humanities 8 michaela

What is Power?

2009-05-17T21:24:00.000-07:00

“The possession of control or command over others” is how a dictionary may describe power, but I would phrase it differently. I would say power is the ability to act upon the wants and need of the thing in power whether it is a government authority such as a tyrant, a monarch, or a dictator or a large scale industry controlling the market. We have been studying power in its different forms in this classroom all year, yet it is still a hard issue to describe. However, the main point from what I understand, is that power has not changed since the dark ages of England in the 1760’s until the present moment and beyond into the globalized world. Power hasn’t changed and will never change, but the holders of the power have changed. Starting in England, the industrial revolution brought about many changes which later spread around the world. People, mainly the peasants, were pushed into cities to get jobs after the enclosure movement which divided up land to benefit the higher class and the threshing machine decreasing the amount of labor needed. Soon, industrialization was spreading across the world, including America where industrialization really took off due to the lack of manufacturing traditions, shipping canals and railroads moving goods around the country, and finally the advances in technology such as Eli Whitney’s interchangeable parts or Henry Ford’s assembly line. These all gave technology the power to develop and industrialize the world. The next phase of power, held by the Europeans over the Africans, would be called Imperialism. Imperialism, the policy by a stronger nation to attempt to create an empire by dominating weaker nations either economically, politically, culturally, or militarily. With Europe in need of land, labor, and capitol after the industrial revolution they sought out developing countries to acquire the materials needed. Most of the countries of Africa had been colonized and imperialized which had enormous negative effects on each country. The people of Africa were also used to the Europeans will by becoming slaves. These slaves were shipped all over the world to work for now pay or benefits. The imperialism of Europe over Africa lead to the many conflicts over power from World War One to the Cold War. Beginning in Europe, World War One was caused by Awful Governments, Nationalism, Imperialism, Militarism, Alliances, and the list of events leading up to its beginning. This left Europe with many problems due to instability, uncertainty, and economic collapse, which lead to World War Two. World War two left Europe divided into Capitalist and Communist. The Cold War followed within the next few years. These conflicts over power lead into the globalization of the world by developing each country to keep up with the technology based world. Globalization has flattened the playing field of the competing countries. Now, the countries of the world are being westernized and equalized. Globalization is where the world is now, and probably will continue to develop until the power is shifted from technology to the next holder. From the Industrial Revolution to Imperialism to Conflict and finally globalization, the power has changed hands many times over the past few centuries. However, the power that has been held has not changed, just been modified to each holders’ needs. Power has been, and will continue to be exchanged, but the difference now is the power might be shifted to technology.

Population Project Reflection

2009-05-11T05:39:00.001-07:00

The population project was very useful to us eight graders studying at AES. It taught us many new skills and concepts that vital to our future education. One important thing I learned from PoP would be the process of a Data Analysis. We have never created a data analysis before, so it was our first attempt at graphing data, concluding such data, and synthesizing. We had done such things in math classes before with teachers’ help, but never for a formal grade. It was a new experience that required skills we will need later in our schooling. Another main skill I gained knowledge of was conducting an interview. We are used to researching and note taking, but not professional interviews. I conducted an interview during this project and needed several pointers on how exactly it should be accomplished. This was is a crucial skill needed in many situations, such as job interviews. Last of all, I became skilled at managing my time. I admit that I, as many other middle students, procrastinate on such school projects. However, PoP did not allow a lack of work ethic if you planned on finishing on time. This whole process has been informative, but more importantly a necessity for future education. Hopefully, we can take these skills with us on to high school and use them for the rest of our lives.

Technology

2009-05-11T05:06:00.000-07:00

Technology is anything and everything that assists humans in complete daily activities. It can be anything from a ramp used to climb to a higher surface, or a cell phone used to connect people from distances. Technology facilitates our actions in much easier and efficient ways than before. I would say phones, computers, televisions, planes/cars/trains/boats, and cooling (such as air conditioning, refrigeration, etc) would be the five most important modern technologies used today. These are all the most important because they keep us in contact with the outside world, except for the last one. Cooling/Heating systems are important to our health, otherwise we would not be able to eat many of the foods we do today or our foods would rot and make us ill. We also would be extremely uncomfortable, and even make certain areas impossible to live in. I would not say there are many unimportant technologies used today. However, the zipper, clock, digital games, sound soothers, robot animals, air fresheners, etc. are not as important to us because they are all non-essentials. These are used for recreational purposes or have more efficient alternatives. I believe here, at AES, we use an enormous amount of technology. We have the latest laptops, smart boards, speakers, televisions, music/video players and so on. Even though it seems like a lot, it is necessary to our globalized world. We need such technology to prepare for our future education and lives in a technologically based world.
Image: http://www.becs.ac.in/images/it.jpg

Globalization

2009-05-02T07:03:00.000-07:00

Globalization is a complex issue, which makes finding its net affect difficult. There are many in favor of this revolution, such as Thomas Friedman, as well as many opposed to it, such as Kurt Vonnegut. I believe that even though globalization has both negative and positive affects, it is overall beneficial to our lifestyles. Like we have learned from Thomas Friedman, we are currently in the third stage of Globalization, also known as Globalization 3.0. In this stage, technology has overcome machines. Many of us see this in our daily lives, whether it is walking down the street, working in our place of employment, or using it within our own homes. Now it is time for those of us who are not in favor of it, to embrace it, or be left behind. This is where Globalization may have some negative effects on our lives. We have seen the gap between rich and poor widen. While the rich are able to adapt, the poor are incapable of keeping up. Another harmful affect Globalization has had on our world is the risk of losing some of our world’s unique traditions and cultures through the spread of Westernization. However, Globalization has had, and will continue to have, some positive effects on our lives as well. Starting with Microsoft Windows, we are now able to digitize information, and share it with anyone anywhere in the world via the internet. Now, anyone who has access to the internet has access to never ending amounts of information using a usable search engine. Companies are catching on, and outsourcing and off-shoring for quicker and cheaper labor and products. This has allowed the pieces of our global supply chain to unite. All of these “flatteners”, as Friedman calls them, has allowed our world to evolve into an age where technology surrounds us. We are all affected by Globalization, so it is time to embrace this beneficial change.
Image: http://www.uweb.ucsb.edu/~rachelreeves/globalization.jpg

