News outlets to consider:
- Any major TV news outlet (Yes, I will accept The Daily Show and The Colbert Report)
- Any major international, national, regional, or local newspaper
- Any major internet news service
- Any major radio news outlet
- Any of these podcasts (you're not limited to these, but it's definitely a start if you're not familiar with podcasts)
- Any of these YouTube channels (again, not an exhaustive list, just a place to get started)
Melanie Urias
ReplyDeleteRecently a group of Cuban migrants had to drank their own urine and blood after an engine failure on their way to the United States.32 passengers were stranded in the Caribbean for 3 weeks and just this week made it to shore. Out of the 32 passengers unfortunately only 15 made it here. Six passengers are missing after they tried swimming to shore, while 11 others died of dehydration. They were all passengers of a home-made craft made out of aluminum roofing sheets riveted together, and sealed with cloth and resin, with a motor that failed; the motor was a Hyundai diesel car engine, attached to a homemade propeller. The passengers eventually had to remove the dead engine, and threw it overboard to reduce weight and made a makeshift sail from sheets sewn together with cord. It would Rain every three or four days and with only that, it wasn’t sufficient water. The clean water was rationed out in doses by medical syringes but of course it wasn’t enough. One woman who was six months pregnant received more water than the rest. One by one, 11 passengers died; their bodies, lips swollen, they were thrown off the craft, and floated off into the distance. A sight that one can only imagine to be horrifying. After running out of water, some began to drink seawater, as well as their own urine. O'Farrill was one of several who also used syringes to draw their own blood to drink. "That was a mistake, the ones who drank their blood became faint. Gradually they lost their minds and faded away," said Izquierdo. The survivors were eventually rescued by Mexican fishermen, 150 miles Northeast of Mexico's Yucatan peninsula. The survivors were then taken to Mexico and were briefly detained before being released late last month. Many Cubans are seeking the freedom of the United States. Their journey usually begins with sailing to Central America then traveling overland into the United States. Fortunately under Washington's "wet foot, dry foot policy," Cuban migrants who make it onto U.S. soil are allowed to remain, while those caught at sea are turned back. This article touched me because I am a child of two (legal) immigrants (now citizens), and the stories my parents tell me about some peoples voyages to the United States similar to this one amazes me. Now more then ever, more and more people are risking their lives to enter a country they have only heard stories about and dream of becoming a part of. You can only imagine, to have to drink your own blood to survive and to make it to where you want to go, it just leaves me speechless. Some people from central American Countries use up life savings and years worth of paychecks to pay smugglers to just assist them make the journey, risking it all to have a chance to make it here. They risk getting caught and being sent back or their lives on treacherous journeys in some of the harshest lands. I completely agree that everyone must follow rules and procedures. Although it is expensive and time consuming being granted permission to enter the states is most safe and the legal route to go. These risk takers don’t do anything but amaze me and allow me to realize how blessed and fortunate we all are to be living and such a free country.
This is so awful. I can't imagine what the Cubans had to go through. I agree with what you said about the legal ways to enter the US, but I still sympathize with these immigrants a whole lot. We are extremely lucky to be living in a free country, and we take advantage of things other people would die for. I hope the surviving Cubans eventually become US citizens, with all the terrors that they had to face.
DeleteThats the Price that some are willing to pay to escape an oppressive government. Very interesting to hear about these types of stories though. The legal ways of immigration do take long, but could turn out better than attempts to land on the shores of The United States.
DeleteI feel sympathetic towards the Cubans, but at the same time, it was their choice to risk their lives. Yes, becoming a US citizen is an extremely long, difficult process, but it's that way for a reason. Not everyone can become a citizen of the US or we would have no resources for ourselves.
DeleteIn my current events readings this week I came across an article about an accidental 911 call that led deputies to an active meth lab. Thomas Stallings, Jason Knope, and Donna Knope who were all residents in Deltona, were all arrested earlier today because one of them had accidentally dialed 911 while they were in the middle of cooking meth. This dispatcher told officials that when she asked what their emergency was nobody answered. Before she hung up she heard someone in the background talking about drugs and what to do with them. She stayed on the line for almost 30 minutes and relayed what was going on, on the other side of the call to the police who later arrived at the scene and found a house and shed with smoke coming out of the shed. All three people were arrested and charged with possession of illegal substances with intent on selling them. They are currently in the Volusia County Branch Jail. I’m not sure how any one of them had accidentally dialed 911 without noticing or without dialing other numbers as well.
ReplyDeleteWhat a bad number to accidentally dial. Their faces would of been priceless when the police arrived to scene. How does someone accidentally call 911? What an unfortunate turn out of events. But in the end of it all, its good that a few more Meth manufacturers are off the streets, contributing less filth to society.
DeleteThe irony of this whole situation is hilarious. I mean, how do you get so unlucky as to turn yourself in. From the police side of things it must have been a godsend for them to make a pretty big bust like this with almost no effort at all, aside from driving to the house.
DeleteI read multiple people's current events this week but this one actually made me laugh. This is a perfect of karma. Why are people making meth in the first place? Meth is probably the worst and most dangerous drug out there and thank god the cops showed up to stop this scene. I think all of these people learned their lessons.
DeleteI think I heard on the news that the person 'butt dialed' the police. I guess it really made the polices job easier. But that is some pretty unfortunate luck for the guys who went to jail but I guess they can only blame themselves. I think this is funny because out of all the combinations of numbers that could have been accidentally dialed on the phone they had to dial 911 at that moment.
