Current Connection 2.1

In the article entitled, "Honey Bees Demonstrate Decision Making Process to Avoid Difficult Choices," tells how honey bees are like humans when it comes to getting out of difficult choices. Researchers even put the bees through a test.

The author says in the text, "The bees had to learn a rule to match a combination of shapes with nectar. A correct identification was rewarded with sweet nectar, but an incorrect decision resulted in a bitter tasting solution."  Bees learn about the same way we do by having bad results when something goes wrong.  Results in something going wrong make the bees try something different to make it better.

The article also says, "The size, shape, colour and positions of the targets were constantly changed during training so the bees had to learn a geometric rule to solve the task correctly."  Even the bees went through other obstacles that would be hard for some humans to achieve.  This proves that bees have a brain and it functions like a human brain.

current connection 1.2

Schools today are getting boring and students are not learning as much because of this problem.  According to the New York Times article entitled, "Turning Education Upside Down,"  this problem is being took care of.  They call it a "flipped school."

Clintondale school has developed a method where students get the classroom lecture at home.  This is possible by teachers recording their lecture and putting it online for students to view on their smartphones.  During school hours, teachers and students can do more hands-on projects in the classrooms.  This makes learning more fun.

Universities have already began this spectacular event.  This is booming online with better graduates and less drop-outs. This makes going to college much more affordable.  Students how do not have scholarships to go to college have hard times getting the degree's they need to begin their careers.  This new way "flipped school" is more affordable because the cost of an internet connection beats the cost of a semester of college.

As far as Clintondale, no other schools have taken to this flipped school.  The principle of Clintondale came up with the new "flipped school' when he recorded baseball hints and posted them on YouTube for the team.

I think all schools should take this and put it to work.  Learning would be much more fun.  I would learn more and be excited to go to school.

Current Connection 1.1

The NSBA (National School Boards Association) has described in text that the teachers have to be meeting higher standards.  The article entitled, "New Report Finds Teachers Need More Effective Professional Development to Meet Higher Standards," shares the details.

The school boards are developing skills to improve teachers standards for teaching.  As of now, teachers across the nation are improving.  Time is an issue to raise the standards though.  It takes more time to teach the teachers better ways to improve the students standards than it does with the students.

There are teachers that have the higher standards across the nation. Some statistics show the outcome of this.  School boards and representatives are finding the lowest point of learning and trying to bump it up while keeping the higher points where they need to be.  This will show higher percentage of successful graduates.

The number of drop outs are outrageous. More students are dropping out than there are graduating.  This is because of the teachers not teaching them the objectives that they need to raise their grades.  I understand that students have different ways of learning.  That is what the NSBA is trying to figure out.  They are finding ways to educate all levels of learning.

I see that in Batesville High School, the standards are improving.  My learning patterns are different than others and I have learned more this year than I have last year.

The Adventures of Zapswagger and Bobo: Introduction

    Zapswagger is a young man with a great potential to be a great hero.  Zapswagger gets his name from his ability to shoot lightning from his hand.  And he has swag.  Every super hero has swag and Zapswagger has it.  He has a companion named Bobo.  Bobo is a monkey that has a similar ability as Zapswagger.  Bobo can electrify his body to shock anything that touches him.  Together they both can help save the world from danger.  Shooting electricity from Zapswagger's hand, he can stop criminals from committing crimes before the criminals even think about it.  For example, if a bad guy is robbing a bank, the great Zapswagger and his royal companion, Bobo, swoop in and zap the bad guy with electricity from his hand and throw electric fire balls from his other hand.  The electric shock will not hurt the people I zap and same with Bobo.  It provides enough shock to stop the people long enough to catch them.

CC 4 Hacked

In the technology world, there has recently been hacks take place on three different companies.  In the article entitled, Eastern European gang hacked Apple, Facebook, Twitter.  Hacks are beginning to be easier to the hackers out there.  People find ways to get through the firewalls and blocks and even passwords.  This is a enormous dispute and we, the people of this nation, need to take control of the problem. 

Apple said last Tuesday that their computers have been compromised after they went to a site on an iPhone that was hacked.  The article said that the site overburdened an accountability in the Java Browser Plug-ins.  Apple is a pretty colossal company and makes plenty of money over a small period time.  Being hacked is a huge dilemma for them.

As well as Apple, Facebook also has a hack in their computer systems a few weeks before apple was hacked.  When an employee visited a developer site, they noticed that something was wrong with the system.  In between the two, Facebook and Apple, no data has been corrupted. 

Although Apple and Facebook.  Twitter has been hacked as well.  The article says the 250,000 accounts on twitter have been attacked.  They say that many emails and names on twitter have been uncovered.  Personally, I do not have a twitter account so I have nothing to worry about.

 This reminds me of when I got hacked on Facebook.  People have no idea how much it hurts people when they are hacked.  Also, a while back, the Batesville  School District computers were hacked and this situation reminds me of this. 

In conclusion, the hacks that happened with Facebook, Apple, and Twitter are a problem and this needs to be fixed.  I hope this problem is taken care of as soon as possible. To some, Facebook and Twitter are their lives and we can not let the hackers steal their identities.

Topic of my choice Taekwondo

Taekwondo is my hobby and I love to do it.  It teaches me discipline and self control.  It is also a good way to keep yourself in shape.  Taekwondo is more like a fitness and a skill training and is combined to help defend yourself only when you have to.  This keeps me relaxed and focused all the time.

This sport called taekwondo teaches me discipline as I learn.  It does this by showing that I need to respect others and show that anything is possible.  At some points, when you just do not feel like doing anything, taekwondo gets you in the mood.   This gets me ready for my future; it is not just for fun although it is fun.