Cartoon Reflection

2009-04-19T22:09:00.000-07:00

This cartoon is extremely relevant to the present and future of our lives. We are becoming increasingly reliant on technology, and this cartoon displays a common family’s use of such technology. The main visual elements help illustrate the author’s point. The contrast in height between the parents and the child represents the relationships between these people. The repetition of shapes, such as the parents’ packs, creates a unified look to the cartoon. Lastly, the use of black and white throughout the piece defines objects, creating a pleasing alignment. Using these visual elements, the artist clearly displays the issue of technology taking over personal interaction. The quote clearly explains that the child no longer needs to discuss his daily life with his parents because he has used a blog to express himself. The cartoonist is using irony to create an effective cartoon. The artist uses the slouch in the parents to portray disappointment. They would like to hear from their child about their day, but the child’s far off expression display his lack of concentration. The irony manages to come through this cartoon because this is being viewed through several computers, and commented upon in blogs. We, as a class, are reviewing this piece through our blogs for a public audience as we do every week. Therefore, it relates to our study of technology and the future because we, average students, are using such technology to get our ideas across. But not only is technology being taught in school, we use it for many other things, such as social networking. The child now does not need to speak, or relate with his family when he can just use his blog to describe his daily activities. In the future, this might continue until there is no family interaction, only technology interaction. This, technological interaction, is one of the many negative affects humans suffering from technology. One thing the artist could have improved upon would be making this cartoon more detailed. Whether it is pixilation from the computer, or just how the cartoon has been made this piece come across blurry and unfocused. However, this cartoon is very relevant to our world.
Image: Mr.Coyle's Blog

Population Project Work Week

2009-04-12T20:17:00.000-07:00

We have class time to work on POP, so I am hoping I will be able to get a lot of work done. This is what I wish to accomplish:
Monday: I will create the "Positive" paragraph to my issue paper
Tuesday: I will create the "Negative" paragraph to my research paper
Wednesday: I will create the "Conclusion" paragraph to my research paper
Thursday: I will create a works cited page of all the sources I have used
Friday:I will have the paper peer edited by a classmate, and when finished with that
I plan to organize all of the different pieces of my paper
This is a lot of work for this week, but i believe i can accomplish these goals if i work hard.
Image: http://www.contracosta.edu/library/clics/chapters/Ch1/Graphics/PadNPencil.gif

Vonnegut and Technology

2009-03-19T20:40:00.000-07:00

“Do you know what a Luddite is? That’s a person who doesn’t like newfangled contraptions. Contraptions like nuclear submarines armed with Poseidon missiles that have H-bombs in their warheads, and like computers that cheat you out of becoming. Bill Gates says, “Wait till you can see what your computer can become.” But it’s you who should be doing the becoming. What you can become is the miracle you were born to work—not the damn fool computer.”

- Kurt Vonnegut

I believe the "damn fool computer" doesn't actually not harm us, but help us. However, Vonnegut has a different opinion. As you can see from this quote of his, he does not like the idea of technolgy. And, he is not shy to share his thoughts with the world. Through his writing in "Welcome to the Monkey House", he shares his ideas through fictional short stories. In “The Euphio Question”, one of his short stories, the technology has negative affects on everyone involved. The machine that is created could posiibly destroy how our world functions. From this story, we can assume he believes that technolgy will lead humans in the wrong direction. There are similar happenings in “Harrison Bergeron”. This story is set in the future, when people have developed technolgy to make everyone equal. but, the people in the story have much lower qualities of life than we do now. This is another example of how Vonnegut feels technology will destroy our way of life. Lastly,"Epicat" is another short piece that he has created. This one consists of humans and computers falling in love, and acting as husband and wife. We obviously think this could never happen, but Vonnegut makes his point. I agree with Vonnegut in a way. I do not believe we should fully rely on computers for everyday needs. But, i also think technology is extremely useful to our world. Without technology, we would have not accomplished many of the things we have today.
Image: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/07/16/kurt_vonnegut_jr_associated_press.jpg

End Of Quarter 3 Feedack and Fourth Quarter Goals

2009-03-16T00:15:00.000-07:00

The end of Quarter 3 has finally come to and end, which means it is time to evaluate my progress over the past quarter. My first goal was to fully complete/prepare my assignments for grading, especially for discussions. I believe i succeeded in achieving this goal. On all of my discussion preparations i received 95%, signifying that i was well prepared. My second goal was to study more thoroughly for tests and quizzes. I do not think i fully reached my goal. I have not done very well on my tests and quizzes this past quarter. I still got A's and B's, but I think i could have done better. I will keep working to achieve this goal. My third and final goal for this past quarter was to do better on any of the upcoming research assignments. Seeing as we didn't have many research projects, it makes it hard to evaluate myself in this area. However, we did have to research for the Population Project. We spent tree days of humanities in the library to work on the process paper. I did very well on the process paper, therefor I succeeded in reaching this goal. Overall, I believe I have achieved my goals for this past quarter, but I will continue to work on them in the upcoming quarter.

I have created all new goals for myself for this upcoming quarter. My first goal is to work on my technology skills. I am not very good at creating technology presentations such as power points. I did not do well on my Africa PowerPoint, so I could definitely improve. I also have a goal to continue using the researching skills we have learned in humanities. The Population Project is still underway, and we will be coming up on our research paper soon. I will try my best to get adequate information to complete this paper. Lastly, my goal is to enjoy what time i have left at AES. To complete this goal I will have to manage my time well, and get my assignments done and handed in on time. This will cause my last few months in Delhi to be enjoyable. I have high hopes for myself this quarter, but i believe i can achieve all of my goals.
Image: http://www.bisconsulting.ca/img/seminars/large/goal_setting.jpg

Holy War

2009-03-08T21:00:00.000-07:00

“Holy War” is definitely an oxymoron because the two words do not fit together properly. Holy relates to religion and means sacred. War on the other hand stands for conflicts on a large scale. These two obviously do not fit together because religion promotes peace and happiness, where as disagreements represent fighting. These two words are commonly used together, but should not be for this reason.
All of the major, world religions forbid killing, yet there are wars over religions across the World. It does not make sense that people fight and kill for their beliefs, which forbid these exact things. But still all over the world there are conflicts over religion. Take the Arabs and the Jews for instance. They have been feuding for centuries with each other over resources and religion. Yet, they continue to battle over the very idea which prohibits killing. Yet another example is the Muslims and the Hindus. They had to create separate countries for themselves to end wars over their disagreements. Another example of religious conflicts is the Catholics and the Protestants. They even stem from the same religion, but they could not get along. You would believe people would obey the religion they protect so violently, but obviously that does not occur. Over and over the world has seen “holy wars” that result in violence rather than peace, but why?

Image: http://www.inxart.com/images/mideast/inx_040302d_kozlowski.jpg

WWIII?

2009-03-06T01:00:00.000-08:00

I do not believe that another World War will take place during my lifetime. First of all, World War one ended in 1918, and World War two began in 1939. There were 21 years in between these two wars. It has now been triple that time since the end of World War, at 63 years. I think this shows us that we have survived much longer without a World War. Secondly, I know that there are organizations in place to promote peace, and stop conflicts before they escalate. The United Nations is one of these organizations. It works all around the world to solve problems, leading the world to peace. These types or organizations have greatly reduced the risk for another World War. Lastly, I like to believe we have learned from past mistakes. As we have had many conflicts in the past, we have fought over anything and everything important to us. There have been wars over different reasons in two main categories; Politics and Economics. Therefore, we understand how to delay, and prevent such conflicts. For these three reasons, timing without a World War, peacekeeping organizations, and learning from mistakes, we should be able to avoid a World War III.

