Public Schools... Evolution or Creation?

From the beginning of Time, people have believed in gods. Starting from the Tribal Stages of Human life, all the way through the Romans, people have believed in gods, and that never interfered with the study of the sciences. However, today, to put it simply, “God is dead”. People went beyond theism, and, under the assumption that there is no God, tried to figure out how the world began.

This is an every-growing controversy, as the once popular Darwinism has failed to show any proof of the slow, gradual evolution of life. There have been no fossils found to prove the “slow change” that supposedly happened. There have been other ideas about evolution, like punctuated evolution, which states that evolution happened quickly, in shorts “bursts” that caused nothing to die, explaining the fact that no fossils have been found proving evolution. To counter-argument this argument, people have asked them “what is the probability that two organisms, both with no calculated direction of evolution, changed into the same species and reproduced? Since there was no direction of evolution, the chance that any random organism evolved into a complex one, and two of them met to reproduce, is very low.

The main question is “what should be taught in public schools?” A study shows that 61 percent of all US schools teach evolution, while only 12% of all US schools teach creationism. I believe that both should be taught I public schools. My main reason for thinking this is because otherwise it would be bigotry: choosing to only tell one side of a story. It would better prepare the students to face the world if they learn both sides of the argument, and are allowed to choose for themselves.

Public schools are legally obliged to give a “liberal education”. This, by definition, means education with an open or broad background. Creationism was held as “unconstitutional” in court when only creationism was taught. However, times have changed, and evolution is the only theory taught in public schools. This should also be labeled as “unconstitutional”.

Also in the case of US schools, evolution goes against the constitution formed by the “founding fathers” as they stated that “all men were created equal”. However, evolution states that the strongest survive to become better.

I think that it is crucial that the students learn all they can, and in time, choose what they want to stand by, rather than being forced into believing that evolution is the only way to describe the origins of life.

Dear Uncle Eungho...

"Dear Uncle Eungho,

I complained about the way my SAT Prep teacher grades our homework and tests. Somehow, the teacher found out it was me who complained and she treats me very coolly and angrily. What can I do to get in her good graces again—without “sucking up to her” or being a “brown-noser”?"

--Sad in Selimiye

Dear Sad,

The fact that your SAT Prep teacher's grading annoys you is very unfortunate. It's never nice to talk badly about someone that's really close to you, especially if they can fail you for a class. However, since you need to get back in her good graces, I advise you to use two things: First, a simple apology, and second, showing that you are sorry through your actions.

The things that appeal to people, especially teachers, are hardworking students. I advise you to, instead of complaining about the way she grades, change yourself. Make yourself an excellent student, be active in class discussions, and improve on your work, which will lead eventually lead your teacher to think better of you.

Sincerely,

Uncle Eungho

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" Dear uncle Eungho,

I have a lot of homework every night. At the same time, I want to spend time with my friends, participate in extra-curricular activities, and use Facebook. If I don’t get on Facebook every night, I feel left out. At the same time, I think I’m wasting a lot of time and it is one way I could make better use of my time. What do you suggest?"

-- Lonely in Libadiye

Dear Lonely,

Time management is never easy. It's just one of those things that we have to do. I suggest that you not make Facebook your priority. Although it may be nice to use Facebook, it can very easily become annoying. It's hard to stop once you start, and can consume a huge part of your day. So the best thing to do, is set a limit. TIme yourself, and see how much you spend of Facebook. Then you can set a limit, spending only the amount of time necessary to use Facebook.

Another thing to consider is dropping your extra-curricular activities, or split them up, so that you can use your time wisely. You need to remember that you don't have to do ALL the extra-curricular activities; you have a choice.

Sincerely,

Uncle Eungho

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"Dear Uncle Eungho,

I recently moved to Turkey. I feel isolated because there are few American families here, and I do not speak Turkish. I home-school my kids, so we don’t have many opportunities to meet other foreigners. It has been five months, and I still can't get over the culture shock. I spend my days cooped up with my kids, unable to do the simplest things. I can't seem to live up to my husband's expectations, and he has become quite critical. This is hurting our marriage. Please help me before I go crazy.”

— Agonizing in Ankara

Dear Agonizing,

I’m sorry that you’re feeling so stressed out. It’s never easy to move, especially into a different culture, where you get culture shock, and can’t speak the language well either. Don’t fret though, there are many ways to solve this.

