A worldwide Landgrab!

As rising temperatures melt the polar ice cap, five countries race to map their claims to a new energy frontier. Nearly a quarter of the world’s undiscovered oil and gas may lie beneath the seabed around Greenland. The article I read is about some men who go out and discover something that could change the world. But, there also is a lot of opinion towards this particular subject.


In three decades the retreat of sea ice has freed more than a million square miles of ocean for research and commerce. The creation of oil and gas deposits requires the right mix of organic material, heat, rock, pressure, and passage of time. It may be hard to look at the Arctic today and imagine that it ever had enough organic life, enough heat. The floor of the Arctic appears to be rich in petroleum, home to nearly a quarter of the world’s undiscovered supply. Sea ice is melting drastically opening the sea to shipping and the seafloor to mineral exploration. The countries in the fight for triumph are Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia, and the U.S. And all of these are hoping to claim a piece of this discovery, if not all.

My opinion towards this specific article is very broad. I think that it is very cool and useful that this particular part of the Arctic is being studied. And it is even better to know that there might be something at the bottom of the Arctic that could solve the small amount of the world’s problems. But I also believe that first; we need to find a solution to our loss of oil problem. We can’t always rely on what we think might lie ahead. Researchers don’t know for sure that there is a third of the world’s oil lying beneath the waters of Greenland. The keyword in this is may. There may be a massive amount of oil around Greenland’s waters. But it is definitely not definite. I almost feel like we’re trying to rely on the fact that we could possibly not have to worry so much about oil. But it’s not a fact yet. I believe that we should be fixing the problem with oil first, and then start thinking about the future possibilities.

The race for the Arctic may be about oil, but it is about the oil, but it is about the oil that government’s hope is there, not the oil they know is there. So according to our own government, they are aware that they have no real clue if there really is that huge amount of oil at the bottom of the Arctic. They just infer that there might be. Studies may show it, but they have said that as far as their concerned it is not a for sure true fact.

In conclusion, this article is basically about five countries fighting to be able to have a part of this massive discovery, which they aren’t even sure is there. But in my own opinion I think that we all need to settle down and figure out the problems that are necessary, rather than the ones we don’t even really know exist.

A Fighting Game For Hunger

About 20 minutes ago I finished the best book in the history  of books! Hunger Games. With my busy life it took me a lot longer to finish than I would ever intend. But when I had the time, I was reading this book. I won't spoil it over my blog but I have to explain some of it in order for it to go along with what I want to post. So it basically tells you in the prologue that North America is now in ruins and is now the nation of Panem. And in Panem there are twelve districts. The Capitol runs Panem and all its districts. The Captiol is a harsh ruling and forces each district to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, which is a fight to the death and is watched by all of Panem. And in district twelve there's a sixteen year old girl named Katniss who just lives with her mom and sister. Her sister is chosen for the Hunger Games and Katniss steps in and goes into the arena for her sister. The book is full of twists and mysteries. Surviving is second nature for her and becomes harder as she fight to win. She has to choose between tough choices that rely on her or her family. I aboslutly loved it.
But as I thought more about this book I realized that there is a kind of lesson behind the book, but it's in a very unspecified way. The book is based on people going against each other in a fight to kill each other for survival. It varies from district to district how weathly people are. District twelve where Katniss is located, is more of a low producing district. Each district produces its own herbs and plants so food also varies. District twelve is surrounded by forrest filled with meat and other food. But it is illegal to hunt out side of the district. People get food by trading things with other people within their district. Each day is pretty much the same, a ritual of finding any way to get food for the night. So when going into the games some people are prepared to fight for their food and others have no idea because it has already been provided for them their whole lives.

I've found that there is some reality in this. Everyday someone, somewhere in the world, is fighting, dying, cyring for food. Right now, India is the country with the largest amount of people suffering from starvation.

This is a really tough subject for some people, me in particular. Our nation is  known as the fat nation. We have more obese people than any other country in the world. And in my opinion, it's because we're greedy. And I'm sure having a million fast food restaurants doesn't help either. But I think that so many people take for gratitd the fact that the amount of food we eat in two weeks, is more food than some people would ever eat in their lives. Adults and children in African countries are satisfied if they get just one simple thing to eat a day. And we have to stuff our faces until we're close to exploding. I hate watching people in the lunch room throw away precious food that they barely even touch! I can't but think of the people who starve because they can't find or afford food for themselves and keep themselves alive. When we're over here being picky about a simple piece of food that isn't going to make a difference. But if we were to give the simple little piece of food to someone who hasn't had a crumb for days, it would make that much of a difference. It's an ongoing fighting game for hunger that nobody has the guts to do anything about. And it's not fairly played.