DeleteThis is the funniest mistake ever!! I'm so happy that these people got caught like this. Karma really knew how to get these people back for their actions. The people making the meth were probably too high to realize that they had accidently called multiple people. Drugs that have no benefit to you expect to make you go crazy are completely useless and I am extremely glad that these unintelligent people were arrested for their crimes of meth making. Hopefully this shows people that if you do enough meth and drugs you will become stupid, stupid enough to snitch on yourself. lol
DeleteHonestly, what are the chances of that happening? Your mom? Yes. The police? Never would've thought possible in a million years. Perhaps it was never truly on accident? Maybe one of the people wanted to be caught. Some criminals get off on that; the fame. Knowing people have heard their name on the news or the story in the paper.
DeleteThis scenario reminds me a bit of Breaking Bad actually. How one of these meth cooks managed to "accidentally" dial 911 amazes and humors me. I agree with Sarah on the chance that maybe this was not an "accident", but rather intentional. No one knows what precisely was occurring at the time of the call. If it was not one of the three men purposely calling with the intentions of getting caught, the what if the call was not made by a fourth party member?
DeleteThis completely caught my attention cause I am a big fan of Breaking Bad. Just like Emma said, it reminds me of one of the episodes. It’s crazy to think how someone could be doing something as cooking meth and not be careful with every move they make. I find it very funny in a way because the chances of this actually happening to someone is very slim. Well I hope this is a good example of what not to do while cooking meth. Hopefully, other people cooking meth would be more careful to not snitch on themselves.
DeleteThis is hilarious! But when you really think about the whole situation, there is a limited number of dispatchers to call to when you have an emergency so the fact that this particular one stayed on the phone for 30 minutes basically being nosey is pretty surprising after the first 3 to 4 minutes without hearing screaming or someone whispering to me for help i would've hung up and attended some one with an actual emergency. I understand having a drug free country is all fine and dandy but its not going to happen any time soon so helping someone in their time of need would be more important to me then busting someone cooking meth.
DeleteMelanie Urias
This is hilarious! But when you really think about the whole situation, there is a limited number of dispatchers to call to when you have an emergency so the fact that this particular one stayed on the phone for 30 minutes basically being nosey is pretty surprising after the first 3 to 4 minutes without hearing screaming or someone whispering to me for help i would've hung up and attended some one with an actual emergency. I understand having a drug free country is all fine and dandy but its not going to happen any time soon so helping someone in their time of need would be more important to me then busting someone cooking meth.
DeleteMelanie Urias
Wow, how dumb must they feel? That is so unlucky that they accidentally turned themselves in. Maybe for future references people should turn their phones off while they are cooking meth! It is actually humorous that it was unintentional, and the police basically got handed evidence and information to make a drug bust that they had no idea about.
DeleteWhat an accident. People really need to learn to be more responsible and know how to better live their lives. At least they got caught and was prevented form giving the drugs to someone else who's life is bad from the drug. It's a horrible addiction, and they should be caught for causing such trouble in someones life. They were probably going to be caught, just glad it happened sooner than later.
DeleteThe current events I came across this week was a radio podcast that discussed the major issue of Ebola. Some say that Obama has a vaccine for the disease but isn’t going to share it with the rest of the world because he wants to lower the population. Some people even think that the U.S government made Ebola. I can understand why they would do that because unlike a terrorist attack they can not blame another country. Ebola is a serious issue that I think people aren’t taking serious enough. It is eventually going to spread to many parts of the United States and contaminate many people and areas. I don’t think that is something to be joking about with friends. It all brings me back to the zombie incent that happened in Miami where an old mans face was eaten off by another man who reportedly was under the influence of “bath salts”. People in America made such a huge deal about what was going on and said that a zombie apocalypse was occurring. That is pretty much the same thing that is going on now. There are reports of people coming back to life after being diagnosed and dying of Ebola. There is even a video of a man being wrapped up into a body bag and then coming back to life by moving his arm around and then everyone freaked out. I think just some people are getting offended by people sneezing or coughing and then saying “oh no I have Ebola”. It offends the ones who actually do have symptoms of the disease or have family members with it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you! I feel like everyone is making a joke out of Ebola and not taking it as seriously as they should. I wrote about the death of a US man, who was the first person in the US to contract ebola. The news is very sad, and it's interesting that people are blaming our government for this. I don't agree with them, but I think our government could be taking a more active role in the fight to contain Ebola.
DeleteI have read that Obama has requested to send over 3,900 troops to Liberia at a cost of $750 million dollars for just the first 6 months of operation. Europe, Australia, International Monetary Fund, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation combined are all contributing a total of $424 million dollars to West Africa field hospitals for research and medical expenses to help fight Ebola. I do not understand why America is spending $326 million dollars MORE than all of those countries and organizations combined when there are many complaints the citizens of this country are making that the US is completely in debt over 16 Trillion dollars. If we are so much in debt why are we paying almost double the money that everyone else is sending, and over triple the number of troops? To the best of my knowledge, the $750 million price tag does not include the screening and quarantining of over 3,900 of our sons, daughters, husbands, and wives when they return to the US. Or any long term costs related to exposure and treatment of, and or PTSD from what our troops will have to deal with when they witness so much death and suffering.
DeleteI totally agree! I feel people making a joke over this disease and reality is we have no control of it, which is what scares me the most. The jokes and funny pictures won’t stop until Ebola affects their state or someone not far from them. I can’t believe it’s beginning to spread as much as it is but I just pray we get to the bottom of this. I don’t see why people think it is okay to blame the government like it’s their fault. They have no control over diseases, but I wish there is something more we can do.
