If you surf the Internet regularly but don’t know what Facebook is, then you are outdated. Just in case, if you really don’t know, Facebook is basically a global social networking website that allows it users to add friends to share updates of life by writing on walls, share photos, and etc. Facebook is so popular that it has more than 400 million active users. In order to use Facebook, the first step that you have to do is, of course, sign up. When you sign up, you provide your personal information such as your name, e-mail address, gender, and birthday. Then, you start to write wall posts, upload photos, use Facebook applications, add more personal information, upload videos, send messages, and many more. Just like the many users of Facebook, as much as you enjoy using Facebook, how would you feel if you realized that all you write, post, and share on Facebook, including pictures, videos, messages, wall posts and personal information are exposed to the world?

When you sign up to be member on Facebook, you have to tick on a box that says “I agree to all terms and conditions.” How many people actually read Facebook’s 5,830 word privacy statement? I doubt that more than 5% of the signed up Facebook users did so when they registered. What’s more is that a lot of people who do not understand Facebook’s privacy settings are actually accidentally exposing their information to people who they do not want to know about them. For example, a girl interviewed by the author of this article was shocked when she realized that her mum has access to her Facebook account even though she didn’t add her mum as her “friend”. Her mum has access to her account because her mum is a “friend” of her aunt, who is her “friend” on Facebook, and her privacy settings was set to “friends of friends”.

According to Danah Boyd, the administrators of Facebook are creating a privacy illusion and they think that the society would be better if everyone is exposed and transparent. Apparently, not every Facebook users agree with them. People are unhappy with Facebook’s privacy settings and they want change.

For more information, please read:

1. http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2010/05/14/facebook-and-radical-transparency-a-rant.html

2. http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2010/05/15/facebook-is-a-utility-utilities-get-regulated.html

3. http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archives/2010/05/23/quitting-facebook-is-pointless-challenging-them-to-do-better-is-not.html

Source of image:

http://bentremblay.com/en/facebook-screw-users-privacy

As a student of an international school, I cannot imagine how my life would be if my laptop crushes. If I don’t have my textbook, but my laptop is by my side, life is fine. Nowadays, many read, research, and write online with their computers. If one writes, researches, or reads with pencils and books, the process is just too slow to cope with today’s life’s pace.

Many schools today are introducing technology into their education system, as access to information online is so much faster and cheaper compared to books and newspapers. In an online news article, Texas Governor Rick Perry wants to remove traditional textbooks and replace them with computer software and technology. Physically, this is beneficial for students whose bags are loaded with heavy textbooks. From an education perspective, people can learn a lot more from a computer than from a book, people can search more things online than read a book. This is because with the Internet, one has access not only to just one book, one has access to all kinds of e-books, magazine articles, online news articles, blogs, etc.

Information becomes out of date at an unbelievable speed. So, paper textbooks get out of date too. Online information? Not really, because you just have to choose the information that is updated most recently. When a traditional-paper-heavy textbook is out of date, a student cannot really use that book because the information is irrelevant and inaccurate. Moreover, the only option is to recycle that book and buy the updated version of the textbook (which sometimes is not updated because it takes a long time to publish a book). Just let me say this – textbooks cost a lot. On the other hand, if schools use laptops instead, information is updated regularly, does not cost as much as printed books, and does not cost damage to the environment because outdated books are not thrown away and new books do not need to be printed. Believe it or not, a textbook-free campus would save a university about $400,000 a year.

True, even in this modern society, not everyone has a computer of their own at home. However, a move away from textbooks to laptops can be seen as an opportunity to ensure that every student has computers available at their home. Other than that, students that didn’t use to have computers will also be able the computers for other purposes at home.

In fact, replacing traditional textbooks with laptops bring convenience to students as students don’t have to bring two to three textbooks around the campus all the time and they wouldn’t have the hassle of messing with books anymore. I’m sure that students, especially middle school students, will also prefer to use laptops as there are many pop-up interactive quizzes online, which makes learning more fun and engaging. In addition, if anyone has any doubt that students will have a hard time during the change of moving from textbooks to laptops, it should not be a problem as students are comfortable with learning from electronic text because they are used to reading from a computer screen, considering that teenagers spend an average of 31 hours online (Telegraph.co.uk).

For more information, please read:

1. http://www.physorg.com/news151174757.html

2. http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9EUFAVG0.htm

3. http://www.kfoxtv.com/news/23128137/detail.html

Source of image:

www.flickr.com/photos/njimse/3350337200/

En China, cuando estás en la tiendecita, la vendedora te incitará a que compres el producto aunque no tienes el deseo para comprar algo. Luego, ustedes empezaremos a regatear. Algo que debes recordar cuando compras productos en China es que el 98% de cosas que te mostrarán son falsificaciones. Por eso, recuerda que no debes comprar las cosas con precio alto. Cuando estas regateando, aunque el precio que la vendedora te ofrece te parezca un buen precio, regatea el precio hasta seis o diez veces más baratos del precio inicial. A veces, la vendedora se enfadará y no rebajará el precio. A pesar de sus gritos, no te preocupas. Al contrario, debes empezar a actuar. Márchate de la tienda muy educadamente y diciendo que no lo quieres por ese precio. Casi todo veces la vendedora llamará a tu y ofrecerá un precio más cercano al tuyo para poder seguir regateando. Sobre todos son consejos para regatear en China.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/saralparker/763672676/

I always feel frustrated, sometimes even angry, when people – especially those who I have close relationships with, such as my family, close friends, and cousins – tell me lies because they are afraid of hurting my feelings. I prefer people telling me the rude truth, instead of a white lie. This is what I believe in.