Image:http://images6.cafepress.com/product/178055806v5_350x350_Front.jpg

World War II: A Letter from the Battlefront

2009-02-17T06:42:00.000-08:00

U.S Army Base Camp,
Berlin, Germany
May 1, 1945

Dear Father,
I am truly sorry I haven’t written you yet. I am fully aware it has been over a week since my departure for Berlin, but you mustn’t be mad. The generals are merciless. If possible, they would have us working into the night on no food or drink. I get the equivalent of one portion of grandmother’s lasagna to last me the whole day. Mind you, the quality is not nearly as great. The food we are supplied with is stale, causing my stomach pain. I guess I shouldn't’t complain because I know other armies are worse off than ours. Even though we get the enough rations to sustain us, I am aware that others get less. So, I am holding my high. But, the constant work load does not help our situation. With just enough food to survive, we carry on traveling to different parts of the city, killing more people than I could have imagined. Not that I have any war experience prior to this, but I do believe this will go down in history as one of the bloodiest battles in history. I won’t go into detail on this matter however because I would not like to upset you.
To reassure of the good this war is bringing us, I decided that you might like an update on the progress of the war. A lot has happened in my short time here father. I arrived in the beginning of the Battle of Berlin on April 20th. Since then many events have taken place. We, the U.S troops, met the Soviets at Torgau, on the Elbe River in northwestern Saxony, Germany. Our leaders came back to us, reaffirming the plan to destroy the Third Reich. Shortly after that, Benito Mussolini was captured and on April 28th, he was executed. I know it was the death of a man, but it brought many people freedom from a fascist dictator. We were expecting that this would bring even more change, and it certainly did. The very next day, April 29th, the Dachau concentration camp was liberated by our troops. This was the first concentration camp opened in Germany, causing great relief too many inhibitors. Soon after, it was clear that Soviets were taking control of Berlin. On April 30th, the Soviet flag was raised over the Reichstag in Berlin. On that very day, Adolf Hitler committed suicide by gunshot and poison. I cannot say for sure, but he might have seen his awaiting fate when he came upon that Soviet flag, and decided he best end his life for himself. A just today, Grand Admiral Doenitz took command of Germany. I suppose it won’t be long before the German troops surrender in Italy, and Berlin fall under Soviet control. It appears our work may be done; meaning I will see you that much sooner.
I can already see relief on the faces of soldiers, feel the decrease in work load, and experience the pure joy of this moment. This is why I felt it was time to write you, knowing that you would appreciate the good news. Although I do wonder that by killing these enemies we have made for ourselves, have I truly brought peace to our nation? When I signed up for this job, I thought I would be helping more than harming. I do try to do right by you and my country. But why does serving our country result in the death of others?
Your loving son,
Benjamin Wright

Image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Berlin

Anne Frank Reflection

2009-02-17T02:02:00.000-08:00

Question:
In her diary Anne opined: “…if you’re wondering if it’s harder for the adults here than for the children, the answer is no…Older people have an opinion about everything and are sure of themselves and their actions. It’s twice as hard for us young people to hold on to our opinions at a time when ideals are being shattered…” (July 15, 1944.) Do you agree or disagree with this quote? When was the last time that you experienced the “shattering” of an ideal?

Answer:
I both agree with Anne Frank and disagree on this topic. I believe she is correct in thinking children are unsure about their beliefs, while adults know what they believe in. Children like to believe the best, but in this situation that Anne Frank is in, it is impossible to see good in the world. These children had to deal with real problems during their youth, rather than getting to play and have fun(the way kids should). For example, I always adored the tooth fairy while growing up. But, my parents having thought i was to old for her stories and gifts, told me the truth. My ideal of the tooth fairy had been "shattered", and i was devastated. I can not imagine having to have lived my whole life with any of those types of childish ideals. They make childhood enjoyable, and lead to an enjoyable life. However, I also disagree with this Anne Frank on the difficulty for the adults in this situation. They may be confident in their opinions, but they have also known better times. They have grown up without the injustice towards their religion, a fascist dictator, and overall worse quality of life than Anne has. Children on the other hand, are not accustomed to equal rights, stable government, and a better quality of life. This life is almost all the children have ever known, as opposed to the adults. In this way, the situation her family is in may be even harder for adults.

Image: http://www.annefrank.org/upload/Kinderjaren/P8AnneFrank16.jpg

Animal Farm Movie vs. Book

2009-02-15T06:05:00.000-08:00

Overall, the movie covered the main points of the book, but there were some minor changes. One of the main differences between the movie and the book of Animal Farm was a few of the characters that were present in the book, were not in the movie. Mrs. Jones, Mollie, and Clover were all absent in the movie. I was curious to why they would remove some characters from the storyline. Even the animals that were in the movie played much less of a role than they had in the book. Another difference between the movie and the book of Animal Farm is being able to see what happens on the farm. While reading the book we had to make assumptions on many of the topics, such as the fall of the windmill. But, in the movie we saw these different events play out. We witnessed Mr. Jones blow up the Windmill with dynamite during the Battle of the Windmill. The movie gave us a lot more information on the happenings of the farm. Yet another difference between the book of Animal Farm and the movie was the ending. The book ends with the human farmers coming to Animal Farm to inspect the facilities, and later enjoy themselves by drinking, talking, and playing cards. However, in the movie pigs from other farms come over for a convention of pigs from all over England. They spread the idea of Animal Farms, and later enjoy each others' company. Then it continues to show the animals of Animal Farm rebel against the pigs, the way they had against the humans. The story line of the movie and the book was mainly the same accecpt for a few changes to the details.

A Recipe for World War II

2009-02-11T07:30:00.000-08:00

Ingredients
· A miscarried Treaty
· A failed League
· An accession of Leaders
· Accommodation
· Hostility on many fronts
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit. Now we may begin battling!
Step 1) Use the treaty of Versailles to whip the German flour with the (French and British provided) milk in a mixing bowl. Add the Austrian, Russian, Czechoslovakian, and Polish ingredients. Let the newly formed dough soak in the new ingredients.
Step 2) Use the League of Nations to beat the prolonged, defenseless, incapable ingredients into a single mixture (these will act as magnets to all the ingredients already in the bowl). If you have completed these step successfully, the mixture should be until crumbly and unsettled.
Steps 3) Gradually stir into the current mixture a few fascist drops of lemon zest (only three drops). Use with caution as these are capable to take over the taste of the whole dish. If overdosed, it could give the cake a tangy and unpleasant taste.
Step 4) Give the dough 2 minutes to stiffen. A break from course stirring will make it easier to work with. Resist from touching, but watch carefully as to not let the dough harden completely. Once it becomes to touch, it is unable to be worked with any longer.
Step 5) Place dough on a cutting board and pound (with fists) until it becomes a smooth slate. Warning, it may spread far during this process, so make sure to place in a large baking sheet. Using oven mitts, place in the oven to bake.
Step 6) Take out of the oven after 7 hours (for the dough to inflate and then burst), or until middle has been cracked open.
Place cake on a rack to cool.
Once cooled enough (center may take up to 10 hours), you will have yourself a scrumptious Bundt cake!