DeleteI do not understand why people would get offended over it. The people who make jokes about it are ignorant and do not understand how serious the matter is. I do not think that we have the cure on lock down... it was also said that we had a cure for cancer and the government did not want it to get out. Now while the reasoning behind why they would do it makes sense (money) I just do not think I could get myself to think that even Obama is that immoral.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis week I am writing about the first United States ebola patient that died recently in the hospital. This was important to me because he was the first person to actually be diagnosed with ebola within the United States. His name was Thomas Eric Duncan and he was 42; he supposedly caught the virus in his native Liberia, and was being treated with an experimental drug and isolation in a Dallas hospital. Thomas started showing symptoms late after his arrival, he even admitted himself to the hospital and told them he was in Liberia, but was sent home in the beginning. This is extremely terrifying to hear about. It scared me because if we let patients with ebola on planes freely, and don't diagnose their symptoms immediately, then ebola will spread faster than anything we've yet encountered. We are doing things to contain the virus, but I feel like somehow we aren't doing the right things to avoid the outbreak entering our country. United States airports are stepping their game up, and will have special ebola screenings. We're also sending troops and help to the main countries hit with this disease and are trying to contain it. If ebola spreads to other places, then it will not only be a huge social crisis, but an economic one as well. The World Bank predicted that the economic cost of the virus could exceed 32 billion. That would devastate not only our country, but several others. I hope that we get this under control soon and work to find a cure and isolate the virus. I also hope that we can stop this from becoming even more of an outbreak, and that we can focus our energies on helping the people who contracted it already. Ebola is awful and it's only getting worse. Hopefully, the next news header featuring ebola will be a good one.
ReplyDeleteI was completely unaware of someone being diagnosed with ebola in Dallas, Texas and I agree that letting people who are carrying a virus fly on planes freely is a terrifying thought. Most people are forgetting that the ebola virus can spread to different regions, even if there are huge attempts being made to keep it contained in Africa. I bet a lot of people wish that there is a cure for this virus that is being made, but there is a saying that it’s going to get worse before it gets better. We can only hope that the ebola virus does not spread any farther, because it affects not only a person’s health but also their actions and the actions of those around them.
DeleteBullying is a serious problem in our society today. Every day there is a new report of some form of bullying, whether it is in the news media, on social media, or even in our schools. Bullying seems to be even more vicarious since social media came about. Many young people have gone so far as to commit suicide after being bullied on Facebook and Twitter.
ReplyDeleteA few days ago it was announced in the media that a football team in New Jersey suspended the remainder of the entire 2014 football season, due to misconduct of the players. Apparently the seniors were engaged in incidents of intimidation, bullying and harassment of the freshman student. According to the report, the games were suspended, because of the wide-scale level of the incidents, as well as the involvement of a large number of players.
Many in the community as well as the school were not pleased with the decision of the school superintendent. Parents felt that the decision was unfair to the students who were not involved in the incidents; however, the decision was made to punish the entire team. The actions of the players did not only affect their team, but other like the cheerleaders and the band members were affected, because they will not be able to perform what they have been practicing all season.
Every effort should be made to stop bullying. No student should have to deal with bullying under any circumstances. Sometimes incidents grow out of control and people get seriously hurt. Students must take responsibility for their actions, and like the football team, they should be punished when they make the choice to hurt others. It is also unfair to those who would want to joint activities in the school, but stay away from these activities to avoid having to deal with bullies.
Bullying is a serious problem that must be addressed, because it is getting out of hand. Punishing students for taking part in bullying is a good thing, because others would most likely not get involved to avoid punishment.
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI agree with your standpoint on the issue. The players who were involved in the bullying of the students should definitely be punished, and it cannot be helped that the consequences should have a broader unintentional and rather misfortunate effect on the cheerleaders and band members. However, despite this attempt to repudiate and discourage bullying through punishment, it will be much harder than that to eradicate it from society as it has probably been a part of growing up since the genesis of structured public schooling.
DeleteI second this, bullying has become more prominent in our generation. Society could be a huge contributor to the ongoing amount of bullying. Other people judging someone on their size, weight, and interests because they are not what is "in style" or "cool" is what sends some people over the edge. Schools have tried to keep the problem of bullying out of the system, but somehow there always manages to be some type of bullying, whether we notice it or not. Most people do not speak up because they are scared but later we realize how they were bullied when it's too late. The football players deserve to have their games suspended for such childish acts!
DeleteBullying is a very serious manner and has yet to be taken care of. Before the internet and all of this social media people were able to go home and escape it all. Now with twitter, instagram, and facebook it follows you. Schools feel that if it is not on school grounds or the person does not mention your name directly, it is not bullying and they can't take the matter into their hands. Something needs to change.
DeleteMy current event this week is on the popular informational YouTube channel known as “Vsauce” which is conducted by Michael Stevens. On this YouTube channel, it is his intent to pose thought provoking questions that many of us as curious human beings have more than likely pondered in a more of a rhetorical light at some point in our lives. Questions you may feel embarrassed to ask out loud because of how stupid they seem and how obvious the answer SHOULD be. But Michael not only asks these questions, but answers them in deep, rich detail with scientific evidence supporting his findings and commonly disproving what you would normally assume as the answer. For instance, in one of his videos, he asks his viewers “how much does a shadow way”. My first thought was “It’s a shadow. You can’t weigh a shadow.” but he proceeded to explain that light is composed of particles of energy, and as we all know, energy has a physical effect on matter. Therefore, an object should and will weigh more when light is casted upon it, even if it is a miniscule amount. There are numerous other videos on his channel that cause you to question if you’ve been thinking of things all wrong, and I think that everyone could benefit from seeing his take on things that could theoretically happen in our world. In another video, he talks about what would happen if the earth were to suddenly stop spinning. You would probably think the obvious thoughts such as “well it would always be day on one side of the planet and night on the other.” but what about the immediate effect? He points out that inertia would cause everything that isn’t the earth itself to be violently tossed at approximately 1,000 mph tearing apart the face of the earth, aside from many other things that would happen. However, know this. When you read the title of a video and decide to watch, you are not only going to receive information about that subject, but often times a wide range of information that branches off from the original subject. Most of the time you won’t notice until he returns to the primary topic though because somehow it all just flows together.
