Ocean Beats

I'm taking a class called Radio-Rithmetic. In this class we studied the relationship between math, science, and music. In the second unit, the class went over topics like pitch, frequency, notation,waves, intervals, scales, and many other effects in of music. The FE's for this unit were super fun. We were able to take a tour of a radio station and a recording studio. Both were very helpful to this unit. For the action project, the class was assigned to make a musical collage with existing samples, and see how we could change them with some of the effects we learned about.  I hope you enjoy listening!

This project took some time, especially when it came to picking the right sample songs. I looked at my own playlist to find some inspiration, and it worked. I really like the vocals to Ocean Eyes by Billie Ellish. Her voice is very dreamy, and I knew I wanted to include her voice in my project. I also really like the melody. I did some searching and found a piano cover of it. Even though both samples are from the same song, they sound really different, and I had a lot of fun mixing and playing around with them.



 In the beginning of this piece, I added a little drum beat. The notation is below.

Drum beat notation (RD)

For the interval, I decided to pick the piano piece at the end. It's a long G and B.

Interval (RD)

To make this track a bit more interesting, I added some cool effects. I included a reverse tape sound effect to highlight the differences in the quality of sound. I added a delay on that reverse tape, which means that the same sound is repeated quietly after it’s done playing. And as I stated before, I added my own little drum beat to the beginning, fading into the the first piano solo. I added the wah-wah effect to the first vocals that are featured. The wah-wah effect is when the resonance of musical notes are altered, to extend expressiveness, which makes it sound like a voice saying “wah”. I think the vocals are dreamy, so I added a solo with vocals. I really enjoyed the reverse tape sound effect, so I added that again to fade into the vocal and piano solo towards the end. 

Labeled Piece. (RD)

In this class we discussed consonance and dissonance, which means what does or doesn't sound good together. In the beginning, there was probably a hint of consonance with the drums and piano, but it doesn't sound horrible. The form of this piece is ABCD. It's sort of choppy but it starts off with an instrumental break, and then goes into the first verse. After that verse it cuts off to another verse and then ends with an instrumental. 

Although this project was kind of difficult and time consuming, I had a lot of fun completing it. I enjoyed exploring and learning about the cool effects that can be done to music and sounds. I also had fun mashing some sounds together, and trying to figure out which sounds sounded good with which.

Citations:
"Billie Eilish - Ocean Eyes (Official Music Video)." YouTube. YouTube, 24 Mar. 2016. Web. 15 Dec. 2016.

"Ocean Eyes" by Billie Eilish-easy Piano Arrangement." YouTube. YouTube, 15 Jan. 2016. Web. 15 Dec. 2016.

My Favorite Song :)

For the elective term in my senior year I’m taking a class called Radio-Rithmetic. In this class I’m learning about the relationship between math, science, and music. The first unit focused on rhythm. During this first unit we learned about how music is formed, how it keeps its time, how the beats are notated, and learning about how the Fibonacci Series and Golden Ratio can figure out patterns in music. For the action project the class was assigned to each pick a song and analyze it. I hope you enjoy watching below!

 

Future Portfolio

In the second unit of the Econ class, which is called Wealth and Wages, the class learned about economic systems and studied how wealth is distributed through markets and governments. For the action project, we were assigned to create a personal investment portfolio. The purpose is to see how we take a certain amount of money, and invest it in stocks while seeing how that stock is doing. We were also asked to add SMART goals to layout what our incentive is to invest. It was interesting making this portfolio. I had a hard time understanding this whole stock process in the beginning, but with more research, I was starting to understand. I’m proud at how I took the time to do good and accurate research, in order to get a good portfolio. I hope you enjoy looking at my portfolio!

There was a certain scenario that we had to work with in this project. We had a college plan that was created 18 years ago by our guardian angel, with $18,000. Each month, $50 was added to the plan ($600 yearly). After 18 years at an average annual interest rate of 7%, compounded annually, the plan is now worth $49128.87. Yesterday, you cashed out your plan and deposited the money in a brokerage account to invest on your own.

In order to see if a stock is worth buying, I’ll look at the value. I want to see what’s low, and then sell it higher. I chose to have a longer time horizon because of my SMART goals. It’s going to take awhile before I can achieve them, but I’m totally up for it. I took a quiz online with the Rutgers New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, and I scored a 25, which means I have a average/moderate tolerance risk. Below, I have my goals listed for 1 year, 5 years, and 25 years.

1-year goal: Save about $15,000 to travel for one full summer.
5-year goal: Put a down payment of $10,000 for an Audi.
25 year goal- Buy a home in Lincoln Park: $350,000

I value companies that are family owned because there is a personal touch added to that company. It’s also easier to control that company and figure out the outcomes for that business. Another reason why I value them, is because those kind of companies value and understand the lifestyle of a larger family better, so they’ll do their best to meet their needs.

Company 1- Walmart.
I decided to invest in Walmart because other companies and retailers have tried to go head to head with Walmart, but have not been able to compete with their low prices. Their buying power has made their economic moat wide and sustainable. I also appreciate their mission which is, “Saving people money so they can live better”. It’s an international business, and it’s expected that Walmart will keep on making acquisitions internationally as time goes on to boost growth in the global market. They have a healthy payout ratio of 42.89%, which means that it has the potential to keep or increase its dividends.

Company 2- Walt Disney.
I decided to invest in Disney because it has an excellent growth rate. It gets that rate from its movie studio, business segment, consumer merchandise and theme parks. It’s also a top 10 stock. While doing my research, I discovered that it has a 10 year dividend growth rate of 23%. It also has a reasonable p/e ratio of 18.

