Beasts of the Southern Wild

Recently, we all watched the movie Beasts of the Southern Wild. I have to say, I enjoyed the meaning of it. It was a heartwarming story about a little girl named Hush Puppy and her father Wink. They live down in Louisiana, at the end of the road, the Bathtub. The Bathtub consisted of the few that refused to relocate after disasters, evacuations, etc. At first, the movie seems so filthy and unreal. How could people live like this not just anywhere, but AMERICA. You then see their freedom and love of life though their celebrations, conversations, and- excuse my corniness- young, wild and free lifestyles. Hush Puppy's father soon falls sick during the movie, probably a result of his excessive drinking. When officials come in and move them to a shelter, the contrast if severe. somehow, it was better be dirty. It was better to be primitive, its better to be just a person. Even thought the Bathtub lifestyle was so much more different than ours today it shed light on how when you strip it all down they were actually human. They had a home that they loved and that's where they wanted to be. If it was anyone I knew, they probably would've have loved the care that Wink received. But no to the Hush Puppy and all the other, being happy was then most important thing. My favorite part of the film was when fed her father the nuggets before he died. It showed that even when he said, "No crying," and even though she was the "man", she was still vulnerable. Its funny, throughout the film I didn't really realize her age until then. Only then did I realize that she was just a little girl.I enjoyed the different layers of the film, it wasn't so one dimensional. It made me think and ask questions and wonder about whatever happened to Hush Puppy and the Bathtub and the scientists would ever remember her, even though it is obviously a fiction.

This film really does reveal a lot about humanity. It exhibits the way we fight for what we believe in, even thought its wrong. The way we strive to be free souls and unfortunately,the way we are determined to change anyone that different from us, almost punish the them. Its unbelievable how we always want to impose out beliefs, think of ourselves as the greatest, but we aren't. Our sense of pride and unity against a common enemy. But these are all emotions, our complex emotions- Hush Puppy's complex emotions are unparalleled by any other, the ability to take one emotion and turn it into another. Anger into love, sadness into resilience.

Passion Project Progress

As you know, my passion project is about Islam and the life of a Muslim. Being a Muslim, I thought that this topic would be relatively easy, but it has proven to be a challenge. Yes, I have a whole lot of information, but I'm struggling to figure out how I should present it. I think its safe to say that research is only half the battle, but the way a presentation is given can give so much more depth to a topic that is so simple. I feel that in the past, some of my presentations had droned on, and failed to keep the attention of my fellow G&Ters. I'm trying to make it a bit interactive, fun, and very much eye opening, but this project is kicking my butt (my language is family friendly). As far as progress goes, I have information on just about all the topics and issues that I wanted to cover. I have very interesting articles and quotes picked out that would surely be quite interesting. Despite the fact that my material is good, my means of presentation still worries me. I hope I have an idea before next week so I can start putting my presentation together.

Myers-Briggs Test: Did I Learn Anything?

Recently, my class and I decided to take the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Its just a more sophisticated personality test, well bore sophisticated than the ones at the back of Seventeen or something. The test was quite lengthy (well maybe only to me... I hate tests) but I answered all of the questions, thinking deeply and thoroughly before answering. I wanted to make sure that I got the most accurate result as possible. And I did. I ended up being classified as an ENTP.

E- Extroversion
N- Intuition
T- Thinking
P- Perception

Just in case you were wondering.

Anyways, during this process, found out that there were 16 different personality types. ENTP matched me quite well, actually it matched me perfectly. I couldn't believe some of the shocking similarities that I saw In the description after I finished the assessment. I felt as if the page was written just for me. Even though the accuracy of the description was shocking, it didn't really teach me much about myself. I already knew all of the information because I usually spend a lot of time reflecting on myself in my free time. This new knowledge did not help me all that much, because as an ENTP does best, I am very good at reading others' character, emotions, and intentions. Even though this personality test simply solidified my thoughts about myself and others, it did bring me closer to finding the answer of what it means to be human. I agree, humans are far more complex than other creatures, and at the base of that complexity are emotions. But many often forget that emotions are driven by personality. Personalities do make us unique because of the ways we display them, hide them, interpret them, and accept them. These all lead us to be different and unique, each and every one of us.

Joyas Voladoras: My Take

Recently, we read and analyzed of Brian Doyle's Joyas Voladoras. It was quite interesting. I never thought to look at the heart as not only physically complex, but also complex in purpose. Unlike the rest of my female classmates, it didn't tug on my heart strings and make me feel a certain way. I was simply interested in it because if its educational content. I loved the transitions throughout. The transition between a small infinitesimal- sorry, I love that word- creatures like humming birds to the the colossal and mysterious blue whale. Towards the end, it begins to talk about hearts less scientifically, and more emotionally. Like the ones we break, mend, draw, purify, open, and shield during our lifetimes. It made connections to what made us human, like what I spoke about in my other post. Previously, I had mentioned that DNA and a conscience are what really and truly made us human. In Joyas Voladoras, the hummingbird's heart is only spoken about scientifically, sharing facts about the hummingbirds life. The same was done with the Blue Whale, although the author suggested that this creature may be more complex than we will ever know, solely because after a little bit, they disappear from the human ken. But I noticed that when it came to talking about the human heart, it was immediately about pain, love, hurt, etc. The mood changed from a science textbook, to a diary. A diary about love and disappointment and tragedy. A diary about fixing and patching and shattering. A diary about what we want that we never get, and what we get that we never want. A diary about you.