This was not something that I believed since I was young; rather, this belief was formed after several experiences of friends and family telling me lies. The most common experience was when I was buying clothes. After I try on a piece of clothing, I always ask my sister, my mum, my cousin or my friend for their opinion. I would say, “How do I look? What do you think? Is it okay?” Most of the time, the answer that I receive would be, “Yeah, you look fine.”
Whenever I looked into their eyes, it was as though they were struggling with themselves, as if they had said something that was contradictory to their thoughts. Almost that instant, I would feel sadness and disappointment. Don’t misunderstand my feelings. My sadness and disappointment were not because I didn’t look good in that piece of clothing, but it was the fact that I knew that they were lying to me.

Sometimes, I would just blurt out a question, asking them the reason why they lied to me. I knew that they would find the question difficult to answer, but the question always poured out from my mouth mindlessly. I know, I know that they are trying to protect my feelings. They love me, very much, and that’s their way of loving me. But that’s not my way to be loved.

I believe that if our love is strong enough, one rude truth is too feeble to threaten our relationship. Yes, at the moment when the truth is being said, for example, “No, you don’t look nice in that dress,” I will feel sad, but the sadness doesn’t last long. In fact, I will know that you’re telling me the truth for my sake. Although the truth may hurt my feelings, they help me to improve myself. A lie does nothing but create false illusions. What’s the point of creating happiness that is based on illusions that don’t exist? Why not create an everlasting happiness that is based on reality, trust, and understanding? Why not?

Rude truths versus white lies, I choose rude truths.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/piloto1251/4213603414/

Pros

The universal manhood suffrage was passed by the government because the support for it became overwhelming. All men of legal age, which is 25, could vote. This demonstrates that the people of Japan were gaining more power.

Cons

When the Diet was established, the Diet could hold elections and vote. However, the election results were ignored by the genro, the genro had their own choice of the prime minister. In addition, the Diet held no power over the cabinet and military, they could only pass bills that might be made as laws.

Economic

Pros

The government made substantial progress in building and supporting factories to transform Japan into a modern manufacturing country. Financial assistance and protection from foreign companies were provided by the government to help private companies. There were also clusters of companies called zaibatsu, which helped Japan achieve rapid industrial growth.

Cons

In the 1900s, it was obvious that Japan was a nation with stable economy. However, the modern conditions could only be found in cities. Only cities had the latest communication, transportation and industrial technologies. The countryside’s living standards remained low. The countryside remained poor, politically conservative, and deeply rooted in tradition.

Social

Pros

The introduction of Western culture made cities, such as Tokyo, into urban centers. Urban centers were the places where upper-class Japanese find pleasure, where they can find clubs, restaurants, bars, and social halls. This demonstrates the Japanese’ modernized social life.

Cons

During the Meiji era, the education was basically brainwashing the students about worshiping the emperor and being loyal to the emperor. There was a censorship by the government, the Peace Preservation Law, in which no one was allowed to criticize the government. People were being robbed of their rights to speak freely.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/24443965@N08/2383755421/

Stoichiometric relationship between the quantities of Pb(NO₃)₂, NaI, PbI₂, and NaNO₃ in a chemical reaction

1. Pb(NO₃)₂ + 2NaI   —->   PbI₂ + 2NaNO₃

2. and 3.

4.

5. The graph shows the relationship between the quantities of lead iodide (PbI₂) produced according to the mass of sodium iodide (NaI) given. By observing the graph, we can see that starting from 0.006 to 0.0011 moles of sodium iodide, the quantity of moles of lead iodide is increasing from 0.0022 to 0.0046. On the other hand, we can also see that from 0.0011 to 0.0014 moles of sodium iodide, the line that represents the quantity of moles of lead iodide is fairly flat, in comparison to the escalating, steep line from 0.006 to 0.0011 moles of sodium iodide. The last 1/3 of the graph maintains a quite flat line because when the moles of sodium is present from 0.0011 moles onwards, sodium iodide’s role changes from the limiting reactant to the reactant that is present in excess and lead nitrate (Pb(NO₃)₂) becomes the limiting reactant. As it is lead nitrate that affects the amount of lead iodide produced in the last 1/3 of the experiment, the amount of lead iodide produced does not have a huge difference because the amount of lead nitrate present remains constant throughout the whole experiment, which is having a mass of 1.66g or moles of 0.005. In conclusion, when sodium iodide is present from 0.006 to 0.011 moles, sodium iodide is the limiting reactant, thus the quantity of moles of lead iodide increases from 0.0022 to 0.0046. When sodium iodide is present from 0.0014 moles, lead nitrate becomes the limiting reactant; hence the quantity of moles of lead iodide doesn’t change much because lead nitrate is present with the amount of 0.005 moles throughout the experiment.