Determination

For those that know me well enough, you know that the person I look up to is Albert Einstein. While growing up I was taught that education is important. And ever since I've had a serious determination to do well in school. School is one of the most important things to me. Everything I do in school is my best and my best only. To tell you the truth I've never had an actual 4.0 I've always had a 3.9 or 3.8 and that satisfies me just fine because I know I did my best. I absolutly loathe watching people as they open their report cards at the end of each term. As their grades process in their heads their fury or excitement rages in their little heads and then slowly follows straight out of their mouth. This is the part, right here, that is the wrost part of the whole grade openings. Shrieks, screams, cries, joyfulness gets let loose and fills the halls with outrageous noise. Everybody asks and questions every single human being around them about what kind of grades they recieved. I absolutly hate this question. Why does it even matter? And then as soon as I hop on the bus the level of outrageous noise has been brought down a few thousand notches, but it is still quite loud and annoying. I have one particular friend who I cannot stand when she talks about her grades. She got a 4.0 throughout all of seventh grade and then in eighth grade third term she got her first 3.9 and she acted like the roof was falling on her head while the rest of the earth was caving in. (not an exaggeration) remember, this is over a 3.9... The only reaction I had was a blank stare straight at her eyes and a simple comment; "get over it". And I just turned around and went back in my world. I don't know why people decide to over react to the something they know was their best. She, in fact, got all A's. Just one A-, and that A- was what she decided to blow up over. Shouldn't she just know that she tried her best. And she was rewarded.
In my own opinion I believe that it only matters that you try your best. When Thomas Edison finally invented the light bulb he quoted "I have not failed, I have just found 10,000 ways that won't work". To me, that is pure determination and positivity. And I wish we all thought that way because it would take the stress out of a lot of things and make living life so much easier.

Nearly every man who develops an idea works at it up to the point where it looks impossible, and then gets discouraged. That's not the place to become discouraged.

-Thomas Edison

For School Uniforms!

Surely you can imagine those snobby, cliquey, popular brats who think everyone should worship them, and they look like their billionaires? How about imagining school without that? Could it be possible? It's been tested and yes, this problem can be practically wiped of the school grounds. Putting a school uniform on students actually makes a huge difference on the surroundings of the school. I have found that there are three major advantages of school uniforms; no endless worry or competition on outward appearances, it also prepares students for future school or professional jobs that require a certain uniform or dress code, and it is easier to make sure the students maintain a good dress code and are always modest in their dress. With school uniforms the administrators have a lot less to worry about and the school gains more school spirit.


In a lot of cases school drama or issues revolve around some kind of jealousy one way or another. Being a girl teenager and having a good amount of friends, I know how drama happens. From what I've noticed, the biggest part of the dramatic world begins with someone being jealous of someone else. The most popular act of this is the jealousy of outward appearances. The most common form is clothes or how someone dresses. This happens daily in most girls brains but sometimes girls get blown out of their minds by the way someone else looks because it isn't how they look. And so the after effect of this is they decide to make up some wacko rumor about them that gets spread around the school like wildfire. Now with guys on the other hand, when they get jealous they just simply go out and punch your face out until you look like a messed up pancake. A simple way to resolve this would be to slap a uniform on every student and there, problem resolved. When everyone looks the same there's no reason to be jealous of the other persons outfit because has the exact same appearances. Therefore school uniforms are a great idea, and could resolve the dramatic problems that they have to deal with daily.

Wouldn't it be so sad if one day you walked past a professional office building and as you watched the hard workers flow out, you found something really unusual. Each individual that came out of this first class office building wore everyday normal clothing, no strict dress code just normal clothing, making it look not at all like a professional work place. And come to find out that it was the employees who just never committed to wearing decent work place clothing because they've never had the experience before. Now wouldn't that be so depressing to behold! Giving students to opportunity to experience what good uniform style clothing is, could benefit these students in so many ways and prepare them for what it's like to be in the working field.

One thing that I personally absolutely loath is when an administrator stops me in the hall and yells at me from across the hall, while everyone is watching, and then tells me to simply pull my shirt up or fix my sleeve. I cannot even express to you my feelings to those little acts. They drive me up the wall! And I always hear my friends and other girls complain daily about how one of the administrators embarrassed her or dragged her all the way to the office to tell her to keep her shirt pulled up. With school uniforms this will obviously not be a problem. The designers of the uniforms will most likely make the uniforms so they meet every dress code, making it so much easier on the administrators job to not have to stir in bed and worry about accidentally missing that one girl who has her sleeve slightly brushing the edge of her shoulder. These problems could all be eliminated by putting uniforms that cover all of the dress code rules on each student.

