What can I (Mr. Samec) do to make science more interesting/valuable to you?

      Doing science with you is already super interesting to me.

      I say this because you do things that other science teachers would not do in the past, for example you threw a Frisbee at the wall to show laminar flow or dropping I think a ball and a hole puncher to see which would drop first.

      I myself like to see things to get a better understanding and doing something like that helped me understand laminar flow better and the force of gravity, buoyancy, density.

      You as a teacher do things that surprise me greatly and make learning fun, so there is really nothing else you need to do to make science more interesting or valuable to me but just for you to keep on doing what your doing.

Do You Think There Is Other Intelligent Life In The Universe? Why Do You Think That?

      I do think there is other intelligent life in the universe.

      I say this because there is so much more planets out there than we ever will never ever get to see, so one of those planets much have intellectual life.

      Also I think that if the intellectual life had came earth the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn't turn out very well for the Native Americans.

      We as humans do not have the right technology to see farther into our universe so we can not tell if there is intelligent life out there, but after reading some articles about this topic I do think that there is a great chance that there is intelligent life other than us in our universe.

      There also is a scientific experiment that uses internet-connected computers in the search for extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). You can participate by running a  free program that downloads and analyzes radio telescope data, "donating" your idle computer time to task. You never know, maybe your computer could be that one that discovers the signal that ultimately proves the existence of advanced life forms in the universe. The website is BOINC.



     

Is Social Media A Good Thing Or Bad Thing For Society?

      There are good things and bad things of social media for society.

      It is bad because for many reasons such as bullying. Back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, bullying would happen at school but after the bell rang and everyone went home bullying stopped because there was no Facebook or Twitter so the bullying would just stop. Now there are so much social media out there people will get bullied 24/7 which is absolutely crazy.

      Another reason social media is bad because kids do get distracted easily on the computer, and social media adds to that distraction as kids will constantly be checking on their Facebook and forget why they are at the computer.

      There are also pros of social media, it allows you to interact with far more people than you would otherwise be able to. Social media also makes it very easy to organize events.  But the biggest pro of social media is that it is fun, people can interact with friends after school, do projects without actually being at your partner's house, and to catch up with friends that may have moved.

      Here are some other pros and cons of social media.

        PROS
- You can put yourself out there in a good way.
- Make new friends/communicate or connect with old friends/family.
- Ability to educate others in a different way.
- Brings people with commons interests together.
- Try to make an impact (helping with natural disaster and raising awareness).
- Blog about your opinions to express yourself in a non-violent way.


       CONS
- Stalking people.
- Cyberbullying.
- Hacking into peoples profiles and posting as them.
- Gossip/spread rumors.
- Creating a blog that defames others. 

      In conclusion I do think that  social media has it ups and downs so I do not think I could make a decision if it would be good or bad for society.

     

      



     

      

       


      

     

If You Could Spend One Day With Anyone In History Who Would It Be?

      I chose Sir John A. MacDonald as the person I would like to meet.

      Sir John A. MacDonald was Canada's first prime minister as we know, but what happened before he got elected?After? There are so many things people do not know about our first prime minister like: How did he die? He is an iconic figure in Canadian history and always will be but we don't know how he died? Wouldn't it be so cool to go back in time and see how he really lived? All we hear in history class is: Sir John A. MacDonald first prime minister of Canada, the end. But there is so much more than that, that I want to find out.

      We would definitely talk about politics but also about different things, for example: Did you have security guards at your side? Did you live in a house or apartment? Also I would definitely take a picture with him (maybe I can get some extra marks in history?)

      I would hope to learn about how to be a leader like he was, also to learn from him that it is hard to get what you want but if you stick with it and go all the way until you get it, it will be worth every sweat and tear you put in it. Especially if it is for other people.