Company 3-TJX.
The company TJX owns stores like TJ MAXX, Marshalls, and Homegoods. This company takes in name brand products that didn’t sell, and put them at a lower price in their department stores. Their highest earning revenue comes from their housing products because of the housing market recovery. It’s profit growth is expected to be 10%, while other department stores have only a single digit number when it comes to their growth.

1 year portfolio
I invested $15,000 in my one year goal.
30 shares of Wal-Mart at $70.11($2,103.30)(28% profile)
60 shares of TJX at $73.66($4,419.60)(72% profile) WMT and TJX together, has an expected ROI of 24.92%

5 year portfolioI invested $10,000 in my 5 year portfolio 

50 shares of Disney at $93.71 ($4,685.50) (30%)
22 shares of Wal-Mart at $70.11 ($1,542.42)(70%) DIS and WMT together, has an expected ROI of 389.27%

25 year portfolio
I invested $350,000 for my 25 year goal.

70 shares of TJX at $73.66($5,156.20) (60%)
50 shares of Disney at $93.71($4,685.50) (40%) TJX and DS together, has an expected ROI of 11681%.

I made three different investments, and 2 of them are in the same stock sector. Wal-mart and TJX is listed under consumer goods, and Disney is put under Entertainment. While deciding, I wanted to have at least one different stock in a different sector, which is one of the reasons why I chose Disney. Based on the math I did, I'm going to be able to reach my goals.

Citations:

Weil, Dan. "Best Investments: Good Investments In 2016 And Beyond | Bankrate.com." Best Investments: Good Investments In 2016 And Beyond | Bankrate.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Oct. 2016.

BasuMallick, Chiradeep. "5 Reasons Why Disney Is a Must-Have Stock."TheStreet. N.p., 02 Sept. 2016. Web. 30 Oct. 2016.

Rossolillo, Nicholas. "Is Wal-Mart a Good Dividend Investment?" The Motley Fool. N.p., 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 30 Oct. 2016.

Listen to Dr. Seuss!

In the 2nd unit of the Journalism class, which is called Sound, the class studied the idea of how radio can let you hear the world. It was fun being able to listen to old radio reports, as well as new ones. The Fe's were also super interesting in this class. We were actually able to go to the media department at Columbia college For the action project, the class was assigned to create a podcast about a voice that we think made a influence in the 20th century. I had many people in mind, but at the end I chose Dr. Seuss. As a child, I remembered all his most of his books in my messy bookshelf. Even now, I still admire his work. I have a very special connection with one of his books, so I was very excited to put this together. I also really enjoyed interviewing people who also have a special connection with his work. I already knew some things about him, but as I was doing research I learned a lot more about him. Many things go unnoticed about him, and I think more people should be educated on the world's best children's author. He's a super cool guy! I hope you enjoy my podcast below.

WHEN	WHO/HOW	WHAT
0:00-0:34 0:34-0:46 0:48-1:12 1:13:1:39 1:40:2:10 2:11-2:18 2:18-2:35 2:35-2:52 2:53:311 3:11-3:25	[RD]     [Dr. Seuss] Music fades in   [Kid Voice]        [RD] Music Fades in again.  [Kid voice] [RD and kid] [RD and MF] [RD] [Adult speaker]   [RD] THE END	Hi, I’m RD from GCE Lab school. Today I’m going to talk about a voice that made a huge difference in people’s lives. His name is Dr.Seuss. He’s the best selling children's author of all time and revolutionized the way kids learned how to read with one simple concept, he made it fun. Many may think that his books just consist of silly rhymes and pictures, but there is so much more than that. His stories focus on obstacles and situations that we come upon as we go through life. They also hold many lessons that we can apply in our lives. I, Ted Geisel, and perhaps better known to the juvenile reading public as Dr. Seuss. My current best-seller, The Cat In The Hat, has sold so far, over a quarter of a million copies. Left foot, right foot, left foot, right. Feet in the morning, feet at night. Left foot, right foot, left foot, right. Wet foot, dry foot, high foot, low foot.Front feet, back feet, red feet, black feet. Left foot, righty foot. Reading is a huge part of everyone’s life, especially when you’re in first grade first learning how. I remember 6 year old me sitting in the classroom library looking for a cool book to read, and I’ll admit I was judging a book by its cover. My eyes finally came across The Foot Book by Dr. Seuss. For some reason the weird creature on the cover caught my attention, and when I opened it, so did the little amount of text. Feet, feet, feet, how many feet you meet.Slow feet, quick feet, trick feet, sick feet.Up feet, down feet.Here comes clown feet.Small feet, big feet.Here comes pig feet.His feet, her feet, fuzzy fur feet. So, what did this book teach you?It taught me that people are really different and that even our feet are different but that's okay. I’m going to talk to one of my friends who’s also into Dr. Seuss books. So what’s your connection with Dr. Seuss? The first book I ever read when I was little was The Cat In The Hat. This book was the first one I was actually able to read all the way through with no help. Because of that, this book will always hold a special place in my heart. Many think that Dr. Seuss’s work is just for children, but it’s not. Like I said before, his books hold hidden meanings and teach lessons. One example is his book, Who are you Sue Snue? I’m going to talk to an adult who has a connection with this book. In this book, Dr. Seuss covers a topic that many young people and adults go through. That topic is about finding yourself. The book focuses on a young girl who is pushed to find who she is and what she’s going to do with her life. I for sure have been gone through this, and I think I still am honestly. So, If you ever need advice, need a good laugh, or just want to take a trip down memory lane, make sure to pick up a Dr. Seuss book. Thanks for listening!

