What Matters presentation

PLN #26

For my 26th PLN, I read an article called "Throwing of Snowball not Assault" posted by the Rocky Mountain News, this article told about an Austrian man on trial for what he says was "a little playful action in the snow", not an assault. Authorities have recently said that, a 21 year old male hit his co-worker Michelle Oelert with a snowball at Copper Mountain ski resort. On the opening day of trial, the defendant's lawyer released a statement saying "workers in the ski shop like to joke around, including throwing snowballs made from the snow off rented skis". Prosecutor Micheal Angel said Thristel (the defendant) threw a heavy, large snowball filled with ice at Oelert as she was waiting for a bus with her boyfriend.

What Matters: I think what matters from this piece is really based on whose side you take. If you take the defendant's side, it's very easy to just say you were having fun, and that you do it all the time. You could also argue that it was just a snowball. On the other, hand if you take Oelert's side, it's also easy to say it was unnecessary, or exaggerate how hard the snowball was or how hard it was thrown. I think this trial could go either way.

How This Affects Me: Although I've never been to court, this article made me realize that you never really know when someone's going to react over something small or stupid and make it into a huge thing. I think you always have to know when and where to draw the line on things, and what's too much.

PLN #25

For my 25th PLN I read an article called "Keeping Up: U spk txt?" by Kevin Simpson of the Denver Post really made me realize and open my eyes to how far and different technology is now a-days. Statistics recently show that texting has increased very dramatically over the past couple of years. In the last two years alone texting has made it's way all the way up to 30billion text sent a month. Over the past decade texting has reached to every four out of five Americans, that now have texting available on their phones. CTIA spokesmen Joe Farren said that "kids are the early adopters, but now everyone is doing it, and doing more and more of it. On most phones people are typing about 160 characters with a cost of 13-15 cents per text unless you have a bulk plan. About 21% of all text users text daily, with 52% of them being 13-17 year olds and the other 48% being 18-24 years of age.

What Matters: I think what matters from this article is the fact that technology is continuously improving and changing everyday. If you think back to when the first cell phone was invented that were the size of home phones, and now they are pocket sized. We've definitely come a long way in the development of hand held devices, and who knows in the future maybe they won't even have a talking device, but instead just a texting device.

How This Affects Me: This affects me because I myself text and in most situations I do find it easier to text because not only is it silent and non-disruptive , but also quicker and more to the point. The only down side to it in my opinion is if you need to have a very long and detailed conversation.

PLN #24

For my 24th PLN, I read an article called "SOHO-Keeping an Eye on the Sun for 12years" posted by European Space Agency. The Solar and Heliosphere Observatory(SOHO) recently celebrated their twelfth launch anniversary on December 2nd. Over the past twelve years the satellite has witnessed an entire sun cycle which is approximately 11.1 years. Late in 1996 the satellite saw the end of the last sun cycle, then in 2001-2002 the cycle started over again resulting in a rapid rise in solar activity. Since then the solar activity has continuously declined even though it's been 11.1 years and is expected to begin rising again shortly.

What Matters: I think what matters from this article is that our space programs continue to launch satellites gain more knowledge about our universe and surrounding planets. This expanding knowledge could one day lead to human life on other planets. I also think it matters that we continue deal with space craft, and continue to develop as well as launch them. It's important that we collect this information to know when and where events in space are going to occur. the sun is just one of many aspects of the solar system that I feel we have only made a scratch on, and if we continue to collect data and information who knows what we'll find.

How This Affects Me: At this particular moment I wouldn't really say this affects me but who knows, in the very near future it definitely could. You never know it could take 10 more years or it could take 1000 more years until we have human life on other planets. Of coarse, to make life on other planets you need: a food source, water, and heat. If we know more about the sun it'll just make it that much easier for other things in space to be accomplished.

2nd PLN reflection

I think during my PLN presentation I did pretty well and definitely did much better than my last presentation. Some things I think I did well we're really summarizing my PLN's instead of reading them, as well as relating to them well. Some things that I could work on are more eye-contact, as well as not reading from my note cards and practicing more next time.

