Bradbury Ray, Fahrenheit 451,
Los Angeles,CABallantine Books: 1953
Reason, Type and Setting: I read this book last year in Slovakia, it has the same name in Slovak. I actually didn't pick this book, it was recommended to me by my dad, and he said it is a really good book. It's a science-fiction novel and takes place sometimes in 21st century, in a unspecified city.
Plot: The story takes place in a futuristic american city, at these times people don't read books anymore. Main character, Guy Montag, is a fireman, but he doesn't put fires down, he sets them up. All the books are banned. He meets a young girl named Clarisse, and she opens his eyes, so he starts to read the books, which are about to be burnt. Then he meets a guy named Faber who encourages him to read the books. Montag's own wife betrayed him. His chief Beatty finds out about books so she puts him under arrest. He escapes, joins the nationwide network of book lovers, and they together rebuild the mankind.
Character: I chose Guy Montag, because I like his character. Even he is confused, frustrated, full of stress almost for the entire story, he's trying to find himself and also think about the meaning of books. He is a main character, and basically ste dtory focuses on him. The plot is changed by him all the time, and at the end of the story he becomes a new man.
Evaluation: I expected more from this novel. First of all, I didn't expect it to be a sci-fi. That was my very first surprise. The main idea I was able to catch from it was how important are books in our lives and how bad is society these days. Everyone is focusing on TV shows, iPods, but there is no more time left fom a simple reading.I can't actually put myself in the plot, because I'm a totally different person. I love books and i love reading.The end of the book was kinda HOLLYWOOD-ish, but even in spite of that fact, it was a nice reading.
Author, Context and Trivia: This was my first time I heard about this author. I know totally nothing about him. But after a little research I found out, that he was American novelist of the 20th century, especially interested in horrors, sci-fi, mystery topics. His most famous books are The Martian Chonicles, Fahrenheit 451, The Fog Horn.I'm definitely gonna read something more from him, because I love mystery books.
Current Event
http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/wayoflife/06/06/SUV.owners/index.html
This article talks about families, who can't afford to buy smaller cars in order to save some money due to high gas prices, because they simply need the room.
Despite GM announced closing of their 4 carplants by 2010, bigger families keep buying bigger SUV's and have to spend about 100 dollars on their full tank.
The gas prices are increasing by every week. 3 weeks ago, the average gas price was 3.8 dollars per gallon, today, it's 4.4 dollars.
This article talks about families, who can't afford to buy smaller cars in order to save some money due to high gas prices, because they simply need the room.
Despite GM announced closing of their 4 carplants by 2010, bigger families keep buying bigger SUV's and have to spend about 100 dollars on their full tank.
The gas prices are increasing by every week. 3 weeks ago, the average gas price was 3.8 dollars per gallon, today, it's 4.4 dollars.
Hip-Hop History
Hip Hop: Urban youth culture associated with rap music, a fashion style, and social and political activism of inner city African American youth
The term Hip Hop actually came from the song rappers delight by the sugar hill gang. I am sure we have all heard the phrase “i said a hip hop the hippie the hippie to the hip hip hop, a you dont stop the rock it to the bang bang boogie say up jumped the boogieto the rhythm of the boogie, the beat”. The Hip Hop movement is traced back to New York in the 80s. A man from Jamaica, a DJ who went by Kool Here brought his style from Queens New York to the Bronx and tried to intertwine that with instrumental, and percussion of the day’s popular song, since the pieces were so short he could mix them together over and over making the rhythm endless. Rap became so popular because of the fact that it was so cheap to do it. You didn’t have to buy an instrument to rhyme, you didn’t have to take lessons, and it was a verbal skill that could be practiced at anytime. It also became very popular because the fact that it was so challenging. The only real requirement was to be original and with the ease and popularity of Hip Hop you would find many artists starting to emerge. Artists would challenge each other creating what was known as battles. People who would rap and DJ’s went hand and hand because the pair went flawlessly together so you would also have a lot different Dj showing their beats with rap artists. With the era came the slang that went with it the birth of the slang came form when Dj’s would acknowledge people in the audience when at a party. Artists like Kool over an instrumental break would yell 'Yo this is Kool Herc in the joint-ski saying my mellow-ski Marky D is in the house’ the style became very popular and soon became a normal thing setting the trend for the Dj’s of our age.
The term Hip Hop actually came from the song rappers delight by the sugar hill gang. I am sure we have all heard the phrase “i said a hip hop the hippie the hippie to the hip hip hop, a you dont stop the rock it to the bang bang boogie say up jumped the boogieto the rhythm of the boogie, the beat”. The Hip Hop movement is traced back to New York in the 80s. A man from Jamaica, a DJ who went by Kool Here brought his style from Queens New York to the Bronx and tried to intertwine that with instrumental, and percussion of the day’s popular song, since the pieces were so short he could mix them together over and over making the rhythm endless. Rap became so popular because of the fact that it was so cheap to do it. You didn’t have to buy an instrument to rhyme, you didn’t have to take lessons, and it was a verbal skill that could be practiced at anytime. It also became very popular because the fact that it was so challenging. The only real requirement was to be original and with the ease and popularity of Hip Hop you would find many artists starting to emerge. Artists would challenge each other creating what was known as battles. People who would rap and DJ’s went hand and hand because the pair went flawlessly together so you would also have a lot different Dj showing their beats with rap artists. With the era came the slang that went with it the birth of the slang came form when Dj’s would acknowledge people in the audience when at a party. Artists like Kool over an instrumental break would yell 'Yo this is Kool Herc in the joint-ski saying my mellow-ski Marky D is in the house’ the style became very popular and soon became a normal thing setting the trend for the Dj’s of our age.
Current Event
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TRAVEL/05/30/airtravel.decline.ap/index.html
This article talks about huge air travel drops within the last year. The Travel Industry Association created a survey which concluded in some shocking numbers. Nearly 45 million flights were skipped y the passengers due to costs. The fuel prize is raising, people stop using the services of the airlines. The forgone trips cost the travel industry $18.1 billion -- including $9.4 billion to airlines and $5.6 billion to hotels. Plus, it cost federal, state and local authorities $4.2 billion in taxes in the past 12 months.
This article is significant, because flying is one of the quickest and safest way to travel and should not be switched for driving a car. Government in co-operation with airlines should find a solution in order to make people travel by air.
This article talks about huge air travel drops within the last year. The Travel Industry Association created a survey which concluded in some shocking numbers. Nearly 45 million flights were skipped y the passengers due to costs. The fuel prize is raising, people stop using the services of the airlines. The forgone trips cost the travel industry $18.1 billion -- including $9.4 billion to airlines and $5.6 billion to hotels. Plus, it cost federal, state and local authorities $4.2 billion in taxes in the past 12 months.
This article is significant, because flying is one of the quickest and safest way to travel and should not be switched for driving a car. Government in co-operation with airlines should find a solution in order to make people travel by air.
Current Event
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/7416823.stm
This article talks about Kanye West and some of the most famous rappers stealing part of song of a jazz artist from New York without permission. He is sueing 5 rappers including Method Man, Kanye West, Radman and Common for using parts of their songs, and is hoping to win total 1 million dollars.
It is significant, because today's music is experiencing some huge problems with breaking the copyrights and the music today is not as it used to be. Artists usually don't make their own music anymore, they have people for it.
I think it's pretty messed up that someone is trying to copy some musis from someone else, but it is also sad if that person is just making it up.