My Summer Trip

This summer I traveled to Matagalpa, Nicaragua. It’s a small town located about 3 hours away from Managua, the country’s capital. I was able to travel there because of an organization called Global Glimpse. This organization gave me chance to explore another country, culture, and helped me learn more about myself for 3 and a half weeks.

Flags. 2016

There were 20 of us who were participating in this amazing program. I only knew 2 of them because they go to GCE, so it was pretty nice seeing familiar faces, but at the same time I challenged myself to reach out to make new friendships. I’m not going to lie and say it was easy, because being in a unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people can be kind of scary, but that’s where I had to step up and get out of my comfort zone. I’m so glad I did too because I made so many connections.

Managua Airport. 2016

While we were in this beautiful country, we were able to explore the bustling streets of Matagalpa, visit a monkey hut resort, and visit a chocolate factory. All those things sound fun, but one important point about this trip is that it’s not a vacation.

Apart from those things, we worked and lived like a local for a day, which involved a day of waking up at 5 am and showering with cold water everyday. We had a day dedicated to the history of Nicaragua, so we had a guest speaker who really touched the hearts of many of us. There was a day dedicated to education, and each person shadowed a student in high school. It was really fun and interesting making new friends, as well as seeing how different school is in a different country. We also had the chance to become tutors by teaching some English to people from the town. I had the duty of teaching kids, so it was really fun, but also stressful.

History Day. 2016

One day that I won’t ever forget is poverty day. That day we traveled to the city dump, where we learned and saw that people actually go there to find resources. It was very heartbreaking to see the conditions of this place where so many children and people spend their time at. My group was also assigned a community action project. We were assigned to help build a wall, a door, a ceiling, and a mural for a organization called Infancia Sin Fronteras. I helped with the building of the wall. The wall was put into place because there was nothing separating the classroom from the doctor office in the facility, which meant that it was really easy for a disease to pass. The ceiling was built to prevent the heat from bothering the young children who were sitting in the classroom. The door was put into place to prevent break ins. Finally the mural was installed to give the building a splash of color, and to also bring something positive to the community.

I won’t ever forget this amazing trip. Even the little things, like late night card games, late night convos and reading nights with the ladies of room 9. Every little thing made this trip unforgettable. I encourage others to take opportunities like this. I promise you won’t regret it!

What Is The Meaning Of Life?

In the first humanities class of my senior year, Journalism, we are learning how to analyze,observe, and report through media. Those forms of media include, image, sound, and text. In the first unit of this course, which is called Image, the class studied photojournalism and saw how it can help us see the world. For the first action project, the class was assigned to interview a person, and ask them what the meaning of life is. Along with the interview, we were also asked to take a picture of our interviewee. Throughout the course, we learned that pictures have the power to capture so many important things. I have always been interested with photojournalism, so it was really nice having a unit focusing on just that. I was really excited to conduct my interview because the person who I interviewed is full of wisdom. I hope you enjoy reading below!

When you ask someone what the meaning of life is they,without a doubt, have to ponder about it. I know I do, and to be honest, I still don’t have an answer for it. I decided to interview someone who did have an answer though. I conducted my interview on Wednesday night. A cold night filled with rain, so when I saw her smile, it warmed me up. Suzy, who’s been a close family friend for 3 years now, was sitting in my dining room joyfully waiting for the questions I was going to ask. She’s older, and she’s always giving me so much good advice, so I really wanted to hear her story on this question. She constantly feeds me words of wisdom, so I was excited to hear what she had next.

Once I entered my dining room, she was sitting there with her usual smile, a smile that always makes me go in for a hug. Once I explained what kind of questions I was going to be asking, her facial expression automatically let me assume that she too, needed some time to think about it. I sat there, wondering what she was wondering about. Finally, I asked the question. What is the meaning of life?

She was very fast in answering because I already had given her time to think about it. “Life is a gift.” I thought her response was really interesting. She went on to talk about how she sees God as the owner of life, and because of that, she consults him with everything she wants to do with her life. “That’s what I feel about life”.

Has life always meant the same for you? That was my follow up question. She brought up her childhood this time. “Well since a child, life has been of importance to me.” I wanted to hear more about that, so I asked her to elaborate. She talked about how her mother was the one who inculcated her to go the right way. “ I could see the wisdom going in the right path that could lead me to not get in trouble with the law or with family and friends, so I always kept up with the way she taught me to do things, and to be good to other people.”

Next was my favorite question. Is there a story that explains your meaning of life? She was silent for a moment, and again, I was curious. This question also took her back to her childhood. She explained how many years ago, her mother met a woman who showed her how she could get a true meaning of life. The woman also gave some advice to her mother about family, because there were some problems going on within theirs. Suzy told me that this woman shared her meaning of life with them, and it appealed to them so much that they decided to follow it. “It stayed with us until now, which is has been 60 years.”

I thought it was crazy that she stuck with some advice that was given to her 60 years ago. I think about all the times I’ve been given advice, and how I sometimes shrug it off. I give her credit for sticking with it. That’s one thing that I learned that day. You never know if one piece of advice can change your life.

I also wanted to know if there was a certain object, book, person, picture, or anything of value to her, that represents her meaning of life. “Well, I would say I have a favorite book, and that book is the Bible”. Suzy talked to me about how it has divine principles, and how the Bible has guided her throughout her life. “It’s not an object, or a person, but the principles in this book by God.”

