Rachel's Blog

Morrie Aphorism Blog #4

2009-05-18T19:34:00.000-07:00

When you are utterly frustrated or angry, express these feelings you don't have to be nice all the time -- just most of the time.

There are a lot of people in this world that have emotional problems because they don't express their anger. Sometimes they feel like no one sees them. They feel unheard. And this things can cause them to do weird things. In my world, bottling up emotions is a terrible thing. Even I do it myself. I always try not to take out my anger at anybody so I really don't know what to do with my frustration. In the past, bottling up my anger only had some really harmful results. Nowadays when I am angry, bored, irritated or sad, I would watch CSIs, or go online and looked at pictures of my favorite idols. This way, I forget what I was upset about and I try to move on.

Morrie's Aphorism #3

2009-05-14T19:33:00.000-07:00

"Don't assume that its too late to be involved in something."

I think that Morrie means that we should still do something when we thought that it was too late.

Learn to forgive yourself and forgive others.

2009-05-11T19:32:00.000-07:00

I think that forgiving yourself is a very important thing in life. My opinion is that you have to forgive yourself before you can really forgive others. If you don't forgive others, I think that you will want to have revenge or hatred on that person. I think that Morrie is really wise.

A day without electricity

2009-05-10T04:49:00.000-07:00

If we had to go through a day without electricity, I think that it would be a torture for everyone because we all rely on electricity. We would be incredibly hot since it was the summer, we wouldn't have television, computer, the air-conditioner. We would be bored too because we do not have the entertainment we normally would have with electricity. We would have to walk, and cycle to where we work. We wouldn't have lights in the night.

Morries Aphorism Blog

2009-05-06T19:29:00.000-07:00

"Get as much help as you can when you need it."

This aphorism is very wise. I have never been that kind of girl that depended on others. In the past, I was always afraid to bother other people so I never ask for favors. When I needed help, it really depends on what it is, if it is small things, then my friends will help me. But, if it was really bothersome, I do it myself. Sometimes, I still am like that.

Earth Day

2009-04-23T20:19:00.000-07:00

On Earth Day, we are suppose to cut down on electricity. Ways we could help earth :

-don't use elevators as much

-turn the ac off.

-turn off lights

-less tv

-don't drive too much

- don't use too many electrical devices

-riding a bike

-shorter showers

On earth day, we try to do things that is good for the earth.

Plastic killing leatherback turtles.

2009-04-12T18:17:00.000-07:00

Plastic has been found in the digestive systems of the leatherback turtles. 400 leatherback turtles have died since 1885. The leatherback turtles feed on jellyfishes. But, since plastic looks like jellyfish, the turtles also eat the plastic. Eating plastic is unhealthy for animals and humans.

Rare Hyenas arrived at animal park.

2009-04-11T01:15:00.000-07:00

A pair of hyenas showed up at a wild animal park at Kent. They were taken to Port Lympne Wild Animal Park from Prague. There are about 10,000 brown hyenas left in the wild. This news was updated to bbc.com on the 9th of April, 2009. The keepers of the wild park hoped that the pair of brown hyenas would breed.

Spears apologizes for delay of the concert.

2009-04-10T07:32:00.000-07:00

Spears' concert was delayed by 30 minutes. The delay took place because the crew above the stage became ill due to the ventilation issue. The news was updated on 9th of March, 2009. The delay was in Vancouver, Canada.

Blood Red Horse

2009-03-31T06:11:00.000-07:00

Christianity is the religion of the English. They are fighting to recover the holy city of Jerusalem. I think that the english should negotiate with the Saracens and make a deal instead of using violence to get what the English wants. I also think that Jerusalem should belong to the Saracens, since it was theirs in the beginning. I did not believe that fighting is the resolution. I also think that Hosanna makes a bog difference to the story. He is also the reason for the book to continue, after all, he saved Will's life. He made a big impact on everybody.

Stressed out female mushrooms turn to males

2009-03-31T05:23:00.000-07:00

Scientists just found out that mushrooms are able to change gender. This happens to some species of the coral mushrooms. The scientists found this fact out on 30th March, 2009. The corals are located in seas and oceans. Some corals are hermaphroditic. Mushrooms corals appeared to be one or the other.

Pets and Animals waiting in the Shelters.

2009-03-31T05:03:00.000-07:00

This happened to the animals and the pets. It happened on March 30th, 2009. There was a flood, many animals and pets was chased away from their homes by the Red River. They are being cared for by volunteers, since most hotels and families won't take them in. They are in the Valley Fairgrounds. It happened in North Dakota.

Secret Mass Grave unearthed.

2009-03-25T07:07:00.000-07:00

In 1832, 57 emigrants moved to America to start a new life. They all found jobs on the railroads. But then, a few weeks later, they all died. They might have died of cholera or the locals nearby who suspected that the immigrants brought the disease with them. Dr Frank and a team from the Imaculata University was looking for the corpse of these men for the past 5 years. When they pulled the first skull out, they think that it is a 18 year old man called John Ruddy. The corpse of these men were found on Duffy's cut, a part of the Philadelphia and Columbia railroad that the men worked on.

