In the article, Hundreds arrested in Copenhagen protests found at http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/12/12/copenhagen.protests/index.html?eref=rss_world&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_world+%28RSS%3A+World%29&utm_content=Google+Reader, published by CNN, the article described the passion of many across the world to solve the problems associated with climate change. Thousands of protesters were in the Danish capital of Copenhagen demanding "climate justice" as world leaders met to work on an international agreement on a systematic solution to climate change. Several hundred protesters were arrested as the crowd chanted and waved banners showing that they care about the earth and want the world's governments to care too. The two-week summit is predicted to end by next Friday with an ambitious new climate deal. The European nations have already announced their plan to spend 7.2 billion euros or $10.6 billion over the next three years to aid developing nations and get them helping the global climate cause. As our great nations meet peacefully to solve a global climate problem the future looks a little brighter.

pln28

pln27

In the article from CNN, Italy plans to deploy 1000 troops to Afghanistan, found at http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/12/03/italy/afhanistan.troops/index.html?eref=rss_world&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_world+%RSS%3A+World%29&utm_content=Google+Reader , it describes the Italian Defense Ministry's decision to send an additional 1,000 troops to Afghanistan to support the 2,800 Italian troops that are already there. This decision by the Italians was in response to President Barack Obama's call on Tuesday to send an additional 30,000 American troops to Afghanistan in an effort to silence the Taliban and close in on terrorists who use the country as a safe haven. The article also mentions the various troop levels from other NATO and non-NATO members. In the speech given by Obama on the war effort in Afghanistan, he laid out his strategy for success. This strategy includes an 18-month commitment focused on training Afghan forces to be able to take control of their own country and keep terrorists at bay. One of the biggest problems facing the Americans and the coalition partners is a corrupt Afghan government. It is hoped that this new strategy with increased troop levels will ensure that this war will not be drawn out indefinitely. But war is war nonetheless.

pln26

In the article U.S Bound Oil Tanker Captured off the coast of Somilia, found at published by CNN, it decribed the increase of pirate activity over the last year in Simiolia after this recent oil tanker was captured. The Somilie Pirats have captured more than 50 ships off their coast alone but over this year there has been 306 pirat attacks compared to the year 2008 with 293 attacks this is a substancle increase. What does the future of shipping hold for the world with this old threat come back to haunt us.

pln25

In the article, Astronaut on space shuttle Atlantis becomes a father, found at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8372997.stm, from the BBC, it described U.S. Astronaut Randolph Bresnik who recently became a father during his space voyage last Sunday. He is due to return in a few days to meet his newly born daughter Abigail, his three-year-old adopted son from Ukraine, and his wife, Rebecca. Readers might wonder what's it like to have a daughter while in space and how he felt when he heard the news. They might also wonder how his wife felt having a baby while her husband was so very far away. Everyone surely wishes Randolph Bresnik a safe journey and a very happy return home.

PLN21

In the article, $849 billion health bill sets up historic debate, found at http://article.wn.com/view/2009/11/19/849_billion_health_bill_sets_up_historic_debate_w/, by David Espo of The Guardian, he describes the new health care bill just unveiled in the U.S. Senate, its intricate workings and politics. Two of the key features of the bill is that it will extend coverage to 94% of eligible Americans and it would disallow insurance companies the ability to deny coverage to people with diagnosed medical problems. President Barack Obama has said that reforming the health care system is his number one domestic priority and this bill gets him one step closer in his journey of a thousand miles. The bill would require most Americans to have health insurance and it would help pay for this insurance for those who cannot afford it. However the bill will need 60 votes to even make it open for debate by the full Senate. This vote will be tight. Each of the 58 Democratic senators and the two Independent senators will need to stick together in order to get this bill passed. There is slim to no hope for Republican support. The proposed Senate bill and the House-passed bill share many key features but there are also many differences particularly in the financing. The fate of this bill is still cloudy but many Americans believe it must be passed.