First, you could speek to your husband about this. You need to remember that he is there to support you. Talk to him, especially think about sending kids to school, instead of homeschooling them (there’s an international school in Ankara called Oasis).

Take a few days off to relax. You probably feel overwhelmed because you need to do the housework and teach the kids. Go relax. A hotel is probably a good idea, just to have someone else cook for you for a day, clean for you. You can even hire a maid to help you around the house.

And finally, find people you can relate to. Being Ankara, I’m sure you’ll find plenty of international people, from the school, from parent groups, or even from church. Get to know them, and let them help you out, especially while you adjust to Turkey.

Sincerely,

Uncle Eungho

"Political Cartoon"

Facebook: Killing Verbal Communication

Facebook, like the popular Nokia ad, “Nokia: Connecting People”, helps you connect with your family and friends quickly and easily. However, does this kill our once very socializing face-to-face communication? Is this a start of a new era where non-verbal communication is “king”?

Facebook is known best for its most commonly used feature, the “wall” (where people can write to others that can be seen by others too), and the photo-sharing experience it creates. People could easily view photos, catch up with people by walling, and game, leading to a sudden outburst of users.

Some would say that “quick and easy” is the future, especially in communication. And that seems true, but this discourages face-to-face contact, or taking time to write letters or emails to loved ones. When more than 80% of the school population has a Facebook account, getting “sucked in” is very easy. A recent survey showed that over 60% of the students/teachers at International Gateway Academy were more likely to write on peoples’ walls rather than call them.

Information can “easily” be shared to everyone who is your “contact” on Facebook. However, it leads to a great security issue, and most people seem unaware of possible measures that can be taken against it.

There is also the problem of “e-personalities” (personalities that are online, on the computer, that differs from the actual personality), that allows people to say things that they could not say in person. A study online shows us that about every 9 of 10 people have such e-personalities, meaning that most of the people are more “talkative” in front of their computers than they are in real-life.

Facebook is just a peace of the picture that future communications will paint. It fixed flaws of previous generation social-networks (e.g. Xanga, Myspace), but it too has many flaws. It demeans the value of taking time to communicate with people, making “quick and easy” the new “social fling”. Although it may be true that Facebook does offer many advantages, and can be used internationally, it “strays us away” from verbal communication. It is important to remember that in the end, verbal communication is the thing that keeps relationships, whether it be with family or friends, continuing.

Facebook. How it Affects You, Life.

Everyone has Facebook, and people spend hours and hours on end, looking at photos, chatting, writing on peoples "walls", and playing games.

We were really interested in the time people spend on Facebook, and how it affects their lives. Our results were quite interesting too:

80% of the School (not including elementary students) had Facebook, and most of them used it to "wall" each other.

Well what kind of impact would this have on students' social lives? We found out that people were more likely to "wall" each other rather than actually calling. This really shows us that Facebook, and most alternatives, kill sociality, and people start having electronic-socialites that are very different from who they are in person.

The Drowning Wave

Yesterday, a boy, fishing on the pier, was pulled into the ocean by a giant wave.

The day was warm, a perfect day for outdoors activities. For people living near the beach, fishing on the pier was the perfect thing to do that day. Like most local boys, Tony S-----later and Alan B--- (both age 15) went fishing around noon.

Everything seemed fine, the day was nice, and they had caught 4 fish by 3. However, an unexpected wave hit them as they sat waiting for their next catch, pulling Tony into the ocean.

“This huge wave came and just knocked me flat”, said Tony, “There was nothing I could do to stop myself going over the edge and into the sea.”

As any good friend would do, Alan jumped into the ocean to save his friend.

“[Tony] is a good swimmer, but he couldn’t get back to the pier. I didn’t think; I just jumped in to try to help him”, he said.

However, neither of them could swim against the strong current that forced them out to sea. It was a third person, Mark S--------, which saved the kids. Luckily he was a qualified lifesaver at a local pool, and immediately jumped in to help them, pulling first Tony, then Alan out of the water.

“No I don’t think of myself as a hero. I don’t want any fuss made. I just did what anyone else would have done”, He said.

The boys were taken to a St Margaret’s Hospital. The police are investigating reports of the pier being not safe for fishing.