Terrifying Plight of an Afghan Actress.

2009-03-25T07:00:00.000-07:00

It happened to Parwin Mushthal. The people thought that women on television were accused to be a prostitute. And then the people around Parwin started threatening her family and herself, eventually killing her husband. Parwin had to hide herself and her two children for safety. She had to wear a big scarf so that no one could recognize her. This article was updated on BBC on Wednesday, 25th of March. It happened in South Asia. It happened because people wanted her to get off the television.

2009-03-09T20:02:00.000-07:00

Where on Earth is MY favorite place????

On the earth, my favorite place is Germany, Munich and Starnberg. Munich was where I used to live. I liked it there because I know there better and the people there are very friendly and nice. Starnberg is also in Germany. It is where my school was located. I go to school there.

My most favorite place in Taiwan.....

I really like to say nowhere, but the Mcdonald's, my room, the bathroom and Mrs. Smith's science room are my favorite place.

I would like to go to China, Xi'an, it was one of the places where I like to visit again. I have really close friends there. The school there was very nice and everybody was so close. That's them in the picture. :P

Why "Sun Also Rises" is called what it is?

2009-03-05T07:19:00.000-08:00

I think that the Sun Also Rises is called the Sun Also Rises because it is about Jake finally traveling. Jake did not want to go to Spain. He did nothing exciting and fun. I think that the trip to Spain must have changed Jake in some way. He might have finally see what living his life is like. Enjoying sights of different towns and bull-fights.

Middle Ages ~ Dark or Light?

2009-03-05T04:43:00.000-08:00

I think that the middle ages were dark. In the middle ages, people were split into ranks. The highest were the kings and the pope. Then the bishops , then the knights. Then the poor peasants. I think that peasants were treated badly, they had to work a lot. Some of the peasants had to work on their lord's land and their own land. The girls were expected to obey their fathers, brothers and other male members of the family. Their father arranges who their daughter will marry. Girls were taught how to be a good mother and a good wife, but nothing else. Then, in those times, it was really dirty, so there was the black death. A lot of people died during those times.

source : http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/black-death-1.jpg

2009-03-04T18:34:00.000-08:00

Nitrogen Cycle

In class today, we were doing this activity, where Mrs. Smith made us to be cute tiny little nitrogen atoms. We were to travel from stations to stations that were labelled different each.

Why didn't everybody go to the same station in the same order?

In the real nitrogen cycle, not all of the nitrogen atoms clump up together in a group and travel together. Some of the nitrogen atoms are on one "stations" and some on other "stations".

Did you go to the same station twice? If so, what does this tell us about cycles?

It tells us that in a cycle, you can go back repeat part of a cycle.

Was there one station that seemed to have a lot of people at it? Why or Why not?

Yes, sometimes, people roll the dice and have the same number as some other people. Then, people crowd around that area.

What do you think that the point of this activity was?

I thought that the point of this activity was to let us see how it is in a cycle. And to teach us about cycles, that cycles doesn't have a specific chronological order. You can repeat some of the stations. And, maybe, Mrs. Smith wanted to see Juegan be the poop and see his reaction. :P

photo from : http://chemistry.wustl.edu/~eedudev/Fullerene/FullereneGraphics/fig5b1f.gif

Blood Red Horse

2009-03-02T05:38:00.000-08:00

Gavin, Sir Thomas and Will goes on a crusade, intending release Jerusalem from the Saracens. When they got there, a lot of the horses had died and Will got sick . When Will was getting better, Sir Thomas died. Gavin and Will fought with the Saracens. Then Hosana got taken away when Kamil could not kill Will. After that, Kamil attempts to lead the sultan to death. But changes his mind at the last second. The christians then were allowed to go home, some others had to stay by King Richard to conquer other lands. Hosana and Will got back together. Ellie was thrilled to see her betrothed and willingly took him as her husband.

2009-03-01T18:49:00.000-08:00

Benjamin Button TED Talk

The steps of the scientific method are :
1. purpose
2. hypothesis
3. material
4. procedure
5. conclusion
Making the film went through these steps. They encountered problems like how they were going to make Brad's face look older. The people who were working on the project, had to guess on how they were going to make Brad Pitt 45 years older. So, they tried different ways to make his face look older. The materials they had to have were money, technology and actors. They tried to painting Brad's face with phosphorous and film it in the dark and then process it in the computers. And then made some change it to look older. They they filmed the bodies of different actor as Ben's body. They use the technology to change Brad's face and replace the head of the actors (as old Ben's bodies), with Brad's older face. They also had to have a lot of the faces of 80 year old Brad's in different kinds of light. They also made it look realistic so that it really looks like it is real. The conclusion of the movie was to put it together.
picture : http://www.reelmovienews.com/images/gallery/the-curious-case-of-benjamin-button-movie-poster_384x515.jpg

Services to the Queen.