ReplyDeleteI've actually previously watched a couple of Vsauce videos as well and I'm always surprised by all the research conducted and explained while evaluating a particular idea. The idea of a shadow having a mass because of light inflicting weight due to its physical energy is enlightening. I've never thought much of a shadow before. I also agree with you on how in his videos he tends to go slightly off topic. However, at the same time all of the information presented is related. There is a very interesting video you may want to watch about whether we, humans all see colors the same. He goes on about "Is your red the same as my red?" Unfortunately, the question is not answered, but the dialogue is interesting to listen to.
DeleteIt took me awhile to choose my current event this week. I usually take the easy way and listen to a podcast by Freakonomics, but this week I wanted it to be different. This week, I thought I would choose a subject that I am interested in. I choose the topic of swimming. A Paralympic champion named Jessica Long has no legs. Jessica was born with Fibular Hemimelia, a condition that left her without ankles, heels, calf bones, and most of the other body parts in lower legs and feet. Jessica was motivated to prove other people wrong. Her passion was swimming. Outside of the water Jessica was fitted for prosthetic legs and learned how to walk smoothly. However, in the water, Jessica struggled quite a bit. At just the age of 10, Jessica’s swimming career began. She learned that swimming was the piece of her life that had been missing all along. At age 12, Jessica became the youngest member of the Paralympic team. In 2003, Jessica Long was announced Female Swimmer of the Year with a Disability. When Jessica Long was born, her biological parents were teenagers and not ready to raise a child. Therefore, Long was put into an orphanage. Jessica was soon adopted by an American married couple and lived her life in Baltimore. At the Paralympic games, Jessica won 12 medals. Now, she has over 13 world records for swimmers with disability. I can honestly say Jessica Long is such a big inspiration to me and I look up to her. Even though Jessica Long was born with Fibular Hemimelia, and had half of her legs amputated, it didn’t stop her from pursuing her dreams of becoming a champion swimmer. As a competitive swimmer, I know the hard work and dedication you must put in for the sport of swimming and Jessica truly amazes me.
ReplyDeleteThat's really inspiring. It truly shows that if you put your mind to something, you accomplish it. To swim without the lower parts of your leg must be really hard. I'm surprised that even though swimming was hard she decided that she wanted to do it and continue. The 12 medals and 13 world records show that it really payed off.
DeleteOn October 7th there was a suicide of a former deputy in palm coast. Joseph Delarosby was 50 years old and was a deputy for about 19 years. He hung up his uniform in August of this year. Not only was he married but has a child which is now an adult. The body was found by a water department worker Tuesday morning at Heroes Memorial Park. This suicide is still under investigation. This even was not sudden or unexpected because in late May had been briefly committed to a psychiatric facility in Daytona Beach after threatening to kill himself at his home. I have my two current event but when I saw this I had to write about this tragedy. It's terrifying to know that someone can end their life so simply without a thought. I'm not doing this for the grade. I'm creating this post to share my knowledge of this awful death that has occurred in palm coast.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion this article is quite depressing. The fact that a grown man, felt so down about his life enough to take it away is all in all very sad. And to think that this happened in our own town is scary. You would never guess that someone is depressed, and its always the ones you least expect. I feel for the family and I send my deepest regards to them. This is such a tragedy for our town, and for the family. I couldn’t imagine what they’re going through right now.
DeleteOmg wow i know teen suicides are bad, but this in a sense can be worse. We as teens don't really think things through as well as adults. He mustve had a really tough time or maybe even something happened to him mentally, i feel bad for the family, and we as a community i hope we are helping his family out just like he helped out our community. I'm pretty good at watching the local news every morning I'm surprised i didn't see this, thanks for posting it!
DeleteMelanie Urias
I've heard about this article as well. I heard that the man was laid off of his hob that he was dedicated to for many years. His loved his job, and I fell like the loss of his job gave him no other reason for his life. He deserved better from the people that he's worked for.
DeleteI agree completely with your current event. Bullying is a huge problem nowadays and it needs to stop. I cannot believe that this New Jersey teams had been suspended for the season! I think that was a perfect punishment for their disrespectful actions. Sometimes, in a sport such as football, the guys tend to think of themselves as higher than other people at the school. Because of this, some of the teammates bully other people. Even though not all of the football players took action into bullying, they should all have to face the consequences. No one deserves to be bullied.
ReplyDeleteOn Thursday, a man was going to look for recyclables when he heard something moving in the dumpster. When he looked inside he found a newborn baby girl. The baby still had the umbilical cord attached and was wrapped in a towel. She is now being cared for at Mercy Hospital. Tom Trinidad, a police man, said that the baby is healthy and is thriving at the hospital. Whoever put the baby in the dumpster could have brought it to a police station, fire department or hospital and they would have taken the baby so I don't know why they put it in a dumpster. The baby could have died if it weren't for the man that found her. The man who found the baby is considering trying to adopt her.
ReplyDeleteI was deeply saddened after reading this. I know raising a child is not easy but I cannot believe someone would turn to this. I do not know the reason this baby was put in the dumpster, but there is no reasonable justification for this action! Sometimes people forget just how valuable and precious life truly is. I am very thankful that this man found the baby when he did and that the baby is healthy and was not harmed.
DeleteI’ve heard about people doing this on television and movies, but never in real life. I never once thought that anyone could do this to a newborn child. If the woman, or man, could have brought the baby anywhere else to be taken care of, why is their first thought a dumpster? Thankfully the baby is now being cared for, and she is healthy with no complications. If the man who found her ends up adopting her, then that would be wonderful and incredibly selfless. I wish the best for this child, and hope that she has a very bright future ahead of her.
