Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Brown Bag Vegan
What the hell does a vegan eat for lunch anyway?
After reading an article in the Bee last week which examined the new found importance of "frugality" in our crumbling economy and how economic crisis and penny pinching is extending into our lunch hours bringing back our old school companion: the brown bagged lunch.
This made me think about my own lunch standards which mainly compose of copious amounts of hazelnut coffee lattes and a few vegan cookies for good measure. In short, my lunches leave much to be desired not to mention the toll they take on the coin purse at the end of the week, a cool 25 dollars just for coffee! So thanks to the Bee's article I am left feeling a little guilty not only for my irresponsible lunch choices and wanting to bring back a little dignity to my diet which, being vegan you would expect to be full of green vegetables and granola, is instead a caffeinated mess.
I have made the decision to bring a packed lunch for lunch everyday and have been pleased with the results, me personally I have never really had a problem with a sweet little lunch time sandwich but given the circumstances of bagged lunch everyday of the week I decided to branch out and try to make new and exciting treats for myself each day for lunch. Kim chi baked egg rolls on Monday, Breaded eggplant sandwiches and chickpea curry and brown rice are a fraction of my week's menu.
Preparing a lunch for the next day is not only rewarding because you can make your money last, spending what you would on a single meal on a week's worth of groceries, but because you can feel accomplished for making so many adult choices that allow you to bask in the glory of your own unbelievable maturity and independence. It also allows you to pack yourself second helpings and still have a few dollars left to buy yourself a box of wine and celebrate our economy's decent into third world squalor.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Wanted: Guerilla Journalists
One thing is for sure, the Associated Press article written by David Bauder is sure to have some journalists both inexperienced and new to the game, like myself, as well as seasoned media writers quivering with fear and questioning their jobs as well as the fate of the "doomed" industry but for me Bauder's article only spurns my desire to become a journalist, if not one with a completely different philosophy concerning the medium itself.
Bauder describes the hard to swallow fact that many newspapers around the country are going the way of the Dodo and many journalists are running scared and fear for the industry itself. However, he also describes the other option for journalists who have turned away from working for bigger publications and have been working for online publications around the world.
In my opinion these changes are exciting and organic, that many journalists can now have the freedom to really write what they find important instead having an oppressive cut-and dried version of the news. This really is a turning point in the way news and information is delivered to the public there are even examples of citizen journalists that have shown the direction that journalism is undoubtedly heading.
Many social networking sites like twitter saw huge surges in user traffic in times of crisis like the massive earthquake that hit China last year in May. Many of these users out shined the news casters in their real-time accounts of the quake before the news media reported on it.
I agree with Bauder's prediction that journalism will be focused more on individual journalists to capitalize in this shift to a new form of viral news rather than on large companies to move towards the Inter web and all of its possibilities.
I also feel that this is a very exciting time in fact, the best time for aspiring journalists because of the massive shift in how the events happening all over the world will be brought to the public's fingertips rather than their doorsteps in the form of a morning paper. If journalists could utilize the power and possibility of the streaming real-time video from normal people there could be a revolution and recreation of news media and what it ac tally takes to be a journalist. Relevant news could be brought to the people and for the people without the pressure of corporations fueled by dollar signs and bottom lines on honest journalists that want to bring the truth to the masses.
Things are not bleak in journalism they are adjusting to changes that must be made in order to make way for the new and re-thinking what journalism will mean both for consumers and journalists. Society is always changing, naturally journalism must change with it. Journalists will always be relevant and vital for society bringing to light what needs to be seen,heard and reported to the world. All that is required are individuals that are still hungry to make a difference and make sense of the world and its chaos.
Bauder describes the hard to swallow fact that many newspapers around the country are going the way of the Dodo and many journalists are running scared and fear for the industry itself. However, he also describes the other option for journalists who have turned away from working for bigger publications and have been working for online publications around the world.
In my opinion these changes are exciting and organic, that many journalists can now have the freedom to really write what they find important instead having an oppressive cut-and dried version of the news. This really is a turning point in the way news and information is delivered to the public there are even examples of citizen journalists that have shown the direction that journalism is undoubtedly heading.
Many social networking sites like twitter saw huge surges in user traffic in times of crisis like the massive earthquake that hit China last year in May. Many of these users out shined the news casters in their real-time accounts of the quake before the news media reported on it.
I agree with Bauder's prediction that journalism will be focused more on individual journalists to capitalize in this shift to a new form of viral news rather than on large companies to move towards the Inter web and all of its possibilities.