pln24

In the article Energy issues at EU-Russia summit, found at http://www.thehimalayantimes.com/fullNews.php?headline=Energy+issues+at+EU-Russia+summit&NewsID=48075 , from the Himalayan Times, it describes the EU - Russian summit currently underway in Stockholm. The major issue to be discussed at the summit is energy. Europe would like to avoid what happened in 2008 when Russia cut off oil to multiple European nations for two weeks because of a price and pay dispute with Ukraine, the country through which the Russian oil transits. This caused major problems in the EU which receives about a quarter of its gas supply from Russia. A progressive leap forward on this issue happened Monday when Russia and the EU signed an energy early warning agreement that will help them avoid future abrupt disruptions of the gas supply. Russia and Ukraine however still must work out a peaceful agreement. Energy issues are not the only problems Russia and the EU are facing. Another sensitive topic at the summit is human rights because Sweden plans to press Russia over this issue. In summary, Europe is not the only region dependent on foreign energy supplies. The world needs to develop cheap, renewable energy sources to avoid future conflicts.

pln23

In the article U.S., China vow action on climate change, found at http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/11/17/china.climate.change/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29&utm_content=Google+Reader from CNN, today's announcement on a climate change agreement between China and the USA created quite a stir. The article stated that, "Chinese President Hu Jintao and President Obama said their nations will cooperate to advance technologies and work toward a global agreement on reducing carbon emissions." This is a matter of great importance to the planet because for the first time, two of the great nations of the world are coming together to tackle climate change. China and the U.S are leading producers of carbon pollution in the world and it makes sense that they are stepping up to the challenge of climate change; but two is not enough, the whole world must participate before substantial progress can be made. Most importantly, this agreement comes in advance of next month's United Nation's conference on global climate change to be held in Copenhagen, Denmark. The message that Obama and Hu Jintao are trying to send to the other nations of the world is that if the US and China can make progress on climate change, so can the rest of the world. Time will tell if this measure by China and the US can rally the world to reach a pact on cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

After reading Put forth our best writing by Dougless Hesse I was informed yet again of our modern growth and the literacy it has bestowed upon the 21st century and how some are misusing it by misspelling and abbreviating while others use it to their advantage. My belief is that the English language is being rewritten by our technologically advanced generations. Some call it defacing the English language others call it writing our own paths. In my honest opinion our writing will come down to grades so nothing will change except for the fact we are writing more.

pln26

After reading articles about soccer in America I noticed the considerable growth it has had in the last 50 years. While America was still secluded way back when it was cut off from the worlds affairs and culture, so while soccer got big over in Europe foot ball and base ball got big in America. Over the years though America came to recognize the love of soccer around and realized that they were behind schedule. The boys were trained and the rules were taught and America had a team with leagues springing up all across the country, from what started as a slow sport has now changed into world wide competition between country's to challenge there athletic ability at the sport of soccer. Even though America hasn't put soccer as their number 1 sport it is still climbing in the number of players and love for the game.

pln20

while reading articles about who is going to be the next world super power I discovered that the most possible country to become the next world super power is china is this a good thing or a bad thing? I believe that this is a good thing because when ever your the super power that makes you the worlds police, you have to help everyone and you have to baby sit all the low tech country's. When and if China becomes the next world super power they are going to share the responsibility's of the U.S that means less troops over seas, more money, redirection of funding towards Eco friendly machinery, etc... The great thing about not being the world's super power is that you aren't targeted by terrorists or other outside threats threats. Over all not being the world super power is probably a good thing and wot greatly affect us in the future.

pln19

After reading countless blogs about the modern world and all the interesting news, I realized that everyone has a voice in this world and Mrs. Smith is teaching us how to hear other voices and express our own. In a democracy you have to be able to know what your own opinion is after gathering info from a variety of sources because you have to vote on both people and issues. Many jobs will require you to listen critically, comprehend, and express an opinion. The skills we are learning through the Pln's are the fundamental building blocks for future success.