PLN #23

For my 23rd PLN I choose to read an article titled "Colorado Eighth in Suicides" written by the Rocky Mountain News. This article really shocked and surprised me. Not only is Colorado eighth in suicides but, Colorado is also 17th on the depression list. According to Mental Health America, states in the western United States are higher in both categories compared to the east and south. Colorado has ranked around eighth place in suicides for several years, up there with Utah, Wyoming, Nevada, Idaho, Montana and Alaska. Utah is ranked first in depression while Alaska is ranked first in suicides. Sates with the lowest depression rates are: South Dakota, Hawaii, and New Jersey. The lowest states in suicides, on the other hand are: New York and Massachusetts. Last year alone, nearly 800 people died in Colorado from suicides which is nearly four times the homicide rate.

What Matters: I think what matters from this article is not the fact that Colorado is eight on the list but rather that people commit suicide at all. I can't imagine what would possibly drive someone to take their own life. I honestly wonder what's going through their head as they're about to kill themselves and how much they actually thought about it. I think that there should be more awareness for people who suffer from depression and suicides, and more support groups as well.

How This Affects Me: This doesn't really affect me directly, because I don't suffer from depression or want to commit suicide. However, after reading this article it makes me wonder how many people I know that do suffer from these symptoms .

PLN #22

For my twenty-second PLN I read article called "Soccer Fans Fall to Their Deaths in Brazil" made me realize how unstable and unpredictable things can really be. Last Sunday it was reported that eight people had died from unstable bleachers at a soccer game in north-east Brazil. The bleachers collapsed near the end of the game when the fans in the section began jumping up and down. It was also reported that at least a couple dozen fell through while just eight died many more were injured and hospitalized. At this point the police aren't exactly sure what caused the 56-year old building to collapse.

What Matters: I think what matters here is that eight people died just because of a stupid mistake that that could've and should've been avoided. The stadium after 56 definitely should have been either re-built or restored. If the team couldn't afford to make those changes then they should've at least made an announcement or something not to jump on 56 year old wood. It seems so stupid that eight people had to die and many more injured because they couldn't give out a simple warning or just replace the bleachers.

How this affects me: I myself go to many sporting events and although the stands aren't made out of wood it still seems pretty possible that they might be able to collapse. I remember a couple years ago at a Bronco's game(i think) that the escalator collapsed after a game and my cousins we're there. Luckily they weren't hurt but a lot of people were and it just shows you that things in life aren't always as reliable as they seem.

PLN #21

The recent article I read was called "More Acres Available for Cutting Trees" by Zen Reno and it not only made me angry, but really disappointed as well. As many people know Christmas is coming up and with it, the sale of Christmas trees. Just recently The Pikes Peak Ranger District announced that it has decided to add nearly 1,500 acres to the Christmas tree-cutting area of Pike National Forest this season. Permits will begin selling on Monday, and will continue all the way through December 16th. The trees will be sold at ten dollars a piece.

What Matters: What matters from this article is that people fail to recognize what we're really doing to the environment, and how important it is to preserve it. Honestly, is it really that hard to go and get an artificial tree instead? In fact, an artificial tree is a ton better. It's less messy, it'll last you forever, and of coarse, it helps the environment. Or, instead if they can't cut it off completely I would make the available amount much smaller, and have it first come, first serve.

How it affects me: Not only does this continuing problem affect me, but it also affects our entire community. If you think about it back in the "caveman" times there were a ton of trees and now you look at all of our streets, and buildings and all of the wildlife we've destroyed over time. So, if over that amount of time we've already destroyed a lot of trees already what's it going to be like in the future?

PLN #20

I recently read the article "Bonds Faces New Charges" by CNN recently reported that Barry Bonds, baseballs new home run king has been indicted on four accounts of perjury and one count of obstruction of justice. The indictment to Bonds came just three months after he broke Hank Aaron's record for most home-runs all time. Bonds is a seven-time National league MVP, and has broken various Major League baseball records including most ever home runs in one season.

What Matters: I think the biggest thing that matters from this article is that although Bond's has never been charged with using steroids I think it's pretty obvious that he did take them. I find it kind of sad that such a great record with such a meaningful purpose has been allegedly "tainted" by the use of sports enhancements. Every time I see Bonds step up to the plate I wonder what was going through his head when he took the steroids. I mean honestly, do you really think that your going to get away with it? The baseball hall of fame has also recently announced that if the baseball that Bonds hit the record with is entered into the HOF there might be an asterisk stamped on it, as well when his record is shown an asterisk by that.

