I can write well-developed and supported articles for a general audience and I can control my voice and style to write both in both opinion and objective journalistic styles.

I can do original research and conduct interviews to gather and create relevant information for writing. I can contact strangers and successfully gain their cooperation as interview subjects.

I can generate interesting and relevant writing ideas that can find an audience and contribute significantly to topics of contemporary interest.

I can research and evaluate the credibility of sources, and I can present information in an original way that respects and gives credit to the work of others.

I can use a variety of online tools such as email, online word processors, social media, search engines and content management systems to communicate, research, write, and publish my work using online conventions such as hyperlinking to sources.

I can find and select images that convey the topic and tone of my writing in a way that understands and respects copyright and fair use.

I can act as a leader in the classroom, assisting my classmates and helping direct our collective project.

I can use my understanding of the English language, written nonfiction genres and the needs of the audience to help develop and polish other writer’s work.

I can understand the needs of the brand and help maintain the integrity of our publishing project.

Confidential documents released by an insider at EA, exposes the gaming company encouraging players to buy in-game packs, which may have similarities to gambling.

The document includes several points about the game mode FIFA Ultimate Team which allows the purchase of “loot boxes” to win prizes or collect better players for their team.

The Executive Director of the U.S. National Council on Problem Gaming Keith Whyte said, “The features of a loot box are similar to a slot machine.”

“Nothing is more attractive — and in some people, addictive — to the brain than intermittent, variable reward.”

While loot boxes are not illegal in most countries including the U.S. and Canada, Belgium banned them in 2018 because of belief that they are virtually the same as gambling.

“Every single time we look for it, we find the same relationship. The people who spend heavily on loot boxes tend to have high levels of problem gambling.” said David Zendle, a gaming researcher and computer science lecturer at the U.K.’s University of York.

According to Niko Partners, a firm that analyzes the video game market, EA made $1.49 billion USD in 2020 from its loot boxes alone, in comparison to the $587 million they earned in 2015.

EA spokesperson Charlie Fortescue says the internal company document was being “viewed without context.” Fortescue declined an interview with CBC, and when asked for clarification on his statement, he gave no response. 

“All EA games can be played without spending on in-game items, and the majority of players do not spend.”

The insider told CBC that he doesn’t feel right working on projects with loot boxes, which lead to him leaking the document. 

“It’s getting harder and harder to defend what is very obviously unregulated gambling.”

A profile picture and a header image can say a lot about someone. It can portray their platform and their personality. Here’s how I made mine:

For my profile picture I wanted to include my favourite colours and shapes. I used ibisPaint X to create my drawing. I was testing out the “lasso” tool and ended up creating a cloud like shape that I thought would be nice for a sort of background. I filled it with a light purple then decided to put “Skylar’s Blog” in the middle. I tried a handful of different fonts, but none of them really stood out to me. I then decided to write it out myself and I tried a few different brush types and colours. In the end I chose a neon style brush in black. As for the calligraphy, I just went with my natural hand writing so it’s more personalized. This profile picture is simplistic and clean and I feel it represents me. Here’s how it turned out:

Then I moved on to creating my header image. I wanted to use the same colour scheme and style so I deceided to do a sky with clouds. I used a light purple and a light yellow as a gradient for my background to kind of mimic a sunset. I used the blur and smudge tool to blend the two colours. I then used the lasso tool and a light pink to do a test cloud in the middle and once I liked the outcome I repeated it for the rest of the clouds. I then added a bit of shading with a darker pink and the yellow, as well as a slight purple outline. Then I added three birds in black to connect the black in the profile picture. Here’s how the header turned out:

Overall I’m proud of the look of both of my drawings and I think they’re very relaxing to look at and dream-like.