2009-02-20T00:27:00.000-08:00

The knights serve me. I am the Queen. They protect me and make sure that my kingdom is defended when it is under attack. I give them fiefs and wealth in return. The more they do for me, the more I will reward them. Another person who serves me are the peasants. They work on my lands as well as their own. They grow fruits and vegetables for me. In return, I pay them. Some of the peasants build castles for me and other things. I also hired peasants to serve me when I am in the castle. I have them cooking, cleaning and other work around the castle.

Blood Red Horse - characters.

2009-02-17T03:24:00.000-08:00

One of the main characters is Will. He is the son of Sir Thomas. Will's older brother is Gavin, a brother who teases and bullies his own brother. Will has a courser called Sacramenta. His Great Horse was the foal of Sacramenta, named Hosana. The other main character was Ellie, a fair maiden. She was a close friend to Will and was betrothed to Gavin. She cared for Will's beloved Hosana and she was a wild girl.

Bull Fighting

2009-02-16T19:06:00.000-08:00

Do you think Bull fighting is a humane or an inhumane sport? Why do you feel that way? Please explain....
I think that bull fighting is inhumane. It is cruel, watching the bull being tortured. It isn't fair either. The bull is already weakened when it fights. And, it's weapon, it's horn, isn't sharp harmful when it steps out to fight. I find that bull fighting is pointless. It doesn't really do any good, it just entertain us. And then, the bull dies in the end.

Quote

2009-02-12T19:12:00.000-08:00

"The clock of life is wound but once, and no man as the power to tell just when the hands will stop, at a late or early hour. Now is the only time you own. Live, love, toil with a will. For the clock may soon be still."
by Robert H. Smith.
I think that this poem means a lot because it is telling us to live our life and waste it. I think that the way Robert uses metaphor is really nice. It is also telling us we only have this one chance to do what we want. We will die sooner or later.

Beijing hotel destroyed by fire

2009-02-10T02:53:00.000-08:00

It happened to the hotel of Beijing, the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. The hotel caught fire when the broadcaster went against the police's warning, and set off complex fireworks that are too powerful for public uses. It happened on 10th of February, 2009. A firefighter died after inhaling too much toxic fumes. And six people were injured. The fire raged for 5 hours. It happened in Beijing.

Submarine Smash Day's Reflection.

2009-02-09T04:58:00.000-08:00

Smash day stands for "Smith's Marvelous Awesome Hoopla". Smash day is a day where we have activities and "missions" to accomplish. It is on the first science class of a new month. For the February's Smash day, we were to make a periscope that enables us to see from below the table into the box of items that we were suppose to identify. We were given 10 sheets of paper, a piece of cardboard, tape and 5 mirrors. We didn't modify our design, we mainly modified the angles of the mirrors. We knew that we had to modify the mirrors because we could not see from under the table to the top of the table. My group wasn't very cooperative, we didn't discuss our thoughts which made it hard for us to build the periscope. We had to keep asking each other what he/she was doing. And the changes that all of us made were logical. I would suggest to the person who will be doing this "mission", is firstly, when you hold a piece of tape for your group members to cut, speak nicely or yell at him to watch what he cuts on. Secondly, discussion is better when it comes before the construction of the periscope. And thirdly, three people should have jobs to do so that the building of the periscope will be finished in time.

The Wildfires attack in the state of Victoria.

2009-02-08T01:35:00.000-08:00

It happened in Australia, the state of Victoria. It happened on the 8th of February, 2009. The police suspect that fires have been restarted by arsonists after the firefighters extinguished them. Many people have died. The death toll have rise to 65 deaths. At least 12 died in the city of Kinglake, 4 at Wandong, 4 at St. Andrews and 3 at Strathewen. The cities were burned and the schools and halls are gone. Some people left too late and the survivors are waiting for their loved ones and friends. Many people losed their friends. It was reported that the town of Marysville was burned to the ground. There are 500 residents that lived there, they sheltered at a local park.
by the BBC.
source : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7877178.stm

My Ancient Greece and Rome Research Paper Reflection

2009-02-03T01:53:00.000-08:00

When I was writing my research paper I was an active learner and critical thinker and problem solver. I was an active learner because when I wrote the paper, some of the questions were brought into my mind and researched more. I researched like, the major types of government. And what happens if ancient Greeks were sick. When I started the outline before the paper, I didn't know what to write and I haven't wrote a paper for a long time. I was a critical thinker and problem solver because I solved the problem of the completion of the outline. An active learner is a learner that wants to learn more. They research more on what they are learning, do more work on their own time. They want to learn more. A critical thinker and problem solver is a person that solves the problem when have one and not not solve it. I learned a lot of things from this project. I learned about Ancient Greece and Rome. What they wore, what they ate, their culture, their beliefs. I learned that they have influenced our present day world, for example, their type of government, democracy. Today, we have roads, the Romans invented it. I learned about their medicines and their beliefs in Gods and goddesses.

Effective Communication

2009-02-02T19:08:00.000-08:00

I think that my friend is an effective communicator. When she presents her project, she has small note cards to help her remember what she has to say. She has eye contact with her audience. She doesn't always speak loud enough. When the presentation day is near, we would repeat our speech and comment on each other.