DeleteWhile in class last week, I remember hearing about the High School football player that recently passed away due to head injury. Honoring him; this week I decided to do my current event on his passing. Football is the sport of America, and you could ask anyone that. Many people crowd around their T.V.’s to watch the gruesome hits, interceptions, and touchdowns by their favorite teams. Football is the leading sport responsible for head injuries and concussions; you would think that all of these concussions and head injuries would be coming from professional teams in the NFL and a lot of them are. However, most of the most fatal head injuries are from High School football games. Tom Cutinella, 16, was one of three recent high school deaths due to football. In 2014 alone there have been eight deaths due to the harsh hits of high school football. It is scary to know how many kids have died from just playing a game of football for their school and even scarier that they are my age. I suffered a concussion from a girls lacrosse game last season during a game against Bucholz High School. Now it is mandatory that girls playing lacrosse in Florida wear helmets. My first thoughts about this were that there was no way I’d wear a helmet. Since the incident with the long island boy, I have decided that maybe it was best for my own safety. Maybe the rules for football helmets should be increased to have more padding inside the helmets for the safety of student athletes. Even in the NFL, they should require more support inside of the helmets to avoid head injuries, later developing brain damage. The NFL getting sued by former players who now suffer from brain damage should motivate the extra protection to high school and NFL players.
ReplyDeleteIt is truly disheartening that someone so young was taken from this world..although I agree with you that football is the sport of America, no one can deny that it is an extremely dangerous sport with many possible consequences. I can't imagine the pain that his family and teammates are in. I had no idea that there were so many deaths that related to head injuries in football. Eight deaths is definitely not a small number. If I had sons, I don't think I would want them to play football if I could help it. I also agree with you that football leagues should require more adequate protection to prevent injuries from occurring as frequently as they do.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteWithin this week, I have read an article about an Autistic girl who has an amazing talent. Autism affects one and 68 children. Autism is also affecting over 100,000 children around the UK. Iris Halmshaw was born in the United Kingdom, with autism and is unable to speak due to her condition. She, as her parents stated, speaks through her art. This five-year-old girl is known as an child artist prodigy. She can paint as well as Monet, and even Renoir. Since she was two she has picked up on many artistic skills throughout 3 years, and concentrate for over two hours on one painting, which is astonishing for a child her age because most children have a short attention span. At the age of five her paintings are worth from $90-$250. All proceeds go into Iris’s savings account, and the money that came from the paintings help her on a day-to-day basis, such as her therapy, yoga, and her future. Iris’s uses art to express her self since she cant say what’s she’s feeling. Considering the fact that she is soon to be learning how to speak for her self, slowly, for her age, its amazing that she can create such masterpieces, and from them to actually be sold for such a high price. As the article stated, "She has a tendency to drift off into her own world, if you let her," meaning she has her own state of mind that she goes to, to get away, to continue to do what she enjoys without being judged, and or having to feel out of place, all by painting.
ReplyDeleteThis week, I’ve read about different states that are most at risk for natural disasters. These natural disasters include hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes and tsunamis. The risk you are at depends on both geography and geology of the area. This should be taken into consideration due to the costs of insuring a home and also the health and survival of a person and their family. The data given by the Insurance Information Institute has stated that at least seven natural disasters in United States history has led to incidents that have cost ten billion dollars or more each. Florida is the number one state at most risk for a natural disaster. We topped the list at 94.51 out of 100 percent chance; reportedly 15 points higher than the second state on the list. Florida is at high risk for hurricane winds, storm surges, sinkholes, flooding and wildfires. Rhode Island is the second place on the list with a risk score of 79.67, vulnerable to hail, flood and high winds. Louisiana, 79.23, is at most risk for hurricanes. 2005’s Katrina caused $41.1 billion dollars in damage. California is fourth on the list with a risk score of 75.56 for earthquake damage. The Northridge quake in 1994 caused $12 billion dollars in damage. The fifth state on the list is Massachusetts, scoring a 72.12. The state is at risk of tropical storms, floods and even tornadoes. With such data, I wonder what would draw a person to live in these areas knowing they are at such risk of losing their homes, friends, family and even their own life.
ReplyDeleteFor this weeks current event, I found an article on yahoo about the infamous leaker Edward Snowden. Snowden is now asking the U.S. government to allow him to return to the United States and stand trial for his alleged crimes even though government officials have declined numerous times. Many people believe that Snowdens actions were out of line. But if you think about it, if Snowden didn't reveal the NSA's surveillance program, would Americans about their operations? I wouldn't consider him as someone who betrayed his country. As Snowden himself said," It was about getting the information back to the people so they could decide if they cared about it." He risked his own life and well being just to tell americans that," hey, you guys are being watched 24/7... just letting you know!" We'll just have to wait and see if the U.S. government declines him again...
ReplyDeleteRather than passively clicking on a podcast title that sounded remotely interesting, I decided to look into something I, and I’m sure many of you, can relate to. Binge-watching. Though self-explanatory with a little word analysis, the official definition is watching between 2 to 6 episodes of the same television show in one sitting. With the growing availability of Wi-Fi enabled technology: laptops, cellphones, gaming systems, and televisions, in addition to the affordability of services such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime, binge-watching is a habit that can easily develop and is regularly practiced by the majority of the public (61% as of last year) . Believe me though, I am not saying that we need to unsubscribe; a relaxing day of catching up on missed airings is a great reward after a hard-working week. The thing is though, television is a business and the plotlines are the product. They want us to consume as much as possible, meaning they are masters of cliffhangers. Writers will do anything to keep you tuning in; heck Netflix practically forces your hand by giving you only five seconds to close the window before starting the next episode for you. Simply binge-watching won’t cause health complications, but we’ve all experienced the sore eyes/ neck from staring at the screen or the emotional rollercoaster when your ship finally sails, but your favorite character is killed off. Actors in stories or even the construction of “reality” television can distort our view of life if we’re not careful. Most likely your life won’t be as exciting or glamorous as the cameras depict and I don’t want to be cynical, just honest. Narratives are a wonderful way to convey things, but there is a line between enjoying and obsessing. We constantly make decisions about how to spend our time and what activities will fill our schedules. Just know you have the control---literally and metaphorically.