pln18

After seeing a lot of tests done on teens playing violent video games, I came to the conclusion that these video games are taking over boys' lives. In a test done by Denver public school parents, the average high school guy spends more time on the X-box, Wii, Play Station, etc. than he does sports, homework, or time with girls. As more of these video games are produced and played, I predict that by the year 2018 the need to play these video games will be like an addiction and become a serious problem. The bigger problem behind these video games is that most of them are extremely violent. Younger kids in particular are being exposed to violence which may influence them to be more violent and radical. I believe that video games will be around for the rest of time and they will become increasingly addicting to everyone. The facts are right in front of us, all we have to do is open our eyes. Video games are like candy. They should be enjoyed in moderation.

pln17

When I read the article extinction of the polar bear by John Leuis I found out that in about six years the polar bears wont be able to survive in the melting ice caps. I believe that its our dutie as human beaqings to protect all the creatures on this planet no matter the cost. We polute the planet with carbon dioxide and other haderodues gases and we are destroying an entire eco system in the proses. The planet can only take so much soon all citys will end up like bejing where the haze is so thick that you can almost cut it with a knife. Every day at least 20 polar bears die in the ocean because there home has melted add that up to a year and thats a masicur. Every day polar bears are dieing and we have the power to stop it so why arent we?

PLn16

pln14

In the article,"Rigor Redefined," Tony Wanger asks the question about whether schools are preparing us enough to become the next generation of successful workers. During his research he discovered that some of the core things needed for the jobs of today don't get the required focus in modern school environments. For example, are our teachers teaching us to think critically, to ask questions? Other skills needed in the workplace are leadership and the ability to work well with others. The author thinks that schools are not training our modern scholars to have these fundamentals necessary to succeed past school.

pln12

In the article, "Footprints in the Digital Age," Will Richardson the author explained how becoming technologically able or "googled" is like driving without any practice, in other words, it's a learn-from-your-mistakes way of learning. He also gave real world examples about how teens like us made a difference using the Internet. Laura, one of the students in the article, blogged about her beliefs and raised money for charities and other organizations. But others may abuse the Internet for example, con artists. The point that Richardson was trying to make is that our digital footprints may have different shapes. For Laura her digital footprint looks great but for others it may not be the same.

pln15

In the article, "Our googely advice to students: Major in Learning," Google talked about some of the requirements for being part of the Google organization. What I got out of it was that they need creative, hardworking employees with good leadership skills. These are some of the key qualities of any job but what makes this one unique is their promotion of competition. In most job environments competition is banned or discouraged in favor of teamwork but Googles' perspective on it is "more competition, better workers." They feel competition is how they propel innovation. I don't know if I agree with this completely but it makes some sense. Overall I think their perspective on the qualities of a good worker are genuinely unique to their own purpose.

pln13

In my experiences with technology and typing I think it’s much more difficult than traditional writing. From my point of view I write much more and use better wording when writing with a pen/pencil, this year my English class started using computers and I have been struggling to keep up my grades. Last year I had to do everything in hand and I made honor role with stellar grades in that class. What my belief is on typing papers is that students spend more time focusing on typing than word choice or spelling, maybe in future generations typing will become like writing with a pen/pencil, unfourtunintaly my generation is not that lucky. We are bound to flounder with typing until we finally grasp it through very hard work. Typing will most likely evolve through the generations, as for mine we will have to grasp it firmly to proceed to the professions of the future.

pln11

In Karl Fighs's video "Vision of 2020" it gave a futuristics scenario on the growth of education and technologies in an intertwining line. The video was very different from his last one "Did you know" because it was voice edited and it gave fictional info instead of facts. One of the things I thought was very cool was the way technology molded its self into the learning system, by the end of the video computers and there programs had almost made traditional learning obsolete. When the video talked about solar panels and futuristic cars it shocked me by how real it sounded  and how it played into education yet again. This video really gave me a new perspective on how technology is saving us.