I also feel that this is a very exciting time in fact, the best time for aspiring journalists because of the massive shift in how the events happening all over the world will be brought to the public's fingertips rather than their doorsteps in the form of a morning paper. If journalists could utilize the power and possibility of the streaming real-time video from normal people there could be a revolution and recreation of news media and what it ac tally takes to be a journalist. Relevant news could be brought to the people and for the people without the pressure of corporations fueled by dollar signs and bottom lines on honest journalists that want to bring the truth to the masses.
Things are not bleak in journalism they are adjusting to changes that must be made in order to make way for the new and re-thinking what journalism will mean both for consumers and journalists. Society is always changing, naturally journalism must change with it. Journalists will always be relevant and vital for society bringing to light what needs to be seen,heard and reported to the world. All that is required are individuals that are still hungry to make a difference and make sense of the world and its chaos.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
"But I've Never gotten a B before!"
College students around the nation are supposedly going to classes and turning in papers with high expectations of high grades. Max Roosevelt of the New York Times published an article highlighting what university professors are calling their students heightened sense of entitlement.
Professor Grossman, an English teacher at Maryland University, said he tells his students that if they meet all the requirements of his class and do all the work that is assigned to them they will earn a C grade. In fact that in his classes C grades are the default for completion of all the class work not A grades. Grossman explained that students often complain to him about their grades as being less than what they expected because of the phenomena of students heightened sense of entitlement nation wide.
There are many theories from professors as to where this sense of entitlement stems according to a study from the University of Irvine the cause could be related to parental pressure to succeed coupled with competition from peers and achievement anxiety.
While others like Professor Brower explained that Wisconsin professors emphasized that students reading was to gain knowledge and expand their worldviews. This tactic is intended to help "re-teach students about what education is."
Being a student myself, I feel torn between feeling unjustly labeled and sympathizing with the professors fed up with whiny students. Based on Roosevelt's the false sense of entitlement exhibited by college students could be because of our K-12 regime of standardized tests which fueled our belief in a "magic formula" that produces high grades.
It's funny that I remember those days perfectly. Hours of what now seems like useless tests and the complimentary snacks provided by the school that weren't fit for a dog's bowl. There were "tricks" for singling out right answers on the tests that we were taught in class and no real way for us to study at home. So in a way I can see how my own attitude towards "good grades" could have shifted from a habit of earning a good grade to expecting a good grade because I was doing just what was required in class.
So, to me the point of this article hinges on the specific opinions of each professor and not a philosophical discussion of "what defines an A effort and what defines a C effort." Myself I know that each professor I've ever had has expected different things from their students but every one of them could discern an A paper from a C paper. I've never felt that I received a grade that wasn't equal to the level of effort done in the class. Sometimes I did well others I did not but every time I felt I was graded fairly.
However, if I had to agree with one of the professors from Roosevelt's article it would be Professor Brower from Wisconsin. If students are taking away from their classes are what grade they received than what is the point of learning at all. Brower describes a basic and elementary re-introduction of education to students. It makes sense that if all students are concerned with in school is grades then there is no knowledge gained that can be applied to the real world. In that respect nothing is learned from education. Brower describes seminars held for freshman that tackle real-world issues like solutions to global-warming, which allow students to gain perspective about the world around them as well as cultivate a genuine interest in their field of study.
"College students want to be part of a different and better world, but they don’t know how,” he said. “Unless teachers are very intentional with our goals, we play into the system in place.”
In short, as a student I don't feel entitled to any "high grades" I am only pursuing an education because of my eagerness to gain perspective about life. My ability to learn, really learn , has been stifled. It has morphed into a system of memorization instead of discussion. The exhausting process of reading textbooks as thick as slabs of concrete and regurgitating them back for an acceptable grade has made the process of actual critical thinking obsolete.
My mind wanders to the educational style of Plato, one of the most brilliant and enlightened scholars of all time. He was both a student and a teacher. The concept of grades did not exist students were taught for the purpose of attaining knowledge and insight.
Wouldn't it be nice if going to class actually meant expanding your mind with a goal of gaining knowledge instead of a "good grade." Instead of under achievers students would leave classrooms as students of the world. This is not necessarily the fault of the teacher or the student, on the whole students just need to be re-taught what an education really is.
Professor Grossman, an English teacher at Maryland University, said he tells his students that if they meet all the requirements of his class and do all the work that is assigned to them they will earn a C grade. In fact that in his classes C grades are the default for completion of all the class work not A grades. Grossman explained that students often complain to him about their grades as being less than what they expected because of the phenomena of students heightened sense of entitlement nation wide.
