Too Equal? Amanda Lewis Dakota Lause

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001 unfairly groups students all together, and expects them all to progress and learn the same things at the same rate. It talks about closing educational gaps between students who are at a disadvantage in the educational environment, and other students, who are either advantageous or in a neutral position. This should not be expected of schools or children. Students are meant to learn at different rates, and at different levels. Grouping students all together like that is sure to cause disaster. You cannot equalize children in a learning environment, for they are NOT equal. NCLB puts a lot of emphasis on Reading and Mathematics, and almost none on History and Science. They want states to "narrow the achievement gap" and make it harder for students to pass. This makes it harder for students to get the honors they deserve, and get rewarded for the work they put in to make the grade. This Act that stresses for equalization of students, is an overall disturbing fact that could be a window into what the future holds for America.

Work Cited

Bush, George W. "No Child Left Behind". The White House. 06 October 2007

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 Response to "Too equal?" by Amanda Lewis and Dakota Lause

 In the modern society, everyone is equal. However, it doesn’t mean that everyone has the same ability. At school, each student develops his own talent. One can be good at math; other can be good at sports. It is impossible to make all students equal, especially in the case of students with handicap. Therefore, the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) will cause disadvantages in education. For the students who are not doing well at school, there will be more pressure that discourages them from trying for a better work. As for the advantageous ones, it will be awkwardness to lower their level for the sake of others. Moreover, NCLB is leading the wrong way when emphasizing most on reading and mathematics and very little on science and history. Since science and history are as important as reading and math, none of them should be neglected. The act shouldn’t be carried on because it will effect American education negatively.

Trang Nguyen

Lauren Mengerink

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Reaction to "Too Equal?"

Students with physical and mental disabilities face harsh discrimnation in almost every aspect of the educational system. Other "gifted" scholars are scrutinized by peers for being intellectually above them. The Bush Administration and Congress has been critizied for their decision of grouping accelerated and delayed students with the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). Although on the outside it appears that it is beneficial to all students, the truth is that neither side gains very much, if anything from the blending. Accelerated students do not feel challenged or motivated to excel, while lagging students feel extremely overwhelmed by the added pressure put upon them. America has been built upon the principle of excellence. However, in the recent past, people want everyone to feel good about themselves. Slowly, the greatness of America is declining because of educational equality, and the NCLB intensifies the regression.

J.J. Erickson Dillon Flint

Smart Houses

Candace McCullough

Kelley Schroeder

Houses are becoming more advanced everyday, but it isn’t an overnight project. New advancements will be hard to make because they are extremely expensive and people’s preferences are different. Smart houses that will be built in the future will be able to grow with the family. These changes won’t be dramatic because it takes generations to transform the ideas of the general public, but people should keep in mind that “10 years ago we didn’t have the internet” so anything is possible (Dunlevy 2).

Work Cited

Dunlevy, Maurice. “Homes of Future Will Tune In, Turn On and Hark Back to Breezy Days.” The Australian. 13 March 2004. 4 October 2007 EBSCOhost <http://www.INFOhio.org>

The Future Home

Kelsey Dockery

Marla Erickson

As technology advances, living conditions become more and more adjusted to the human way of life. Recently, scientists have approached new ways to come up with a modern day home. Several of those include: a universal control for the entire residence, web cam for the outside of the quarters, high-tech refrigerator, automatic shower/bath, and many other up to date conveniences. Along with that, there are also appliances such as the garage door, television, laptops, and heating and cooling systems. Although they are extremely expensive, they help to impact our lives in numerous ways. Not only will they alleviate stress for the everyday person, but the “smart house” will be in the lives of all future generations. This may seem as though it could bring about “laziness” in a person, but it will only assist a person to complete more than ever before. With that, technology is the future and the society needs to adapt to the changes of what is to come. (Macnair, Robinson 1-3)

Work Cited

Macnair, Jill and Robinson, Karen. “Houses Just Got Smarter.” The Sunday Times. 11 March 2007. 04 October 2007. Newspaper Source <http://web.ebscohost.com/>

Response to "The Future Home" by Kurt Brown

It would be nice to have a house all full of up-to-date technology, but it's just too much money to worth it.  Does this mean we scrap our homes for new ones or make changes to our existing homes?  We humans depend on technology to keep us alive but sometimes it does fail us.  An example of this are cars: as they get more complicated, the more things that can go wrong.  It appears that we should try definitely keep some the old and simple ways humans lived during the early generations, and blend them into the present and the future.  Keeping things simple helps us build hardship and patience.  Yes, it may sound odd, but it can be worth it.  Technology can help us become more efficient about using our resources and saving the environment.  However, technology can't replace the human touch. 