 

Harrison Bergeron Comparison

      The story Harrison Bergeron is about the year 2081 when everyone was finally equal. No one was smarter, better looking, stronger or quicker than anyone else. This was caused by the 211th, 212th and 213th Amendments to the Constitution, and the unceasing vigilance of agents of the United States Handicapper General Diana Moon Glampers. In April, where it drove people crazy by not being springtime George and Hazel Bergeron's son Harrison was taken away by the H-G men, it was a tragic event but Hazel having perfectly average intelligence could only think in short bursts, while George had an above normal intelligence which forced him to wear a small little handicap radio in his ear, that would send out a sharp noise every twenty seconds or so to make sure George doesn't take an unfair advantage of his brain, making it almost impossible for both of them to think about that day. George also has to wear forty-seven pounds of birdshot in a canvas bag. One day Hazel saw that George looked quite tired and she wanted him to take out some of the lead balls but George refused and said " two years in prison and two thousand dollars for every ball I take out, I don't call that bargain." George also said that if he had tried to get away with it, everyone else would also get away with it and then the dark ages would be upon them again with everyone competing against each other. While their conversation was going on a news bulletin had appeared on screen, it was not clear at the start of what the news bulletin was about because of the announcers speech impediment but a ballerina had came on the set to say the news bulletin and she read with a warm, luminous and timeless melody that she quickly apologized for, and read in a uncompetitive voice: " Harrison Bergeron, age fourteen, has escaped from jail where he was held on suspicion of plotting to overthrow the government. He is a genius and an athlete, who is under handicapped, and should be regarded as extremely dangerous. If you see this boy do not- I repeat do not- try to reason with him." As she finished a shriek of a door being torn from its hinges was heard as screams and barking cries followed. George watched the television and had identified this person to be his son Harrison, shortly after George's metal handicapped had went off making George's realization completely forgotten. Back at the studio Harrison Bergeron stood in the middle of the floor, with the studio's door knob still in his hand. Harrison cried "I am the emperor, the greatest ruler than any other man who ever lived! Now watch me become what I can become!" Harrison tore the straps of his handicap harness like wet tissue paper, his scrap-iron handicaps crashed to the floor, he snapped his head harness like celery, smashed his headphones and spectacles against the wall and flung away his rubber-ball nose, revealing a man that would have awed Thor, the god of thunder. Harrison then selected his Empress and the danced, then started to jump, they jumped higher and higher and higher! After a few moments it was obvious that they wanted to kiss the ceiling which they did and they kissed each other inches below the ceiling for a long, long time. Suddenly the handicapper general Diana Moon Glampers came into the studio holding a double barrelled shot gun and fired twice, the Emperor and Empress died before they hit the ground. The Bergeron's television tube burned out shortly after and George winced as there was a sound of a riveting gun in his head.

      Similarities
      - They had the right date.
      - Handicapper General was named Diana Moon Glampers.
      - There was George and Hazel.
      - There were earpieces used.
      - There were H-G men.
      - There were Ballerinas.
      - There were handicaps.
      - Hazel saying " that one was a doozy."
      - Hazel wanting George to take out some of his lead balls.
      - There was a news bulletin.
      - Announcer had a speech impediment.
      - Harrison escaped from jail.
      - Harrison is a genius, athlete, under handicapped and extremely dangerous.
      - There was a double barrelled shot gun.
      - Hazel said " If she was Handicapper General, she would put on chimes on Sunday."

      Differences
      - The ballerina did not say the bulletin in the movie.
      - Harrison's eyebrows were not shaved off in the movie.
      - Ballerina did not sway like a willow when she got up to become Empress in the movie.
      - Ballerina takes off her own handicaps herself in the movie.
      - One musician did not play all by himself in book.
      - There were no headphones on Harrison in the movie.
      - Harrison did not have wavy glasses in the movie.
      - Harrison did not have a rubber nose in the movie.
      - The book said nothing about transmitters.
      - Did not say in book that Diana Moon Glampers did not wear her handicaps.
      - In the book they never defuse any transmitter.
      - In the book it never says that people's television were turned off.
      - In movie Harrison did not jump with the ballerina.
      - Never kissed the ceiling in the movie.
      - Harrison never kissed the ballerina in the movie.

      Overall I preferred the book instead of the movie because the movie did leave some things that the book had like the wavy glasses and rubber-ball nose. In the book I could better understand what was going on as it was in more detail. I could also read at my own pace and can go back and reread as long as I would like to get a better understanding of what was happening. The last thing is because if there is a word I do not know I can see how to word is spelt on text and look in the dictionary or internet instead of trying to listen to how to word is pronounced then try to spell it my self.