This article talks about Kanye West and some of the most famous rappers stealing part of song of a jazz artist from New York without permission. He is sueing 5 rappers including Method Man, Kanye West, Radman and Common for using parts of their songs, and is hoping to win total 1 million dollars.
It is significant, because today's music is experiencing some huge problems with breaking the copyrights and the music today is not as it used to be. Artists usually don't make their own music anymore, they have people for it.
I think it's pretty messed up that someone is trying to copy some musis from someone else, but it is also sad if that person is just making it up.
Journal High Tech Education
Read the article by clicking here.
I personaly believe, that the education should move toward high tech standards as quickly as possible. However, today's people forget about the old-fashioned values of life. Who of us uses a typical mail to communicate with people? We all are about laptops, emails and cell phones. The same applies to children in our schools.
If I was to change the educational enviroment, particularly elementary and middle schools, I would start slowly. I would put SOME technology in elementary schools, they would have to be directly linked to traditional learning techniques. For instance: Having laptops in schools would be great, however, the essays would still have to be hand-written.
In middle school, the kids should meet with a higher level of technology in classrooms, but still with some textbooks and paper sheets. We must not trasform our society into a technological world, where old type writing, reading or learning means nothing.
High School though, is a very different chapter. I think, technology should be used every day, as much as possible, even more than traditional teaching and learning techniques. There MUST BE a specific level of those "boring" and "not interesting" ways of learning, so people do not get all sophisticated.:)
I personaly believe, that the education should move toward high tech standards as quickly as possible. However, today's people forget about the old-fashioned values of life. Who of us uses a typical mail to communicate with people? We all are about laptops, emails and cell phones. The same applies to children in our schools.
If I was to change the educational enviroment, particularly elementary and middle schools, I would start slowly. I would put SOME technology in elementary schools, they would have to be directly linked to traditional learning techniques. For instance: Having laptops in schools would be great, however, the essays would still have to be hand-written.
In middle school, the kids should meet with a higher level of technology in classrooms, but still with some textbooks and paper sheets. We must not trasform our society into a technological world, where old type writing, reading or learning means nothing.
High School though, is a very different chapter. I think, technology should be used every day, as much as possible, even more than traditional teaching and learning techniques. There MUST BE a specific level of those "boring" and "not interesting" ways of learning, so people do not get all sophisticated.:)
Vocab Week 17
Companies around the globe have the ability to imitate products of brand companies.
The hallway I was walking through seemed unterminable, because I could not see the end of it.
Plastic surgery is much more laborious then regular surgery. Doctors have to be precise, sometimes in does not work out though.
As soon as a human is born, they become senescent from the first minute. We all arw gwtting old.
According to Bible, a shroud was used to burry the body of Jesus Christ.
Every situation can be sometimes sticky...when a piece gum was spat on the sidewalk.
The dancing couple had to skate synchronously in order to get full score.
The bolt in the sky was very tortuous, because it was full of twists.
immitability - capable or worthy of being imitated
interminable - incapable of being terminated; unending
intuit - to know or receive by intuition
laboriously - requiring much work, exertion, or perseverance
proximity - nearness in place, time, order, occurrence, or relation
reticence - disposed to be silent or not to speak freely; reserved
senescent - growing old; aging
shroud - a cloth or sheet in which a corpse is wrapped for burial
situation - manner of being situated; location or position with reference to environment
synchronously - occurring at the same time
tortuous - full of twists, turns, or bends
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Current Event
http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/05/16/croatia.body.ap/index.html
The officials found a dead body of a woman, who died in 1973, and since the window had been opened, her body was actually still there. It is pretty weird for me that no one have been to that appartment since the last Croatian war, but I dont get who has been paying the rent and all of that. It's pretty sad.
The officials found a dead body of a woman, who died in 1973, and since the window had been opened, her body was actually still there. It is pretty weird for me that no one have been to that appartment since the last Croatian war, but I dont get who has been paying the rent and all of that. It's pretty sad.
May Book Report
Camus Albert, The Stranger, France
Librairie Gallimard, France
Reason, Type and Setting: I chose this book, because it caught my attention by its name, sounds misteriously. This novel is a crime drama, takes place in Algeria before WW2.
Plot: The narrator, a young man named Meursault gets an urgent telegram reporting his mother's death. After his mom was burried, he meets his ex-coworker Marie Cardona, they spend the night together, but she's gone in the morning. He gets home and his neighbor asks him to write a letter for him, which would convince his mistress to come back to him. He wants to beat her up, for cheating on him. The neighbor gets arrested for beating her up, later Marie Cardona asks Meursalt to marry her. Later on, they go to the beach, where they meet Raymond's(neighbor) mistress's brother. Meursalt shoots him, for no apperant reason. He get into a jail and after a lost trial he is sentenced to death. A chaplain tries to convince him to believe in God, but Meursault refuses. He embraces the idea that human existence holds no greater meaning.
Character:Mersault - the main character, pretty young. He kind of loses his mind after his mother's death, and shoots a man. He often thinks of the morality of the world. I selected this character, because he seemed to be the most active in the plot. I was interested by his thinking after all the things he went through. He totally changed my expectations of the end of this book, I expected something different.
Evaluation: Well, honestly, I expected more of this novel. It has a really good beginning, which caught my attention, but then they started focusing on morality of the world, which kind of bored me. However, it showed my how can we look at today's life values, I've never thought of them in this way. In spite of fact, that this novel was written in late 40's, it still applies to today's world. Being or not-being moral has always been a discussed issue. I personaly think, that not many people would like this book, because it gets really slow in the middle. Maybe it's just my opinion... . If I had to put myselft into the plot, I would have no reason to kill a man. However, I can't really tell, since both of my parents are fortunately still alive.
Author, Context and Trivia: Albert Camus is a Frech writer, who won a Nobel prize in 1957. He wrote a couple of novels, such as The Plague, The Fall, A Happy Death, The First Man...I think I'm gonna look for one more book from him to see, if every book of his is this philosophical.I did't like this book that much, as I said earlier, it was too boring for me.
Librairie Gallimard, France
Reason, Type and Setting: I chose this book, because it caught my attention by its name, sounds misteriously. This novel is a crime drama, takes place in Algeria before WW2.
Plot: The narrator, a young man named Meursault gets an urgent telegram reporting his mother's death. After his mom was burried, he meets his ex-coworker Marie Cardona, they spend the night together, but she's gone in the morning. He gets home and his neighbor asks him to write a letter for him, which would convince his mistress to come back to him. He wants to beat her up, for cheating on him. The neighbor gets arrested for beating her up, later Marie Cardona asks Meursalt to marry her. Later on, they go to the beach, where they meet Raymond's(neighbor) mistress's brother. Meursalt shoots him, for no apperant reason. He get into a jail and after a lost trial he is sentenced to death. A chaplain tries to convince him to believe in God, but Meursault refuses. He embraces the idea that human existence holds no greater meaning.
Character:Mersault - the main character, pretty young. He kind of loses his mind after his mother's death, and shoots a man. He often thinks of the morality of the world. I selected this character, because he seemed to be the most active in the plot. I was interested by his thinking after all the things he went through. He totally changed my expectations of the end of this book, I expected something different.