Smart Houses

Katie Weber

Alex Ferland

Smart houses are becoming more and more popular among American homes in this century. They can perform tasks such as turning on and off lights, warming the floor, raising the temperature, making coffee, and starting music throughout the house. Even though these smart houses meet the comfort needs of homeowners, they also take a huge chunk out of their monthly bills. Renovated houses are being wired to fit the needs of these homes since they are becoming more popular very quickly. It won’t be long before everyone lives in a futuristic home (Kirschner 1).

Work Cited

Kirschner, Suzanne Kantra. “The Smart House.” Good Housekeeping. November 2000. 4 October 2007 EBSCOhost <http://www.INFOhio.org>

Response to "smart Houses" by katie and alex.

I agree that smart houses can be very convenient at times and it is crazy how many things are out there today. who would think to make heated floors? crazy. as of now i can understand why not too many average americans have such things that a smart house has because it definitly costs a lot of money, but i do agree that in upcoming years these smart houses and technologies will soon takeover the states, and possibly other countries.

-Jessica Reed

*****Smart Houses*****

Andrea Ankney

Kayla Conley

Smart Houses are becoming internet-based upgrades. Heating, electrical, and cooling systems can be controlled through the internet. For many girls, when it comes to being late and we don’t know what to wear, there will be a new closet that can pick out the outfit for you. The downfall to smart houses is that it costs a significant amount of money for the little changes. Although there are downfalls a perk is that you can walk into your house and automatically have your favorite song playing.

Work Cited

Terrell, Kenneth. “The New Home Improvement.” U.S. News & World Report.

6 October 2002. 4 October 2007 EBSCOhost <http://www.INFOhio.org>

Reaction to “Smart Houses”

A Smart House, everyone’s perfect companion, as most of society would think of it.  The convenience of this is tempting, but how would our society today live without it, even if it was only in their lives for a short while?  Nowadays there are cell phones, computers, and televisions in just about every home, but no one seems to think about when technology fails us.  Sure enough when it does the world seems to be coming to an end very fast.  Today most people can’t function without electricity to power their needs of talking with their friends constantly, or watching their favorite show.  So how would it be for them when they lose the convenience of their closet picking out their clothes, or their favorite spirit lifting song playing when they walk into their home?  Though seeming very insignificant at this point in our lives, in the future wouldn’t the bad out weigh the good in new advancements in technology?  Would we as a whole be able to live without the convenience that we have known all of our lives, but taken for granted as an everyday ritual?           

-Amanda Lewis

NUCLEAR WAR

Trang Nguyen

Lauren Mengerink

According to an announcement of Pyoungyang, North Korea, it is going to have a nuclear test. The US officials think that only China can prevent North Korea from doing this by threatening to cut off North Korea's energy supplies. However, the Chinese officials don't believe this will work. A senior Chinese foreign policy analyst states that North Korea will test the bomb to show its nuclear ability, which will deject America from attacking it. The lead US negotiator sent Pyoungyang a warning, saying North Korea "can have a future or it can have these weapons. It can't have both". (Hirsh, Hosenball, Liu)

Work cited

Michael Hirsh, Mark Hosenball, and Melinda Liu.

"Why Pyoungyang May Test Its Bomb". Newsweek. 16 October 2006. 4 October 2007.

EBSCOhost http://www.INFOhio.org

Reaction to Lauren Mengerink and Trang Nguyen’s blog regarding North Korea’s decision to do a Nuclear Test

The decision of North Korea to test a nuclear bomb could definitely disrupt good diplomatic relations with the United States and its Allies. Since the bombs of Hiroshima and Nagasaki took several hundreds of lives to end World War II, it has been felt by many that the use of nuclear force could have catastrophic effects in the preservation of our world as we currently know it. Since WWII, the US and other nations have tried by other means to diplomatically resolve their issues and keep balance in the world power. It has been difficult to keep this balance at times (i.e. Cold War between U.S. and Russia), but techniques such as economic sanctions have definitely been successful at times and are worth considering. In conclusion, it is felt that the United States negotiations with China in influencing their decision to pose economic sanctions may be one way of keeping North Korea not to continue their plan for nuclear testing.