There are many theories from professors as to where this sense of entitlement stems according to a study from the University of Irvine the cause could be related to parental pressure to succeed coupled with competition from peers and achievement anxiety.
While others like Professor Brower explained that Wisconsin professors emphasized that students reading was to gain knowledge and expand their worldviews. This tactic is intended to help "re-teach students about what education is."
Being a student myself, I feel torn between feeling unjustly labeled and sympathizing with the professors fed up with whiny students. Based on Roosevelt's the false sense of entitlement exhibited by college students could be because of our K-12 regime of standardized tests which fueled our belief in a "magic formula" that produces high grades.
It's funny that I remember those days perfectly. Hours of what now seems like useless tests and the complimentary snacks provided by the school that weren't fit for a dog's bowl. There were "tricks" for singling out right answers on the tests that we were taught in class and no real way for us to study at home. So in a way I can see how my own attitude towards "good grades" could have shifted from a habit of earning a good grade to expecting a good grade because I was doing just what was required in class.
So, to me the point of this article hinges on the specific opinions of each professor and not a philosophical discussion of "what defines an A effort and what defines a C effort." Myself I know that each professor I've ever had has expected different things from their students but every one of them could discern an A paper from a C paper. I've never felt that I received a grade that wasn't equal to the level of effort done in the class. Sometimes I did well others I did not but every time I felt I was graded fairly.
However, if I had to agree with one of the professors from Roosevelt's article it would be Professor Brower from Wisconsin. If students are taking away from their classes are what grade they received than what is the point of learning at all. Brower describes a basic and elementary re-introduction of education to students. It makes sense that if all students are concerned with in school is grades then there is no knowledge gained that can be applied to the real world. In that respect nothing is learned from education. Brower describes seminars held for freshman that tackle real-world issues like solutions to global-warming, which allow students to gain perspective about the world around them as well as cultivate a genuine interest in their field of study.
"College students want to be part of a different and better world, but they don’t know how,” he said. “Unless teachers are very intentional with our goals, we play into the system in place.”
In short, as a student I don't feel entitled to any "high grades" I am only pursuing an education because of my eagerness to gain perspective about life. My ability to learn, really learn , has been stifled. It has morphed into a system of memorization instead of discussion. The exhausting process of reading textbooks as thick as slabs of concrete and regurgitating them back for an acceptable grade has made the process of actual critical thinking obsolete.
My mind wanders to the educational style of Plato, one of the most brilliant and enlightened scholars of all time. He was both a student and a teacher. The concept of grades did not exist students were taught for the purpose of attaining knowledge and insight.
Wouldn't it be nice if going to class actually meant expanding your mind with a goal of gaining knowledge instead of a "good grade." Instead of under achievers students would leave classrooms as students of the world. This is not necessarily the fault of the teacher or the student, on the whole students just need to be re-taught what an education really is.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
" In the environmental movement ,every time you lose a battle it’s for good, but our victories always seem to be temporary and we keep fighting them over and over again.” David Suzuki.
Artists around the globe are harnessing a myriad of unlikely media, picking up rags and ironically eco-friendly industrial strength cleaner to create something beautiful out of the sprawling decay of urban cities. Although to some it is just as illegal as traditional graffiti, Reverse Graffiti is a movement that challenges former perceptions about the enviroment that we all live in. Artists create beautiful, sweeping, epic and even poignant shapes and pictures all of which are a representation of the world we live in today. Created cleaning away layers of caked on industrial grit and grime rather than covering with paint this art form is a beautiful and imaginative way to challenge the polluted and dirty world we inhabit.
Making a statement today, for a cleaner tomorrow.
Cutting off the helping hands.
Susan Ferriss' article, "In-home care may face budget chopping block" in the Tuesday Feb.10 edition of the Sacramento Bee, discusses the possibility of In-home caregivers not being able to help those in need of their services due to California budget cuts in order to cope with the recession.
Ferriss describes 92 year-old Leona Heydenryk who struggles to unload a few bags from her car using an oxygen tank to help her breathe. Seniors just like Leona would score too well on ridiculous "functional indexes" to merit the part-time aid of caregivers who help her shop for groceries, clean house and prepare her meals. Leona's only surviving son, 69 is not able to help his mother with these tasks because of his frail health and fixed income.
According to the article California's In-home Supportive Services program which pays the salary of people like Consuelo Lopez, caregiver of Leona Heydenryk and other disabled people, would cost the state nearly 1.7 billion dollars more than it's willing to pay. California has more than huge deficit problems in common with the rest of the nation; its also seeing an enormous surge in senior citizens, along with this comes a higher need for the treatment of dementia or other side effects of the natural deterioration that comes with age.