      My favorite moment was in the movie when you could see Harrison have a button that looked like a bomb detonator, then you see underground what looks to be a bomb that the H-G men just defused. Thinking that it was over for Harrison  you see him push the button and see another machine that looked like a bomb, its light lit up and I thought BOOM, but instead I saw the television at the Bergeron's come back on and it surpised me as I thought it was a bomb all along which was very clever of Harrison and kept me enthralled until the end.

From,

Jake Leung 8B
     
     

Does your teenager need a credit card?

           I do think your teenager needs a credit card. I think this because they should be the ones that pay at the end of the month fees because it shows them that you should spend your money wisely. For example some teens have their parents pay for their cell phone bill and we all know teens will always go over the limit but their parents pay the extra price. Same with credit cards teens will go over and parents have to pay the price but if the teen goes over his or her limit they will have to pay the interest along with the rest of the costs.            This is a great learning tool for teens preparing them for when they are an adult knowing how much money they want to spend and how much money they have to spend. Giving your teen a credit card is also good if the parents have to pay because the teen will learn if you break rules you forfeit the card as it says in paragraph 12 you have to be clear about the rules of the use of the credit card. Example:overspend, card used for unauthorized purposes it will be cancelled no ifs ands or buts as it is the exact same in real life, you do something stupid you pay the price.
            Also its good for parents to be a role model to their teen for example if you pay your credit card fee late and then you have to pay interest your teen will probably do the same but if you pay the bill full as it says in paragraph 10,it will make it clear for your teen if you can't afford to pay off the credit card bill each month you can't afford the items charged to that card so you should not buy it. The last thing is the credit card bill is irrelevant for your teen meaning if you have a maximum spending money on the card of $1000 it doesn't mean you should max it out to $1000 as it said in paragraph 11. This should only happen if the teen will have cash to give back on the date the bill of the card is due.
           If that is not the case you should tell your teen to forget about it until he or she has enough money to pay for the bill as this will prepare them to resist buying something you really want but you know you can't afford or pay it off. This is why I think your teenager should have a credit card. From, Jake Leung 8B

If you could live anywhere, where would you live, why would you choose that place

           If I could live anywhere I would live in a cruise ship.
           Why you ask? Well for starters you can wake up to a stunning view every morning, who wouldn't like that, you wake up all woozy and then Foosh you pull open your curtains and you see mountains and glaciers and open your doors to the balcony and smell the fresh air its better than  smelling your cup of coffee in the morning at home.
            Another reason is you can go to so many countries and places but you only have to pack your bag once! Like really if you wanted to go to Spain, Ireland and then Portugal do you know how much times you have to pack your bags then unpack them? On a cruise its a different story, its like your hotel follows you around no need to worry if you forgot something because you can just run back to the ship and get it. While if you go on a plane and then you just remember your house keys in the safe in your house well that sucks.
            The third reason I would like to live on a cruise ship is because I can tailor the cruise to my own style and taste.There are so many opportunities to do something, or nothing depending on your mood. I can take a culinary course if I want when I am in the mood for cooking or to learn something new, if I feel lucky one day I can go to the casino and do a few slots, if I feel stress there is always a spa I can go to, and of course there has to be a workout room just in case I get a little too fat from eating their delicious foods.
            This is why I would want to live on a cruise ship.

From,
Jake Leung 8B




          

Do-over generation set to experience deadline shock.

         I think that it is right for teachers to penalize students correctly who do not hand in their assignments on time because for the students who do hand it in on time it is unfair to them that their piers can hand it in late and will get the same mark as them. Also it is good because this gives students a little kick start to do their assignment and to hand it in on time if they know they could very well get penalized by the teacher and could also get kicked off a sport team or club going on in the school. This is also great for the teachers because now having these seventeen rules in place they can have a better understanding of how to deal with a late assignment. The new policy will now help students to know to hand in their assignments and homework on time to prepare them for the future were there is no "time out" or detention but one word... FIRED! I do think now that this rule is in place students should be more successful in life for their are drilled from a young age that when you don't hand something in on time you get penalized and there would be none of this "I will give it to you tomorrow." I do agree with this article about penalizing late assignments for all the reasons given above and I do hope now that students will understand that handing in a assignment late is not OK.

From,

Jake Leung 8B