Anne Hammersmith

Lauren Hammersmith

Useful Mutants

Cole Limber

Nate Blevins

Scientist Pierre Lagoda, the head of plant breeding and genetics at the Internation Atomic Energy Agency, has been studying radiation bred mutants for quite sometime now. By using radiation on organisms, it mixes up the genetic makeup randomly producing a new set of genetics for that organism. This allows mutants of all kinds to be produced. As he studies these new mutants, Dr. Lagoda finds many positive characteristics. Done mostly with plants, these modifications help with yield improvement, quality, taste, size, resistancy to disease, and adaptations to other climates. Also, these radiation make overs leave no evidence of radiation after the organisms go through their changes. These biological break throughs are helping with international food shortages (Broad 1).

Work cited

Broad, William J. "Useful Mutants, Bred With Radiation." New York Times. 28 August 2007. 14 October 2007. The New York Times <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/28/science/28crop.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>

Response:

Useful Mutants

I can see these plant mutants becoming very useful for the world of tomorrow. With the growing need of food for the worlds growing population these plant mutants are needed. Farming ground is shrinking with urban/rural housing developments, and more food needs to be produced on fewer acres to feed the world. Plant mutants with disease resistant strains are also needed to overcome future super bugs and new diseases in agriculture. These biological finding and experiments are priceless in today’s society.

Darl McCullough,

Candace’s father

Technology: Good servant or Bad master?

Jessica Reed

In the future of education, could it be possible that technology is interfering with the way some students may think or learn? the answer is unknown for the time being, but anything is possible. New technologies will provide and enable a variety of students' behavior. only time can tell what is to come, but a well known fact is that "the tiniest piece might be crucial".

Work Cited

Jones, Niel. "University of Cambridge Local Examination Syndicate".

1994 RMT 8:1 p 336 14 October 2007.

<http://www.rasch.org/rmt/rmt81c.htm>

Nuclear Weapons: Bush Push for New Nukes

Phillip Lawson

Devin Weisenburger

Congress argues for the replacement of Cold War era of nuclear weapons. The Bush administration wants a new set of nuclear weapons and the Democrat-controlled Congress doesn't. If the plan isn't approved, the US might have to re-test cold war stocks, breaching its moratorium. The new nukes are not needed and will antagonise other countries is what the critics are saying. Congress is calling for detailed preliminary studies. President Bush has refused to seek ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban signed by former president Bill Clinton.

Works Cited

Science Reference Center."Bush Push for New Nukes."Vol. 194 Issue 2615, p28,1p. 14 October 2007.http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=sch&AN=26299143&site=src-live

Nuclear War Reaction

If a nuclear bomb was set off in an American city, would the United States government be able to catch the culprits? This is the question that the government’s leading experts are trying to answer. As of now, the answer is uncertainty. President Bush and his security advisors couldn’t agree on issues like whether or not Iran is a nuclear threat, whether they should give warning to ally countries like Russia and Pakistan, whose nuclear weapons are at risk for theft.

After the October 9 nuclear test in North Korea, warnings went out all over the world, advising all nuclear countries that if any attack occurred it was possible to trace it to North Korea. As for other countries, the United States is unsure if they will be able to trace nuclear material, which is a frightening idea. If the U.S. can’t identify a potential nuclear attacker, the attacker could still be at large and drop more bombs around the world, killing thousands, if not millions.

What’s worse, the American public is becoming more and more skeptical of Bush’s nuclear warnings ever since he was proven wrong in Saddam Hussein’s Iraq. Former C.I.A. director George Tenet made a point that even though the government has made mistakes in the past, the public should not ignore future threats from Al Qaeda

It is important for American citizens to be aware of their surroundings, so they don’t get blind sighted if ever a nuclear attack would occur on home soil. Although there are many objections to the Bush administration, it would be unwise to overlook them entirely.

Work Cited

Sanger, David E. “U.S. Debates Deterrence for Nuclear Terrorism.” The New York Times. 7 May 2007. 14 October 2007. <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/08/washington/08nuke.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>

Lauren Hammersmith

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/08/washington/08nuke.html?_r=1&oref=sloginPart One: http://www.INFOhio.org>

Time Travel: Can You go back to the Future?