ReplyDeleteI too, am guilty of binge-watching my favorite television shows. As you said, we are the ones that have control, but in today's society many of us have let technology take over our lives. We have become too lazy. We need to remind ourselves that we have control of what we do and how we spend our time. I need to be more aware of the activities I am filling my schedule with, because far too often I will grab the remote or unlock the screen of my mobile device.
DeleteFortunately, I'm not much one for binge-watching, because I hardly have time during the week for anything other than homework and a few hours of much needed sleep. However, my best friend should probably look into seeing a doctor about her Netflix addiction. I truly believe that the abundant amount of dangerously available TV show series contained in the site are hindering her ability to become a successful college student. Binge-watching is distracting her from studying and writing her papers. If she can't get a hold of her problem, Netflix could eventually be responsible for her failing out of school.
DeleteI think many people are guilty of binge-watching unless they actually have other obligations. Binge-watching does take time away from chores and actually does affect the way a person feels afterwards. After spending a lot of time watching TV or spending the majority of your time in front of the computer screen, you start to become tired and feel very sluggish. The most work you would probably do is going to the kitchen and grabbing something to eat. I think everyone should attempt to watch less TV, maybe then people would feel like they are using there time more wisely.
DeleteLast week, an armed robbery ended up getting physical, but not the way you would imagine. The masked, armed robber became guilty following his actions and proceeded to hug, kiss, and apologize to his victims. Employee Genevie Santos, explained that while working at the Lucky Land in Dededo, a man with a ski mask and a silver pistol violently came into the game room and ordered about eight customers to "drop on the floor" or be shot. Santos and her boyfriend said that the man demanded all of the establishment's money and stuffed the cash into his blue bag. The burglar threatened to shoot Santos and her boyfriend if they didn't do as he asked of them. Santos did what she was told and once inside the employee area the man continued to steal money and Santos' boyfriend’s license. The suspect then returned $7 after Santos, who was crying and in shock, complained that they wouldn't have money to replace the license. The man responded by saying he had just been released from prison. In the surveillance video, he can be seen hugging and kissing both Santos and her boyfriend. Santos recalls the robber apologizing, "I'm sorry, I have no choice. No one wants to hire me," "I'm sorry you had to be the ones working." This unpredicted guilt and physicality terrified Santos even more. I mean, who wouldn’t be scared if the person robbing you and threatening you with a gun, pulled you in close for a tight hug while saying sorry for their actions? In the end, the man left the store with over $5,000.
ReplyDeleteIt is a tough job market today, and the economy is not really helping anyone either. That said, you can’t use that as an excuse to steal $5,000 in an armed robbery. The robber, however, did seem to have some decency, so maybe he was hit hard after getting out of prison. Hostage situations are stressful on everyone involved, and I cannot imagine what Santos or any of the customers were going through. The hugging and kissing is unexpected, to say the least, but hopefully this small act of humanity made the experience a little easier on the victims involved.
Delete
DeleteThe fact that he tried to show them sympathy for his own actions is very unusual for an armed robber. It seems like he was just doing it so that they wouldn’t call the cops on him. Overall he shouldn’t have done it in the first place. There are always other options then to rob a establishment. They have programs that help people in this kind of situation, and if anything he can apply for food stamps, and other things to help him. There was no need for the situation that had went down, scaring these two workers half to death by pointing a gun at them, threating them to give them the money or else.
There was an article I came across over the week about a Michigan toddler dying of enterovirus D68. I’ve never heard of this virus until now. Madeline Reid died Friday afternoon, at Children’s Hospital of Michigan. This virus is common in children with asthma because it is a respiratory illness. Madeline was only 21 months and as soon as I saw this article I instantly was touched by it. Reading about a child’s death is so sensitive to many people because children are at its most innocent stage. Madeline’s death touched many people, and still continues to. I don’t think any parent should have to go through the death of his or her own child. I’m not sure how someone can recover from such a horrific time in his or her life. There are many cases of this virus but Madeline’s specifically was considered D68. Enterovirus is said to be very common, estimating 10 million to 15 million infections each year in the United States. I watched the video on this article, which explained her struggle through this virus. She was on life support since early September, until now. They say there are no treatments to this respiratory virus, but washing your hands and covering your mouth when you sneeze can help can significantly reduce the risks. Madeline looked like such a happy and beautiful baby girl, and it is sad to think she doesn’t have the chance to live out her life.
ReplyDeleteThe most youngest Nobel prize winner, Malala Yousafzai, has recently been awarded a peace prize for her outstanding courage to fight for what she believes in, and for her honorable sacrifice. As we know, 2 years ago at the age of 15 she was shot by the Taliban for her leadership in girls rights to go to school. After the Taliban had ruled their homes in Pakistan she has struggled immensely, eventually anonymously writing a blog about her struggles. After her attack, she has written a book, addressed the UN and has won a significant amount of prizes. She now lives in England with her family where she was treated immediately after she was shot, and they chose to stay there since the Taliban continue to threaten her. But the threats still do not stop Malala for doing what's right. As every girl of this world came to hear of this news, we are so proud and honored to have a great leader in womens' rights today. I believe that what she did was very risky, but I know that she is fighting for the right reasons and she will continue to fight so we can finally have that equality we all deserve. She has been a huge impact in many girls who are suffering in Pakistan and other countries who are not getting the equality and rights they deserve. And the movement that she has created makes her a great revolutionary leader for these girls because having her as the face of equality and peace empowers women and gives them hope that if a 17 year old young lady can fight for what she believes in and succeed at what she is doing, then they can too.