Evaluation: Well, honestly, I expected more of this novel. It has a really good beginning, which caught my attention, but then they started focusing on morality of the world, which kind of bored me. However, it showed my how can we look at today's life values, I've never thought of them in this way. In spite of fact, that this novel was written in late 40's, it still applies to today's world. Being or not-being moral has always been a discussed issue. I personaly think, that not many people would like this book, because it gets really slow in the middle. Maybe it's just my opinion... . If I had to put myselft into the plot, I would have no reason to kill a man. However, I can't really tell, since both of my parents are fortunately still alive.
Author, Context and Trivia: Albert Camus is a Frech writer, who won a Nobel prize in 1957. He wrote a couple of novels, such as The Plague, The Fall, A Happy Death, The First Man...I think I'm gonna look for one more book from him to see, if every book of his is this philosophical.I did't like this book that much, as I said earlier, it was too boring for me.
Non Profit
Free 4 Me
Mission statement: Our goal is to increase the number of students in colleges and Universities throughout the United States. We will offer scholarships to low-income families whose children are trying to achieve the dream of higher education.
Vocab Week 8
Drugs are deleterious, causing its users to many different effects. Ecstasy causes its users sometimes to become amorous towards others, while giving the feeling of ecstasy. Less effective drugs like Marijuana cause the user to act excessively awkward and can even create a sense of delirium. Even though it is usually inevitable that a student will be given the opportunity to try these altering substances, they should never simply acquiesce. Conversely, though, there are those that make the other choice. Although it is difficult, it is not a futile effort to try and pull these people back into reality and out of drugs.
aroma - a pleasant characteristic odor; a pervasive characteristic or quality.
acquiesce - submit or comply silently or without protest.
consummate - to bring to a state of perfection; complete or perfect.
amorous - inclined toward or expressing love.
awkward - lacking skill or grace.
conversely - opposite or contrary; something that has been reversed.
deleterious - injurious to health.
delirium - a temporary state of mental confusion; a state of uncontrolled excitement or emotion.
ecstasy - a state of elated bliss.
enamored - to inspire with love; captivate.
futile - incapable of producing any result; frivolous.
incantation - the chanting of words aiming to achieve a magical effect.
inevitability - unable to be avoided, evaded, or escaped.
infatuation - a foolish, unreasoning or extravagant passion or attraction.
Book report April
Name: Debunking 9/11 Myths
Author: Dunbar David, Reagan Brad
Place of publication: New York, NY
Popular mechanics: 2005
Reason, Type and Setting: The reason why I chose to read this book is really simple. I'm fascinated by disasters. I'm obsessed with looking for fact, evidence and researching conspiracy theories. JFK, Cold War, 9/11. Personally I agree with the conspiracy theories, that's why I purchased this book. It is a factographical piece, takes place kind of in New York City, but involves the whole world. It all happens right now, in the 21st century.
Plot: This book doesn't have a plot, however the major conflicts are built upon the conspiracy theories. This book tries to reveal, or to debunk the most popular parts of the "conspiracy theories" by bringin the cact from the experts.
Character: There is not many characters in this book, since it is all about facts. However, I would pick George W. Bush and mankind itself. Right now, everysingle person should think of actions that we do. Whether it's Bush or whoever else, there would be no need for debunking book, if there were no conspiracy theories. And conspracy theories are gone only when we can trust our governments.
Evaluation: I didn't like the book. In my opinion it shows "facts" from "experts" that are experts just like myself. Their investigation and testimonies don't match the fact that anyone can watch, say on youtube. Some of the fact are very very cheap, it almost seems like the writers were hired by someone only to publish something that debunks the conspiracy theorist. This book has a direct connection to real world, since the events desribed in it are happening/happened/ in real world. I recommend this book only to people, who are interested in conspracies. This book is one big lie, with lots of unclear facts in it.
Author, Context and Trivia: This book is written by two editors from Popular Mechanics, a famous magazine publishing articles mainly about science. I've seen these guys on TV in a debate with the major conspiracy theorists, and they were lost. They couldn't say a word, they were only sort of speechless. As I already mentioned, it doesn't even seem like they wanted to write this book. Seems like somebody hired a high-reputation magazine's editors to do some "research".
Author: Dunbar David, Reagan Brad
Place of publication: New York, NY
Popular mechanics: 2005
Reason, Type and Setting: The reason why I chose to read this book is really simple. I'm fascinated by disasters. I'm obsessed with looking for fact, evidence and researching conspiracy theories. JFK, Cold War, 9/11. Personally I agree with the conspiracy theories, that's why I purchased this book. It is a factographical piece, takes place kind of in New York City, but involves the whole world. It all happens right now, in the 21st century.
Plot: This book doesn't have a plot, however the major conflicts are built upon the conspiracy theories. This book tries to reveal, or to debunk the most popular parts of the "conspiracy theories" by bringin the cact from the experts.
Character: There is not many characters in this book, since it is all about facts. However, I would pick George W. Bush and mankind itself. Right now, everysingle person should think of actions that we do. Whether it's Bush or whoever else, there would be no need for debunking book, if there were no conspiracy theories. And conspracy theories are gone only when we can trust our governments.
Evaluation: I didn't like the book. In my opinion it shows "facts" from "experts" that are experts just like myself. Their investigation and testimonies don't match the fact that anyone can watch, say on youtube. Some of the fact are very very cheap, it almost seems like the writers were hired by someone only to publish something that debunks the conspiracy theorist. This book has a direct connection to real world, since the events desribed in it are happening/happened/ in real world. I recommend this book only to people, who are interested in conspracies. This book is one big lie, with lots of unclear facts in it.
Author, Context and Trivia: This book is written by two editors from Popular Mechanics, a famous magazine publishing articles mainly about science. I've seen these guys on TV in a debate with the major conspiracy theorists, and they were lost. They couldn't say a word, they were only sort of speechless. As I already mentioned, it doesn't even seem like they wanted to write this book. Seems like somebody hired a high-reputation magazine's editors to do some "research".
Current Events Week 14
Who wants to be Paris Hilton's friend?
http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/TV/04/24/people.parishilton.ap/index.htmlI can't believe this person is still alive. I don't mean physically, now I mean socially. It's incredible to me how people are still rushong after her, although she's one of those little rich girls, who doesn't know anything about the real world. This article, actually the whole idea behind her new project clearly shows how easily can people be manipulated.
Current Events Week 13
SAN FRANCISCO - A 20-year-old California Institute of Technology student set a new world's record Saturday for solving the popular Rubik's Cube puzzle, turning the tiled brain-twister from scrambled to solved in 11.13 seconds.
Leyan Lo is part of Caltech's Rubik's Cube Club, a brainy clutch of students that hosted the competition at the Exploratorium museum in San Francisco. Lo's record-setting time came early in the day, among his first five tries in the preliminary rounds.
The record-setting solve caught competitors and Lo himself by surprise.
I posted this current event specially for Mason. So can have some motivation. These guys were able to solve the cube in 11 seconds. Amazing.
Vocab Week 13
revere - to regard with respect tinged with awe; venerate
vertigo - a dizzying sensation of tilting within stable surroundings or of being in tilting or spinning surroundings.
punitive - serving for, concerned with, or inflicting punishment
slander - defamation; calumny
squander - to spend or use (money, time, etc.) extravagantly or wastefully
panache - a grand or flamboyant manner; verve; style; flair
forlorn - desolate or dreary; unhappy or miserable, as in feeling, condition, or appearance
quell - to suppress; put an end to; extinguish
concision - concise quality; brevity; terseness
libel - law
defamation - the act of defaming; false or unjustified injury of the good reputation of another, as by slander or libel; calumny
misdirection - a wrong or incorrect direction, guidance, or instruction
Last words presentation
Scenario: I’m flying back to Slovakia to finally see my relatives and friends, whom I haven’t seen for a year. I’m looking at the right wing, which suddenly snaps off. Great, I say. As we’re falling vertically down, I take out my laptop and video camera and start recording, meanwhile eveyrone else is screaming.