Motivation that Changes

Changing is very difficult for a human. It is just the way we are made. We always have a pattern, even in the smallest things that we do, or the way we say certain things, or think about certain things.

People only tend to change something if they are motivated, by something or someone. The motivation can come in many different forms, such as a threat by someone, or just some events that can mess up the "equilibrium" of they're life-patterns.

People cannot willingly change their habits, unless the motivation is great enough to cause them to change. Some changes are just inevitable, such as missing the bus that you take to work everyday because you were out partying all night. Or forgetting to pick up your coffee on the way to work. Ward SyBouts, author of Planning in School Administration: A Handbook, says, "To change is to risk something, to making us feel insecure." He basically is saying that without a fear of something, there would be the possibility that the motivation would not work, resulting in no change whatsoever.

Murphy's Law: The Worst Day EVER!

Murphy's law states that "if anything can go wrong it will at the worst possible moment".

When I first read this quote, I thought it was hilarious. It seemed so crazy, something that would never happen. Things could never possibly go THAT wrong. But little did I know, everything would go wrong that day.

It was the 22nd of January and the weather outside was horrible. It was the day of Sam Breslin's birthday and I had been attending a Korean-Literature class at school. After class I went home, took a shower, and prepared to leave. The party started at 12 pm. I knew that I could make it on time if I got on a bus by 10:30, and then on the train by 11:30.

I waited at the bus stop, but no bus came. I waited and waited; by 10:45 I was sick of waiting. So I attempted to go by a different route. I got on a different bus, and promptly fell asleep. When I woke up 30 minutes later, the area around me seemed very familiar. I thought it was my stop and got off.

Looking around, I realized my mistake. I had gotten off 20 minutes too early. I checked my watch. 11:30. With only 30 minutes to go, the only idea that I could come up with on the spot was getting on a taxi, so I did. I rode the taxi down the Sahil, hoping I would make it in time.

Then I noticed that the taxi-meter was starting to run up pretty quickly. What started off as 2 lira continued until it became 10, 15, then 20 lira. I checked my wallet, to make sure I had enough money. I only had 23 lira. My mind started racing, thinking of all the different options: Should I just get the taxi near his house and run off without paying? Would I get caught? What other options did I have?

It was then that we passed the bowling alley, I remembered that we were planning on bowling there as the main event of the party. Quickly calling the to the driver to stop, I payed and got off, only to find that I had left my cellphone in the car. Thankfully the phone rang and the guy stopped to find out what was ringing. I ran to catch up with the taxi and retrieve my phone.

I attempted to call Sam at home, telling him I would be waiting at the bowling alley. I dialed, then waited patiently as the phone rang, continuously, until Catherine Rice picked up on the 5th ring. I started to tell her that I would be at the bowling alley, and I think I got the main point across before the call ended. No more kontors. Things were going pretty bad.

I walked into the bowling alley, feeling a little awkward being alone. The man at the counter glared at me. I'm pretty sure he thought I was a crazy foreigner; my hair was wind-blown and in a crazy state. I sat down at a table, waiting for my friends to come.

It took them 30 minutes to arrive, and I waited patiently, as the man glared at me every now and then. The rest of the day was pretty uneventful, but fun, especially after I beat the birthday boy in bowling.

That concludes my story. Even today I wonder if it was just my fault. Maybe it was fate. It does seem like Murphy's Law. But its not like this happens too often. I guess we'll never know what it was.

Test 2:Essay "Does easier mean better?"

Changes that make our life easier do not necessarily make our life better. Things like faster cars or faster computers give us a sense of self-worth; however they do not help us accomplish things that they seem to be advertising, such as faster speed, or more productivity.

Cars for example, can get us from point A to B in a shorter amount of time, but it depends on one main factor: traffic. No matter how fast your car is, bad traffic (such as in New York City) it will take the same amount of time to get from a location to another as any other car.

Development in technology makes our lives easier. But it does not necessarily mean that it makes our lives more productive. When we do things on the computer, we tend to think that it will get something done faster. It may, but in most cases it will just cause us to rush things, such as a paper for an English class.

While using my computer, I tend to “wander off”, doing other things that are not relevant to my main objective, such as watching a movie online, listening to music, or just “surfing” the internet rather than finishing an assignment. There was even a time when it took me a couple hours to complete a simple worksheet, due to my lack of concentration on the goal at hand.