ReplyDeleteResearchers claim to have discovered matter in the Earth’s stratosphere that conclusively proves the existence of extraterrestrial life. The researchers at the University of Sheffield, and the University of Buckingham Centre for Astrobiology also claim that this matter explains the origins of life on Earth. Professor Milton Wainwright and his team are making the claim that all life on Earth came from space, after they discovered this matter by launching a balloon into the stratosphere during the Perseid meteor shower. The balloons were equipped with sterile slides designed to capture any tiny biological organism. One of the slides caught this “dragon particle”, which after analysis was 10 microns in size and made of carbon and oxygen, ruling out the possibility of being volcanic dust. Wainwright declares that this particle is like nothing found on earth, and had no pollen, grass, or pollution particles within the organism. The organism is believed to have come from space and not Earth because there is no way to lift the organism from Earth and selectively remove Earth debris, and the organism produced impact craters onto the slides. This discovery came quickly after a similar one on the International Space Station. Weeks before Wainwright’s discovery, Russian scientists found traces of marine life to be living on the exterior of the ISS. The findings on the ISS have been described as “absolutely unique”, and were the first complex organisms to be found in space. To me, this is very exciting news. I’ve always been interested in the search for life outside of Earth, even the kinds of life you see in shows like The X-Files. The discovery of life other than our own, even on such a small scale, is incredible. Not only is this a possibility to learn more of our own origins and make-up, but it also opens up new possibilities for scientific fields. This could be an indication of the possibility of other, more advanced life in our universe. There are so many new possibilities it’s unimaginable. Maybe it is possible to colonize life in outer space. Who knows? This may be the closest we’ve ever gotten to finding out.
ReplyDeleteThis week, after being completely lost and wandering aimlessly for three days, Paula Reuter was finally found in the woods of Washington. She had set out for an 11-mile hike with her two dogs, but had lost sight of the trail and was unable to relocate it following her disorientation. Luckily, she was rather healthy upon her rescue, having been able to survive on wild mushrooms. She even built a fire to keep warm and send smoke signals. Had she not been educated in the area of basic survival skills, she may not have made it out alive. I found it entertaining that she chose to save the beef jerky that she was carrying with her for her dogs, who also ate frogs and rabbits. Personally, I don’t think I would have been confident enough in my abilities to distinguish poisonous from harmless mushrooms, so I probably would have faced minor starvation. I believe that it’s very important for all active hikers and/or adventurers to have a good foundation of knowledge regarding edible plants in the area, how to make a fire without matches, how to send smoke signals, how to find fresh water, etc. Lost hikers are rather common occurrences, and it is very easy to lose your way in the wilderness, particularly in desolate areas with dense foliage. Therefore, it would be worth your while to adequately prepare yourself before venturing out into the wild, especially if you’re alone.
ReplyDeleteI actually love stories like this about what is basically a forced test of one’s abilities to survive without technology or the expertise of another human, just their own knowledge and skills. Well, only if the person survives. People dying is kind of a downer. But luckily Paula was aware of the possibility of getting lost while hiking, and prepared accordingly in case of it happening. This kind of makes me want to go camping, voluntarily, and try to build my own fires to stay warm and avoid bears and serial killers. I’d probably bring my own food and tent though, I don’t want to sleep on the ground and wake up to a giant spider on my face.
DeleteDr. Josef Bille, the pioneering scientist who invented eye surgery using laser was among the first subjects of the experimental procedure in 1986. He has subsequently gained dozens of patents and launched multiple companies that have together provided the majority of the 280 million laser surgeries carried out in the world to date. Dr. Josef Bile claims that there shouldn’t be any blind people ten years from now. This quote caught my attention immediately since there has never been a cure for blindness. Sure blind people have learned to take advantage of their other senses, however, they probably wish that they could see the world. I read into this a little more and found out that the key to the doctor’s ambition are femtosecond lasers; ultra-short and focused beams of light that efficiently target the bumps and film of a cataract without any cutting that can cause collateral damage or complications in the healing process. The lasers are precise enough to pinpoint individual molecules and subtly adjust their focus while leaving healthy material alone. Numerous tests have proved they offer significant safety advantages over existing best practice. Perfect Lens, a Californian company that Bille works with, has even adapted the cut-free process to plastic for advanced contact lenses, and the scientist expects it to make the jump to "in vivo" - in a living human - within a few years. It is obvious that companies are eager to try this technique in hope of receiving successful results. Bille's target of 10 years to eliminate blindness may prove optimistic, with far more basic methods such as early screening used to tackle impairment in many of the worst affected parts of the world. But since he was told that laser surgery would not work a long time ago, the world's leading ophthalmist has always been motivated to "try new things they say couldn't be done."
ReplyDeleteA cure that brings back the sense of what most people would deem the most important is incredible news. I hope they do make great advancements in the practice of laser eye surgery in the coming years, because I myself might need it one day. Much of this generation, thanks to an era of moving from screen to screen throughout the day, have vision problems. So not only will blind people be given the gift of sight, but people that have slowly deteriorating vision will also have a better chance of gaining it back. I might stay away from eye surgery until it doesn’t require any high-energy beams of light pointing straight at my skull, though.