Whoever gets this tape should know, that it was made to help. I’m not really disappointed, that I’m about to die. If it was meant to be this way, I accept it. However, I wanna say a couple pf words for those of you, who have been living life similar to mine. I have always tried to think of my future, what was gonna happen, how will people change, how the world will change and now that I’m dying, it means nothing. Absolutely pointless, right? The year in the U.S. has taught me something. Never try to think of your past, what could you have done if...or your future, this could have looked totally different if...no. We are all living NOW. Not yesterday, not tomorrow, not a minute later. Now is the time to enjoy your life. Now is the moment to tell your friends, that you love them, not tomorrow. Now is the time go to the graves of your relatives and put a flower down. Why? Beacuse you might join them tommorow. Because no one of us chooses the date of their death. This moment, right now could be your very last. Negative thinking? No. Reality. That is the reason why I called my dad to say that I love him. Just before the plane started falling. ..
Current Event Week 11
Texas Takes legal custody of 401 sect children
They lived in West Texas. The children in state custody are joined at the shelter by 133 women, most of them mothers, who were taken during the past few days from the sprawling Yearning for Zion ranch, said Marleigh Meisner, a spokeswoman for the state's Child Protective Services agency.
I think its really sad that someone would do this, not to mention it's children. I can't believe anyone could do this.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/04/07/texas.ranch/index.html
They lived in West Texas. The children in state custody are joined at the shelter by 133 women, most of them mothers, who were taken during the past few days from the sprawling Yearning for Zion ranch, said Marleigh Meisner, a spokeswoman for the state's Child Protective Services agency.
I think its really sad that someone would do this, not to mention it's children. I can't believe anyone could do this.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/04/07/texas.ranch/index.html
War Book Report
Heller, Joseph, Catch 22, New York
Simon & Schuster, Inc.: 1961
Reason, Type and Setting: I read this book long time ago, when my dad kind of forced me to read it. He has been in love with WW2 since ever, so I had basically no choice. It is a war novel, takes place at Pianosa, a little island by the coast of Italy in the end of WW2.
Plot: A young US Air Force soldier named Yossarian is drafted to Italy for his missions. However, his commanders are being tyrans, so him and his friends get into the worst missions. He tries to find a way out of the military and he finds it. There is a way, if the soldier is insane. He starts calling himself insane, but he just prooves, that he is sane. He tries to get out of Army anyway, he is arrested in Rome, and finally he deserts. He flies to neutral Sweden, and take control of his own life.
Character: Yossarian - the main character and the hero of the novel. I picked him because he is the easiest one to describe:) I like his attitude and and willingness to see the reality. However, I would not wanna be him. He is not able to respect the authority.
Evaluation: This novel was the weirdest thing I have ever read. I guess I was just too young to get it back then when I was reading it. It shows a lot of human values, friendships.... If I would put myself into the plot, I would follow orders. Im a soldier expected to follow orders. In spite of the fact novel being kind of weird, I totally recommend everyone to read it. It brings some new information and I think opens the eyes... on what was really happening thru the WW2.
Author, Context and Trivia: Joseph Heller was an american novelist, born and raised in New York City. His most famous pieces are as follows: I haven"t read any of these books though, but I think I should take a look at them, since Catch 22 was a masterpiece, as many claim it to be....
Simon & Schuster, Inc.: 1961
Reason, Type and Setting: I read this book long time ago, when my dad kind of forced me to read it. He has been in love with WW2 since ever, so I had basically no choice. It is a war novel, takes place at Pianosa, a little island by the coast of Italy in the end of WW2.
Plot: A young US Air Force soldier named Yossarian is drafted to Italy for his missions. However, his commanders are being tyrans, so him and his friends get into the worst missions. He tries to find a way out of the military and he finds it. There is a way, if the soldier is insane. He starts calling himself insane, but he just prooves, that he is sane. He tries to get out of Army anyway, he is arrested in Rome, and finally he deserts. He flies to neutral Sweden, and take control of his own life.
Character: Yossarian - the main character and the hero of the novel. I picked him because he is the easiest one to describe:) I like his attitude and and willingness to see the reality. However, I would not wanna be him. He is not able to respect the authority.
Evaluation: This novel was the weirdest thing I have ever read. I guess I was just too young to get it back then when I was reading it. It shows a lot of human values, friendships.... If I would put myself into the plot, I would follow orders. Im a soldier expected to follow orders. In spite of the fact novel being kind of weird, I totally recommend everyone to read it. It brings some new information and I think opens the eyes... on what was really happening thru the WW2.
Author, Context and Trivia: Joseph Heller was an american novelist, born and raised in New York City. His most famous pieces are as follows: I haven"t read any of these books though, but I think I should take a look at them, since Catch 22 was a masterpiece, as many claim it to be....
Current Events Week 7
My article was about the biggest dog-show in the world, taking place in Birmingham,UK. 190 breeds in total competed againts each other in severela different categories. I used to take ma dog to these dog shows, we won some stuff, and then I got lazy...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham/content/articles/2008/01/24/crufts_2008_feature.shtml
http://www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham/content/articles/2008/01/24/crufts_2008_feature.shtml
Vocab Week 7
scuttlebutt - A cask on a ship used to hold the day's supply of drinking water
bulwark - a wall of earth or other material built for defense
hubris - excessive pride or self-confidence
dearth - famine; an inadequate supply
deference - respectful submission or yielding to the judgment, opinion, will, etc., of another
emulate - to try to equal or excel
imitate -to mimic; impersonate
mimic - to be an imitation of
endemic - Prevalent in or peculiar to a particular locality, region, or people
aborigine - one of the original or earliest known inhabitants of a country or region.
inchoate - not yet completed or fully developed
precursor - One that precedes another
volatile - tending or threatening to break out into open violence
bulwark - a wall of earth or other material built for defense
hubris - excessive pride or self-confidence
dearth - famine; an inadequate supply
deference - respectful submission or yielding to the judgment, opinion, will, etc., of another
emulate - to try to equal or excel
imitate -to mimic; impersonate
mimic - to be an imitation of
endemic - Prevalent in or peculiar to a particular locality, region, or people
aborigine - one of the original or earliest known inhabitants of a country or region.
inchoate - not yet completed or fully developed
precursor - One that precedes another
volatile - tending or threatening to break out into open violence
What do you hear?Journal
Everything sound so lound after I "reopened" my ears. I can hear a lot of footsteps, especially some knocking of the high-heel shoes. I can hear a plenty of door-slamming. Like a lot! I realized, that school is not as quiet place as I thought it was gonna be during the class.
Art Journal
I think art is something that includes a creativity and brings something to think about. It is not a simple form of having fun, however it is a significant part of our lives. Grafitty. I consider it being an art if it's well-made. People who just tag all around are losers. They think they create something unique. They are right. Somthing really stupid. Art is something where you have to use your imagination in order to create a final product.
Current Event
Microsoft has to pay a record fine to European Union in rate of 1.4bn dollars for after it failed to comply with a 2004 ruling that it abused its dominant market position.
