify the purpose of any FOUR resources. Explain your answers by listing the reasons in the table provided. Reasons provided can be related to the different characteristics of each type of resource.

Listed below are the purposes of resources:
- Information
- Advocacy
- Business/Marketing
- News
- Personal
- Entertainment

Resource 1: http://sobernclean.blogspot.com/

Purpose of Resource: Personal

Reasons: This is a personal blog which contains mainly articles related to alcoholism. It also contains information and articles on how to quit alcohol addiction.


Resource 2: http://www.learn-about-alcoholism.com/

Purpose of Resource: Information

Reasons: It is an online alcoholism information resource containing factual information ranging from the signs and symptoms of alcoholism to an explanation of treatment. Basically it is a informative website containing all one need to know about alcoholism.


Resource 3: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/sections/alcohol/

Purpose of Resource: News

Reasons: It is a section under Medical News Today focussing on Alcohol/Addiction/Illegal Drugs news. It is updated daily and provides information on current events.


Resource 4: http://www.ncaddnj.org/2008/Home/default.asp

Purpose of Resource: Advocacy

Reasons: The NCADD (The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence) is New Jersey’s public information, public policy and community relations functions are the responsibility of the Public Affairs Unit, which is charged with:

• Influencing public policy in the state of New Jersey to establish effective prevention strategies and sufficient treatment services for alcoholics, drug addicted individuals, and their families.
• Increasing the awareness and knowledge of residents, policy makers, and professionals about alcoholism and drug addiction being preventable and treatable diseases.
• Facilitating the establishment and mobilization of a grassroots recovery movement to provide a constituent voice in public policy, to reduce stigma, and to honor and to celebrate the positive experience of recovery.
• Changing societal attitudes and beliefs in order to reduce the stigma associated with these preventable and treatable diseases.

Reflection:

From this practical, I have learnt how to differentiate and identify the different purposes of internet resources as well as compare them. I had some difficulties trying to differentiate the different sources as some of them seems to either fall into many categories or none of the categories. By learning how to differentiate the different purposes of internet resources, I am able to decide which website's information is more reliable and trustworthy, thus helping me a lot.

Practical 2

Here I am again for my UIR practical 2!

Activity 1 & 2:

What is an organisational website?
•A collection of www pages which are created and maintained by a particular organization
•Include company and university sites, sites of professional groups, society or organizations
•Contains extensive materials on the subject

What is a personal website?
•Maintained by an individual
•Relates to his/her personal interests
•Include materials on specific subject
•May be part of an organizational page

1. Based on the research topic you had selected in Practical 1, search the Internet for ONE Personal and ONE Organisational website.

Personal Website: http://sobernclean.blogspot.com/
I found 1 personal website, which is somwhat related to my topic. The blog focuses on anti-alcohol addiction as well as interesting facts and articles about alcohol. It also includes fresh news regarding alcoholism.

Keywords Used: impact of alcoholism
Search Engine Used: Google.com blog search

Organisational Website: http://www.stopdrinkingadvice.org/ & http://www.learn-about-alcoholism.com/

The first website, http://www.stopdrinkingadvice.org/ , focuses on how to stop drinking alcohol. It also includes many articles such as 'Drinking and the Problems it Causes', 'Teenage Drinking' and 'How Alcohol Affects Your Family'. Basically it is a website that is dedicated to helping people affected by alcoholism, with contributions from people who have first hand experience of alcoholism.

The second website, http://www.learn-about-alcoholism.com/ , has a wider range of information. As taken from the website: 'It is an online alcoholism information resource designed to help individuals who suffer from abuse or dependence, and the people whose lives they impact, gain a better understanding of the disease and begin the journey to better health and emotional wellness. An explanation of treatment approaches is also provided on this web site, along with educational articles and information on where to go for help. '

Keywords Used: impact of alcoholism
Search Engine Used: Google.com

Activity 2 - Compilation of Bibliography activity (Individual and Group)

Cite and compile a bibliography of all the resources you have individually retrieved during Practicals 1 & 2. Use the APA citation style as explained in Lecture 2 (slides 35-43).

In your project groups, compile a group bibliography of all group members’ individual bibliographies.

Practical 1

1) "The Alcoholism and Addictions Help Forum - by SoberRecovery.com" (n.d.). Retrieved May 6, 2008 from World Wide Web: http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/

2) "The Impact of Alcohol Abuse on American Society" (n.d.). Retrieved May 6, 2008 from World Wide Web: http://www.alcoholicsvictorious.org/faq/impact.html

3) "Alcoholism - The Alcoholism Home Page" (n.d.). Retrieved May 6, 2008 from World Wide Web: http://alcoholism.about.com/

Practical 2

1) D. Estitute. (n.d.). "Sober N Clean" Retrieved May 13, 2008 from World Wide Web: http://sobernclean.blogspot.com

2) "Alcoholism: Information, Resources, Support Services, and Treatment Options." (n.d.). Retrieved May 13, 2008 from World Wide Web: http://www.learn-about-alcoholism.com/index.html

------------------------------------

Reflections:

From this practical, I have learnt the differences between an organisational website as well as a personal website. The information in an organisational website is more concise and it has more extensive information. The information is also more reliable compared to a personal website.

Practical 1

What I did for Practical 1...

Discussion Forum: http://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/
Resource Description: The forum discusses alcoholism drug addictions. It includes guides on how to deal with alcohol addiction , how family and friends of alcoholics or drug abusers can deal with this problem etc.

Electronic Journals and Magazines(1): http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/pagerender.fcgi?artid=1478160&pageindex=1
Resource Description: The first article is a 5 page long article discussing the economic impact of alcohol abuse and alcoholism.

Electronic Journals and Magazines(2): http://www.alcoholicsvictorious.org/faq/impact.html
Resource Description: The second article discusses the impact of alcoholism abuse on American society.

WWW Site: http://alcoholism.about.com/
Resource Description: Basically everything you need to know about alcoholism!

Blog Reflection:
From this practical, I have learnt the importance of using the right keywords in order to search effectively.