6. (a) Pb(NO₃)₂ (lead nitrate) is the reactant that is present in excess.

(b) NaI (sodium iodide) is the limiting reactant.

Predicted mass of PbI₂ using Pb(NO₃)₂

Calculations:

1.66/331.2074 = x/1 –> x = 1.66/331.2074 = 0.005 mol Pb(NO₃)₂

Since ratio is 1 to 1, the mol stays the same. (0.005 mol PbI₂)

0.005/1 = x/461.008 –> x = 461.008 * 0.005 = 2.305 g

Predicted mass of PbI₂ using NaI

Calculations:

If NaI = 0.75g, PbI₂ = 1.153 g

If NaI = 1.35 g, PbI₂ = 2.074 g

For group numbers 1-5, Pb(NO₃)₂ always produces 2.305g of PbI₂ whilst NaI produces a range of 1.153g to 2.074g of PbI₂. This shows that NaI will always produce less than PbI₂ than Pb(NO₃) ₂, thus it is the limiting reactant.

7. (a) The NaI (sodium iodide) is the reactant that is present in excess.

(b) The Pb(NO₃)₂ (lead nitrate) is the limiting reactant.

Predicted mass of PbI2 using Pb(NO₃)₂

Calculations:

1.66/331.2074 = x/1 –> x = 1.66/331.2074 = 0.005 mol Pb(NO₃)₂

Since ratio is 1 to 1, the mol stays the same. (0.005 mol PbI₂)

0.005/1 = x/461.008 –> x = 461.008 * 0.005 = 2.305 g

Predicted mass of PbI₂ using NaI

Calculations:

If NaI = 1.65g, PbI₂ = 2.536g

If NaI = 2.10g, PbI₂ = 3.227g

For group numbers 7-10, Pb(NO₃)₂ always produces 2.305g of PbI₂ whilst NaI produces a range of 2.536g to 3.227g of PbI₂. This shows that NaI will always produce more PbI₂ than Pb(NO₃)₂, thus it is the reactant that is present in excess.

8. The mole ratio of Pb(NO₃)₂ : NaI for group number 6 is 1 : 2. Because of the ratio, there is no limiting reactant for group number six. As the mole ratio of Pb(NO₃)₂ : NaI : PbI₂ is 1 : 2 : 1, so the moles of PbI₂ predicted will always be 0.005. As a result, the shape of the graph when NaI is 0.01 moles is affected equally by number of moles of NaI and Pb(NO₃)₂.

Seventeen years. I took seventeen years to decide what my first language was. Thanks to my shift from Malaysia to Vietnam, my confusion was finally as lucid as water. Never did I know that I had to go through a journey of four stages to find out my first language. The quest was set off in year 1992…

I was born a healthy baby. At that moment, my parents understood that English was an important language, which was why they taught me English in the first place. “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” was my lullaby. I then went to an English kindergarten, and did not learn any Chinese. There was no need to do so. Not a word of Chinese had escaped from my lips during those six years. I was a banana with yellow skin and white flesh. My relatives, despite their modest level of English, had to make an effort to communicate with me by speaking the language.

Later on, my parents realized the significance of learning one’s mother tongue. As a result, I was sent to a Chinese primary school with a frown on my face. Everything was unfamiliar; I was a fork among thousands of chopsticks. No matter how much I disliked the new environment, I commanded myself to learn to speak my maternal language. I studied hard.  Days and nights, practice and practice of accurate pronunciation and Chinese characters were performed. In the following years, English was no longer spoken between my school companions and me. When I graduated from primary school, I spoke more Chinese than English and I was not a banana anymore. I was proud.

Pursuing this further, I continued my education in a Chinese secondary school. Living in the school’s hostel, my only option was to speak Chinese twenty four hours a day. Although my English was considered better than my fellow friends, my level of Chinese was also advancing day after day. On the other hand, the velocity of the development of my Chinese and English was like an ostrich and a snail in a race. Suddenly, I was confused.  If someone were to ask me what my first language was, I would have to think twice and come up with no answer at all. The confusion set me thinking: was I a banana or a mango with a yellow inside and outside?

Approximately a year ago, I moved to Ho Chi Minh City and attended SSIS. Studying in SSIS was like going back to my childhood. I spoke English half of the time I was conscious. All of a sudden, my confusion that began years ago was clarified as if water vapor was wiped off a window. I was aware that I was sometimes translating Chinese into English when I spoke and I was constantly thinking in Chinese. Whenever I came across a vocabulary that I was not sure about the definition, I had to translate the words into Chinese in order to understand. Chinese is my first language. I smiled satisfied. I was a ripe mango through and through.