How this affects me: I myself play sports, and to me I find it absolutely terrible that someone would want to "cheat" not only the game and all the great players that had success playing fairly, but themselves as well. I can't imagine going to sleep at night knowing in my mind that everything that I had accomplished in that particular sport was done unfairly.

PLN #19

Reading the article "Modano Breaks Housley's U.S.-born Player Scoring Record" by AP News really inspired me. Mike Modano, a famous American hockey player recently broke the record for most points scored by an American born player. Last Wednesday night, Modano scored two back-to-back goals (one of which was short handed) putting him one point ahead of Housley (previously first) to move into first place on the list. The two goals also put him 35th place on the all time points leader right behind Peter Stastny. The record also moved him into 33rd place on the all time goals leader in the NHL. Modano was the first round selection of the Dallas Stars in 1988 of which he has played his whole career with, and led the Stars to their first Stanley Cup in 1999. Modano is a 3-time American Olympian and six time all-star making him the best player in the Dallas Star's history.

What Matters: I think what matters from this article, and moment in history is not just that he broke the record, but that it was an American record. As most people know, hockey is dominated by so many great, well known Canadian players from Wayne Gretzky to Phil Esposito making it that much cooler to see an American awarded for a great hockey achievement.

How This Affects Me: I myself am American, and I also play hockey although I most likely won't go pro. It still inspires me that an American player like Modano was able to accomplish so much being from an American community similar to mine and to be able to compete up with the big boys from Canada. It also impresses me that Modano was able to accomplish the great, amazing things he's done in his short career. I look forward to following Modano much more now and look up to him as not only a great American record breaking hockey player, but a role model as well.

PLN #18

I recently read an article called "Toys Recalled" by Howard Pankratz, and it was a little shocking how many toys were being recalled. It surprised me how careless some companies can really be. In just October, there were toys recalled with lead paint in them. Most of these toys were made in China. Last Wednesday, the Toy Safety Commission recalled a very popular craft set named Aqua Dots. Aqua Dots is composed of beads that were coated with a chemical that can be extremely dangerous if swallowed. It was estimated that 4.2 million Aqua Dots were recalled. A 20-month old boy who happened to swallow some of the beads went into a coma after digesting the dots. Most families with two or more kids aged 3 or younger say that they throw away about 15 toys a month! The commission has been criticized by various federal legislators, including Diana DeGette, a Denver Democrat.

What Matters: I think what really matters from this article is that all of these toys that are dangerous shouldn't even be on the market before they're tested over and over again. Why not take the extra couple of days and really test your product to the maximum to make sure every thing is safe? Sure, it may take a couple extra days and a couple extra bucks to actually make sure your toy isn't going to hurt any children. Honestly, is it that hard to make sure that your toy doesn't have poisonous lead on it? I wonder if the manufacturers of Aqua Dots even tested for lead paint before putting the toy on the market. What ever the case may be, I found it extremely bothersome that this slipped by the company that produced Aqua Dots.

How this affects me: I wouldn't say this affects me directly, because I don't put toys in my mouth anymore. However, I have three younger brothers, one of which still chews on toys, and I would hate to see him get hurt because of a stupid little toy.

PLN #17

My recent PLN, titled "Innocent Man Shares His 20-Year Struggle Behind Bars" by Thom Patterson. This article was about a man named Pete Williams who was sentenced to 45 years in jail but ended up staying 22 years after DNA evidence proved that he was innocent. Williams was accused of a 1985 sex assault scandal. He was arrested three weeks after the incident, but the case is still inconclusive today. Williams said he felt betrayed and that his life had been taken away from him. The only evidence against him were three witnesses who said that it might have been him. In 1997, a friend named Charlie Brown (no joke) helped Williams through some rough times by having Williams join a church choir. Now, when he sees people on T.V. or on the news being convicted, he has a difficult time believing that they are actually guilty. I would have a hard time believing that someone is automatically guilty of a crime if I had gone to jail for 22 years for a crime that I did not commit. Spending 22 years behind jail bars would be difficult to forget.

What Matters: I think what matters from this story is that an innocent man got 22 years of his life just taken away! I myself haven't even lived 22 years yet, and I can't imagine more than my whole life so far being behind bars! I definitely think that the jury and judge should have looked into the case a lot more than they did before they sentenced someone to 45 years in prison. They only questioned three witnesses which resulted in an innocent man, with no evidence proven against him, being sentenced to jail for the next 45 years. The worst part is that Williams missed a crucial time in his life where he could have gotten married and had children. It surprised me that the state of Georgia has no laws that compensate wrongly accused victims as many states do have these types of laws. Not only did Williams lose 22 years of freedom, but he was left with no money and no place to live other than with family members.