I already knew Suzy was a religious person before this interview, but after this, I saw that it was basically her whole life. She values it so much, that she doesn’t even see her life as her own, but Gods. She’s aware that many people have different opinions, and she respects that. That’s one of her many qualities that I admire.

I finally ended the interview, and asked if I could get a picture of her. Of course she quickly went to fix her short hair and adjusted her glasses, something I found to be so cute.

RD. Suzy. 2016

I think it’s a very simple picture, but I love it. I wanted to make sure she was smiling because that’s what she’s always doing. I decided to snap this picture right after the interview in the exact same place where I conducted it. I wanted it to seem as natural as possible because what’s the point of taking a picture of someone if it’s not capturing their true selves.

Nurse or Social Worker?

The first STEAM course in my senior year is called Economics. In this class we discussed opportunity cost, learned how to calculate interest, and learned how to work with matrices. We also looked at supply and demand, and saw how that works on a graph. The FE for this unit was really interesting. We went to the Federal Reserve Bank to talk about what they do there, and what they do for the economy. For the first action project, the class was assigned to choose a career we could see ourselves getting into, and figure out the cost of our college tuition, salary, and how long it would take us to pay off students loans. For my project, I did research on two careers that I have though about going into. As you read my essay and look at my graphs, you'll figure out which occupation I end up choosing. I hope you enjoy reading!

To continue my education next year, I can go either go to Illinois State University for nursing, or I can attend University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign for social work. Nurses have the duty of taking and planning medical care for mentally or physically ill patients. Social workers have the role of helping people get through and cope with problems they go through everyday. Nurses can work in hospitals, clinics, and even homes. Social workers can also be found in hospitals, as well as in schools, mental health clinics, and child welfare and human services agencies.

Something that these two career paths have in common is that they involve helping other people, and making sure others are feeling their best,which is why I chose them. My aunt is a nurse, and I love hearing her heart warming stories, as well as her scary ones. Social work interests me because I think something needs to be done about how mentally ill patients are treated, and it would be cool to be apart of that change. To be a nurse, I must go to college for 4 years to get my bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) degree. In order to become a social worker, I have to go to college for 4 years and get a bachelors degree in social work (BSW).

Pursuing my education also means spending some more money. In 2015-2016 the cost of tuition at Illinois State was $13,664. The cost for 2016-2017 comes out to be $14,062. That means the tuition percent increase comes out to 3%. At the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, tuition for 2015-2016 was $12,036. For 2016-2017, it comes out to be $15,698. The tuition percent increase comes to 30%. If I were to go to ISU for 4 years, my cost would be $60,464.98. For the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, the total for 4 years would come out to be $127,430.67.

(Nursing)

(Social Work)

If I choose to go to nursing school, it would take me 9 years to pay my student loans, and the true cost of college would be $75,574,11. The amount of interest I would pay would be $15,109.13. The true cost of college for social work comes out to be $188,561.58. The interest I would pay is $61,130.91. If I choose to go to school for social work, it would take me 17 years to pay off student loans.

The minimum salary for nursing is $44,70, the median is $83,291, and the maximum is $104,276. For a social worker, the minimum is $46,836, the median is $52,945, and the max comes out to $59,340. For nursing I would make $3,888,269 by the time I retire. If I were to become a social worker, I would make $2,458,152. Going to school to become a social worker cost more, yet I would be making less. In the United States there are 3,129,452 registered nurses (RN). The total amount of social workers in the U.S comes out to be 650,000. Nursing and social work both are expected to grow 19%, and are considered to be one of the most fastest growing careers.

(Salary for Nursing)

(Salary for Social Work)

People will always be getting sick, and there will always be problems that are taking over people’s lives, so the demand for both occupations would be set high. Below I have a supply and demand chart for both occupations.

Supply and demand chart (Nursing)

Supply and Demand chart (Social Work)

At the end, I realized that it would be best for me to go to school for nursing. Like I stated before, tuition would cost me less, and I would be making more money at the end, whereas going to school for social work, would cost me more, and I’d be making less. It would also take me more time to pay off my student loans if I were to choose social work. So my incentive would be the amount of money I would be making for nursing. I talked to my mom about all this because I wanted to hear about her college experience, as well as some advice. She talked about how it was hard, and how she did pull many all nighters, but at the end it’s totally worth it, because now she actually enjoys going to work because she loves what she’s doing. I really liked what she said, because although I know it’s going to be hard, I know it’ll be worth it when I’m at work and I’m actually enjoying what I’m doing.

I made 3 assumptions about my decision to go to nursing school:

• I’ll be a productive member of my community
• It’ll be easy to find a job, because I’ll have a BSN.
• I’ll find a job in the hospital that I want to work in.

Citations:
"Total Number of Professionally Active Nurses." The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. N.p., Apr. 2016. Web. 26 Sept. 2016.

"Social Work Profession." Social Work Profession. National Association of Social Workers, n.d. Web. Sept. 2016.

"Tuition." , Illinois Admissions. University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2016

"Tuition Rates." Home. Illinois State University, n.d. Web. 28 Sept. 2016.

We need green

In the 3rd unit of Urban Planning, which is called Flow, the class was able to learn about the history of cities. Where did they come from? How have they evolved? Where are they going? What makes a city a “good” one or “bad” one? The purpose of learning about those topics is so they can help us when we have to redesign our own perfect block for the action project. I had a hard time when it came to picking a spot to redesign. I was first thinking about other cities in the world, but then I stopped and realized that my own block needs some improvement. I’m proud of how I took the time to look at the flaws my block has. I even discovered some new ones along the way.