Much to my delight, I became fluent in both languages, Chinese and English. I am grateful of my parents’ wise choices that guided me into those four memorable stages. Long journey as it was, I was given the opportunity to understand myself. Besides, being able to speak more than one language fluently brings me nothing, but advantages. Thank you, mummy and daddy.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tgerus/4346213550/

Un sencillo para seguir para comer una cocina saludable a casa y en el restaurante es pensar un poco antes de elegir lo que va a comer. ¿Cómo comer saludablemente? Comer la comida con bajo contiendo en grasa, colesterol y sodio. Cuando comer en restaurantes y no encuentra lo que busca, pregunte al mesero lo que desea. Evita mantequilla cuando comer arroz al vapor, papas al horno y verduras al vapor. Hay comidas que se deben evitar si quiere reducir el consumo de grasa, colesterol y sal. Las comidas son las donas, crema, tocino, bollos dulces, salsa de queso y etcétera. Hay consejos que deben recuerde también. Elija sopas de verduras y elija pescado, pollo, pavo o carne asada, a la parilla, escalfada o al vapor. Pida uno o dos aperitivos de comida bajos en grasa y pida el aderezo para la ensalada en un plato aparte. Si desea postre, pida fruta fresca, yogur sin grasa o sorbete.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/carnicas_serrano/3730209126/

Beef butcher for the Vietnamese,

Coffee Maker, Stacker of Nón Lá,

Player with Motorbikes and the Country’s Stunning Traffic;

Windy, stormy, baking,

City of the South China Sea:

They whisper to me that you are blazing and I trust them, for I

have seen them students and teachers under then shed

dripping salty sweat from their foreheads.

And they whisper to me that you are a tornado and I reply: Yes, it

is true I have seen the umbrellas pulling humans and flip over to

pull again.

And they whisper to me that you are bustling and my reply is: On the

streets of District One I have seen the skid-marks

of rapid driving.

And having replied so I spin to those who

scorn at this foreign city, and I return them the scorn

and say to them:

Come and show me another city with rising beef aroma,

so pleased to be international, fruity, unpredictable and talented.

Weaving thread with needles making cloth

on cloth, here is a white áo dài specially made for the

striking Vietnamese women;

Hardworking as a bee flying around for honey, creative

as a cobbler making slippers, sandals, and shoes,

Diverse,

Buying,

Cutting,

Digging,

Building, building, and building.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/billcoo/535045904/

Thesis: The Qing dynasty’s collapse in 1911-12 was primarily due to its failures in its many reforms and the Scramble for Concessions from 1895-99.

Although the collapse of the Qing dynasty in 1911-12 was mostly caused by its failures in its many reforms, the foreign factors, especially the Scramble for Concessions from 1895-99, also played a very important role in contributing to the collapse of the Qing dynasty. Since the seventeenth century, China’s achievements had dazzled the Europeans, especially during the mid-eighteenth century, when China was at the peak of its power. However, since the early nineteenth century, the once so superior Qing dynasty started to expose some signs of decline. Firstly, there was a sudden increase in China’s population. The rapid expanding in China’s population led to the results of poverty, banditry, and rebellions. These, of course, eventually brought the Qing dynasty to its collapse. However, it was the Qing dynasty’s weak reforms several years later that were the primary factors of its collapse. The Scramble of Concessions from 1895-99, was the rocket that sped up the process of the collapse of the Qing dynasty.

The Qing dynasty’s feeble efforts at reforms made China not able to protect itself from foreign threat, China was also weakened greatly. After the Second Opium War, China began its first attempt at reform at 1860, the Self-Strengthening Movement. The Empress Dowager Cixi and most of the Chinese, because of their conservativeness and traditional views, were being very unsupportive. After the failure of the Self-Strengthening Movement, the Qing dynasty’s future was a drastic fall. Every significant event that led to the collapse of the Qing dynasty happened ad infinitum until 1911. After the Sino-Japanese War, Guangxu Emperor led the 100 Days of Reform. It seemed for a moment that the Qing dynasty was going to succeed. Alas, Cixi felt that her power was threatened and she imprisoned the Guangxu Emperor forever. Cixi became the person in power. But that was not even the worst. The result of the Qing dynasty’s last attempt of reform, from 1901-10, was the collapse of the Qing dynasty.

The Scramble for Concessions played the part of speeding up the collapse of the Qing dynasty. By 1895, the Qing dynasty was so weak that the government could not even refuse and stop the Western countries and Japan’s humiliating, legal agreements. Although the Scramble for Concessions made many Chinese finally realize the importance of reform and begin reforming in 1901, the scramble was also the Satan that guided the Qing dynasty to its tomb. In conclusion, I think that the failures of the reforms are the crucial factor in the collapse of the Qing dynasty because if the Qing dynasty succeeded in the first or even one of their reforms, I believe that the Qing dynasty might have a chance to survive. Without the Scramble of Concessions, the second key factor of the collapse in 1911, the Qing dynasty also might not collapse in the following ten years.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/arjunpurky/2360963262/

Experimenting Different Substances to Analyze Their Properties to Identify Ionic and Covalent Compounds

Problem

To determine whether the unknown compound is an ionic or covalent compound by analyzing its properties compared to the other substances.