How this affects me: This doesn't really affect me directly, because I've never been to jail or accused of a crime. However, if I had been sentenced to jail for a crime that I did not commit and had to spend 22 years of my life there, it would be a wasted life, and I would be extremely angry. I think the lack of laws to protect the wrongly convicted is pathetic and inhumane.

PLN #16

The article "Lawn-watering spat leads to death" by the Associated Press was really surprising to me and shocked me at what people will do over stupid little things. The article was about how a 66 year old man whose name was not released died over an argument about Sydney's watering restrictions. The killer, a 36 year old man will appear in court on Thursday charged with murder. It was reported the older man first sprayed the 36 year old after having a heated argument over how much water he was using, then the younger man pushed the 66 year old man to the ground and continuesly punched him. Soon after an off duty police officer came in, arrested the younger man, and called an ambulance. The older man was taken to the hospital and soon after was announced dead.

What matters: What matters from this story is the fact that ordinary people can't just work out a simple problem on watering their lawn. Instead of just coming up and saying "Hey, I don't think you're supposed to be watering your lawn right now", instead they have to get into a huge fight and someone has to die over watering your lawn. It's sad that people can't communicate like human beings and work things out by themselves.

How this affects me: This affects me because Denver, Colorado also has watering restrictions but luckily I haven't had anyone try to kill me over them. I think watering restrictions are a good thing because it limits how much water we use and prevents people from wasting it.

PLN #15

My 15th PLN was called "City Known for Fit Adults is Growing Fat" by the Associated Press, and it shocked me a little. As many people know, Denver is probably one of the healthiest states in the country, because we have so many athletic opportunities like the mountains and good weather. Now, after a recent article posted by "Men's Health" magazine, recent statistics show that Denver and Aurora are tied for eighth for the largest number of obese adults and Colorado Springs ranks sixth. Just a couple of years ago, Colorado was named number one in terms of the fittest cities in the country. "Health Day Fitness" reports that even though obesity has increased in Colorado, it remains the nation's fittest state.

How this affects me: I would say this affects me and our population, because if adults and our parents begin to get more and more obese then it is likely that their kids will too. After a couple of generations, our entire state will become obese. Not only will our state become more obese over time, but America will too.

My opinion: My opinion on obesity is that we should definitely have more awareness groups and commercials that promote a healthy life style. I think that there are to many fast food commercials. I question why there aren't as many health and fitness commercials. I think we need to start having more health commercials and more advertisements for playing sports and getting more physical activity.

PLN #14

I found the article, "Illegal Immigrants get N.Y. Citizenship" by the Associated Press to be very disagreeable. On Saturday, the Bush Administration and N.Y. agreed to create a super-secure driver's license for U.S. citizens, but it was also made for illegal immigrants. New York is the fourth state to reach this agreement along with Arizona, Vermont and Washington. The secure-license could be used as a license, as proof of citizenship, and as a passport-like document valid for travel in Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. Homeland Security Secretary Micheal Chertoff said he was not happy that New York intended to issue IDs to illegal immigrants, but he said there was nothing he could do to stop it. "I don't endorse giving licenses to people who are not here legally, but federal law does allow states to make that choice." Spitzer, a New York representative, however has said that this ID will make the state more secure by bringing those people "out of the shadows" and into American society, and will lower auto insurance rates.
What I believe matters from this story is that illegal immigrants are slowly becoming more and more legal in our society today. I disagree with illegal immigrants getting secure drivers license, because they didn't go through the legal citizenship process like many prior immigrants have done.
Issuing drivers licenses to illegal immigrants makes it easier for them to obtain a social security card, to vote, obtain a birth certificate, and get U.S. government benefits like health insurance coverage. Non-U.S. citizens should not have the right to determine the outcome of American politics. Nor should they have the ability to impact the cost of medical benefits.