My character in Animal Farm

2009-02-02T01:24:00.000-08:00

There are many characters in the novel Animal Farm, but I identify most with Benjamin. Benjamin is the cynical, indifferent donkey who rarely talked among the other animals as it explains on page 4 He doesn’t necessarily play a main role in the novel, but he is still a very powerful character. At the beginning, during the unrest before the rebellion, Benjamin refuses to take part in the animals’ issues. He is like me in this way because I do not like to get involved in conflicts that don’t concern me personally. Like me, he would watch as the situation plays out. This leads to Benjamin lack of involvement during the rebellion. Another way Benjamin and I are also alike is in the way that Benjamin can foresee what will come from these conflicts, but knows he cannot affect the animals enough for it to make a difference. He has his premonitions of what is to come, but doesn’t chose to share them with the group of animals. In the end, the other animals will do what they wish according to their own thoughts and feelings. They will listen, and follow their leader no matter what Benjamin will say. Like him, I usually have intuitions of how situations will play out, but rarely share these with others due to the others’ right to make their own decisions. Finally, Benjamin and I are alike in not wanting to voice our opinions to our peers. He is very quiet, and rarely talks amongst his fellow animals, except for the occasional discussions with his friend Boxer. We both have our opinions, like everyone else, but we usually do not choose to share them. I prefer to let others handle these situations without sharing my thoughts because I do not have enough power to affect others choices. In these ways, Benjamin and I are most alike than any other characters in Animal Farm.

Image: http://www.bradfitzpatrick.com/store/images/products/preview/a037-cartoon-donkey-clipart.jpg

Tyranny, Justice, and Self-Determination

2009-01-26T21:19:00.000-08:00

The words Tyranny, Justice, and Self-Determination are all very important to the book the Animal Farm. Without these thoughts, the rebellion could not have taken place. Tyranny, the usage of power without any restrictions, is how Farmer Jones and all other humans rule over farm animals in this novel. On pages five and six, Major explains to his fellow animals how Mr. Jones is a tyrant, meaning he has absolute power over them all. They must work until they reach their limit, eat only enough food to keep them alive, and once they are no longer useful, they are killed. This is because Farmer Jones is able to do anything he likes because he is in control of the farm, as a tyrant. This angers the animals causing them to resent their current situation on the farm. Justice, to be morally right, is a key idea in this novel as well. The point of the rebellion of the farm animals against the farmer is to free the animals from their unjust situation. The way they are treated is inhumane, and they want to be treated as equals among the other inhabitants of the farm. They believe they are justified in wanting a better life for themselves as well as their comrades, which eventually leads to the thoughts of rebellion. Self-Determination, to be able to act or choose according to your own wants and needs, is the most important idea to cause the rebellion to occur. The farm animals want the freedom to be able to make decisions for them, without being under the control of another being. With Mr. Jones gone, the animals could feed themselves, work for themselves, and live their lives according to them. They are trying to make a better life for themselves and ultimately all other animals. THe song Beasts of England, on page 9, represent their self-determination. Stirring about the tyranny on their farm, with justice in mind, and their self-determination for Animalism make the rebellion successful. These ideas cause the animals to revolt against the humans, and cause them to achieve their goal in running their own farm.
Image: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_TZIN3wCHiCs/SATE2fJCy7I/AAAAAAAAAQc/BbfbuYFNl-k/s320/bullseye.gif

World War One Peom

2009-01-22T23:14:00.000-08:00

Evolution of World War One

I am young

I am strong

I am ready

I can take on the world

For my country, I will

I cannot fail

No one will defeat me

Because I am invincible

Hours tick by

Days drag on

Weeks are never ending

Months meander

Years pass me by

Crippling,

Trench foot lets wind whisk away my digits

Cramping,

Stiff positions mutate muscles into stone

Crumbling,

Mustard gas peels pieces of cartilage

I am old

I am weak

I am useless

I can’t move, speak, breathe

For my country, I try

But I have failed

I am defeated

I will surrender to my fate

Image Sources
http://z.about.com/d/history1900s/1/0/O/3/wwi16.gif
http://www.medalofhonor.com/NativeAmericanSoldier.jpg
http://www.awm.gov.au/visit/images/PAIU1989_140_01_1.jpg
http://library.uvic.ca/site/spcoll/Digit/JM%20Web/images/Book%202/full%20size/JM02_053.JPG

My Military Future

2009-01-18T19:15:00.000-08:00

Being from the United States, I will never have to join the military. The United States do not have a compulsory military service, but in times of need, they may have a draft. The last time there was a draft was in the Vietnam war, but women could not be drafted. Men between the ages of 18 through 25 could be sent to war without a choice. There are several reasons I will most likely never want to join the military either. First of all, I do not support violence. I believe we can solve conflicts with other nations without having to physically attack each other. Even though I would want to support my country, wars are not necessary. The United States spent a whopping $12 billion a month on the Iraq war in 2008. This money is could have proven very useful to the United States during our economic crisis. There are many ways this money could have been spent to help our country, but we decided to spend it on unnecessary violence. were also 4,222 Americans killed in Iraq. In my opinion, these are unnecessary deaths. Secondly, I would not want join the military because most wars are for an unjust cause. Mr. Coyle taught us that conflicts are usually about economics or politics. Fighting about economics is useless. All people want in the end is money which they get by more land, power, or resources. Gold, God, and Glory are ridiculous reasons to go to war. Political reasons may be more justified in conflicting about, but there are many ways conflicts can be solved without violence. Lastly, I believe there are many ways to serve your country other than joining a military. You could work in the government, volunteer in an environmental organisation, help out in a hospital etc. There are plenty of ways to be active citizen of your country. I will find a way to serve my country, without harming others, which is why I will not join the army if I do not have to.

Image:http://www.holycrossjustice.org/images/nonviolence2.jpg

Info: http://usliberals.about.com/od/homelandsecurit1/a/IraqNumbers.htm

Alliences Political Cartoon

2009-01-11T23:50:00.000-08:00

This famous cartoon is from World War I, but it also relates to our Great Powers Game. The main visual elements are contrast, and connections. The contrast between the people depicted in this cartoon are tremendous. They are of different races, economic statuses, and they portray different emotions. This is because they all represent different countries troughout the world that fought in WWI. For example, you can tell the group on the lower right represents Turkey. They have darker skin tones, middle eastern attire, and they have a hukkah with them. They greatly contrast the Germans, or the Russians. Another visual element connection. This is represented by the hand shakes (alliences) between several of the countries. Some alliences are forced, like in the upper left coner, and other are mutual, like the upper right hand corner. Some people have been refused alliences, like the lady in the bottom left. The hand shakes depict alliences, which is a visual element. For that reason, I believe alliences are the focus of this cartoon. I believe that the cartoonist might be trying to portraying the flaws of alliences. There are alliences on connecting everyone, even though some people have multiple hands. which means, in a war, some of the alliences would have to be broken. It also shows the people in the middle are the most powerful, gaining the weaker alliences to attack eachother. So, they are just using their allies to defeat their enemies, like the two sides of the cartoon. This shows me, the cartoonist might be portraying the flaws of alliences. Personally, I think the cartoonist could have had someone bending over backwards to recieve an allience from the powerful men. I also think they could have included someone being out numbered, and possibly forced, to ally with a group. This cartoon definitly relates to our Great Powers Game. Alliences were being formed, broken, strengthened, and weakened during the whole game. They are all different countries, with different needs like the people in this cartoon. The men in the middle have more hands,which could mean they are more powerful, or decieving to their allies. There also seems to be two sides of this cartoon. But, that didnt work because it just turned into a big mess of alliences. This is how it played out in our game as it seems to be playing out in this cartoon.
Image: http://mrcoyle.edublogs.org/