Effective Communication

2009-01-22T17:56:00.000-08:00

Effective Communicator is someone who communicates effectively. To communicate effectively is to have eye contact, speak clearly, be clear about the topic of the conversation. Effective communication is important because it is useful in arguments and persuasions. The first step that I will take to become an effective communicator, is to be more detailed in conversations and not just vague information and clear on the topic of what I am saying.

Gaza "looks like earthquake zone"

2009-01-19T17:49:00.000-08:00

This happened to Palestinians. Israel and Gaza have been sending missiles at each other. And it left many people homeless and without running water. It happened in the Gaza city. It happened currently. The Israelis was fighting against the Hama offensive. Israel allowed 143 humanitarian aid truck and 60,000 fuel into Gaza to help the homeless and injured. 1,300 Palestinians died and the medical source is still recovering bodies. 5,500 were injured.

Runaway Child Sweethearts Stopped.

2009-01-08T17:46:00.000-08:00

This event happened Mika, Anna-Bell and Anna-Bell's seven year old sister. They were running away to Africa. It happened in Hanover railway station, in Germany, when they were on their way to Africa. Mika and Anna-Bell want to get married in Africa because it is warm. They sneaked out of the house in the morning when their parents were sleeping. The news was updated monday, 5th of January.

source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/mewsid_7812300/7812350.stm

Dogs.

2009-01-06T21:06:00.000-08:00

The temperature of a newborn puppy should be 94-97'F. The puppy's temperature should reach an adult's temperature, 101.5'F, at the age of 4 weeks old. When the puppy or dog is excited, the temperature rise 2-3 degrees. If the dog's temperature is above 105'F or below 96'F, the dog needs to see a vet. An adult should have 15-20 breaths per minute. And the dog should have 80-120 heartbeats per minute. If the dog is suffering pain, it will give a clue where it is. When a dog has abdominal pain, the dog will bite or lick the area. And the dog will not want to leave it's bed. The dog might stand hunched or it will get down on it's forelegs but the hind legs will keep on standing because of the pain. Dog will whine or whimper in pain. There are some dogs that can endure pain with vocalizing it's pain. Another clue to pain of a dog is a change in temperament. Dogs, and humans, get mood swings, they can get angry for no obvious reasons.

Leprosy

2009-01-06T20:48:00.000-08:00

The leprosy is also known as the Hansen's disease. Leprosy is an infectious disease and had been known since the biblical times. This kind of disease disfigures your skin sores, nerve damage and you get weak slowly. Leprosy is caused by the organism, Mycobacterium leprae. The disease is difficult to transmit. If you get leprosy, the symptoms appear a long time after you leprosy, so it is hard to know what time you leprosy. Children are easier to get the disease then adults. Leprosy is split into two groups, tuberculoid and lepromatous. Both of them disfigures your skin sores, but lepromatous is more severe, it produces big and disfiguring lumps and bumps on your skin. Leprosy will damage your nerve in your legs and hands, it causes sensory loss in the skin and your muscles get weak. People with long-term leprosy cannot walk or use their hands due to the muscle weakness. A number of different antibiotics are used to kill the bacteria.

source: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/112347.htm

Ben Hur- What I learned-part 2.

2009-01-06T20:38:00.000-08:00

I learned that if you weren't a Roman, you have less rights. If you were adopted by the council, you are officially a Roman and are granted with more rights. And you inherited what your father that adopted you have. I also learned that if you get leprosy, you live with other people that also has leprosy and you live far away from people without leprosy. The Romans believed that if a leprosy infected person breathed on you, you would get the bacteria. I learned that when the ships of the Roman's get rammed, the slaves that are rowing, start freaking out and started tugging at the chains that are around their ankles. I also learned that the prisoners can stay in prison for years and don't look at the sun for how long they stay in the dungeon.

Death tolls mounts as Israel expands Gaza Offensive.

2009-01-06T04:56:00.000-08:00

4 soldiers in the Gaza Strip were killed on Tuesday by their shells on their tanks- it is the first "friendly fire" in the 11-old-days offensive. The Israeli soldiers were reported that they are heading south-ward into the Gaza Strip, to Khun Yunis. The United Nations reported that one of their schools were hit by the Israeli hit. The Hamas, who were the group that are defying the Israelies, fired more rockets into Israel on Tuesday. One of the rockets hit the town of Gareda, just 20 miles south away from Tel Aviv. The target that was struck was the farthest north out of the hundred of missiles that had been fired from the Gaza Strip since the Israeli offensive began. Since the Israeli offensive went into the Gaza Strip on Saturday, the Israeli offensive have killed 130 of the Hama's men and only 5 men from the Israeli offensive died of the shell on their tank. The Israeli officials from Washington said that the amount of fired missiles have dropped from 80 on christmas day to 20 per day now. The president of France and the president of Syria met with the leaders of Israel and said that the fight must stop because it is "unbearable". The Israeli were still not ready to cease fire proposal. The offensive are not finished yet.

source: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/07/world/middleeast/07mideast.html?pagewanted=2E_r=1Eref=world