The area I decided to focus on is the intersection of Montrose and Lockwood ave. I live in this area, so I consider it to be mainly residential. It’s surrounded by tall apartment buildings and trees which block the sun. There’s only one business there, which is a haircut shop. The problem with my block is that a lot of children cross there when they get back from school, yet there isn’t a crossing guard, or a stop sign for cars or a light. Lockwood street, which is a smaller one, is very narrow, which causes a lot of cars to lose their mirrors. I also would want to see more green and color to that block because it looks very sad. There also aren’t any bike lanes, so people who ride, ride very close to parked cars, which is very dangerous.


The shape of the area that needs to be redesigned is a rectangle. When it came to trying to find the area I had to find the length and width of the block. I got 483 and 42. When multiplied I got 20286 square feet. I have a picture below of the space that I want to redesign.

To be more specific about the changes I want to make, I’ll explain them more. There is only one business on my block and I want that to change. It’s a small hair salon that has apartment buildings above it. I would take those apartments out and expand it to other businesses. I would want to add circular benches outside of that business building. I would also add a green roof to that building. We need some color as well as having something environmentally friendly because all that surrounds it is car pollution. I also added a small little pond in between the green roof business building and the small garden. I want to add a bench where the bus stop is. A lot of people wait for the Montrose bus in the morning, so I think it would be convenient for those passengers. I really want to push this block being as environmentally friendly as it can be, so I’m adding a garden, along with many trees. The biggest concern I have is safety. Montrose is a very busy street and it’s very close to a elementary school. The problem is that it does not have any stop signs or light. I would for sure add a stop sign to better control this busy street as well as making the kids feel safer. I added a blueprint below.

RD. Blueprint. 2016

My design was inspired by a city in Oregon called Eugene. It’s naturally surrounded by green scenery and that’s what I envision with my redesign. I want to not only add the beauty of natural greenery, but I also want to bring on the environmental benefits to my community. It doesn’t have much, and I think it deserves some environmental love.


My design incorporates THIS. THIS stands for transportation, housing, infrastructure and services. For the transportation part, I still kept the main huge street Montrose because many people use it. I also still decided to keep my block residential because I live there. Infrastructure would consist of me building in some more roads, and water and electricity pumps, which would also tie into services.


I decided to add some cylinder benches/chairs so people can rest after doing some walking around and shopping. In order to find the volume of those cylinders, I had to apply the formula which is, pi x r^2 h. The volume of the cylinders came out to be pi x 22^2 x 54=67858.4mm cubed. I also added a small little pond in between the green roof business building and the small garden. The shape is a sphere and in order to find the volume of that, I had to use the formula, 4/3 pi r ^2. My calculation looked like this: 4/3 pi 20^2, which came out to be 33510.32 meters cubed.




Citations:
Chief. "Top 10 Green U.S. Cities." MNN. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 May 2016.

Gideon V Wainwright

The third course of my humanities class for junior year, is a class called Policy.This class focuses on how to use rhetoric and argument to create a policy.The second unit of this class was called Judge because we learned about the purpose and power of the judicial branch and learned how those powers have been executed throughout time.The third action project is giving us a chance to do some research on a specific case and talk about the background, as well as looking at the impact it has left on soceity today. I had a hard time picking which case  to do more research on, but as I went on in the list, this one caught my attention. I hope you enjoy my slideshow below! 

Novelas!

In my spring term of my junior year, I took a spanish class. This class gave me the chance to improve my speaking skills as well as grammar skills. The teacher did an excellent job of teaching as well as making sure the class was enjoyable. She provided us with some good treats when we did a good job, which is sweet. For the action project, we were to pick a topic that had to do with something Latino or Spanish. I decided to create a slidshow on telenovelas because it's something that I'm used to watching. I hope you enjoy my slideshow below!

Why are we in Vietnam?

The third course of my humanities class for junior year, is a class called Policy.This class focuses on how to use rhetoric and argument to create a policy.The second unit of this class was called Execute because we learned about the purpose and power of the executive branch and learned how those powers have been executed throughout time.The second action project is giving us a chance to do some research on a specific war and talk about our position on whether or not it was right for the U.S to become involved.It was a bit challenging at the start because I personally believe any war is unjust. I also had a hard time picking which war to do more research on, but because of the book we're reading in class, I was inspired to pick the Vietnam War. I hope you enjoy reading my essay below!

The Vietnam War is understandably considered to be one of the most controversial wars ever. In the beginning of the war, most of it took place in the south of Vietnam. As the war went on, it expanded northward and eventually into Cambodia and Laos. It started on November 1, 1955, up to April 30, 1975, lasting 19 years. The United States joined because the government, under Dwight D. Eisenhower, saw it as a way to prevent the spread of communism in South Vietnam. On March 8, 1965, the first U.S troops arrived in Vietnam, however, America had been involved way before then.Vietnam was apart of the French Empire. The United States sent aid to the French fighting, because we were allies. The people of Vietnam took a chance to establish their own government under the rule of Communist Ho Chi Minh. When he defeated the French, the U.S became officially involved, fearing the spread of communism.The main countries involved in the war were North and South Vietnam, with South Vietnam backed by anti-communist nations, including the United States, South Korea, Australia, the Philippines, New Zealand, Thailand, Khmer Republic, and Taiwan. Guerrilla and attrition tactics were used during the Vietnam War.Guerrilla warfare is when small combats use the element of surprise to kill the opponent, sneaking up and attacking the enemy. In my opinion, the Vietnam war was unjust. It sent Americans right into a danger zone and led to many deaths, including innocent civilians in Vietnam. That truth right there, indicates an unjust war. 