Kurt Brown

Time travel is a subject that people have been curious about for a long time. Many books and movies have entertained the idea of traveling back into history or ahead into the future. Most people feel that time travel is a matter of imagination and science fiction. This article points out other possibilities. The author, Hugh Westrup, uses theories by Albert Einstein, Dr. Richard Gott, and Physicist Kip Thorne to argue his opinion that time travel may indeed be possible. One obstacle that people would have to get over is our rigid thinking about time. We believe time is precise and consistent. When Einstein developed his theory of relativity, he challanged this notion. Einstein believed that time is elastic, it stretches. Scientists have supported Einstein's idea by studying muons, which are particles smaller than atoms. Normally, a muon has a very short lifespan, but it lasts longer when it moves close to the speed of light. Therefore, time or the lifespan of the muon is changed. Einstein believed that traveling back in time could be accomplished by exceeding the speed of light. Dr. Richard Gott, who is a scientist at Princeton University, believes time travel could be accomplished by investigating invisible bands of energy called cosmic strings. These strings are very long, thin, and dense. They have so much mass that they warped space near them. Therefore, space is stretched and contracted. Kip Thorne, who is a scientist at Caltech, believes in the existence of wormholes. A sort of rip in the universe, wormholes are like shortcuts, or detours that could allow a traveler to visit a parallel universe, or another galaxy. Dr. Thorne believes that wormholes open and close so quickly that it would be necessary to prop them open for easier entry. The general belief of these scientists is that history couldn't be change, but it could be visited.

Westrup, Hugh. "Time Travel: Can You Go Back To The Future?'' Current Science. 2007.

14 October 2007. http://discover.prod.sirs.com/discoweb/disco/do/article?urn=%3Asirs%3AUS%3BARTICLE%3BART%3B0000024323

>http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/reports/no-child-left-behind.html#2

Response- Time Travel: Can You go back to the Future?

Time travel is now a realistic possibility.  Theories by various scientists have brought us closer to actually going back in time.  Different ideas have been presented by these scientists, but none of them have enough support to make time travel a reality any time soon.  It will be very difficult to accomplish this goal, but several scientists are willing to research it.  Before time travel can be achieved, many experiments will need to be done.  With hard work and determination this futuristic dream will be a new phenomenon.

Kelley Schroeder 

Smart House

Jessica Speidell

Homes of the future are what "smart houses" are being called. The entire hooe automation industry is getting ready to supply many gadgets for an automatic home, a "smart home." Artificial intelligence can be somehow put into a robotic home, allowing it to get to know the owners likes, dislikes, personalites, and fears. While some call it a remote-controlled house, others call it technology. Owners of the smart house in the future will get to interact with a helpfull, smart, and friendly robotic home. They are a reality, but most research done is going to make them into babysitters for the elders.

Wilson, Daniel. "Smart House- Your So-Called Sci-Fi Life." October 15 2007.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/blogs/technology_news/4216434.html

Response to "Smart House"

Technology, specifically "smart houses," are not very reliable for obvious reasons.  One reason is that they are too complicated.  Another reason is that it makes many people's lives stressful and causes problems.  Thirdly it takes away people's privacy and could possibly shut down at any moment.  People need to get back to the basics of life.  Too many people relay on technology these and then end up being let down.  It isn't reliable enough so why don't we just relay on ourselves instead. 

Janet Conley

Kayla Conley

Nuclear Weapons

Bryce Hussey

Dalton Hall

Researchers have suggested that world peace is shown by the amount of nuclear weapons a country holds. Others however say that the aspect of nuclear weapons is in need of redoing due to the changing world. many believe that the U.S. wil be needed as a forerunner to lead the world on to the next step, hoping it wil end the fear of a nuclear weapon being in the hands of an evil terrorist group or nation. The debate over nuclear weapons is looked upon as on e of the mnost important issues of a wide ranging debate. Seeing that the inventors of the last nuclear weapon generation are getting old, they may need a new weapon to work on in order to pass on their knowledge.

David Biello. "Editor's Blog." SciAm Observations. 30 April 2007. Scientific American Inc. 11 October 2007.

Response to “Techno Troubles”

Marla Erickson and Kelsey Dockery

Although all these gadgets contribute to detrimental activities, they play a major role in everyone’s daily lives. Cell phones, computers, and televisions along with other high-tech devices have changed our lives over the past decade if not longer. Students all over the world are forced to use computers in school for all of their homework needs. Is that causing the students to become unfit? Even though some activities on these devices could result in unhealthy habits, they are only helping to increase technology and simplify our hectic, rigid, and daily routines. Without these gadgets, many people all over the world would be baffled. Whether they are for protection, extenuated knowledge, or just for a small dose of entertainment, these small objects will be of enormous assistance throughout the next century.