Modern day slavery

2009-01-06T04:36:00.001-08:00

There is still slavery today, though many people are unaware of that. There are probably 27 million people under different forms of slavery. The Central Intelligence Agency have estimated that there are 45,000 women and children smuggled into America, promised with a decent job, but then only got their passports stolen and had to work in farms, sweatshirt shop or work as maids. But most of the people that were of the 27 million are South Asians that are in debt bondage. The system is described as "Disposable People". Families, children also, are in debts, can be enslaved for generation. Slavery is a growing business because many people are becoming poor. People found that there are a lot of families are willing to sell their children, mostly daughters, for a lot of money to be able to afford useless things like television. The daughters are mostly sold into prostitution. They stay there until they get AIDs and then, are sent back to their village to die in shame. Slavery is illegal but it is still unable to be completely put to an end. The first stage of fighting against slavery is learning that slavery exists and let other people know that slavery is a serious human abuse, and let convince them not to see slavery as a cultural practice.

source:

Education Problems in Taiwan.

2009-01-05T20:47:00.000-08:00

I asked my mother what are the education problems in Taiwan, and she replied, that there is too many tests and quizzes in the Taiwan school, then the students there have to attend extra lessons to help them keep up with their school work. And then, the students have a lot of homework.

what happens to the students in Taiwan that do not pass the exam in 9th grade?
My mother said that the grades of the exams determines which senior school the student will attend. This schools leads to studying in universities and colleges. The higher the grades of the students, they will attend better schools. If the student's grade in the exam is so low that no school accepts him/her, then the students could choose to study in vocational schools. These school do not lead your studying to universities and colleges.

Ben Hur-what I learned.

2009-01-05T20:37:00.000-08:00

I noticed the Romans were very mean to their prisoners and slaves. The scene in the dungeon when Ben was protesting that they let his family go, then he was dragged out of the room by the guards and the guards pushed Ben and was really mean to him. The slaves wore rags. The group of slaves that were lead by the Romans were wearing rags and had cuts all over them. Ben Hur was very kind to his servants, because they were not wearing any rags but clothes. Ben does not treat his slaves like slaves, but spoke to them kindly. The commanders are served well. The commander's clothes looks good and they look well fed unlike the slaves. The peasants did not wear clothes that look rich. The Roman ships had oars that made the ships sailed. The slaves had to row the oars. If they were sick, they would be replaced with another slave. The leader of the ship was really mean, they weren't at battle, and yet he ordered the speed of the ship be rowed very fast. He was trying to make Ben tired and fall down, but other people get tired and fainted.

Puppy given up on Christmas Day

2008-12-27T19:51:00.001-08:00

An unwanted puppy was given to the animal shelter on Christmas day. The Dog Trust said that a couple in Scotland had bought the puppy as a gift for themselves but then decided they could not take care of the puppy themselves. The couple named the puppy Theo. Staff took Theo home with them, worried that the puppy would be scared. People buy dogs as a gift and then abandon the dogs in a short time. None of the Dog Trust rehoming center allowed anybody to buy dogs until 2nd January, to prevent from people abandoning dogs.
source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_7800000/newsid_7801200/7801288.stm

Woman found alive in the snow.

2008-12-24T22:34:00.000-08:00

Woman was found buried alive in snow.
A woman was missing in the blizzard. She was buried in 58 cm for three days, just a few meters away from her vehicle. She vanished on Friday and was found 3 days later. The police, Ray Lau was stunned to find the buried woman, Donna Molnar, still breathing after spending along time in the snow. When he found Donna, only Donna's face and neckline was visible. She suffered frostbites and is in the hospital recovering. Donna is 55 years old. This happened in Canada. Canada and parts of America are having severe winter weather. It is causing trouble for those who are travelling to visit friends and family.

The barriers of education

2008-12-10T00:41:00.000-08:00

Most children gets basic education. They go to school, but they drop out of school before finishing their primary education. The children who do attends school, receives a poor education because of untrained, underpaid teachers and lack of school equipment. The countries that have this problem is because the government is lacking money and the governmental will to solve this problem. In a perfect but not real world, children would have to finish at least the primary education. They have to because, a child will no have the basic skills to function well in the society, one individual failure means the whole society fails. The cost of having children educated outweighed the cost of not having children educated. Some countries could not have free education for the children because the tax base is very small or because the people refuse to pay tax.

source: http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/issues/issues33/index.htm

Thailand airport protests

2008-12-08T21:13:00.000-08:00

Thousands of tourists who were trapped inside the airport are now able to leave now. The protestors were the People Alliance for Democracy. They demanded that the government step down in order for the airport to continue working. Before the airport was free, the court found that the prime minister's People Power Party had been buying the votes so the election wasn't fair. The People Alliance for Democracy had vowed that if the government step down, they would stop their protests. The airport was expected to start on 4th of December. All of this happened in Thailand.

source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_7760000/newsid_7760700/7760751.stm

