It’s worth the six minutes necessary to watch the reflections from this young person as she discusses the biases and stigmas we often hear related to acquiring and maintaining Internet friendships. Much of her monologue relates well to the development of personal learning environments and Jurgenson’s notion of “digital dualism”.

Notable quotes:

“I really think that if I hadn’t joined some of these Internet communities at such a young age I would have a much more difficult time transitioning into adulthood.”

“When my cat was diagnosed for diabetes, there was a forum for that. And I would challenge you to find another group of people who were as enthusiastic and willing to give two craps about my cat’s blood sugar at four in the morning than the people on this forum.”

“They’re my classmates, and you use one another like you do when you’re in a class, when you need help, when you need to talk to peers, just as you would when taking a class on site.”

“Then you have Tumblr and everyone who’s followed my blog from the very beginning and it’s just been really awesome to grow with this Tumblr community of museum people and other scientists and to be able to share one another’s successes and really encourage one another and celebrate our achievements…”

“So it just really frustrates me that there’s still this stigma by some people that just because I haven’t breathed the same air that our friendship isn’t valid.”