The ruling said that Microsoft was guilty of not providing key code to rival software makers.
EU regulators said the firm was the first to break an EU anti-trust ruling.
The fines come on top of earlier fines of 280m euros imposed in July 2006, and of 497m euros in March 2004. I think the Microsoft should not be fined, they are a unique company and have right to be the no.1.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7266629.stm
The ruling said that Microsoft was guilty of not providing key code to rival software makers.
EU regulators said the firm was the first to break an EU anti-trust ruling.
The fines come on top of earlier fines of 280m euros imposed in July 2006, and of 497m euros in March 2004. I think the Microsoft should not be fined, they are a unique company and have right to be the no.1.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7266629.stm
Vocab #5
- Embezzle (verb) - To take (money, for example) for one's own use in violation of a trust.
- Emaciate (verb) - To make or become extremely thin, especially as a result of starvation.
- Obsolete (adjective) - No longer in use
- Obviate (verb) - To anticipate and dispose of effectively
- Penchant (noun) - A definite liking; a strong inclination.
- Paucity (noun) - Smallness of number; fewness.
- Sycophant (noun) - A servile self-seeker who attempts to win favor by flattering influential people.
- Taut (adjective) - tight
- Tenuous (adjective) - Long and thin
- Tenacity (noun) - The state or quality of holding or tending to hold persistently
Book Report
Camus Albert, The Stranger, France
Librairie Gallimard, France
Reason, Type and Setting: I chose this book, because it caught my attention by its name, sounds misteriously. This novel is a crime drama, takes place in Algeria before WW2.
Plot: The narrator, a young man named Meursault gets an urgent telegram reporting his mother's death. After his mom was burried, he meets his ex-coworker Marie Cardona, they spend the night together, but she's gone in the morning. He gets home and his neighbor asks him to write a letter for him, which would convince his mistress to come back to him. He wants to beat her up, for cheating on him. The neighbor gets arrested for beating her up, later Marie Cardona asks Meursalt to marry her. Later on, they go to the beach, where they meet Raymond's(neighbor) mistress's brother. Meursalt shoots him, for no apperant reason. He get into a jail and after a lost trial he is sentenced to death. A chaplain tries to convince him to believe in God, but Meursault refuses. He embraces the idea that human existence holds no greater meaning.
Character:Mersault - the main character, pretty young. He kind of loses his mind after his mother's death, and shoots a man. He often thinks of the morality of the world. I selected this character, because he seemed to be the most active in the plot. I was interested by his thinking after all the things he went through. He totally changed my expectations of the end of this book, I expected something different.
Evaluation: Well, honestly, I expected more of this novel. It has a really good beginning, which caught my attention, but then they started focusing on morality of the world, which kind of bored me. However, it showed my how can we look at today's life values, I've never thought of them in this way. In spite of fact, that this novel was written in late 40's, it still applies to today's world. Being or not-being moral has always been a discussed issue. I personaly think, that not many people would like this book, because it gets really slow in the middle. Maybe it's just my opinion... . If I had to put myselft into the plot, I would have no reason to kill a man. However, I can't really tell, since both of my parents are fortunately still alive.
Author, Context and Trivia: Albert Camus is a Frech writer, who won a Nobel prize in 1957. He wrote a couple of novels, such as The Plague, The Fall, A Happy Death, The First Man...I think I'm gonna look for one more book from him to see, if every book of his is this philosophical.I did't like this book that much, as I said earlier, it was too boring for me.
Librairie Gallimard, France
Reason, Type and Setting: I chose this book, because it caught my attention by its name, sounds misteriously. This novel is a crime drama, takes place in Algeria before WW2.
Plot: The narrator, a young man named Meursault gets an urgent telegram reporting his mother's death. After his mom was burried, he meets his ex-coworker Marie Cardona, they spend the night together, but she's gone in the morning. He gets home and his neighbor asks him to write a letter for him, which would convince his mistress to come back to him. He wants to beat her up, for cheating on him. The neighbor gets arrested for beating her up, later Marie Cardona asks Meursalt to marry her. Later on, they go to the beach, where they meet Raymond's(neighbor) mistress's brother. Meursalt shoots him, for no apperant reason. He get into a jail and after a lost trial he is sentenced to death. A chaplain tries to convince him to believe in God, but Meursault refuses. He embraces the idea that human existence holds no greater meaning.
Character:Mersault - the main character, pretty young. He kind of loses his mind after his mother's death, and shoots a man. He often thinks of the morality of the world. I selected this character, because he seemed to be the most active in the plot. I was interested by his thinking after all the things he went through. He totally changed my expectations of the end of this book, I expected something different.
Evaluation: Well, honestly, I expected more of this novel. It has a really good beginning, which caught my attention, but then they started focusing on morality of the world, which kind of bored me. However, it showed my how can we look at today's life values, I've never thought of them in this way. In spite of fact, that this novel was written in late 40's, it still applies to today's world. Being or not-being moral has always been a discussed issue. I personaly think, that not many people would like this book, because it gets really slow in the middle. Maybe it's just my opinion... . If I had to put myselft into the plot, I would have no reason to kill a man. However, I can't really tell, since both of my parents are fortunately still alive.
Author, Context and Trivia: Albert Camus is a Frech writer, who won a Nobel prize in 1957. He wrote a couple of novels, such as The Plague, The Fall, A Happy Death, The First Man...I think I'm gonna look for one more book from him to see, if every book of his is this philosophical.I did't like this book that much, as I said earlier, it was too boring for me.
Vocab Week 5
lucidity - easily understood
conciliatory - tending to conciliate
countermand - to cancel
acumen - quickness of judgement
insurrection - The act or an instance of open revolt against civil authority or a constituted government.
conciliatory - tending to conciliate
countermand - to cancel
acumen - quickness of judgement
insurrection - The act or an instance of open revolt against civil authority or a constituted government.
fidelity - Faithfulness to obligations
complicit - choosing to be involved in an illegal or questionable act
steadfast - Fixed or unchanging; steady.
emancipation - the act of being free from bondage, oppression, or restraint; liberate.
bolster - A long narrow pillow or cushion.
complicit - choosing to be involved in an illegal or questionable act
steadfast - Fixed or unchanging; steady.
emancipation - the act of being free from bondage, oppression, or restraint; liberate.
bolster - A long narrow pillow or cushion.
Documentary Guide
style: interviews vs. footage
I watched a documentary on World War 2 named The WAR and I was focusing on two facts. One of them was the content of the movie, basically historical facts from the early 40s. The second one was the structure of the movie as a product. I mean the way they created it. I personally liked the was they did the interviewing, with a purely black background, which was in my opinion pretty original, and I like the ways the used the virtual maps to show the progress of the allies and the Nazis back in those days- I don't think we'll we able to create something like that though...
Unfortunately, the second documentary movie named World War 2 was pretty much the same, because it was diercted by the very same person. The only change I noticed was that in the first movie they focused on reasons why the war had started while in the second movie they analyzed the consequences of the WW2.
I watched a documentary on World War 2 named The WAR and I was focusing on two facts. One of them was the content of the movie, basically historical facts from the early 40s. The second one was the structure of the movie as a product. I mean the way they created it. I personally liked the was they did the interviewing, with a purely black background, which was in my opinion pretty original, and I like the ways the used the virtual maps to show the progress of the allies and the Nazis back in those days- I don't think we'll we able to create something like that though...