Mickey in Vietnam. DisneyTube. 13, August, 2013. 

The Vietnam War went on for 19 years, so it lasted during several presidential terms. Dwight D. Eisenhower was the first president to become involved. Once the Geneva Accords were put into place by the United Kingdom, France, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the People’s Republic of China, and the Soviet Union, Vietnam was separated into north and south. That pushed Eisenhower to put together the South East Asia Treaty Organization in 1954, which served to stop communism from spreading in Southeast Asia. The President used SEATO as a cover to build up a democratic nation in the South that fought against the communists in the North.


The Republic of Vietnam was barely born in 1955, because the French ruled them before. During that year, Ngo Dinh Diem served as the first president for the new Republic. John F. Kennedy became the second U.S President to become involved in 1961 and provided extra aid to the Diem regime in 1961. He didn’t send troops, but he did send more advisors and machinery to South Vietnam, and accepted a plan to overthrow the North Vietnamese leader in 1963. The Gulf of Tonkin incident took place that same year.The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was passed by Congress on August 7, 1964 and enacted three days later on August 10th, which gave President Lyndon B. Johnson the chance to have more power when it came to joining the war. Thus, Johnson sent the first American troops to fight in the Vietnam War in 1965, after there was an attack on a U.S air base in Pleiku, a central city of Vietnam. Shortly after this incident, the military draft was put into place, causing an uproar of anti-war protests. While Richard Nixon was in office in 1969, he expanded the Vietnam War into Cambodia and Laos to try to get rid of Communist food, weapons and other supplies through the Ho Chi Minh Trail to South Vietnam. In 1972, Nixon directed the Christmas bombing to try to convince South Vietnam to give in to the peace treaty. The following year, the Paris Peace Accords was signed, which ended U.S involvement in the war.

The U.S draft was used to enable 4 wars, including the Civil War, World War I, World War II, and the Cold War, which included the Korean and Vietnam Wars.The draft was used to fill in spots in the armed forces that couldn’t be filled with volunteers, and was put into place for the first time in U.S history on March 28, 1862 by Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederate. For the Vietnam War, one third of the American men who fought were required to by the draft. The Selective Service collected the names of men between the ages of 18 and 26 and if the man’s name was drawn, he had to report to the local draft board to check his status. President Kennedy’s wish was that the men who were married and had children would be put at the bottom of the list. Above them would the men who were just married. Many citizens opposed the war with burning their own draft cards and even going to the extent of fleeing to Canada to avoid fighting. There was also a lot of controversy when it came to who was picked. When people looked at the reality of who was serving in Vietnam, they suspected that the local draft boards were being unfair. Although it seemed unfair, the draft was considered to be constitutional, as long as it was written in place with American’s two other world wars, which let some men pose objections as to why they could not serve.


The Vietnam War not only wasted over 50,000 American lives, but also many innocent civilian lives. Let’s say the United States never became involved. That would have saved the lives of almost 1,475,000 military men on both sides, as well as the 4 million civilians. The Vietnam War not only affected the people, but also the land. Because of the war, 15% of Vietnamese farmland will not be able to be used for 200 or more years. American Presidents used some sneaky tactics that Americans did not know about.The war went on for many more years than it should have. The U.S did not save anyone by involving themselves.





Citations:


"Vietnam War." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 16 May 2016.

Zelizer, Julian E. "How Congress Helped End the Vietnam War." The American Prospect. N.p., 6 Feb. 2007. Web. 16 May 2016

"Statistic Brain." Statistic Brain. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2016.

"What Was the Role of Each Individual President in the Vietnam War?" - Quora. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2016.

Circuits are cool

The second unit of Urban Planning is called Power. In this unit I learned about electricity and how to efficiently power a building, The class learned about magnets, static electricity, and also current electricity. When going into some more complicated stuff, we studied voltage, circuits, amps and resistors. We also looked at the history and meaning of AC/DC and the war that was going on with that. For the action project, we were asked to design our own energy efficient circuit. We have to design our own efficient electrical plan as well. It was a bit of a challenge at first trying to create what the teacher wanted with our circuit, which was 5 resistors,a parallel branch switch, and a main switch. Either way, I'm proud of how my partner and I communicated with this project.

Have a louder voice for animals!

The third course of my humanities class for junior year, is a class called Policy. This class focuses on how to use rhetoric and argument to create a policy. The first unit of this class was called Legislate because we learned about the purpose of this branch,as well as the power it holds. The first action project is giving us a chance to propose a policy about any topic we would like. After that, we had to research who would be the best fit to recieve that letter. I have a strong love for animals, so picking my topic was not as hard,but picking who would recieve it was. I got over that challenge with some research though. I really wanted my letter to reach someone who cares. I hope you enjoy reading it below!

April 28, 2016

Rebecca Dorantes

GCE Lab School

1535 N. Dayton

Chicago, IL 60602


Director , Dan Ashe

U.5. Fish & Wildlife Service

1849 C. Street, NW, ROOM 3331 Washington.


While hiking in the Galapagos Islands, I noticed a small baby sea lion hiding under a shade. Of course my friends and I went over to adore it’s cute face, but instead of leaving in smiles, we left in tears. We learned that the sea lion was disowned by its mother because it made contact with humans. It was just waiting there to die. I’m sure you have also heard about the dolphin that was taken out of the water in Argentina, being passed around just so people can take pictures of it. In no way did that dolphin deserve to die and it could have been prevented. Events like these need to stop happening.