Materials

4 spoons of sodium chloride

4 spoons of potassium

4 spoons of sucrose

4 spoons of benzoic acid

4 spoons of unknown compound

1 Bunsen burner

1 match

1 conductivity tester

1 Spark machine

1 scoop

1 spoon

1 250mL beaker

1 watch

Procedure

1. Light the Bunsen burner using the wooden splint or matches.

2. Use the scoop to get a small amount of sodium chloride.

3. Place the sodium chloride onto the spoon,

4. Place the spoon over the flame to melt the sodium chloride and begin timing.

5. Record the time when the sodium chloride begins to melt.

6. Repeat steps 2-5 using each of the other 4 compounds.

7. Repeat steps 2-6 again so that two trials have been done for each compound.

8. Extinguish the Bunsen burner once finished.

9. Determine the relative hardness of each substance by rubbing a small amount of it between your fingers.

10. Wash your hands immediately with lots of cold water each trial.

11. Record your observations.

12. Add a “scoop full” of each substance to tap water in the beaker.

13. Stir the mixture using the scoop or by swirling the beaker.

14. Record your observations.

15. Prepare the conductivity tester using the solutions you prepared in step 13.

16. Test each solution and record your observations.

Results

­­

Conductivity Images

Figure 1 Sucrose



Figure 2 Benzoic Acid

Figure 3 Potassium Iodide

Figure 4 Sodium Chloride

Figure 5 Unknown Compound

Conclusions

At the analysis questions, our hypothesis was that the unknown compound is a covalent compound. According to the data, the relative hardness of the unknown compound was relatively soft, almost like flour. In addition, unlike sucrose, an ionic compound, which felt like sand, a little hard and rough; the unknown compound had a slippery touch to it, like soap. Another property of covalent compounds that the unknown compound also has is that it is not very soluble with water. According to the observations during mixing the substance with tap water, most of it was dissolved in 15 seconds and those that didn’t dissolved was floating in the mixture. Other than that, by observing the conductivity range of the 5 substances in this experiment, the unknown compound has one of the lowest conductivity ranges, ranging from 200µS/cm to 246µS/cm, which fits the property of a covalent compound being a poor electrical conductor.

Sources of Error

1. Many students have been using the substances constantly during the experiments. The cover of the bottles of the substances have been opened and closed several times, thus the substances might be moistened over the course of the experiment. This may affect the results as the substances are closer to the state of liquid than solid if they were moistened. In addition, the substances would also seem relatively softer, thus affecting the observations, results and conclusions.

2. According to the procedures, we were supposed to use the scoop to get a small amount of substance to melt it. However, the exact amount needed is not specified. This may affect the results as the more of the substance was scooped to be melted, the time used to melt the substance is longer. For example, the unknown compound was predicted to be a covalent compound. However, it used more than 5 minutes to be melted, which seemed to fit the property of ionic compounds, not covalent compounds. If the amount of substances was stated specifically and we were able to measure with lab equipment, the results would be more accurate.

3. We used two different days to do the experiment. On the second day, although the scoop that we used to melt the substances has been washed, it was black with residue. This may affect the results of time used to melt the substances because the fire was not just heating the scoop to melt the substances, it was also heating the extra residue stuck on the spoon.

4. When we were melting the substances, the distance between the spoon and the fire is not constant, as we held the spoon with our hands, not with lab equipment. This may affect the time used for the substances to melt, because a shorter distance causes the substances to melt faster whilst a longer distance causes the substances to melt slower. If we used lab equipment to hold the spoons, our results may be more accurate.

5. Although our fingertips are one of the most sensitive body parts, but the sensitivity of everyone’s fingertips is different. Sometimes one may think that sucrose is relatively hard while the other may think that sucrose is relatively soft. If we were able to use to hardness testing machine, the results would be very accurate, instead of just observations that were written down according to our feelings.

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 1 is a unit circle. The first 4 degrees that we know, starting from the positive x-axis going counter-clockwise, are 0°, 90°, 180°, and 270°. Then, we know that the acute angles are 30°, 45° and 60°. The other angles can be found according to their reference angle. For example, the angle of 135° equals 180°– 45° because the reference angle of 135° is 45°.

Now, we have to insert the radians. The first 4 radians that we know are 0,  , π, and . For other degrees, we can convert them to radian by using the equation degree×. There is a trick that can be used to find radians. Notice that reference angles have the same denominators. The radians in the second quadrant can be calculated by. The radians in the third quadrant can be calculated by. The radians in the fourth quadrant can be calculated by.

Now, we have to fill in the coordinates, (cos (θ), sin (θ)). The coordinates are (cos (θ), sin (θ)) because cos θ =  =  whilst sin θ =  =. Because this is a unit circle, so the radius of this circle is 1, which makes the coordinate of 0 is (1, 0), 90° is (0, 1), 180° is (-1, 0) and 270° is (0, -1). The tan θ is, so we have to be careful during (0, 1), because that is undefined.

If we memorized Figure 2 and Figure 3, we will know that coordinate of 30° is (, ), 45° is (, ) and 60° is (, ). Basically, the reference angles have the same numerical coordinates, but different qualities. This can be explained because in the second quadrant,  is negative whilst  is positive. In the third quadrant,  and  are both negative. In the fourth quadrant,  is positive whilst  is negative. So, for instance, since the reference angle of 135° is 45° and 135° is located at the second quadrant, the coordinate for 135° is (-,).