Unfortunately, the second documentary movie named World War 2 was pretty much the same, because it was diercted by the very same person. The only change I noticed was that in the first movie they focused on reasons why the war had started while in the second movie they analyzed the consequences of the WW2.
Current Event 02/15/08
MARTINSBURG, West Virginia (CNN) -- Hardly a day that goes by that you won't find Tracey Wygal working out at the gym.
The 30-year-old middle-school teacher does cardio exercise, strength trains and follows what she calls a "clean diet."
That's quite a change for a woman who tipped the scales eight years ago at 295 pounds.
Wygal first started gaining weight in her early teens. A fast-food diet and little to no exercise helped her pack on the pounds, and her weight ballooned to over 200 pounds.
"It was my first year out of college, and that number, along with being diagnosed as morbidly obese, was very frightening," remembers Wygal. "I went to several doctors, trying to get them to prescribe a weight-loss pill."
But none of her doctors would give her the quick fix she was looking for. Instead, a physician handed her a 1,600-calorie-a-day diet and told her to start moving.
At first, Wygal was shocked and refused to begin a diet that she thought was too restrictive. Even though her weight was rapidly approaching 300 pounds, she believed she had a pretty good diet and an active lifestyle.
As her weight crept up, Wygal grew more frustrated, and eventually she decided it was time to gain control of her life.
She started by keeping track of her daily calorie intake in a food diary and soon realized that her eating was worse than she thought.
"I was amazed by how many calories I was eating," Wygal said. "The food diary showed me that I really needed to get my food intake under control and helped me maintain my diet realistically."
She also started exercising.
At first, Wygal says, she was too embarrassed to go to a gym, so she bought an elliptical machine and started working out 15 minutes a day in her apartment.
"It was all I could do at first. I didn't give up, though," she said. "Gradually, my endurance improved. After losing about 30 pounds, I decided to join a small gym."
Several months later, Wygal was ready to take the next step. She hired a trainer and began a short strength-training program.
That's when something clicked.
Instead of feeling intimidated, Wygal started to love her workouts and the physical changes taking shape with her body. Ready to take the next step, she joined a larger gym, began researching different workouts and got into weight training.
Over the next three years, she lost 120 pounds and dropped seven dress sizes. Wygal, who's 5 feet 10 inches tall, says the fear of gaining weight motivates her to stick to her diet and exercise regimen because she never wants to look like she did at 295 pounds.
Now comfortable with her weight, which she says fluctuates between 170 and 180 pounds, Wygal works out at least five to six days a week. She says the key to losing weight and keeping it off is being honest about what you eat, writing it down and staying consistent. She wants people to know they can do it, but there are no quick fixes or easy outs -- just hard work.
"It won't happen overnight," Wygal advises. "Know that it will take time but it is worth it in the end."
source: CNN.com
I think that even America is kind of fat, even fatties CAN lose a lot of mass.
The 30-year-old middle-school teacher does cardio exercise, strength trains and follows what she calls a "clean diet."
That's quite a change for a woman who tipped the scales eight years ago at 295 pounds.
Wygal first started gaining weight in her early teens. A fast-food diet and little to no exercise helped her pack on the pounds, and her weight ballooned to over 200 pounds.
"It was my first year out of college, and that number, along with being diagnosed as morbidly obese, was very frightening," remembers Wygal. "I went to several doctors, trying to get them to prescribe a weight-loss pill."
But none of her doctors would give her the quick fix she was looking for. Instead, a physician handed her a 1,600-calorie-a-day diet and told her to start moving.
At first, Wygal was shocked and refused to begin a diet that she thought was too restrictive. Even though her weight was rapidly approaching 300 pounds, she believed she had a pretty good diet and an active lifestyle.
As her weight crept up, Wygal grew more frustrated, and eventually she decided it was time to gain control of her life.
She started by keeping track of her daily calorie intake in a food diary and soon realized that her eating was worse than she thought.
"I was amazed by how many calories I was eating," Wygal said. "The food diary showed me that I really needed to get my food intake under control and helped me maintain my diet realistically."
She also started exercising.
At first, Wygal says, she was too embarrassed to go to a gym, so she bought an elliptical machine and started working out 15 minutes a day in her apartment.
"It was all I could do at first. I didn't give up, though," she said. "Gradually, my endurance improved. After losing about 30 pounds, I decided to join a small gym."
Several months later, Wygal was ready to take the next step. She hired a trainer and began a short strength-training program.
That's when something clicked.
Instead of feeling intimidated, Wygal started to love her workouts and the physical changes taking shape with her body. Ready to take the next step, she joined a larger gym, began researching different workouts and got into weight training.
Over the next three years, she lost 120 pounds and dropped seven dress sizes. Wygal, who's 5 feet 10 inches tall, says the fear of gaining weight motivates her to stick to her diet and exercise regimen because she never wants to look like she did at 295 pounds.
Now comfortable with her weight, which she says fluctuates between 170 and 180 pounds, Wygal works out at least five to six days a week. She says the key to losing weight and keeping it off is being honest about what you eat, writing it down and staying consistent. She wants people to know they can do it, but there are no quick fixes or easy outs -- just hard work.
"It won't happen overnight," Wygal advises. "Know that it will take time but it is worth it in the end."
source: CNN.com
I think that even America is kind of fat, even fatties CAN lose a lot of mass.
Vocab Week 3
Disseminate (v) - To scatter widely, as in sowing seed
Eloquence (n) - Persuasive, powerful discourse
Austere (adj) - Severe or stern in disposition or appearance
Baleful (adj) - Harmful or malignant in intent or effect.
Bigot (n) - One who is strongly partial to one's own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ.
Relapse (n) and (v) - To fall or slide back into a former state.
Repudiate (v) - To reject the validity or authority
Resilience(adj) - The ability to recover quickly from illness, change, or misfortune
Renovate (v) - To restore to an earlier condition, as by repairing or remodeling
Current Event 02/05/08
MYSPACE OPENS DOOR TO DEVELOPERS
MySpace will open its doors to software developers allowing them to create games and media-sharing applications for the popular social network.
MySpace will open its doors to software developers allowing them to create games and media-sharing applications for the popular social network.
MySpace will formally launch its "Developer Platform" next Tuesday but is already allowing people to sign up.
The tools have been developed with Google and will allow programmers to create programs similar to those used by millions on rival site Facebook.
Facebook opened up its site to outside developers last year.
It has since had great success, with nearly 15,000 applications written for the site.
These include photo-sharing and music recommendation tools as well as games such as scrabble.
However, despite its popularity, Facebook still lags behind MySpace in terms of overall users.
MySpace has around 200 million registered users, compared to 63 million who use Facebook.
MySpace was bought by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp for $580m in 2005.
Last October it announced that it would join OpenSocial, Google's platform designed to allow developers to build applications that will work on any website.
Other networks such as Bebo, LinkedIn and Orkut already use the tools.
The tools, available from 5 February, will allow developers to build applications that make use of MySpace member profile information and their connections with other users.
According to Amit Kapur, chief operating officer at MySpace, developers will also be able to make money out of their applications.
"I will be focused on making a platform for developers to monetize and promote their applications," he told Reuters.
www.bbcnews.com
I think it's a really good idea from MySpace to allow developers to create a modern games and programs, because in my opinion MySpace is except for messaging, really really boring. You can't do alomst anything entertaining on it.