I’m RD and I am a junior at GCE Lab School in Chicago Illinois. As an organization that protects endangered species, there needs to be brought more attention to how humans interact with animals, because although some animals aren’t necessarily becoming extinct, they are dying. There also needs to be more done with how pollution takes the lives of these innocent creatures. You’re doing the best you can, but people need to be more educated and informed on how they need to interact with these animals. I know that there are fines to punish people, but in my eyes, the punishment needs to be something more extreme. There are usually signs in place telling people the guidelines on how to view an animal, but some people do not listen and are breaking the law. When someone is prosecuted of a crime, they are sent to jail. I think this should come into place especially because an animal can not speak for itself.


Currently, 99% of threatened species are at risk from human activities, mainly those driving habitat loss, introduction of exotic species, and global warming. It’s a no brainer that most of the species that are dying and becoming extinct are because of us humans. About 1 million seabirds and 100,000 sea mammals are killed by the 14 billion pounds of garbage that is dumped in their home every year. Huge cargo ships go around the ocean dumping poison every year. How would you feel if a huge truck dumped those 14 billion pounds of garbage on you? Actually, you wouldn’t feel anything because you’d be dead!


Many might think that going to jail over hurting an animal is insane and stupid, but it’s the total opposite! These companies that are dumping their poison into our oceans should be sent to courts and be prosecuted. Many sea animals mistake garbage for food and die, which is why it’s literally poison caused by humans. In a way this is also affecting us humans. Plastic toxins end up on fish, which eventually ends up on our plates and into our body.


The Endangered Species Act of 1973 helped about 28 species come off the endangered species list, but out of 2,000 species. Something needs to be changed about that. This all goes back to educating more people about these animals, because citizens can also help. Make this act and your organization more known to the public. I honestly did not know about the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service until earlier this year, and I’m sure there are still people out there not knowing about you guys. Make your laws more known and let people know that these laws are serious!


As citizens, we are both a problem and an aid for these endangered species. Our voices can be an advocate for them. As a director,take charge of how well known your organization is. Have more public announcements, have public fairs to bring awareness to people, and most importantly, be more strict when it comes to punishing those who break your laws! Again, your organization already does a great job, but please have a louder voice for these animals.

Citations:

"Endangered Species Act | Overview." Endangered Species. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2016.

"Endangered Species." National Geographic Education. N.p., 17 Mar. 2011. Web. 30 Apr. 2016.

Our truss bridge!

In the first unit of Urban Planning, we learned about weight, load, and all the different forces that act on us. We looked into Newton’s fundamental laws to see how those work. We studied falling objects by learning how to use equations and vectors. Finally, we started studying bridges. We looked at the very different types, how they were built, why they were built, and how they worked with geometric modeling. For the action project, we were assigned to build a bridge with using only glue and 50 popsicle sticks. This bridge is also supposed to be able to handle at least 10 pounds. I felt the anxiety kick in right away because popsicle sticks seem weak, but in my slideshow, you'll see how it turned out. Communication was key when working with my partner, which made everything go smoohly. I hope you enjoy going through my slideshow!

Temp°clock!

For the second STEAM course of my junior year, I'm taking a class called Light, Sound and Time. This course is giving me a chance to explore and learn how to see, hear and measure time. The third unit was focused on time and going over questions like why do we measure time? How are different times measured in different cultures? And who says you need to buy a clock? For the action project, we were asked to design our own time telling device, explaining its prinicpals in a video. We also were asked to connect the math concepts that we learned in class, like, pi, longitude, pythagorean therom, etc, to our project. I decided to come up with a clock that tells time by calculating the temperature. To include the math and science concept, I explained the cool way longitude relates to it. It was a bit challenging at first when it came to brainstorming ideas, because when I would think of something, I'd find out that my idea is already invented. At the end though, I was content with what I came up with. I hope you enjoy watching my animation!


To explain the math part more, my device gives you the amount of minutes and seconds that it would take for you to get to a certain destination, but not the hours. So if it's past an hour, it'll just give you the longitude point instead. Like in my video, it gave you 15°, so now my device calculates that into an hour, since 15 divided by 15 equals 1. The 56 and 6 just equal the amount of minutes and seconds. I also want to explain the quote more. According to my research, I learned that merkhet can also be known as "instrument of knowing". That quote relates to my device because not only are you able to know the time but also the temperature and longitude.




Citations:

"Ancient Egyptian Astronomy - Facts & History from Astronomy-Kids.com." Ancient Egyptian Astronomy - Facts & History from Astronomy-Kids.com. N.p., 2010. Web. 21 Mar. 2016

 McMahon, Mary, and Bronwyn Harris. WiseGeek. What is a merkhet?,n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2016. 

"Sirius Is Dog Star and Brightest Star | EarthSky.org." EarthSky. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Mar. 2016. 

Carpenter, Frank G. (Frank George), 1855-1924, Photographer.Egypt. Village and pyramids during the flood-time. ca. 189

Sirius , the brightest star in the sky. nd. Wikicommens.

No justice served with the death penalty!