List of sources:

http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=90294&title=Video_20_Unit_Circle___part_I&ref=dyagodich

http://www.teachertube.com/viewVideo.php?video_id=90298&title=Video_21_Unit_Circle___part_II&ref=dyagodich

http://www1.fccj.edu/lchandouts/trigresources.htm

http://www.biology.arizona.edu/biomath/tutorials/Trigonometric/specialangles.htmlUnit Circle and the Connection between Arc Length and Sine/Cosine/Tangent

Objects such as apples, balls, cards, diamonds, and eggs are easy to define. The definitions of these are usually constant, because these items can be seen, smelt, and touched. However, intangibles such as marriage are more difficult to define. The Defense of Marriage Act defines marriage as “a legal union between one man and one woman”. When “define: marriage” is being Googled, one of the results is a “social contract between two individuals that unites their lives legally, economically and emotionally.” These two definitions are similar, but different. In the Defense of Marriage Act’s definition of marriage, the two subjects in marriage are a man and a woman. On the other hand, the gender of the two subjects in the other definition is not specified. Questions may be raised after reading these two definitions of marriage. Which is the correct definition and who has the authority to define marriage – the married, unmarried, a nation’s government or God? True, for thousands of years, marriage has been performed only between a man and a woman. Nevertheless, homosexual marriage – marriage between two persons of the same gender – was legalized on April 1st, 2001 in the Netherlands. As a result, homosexual couples and the society in the Netherlands, as well as other countries have been affected by the legalization of homosexual marriage in the Netherlands to a certain extent.

On April 1st 2001, the Netherlands became the first country in the world to legalize homosexual marriage. The parliament’s action of passing the same-sex marriage law has granted homosexual couples in the Netherlands several benefits that they had not been able to enjoy before. The most evident gain is, of course, the ability to marry (Radio par. 1). Since then, thousands of homosexual couples have entered into marriage. Secondly, a homosexual can adopt his or her partner’s biological child or children to be the lawful parent. According to the law, there will be no consequences in such relationship. This is a significant benefit for homosexual couples who wish to have children of their own. Like a balance scale, the left side of the scale pan is slowly rising its level to achieve equilibrium with the right side of the scale pan. The biggest relief of all was the attitude of people towards homosexuals in the Netherlands. Shockingly, as stated by Earl Carr, a homosexual, after he and his partner moved from the United States to the Netherlands, “at least we are treated as normal people.” Earl and his partner, Peter Storex decided to move because they wanted to be accepted, to be just like anyone, to fit in the society. They were not “the gay couple” anymore, they were Earl and Peter. To Earl, homosexuality was not an issue in the Netherlands (Hundley article 10). These benefits that were bestowed upon the homosexual couples seem ironic because in Article 16 of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, “men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or region, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution”. After homosexual marriage was legalized in the Netherlands, only then homosexual couples were fulfilled with this fraction of their rights.

Although the law of legalizing homosexual marriage only applies to homosexual couples in the Netherlands, but they were not the only ones who were impacted by this law. As indicated in the previous paragraph, the primary change was the ability to marry. Therefore, the first and foremost organization that was affected was the churches in the Netherlands. Twelve percent of the population in the Netherlands attends the Protestant Church. The Church declared their point of view that the decision of carrying out homosexual marriage ceremonies lays in the hands of individual churches (Masci, Lozano-Bielat, Ralston, Podrebarac par. 3). Consequently, this might be a dream come true to some homosexual couples, as they were able to marry in a church just like any other couples.  In addition, schools were also influenced by the legalization of homosexual marriage, especially elementary schools. Education is the foundation of people’s beliefs and the basis to recognize what is wrong or right. Adults may understand what homosexuality is, but children, especially kids in primary schools may point their fingers and ask, “Where is your mummy? Why do you have two daddies?” That was why after homosexual marriage was legalized in the Netherlands, every school was made to teach that homosexuality is a lifestyle and families that consist of homosexual couples with children are just another form of family (Dailey par. 8). This will not only resolve the confusions of children raised in a heterosexual household, but also will cause kids who are raised in a homosexual family to not feel abnormal or left out. Just because homosexuality used to be illegal in the Netherlands, it does not mean that this type of relationship is alien. It is impossible to force every single person in the Netherlands to recognize that the relationship of homosexuality is not abnormal and it is impossible to force all of the citizens of the Netherlands into fully accepting homosexual relationships. In spite of this, at the moment homosexual marriages were legalized, homosexuals should not be ostracized.