Irish Pork taken off shelves

2008-12-08T19:17:00.000-08:00

Irish pork have been taken off shelves after health experts found out that the pigs might have been eating a type of poison called dioxin. Experts think that pork have to be taken off shelves in 25 different countries. Health experts said that if you ate a little bit if pork it is okay, only if you have been eating pork for a period of time. Ireland had sent a lot of pork to Germany, France, Russia and the Netherlands in 2007. The prime minister of Ireland said that the government of Ireland is investigating where the poisoning of the pigs are coming from. They think it came from the Republic of Ireland, where pigs were fed for a lot of farmers.

source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_7770000/newsid_7771100/7771108.stm

Hanging Fire

2008-12-06T01:24:00.000-08:00

Hanging Fire

The main idea of the poem is about a black boy who was treated unfairly by the world. The poem is not a simile. It has no rhyming and no beat to it. It is really sad about the boy and the things that he has go through. I think that his mother has committed suiside because she is always in her room and she doesn't seem to care for her own son. The stanzas of the poem is in short sentences. I imagine that this poem means a lot to the author since it could be him, the poor black boy.

Mother convicted of kidnapping her own daughter

2008-12-04T08:17:00.000-08:00

Sharon Mathews was kidnapped in February and was held for 24 days. The kidnappers, Mathews and Donovan, claimed that they wanted the reward money. Many found it hard to imagine what type of mother would kidnap her own children for reward money." I'm a mum myself and know I would have been out of my mind and Karen didn't seem to be "

Det Con Christine Freeman
sharon was found inside a bed. The apartment had elastic strap that prevented sharon from reaching the door. The search for Sharon had costed the police 3.2 million dollars. Matthew's siblings were ashamed of Matthew except one close friend of Matthew. They still did not know why it started in the first place. June Batley was the neighbour of where Sharon was kidnapped.

The death throes of Harare's hospitals

2008-12-04T05:01:00.000-08:00

The hospital in Zimbabwe was empty. The patients that went there had no hope of getting treated in the empty hospital. The building was a school and a market with peeling wall papers. The hospital was officially closed down last friday. Before, the hospital were filled with attentive nurses and doctors and a lot of sick patients. The parking lot was full too.
IF someone wanted an expensive treatment, they would not get it because they could not access to their cash because the banks has a limited number of withdrawels. the public hospitals accept money but the patients that came to them, they had to turn them away because there are no nurses, drugs or doctors.
source:http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7714892.stm

Global 20/20

2008-12-02T05:47:00.000-08:00

Brain Dump:
why is education important?
- a chance for us to learn things
- experience things
- make us smart
- have a better life
- improve the world
- to continue to discover unknown knowledge
- to have a successful life
- to help us be able to stand up for ourselves.

Things that will happen to Winnie the Poo

2008-12-01T07:23:00.000-08:00

winnie the poo was walking the woods
then piglet came and shouted "boo"
winnie the poo got heart attack
when he fell and squashed his cat
winnie the poo was choking on his honey
when he was both eating and counting his money
winnie the poo was almost dying
from dehydration of crying
winnie the poo broke his leg
when he was trying to dance ballet
winnie the poo stepped on his own poop
that was why he was called winnie the POO.

wished on a star

2008-12-01T07:09:00.000-08:00

One night, was full moon
the crows and bats together crooned
then, a star fell out of sky
while it was raining sweets and pies
It landed on west witch's head
and it turned her into melted lead
and out ran a lad
who saw what happen and was glad
because west witch was evil
kind of like cruella de vil

the lad had wished, when the star fell
and seconds later, the witch had melt
now, he's skipping with joy
and accidentally got destroyed
when he skipped on the melted witch
and that was the glitch

you expected something bright
but, sorry, the lad was destroyed
let's all for him mourn
then, it is the witch's turn
this is where our story ends
for they were our friends

proudly by Rachel Tan

7 things that will come true

2008-12-01T07:01:00.000-08:00

There are seven things that will come true
now, i'll try my best to prove
First will come is arts night
On lock-in, there'll be a pillow fight
In january, there'll be biomes talking
then, nightmares shall be stalking
We'll all recieve a F in grades
then a contest will come, on eating grapes
and last but not least
we shall have a feast
(these ain't true, so don't believe!!)
because it's silly, because of me

by Rachel Tan

What is education?

2008-11-30T01:30:00.000-08:00

Education is learning of skills that prepare us for the future.
Education is important because we will depend on the knowledge we have in the future to be independent in the world and to have a good life. I think that our partner school's definition is not the complete idea of education.