Great Powers Game Debrief

2009-01-11T04:57:00.000-08:00

In the Great Powers Game that took place during the last few classes Yoon Ah and I were assigned the country of France. Building our empire up by buying colonies, industries, armies, and navies was thrilling. It made us feel powerful and in control. Certain countries had the advantage at the beginning of the game by starting off with more points. We were in the middle of the group with 3 points to begin with. The more powerful nations had 4 points, and the less powerful nations had 2 points. In the long run, it was best if your country had a balance of armies, navies, colonies, and industries. For example, owning colonies was useless if there were no armies or navies to protect them. For this reason, you need enough armies and navies to protect several colonies, with multiple industries. Balance was the key. Our country did well by buying quite a lot of colonies at the beginning, know that they would soon run out. We also wanted to develop these colonies by buying industries. By buying these two things we could get more spending points. But, because we were neutral for the great war, we didn't need much military. We continued like this for a while, becoming more and more powerful. I would have only changed one strategy of ours. I would have chosen a side for the great war. Because we didn't choose a side, both groups were unhappy with us, which is why we were attacked by Germany. They left us with only one industry, thus starting from the very beginning. The alliances were very unsuccessful. No one stuck to the alliances, even if written down on paper and signed. Therefor, our allies ended up disloyal, and eventually destroyed our country of France. No one could be trusted in the game, causing everyone to be wary of their "allies". I learned three specific things about conflict during this game. First, becoming neutral in a situation of conflict could potentially be hurtful. Secondly, alliances can be made, but also broken. Do not fully rely on anyone for support. Lastly, anything could happen in a short period of time. Some conflicts could be resolved, while others intensify. The Great Powers Game was very useful in showing us how conflicts operate.

Image: http://montagesl.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/conflict-resolution.gif

End of Quarter Two Feedback/ Quarter 3 goals

2009-01-08T22:05:00.000-08:00

I think I have done fairly well this past quarter. My goal for raising money on stocks quest is hard to measure because I have sustained about the same amount of money from the beginning. We began with $100,000 and I currently have $88,804.52. I lost money in the very beginning due to my lack of knowledge about the stock market, and transaction fees. The amount of money I have has increased steadily since then, but still leaving me $12,000 short of the initial amount. I would say I have improved since Quarter one in knowledge and amount of money in my stocks quest account. I also believe I succeeded in my second goal. My goals was to get full AR points for this quarter. I planned to achieve this goal by reading the Twilight series; each book worth more than twenty points. By taking a quiz on one of these books, and scoring well, I fulfilled my second goal. My last goal, improving my blog postings, was also accomplished in some ways, and not accomplished in others. My grade for the blog in Quarter one was an A+, but in Quarter two it was a flat A. I lost two points for missing assignments. So in that way I did not succeed, but I think the overall quality of my blog postings has improved since the first quarter. They are more detailed, and thoughtful in my opinion. In that way, i think i have achieved my goal. Overall, I have made improvements in my school work this past quarter, and I plan to continue.

I have set many goals for myself in this upcoming quarter. Firstly, I am going to prepare for assignments more thoroughly. I haven't fully provided myself with enough information for discussions in the past, and I will better equip myself during this quarter. Secondly, I intend to study more for tests and quizzes. I have lacked outstanding grades for quizzes and tests, and I would like that to change. So I will study over a longer period of time with more focus. Lastly, I will do better on research assignments, then i have in the past. On my Africa research paper I received a B-, but it had been my first time doing a research paper like that. So now I am prepared, and have more knowledge of how to go about researching different topics. I believe I can reach all of the goals I have set for myself this quarter.

Image: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_TZIN3wCHiCs/SATE2fJCy7I/AAAAAAAAAQc/BbfbuYFNl-k/s320/bullseye.gif

Pros and Cons of Imperialism in Africa

2008-12-01T00:50:00.000-08:00

Positive reasons for Europe invading Africa

Civilizing Africans
Protecting Africa militarily
Uniting Africa under one language
Boosting the economy
Discovering new materials
Introducing new medicines to Africans

Negative reasons for Europe invading Africa

Killing millions of Africans
Grouping feuding tribes into the same countries
Slave trading
Taking Africa's resources for their own benefit
Treating Africans as less then human; as animals
Converting Africans to other religions

East Africa Today

2008-11-20T04:30:00.000-08:00

The countries of East Africa are some of poorest, and most highly populated in all of Africa. These countries are limited in technology, but they use what few resources they have to progress. They mainly rely on agriculture and tourism. Countries like Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi, Sudan, Uganda, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Somalia produce coffee, tea, cotton, and livestock. Other countries like Tanzania, draw in tourists with their national parks. And Eritrea brings in travelers with its coral reefs. Both agriculture and tourism_________.

In many of these countries, they are ethnic groups clashing. For example, Rwanda has two main ethnic groups called the Hutu and the Tutsi. The groups could not get along, which led to the genocide in the 1990's . These kinds of problems are arising in many places such as Uganda, Sudan, Somalia, and Eritrea. The reason for these conflicts is imperialism. The Europeans conquered African land, and without thinking of the tribes and their differences, they shoved them all together into the same countries. Now that most of the European countries have left, the groups are clumped together, leading to constant feuding.

Their is quite a diversity of religion and languages in East Africa. Many Muslims live in countries like Sudan, Uganda, and Somalia. Christianity is also a major religion in East Africa, and is practiced in many countries. Their are also religions unique to their own countries like Somali. Somali, the religion, is practiced in Somalia, as well as the language Somali. East African countries speak mainly English, and languages that the European settlers brought over. There are also several native African languages that are still commonly spoken too.

Burundi Peace Progress

2008-11-20T04:23:00.000-08:00

The government of Burundi has signed a peace agreement within the past few days. The ceremony took place in Bujumbura, the capitol of Burundi. It was looked over by officials from other countries that surround Burundi. Among other topics, the peace agreement stated that the fighters would fight on designated areas. It also is going to let political prisoners be released, as well as resettling civilians into their homes. The president wanted to assure neighboring countries that he was realising permanent peace.
This news should be reported for many reasons. One being, relevance. We are studying Africa in Humanities now, so learning about the current events of the different countries in Africa is crucial. Another is Reference to someone famous or important. The article mentions the President as well as other government officials of Burundi signing or overseeing the treaty. It also mentions important figures from neighboring countries overseeing this progress. Finally, it will impact many readers. Raising awareness about peace, weather the reader is in Burundi or not is important. Showing the world that progress in peace is being made will have an affect on many people. As you can see, this piece is news worthy for many reasons.