Delete‘Couple’s Dream Home Built—On The Wrong Lot’ is the headline that caught my eye when browsing news articles this week. But the headline itself isn’t what made this story the most interesting to me. It happened right here in Flagler County! Missouri couple Mark and Brenda Voss arranged for a $680,000 three-story vacation rental house to be constructed in the Ocean Hammock resort gated community. The 5000-square-foot home was meant to be built on the lot labeled 23 Ocean Ridge Blvd. North, but was mistakenly constructed on the lot next door, 21 Ocean Ridge Blvd. North. This lot is owned by Andrew Massaro and Brooke Triplett, from North Carolina. This error, a 5 bedroom, 5.5 bathroom, home theater, game room, and pool error, is the fault of the very first survey of the land in 2013. East Coast Land Surveying, typically a very reputable surveyor with a lot of experience working in the Hammocks, misplaced some stakes at the initial review, resulting in a foundation survey and other documents and building activity based on the error. It is thought that the error was due to the fact that the west side of Ocean Ridge Blvd. North includes a stretch of 10 vacant lots characterized by short-mowed grass and a lack of distinguishing landmarks. Building inspectors meant to catch these types of problems are typically concerned more on the construction rather that lot surveys. Officials investigating the issue have also mentioned that these things happen rarely, but they do happen. Normally they don’t make it into the news because the homes built on the lots aren’t million-dollar ocean front mansions. The resolution suggested is to simply trade lots between the two mistaken owners, though the Voss couple is not ready to quickly agree to that resolve, and has not commented on what their actual plan is.
ReplyDeleteI was reading an article on CNN that was talking about ISIS. ISIS is a growing problem in the Middle East, and they have no mercy for other people. They will do whatever it takes to obtain what they want. In the article, it goes into detail about who ISIS is now training to fly war planes. Now what does this mean for the United States? It means we are more vulnerable to attract, even though we have high-tech fighter jets, they may not always be there on time. If ISIS is capable of attacking the US, I believe we should do whatever it takes to protect our home country. ISIS isn't going to stop these shenanigans anytime soon, so the fact that they are training to fly planes now isn't a good sign. In my humble opinion, we need to take immediate action against this growing threat to protect the interests of our home country. Obama is currently meeting with leaders around the world about this pressing issue, but most of our allies don’t feel like getting dragged into another war that could take years to withdraw from. Look at Afghanistan. We have been there since 2001, and we are just now drawing out our soldiers. You can see why our allies don’t want to participate in another war that will not benefit them the slightest. For them, they see it as a war that will do nothing but drain their resources, however, no matter what their decisions are, we need to take appropriate action to stop this immediate threat.
ReplyDeleteGovernor Rick Scott and Charlie Crist go head to head in the 2014 election for our appointed Florida Governor. They do not agree on who is to blame for the great recession but are both coming up with ways to create jobs. Crist wants to put the spotlight on the Space Coast, and start the high-speed-rail project. Scott, who scrapped the high-speed-rail project in 2011 is looking to cut taxes again with a one billion dollar plan. Both go head to head when it comes to who is more environmentally friendly. Scott has pledged 1 billion dollars in efforts to protect the Florida waters over a ten year period. Crist says he will fully restore Florida's land conservation forever within the first two years as governor. One thing they both agree on is raising the classroom funding. Crist's plan is to give back the 1.3 billion dollars that Scott cut in his first term. Scott, who claims that the money has already been restored pledged to increase classroom spending substantially. He also is fighting for vouchers so that students who are zoned for poor schools have the option to have a better education with the exception that they make their own transportation accommodations. Crist is fighting against voucher expansion believing that he can improve Florida's rankings academically.
ReplyDeleteThis amazing, state of the art rocket-powered airplane, a 3D-printed toy plane will soon take lift off to the stratosphere. This rocket-power plane will reach an altitude of 25-30 kilometers, which is approximately 15-18 miles high. It is also three times higher than the cruising height of an airplane. The airplane was composed, and designed by postgraduate students at Southampton University. Although, there are some controversies that are unsure if it will lead up to its expectations, but it will certainly be a big event for these scientists. The rocket will be levitating 20 kilometers from the ground due to a helium-filled meteorological balloon. Once it reaches its designated, 20 kilometers, altitude. The rocket motor will fire and push the plane 25 kilometers high. Then, once it bypass the 45 kilometers mark, at the right altitude the plane will switch to autopilot, the plane will use a GPS, a navigation system, which will guide the rocket back to earth. And throughout its amazing adventure, the rocket will crash land to the ground. Sponsorships companies from science corporations were interview, and stated, “this requires a lot of "Its going to be doing some very smart things; collecting data from numerous sources, making decisions in real time, to form its trajectory and landing," "Its going to be doing some very smart things; collecting data from numerous sources, making decisions in real time, to form its trajectory and landing." I personally think this is quite a feat, it takes dedication and hours of hard work to perform this type of projection. It is also amazes me to see projects like this happening, I would love to participate in one of these events, because it is such a memorable and awesome experience. Also, it stated in the article it took them four years to compose this whole project together, not to mention thousand of community service hours.
ReplyDeleteGunshots were fired in a peaceful library at FSU. Three students were wounded, while hundreds of students huddle between bookshelves before police encountered and killed the gunman. The gunman did not comply with police demands to drop his guns, and shot at one of the officers. The officers responded by turning fire and killed him on the scene. The gunman was IDed as Myron May, a graduate of FSU. The motive behind his shooting is unknown, and none of the victims were targeted for any specific reason. Founding’s have suggested that May had kept journals saying that he had fears of being targeted and had said that he wasted to bring attention to the issue of targeting. May was not well.
ReplyDeleteThis is disturbing news. Students can no longer be safe in their learning environments anymore, and school systems should be taking better care of these problems. Locking students in the classroom, or in a back closet isn’t going to prevent a killer from getting in there. It will only save time, but being in a school that is in the middle of nowhere, it takes a long time to travel. School systems should devise new plans for school shootings to make public school safer.