Self control is a high priority for taekwondo.  It is not possible for you to advance in this sport without self control.  When I train in taekwondo, I must have self control to protect others around me.  In this sport, if their was no self control, others that are training can be seriously injured. This is why I love this sport.

Keeping yourself in shape is one reason this sport attracted me. I have always been skinny, but, that does not mean that I am healthy.  Doing the movements are simple and hard, but as you do each move in this sport, you are giving your body a good workout.  As you workout, in the future when the time comes to defend yourself, you are physically able do defend.

As you can see, taekwondo is a safe and healthy sport to have in your life.  It teaches self control and defense.  It gives you obedience as well.  All these things are tought to keep people safe and out of trouble.

CC 3 Gun Control

     I the article entitled, "Guns and Gun Control,"  in the New York Times, posted Wednesday, February 6th, the gun control debate has its flaws.  It says in the article that in 1994, President Bill Clinton passed a bill that restricted certain assault weapons.  Also with this bill that was passed, it mentions that every weapon that is purchased has to have a national background check.  Today, President Obama undercuts the NRA, or National Rifles Association, states that they need to commit to his "Common Sense" measure that Obama has proposed.  In the Article, "Obama Tries to Undercut NRA in Gun Control Debate," posted by Fox News on Monday, February 4th, Obama mentions this.
     The NRA, National Rifles Association, disagrees with Obama when he says that he is proposing his measures.  It says in the Fox News article, "On the other side of that debate, the NRA has aggressively argued against Democrats' call for a new and stronger assault-weapons ban, a ban on high-capacity magazines and universal background checks." Obama is not giving up. Though he is trying to get them to go for it. "But in a risky move, the president used his speech Monday to try and sideline America's most powerful gun lobby." This is also a quote from the Fox News article.
     When President Bill Clinton passed the bill that restricted assault weapons in 1994, he had a purpose behind his move.  Clinton wanted to keep the people safe. 
      
  

Book review

In this stunning memoir, Rob Sheffield, a veteran rock and pop culture critic and staff writer for Rolling Stone magazine, tells the story of his musical coming of age, and how rock music, the first love of his life, led him to his second, a girl named Renee. They wed after graduate school, both became music journalists, and were married only five years when Renee died suddenly on Mother's Day, 1997. There are mixes to court each other, mixes for road trips, mixes for doing the dishes, mixes for sleeping - and, eventually, mixes to mourn Rob's greatest loss. The tunes were among the great musical output of the early 1990s.  Mixing the skilful, tragic punch of Dave Eggers and the romantic honesty of Nick Hornby, LOVE IS A MIX TAPE is a story of lost love and the kick-you-in-the-gut energy of great pop music. I recommend this book because anyone who likes music will understand this book.  It creates a smooth feel throughout the story as if you were in the book yourself.

CC 1 Gunman Kidnap Child

Five year old held hostage in Alabama!  Local gunman in Midland City, Alabama has held a five year old child in an underground bunker.  They, Fox News, said that the kid was on a bus when the gunman stopped the bus and killed the driver and took the five year old kid off the bus and put him in an underground bunker. Fox News said in the artical that the gunmans name is Jimmy Dykes.  In my opinion, this world is becoming an untrusted environment.  Little kids, especially at the age of five, should not be kidnapped from a sixty-five year old man and put in bunkers.  My thoughts on this tragedy is that people in the U.S. can not be trusted any more.  

American Dream Essay

     American dreams are thought a lot about when it comes to getting ready for college.  People usually say, "well my dream is to be a policeman," or "my dream is to be a race car driver."  My dream is different.  Have you ever played on a Windows computer?  How about a Mac computer?  How would you like to play on both at the same time? Man, that would be cool!  My American dream is to create such a thing as to have a Windows running system and a Mac, or Apple, running system running all in one.
   
 My process to fulfill my American dream is to get together with both Apple and Microsoft and discuss this idea with them and show them what I will do to make this happen.  What I will tell them is that I need to decide how I can create a running system with both there products running at the same time.  I know what you are thinking right about now.  Do Microsoft and Apple strongly dislike each other?  My answer, I have no clue.  But,  hopefully this idea of mine will bring them closer together as friends.
    
When I have both systems running together, the software such as, apps, games, tools, and other items of that nature that run on the Apple products and the Microsoft products will run either way on this system of mine.  It will run either one because, like I said before, both running systems are running at the same time.
   
 As I dream this American dream, I see myself making a lot of money.  Just like Bill Gates, I hope to become a millionaire performing my american dream.  I would also like to see my popularity and fame rise just like Steve Jobs, creator of Apple.  You know how the old saying goes, it's sort of like the best of both worlds.
   
My American dream is different and very rarely thought of.  Hopefully one day you will see me on the front page of "Forge" magazine as a millionaire. Expect to see a new world of technology because it is coming and it is coming fast.

CC 2 Led Lights

Alcohol abuse. It's a famous thing these days. There is a way to stop that. 23 year old,  Dhairya Dand, came up with the idea of creating an ice cube that can track to amount of alcohol intake someone drinks.  Dand demonstrates how a person drinks alcohol.  There are LED lights in the ice cube that light up:  green, yellow, and red.  Green is when you first take a sip of alcohol.  Yellow is when your alcohol level is rising. Red is when you had enough and to stop drinking it. Also, this cube will send a text message to your friend to warn him or her that your drunk and to drive you home if needed.  It can talk to your smartphone by sending IR signals or infrared signals.   I like the idea of this ice cube because it, in my opinion, will help stop the alcohol abuse.  Here's the question though.  Will alcohol abusers use this product to keep themselves out of trouble?  I do not know if they will or not, but, if I was an alcohol abuser, I would try it to see if it works and if it does, I would probably continue to use it.  Now I am not saying I am an alcohol abuser or anything.