Pln10

In the article, "Water on the moon," by NASA it described the possibilities of having lunar stations because scientists may be able to harvest water from the lunar surface. The article suggested there could be water on the moon brought from asteroids! This really surprised me because I have never heard of asteroids carrying anything other than rocks. Another theory is that solar winds may bring chemicals to create hydrogen; all the astronauts would have to do then is combine that with oxygen to create H2O or water. I think the possibilities are endless of what we can do on the moon if there is water readily available, but I'm not the only one who thinks that, NASA has invested a quarter million dollars into this research! Water on the moon was a pretty cool thing to imagine, and now it may be a reality.

pln9

I watched many videos about green technology and the automotive industry. One of the most fascinating videos was about an all-electric motorcycle built and owned by a well known Harley motorcyclist; its estimated value was $1,000,000 and it sure looked cool. Some of the green technologies featured in the videos were interior biodegradable materials and a special type of paint that was almost 100% water. What I really enjoyed in those videos was the huge effort everyone was making to help our planet. I have often felt alone in my efforts to be 'green' and that no one seemed to care. I think that in the future energy will come from clean, renewable sources including solar and wind. Someday I really hope to be able to contribute to this effort.

Pln8

In Michel Wecsh's video "Vision for students today"  it showed how collage students today are starting to fail or are in massive debt. This was because of reasons like to much time on face book or very expensive lap tops but all these reasons had one thing in comen they were all related to technology in some way shape or form. What this all means is that the need for technology is growing more rapidly than we thought. 

game update

Yesterday the boys' freshsoph soccer team whupped Cherokee 5 to 2. I had two assists that led to the first two goals, however the game really heated up when Cherokee scored two goals to tie the game. At that point, our team, the Warriors, put on their game faces and smashed their way to victory with three unanswered goals. One of my teammates, Anthony, had an amazing leftfooted goal that bounced of the right post into the goal. The game was really fun and the Warriors kicked @##.

gender blog redone

In the article,"Women raising the bar at colleges," it gave facts about how women are doing way better in college than guys. This article was written from a sexist viewpoint because it gave only one side of the story that is, the reasons girls in general were doing better and the reason guys in general were doing poorly. If I could rewrite this article, I would also talk about why individual girls were doing poorly and individual guys were doing well. This might shed better light on the general reasons stated in the article's thesis. I would make it sound less sexist and give multiple points from multiple sources. Overall this article could have used some refining and a new point of view.

Pln7

Last week our class read "The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Connell.  This was a really great story that I thought was even movie-worthy.  One of the reasons I thought this was a great story was because of the constant action entangled in the plot.  The overall premise of a man who hunted other men for sport was entertaining and exciting and kept me on edge to the very end.  I think this story could make a very good movie appealing to all action-movie lovers.  It could be filmed on a remote Caribbean island with some big name stars just like the 1932 version only this time it would be in color!  All in all, I really enjoyed this short story and hope we can read more stories like it.

Pln6

This year I was the new kid coming into high school and I really didn't know what to expect. I was at a new school, out-of-district, and I really didn't know anybody. But so far this year has been great because I'm not the new kid any more and I have made lots of friends. How I did this so quickly was simply getting involved. When you are the new kid, you tend to build barriers and stick to yourself. What helped me get around those walls was soccer. When tryouts began for soccer, I had made a few friends but not enough; as tryouts went on I built strong bonds with my whole team. Outside of tryouts my friends were my teammates and I expanded from there. It didn't take long to start meeting new people with the help of my team. For incoming freshmen next year my only advice is to get involved!

In the short story "The Most Dangerous Game" by Richard Conell it told the story of a hunter becoming the hunted ,after falling of his ship and finding a mysterious island with the great general zarnoff hunting hi for amusement.

In the article, "The New Literacy, " by Clive Thompson, he talks about how technology is helping our society.  The main topic of the article was how the Internet is making our generation more literate, not less literate as many (older) people assume.  Basically, the author maintains that just going on the Internet to different Web sites and reading plus using social networking sites such as FaceBook, where people interact and correspond through words, gives people more exposure to literacy than in pre-Internet days.  The only drawback to things like texting and Twitter is that you "aint" learn how to spell "rite."