In the cartoon Spiderman, the most famous quote is “with great power comes great responsibility”. However, things like the computer do not help us be more responsible. Because of things like internet banking, people all across the world “hack” and steal money.

This happens mainly through e-waste (electronics that are thrown away) that contain personal information about people. There was a documentary that showed how people’s pictures, bank accounts, and other personal details remained on hard drives, leading to great losses in privacy, money loss, giving people a sense of uneasiness.

Technology is very distracting. It does not really help us do things better, because most of the things we do on the computer can usually be done by hand faster. However, if we concentrate more, it might produce results that we want.

post #7: Mass Swine-flu Vaccinations

Turkish authorities have decided to launch a massive immunization program against the H1N1 Type A, also commonly known as "swine-flu", on monday.

Only after 1,500 cases of the H1N1 virus have been reported, has the Turkish Ministry of Health made a move against it. The vaccination, imported from Swiss-based drug company Novartis, will be registered to Turkish pilgrims traveling to the hajj starting monday. The mass vaccination of schools will follow later, during the end months of November. We hope this will bring an end to the spreading of the virus.

Source:

http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=mass-swine-flu-vaccinations-start-today-2009-11-01

post #6: A drunken man's end

A drunk 19 year old man was killed late thursday afternoon, when his car spun out of control on the rain-slickened road and into the front of a bus.

The owner of the said vehicle, Ozan Alparsan, was driving 20km over the speed limit when his white 2005 renault broadway spun out of control, and unto the other side of the road. There the IETT bus, driven by Cem Bayir, crashed into the car. Alparsan was not wearing a seatbelt, and was thrown into the windshield, dying instantly.

Hospitability, Social "No No"s and so much more.

Turkey, unlike most countries around the world, has a very open culture. However “open” takes a very different meaning in this culture. It does not mean that we can be free to wear and do anything we want. Things like wearing shorts around or looking at people –especially women- in a direct way can be considered shameful. “Open” means that the people are very different, more caring towards others.

However, such cultural “shuns” are not present in our home countries, especially Korea or America. A long-term resident of Turkey, Aaron A---- compares, “There is no precedent or cultural ‘No No’s in America. However in Turkey, looking at woman can be considered very adulterous.”

The most basic thing that Turkish people like to do is greeting each other, and whether it be a friend or a total stranger, they start with a peck on both cheeks, and perhaps some kissing sounds while they do so.

They are very hospitable people. Once you greet your neighbor after moving into an apartment, they will generally greet you, and call you over for tea. “Turks are far more hospitable than Americans. They put the needs of their guests far above anything else and are quick to take care of you-even if they just met you.”, are the words of Charlotte P---, who has been living in the local community for the past 5 years.

This friendliness is generally not the same in our home countries. “In America, they are quite the opposite”, complained Gabe N--, second year resident of Turkey. “For the most part, you will be invited to their home only after a certain level of intimacy is established.”

Turks found to be very hospitable, very awesome.

Turkish Sociaty differs greatly from what we would call "normal".

turks are far more hospitable than americans. they put the needs of their guests far above anything else and are quick to take care of you-even if they just met you.

Girl eats porridge, then mauled by bears

A 6 year-old, blonde, girl was mauled by three bears in a cottage just outside of Dark Woods.

Goldilocks Brownstein, the 6 year old daughter of Mary and Joe Brownstein, was on a picnic, when she wandered off into the woods.

Lost, she wandered into a vacant cottage, where she found three very delicious looking bowls of porridge. "The bears were famous for their world-class porridge," says Woodpecker, close friend of the bears. "There was no way that she could resist it."

After eating the smallest bowl of porridge, Goldilocks fell asleep on Baby Bear's bed. Little did she know what was awaiting her.

The Bear family, returning from their family walk, found their door busted open, and Goldilocks sleeping one of their beds. "We really were terrified." said Papa Bear. "In our fear we attacked her. It was sort of like beating a thief with a baseball bat, only we used our teeth."

Goldilocks was taken to the local DW Hospital, and is under critical care. Many of her limbs have been torn up, leaving scars all around her body. Whether or not she will survive, only time will tell.

Hotel explodes, many injured, many dead.