The subject of school uniforms is rarely supported by students. But when you address your debate with administrators, it is pretty easy to get them on your side when you start to mention all the great advantages a school uniform will bring. Simply putting a school uniform on school students adds so much more to the school and the students. Firstly, they don't need to worry about looking better than their peers, they will be prepared for life after their education, and the employees that work in the school won't need to worry nearly as much about informing the students about how they should wear their clothing because it will be already prepared for them. I personally think that school uniforms could definitely benefit schools all across the world in so many different ways.

Pretty Time vs. Rusties

Today is my birthday and I'm writing a blog post! Woo hoo! But I do have something interesting to write about.

I just finished the book called Extras and I really enjoyed it. It's the last book of the series Uglies and it sums up their world in this last book. If you haven't read any of the books in this series I suggest you do. But if you don't plan on reading them then I'll give you my own little overview to the books. They take place on this earth in a time called Pretty Time, and in reality, the only reason they live is to be famous. They don't have money, they just have a whole in their wall that gives you the outfit that you'll need for the day, and no one cares what you wear, it's not a fight to who has the best brand of jeans, because everyone has the same. Each Ugly gets kind of like an apartment of their own. And their walls talk to them and have wall monitors that tell you what's happening throughout out the town. They are regular humans that lived in a very technical and high advanced world. You go to school until you are sixteen. And then you pretty much get to choose the way you will live for the rest of your life. But at age fifteen, each teen lives in agony through the year dreadfully waiting to advance and be of age and be released into Prettyville and to then start making decisions for themselves. But the whole fifteenth year is said to be the worst and the longest year of anyone's whole life because they sit around for a whole year waiting for the minute they turn sixteen to finally be let out into a world where they can then make decisions for themselves. It's almost like our world having to endure that seventeenth year just waiting to be eighteen and be free. But their agony is ten times worse because a lot more happens when you turn sixteen. When you turn twelve you are then considered an Ugly, and then once you turn sixteen you have the choice to become a Pretty. You become a Pretty by getting a surgery that will fix your nose, give you more muscle, add surges (tatoos), add an eye screen, better body etc.. Pretty much anything that will make you more beautiful. The big thing in the Pretty world is your nose. For some reason they have a serious thing about noses and that's the first thing they want fixed. You can always catch an Ugly by their unsurged nose.
In Ugly school's (which is just like junior high) you learn everything you'll need to survive the world. There is no more school after you hit sixteen. But in every year of Ugly school, the biggest class that you have to take is history. In this class they learn about the Rusty generation which is the generation that you and me live in right now. So these books are kind of like the supposed future of our world. But they talk about how no one ever got along in the Rusty world and how the people who weren't famous didn't want to be famous, they wanted to have the image and body of the famous people. And they would talk about how girls would starve themselves to have the perfect body, or they would smoke weird substances to be cool. This, to them, was just plainly bazaar because in their world it's a fight to be famous and have a very simple surgery that makes you skinnier or more buff. So to them, us Rusties were pretty strage. They would also learn about how we had so many wars over things that weren't necessary, and we fought them with bullets and bombs. And they fight with electric objects, lasers, hoverboards, you name it! Pretty much anything thats high tech.
But the whole point of this blog is how true a lot of the analogies from this book are. We fight over the weirdest things! And we are in a competition to see who has the most money or the biggest house. And I just think how much easier if would be if each person had their own room and there was no such thing as a house. One less thing to compete against.
I just really enjoyed this book because it gave me a better outlook on life. Our lives do not revolve around whose prettier or who has the most surges, or who is more famous. Because in their world, that's all that matters. They may have cool things that would make life a lot easier, but their lives are so pointless, and I like living a life where I can make decision on my own and not have to worry what other people think about it, or what group I will end up falling into. And that's the way it's supposed to be!

My Deforestation Analysis

As I have been researching my topic of deforestation I have been amazed to see all that I’ve learned. I didn’t realize that I would end up receiving enormous amounts of information about this topic, as I did. Some of the things I learned were breath taking and I was astonished at how much of an impact deforestation makes on our world we live in. This researching assignment ended up making on my knowledge of how deforestation works.


At the beginning of this assignment I had questions in my head that I wanted answered as I researched this particular topic. First was: what are the basic causes of deforestation. I found that the main cause of deforestation is civilizations encroach on the forests and woodlands of the world. Cutting for timber is also a major issue. And because of this, vast miles of tropical forests are lost each year.

And the second question I had was why does deforestation happen. I inquired that deforestation happens when people clearcut a forest for the lumber or to grow crops. Sustainable tree harvesting reduces the impact from logging whereas deforestation causes erosion and loss of wildlife.