PLN #13

For my 13th PLN, I choose to read an article called "Discovery Rockets to Space" by the Associated Press. Tuesday, a crew of seven took off from earth and into space inside of Discovery in pursuit of the international space station where a construction job awaits them. The shuttle lifted off at exactly 11:38 a.m. carrying a giant elastic tube that needs to be installed before European and Japanese workers can begin working there. Although there were delays because of three panels with errors, there were no problems with the launch. It was recorded as totally successful. The mission this crew will have to complete is considered the hardest one in all of the nine years the space station has been active.
What I think matters is that we are continuously expanding our knowledge of space and improving the space station allows astronauts to do more long-term space exploration. As an example, astronauts now have the ability to refuel at the space station which allows them to travel further into space. They also have the ability to live for long periods of time in space and experiment how living in space affects the human body. I think space exploration will affect all of us in the future, because someday I believe that going to another planet in space will be just like taking an airplane someplace. It will take only a matter of hours to get to another planet. I also believe that space stations in the future may be a normal way of living for more than just astronauts. As the earth becomes more polluted, over populated, or warmer from global warming, space stations may become a way of life for human beings.

PLN #12

The article "Most Fake Bombs Not Found" by Jeanne Meserve made me think about how much the airports have truly improved from 9/11. Thursday the security administration reported that in local airports in Los Angeles only 25% of the fake bombs were found and in California only 40% of the fake bombs were discovered. Even though these numbers are low it is reported that these numbers are much higher than the ones from 2005. TSA now conducts daily tests adding up to 2,500 a day in which they say has improved great overall but won't release the test numbers. TSA also said that they are hoping to release even better machinery to help within the next year. What I think matters from this story is the obvious fact that even after 9/11 and the plane hijackings that took place that day you would think that the officials in charge would make necessary changes to where we're getting a lot better than 25-40% I mean if you think about it if terrorists sent two bombs at least one of them would get through, now that’s a scary thought. How it relates to me is I would say next time I'm going through the scanners at the airport I'll think twice before I feel safe because I used to think that after walking through them you were safe but now I probably won't.

PLN #11

While reading the article "Ruins of WW2" I found many things very interesting. The gist of the article is during world war 2 there was a large mass of relocatement for people of Japanese-American decent. The camps of these relocations are starting to decay all that is left of the Amache internment camp are the barracks' foundations, pedestrian walkways, empty koi ponds and the roads leading in and out of the site. After discovering this Japanese-Americans have decided to protest to preserve and restore these camps which I thought was weird because I thought to them these camps would be bad memories and they would want to get rid of them. The U.S. Congress has agreed to put 38million dollars into the project of restoring the main camp called Amache. What I think matters from this article is that the people that went through the camps and the poor treatment they received there should be repaid and deserve for their camp to be remembered.

PLN #10

The article I choose to read about was called "Gore wins Nobel Piece Prize" and as you may have guessed former Vice President Al Gore won the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for their work in raising awarness on global warming. After winning Gore said he was "deeply hounered" and believes that global warming is not a political problem but a spiritual one. The nobel committee praised Gore as being one of the worlds most political environmentalists. Other president recipients include: Jimmy Carter in 2002, Woodrow Wilson in 1919 and Theodore Roosevelt in 1906. Gore who served as vice president for eight years under Bill Clinton then lost in the 2000 election to current president George Bush. In recent weeks Gore has launched a campaigned to enter the 2008 presidential election. What I think matters in this article is not the fact that Gore won the Peace Prize for global warming but global warming in general. I think a lot of people over look global warming and instead of preparing for it we kind of just shrug it off and hope it never gets to be really bad. I'm not saying that we don't notice it at all but there s ton more that we could be doing about it.

PLN #9

My ninth PLN entry is about the recent marathon ran in the Chicago, Illinois which was ran by over three hundred people one was found dead, two remain hospitalized in critical condition, and several more passed out or fainted. These fatalities were believed to be caused by the excruciating heat. At least 49 people were taken to the hospital, while 250 other people we're treated on site while 30 residential ambulances we're used. A couple days earlier when another race was held in Arlington another unidentified runner died. Finally after 3 and a half hours if you weren't at the half way point you were taken off the coarse. At 10am the temperature had reached about 90 degrees, a race day record. Interviewed runners sayed that the aid stations were always full and they quickly ran out of the water and Gatorade leaving people vulnerable to the continuelsy rising heat which got so bad firefighters were opening up firehydrents to cool people down and people along the coarse were spraying their hoses on the wary runners.

blogger reflection

I think I did a pretty good job explaining each entry and summarizing each of them. One thing I think i could've done much better on was making more eye contact with the audience and continued the conversation at the end of the presentation.

