QQC 11/18/2010

QQC 10/28/2010

"As for Pluto itself, nobody is quite sure how big it is, or what it is made of, what kind of atmosphere it has, or even what it really is"



Pluto is definitely the underdog planet. In the introduction the author was saying that astronomers can tell you almost anything about any planet millions of light years outside of our galaxy, but it seems like nobody really cares to learn about Pluto. Everybody wants to get to know the exotic new stars and planets, but they're all pretty bored with poor Pluto.

In this same paragraph the author goes on to explain that astronomers believe it's not a planet, while most believe otherwise, so I'm wondering when exactly this was written. I was under the impression that Pluto was confirmed to be a star or asteroid of some sort, not a planet; then again i may very well have my facts wrong.

QQC 10/21/2010

I really enjoyed this article from the very beginning. The introduction had a great hook, and got me thinking right away, which leads me to my favorite quote:

"For the next many years (we hope) these tiny particles will uncomplainingly engage in all the billions of deft, cooperative efforts necessary to keep you intact and let you experience the supremely agreeable but generally underappreciated state known as existence."

Here Bryson is talking about the atoms that piece together to make up a person. I actually think that I enjoyed the introduction more than the actual chapter. It got me questioning my reality and existence, and was completely mind-blowing. It's such a simple concept, we're all made up of tiny particles, but to think of it in the context of our life and our purpose is really crazy. My very broad subject of wondering is why we're here, and why these tiny particles make us. Why aren't we just tiny particles? Are tiny particles made up of tiny particles? In the context of the universe, are we just tiny particles? This quote was an excellent start to the book, but almost a little distracting. Nonetheless, it got me thinking, and was very interesting.

Response to 'America's Concentration Camps'

http://staff.hthma.hightechhigh.org/~srodriguez/Spring%20Semester/History/Mini%20Lectures/japanese%20internment.pdf


I actually found this article really interesting. About a year ago I got the chance to see the remains of an internment camp from a distance while on my way up to Lake Tahoe, so learning about it was interesting for me. I completely disagree with what the United States was doing. They had no reason to believe that there were Japanese spies other than pure racism and paranoia. I don't believe that the military should have been given the power to incarcerate innocent people without trial. It goes back on everything that the United States believes in, and what we're based off of.

The fact I found most interesting in the article came in the very last paragraph. Japanese-Americans who did choose to serve in our army were members of the same division that liberated one of the Nazi Concentration camps. The last sentence says "Ironically, as they liberated Dachau, their mothers and fathers languished in concentration camps in the United States." It seems as though America is often the country that is contradicting its own beliefs, systems, and laws.

Another quote that I found humorous was one that concluded an army report, and said "The very fact that no sabotage has taken place to date is a disturbing and confirming indication that such action will be taken." This sentence just doesn't make sense at all, and is an excellent demonstration of ignorance and stupidity. You can't blame somebody for a crime that you believe they will commit.

International Woman's Day Blog

I've had the pleasure of living amongst many inspiring and noteworthy women. Some famous, some not so much. One woman that I feel would be worth appreciating is my mother. She is the most caring woman I know, always encourages me to do my best, and eases my fears about my future. She's somebody I feel like I can confide in if I ever need it. She's hard-working, passionate, and loving. Every other Wednesday night she comes home really late, and tired from her volunteer job at VIM (volunteers in medicine), goes to bed, and wakes up early the next morning to make breakfast and lunch for everyone, and goes back to her usual job, which I think shows how much she cares about not only her family, but people who are less fortunate. She's constantly inspiring to make good decisions, and I think that she's worth appreciating.

Is the US still a white supremacist country?

White supremacy is the belief that white people are superior to people of color, and a system in which white people have social and political dominance over people of color. I wouldn't say that white people are better, or superior, but it seems as though they have more power and opportunities in modern society. A good education is considered to be the beginning of power, and the easiest access to better opportunities. The better education you get, the better your career, and the higher your power. Out of the top ten colleges (named by Forbes), an average of approximately 56% of the student population is white. More than half of the top colleges' population is white. This is a direct representation of the power of races in our society. Even though there are 7 races considered when finding racial demographics, white people still make up more than half of that. Because of these statistics, it is clear that white people are showing dominance as far as power in society is going.

Internship #15

I just wanted to give my blog followers a glimpse into the life of filing at a law firm. Even with recent paper cutbacks thanks to new technology, a LOT of paper goes around. For one correspondence that is sent, there are three copies that need to be made for filing. These are some pictures of the filing room, and two filing cabinets in my office. That's not even all the files we have! In each office there is atleast one filing cabinet. There are also offices being occupied by boxes of files alone. And the firm is even renting out storage space to store their 1,000+ boxes of files! I heard this is half the amount of paper they used to use....