In all, deforestation is basically the clearing of naturally occurring forests by the process of people’s logging and burning of trees in a forested area. Deforestation affects many things. It is commonly believed that deforestation only has an effect on global warming, which is not true. Yes, it does have a great effect on global warming but not just global warming. Deforestation is cited as one of the major causes to the enhanced greenhouse effect. Tropical deforestation is responsible for twenty percent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. the incineration and burning of forest plants in order to clear land releases tonnes of CO2, which contributes to global warming.

Deforestation also has an effect to the world hydrologically. The water cycle is also affected by deforestation. Trees extract groundwater through their roots and release it into the atmosphere. When part of a forest is removed, the trees no longer evaporate away this water, resulting in a much drier climate. Deforestation reduces the content of water in the soil and groundwater as well as atmospheric moisture. It reduces soil cohesion so that flooding and land slides result.

In many parts of the world, especially in East Asian countries, reforestation and afforestation are increasing the area of forested lands.[114] The amount of woodland has increased in 22 of the world's 50 most forested nations. Asia as a whole gained 1 million hectares of forest between 2000 and 2005. Tropical forest in El Salvador expanded more than 20% between 1992 and 2001. Based on these trends, one study projects that global forest will increase by 10% (an area the size of India) by 2050.

Researching this topic I was amazed at how important deforestation is and isn’t. In my own opinion I think that it is okay to use trees for what we need. Not what we want. Deforestation is an ongoing issue that is causing extinction, changes to climatic conditions, desertification, and displacement of indigenous people.

Literature Letter: To Jerry Spinelli

Dear Jerry Spinelli,


Your remarkable book Stargirl forever changed the way I will look at the world around me. When I was in fifth grade, as a class, we read and studied this book. I enjoyed if very much, listening to the voice and enthusiasm of each character. It wasn’t until this year that I came to a realization of what an impact this one book had made on my stance of life. Stargirl’s behavior and example helped me beyond measure to find and know who I was, and all the bliss I was missing out on. As I looked back at who I was before, I was amazed to see how much an impact this one book had on me that I had never taken the time to be aware of. This is how my story goes.

I grew up in a home where self-esteem mattered, but I could never relate. In my earlier years of growing up, I felt out of place and like an outcast around other people and other friends. I had many great friends, but I never felt like I could fit in correctly. My family is a great wholesome family, I just could never look at myself and see the true me, I couldn’t abide to even looking at myself in the mirror, and by fifth grade my self-esteem was below zero. I could not find one good characteristic about myself that I could voice or even think. I was a big dark cloud of misery and I went into a serious depression stage. Because I didn’t know who I was, I started to evolve as someone new. I became mean and very cocky; I tried to hard to be in the popular clique, I stopped caring about school and my school work, along with acting as if I was too good for everyone else. My world was a big down hill roller coaster, and I could never figure out why nothing ever went my way.

By the middle of eighth grade I was a total mess; I developed habits of severe eating disorders, I started cutting myself, and I would do things that weren’t part of a good healthy diet. I was running away from me; something I could never end up conquering. And let me tell you Jerry Spinelli, I thought I was happy.

In the summer of eighth grade I came across your book Stargirl again. I decided to reread it because I remembered how much I adored it back in fifth grade. As I reread it I can remember paying particular attention to how Stargirl had acted, since her happiness was what I was searching for. I finished the book within two days and set it back in my bookshelf just as every other book. A few days later I put a lot of thought into the matter, and I then realized who I needed to become, me. Over the summer period I had changed drastically. I got out of every single bad habit that I had endured previously all on my own. I started to realize that I was of worth and that I had so many qualities that I never even tried to distinguish. I altered my thinking habits, and eventually saw the real me. I started making friends so much easier and I gained a good bunch of excellent examples. It wasn’t till this year that I recognized how I was able to make this drastic transformation. Just simply reading of a girl who liked herself enough to not care if she stood out, changed my life forever. She didn’t care what other people thought of her, all she cared about was that she was herself, and I too can now proudly say that I am myself and I know who I am. I cannot but only imagine where I would be at this time if I had not come across your book. Stargirl is still present in my mind and hopefully will always exist. Your character taught me to find my one and true spirit, and to not act as anyone else but me. Stargirl, though fictional, helped me defeat the terrible battle I was trying to conquer against myself. I ended up learning a great life’s lesson that will never depart my mind. And I now know and can tell you what true happiness is. Jerry Spinelli, thank you for helping me become who I was always destined to be.

Sincerely,

Tori Fairchild