PLN #8

Reading the article "China will beat us to the Moon" intrigued me because it just shows that China is continuesly advancing more than the U.S. as time goes on. Fifty tears ago today there was a race between the U. S. and the Soviets to launch the first satellite into space and as we all know Soviets won but the U.S. put the first man on the moon. Now, nearly fifty years later there is a restored race in the universe world. Recently the Chinese and united states have figured out that they both plane to attempt to put a man on the moon within 1-2 years of each other and recently there has been an "unwritten race" to see who can do it first. NASA officials aren't very confident and believe the Chinese will slightly beat us. Both are expected to launch around the year 2020 but with setbacks it's expected to take a little longer. While the U.S. is much more technology advanced we don't have the political will that the Chinese do and therefore have less resources causing the operation to take much longer. China, who just launched their first space machine (becoming the third country to do so) is moving very quickly in their space economics.

PLN #7

Reading the article "Favre breaks record" inspired me after learning how much effort was truly put into accomplishing this record. While beating the Minnesota Vikings 23-16 and moving the Packer's record to 4-0 Favre threw touchdown passes number 421 and 422in the fourth quarter to Greg Jennings and rookie James Jones while going interception free. With the win the Packers tie the Dallas Cowboys for the only teams in the NFC as undefeated teams. With the Packers not having a great running game this season coaches expect Favre to have a great season. The Packers are 4-0 for the first time since 1998. The reason I believe this matters is that Favre continuesly never gave up and lately in his career hasn't been getting the best records or the beast of stats but he stuck with it and is now getting repaid.

PLN #6

I chose to read an article about Micheal Vick being indicted for a second and third time over his recent dogfighting charges. A Virgina grand jury brought two new charges against Micheal Vick and three others, one of them being unlawful torturing and the other being killing dogs and supporting dogfights. Each of these charges could result in five years in prison each. Vick already faces 12 to 18 months jail time after pleading guilty to federal conspiracy charge of bankrolling in dogfights outside of his home in Virgina. Vick's lawyers replied that they will work aggressively to make sure he is not charged with these charges. One of Micheal's "companions" in the dogfighting faces three of those charges while Vick faces one. All four of them are going to be arraigned on October third and will be faced with a tentative trial on November 27th. In this article the main thing that sticks out and really seems to matter is the fact that someone(s) could torture an animal like that and makes me wonder whats going through they're mind when they're watching/participating in it. I cant come to see how someone would enjoy it the only thing i can think of is the betting and winning money but why did they have to do it on dogfights, why not football or baseball?

PLN #5

For my 5th PLN entry i read an article called "Bridge to Nowhere" by Ted Stevens. Recently in
ketchican, an Alaskan south-eastern island to Alaska and it's main airport. The bridge was estimated to cost somewhere around four hundred million dollars but Friday it was announced the project was three hundred and twenty nine million dollars short of funding. The republic governor said that Alaska will continue to look for more options but that they won't be anywhere close to a 400 million dollar budget. Some say that the best option is to continuesly upgrade their ferry system that takes fifteen minuets to get to on the ferries. The town the bridge would connect to was called Gravina which is seven blocks wide and eight miles long and has a population of fifty and researchers say the bridge is needed for the economical and town growth. What matters from this is that we quit half way through the project and it doesn't sound like they were very prepared financially wise or economically wise and if the bridge is going to built we need to be 100% on the project and really go for it. It relates to me because I've actually been on an Alaskan cruise in which we stopped in several Alaskan towns including ketchican where we zip lined and went on a whale watch on the exact same place that they tried to build the bridge. While whale watching one of the crew members talked about how they were trying to get a bridge built and even said that in support of building the bridge one man swam the whole length which took him about 2 weeks to complete.