Vocab Words Week 2
1) equivocate (verb) - to use ambiguous or unclear expressions
2) eradicate (verb) - to tear up by the roots(abolish, eliminate)
3) erode (verb) - To make or form by wearing away
4) erratic (adjective) - Having no fixed or regular course
5) escalate (verb) - To increase, enlarge, or intensify
6) esoteric (adjective) - mysterious
7) espouse (verb) - choose and follow
8) eulogy (noun) - High praise or commendation
9) euphoria (noun) - A feeling of great happiness
10) euthanasia (noun) - The act or practice of ending the life of an individual suffering from a terminal illness or an incurable condition
11) epitome - A representative or perfect example of a class or type
Current Event 01/29/08
ELLSWORTH, Maine (AP) -- His lottery ticket was a $1,000 winner, but police have seized it saying it was bought with proceeds from an illegal drug sale.
Michael David, who had been staying at an Ellsworth motel, sold four 10-milligram methadone pills for $15 each last week, Police Chief John Deleo said.
He then went to a convenience store and bought lottery tickets and other merchandise and went back to his motel room, where he was busted.
"I guess it will be up to a judge to decide, but it's in our possession right now as proceeds from a drug transaction," Deleo said of the winning ticket.
David, 46, remained in custody Monday in the Hancock County Jail on drug trafficking charges. An official at the jail said David was not available for comment.
I think that everyone would do the same thing as the cops did. 1000$? However, the drug business has always been an amazing issue of the world and this is only one of the examples.
Book report #5
Martel Yann, Life of Pi, Canada
Canongate Books Ltd.:2002
Reason, Type and Setting: I chose this book, because the name caught my interest. This novel is an allegory and it takes place in India, the Pacific Ocean, Mexico, Canada in 1990's.
Plot:An anonymous author decides to leave his home, Canada, for India where he meets a man named Francis. He tells him a story, which is supposed to be as good, as he will make him believe in God. The rest of the book is the story itself. The story is devided into several parts. In the first one, a boy called Pi is pictured as a desperate kid, who didn't have a really easy childhood. His family decided to move to the Canada. As they sail, the boat starts to sink and Pi loses his family. He lived it in a emergency boat with a tiger. They face a lot of problems, but at the end Pi is taken to the hospital and the tiger runs away.
Character: PI. He is the narrator for the most part of the book. He is a protagonist. He loves animals and links the world of men to the world of animals.
Evaluation: Honestly, I didn't get this book and ,frankly, I didn't like it either. The plot was really boring for me and kind of unreal. Pi trains his own tiger on a emergency boat...???? The only message this book could bring to world is that miracles happen. I would say it that way. I really don't wanna put myself in the plot, because I don't like it.
Author, Context and Trivia: After reading this book, I'm not planning on reading any other books, which I would waste my time on. However, the author has written several books, including Seven Stories, Self, The facts behind the Helsinki Romaccatio.
Canongate Books Ltd.:2002
Reason, Type and Setting: I chose this book, because the name caught my interest. This novel is an allegory and it takes place in India, the Pacific Ocean, Mexico, Canada in 1990's.
Plot:An anonymous author decides to leave his home, Canada, for India where he meets a man named Francis. He tells him a story, which is supposed to be as good, as he will make him believe in God. The rest of the book is the story itself. The story is devided into several parts. In the first one, a boy called Pi is pictured as a desperate kid, who didn't have a really easy childhood. His family decided to move to the Canada. As they sail, the boat starts to sink and Pi loses his family. He lived it in a emergency boat with a tiger. They face a lot of problems, but at the end Pi is taken to the hospital and the tiger runs away.
Character: PI. He is the narrator for the most part of the book. He is a protagonist. He loves animals and links the world of men to the world of animals.
Evaluation: Honestly, I didn't get this book and ,frankly, I didn't like it either. The plot was really boring for me and kind of unreal. Pi trains his own tiger on a emergency boat...???? The only message this book could bring to world is that miracles happen. I would say it that way. I really don't wanna put myself in the plot, because I don't like it.
Author, Context and Trivia: After reading this book, I'm not planning on reading any other books, which I would waste my time on. However, the author has written several books, including Seven Stories, Self, The facts behind the Helsinki Romaccatio.
Reflection "Why we fight"
I find this movie really interesting. I've always been interested in world's politics, especially the way how US are trying to take over the entire world. I think the majority of Americans, better said, of the entire world's population would be glad to see US troops out of every other country. I enjoyed the objectivity of this piece, they considered opinions of both sides. Either those, who were for the Iraq War, or those who shared opinions with me, that was really fair.
Overall, I liked this movie pretty much.
Overall, I liked this movie pretty much.
Current Event 01/23/08
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Ten Air Force Reserve F-16 fighter jets were the cause of the lights seen over parts of central Texas earlier this month that many believed to be UFOs, according to an Air Force Reserve news release.
Ricky Sorrells said he saw a flat, metallic object hovering about 300 feet over a pasture behind his Texas home.
The F-16s were on a nighttime training mission over the Brownwood Military Operating Area on January 8, near Stephenville, Texas, the statement said.
A military operating area is airspace designated for military training, according to Air Force officials.
Several people in the area saw lights moving fast across the night sky. The Air Force reported it had no aircraft flying that night, which left people wondering what they saw.
Wednesday, an Air Force Reserve statement from the Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base said it made a mistake in its initial reporting, and that there were planes in the area that night.
"In the interest of public awareness, Air Force Reserve Command Public Affairs realized an error was made regarding the reported training activity of military aircraft," the news release said.
A spokesman for the Air Force Reserve fighter wing, Karl Lewis, said the error in the reporting resulted from an internal communications problem between offices at the base.
Lewis said he received the flight information earlier this week, confirmed it with officials on the base and sent the news release out Wednesday.
The release said the planes were in the area between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., about the time many people reported seeing the lights, according to reporting at the time.
Lewis said the planes were from the 457th Fighter Squadron based at the reserve base outside of Fort Worth, Texas.Vocabulary Week 1
1. intrepid - resolutely fearless
2. trepidation - tremulous fear, alarm, or agitation
3. despondent - feeling or showing profound hopelessness
4. decorum - dignified propriety of behavior, speech, dress, etc.
5. aspire - to long, aim, or seek ambitiously
6. vacillate - to waver in mind or opinion
7. desultory - lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected
8. fallacy - deceptive, misleading, or false notion, belief, etc.
9. formidable - causing fear
10. heritage - something that comes or belongs to one by reason of birth
11. guru - an intellectual or spiritual guide or leader
2. trepidation - tremulous fear, alarm, or agitation
3. despondent - feeling or showing profound hopelessness
4. decorum - dignified propriety of behavior, speech, dress, etc.
5. aspire - to long, aim, or seek ambitiously
6. vacillate - to waver in mind or opinion
7. desultory - lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected
8. fallacy - deceptive, misleading, or false notion, belief, etc.
9. formidable - causing fear
10. heritage - something that comes or belongs to one by reason of birth
11. guru - an intellectual or spiritual guide or leader
Current Event 01/09/08
A Mexican boy glued his hand to his bed because he did not want to go back to school after the Christmas break.
"The holidays were such fun," Diego Palacios, 10, who lives outside Monterrey, told Reforma newspaper.
His mother Sandra found him watching television with his hand stuck to the bedstead. "I don't know why he did it," she said. "He is a good boy."
Police and paramedics eventually managed to free him unharmed, and he was only a few hours late for school.
Diego had got up early to fetch some industrial-strength glue from the kitchen.
His mother spent two hours trying to free him with nail-polish remover before calling for expert help.
