Why Laura's harvest you ask? Well, two reasons:

1) I live on a farm, and as I start this blog it is harvest time-one of my favorite times of the year. Currently, I can smell dust in the air, and I hear the constant hum of the combine.
2) The definition of harvest is the act of gathering a crop. I thought to myself, crop can be the literal plant that most people think of, but it also can be anything we as an individual choose to gather from our day. Even something as simple as little joys in our day or something we learn. This blog is for my ALES 204 class, and the discoveries I make along the way in terms of social media.

So a little about me...

I am currently a fresh and new ALES student at the University of Alberta. For the past two years, I have been enrolled in the Faculty of Science, however this year I was ready for a change and to follow my passion-food! I am now in the BSc. in Nutrition program, and learning all about food and how it can be used to promote health. One day I hope to not work in a hospital, but work in my community, particularly with children promoting health and developing recipes. But we'll see where life takes me....

Some of my passions in life are baking, skating, skiing, curling, photography, gardening, traveling and my new found interest...rowing!

Communication in the realm of nutrition is abundant. The internet is over-saturated with information on what to eat, and what not to eat. I feel the importance, in my career, will be to effectively communicate credible information to the public. They want resources they can depend on, and understand. Currently, a great resource out there is the Dietitians of Canada website: http://www.dietitians.ca. It is a simple website filled with great recipes and resources for individuals of all ages and lifestyles.

It will not only be important to communicate with the public, but also with my fellow colleagues. This will be a way to share information regarding research findings or experiences that have worked or not worked. This communication could be something more private, such as through email, or public through a tweet or a blog. Through these communication sources, information can travel very fast which is a positive in this fast paced world. One of my favorite websites is http://www.tastespotting.com-a place where many food blog posts are placed on one page with great pictures! ....Believe me if you need a distraction during studying, this is it!