Therefore;the demand for In-home caregivers has skyrocketed, much quicker than any other social service program.
The governor proposed a cut-back of In-house caregivers wages even though many of them are paid less than living wages. This creates a more specefic, more rigid means of qualifying who deserves care based on what it will cost the state rather than helping disabled people who are struggling in their day-to- day lives.
In the end people like Leona who is someone's mother, grandmother and daughter will be the one who suffers alone and with no to turn to for help.
Ferriss describes 92 year-old Leona Heydenryk who struggles to unload a few bags from her car using an oxygen tank to help her breathe. Seniors just like Leona would score too well on ridiculous "functional indexes" to merit the part-time aid of caregivers who help her shop for groceries, clean house and prepare her meals. Leona's only surviving son, 69 is not able to help his mother with these tasks because of his frail health and fixed income.
According to the article California's In-home Supportive Services program which pays the salary of people like Consuelo Lopez, caregiver of Leona Heydenryk and other disabled people, would cost the state nearly 1.7 billion dollars more than it's willing to pay. California has more than huge deficit problems in common with the rest of the nation; its also seeing an enormous surge in senior citizens, along with this comes a higher need for the treatment of dementia or other side effects of the natural deterioration that comes with age.
Therefore;the demand for In-home caregivers has skyrocketed, much quicker than any other social service program.
The governor proposed a cut-back of In-house caregivers wages even though many of them are paid less than living wages. This creates a more specefic, more rigid means of qualifying who deserves care based on what it will cost the state rather than helping disabled people who are struggling in their day-to- day lives.
In the end people like Leona who is someone's mother, grandmother and daughter will be the one who suffers alone and with no to turn to for help.
Water-Based Eyeglasses: It's a vision thing
According to the December 29th edition of the Guardian,
British native Josh Silver, a former Oxford professor of physics, has invented a pair of water-lensed eyeglasses.
Silver's glasses function based on the principle that the fatter the lense of an eyeglass the stronger its perscription is. The frame is made of a durable plastic and the individual lenses are clear fluid -filled sacs each of which is attached to a syringe at the tip of each earpiece.
The simple design of each pair of spectacles ensures that anyone can customize their glasses to their specific perscription. To adjust the power of the lenses the wearer manipulates a dial that reduces or adds to the fluid in each membrane. Satisfied with the strength of the lenses the wearer twists a small screw and seals each membrane. Then the syringe is removed.
One of the many advantages of these types of glasses is their ability to be mass- produced rather than each pair of specs being meticuously designed with one perscription in mind. While the one-size fits all might not be the most fashionable to those used to Vera Wang or Gucchi, they are well received for those Silver originally had in mind: people of developing nations suffering from poor eyesight but are unable to afford eye glasses.
What this would mean for those in the developing nations around the world?
According to Silver it would be a gigantic improvement, literact rated would increase greatly, fisherman would be able to mend their nets and become again part of the work force.
A retired tailor that Silver met up with named Henry Adjei-Mensah , whose deteriorated eyesight forced him into early retirement , had his eyesight restored by Silver's revolutionary eyeglasses.
Over 30,000 of these extrordinary eyeglasses have been distributed , and Silver's estimated goal: 100 million pairs.
Silver's glasses function based on the principle that the fatter the lense of an eyeglass the stronger its perscription is. The frame is made of a durable plastic and the individual lenses are clear fluid -filled sacs each of which is attached to a syringe at the tip of each earpiece.
The simple design of each pair of spectacles ensures that anyone can customize their glasses to their specific perscription. To adjust the power of the lenses the wearer manipulates a dial that reduces or adds to the fluid in each membrane. Satisfied with the strength of the lenses the wearer twists a small screw and seals each membrane. Then the syringe is removed.
One of the many advantages of these types of glasses is their ability to be mass- produced rather than each pair of specs being meticuously designed with one perscription in mind. While the one-size fits all might not be the most fashionable to those used to Vera Wang or Gucchi, they are well received for those Silver originally had in mind: people of developing nations suffering from poor eyesight but are unable to afford eye glasses.
What this would mean for those in the developing nations around the world?
According to Silver it would be a gigantic improvement, literact rated would increase greatly, fisherman would be able to mend their nets and become again part of the work force.
A retired tailor that Silver met up with named Henry Adjei-Mensah , whose deteriorated eyesight forced him into early retirement , had his eyesight restored by Silver's revolutionary eyeglasses.
Over 30,000 of these extrordinary eyeglasses have been distributed , and Silver's estimated goal: 100 million pairs.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