Diego watched cartoons while paramedics dissolved the glue with a spray.
Book report #4 01/07/08
Melville,Herman, Moby Dick, Los Angeles
Dover Publications: 2003
Reason, Type and Setting: I selected this book, beacuse I have heard about it a lot in the past, the name is really popular. It is an adventure novel with a tragic end, so that makes it partly a tragedy. It takes place in worlds oceans, such as Pacific, Atlantic and Indian in around 1830's.
Plot: The narrator of this book, Ishmael, wanted to sail aboard a whealing boat. He meets harpooner Queequeg, they start working together and meet a old one-leged sailor Ahab, who's leg was eaten by a while whale, Moby Dick. Ahab joins them, they sail all around the world looking for Moby Dick to kill him. At the end, they found him, but he sank their boats, so everyone dies, except for Ishmael, who was far enough to escape from a whirpool made by the sinking boat.
Character: I picked Ahab, because with his evil and passionate characteristics is special for me. He is single-minded in his pursuit of the whale, using a mixture of charisma and terror to persuade his crew to join him. As a captain, he is dictatorial but not unfair. He dies in the end, so he didn't change at all.
Evaluation: I enjoyed this book pretty much, even the sotry line wasn't that complicated. Character of this book was not to inform but entertain, and sometimes it made me laugh. Ahab was an amazing character, almost like a pirate. I would recommend this book to every single lover of action stories, you will like it. I kind of didn't expect the book to end the way it did, I was more like they really are gonna get that whale. If i yould put myself onto the plot, I couldn't play any of those characters, but if I would have to stay myself, we wouldn't probably chase after the Moby Dick.
Author, Context and Trivia: Herman Melvielle was an American novelist, essayist of the 19th century. His greatest novel is obviously Moby Dick but he also wrote novels as Ossle of the Cross, Redburn: His first voyage etc. I definitely plan on reading some other book from him.
Dover Publications: 2003
Reason, Type and Setting: I selected this book, beacuse I have heard about it a lot in the past, the name is really popular. It is an adventure novel with a tragic end, so that makes it partly a tragedy. It takes place in worlds oceans, such as Pacific, Atlantic and Indian in around 1830's.
Plot: The narrator of this book, Ishmael, wanted to sail aboard a whealing boat. He meets harpooner Queequeg, they start working together and meet a old one-leged sailor Ahab, who's leg was eaten by a while whale, Moby Dick. Ahab joins them, they sail all around the world looking for Moby Dick to kill him. At the end, they found him, but he sank their boats, so everyone dies, except for Ishmael, who was far enough to escape from a whirpool made by the sinking boat.
Character: I picked Ahab, because with his evil and passionate characteristics is special for me. He is single-minded in his pursuit of the whale, using a mixture of charisma and terror to persuade his crew to join him. As a captain, he is dictatorial but not unfair. He dies in the end, so he didn't change at all.
Evaluation: I enjoyed this book pretty much, even the sotry line wasn't that complicated. Character of this book was not to inform but entertain, and sometimes it made me laugh. Ahab was an amazing character, almost like a pirate. I would recommend this book to every single lover of action stories, you will like it. I kind of didn't expect the book to end the way it did, I was more like they really are gonna get that whale. If i yould put myself onto the plot, I couldn't play any of those characters, but if I would have to stay myself, we wouldn't probably chase after the Moby Dick.
Author, Context and Trivia: Herman Melvielle was an American novelist, essayist of the 19th century. His greatest novel is obviously Moby Dick but he also wrote novels as Ossle of the Cross, Redburn: His first voyage etc. I definitely plan on reading some other book from him.
Book report #3 12/27/07
Cooper, James Fenimore, The Last of the Mohicans, New York
Carey & Lea of Philadelphia: 2000
Reason, Type and Setting: The reason why I selected this book, is that I already read it when I was in the third grade as a part of requested reading. It's kind of an adventure and romantic novel, takes place in the New York State, during the summer of 1757, within the French and Indian War.
Plot: Guided by the displaced Huron warrior Magua, four people—Major Duncan Heyward, Psalmodist David Gamut, and Alice and Cora Munro—strike through the wilderness forest for Fort William Henry, which is besieged by the French near Lake George. Led by Magua, they encounter the white woodsman Hawkeye and his two Mohican companions, Chingachgook and Uncas, whereupon the villainous Huron escapes. Later on, all the Indians are killed except Magua, who gets away again. After that, a quiet interest develops between the young Uncas and the brunette Cora, while Heyward shows a deference toward Alice. The final moment is when Hurons get attacked and Cora, Uncas, and Magua are killed.
Character: I chose Uncas, because he is the last of the Mohicans. He is an Indian, and son of Chingachgook. He is noble and really proud young man, who is a significant participant in one of the two love stories in the novel, and his tragic death marks the death of the entire tribe of Mohicans. He interests me with his pride, even he is so young. Unfortunately, at the end he dies, but that is the main idea of this book.
Evaluation: Honestly, I didn't find this book really interesting, I read it only because of its famous name. I would recommend this book to girls, because the main point of this book is in opinion showing the interraction between a love and a friendship. However, this book is linked with a real life really closely. Men's and women's relations are really complicated and often there are debates, either to stay just friends, or to raise the relationship to something more. I really don't want to put myself into the plot, because I'm not really interested in it.
Author, Context and Trivia: Cooper was a popular American writer of the 19th century. He is known by his novels such as Leatherstocking Tales, The Pathfinder, or the Island Sea... I don't plan on reading any more books from this author, beacause a romantic literature is kind of boring for me.
Carey & Lea of Philadelphia: 2000
Reason, Type and Setting: The reason why I selected this book, is that I already read it when I was in the third grade as a part of requested reading. It's kind of an adventure and romantic novel, takes place in the New York State, during the summer of 1757, within the French and Indian War.
Plot: Guided by the displaced Huron warrior Magua, four people—Major Duncan Heyward, Psalmodist David Gamut, and Alice and Cora Munro—strike through the wilderness forest for Fort William Henry, which is besieged by the French near Lake George. Led by Magua, they encounter the white woodsman Hawkeye and his two Mohican companions, Chingachgook and Uncas, whereupon the villainous Huron escapes. Later on, all the Indians are killed except Magua, who gets away again. After that, a quiet interest develops between the young Uncas and the brunette Cora, while Heyward shows a deference toward Alice. The final moment is when Hurons get attacked and Cora, Uncas, and Magua are killed.
Character: I chose Uncas, because he is the last of the Mohicans. He is an Indian, and son of Chingachgook. He is noble and really proud young man, who is a significant participant in one of the two love stories in the novel, and his tragic death marks the death of the entire tribe of Mohicans. He interests me with his pride, even he is so young. Unfortunately, at the end he dies, but that is the main idea of this book.
Evaluation: Honestly, I didn't find this book really interesting, I read it only because of its famous name. I would recommend this book to girls, because the main point of this book is in opinion showing the interraction between a love and a friendship. However, this book is linked with a real life really closely. Men's and women's relations are really complicated and often there are debates, either to stay just friends, or to raise the relationship to something more. I really don't want to put myself into the plot, because I'm not really interested in it.
Author, Context and Trivia: Cooper was a popular American writer of the 19th century. He is known by his novels such as Leatherstocking Tales, The Pathfinder, or the Island Sea... I don't plan on reading any more books from this author, beacause a romantic literature is kind of boring for me.
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