Hotel Marino, located on the outskirts of Istanbul, Turkey, exploded last night, causing the collapse of the building. There are 73 dead, 20 missing, and 80 injured.

Officers from the local Police Department are working under the assumption that the explosion was caused by a small gas leak in the kitchen, located in the basement of the hotel. "All of the kitchen staff were killed instantly during the explosion, along with most of the waiters," says Murat Buyrukolu, the man in charge of finding any trapped in the collapsed hotel.

An international school, I--, was having its school retreat at the hotel. There are 5 missing and 29 heavily injured. The search and rescue continues.

The owner of the hotel, Murat Ali, was put in the intensive care unit of a local hospital, along with many of the injured visitors of the hotel. "We will pay for all the medical bills of the injured," the manager of the hotel said.

The hotel had been out-of-date on their safety policies, with the last checkup made 2 years ago. "An incident like this should never have occurred, and hopefully will never occur again" says Doruk Algas, head of the local police department.

Simple school retreat: 20 missing, 80 hurt, 73 dead.

A school retreat results at a explosion of hotel building last night, cased to cave in, resulting in many major injuries of a group of students on a school retreat.

On the outsides of Istanbul, Turkey, a simple school retreat was taking place. "It was our first time at a new location for the retreat. We simply could not fit all the students into the usual camp facility", said Mrs Pamela Sanderlin, student advisor, and a member of the planning committee for the retreat from I--.

The incident, taking place about 11:30PM (local time), resulted in a total 173 victims, including 54 students from I--, 5 of which are missing, and 29 who are heavily injured. "I just wish this incident would never have taken place. All we can do now is sit tight and wait for the best," Mrs Clark, principal of I-- stated.

Local police think it may be the result of a simple leak in the kitchen gas stove. None of the residing kitchen staff survived, along with a few of the waiters at the hotel. "I just wish I had gotten a safety regulations check last year," says Murat Ali, owner of Hotel Marino.

"Suing the hotel will not make this incident just go away", says Michael Lee, Secondary principal of I--, "however, we will require that the hotel take full responsibility and pay all the hospital fees to the cent. We are upset that their negligence could have such devastating effects."

The hotel owner was taken into intensive care right after the incident, but will live. The rest of the hospital bills of the injured will be taken care of by the hotel. "We have great regret that such an incident has occurred," the manager of the hotel said.

Money, the Root of all evil.

As I write this, the thought of being rich really appeals to me. I could do so much with lots and lots of money, but I guess it comes down to a simple question: 'Would I be happy?'

Money can give us so much, but I think it just doesn't fulfull. I've seen families torn apart because the love that was once there, became a lust for wealth, of personal gain, and it really does not appeal to me. I really think the phrase "money is the root of all evil" makes sense, because we just keep on wanting more and more, rather than being satisfied with what we have.

Love on the other hand, would fulfill. Although I wouldn't have money, basically living destitute of anything that one wants, if the love was still there I would be happy. It's because when we don't have money, our true selves seem to come forth, stripped of all the glamourous stuff that seems to characterize who we are. Having someone who really loves me for who I am, rather than who I am trying to be, someone I can talk to, and lean on, would really fulfill.

"True love cannot be found where it does not exist,

Nor can it be hidden where it truely does."

-Unknown

What I would like to be doing in the year 2019, if money and education were not a problem...

Well, this is a really hard question to answer... there are MANY things that I would like to be doing in my future... choosing just one is harder than it looks.

I've been thinking a LOT about what I would be interested in doing. Although I guess I could do a lot of stuff with my life, such as becoming some crazy engineer, I wonder what HE would want me to do. I really think that I should do something that HE wants, not something that I want, because what he has in store for me is so much better.

Recently, I've been thinking a lot about medicine. I do like math a lot, but whenever I ask myself "what is the best possible thing that you can do with your life?" it just seems like saving lives... both physically and spiritually. I would probably want to study in the field of medicine, especially surgery. Although some people say surgery is NOT for me (especially after I "took apart" a fish in for biology once), it just intrigues me. It just seems fascinating that people can help others survive, and live on.

After becoming a doctor, which would take me 10 years anyways (so it'd be 2019... or 2020), I want to become a christian worker. I think it is the best I can do, especially if I want to save lives, especially spiritually.

Hmm... I guess we'll see in 10 years :P