Imperialism Political Cartoon

2008-11-17T02:01:00.000-08:00

This political cartoon is trying to show us how Europe left a "footprint" on Africa. European countries conquered different parts of Africa for the resources they needed, without thinking of what they were doing to the African people. The main visual elements help to clearly depict this idea. The artist affectivley used contrast in this cartoon. The black and white stand out, and show eachother's opposite. You can cleary see when the Europeans left, they took everything with them, leaving barren land. The black, filling out the rest of Africa, shows the underdevelopement left behind. I think the cartoonist believes that the Europeans conquered the land, wihtout thinking of the Africas. I think the artist may feel pity for the Africans, and anger towards the Europeans. The Europenas took Africa's resources for their benefit, not thinking of its inhabitants. While the Europenas became wealthy, Africans became impoverished.

Image: http://mrcoyle.edublogs.org/files/2008/11/colonialism.jpg

East African History

2008-11-17T01:32:00.000-08:00

Religion
Christian missionaries introduced Christianity in Ethiopia in 300 AD. Gradually, Islam spread to northern Sudan from North Africa. Islam also spread to Somalia, on the coast of the Indian Ocean.
Slave Trade
The slave trade took place along the coasts of the Indian Ocean. The slave trade consisted of East Africans, Arabs, and Europeans. Africans got kidnapped, enslaved, and shipped throughout Africa, and Southwest Asia. The island of Zanzibar became the international slave-trading center.
European Influence and Conflict
Europeans usually ended slavery in the 1800's, and focused more on trading materials. To get these materials, they believed they should conquer different parts of Africa for the resources they needed. The British gained the most control over East Africa. The Europeans colonized Africa. Even now, as a result of imperialism, there are many ethnic conflicts. In the 1960's most of the African countries were independent.
Language
The European influence was very strong in terms of religion. French is still spoken in Rwanda, Burundi, and Djibouti. English is the primary language of Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania. East Africans also speak African languages, such as Swahili. When trade with Arabic people progressed, Swahili developed.
Religion
Most of the religions in East Africa revolve around honoring the ancestors. Many East Africans are Animists. Animists believe the natural world contains spirits.
The history of East Africa revolved around the imperialism of the Europeans in East Africa.

Image: http://exploringafrica.matrix.msu.edu/images/east_africa2.jpg:

Scramble for Africa

2008-11-16T03:12:00.000-08:00

Scramble for Africa is a simulation of the European countries colonizing Africa. They all wanted different materials from different places. My country was Belgium. We wanted ivory, diamonds, and minerals and rubbers from the Congo river basin. We wanted to colonize Cote D'ivoire as well as the rest or the west coast or "Ivory Coast" for ivory, Botswana and Angola for the diamonds, and the Congo for minerals and rubber. Our strategy from the beginning was to conquer small sections of each country during each round. This way we would have at least a small amount of the resource we needed. During each round we would build on the amount of land we had of each country. That is how in the end we had large colonies in all of the countries we needed natural resources from. We considered what parts of Africa were desired by many European countries, so we conquered those as soon as possible. Mostly every country wanted to take South Africa, so we took the top section as out first piece of land. We also took under consideration which parts of Africa were not coveted by many countries, and we waited to conquer those until later in the simulation. We knew the western coast of Africa was not in demand, so we colonized that last. I think France won the Scramble for Africa. They wanted petroleum, iron, zinc, and diamonds. They got diamonds and zinc from South Africa, iron from Algeria and South Africa. I don't think they got much petroleum, but by just conquering South Africa France got almost all of the resources they needed. I think Great Brittan lost. They didn't completely colonize one place, but were scattered around Africa. They only got small amounts of any of their resources, and they didn't conquer the Suez canal. This simulation clarified to me why the European countries wanted to colonize in Africa.

Dumpsite in Kenya Threatens Health and Envrionment

2008-11-13T06:33:00.000-08:00

A waste site just east of Nairobi poses environmental and health risks even after studies have been done recommending its closure. "The waste clogs the drainage systems, and spreads all over into the residential areas." says Kimani, the principle investigator. The waste also pollutes the Nairobi river that passes by near the dump site. Many of the people who live near to the site have developed health problems. The main cause of these sicknesses is the toxic gases that come from burning the waste. Many people suffer from respiratory abnormalities. Skin disorders, abdominal problems, and eye infections are also common among people who live near the site. But, the government has decided to move the dump site to the outskirts of Nairobi within the next couple of years. The new site would protect the land, air, and water from the impact of the waste. It would also provide recycling facilities.

This issue is reported on for many reasons. It is an unexpected problem. Environmental and health problems from a dump site are not commonly heard of. The amount of pollution, and sickness that has come from this waste site is unusual. It is also a continuing issue. There has been research and studies done about this dump site for a while, but only now the government has began to recognize it. News needs to report the solution to a problem that has been developing for years. Luckily, progress is being made on this issue. The government has decided to relocate the dump to an area outside the main city of Nairobi, so that it will not affect as many, if any, people health wise. It is also going to offer recycling to keep it from damaging the environment. As much as bad news "sells", people love good news even more.

Article: http://allafrica.com/stories/200811110937.html

Image: http://allafrica.com/stories/200811110937.html

Physical Geography of East Africa

2008-11-11T19:46:00.000-08:00

The physical geography of Eastern Africa varies greatly. There are rift valleys going across the north and south of this region. The rift walls are normally a series of steep cliffs. This region also has many mountains, including volcanic mountains. The tops of come of these mountains are covered in snow due to the high elevations. Rugged highlands cover Ethiopia. This is another point of high elevation where the weather is cooler. But there are some flat lands, like the plains that cover Tanzania and Kenya. These plains provide nutrition for wildlife. East Africa also has many lakes and rivers. The world's longest river, the Nile, begins in East Africa. The lakes that surround the eastern rift of the Great Rift Valley, are too hot for any human to swim in. As you can see, East Africa has a variety of physical geography.

Image: http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en-commons/thumb/9/9b/350px-LocationEasternAfrica.png

Can we Trust Julius Lester?

2008-11-10T21:18:00.000-08:00

I think we can trust Julius Lester as an author, therefor trust the information in his book, "To Be A Slave". In the beginning of the book Lester dedicates a couple pages to stating where he got all of his information for the book. He says that he found the information at the Library of Congress, government building. He also uses a lot of interviews with slaves themselves. Under each of them he has the name of the slave, the author, and where he found the interview. He has given full credit to all of his sources, and interviewees. Lester has written many of them revolving around African Americans and the unjust treatment towards them. He seems to be fascinated with African history, and proud of what his people have accomplished. This leads me to the conclusion that Julius Lester can be trusted as an author, so we can trust the information in "To Be A Slave".

Image: http://www.ajlmagazine.com/graphics/subpages/content/012007/juliuslester.jpg

Ethiopian Drought

2008-11-09T21:15:00.000-08:00

I have chosen to research news from Ethiopia. There has been a major drought across most of Ethiopia in the past few months. It is predicted to to continue on into the next year. The crop production has ceased. The UN has decided to give a large some of money to relief operations. Hopefully, this money will help the Ethiopians get through the coming drought.