So I have officially changed my mind. Emotion has a lot o do with what makes you, me, and everyone else human. Because as humans, we are not only complex in the brain, but complex in the heart.

What Does It Mean To Be Human?

To be a human is very simple, here is a list of all the components one needs to be considered human:

1. Human DNA
2. Conscience

That's it. Nothing else.

Anything beyond that would describe a person's character, personality, and intelligence. Trust me, there are many people out there who lack intelligence, whether they don't want to learn, cant afford to learn, or have disabilities these people are all human no matter what. Personality doesn't really single humans out because just about every animal has a personality, such as a shy dog or a friendly giraffe. Many humans lack character as well but all have conscience. Some people don't bat a lack when they do something wrong, but their conscience tells them know they've done something terrible. 

That's all, only two things.

Bye.

Terri Schiavo Case

In the the Terri Schiavo case, I think it was a bad idea to take her of life support. According to the quality of life topic, It wasn't very good at the moment. But it could only be blamed on the fact that her husband refused care for his wife. Her family had to keep treatment on the down low, but eventually it stopped. I feel as if somehow, she could have gotten better because there were improvements reported by her family as she went through the underground treatment. But even if the treatment corrected some things, it wouldn't correct everything. She would probably not be able to walk, dress herself, eat through her mouth, use the restroom alone, etc, etc. She wouldn't have of the little luxuries that we as human usually take for granted. She would never be the same, but the real question is : Did it bother her? Did it bother her that she couldn't eat, and drive, and speak in fill sentences. That she couldn't dance and enjoy many of life's gifts.

Terry Shiavo seemed to be enjoying the treatment and the presence of her family. He had positive reactions when they came around. But one person kept taking away her happiness- Her husband. Before she even died, he married again and had multiple children with his new wife. It was thoroughly to my classmates and I. His amount of disrespect for Terri was unbelievable  He had ridiculous demands such as her family cant see her, or stopping the treatment, and others. In all, Terri's quality of life was terrible, but much of is could have easily improved if her husband couldn't decide her fate.

20% Project Ideas

In this 20% project I am focusing on researching Ghana and my ancestry related to it. My parents were born and raised in Ghana so I so not foresee any lack of information on my topic. I will consult with my mom and dad for any information that I don't know. I would also kick some of the unreasonable stereotypes made about Africa itself, such as "Africa is a country" and other things. I will also devote the final part of my project to looking into my mother's life story. I fond her to to be a very hard- working and respectable person, who moved from Ghana and made a very comfortable life for herself in the US ever since 19. In, all I think my project will be very informative and interesting. Not only will I educate my class on my heritage, but I anticipate that I will learn many new things as well.

The DNA Dilemma: A Test That Could Change Your Life

In class, when read a TIME article. It was about genome sequencing. If you don't know what that is, Genome sequencing is a DNA test that can test a person for just about all known diseases and disorders and know when they will develop them. It seems so crazy, knowing that all of that information is held in something so small, but it is true. The article states that soon the test will become cheap and common, and you will be able to test at home. The real question is to get it or not, and if so, how much is TOO much?

I personally think that I would be curious to see that would show up. It wouldn't be a necessity though. I think that too much would be testing your child to know what they would get when they're older. I would only test my child if they had an unknown disease/ disorder. I would also get them tested if they were diagnosed with caner. The genome test is perfect for testing which cancer treatments would work. This feature can save you money, time, and the patient's pain. If I was getting the test, I would get it when I have completed most of my adult life. I would test for specific thing such as all known types of cancer and diseases that you may develop when you're older such as diabetes and Alzheimer's. Although, it would make it uncomfortable to not tell the patient about other serious diseases when they are getting tested, making one of the stakeholders the doctor. you would also be a stakeholder because when the disease actually comes, you would be ill-prepared. In all, the idea of genome testing is crazy, and in my opinion, not even necessary unless you have cancer... And you know what they say... Ignorance is bliss.

New Years Reflections and Revolutions

In 2012 I learned a lot about myself. I learned how to be more out going, how to make more friends, and how to become better at math. I learned the high school wasn't as scary as I thought it would be, and I definitely learned the life isn't always fair. The biggest thing I learned was that I was the WORLDS WORST PROCRASTINATOR. It had become so bad in 8th and 9th grade that it affected my work ethic. Terrible. But I hope to change myself this year and stop being lazy. I hope to change that.

Online Identities: After Death

"What happens to our online personality after we die? Could it...live on?" Should it live on? What should happen to our social media accounts and blogs after we die? Should our families get to be in charge of our internet identities?"

These are all the questions that Adam Ostrow asked in his TED talk. His topic wasn't something that you usually think about, but in today's world, these are valid questions. After witnessing this myself, I can't say that the profiles are often turned in to memorial pages, then eventually shut down. It seems like a safe idea. Quite frankly, I would feel uncomfortable having one of my deceased friends' profiles left up. I feel that your social networking accounts shouldn't live on unless it with still add to the lives and benefit its readers/followers. If someone wanted to create a seperate memorial page on Facebook, that would be okay for a permanent page. It will allow for healing for the family and friends by posting pictures, writing posts and celebrating that persons. If the person wishes, the family can uphold their internet identity in this way.