Before April 1st 2001, generally every country in the world defined marriage as a union between a man and a woman. After the Netherlands legalized homosexual marriage, other countries had begun to react, which was either positive or negative towards homosexuality in the world. A number of nations, such as Belgium, Spain, Canada, South Africa, Sweden and Norway have then followed the Netherlands’ actions – legalizing homosexual marriage (Radio par. 1). Although there is no definite proof, but the Netherlands may have set an example to other countries that allowing homosexual marriage to be legal is not a difficult decision to make. This also leads to the question of whether other nations should recognize the relationship of homosexuals who have married in the Netherlands. According to Radio Netherlands Worldwide, “Only a few other countries recognize same-sex marriage, although more recognize same-sex civil partnerships. Same-sex married couples will find that their marriage, and consequently their legal rights, may be treated differently in other countries.” (Radio par. 13). Once again, these countries demonstrate the unequal treatment that homosexual couples receive based on their choice of lifestyle. As stated by the Dutch law, homosexual couples can get married in the Netherlands as long as one of the couple is either a Dutch or a resident in the Netherlands (Radio par. 16). This could be a factor that can trigger other countries’ need to recognize the Netherland’s homosexual marriage law. How lamentable it would be for a married person’s status to be single in his home country because his country does not recognize homosexual marriage. The fact that homosexual couples do not just exist in the Netherlands should be clearly understood by everyone; homosexual couples are present everywhere in the world. However, the treatment that they receive is different, depending on where they are. This questions the very first article of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.”  Yet, homosexual couples are failing to have this portion of their rights to be fulfilled.

Fifty years ago, probably none would have disagreed that homosexual marriage is just a problem that only a small part in the society have to be concerned about. Yet, homosexual marriage has gradually become a global issue that everyone has to consider their views on. This is because as more countries legalize homosexual marriage, the impact on people other than homosexuals will be greater. The legalization of homosexual marriage is good news to homosexual couples, as the law grants them the most basic rights such as the ability to marry and the legal rights of a married couple. But the exact moment of homosexuals having equal rights just like any heterosexual couples is still unknown as some other countries have more difficulties having to deal with religious conflicts. People who are not homosexuals do not understand homosexuals. In fact, a lot of people thought that “in a homosexual relationship, one partner usually plays the role of the husband and the other plays the role of the wife”. That is not always true. The truth is that the beliefs of equality and mutuality are the bases of homosexual relationships. In a homosexual relationship, homosexuals love their partners for who they are and they do not think themselves as the role of the opposite sex of their partner. They share the same roles with their partners (Debbie par. 6). Homosexuals do not deserve to have unequal rights compared to heterosexuals just because the idea of homosexuality is repulsive to some. Regardless if he or she is a homosexual or heterosexual, they are still humans like everybody else. Homosexuals have done nothing wrong to harm any person. Everyone is equal. Although some may either dislike or even not accept homosexuality, but all should give homosexual couples their blessings if they wish to marry. Homosexual couples deserve to be allowed to be married.

Works Cited

Dailey, Timothy. “Ten Facts About Counterfeit Marriage.” Family Research Council. Web. 29 Nov. 2009. <http://www.frc.org/content/ten-facts-about-same-sex-marriage>.

Debbie. “Homosexuality Facts / Myths.” Parents Of Gay Children. Web. 29 Nov. 2009. <http://www.gayfamilysupport.com/homosexuality-facts.html>.

Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA): Legal Resources and Information. Web. 30 Nov. 2009. <http://www.domawatch.org/index.php>.

“FAQ: Same-sex marriage.” Radio Netherlands Worldwide. Radio Netherlands Worldwide, 29 Sept. 2009. Web. 29 Nov. 2009. <http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/faq-same-sex-marriage>.

Hundley, Tom. “Homosexual unions slowly gain momentum in Europe.” Worldwide Gay Travel, Life & Insights: Stories, Photo Galleries, News & Reports. 30 June 2004. Web. 29 Nov. 2009. <http://globalgayz.com>.

Masci, David. “Gay Marriage Around the World.” Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Pew Research Center, 9 July 2009. Web. 29 Nov. 2009. <http://pewforum.org/docs/?DocID=423>.

“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights.” Welcome to the United Nations: It’s Your World. Web. 29 Nov. 2009. <http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/>.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/cherilnclarke/3033675628/

Like “The Kitchen’s God Wife”, several literal devices were being used in Steven Levenkron’s novel, “The Luckiest Girl In The World”. There are two types of literal devices that I want to point out in this blog post, which are ambiguity and situational irony.

Ambiguity is the quality or state of being uncertain especially from being obscure or indistinct. As stated in the previous post, Katie Roskova was a successful student who had a mental breakdown in school. As a result, Katie had to go see a shrink. In this particular story, the ending was ambiguous. Katie’s mother, Katherine was in rage because Katie started to ask questions about her father. Katie then “spaced out” in front of her mother and did the thing that she never wanted to her mother to find out. In the end, Katherine agreed to pay for Katie’s therapy with the shrink and Katie celebrated her birthday with her friends who were all patients of Katie’s shrink.

Certainly, we cannot say that the ending was not a “and they lived happily ever after” ending. The ending the neither sad nor happy. Katie was allowed to continue to see her shrink and she had true friends. We do not know that whether Katie will be recovered from her sickness. So, the ending was ambiguous because we do not know definitely if she will be a happy girl.