Death Poem

2008-11-27T05:09:00.001-08:00

Death

DEATH is a road our dearest friends have gone;
Why with such leaders, fear to say, "Lead on?"
Its gate repels, lest it too soon be tried,
But turns in balm on the immortal side.
Mothers have passed it: fathers, children; men
Whose like we look not to behold again;
Women that smiled away their loving breath;
Soft is the travelling on the road to death!
But guilt has passed it? men not fit to die?
O, hush -- for He that made us all is by!
Human we're all -- all men, all born of mothers;
All our own selves in the worn-out shape of others;
Our used, and oh, be sure, not to be ill-used brothers!: James Leigh Hunt

the sugar plum tree

2008-11-22T02:53:00.000-08:00

The Sugar-Plum Tree

HAVE you ever heard of the Sugar-Plum Tree?
'Tis a marvel of great renown!
It blooms on the shore of the Lollypop Sea
In the garden of Shut-Eye Town;
The fruit that it bears is so wondrously sweet
(As those who have tasted it say)
That good little children have only to eat
Of that fruit to be happy next day.
When you've got to the tree, you would have a hard time
To capture the fruit which I sing;
The tree is so tall that no person could climb
To the boughs where the sugar-plums swing!
But up in that tree sits a chocolate cat,
And a ginger bread dog prowls below-
And this is the way you contrive to get at
Those sugar-plums tempting you so:
You say but the word to that gingerbread dog
And he barks with such a terrible zest
That the chocolate cat is at once all agog,
As her swelling proportions attest.
And the chocolate cat goes covorting around
From this leafy limb unto that,
And the sugar-plums tumble, of course, to the ground-
Hurray for that chocolate cat!
There are marshmallows, gumdrops, and peppermint canes
With striping of scarlet and gold,
And you carry away of the treasure that rains,
As much as your apron can hold!
So come, little child, cuddle closer to me
In your dainty white nightcap and gown,
And I'll rock you away to the Sugar-Plum Tree
In the garden of Shut-Eye Town.: Eugene Field

The elements of poetry are imagery, sound, voice and form. The form in this poetry is very neat. Each sentence isn't on one row but several rows. I don't think that this poem is metaphor or a simile. It doesn't really compare the Sugar Plum Tree with anything. It is a story about the tree and what happened when some kids wanted some sugar plum. And there was a chocolate cat and a gingerbread dog who helped them to get sugar plum.
There is rhyming in the poem. I think that this poem is like, not does not express any serious emotions. This poem describes me because i think that this poem has alot of imagination and i like fantasy-ish stuff.

Ancient Greece and Rome: Task B. 2

2008-11-21T18:08:00.000-08:00

What were the classes in ancient Greece?
In Greece, the people were split in to two groups, slaves and free people. Slaves don't have no legal rights and were labourers or servants. Some slaves are prisoners from wars. As the society developed, the free people group split into two groups, metic and citizens. The citizens are people who were born with athen parents. They were the most powerful group and were able to take part of the government of Polis. The citizens were expected to be government officials and take part of the jury after the service in the army. The metics had to pay tax and could never have the rights of a citizens. The classes only apply to men. The womens took their social classes from their husband or partners.
source: http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Culture/
what were the classes in ancient rome?
The upper classes were senetorial classes. The people from the senetorial classes must have at least one ancestor that was a consul. The next class in the upper class is the equestrian class. Anybody could be enrolled to this as long as they have a specific amount of wealth.
In the lower classes were the commons. The latins were also a class. they were born in Italy but not a full citizen of rome. The next class were the foreigners. They were people who lived in the Roman territories. Freedpeople were the slaves who had been freed.Freedpeople have low social status and were probably poor. the last class were the slaves. Slaves were a property of their owners. Some of them were allowed to have savings and buy their freedom later.
source:http://www.vroma.org/~bmcmanus/socialclass.html
What did the ancient greeks do to practice their religion?
The greeks practiced their religion by prayers, meals and storytelling. this would be more private and family religion practice. The public aspect of practicing religion would be towards altars and hearths. they would sacrifice on the altars. Animals are butchered and cooked to be served and eaten. Prayers are also part of this religion. Sometimes they would put statues of what they desired.
source:http://www.fjkluth.com/religion.html
What did the ancient romans do to practice their religion?
The romans believed that if they pleased their gods, the gods would reward them. But if the romans angered or upset them, they would be punished severely. there were five important posts in the ancient rome religion. the first one was pontiffs. Pontiffs advise the chief magistrate and was in charged of making the calenders. Haruspex were priest who were thought highly by the people. His job was to tell the future. Auspices were to tell if the gods approved of the government actions. Flamens were priest who conduct different types of sacrifices. The Vestal Virgins look after the sacred fire of vestal. They make sure that it keeps on burning.
source:http://www.richeast.org/htwm/Greeks/Romans/Bass/index.html
What were the products that show the greeks creativity?
Some of the things that the greeks made were the temple of Apollo, the temple of Athena and more. One of the things that represent the greeks creativity was poetry and literature, like Illiad and Odyssey. The ancient greeks also made beautiful sculptures.

source:http://www.ancientgreece.com/s/Art/
http://history-world.org/greek_art.htm
What were the products that the ancient rome did to show their creativity?
The Romans had paintings, architectures, mosaic and sculptures were the major forms of creativity of the romans. Coins, pottery and more were considered to be minor forms of the roman creativity. The Severan Tondo, Boscoreale, and Bust of Antinuos were some of the artwork created by the Romans.
source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_art
What sports/games did the Greeks enjoy?
The Greeks enjoyed weightlifting, discus, javelin, boxing, wrestling,running, long jumping and chariot racing.
source:http://oncampus.richmond.edu/academics/education/projects/webunits/greecerome/Greecesports1.html
What were the sports that the Romans enjoyed?
Some of the sport and games that the Romans enjoyed were the Roman Ball, roman checkers, chess, backgammon, tic-tac-toe, gladiators and chariot racing.
source:http://www.tqnyc.org/2005/NYC051950//jaredromesportsandgames.htm
How were the Greeks organized into groups?
They were organized into groups based on wealth or just finishing education.
source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_Greece
How were the Romans organized in to groups?
The Romans were organized into groups by posts and jobs.