Pln4

In the video "machines are using us " it gave fast info about the raped progress of the Internet and how its increasing our communication. How ever, it was confusing because it did not talk about how the machines are using us. The only thing that mattered in the video was the info about the future of communication further more it gave confusing range of words at a high speed pace leaving a reader baffled and confused.

What matters miles

 

What matter s to me are my friends, my family, and soccer, these are some of the most important things in my life right now. 

 

Friend’s mater to me a lot, and they play a big role in my life. Coming to a new school out of district I really didn’t know any body but as more and more people started reaching out to me the school seemed less big and less lonely. Now I have a good group of friends and we are all hanging out all the time and i'm still making new friends all over the place.

 

Another thing that matters to me is family. My family is my mom, my dad, and my sister they matter to me because they watch over me and all that other family stuff. My little sister has always got my back and has helped me through some tuff times and im sure that I matter to her as much as she matters to me. My family will always matter to me and lead me on the right path to success.

 

One of the things that matter to me on a more unique scale is soccer. When I began playing soccer at the age of 4 I had no idea that it would take me through so many things in my life. By the time I could start making my own decisions about things like what to where I was 13 and had lodes of experience with the game by then and I had made many friends along the way. In high school this year my first friends at the school I met at soccer, but soccer to me isn’t just about the friends it’s also about the love of the game.

 

All these things play a big role in my life and they matter to me the most.

 

Pln3

Parker Engel's blog on the gender article had an explosive start and a strong finish, making his point without giving away any personal opinions.  Parker and I shared a common thesis - that the gender article was sexist.  One thing I would have changed however was the frequent use of the word "and" in the middle of the blog.  This was somewhat distracting to the reader.  His topic drifted a little bit but other than that it was a stellar article and I thought he did a good job. 

Pln2

In the article "Women raising the bar in collages" by Tamar Lewin, it talked about how women are doing better in school in general compared to the average guy. this article was written in a sexist tone against guys because half the article was about the reasons that guys get worse grades than girls . (quote) 'guys spend more time socializing than studying" many guys spend time socializing with girls their are two genders socializing here not just guys.

Pln1

In Karl Fisch's video “Did You Know” , I learned about many world issues I only dreamed existed. I was shocked and amazed at the rate of children being born in foreign countries. The video really gave me a perspective on our modern society and made me realize the speed of witch our education system is evolving. In the video, I learned that our schools are preparing us for jobs that don’t even exist yet, and that the leading jobs today didn’t even exist in 2000. The video told me a lot about a range of topics but they were all very interesting and I learned a lot.

What Matters 

what matters? to you, to your friends, to your school, to the world.

what matters to me is my friends ,family, and dreams but what about the world? what matters to it? The helth of the ecosystem, in our modern society the growing rate of pollution is sickening, what matters to me is to stop that any way I can. My dream is to become a mechanical engineer and produce clean ways of making energy that is what matters to me but why should it only matter to me. why not my school or yours. What matters to you?

when our class visited the girl class I noticed that all the girls waited for the guys to come to them. Another thing I noticed was that about half were shy the ather half were not, and fianlly at the end of class all the guys got there stuff and left very quickly.

The only reqirments i have of a good teacher/class/student is that there fun ,helpful , make you work hard ,and dont judge on one good or bad preformance.

Over the course of my summer I enjoyed two very interesting books, “Call it Courage” and “The Incredible Journey.” Both books were very interesting and fun to read, I really liked “Call it Courage” because the Protagonist is the same age as me and that helped me relate. In the book “Call it Courage” Mafatu, a 14 year old Polynesian boy is living in a small Indian village in the middle of the ocean, due to a child hood experience he is cursed with the fear of the sea, one problem all the resources come from the sea. When reading the story you over come the fear that has exiled mafatu from his tribe.

The other book I read over this summer was “The Incredible Journey”, this book was about the journey a cat and two dogs have across the wide expanse of Canada. This story was interesting but not as fun as “Call it Courage” I felt no relationships with the main characters because they were animals and the whole story done in third person.