The second course in the humanities sequence for junior year is called A Nation’s Argument. In this class, we focused on the structure of an argument, as well as looking back at historical arguments that were used to shape this nation. The third unit of this class was called “1964” because we looked back at what caused our nation to change during the Civil Rights era. For the action project, we were asked to create a synthesis to transcend a contradiction, just as the Civil Rights Act was a response to opposing views on race and equality. We were to take a position on a controversial topic, as well as look at the opposing side to see what they had to say about the issue. In the end, we created a synthesis to bring these two sides to an understanding and,hopefully, a way beyond the contradiction.I decided to address the controversy that surrounds the death penalty,and explain my stance on this issue. I hope you enjoy hearing what I have to say and learning about the topic through my idea for synthesis.

Thesis:

The death penalty has been talked about for many years, with many countries either supporting it or not. I personally do not support it and argue for the abolition of the death penalty. When people hear me say that, they usually get the wrong message, which is that I believe criminals should be saved from suffering. In fact, I do want the murderer/criminal to suffer and pay the price of their wrongdoing, which is why I want them to live the rest of their life in a cell. If they're put to death, their suffering ends in an instant. Instead of the death penalty, there should be a law that requires prison inmates who committed horrendous acts to be put to hard labor.

Munilla, Miguel, Luis. "The death penalty is not justice". Flickr. Yahoo!. 2, July. 2010. web. 16 March 2016. 

Evidence to support my thesis:
Aside from ending the suffering of criminals faster, we also pay way more in taxes to put criminals on death row. When someone is sentenced with the death penalty,the cost to taxpayers is 20 times more expensive than the trials that seek a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole (Factslide.com). Rather than all the money going towards the death penalty, those funds could go to the family of the victim. Additionally, there was a study conducted by a law professor at the University of Michigan who discovered that 4% of convicts on death row were and are most likely innocent. People are killed for no reason sometimes and by keeping the death penalty, the government is just contradicting itself. Furthermore, a lot of inmates on death row are picked because of race on both ends.An African American who murders a white person, is most likely chosen to be sentenced to the death penalty. Which goes against the Constitution's promise of equal protection for all people.You also have to think about the horrible conditions that prisoners live in. They’re stuck in a cell and following rules their whole lives. When they die they don’t have to go through that suffering anymore. They get put to sleep via lethal injection, which is one of the most peaceful ways to die. Criminals also have the time to gather a will, say goodbye to their family, and even request a certain meal. That’s all something a victim is not able to do, so why should a criminal?

Below are quotes that support my argument.
“Life in prison is a worse punishment and a more effective deterrent. For those of you who don't feel much sympathy for a murderer, keep in mind that death may be too good for them. With a death sentence, the suffering is over in an instant. With life in prison, the pain goes on for decades. Prisoners are confined to a cage and live in an internal environment of rape and violence where they're treated as animals”.

                                                                                                                                                               

                                                                                                               - Joe Messerli

                                                                                                           Balanced Politics.org, “Death Penalty”

"[T]here is no credible evidence that the death penalty deters crime more effectively than long terms of imprisonment. States that have death penalty laws do not have lower crime rates or murder rates than states without such laws. And states that have abolished capital punishment show no significant changes in either crime or murder rates. The death penalty has no deterrent effect. Claims that each execution deters a certain number of murders have been thoroughly discredited by social science research."

American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)

"The Death Penalty: Questions and Answers," ACLU.org

Apr. 9, 2007

"Despite the fact that African Americans make up only 13 percent of the nation’s population, almost 50 percent of those currently on the federal death row are African American. And even though only three people have been executed under the federal death penalty in the modern era, two of them have been racial minorities. Furthermore, all six of the next scheduled executions are African Americans. The U.S. Department of Justice’s own figures reveal that between 2001 and 2006, 48 percent of defendants in federal cases in which the death penalty was sought were African Americans… the biggest argument against the death penalty is that it is handed out in a biased, racially disparate manner."

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)

"NAACP Remains Steadfast in Ending Death Penalty & Fighting Injustice in America's Justice System,” NAACP website

June 28, 2007

Antithesis:
The opposing side to my argument is that some criminals should be sentenced to the death penalty. Some families like seeing the murderer being put to death, as it gives the family some sort of closure. Some also think the idea of death scares everyone, so why not scare these criminals? The main opposer of my argument is Hugo Bedau, a philosophy professor who’s best known for his work with capital punishment. In 1982 he remarked, “Think-if every murderer who killed someone died instantly, the homicide rate would be very low because no one likes to die. We cannot do this, but if the Justice system can make it more swift and severe, we could change the laws to make capital punishment faster and make appeals a shorter process. The death penalty is important because it could save the lives of thousands of potential victims who are at stake.” I understand where he is coming from, but keeping someone in prison without parole, also works as keeping criminals away from potential victims.

Wikicommens. "The lethal injection room at San Quntin State Prison". 3 August 2011. 

Synthesis:
Both sides of the death penalty debate want criminals to be punished and to experience some suffering. The suffering won’t be as close to what victims had to go through, but these criminals should remain haunted by what they have done. Both sides also want these criminals off the streets for good.

The synthesis that would bring these two opposing sides toward an understanding would require that the prison system become an even harsher experience for those who might have been sentenced to death. Instead of the death penalty, these criminals should be put to hard labor, giving them a taste of pain.

Conservative.com "Prison-bars". 

Citations:

"History and Debate of Death Penalty." Death Penalty Debate. Debate.org, n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2016.

Messerli, Joe. "Should the Death Penalty Be Banned as a Form of Punishment?" BalancedPolitics.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2016

"33 Facts about The Death Penalty ←FACTSlides→." Death Penalty Facts:. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2016.

"DEATH PENALTY ARGUMENTS." DEATH PENALTY ARGUMENTS. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar.

2016.