Japan whaling fleet leave port

2008-11-18T03:20:00.000-08:00

The first ship in the Japan whaling fleet has left for Antarctica. Japan goes on two whale hunts per year. The officials say that the whale hunt was for scientific study. Shigeki Tanaka said "We are doing a legal survey based on International Whaling Commission rules.", he is from the Japanese Fisheries Agencies. The anti whale-hunters thought that the Japanese were more interested in selling the meat for food, killing whales for meat was banned in 1986.
Anti whale killers and whale hunters often bump into each other at sea, and is more likely at this time of the year. The anti whale hunters said that they will do their best to disrupt the hunt.
source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/cbbcnews/hi/newsid_7730000/newsid_7734200/7734253.stm

Pirate captured supertanker

2008-11-18T03:10:00.000-08:00

The Somali pirates have seized an oil tanker called Sirius Star. The Sirius Star was said to be the biggest tanker seized in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Kenya. The Sirius Star was carrying 2 million barrels of oil that worth over 50 million dollars. The tanker is moving towards a port in Somalia. The pirates are negotiating what they want before they give it back.
Off the coast of Somalia, piracy was common. They often want money in exchange of safe release of the crew and the ship. But the latest capture was unusual because it was so far from the Somalia coast.

The elements in poetry

2008-11-17T04:05:00.001-08:00

the elements of poetry are form, voice, sound, imagery. the new colossus had stanzas. It was arranged neatly into short rows of sentences. It isn't split into verses. The poem wasn't read aloud by the writer. i dont think that the new colossus had a rhythm but the words rhymed.
The first sentence of the poem was " Not like the brazen giant of greek fame.", i thought that this part might be simile. It might be simile because it uses the like or as to compare the statue of liberty to the greek god Helios. The rest of the poem would be metaphor. Metaphors are also comparison without using like or as.

Ancient Greece and Rome: Task B.

2008-11-14T21:58:00.000-08:00

How did the ancient Greek people make their living?
Fisherman and country folk provided food such as fish and olives. Farmers raised pigs and cows. City people sell and make goods such as leather goods, and pots.
What were the people's belief about the gods, the soul, life and death?
The ancient Greek people believed that the gods and goddesses had the power over nature and the events and the power to control the future.they believed that the gods and the goddesses lived on Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece. There were 12 main gods and goddesses. Zeus , was the king of gods and goddesses. Hera was the goddesses of marriage and childbirth. Athena was the goddesses of art, wisdom and war. Aphrodite was the goddesses of love and beauty. Hermes was the messenger of the gods and the protector of travelers. Ares, the god of war. Hestia, goddesses of hearth and family. Poseidon was the god of the sea, earthquake, horses and bulls. Apollo, god of sun and music and poetry. Artemis, the goddesses of moon, hunting and protector of girls. Hephaestus, god of fire and metal work. Demeter, goddesses of crops.
What do people do to practice their religion?
Sick people made sacrifices in the temples hoping to be cured as they slept.
What do the people express their creativity?
the ancient Greek people express their creativity by making sculptures, beautiful temples and theaters. the greeks were smart people.
what sports do people do?
The Greeks did long jump, running, throwing the discus, wrestling and javelin during the Olympics. The Olympics were held in honor of Zeus.

Ancient Greece and Rome

2008-11-14T18:39:00.000-08:00

What do government do?
Government make sure that the people obey the laws and rules. They also provide health care and education. Local government take care of the roads and transportation. They collect tax.
How did democracy get started?
Democracy started in ancient Greece. I think then in America, they developed and became a democracy country and the countries saw the freedom they were offered and started to go for democracy.
What does it mean to be a civilization?
Civilization is human society, culture of a particular area. so we are part of a civilization because we are part of a human society and the culture of that area.

Language Arts: Culture

2008-11-14T00:25:00.000-08:00

Culture is the way of how people live. I am part of the Chinese culture. You can be in many culture because the way you do things can be done in mixed culture way. Nobody had false assumptions about my culture. Culture is the way you dress, the language you speak and how you celebrate. Identity is like your existence, your name.

Language Arts: The New Colossus

2008-11-14T00:10:00.000-08:00

The statue of liberty is different from the harsh god, Helios, because in the greek culture, the people kill for entertainment. And the lady of liberty is different from Helios. Emma Lazarus described the statue of liberty as a mighty women and the torch in her hand has lightning in it. And she is the mother of the people who were exiled. She welcomes people. She tells America to keep their history. She tells the world that she will except those who seek better lives, and those who could not be accepted in the Old World. The statue of liberty would lift her torch beside a door to those who seek a place to stay.