Honestly, this Earth Day, I'm sad to say that I did not think about the environment at all, because I was at rehearsal for Cinderella from 12:30 until late at night. I didn't really have much time for contemplation. However, in my daily life, I do try to put in an effort to do my part to help the environment. I try to not be wasteful with things such as water, and recycle as much as I can.
However, I know there are a lot more things I could do to try and leave less of a carbon footprint and promote a green lifestyle. One thing I definitely want to do is join Environmental Club at my school. I have wanted to go to meetings all year, but because of a tutoring program I'm involved in, I have not been able to. However, I plan to join next year for sure, and hopefully attend some meetings this year if I can.
To me, Earth Day (at least in high school) is pretty underrated. We didn't have school that day, but because of PSAE's, not the holiday or for awareness, and we did not talk about it in any of my classes. In fact, I think this blog is the only mention of it at all that I noticed. That's sad, and I really think it would have been good to show these "green" ideas more, and promote environmental protection year round.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Monday, March 16, 2009
Motivation
What motivates me to learn chemistry? I'm sorry to say that the most influential cause is my extrinsic motivation of simply graduating high school. However, the reason I'm in Honors Chemistry is because I like to learn. (or at least, I don't mind learning) I also like a challenge and our class is very fun and engaging. I'm also extremely influenced by my intrinsic motivation for a good grade and overall GPA. I really try to excel academically in all of my classes, especially this one.
Throughout the year, I've really come to enjoy our class; it has reached a very happy medium of education and freedom. I like the material we are learning this year more than Bio; I think last year was more about memorizing parts of plants and cells, and this year has more to do with applying concepts. I don't know if I will use my appreciation for chem in the future, because I still have no idea what I want to do in my life. However, I still feel more extrinsic pressure because, my parents, both doctors, have always encouraged me to succeed in math and science, so there's still a chance I could choose that path and put my chemistry knowledge to good use.
Throughout the year, I've really come to enjoy our class; it has reached a very happy medium of education and freedom. I like the material we are learning this year more than Bio; I think last year was more about memorizing parts of plants and cells, and this year has more to do with applying concepts. I don't know if I will use my appreciation for chem in the future, because I still have no idea what I want to do in my life. However, I still feel more extrinsic pressure because, my parents, both doctors, have always encouraged me to succeed in math and science, so there's still a chance I could choose that path and put my chemistry knowledge to good use.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Science & Politics
Science and politics have always overlapped into each other, especially in the case of science related problems. One issue that is very important currently is stem-cell research, which deals with special stem cells that can be grown into specialized human cells and can be used for cloning and treatment of diseases including as leukemia, other types of cancer, Parkinson's Disease, and muscle damage. However, this research become very controversial because, when dealing with embryonic stem cells, sometimes the embryo must be destroyed. This has been protested extremely by pro-life supporters, and is now a common debate among politicians. One of the first political interventions was in 1995, when Congress passed a bill in which there was an amendment that prohibited federal funds to be used for research where human embryos would be either created or destroyed. Even recently, President Obama lifted the restrictions placed on federal funding of stem cell research in the US.
Another common science-related topic in politics has been global warming. One example is how Al Gore, former vice-president-turned-environmental-activist, raised awareness through the very popular documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth", and he was actually pushed to run for president multiple times once more; there was also speculation about him joining Obama's administration. "An Inconvenient Truth" won the Academy Award for best documentary, and in 2007, he was awarded the Nobel Peace prize for his efforts to build up and spread more knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract that change. Politics seems to have intervened in science mostly when it can get politicians more support.
Another common science-related topic in politics has been global warming. One example is how Al Gore, former vice-president-turned-environmental-activist, raised awareness through the very popular documentary, "An Inconvenient Truth", and he was actually pushed to run for president multiple times once more; there was also speculation about him joining Obama's administration. "An Inconvenient Truth" won the Academy Award for best documentary, and in 2007, he was awarded the Nobel Peace prize for his efforts to build up and spread more knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract that change. Politics seems to have intervened in science mostly when it can get politicians more support.
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