PLN #4

I recently read an article called Cold Neptune has Warm Spot in which the planet Neptune one of the coldest planets in the solar system has a newly discovered hot spot. An international team of astronomers say that Neptune's south pole is a lot warmer then other parts of the planet. They say the south pole is as much as 18 degrees warmer than the rest of the planet where the average temperature can get down to 320 degrees below zero. The reason that the south pole is warmer is because it has been in the sunlight for the last 40 years estimate scientists. Although 18 degrees may not seem like a lot it's a pretty significant change since Neptune is 2.8 billion miles away from the sun. A Neptune year is equivalent to 165 earth years. Also, Neptune receives only 1/900th of the sunlight that earth does. "Like earth Neptune's south pole is tilted in the summer to the sun in the souther hemisphere"- said astronomer Glenn Orten. Despite it's distance from the sun Neptune's atmosphere is still a scene of great activity. How I believe this matters is that all of the planets are changing over time like earth with it's ozone layer deterioration over time and I don't think it can be very good for our world and universe. I can't see a real way of stopping or changing it but we defidentley don't think its in our best interest to continue to let all of these changes occur.

PLN #3

Men less likely to wash hands.

After reading the article about how men are alot less likely to wash their hands after going to the bathroom then women are i can honestly say I'm grossed out about all of the stats that were given throughout the article. Last monday researchers that spy on people in the bathroom reported that one third of men don't bother to wash their hands after going to the bathroom compared to one out of ten women didn't wash their hands while going to the bathroom. Compared to the survey taken ten years ago only one fourth of men didn't wash their hands. The survey was based on over 6,000 people in four major cities: Atlanta, New York, San Fransisco and, Chicago. Doctors say simply washing your hands is the number one best way to prevent form getting sick and getting the flu. Even after the results show only 66 % of males wash after going 92% of males say they do wash their hands after using the restroom. Atlanta was the worst: only 57% of guys there washed their hands compared to 95% of women did. Chicago was the best followed by New York and then San Fransisco. Other hand washing facts include: three fourths of Americans wash their hands after changing a diaper, 78% after eating food, 42% after petting a cat or dog, 25% after handling money, and 34% after coughing or sneezing. What i believe matters from this story is the fact that so few few Americans wash their hands when it only takes about thirty seconds to a minute at most but so many neglect it when it could easily prevent you from getting the flu or getting sick. I wonder if you did a survey on other countries what percent of people would wash their hands. If i were to guess i would say that in other countries the percentages would be a lot higher.

State Uses Electric chair

While reading the article "State uses electric chair for first time since 1960" I continuesly wondered what would drive a man or human being to kill his four children. In Nashville, Tennessee Daryl Holten, a 45 year old man kill his four young boys and one girl. Holten said he killed his children because his wife wouldn't allow him to see them. He said his plan was to soon after kill his ex-wife and then himself but instead, turned himself soon after committing the crime. Holten, a gulf war veteran said he lined up his children in his uncle's repair shop and shot them with a shot gun. He was given the choice of whether to go in the electric chair or have a lethal injection. For some reason he choose the electric chair and soon after a group of attorneys petitioned it saying it was cruel and unusual punishment. I would have to disagree with this group of attorneys because i think killing four children is pretty well deserved after he himself gave out cruel and unusual punishment. In my personal opinion what i believe matters from this story is the fact that someone could actually kill their own children and then(even though it was deserved) wanted to go in an electric chair. The only reason/excuse his lawyers could come up with is that he may have suffered traumatic experiences from the gulf war but i still don't see how that would make you kill your own children. I cant think of any particular way this relates to any of the stories in class. I think it relates to the world around us in some ways i mean there are alot of weird people like that all over the world and it's really misfortunet that people die every day and its not even close to their fault.

2 cents worth reading.

During the reading of "2 cents worth" I found myself extremely intrigued in what the author had to say in his points during the story. One interesting thin i found was that within 20 years we could easily have life and civilization on other planets. Right now scientist are taking spectroscopic readings of other planets atmospheres and continuesly finding more and more small planets that human life might soon be possible on. So far 246 small planets(not major ones) have been discovered that we might be able to live on and more and more are being discovered every day. Scientists have recently found large amounts of oxygen that can be produced by living organisms just like they are produced on earth today. If however pure oxygen is found on a planet there are other substances which can be combined on certain planets that will allow living life. What I believe matters from this article is that the possibility of having life on other planets could change the world as we know it and going to other planets would just be like taking a bus downtown and the technology we would adventually get it could take minuets just to go to another planet. As for all the construction of the buildings and civilization for the other planets we would need alot of people in charge of it all with alot of disagrement and options available. A lot of those discissions will be hard to make like in lady or the tiger the queens lover has to make a hard descision. So, with all of this information you can hopefully see that life on other planets probably and hopefully isnt to far off.