This is a tragic event that needs to be reported upon in the news for several reasons. The magnitude of the story should be known. Across Ethiopia many people are suffering from the affects of the drought, and they will continue to suffer throughout the next year. It also refers to something negative, because bad news often "sells". Many families are struggling through economic hardships because they cannot produce their crops, which they have to sell to make money. Luckily progress is being made in Ethiopia. The UN has decided to give $265 million to help the cause. The UN decided it was a large enough issue to spend money and time into helping the Ethiopians.

Image:http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/media/images/UN-LOGO%20copy.jpg

Article: http://allafrica.com/stories/200811071056.html

2008-11-07T00:07:00.000-08:00

5 Themes of Geography
Movement

fans traveled from different places to see their teams play

the game of baseball traveled because it is played around the world

Region

the green walls, the design of grass and dirt, and placement of seats depicts a baseball stadium
baseball is most commonly played as a professional sport in the United States

Human Environmental Interaction

the land that the baseball field is on had to be cleared(for hills, trees, etc.)
the stadium uses disposable a lot of paper for cups, napkins, and signs that trees had to be cut down for

Location

the giant green wall is called the "Green Monster" and that shows that this is Fenway Park in Boston
the picture of two red socks also shows that this stadium belongs to the Boston Red Sox

Place

the advertisements for companies on the stadium walls shows that this is a developed country
the advertisements and merchandise that the fans are wearing also shows that this is a capitalist country

Image: http://i.cdn.turner.com/sivault/multimedia/photo_gallery/0808/10.must.visit.sports.locations/images/fenway-park.jpg

2008-11-02T19:35:00.000-08:00

"Violence leads to more violence"
I believe this quote is definitely true, and I can prove it! William Shakespeare must have believed it too because it appears in Julius Caesar. When the conspirators killed Caesar, (in act 3, scene 1) they decided they would stab him many times. This is violent crime. Once Mark Antony knew what they had done, he wanted to start a war with them to get Caesar justice. The death of Caesar lead to a war, but it doesn't end there. When Brutus kills himself, (in act 5, scene 5) it is because many of his men had died and they were losing against Antony/Octavius's army. All of these things started with Caesar's death and could have been avoided if he hadnt been killed. Therefor, violence definitely leads to more violence.
Image:http://www.bbc.co.uk/drama/shakespeare/60secondshakespeare/images/times/caesar.jpg

Moral Dilemma

2008-10-20T01:50:00.000-07:00

In Julius Caesar, Brutus faces a moral dilemma. Does he stick with his good friend Caesar, or work for the good of Rome? If i were in his position, I would do what was best for my country. By choosing to do what is est for Rome, I would have to then kill Caesar. In act two, scene one Brutus is thinking aloud to himself over this dilemma. He refers to Caesar as a snake. "just as poisonous snakes tend to come out into the open on bright sunny days—which means we have to walk carefully." I think this means that you have to be careful about Caesar, even when he seems to be doing no harm yet. He also says, "To be honest, I've never known Caesar to let his emotions get the better of his reason. But everyone knows that an ambitious young man uses humility to advance himself, but when he reaches the top, he turns his back on his supporters and reaches for the skies while scorning those who helped him get where he is. Caesar might act like that. Therefore, in case he does, we must hold him back." I think here, he is referring to what has happened in the past. He is worried that Caesar will turn on them once he has power. Lastly, Brutus states, "And therefore we should liken him to a serpent's egg—once it has hatched, it becomes dangerous, like all serpents. Thus we must kill him while he's still in the shell." Here, he is again referring to Caeser as a snake. It is like the old saying, "better safe than sorry." He wants Rome to be safe no matter who comes to power. Therefor he has to kill Caeser to save his country.
Image: http://www.hbo.com/rome/img/cast/character/season2/character_brutus.jpg

Imperialism

2008-10-13T01:58:00.000-07:00

Imperialism took place all over the world in a similar way. I noticed during our discussion that the stronger, developed countries like the United States or Brittan were the ones dominating others. The weaker, lesser developed like India or Persia were the ones being dominated. They were taken over mostly militarily and politically. Russia took over militarily by starting a war over the Black Sea. Brittan took over politically by signing an agreement with the Egyptians. These types of imperialism were taking place all over the world, not just in the Middle East.

The motivations for a country to take over another are Gold, Glory, and God. The motivation of Gold was the strongest. Everyone was after more money than the already had. The motivation of Glory was also very strong. Mostly people wanted power of strategic lands. This is like how Brittan took over India for their resources and they were in a good location. At this time, in these places, not many countries were dominating for religious purposes.

The outcomes of imperialism were some countries being stronger than others, and some being weaker than others. Some countries gained land, as others lost land. Imperialism happened this way all over the world.

Image:http://www.nationsonline.org/maps/continents_map_sm.jpg

Necessity is the Mother of Invention

2008-09-23T05:49:00.000-07:00

What does the phrase, “Necessity is the mother of invention” mean? I think “Necessity is the mother of invention” means that inventions are created when someone really has the need for them. It is like when Samuel Morse’s mother had him carry messages on horseback. He needed to find an easier way to send messages to others. So, he invented the Morse code. From that we can see that he made the invention of Morse code because he needed to make sending messages easier and quicker. Inventions need a necessity to be created otherwise there’s no reason to make it. Samuel Slater had the idea of a factory that made everything all in one place. From that we can see that he was not just helping himself, but others as well. He helped save people time, energy, and money. Another invention I personally enjoy is the television. I think the reason for inventing the television was for entertainment purposes. This invention was also made to help others; to give them something to do. It was invented in a time where working was very important and people had very serious lives. The television helped them escape from their lives and have some fun watching a comedy. It was also a way of communication of what is going on in the world through the news. All of these inventions show that when someone needed or wanted something they came up with an invention to help them. That is what I think “Necessity is the mother of invention” means.

Political Cartoon Analysis

2008-09-21T22:42:00.000-07:00

I would say the main visual elements of this piece are a large, angry man squeezing a small, fearful man. The big man seems to be stealing the small mans money and collecting more profits. The labels on the men and the bags of money indicate that this cartoon is about capitalism and child labor. I think that the cartoonist’s opinion is that capitalism is that the higher class people become more greedy and more greedy until they resort to children. They can pay children less to work for the same type of work; therefore the owners get a higher profit from them. That is shown by the capitalist man squeezing money out of the child worker. The cartoonist obviously thinks that there is something wrong with how capitalism is progressing. It shows this in the cartoon by the helpless child that is getting thieved. I think the cartoon is very persuasive, but I would give one piece of advice. I would tell them to make it clearer and easier to read because they spent time and effort on a interesting cartoon but we can barely see and read it.

image from:http://depts.washington.edu/labhist/laborpress/images/Socialist Voice

End of Quarter One Feedback

2008-09-08T00:23:00.000-07:00

So far I think I have not reached my goals fully. I think I have been handing my homework in on time(mostly). I could be better because sometimes I forget or write it down wrong in my agenda. I can definitely improve. I didn't reach my goal completely for having all the boxes checked on my Socratic seminar slip. I did well by getting a 21/25, but i didn't get all of them ticked. I can improve still by backing up my ideas with examples from the book and preparing myself for the discussion. As for my last goal I am sad to say I haven't learned many new things about the Simpsons. I will definitely have to study up on that this quarter.
i have a few goals set for myself for this quarter. My first goal is to gain money in stocks quest, if that is even possible right now. Hopefully i will at least get up to my original amount. Secondly, I want to continue reading books for AR to get full points. I would also like to improve the quality of my blog posts by putting more time and effort into them. I hope I will be able to complete these goals.

Stocks

2008-09-04T05:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we did an 1870's stock market simulation. When Mr. Coyle told us one of his five investment tips,"Be fearful when others are greedy…be greedy when others are fearful" i wasn't exactly sure what it meant. I understood that it meant you have to take chances with your money, but later on i realized that wasn't all it meant. In the beginning of our investments, the silver company was shooting up and getting loads of money. People then flocked to by more silver cards, as i stayed put. Here I used the investment tip to be fearful when others are greedy. I knew the silver wouldn't always be easy to find again, so I didn't buy any stocks in silver. Sure enough, the amount of silver dropped and so did the price of the stocks. I was one of the people not mourning over their loss of money. Another example is when the Drexel-Morgan Company was not doing well because of corruption issues and of course, their stocks were low. No one wanted to go near their stocks but i followed Mr. Coyle's advice and got greedy when others were fearful. I bought some stocks in the Drexel-Morgan company and eventually the price increased greatly. I then thought more about this investment tip and realized what it really meant. It means you shouldn't just follow what everyone else is doing. It is kind of like the saying "If all your friends jumped off a cliff, would you too?". It is saying to use your own mind and common sense. Others aren't always right.

Pros and Cons of the IR

2008-09-01T20:31:00.000-07:00

Pros:

People can always find a job and make money
People have a lot more knowledge of the outside world
People are more educated
People are more healthy

Cons:

Since all the factories were created, the pollution has increased immensely
Obesity rates have increased due the the industrialization of food
Some people are really rich while others are really poor
Some people have become too money oriented

Image URL
http://educ.ubc.ca/news/photos/globe.jpg

Factory Game Day 2

2008-08-24T06:11:00.000-07:00

The other day in humanities we had to make a toy for our "little sibling" as if we were in the dark ages. Today, we had to make an assembly line to make many of one toy. First the class voted on which toy looked the best. Once we had decided, the artist became the "manager" of the class or "workers". We all had to make a peice of the toy and make a load of them as if we were in a factory. I noticed that on the first day it took a lot longer to make a toy by oursleves than how long it took to make them in the assembly line. It took longer the first day becasue we were more worried about the quality rather than the speed. I also noticed that even though it took longer on day one, they were better quality than the ones made quicker on day two. The products of day two came out more sloppy and not that much work went into them because we were rushed. Also, on day two everyone was more stressed, so people were yelling and screaming at eachother. We didn't get much of enjoyment out of day two, but we made more toys which means more "money" for us. In the end, money is really what it comes down to.

Industrial Revolution Game

2008-08-21T07:51:00.000-07:00

Today, in Humanities, it was our first of many lessons on the industrial revolution. At the end of note taking we played a game. The objective of the game is to make a birthday present for your sibling out of certain materials. The game is also set in the dark ages so we have limited materials. We have shapes on a paper, scissors, glue, and crayons to work with.(no more, no less) I have decided to make a ladybug with these materials. It makes sense with the time perios we are working in because I'm sure that ladybugs were around in England in the 1700's. It's a red ladybug with black polka-dots and wings. This game is also a contest of the best designed peice. I'm thinking mine is definitley on its way to being number one!

Ride of a Life Time

2008-08-20T08:17:00.000-07:00

The sun beats down upon my neck. I gulp down my last sip of water like i had found an oasis in the middle of the sahara desert. Shuffle, Shuffle, Shuffle. The line inches forward like a centipede. I should remember next time not to go to the newest roller coaster in the theme park right during middle of the day. Clink. The gates open as the last riders get off looking almost green. As they hobble off I sit myself down into the sweat drenched seat. My clammy hand reach for the shoulder bars and bring them down towards me. Peeew! The scent of body odor drifts towards me. Before i realize what is happening im being sucked back against my seat so violently i can barely breath. As im being jerked back and forth all i see is a blur of colors. Purple, green, and yellow flash before my eyes. We begin to slow down as we head uphill. Ch,Ch,Ch,Ch. We stop at the top, but only for a moment. I can see all the sky streching out for miles and miles ahead of me. My stomach drops, and my body seems to follow. My stomach flips, churns, and turns. After numorous Nerve racking turns and flips the cart suddenly screeches to a halt. Is it over? It happened so fast. I hop off and springt over to the nearest spinning wall to catch my breath. I made it out alive.

Ways of Learning

2008-08-17T22:22:00.000-07:00

I think that I learn best by Visual learning. I can remember images really well because they stick in my head. I sometimes have a photographic memory. So when we watch videos or read I can usually remember them really well or learn a lot from them. It also depends on whether or not the topic interests me or not. You can help me learn this year by having us read the information in a book or watch some videos. You could also help me by teaching interesting things! =)

Back to school

2008-08-13T09:08:00.000-07:00

Being back to school was weird. A mixture of feelings. Happiness too see my friends. Sadness that summer was over. Excited for school year. I don't remember much of the first week. It went by too fast. But i would say my highlights were just overall having the best classes and having them with all of my best friends. I would say my first impression of my humanities class was that i would become a Simpsons expert by the end of the year and that this would be a crazy-fun year. I have three goals by the end of the semester. One is to become more responsible about having my homework handed in on time. My next goal is that i want to have all of the boxes checked in my Socratic seminar slip at least once, minus the bad ones. Lastly i want to become more knowledgeable about the Simpsons by the end of the quarter!

My Gang

2008-08-12T00:45:00.000-07:00

I love all the people in my gang for different reasons. I would say the people in my gang are Lily, Aysha, Sophia, Alice, Morgann, Garrett, Sam G., Travis, Leam, and Jonathan. I would say Lily is my best friend out of the whole gang. She is there to make us laugh and keep us sensible. Everyone loves Lily. Aysha is a major part of the gang because she is hyper and upbeat. She makes us all less serious. Sophia makes the gang friendly towards others. She is welcoming to others. Alice is caring and crazy. She cares about everyone. Morgann is Serious and smart. She helps us out when we don't understand something. Garrett is entertaining and comical. He make sus all laugh with his crazy dances. Sam G. is silly and original. No one else is like Sam. Travis plays it cool and is energetic. He is always up for something active. Leam is weird but we all love him anyway. He is also very reliable. When you really need him, he is there for you. Jonathan is understanding and sympathetic. He will always help you out if you have a problem. And i think im an important part of the group because im bubbly and talkative. We all fit together perfectly.