Secondly, situational irony is a contradiction of expectation between what might be expected and what actually occurs. Katie was trained by her mother since she was young because her mother wanted to be a successful figure skater; Katherine wanted Katie to be a star. They made many sacrifices. Katherine worked hard to earn money to pay for Katie’s skating teacher and Katie spent all her time on practicing, schooling, and doing homework. All of those efforts were made in order for Katie to become a champion figure skater. However,  Katie was under so much pressure that she had a mental breakdown in school. In the end, Katie’s skating coach resigned his post and Katie had to see a shrink regularly.

“The Luckiest Girl In The World” is a book for light reading but also has a taste of meaning in it. Try reading it someday if you have nothing to do or nothing to read.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tanya77761/4092583734/

I was tired of reading deep books. As a result, I chose this book – “The Luckiest Girl In The World” by Steven Levenkron. However, the novel turned out to be not like any other teenage girls, high school novels. In fact, I find the story to be concise, addicting, and meaningful. I finished the book long before the assigned date; I just couldn’t put the book down.

Judging by its appearance, many may say that this is a book for girls. Let me say this – do not let one’s appearance deceive you. Katie Roskova, the protagonist of this novel, was a high school student whose grades were never below A- and was on her way to become a champion figure skater. It seemed like she was the luckiest girl in the world, Katie was pretty and popular. However, Katie had another side that she had been concealing from the world, a side that she cannot reveal to her friends and family.

I enjoyed reading this book because of reading the resemblance of Katie’s life to the lives of many teenagers, especially teenagers from Asian countries. Although Katie was a successful, good student, that wasn’t a life that she wanted. Katie was a contestant of a champion figure skater because it was her mother’s dream to be a successful figure skater when her mother was young. Katie’s grades were never below A- because she wouldn’t be able to study in her high school with a scholarship if her grades weren’t good.

Similar situations could be found in many families. Parents want their children to learn something, may it be a sport, a foreign language, an instrument, because that was what the parents wanted but couldn’t learn when they were young. They were using their children to complete their unaccomplished dreams. In addition, although Katie had been performing extremely well, she had the pressure of maintaining her grades in order to study in her school. This is also something that is happening in many households – children are asked to have good grades. Yes, as a student, it is our responsible and job to study, but learning then becomes uninteresting anymore! It was a necessity, and we’re learning not for the sake of learning, but the sake of our future and many, to please their parents.

After reading “The Luckiest Girl In The World”, I learned that it is very important to have a balanced life. Although Katie was very successful as a student, but she wasn’t a successful teenager. She was reclusive, she didn’t have any friends because she had to constantly practice for the championship competition. Friends are important, they play a very important role in our lives. If Katie had a friend that she could share her secrets, maybe she wouldn’t had a mental breakdown.

Last but not least, communication is also very important. I think that children should not be afraid to tell their thoughts to their parents, because parents do not always understand the difference between what their children want and what their children need. So, if the parent is doing something wrong without really knowing it, it’s our job as the child to tell them. After all, we meant no harm and our intention was good. Don’t you agree?

As a student of Saigon South International School, I would say that I write a lot. I write during Science, English, Writing Development, ICT, Spanish, History, and Geography. Other than that, I have a personal blog, where I write about special occasions in my life that I would like to share.

As a writer, I use many types of literary devices when I write. Sometimes, they were used intentionally; sometimes, they were just there naturally, appearing within the content of the writing. The most common literary devices that I used in my writing are diction, exposition, flashback, point of view, simile, symbolism, and theme. In my opinion, other than making one’s writing more interesting, literary devices also ensure that the writing is focused and doesn’t “wander” without any significant meaning.

Of course, a writer as famous as Amy Tan, used several literary devices to enrich her novel, “The Kitchen God’s Wife”. The first literary device that could be noticed by just reading the whole book and not paying attention to the details, is point of view. Written in first person point of view, unlike many other authors, Amy Tan chose to have two narrators in her novel, Winnie Louie (mother) and Pearl Louie (daughter). The book was introduced by the voice of Pearl, talking about her relationship with her mother that was full of secrets. After 1/10 of the book, Winnie became the narrator, telling her daughter about her secrets, starting from her life as a child in China. Then, the narrator switches back to Pearl after Winnie had finished telling Pearl all her secrets.

This is not my first time reading a book that changes its narrator from A to B then back to B again. The first time I encountered this literary device was while reading Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer. Although both authors were using the same technique, the way that they used it was different. In Breaking Dawn, the narrator was changed from Bella Swan to Jacob Black, and the story was still going on, except that everything happening was seen through Jacob’s eyes and told through Jacob’s mind. On the other hand,  in “The Kitchen God’s Wife”, when the switch of narrator occurred, Winnie wasn’t telling about the current events that were going on. In fact, the whole portion of Winnie as a narrator was a flashback of her history in China, another literary device that Amy Tan had used extensively in this novel.

The literary device flashback basically dominates the whole novel. The significance of the flashback is that Winnie was telling Pearl her history in China, which was something that Winnie had been reluctant to tell Pearl all along. Winnie decided to tell Pearl the secrets that she had kept from Pearl because her best friend, Helen had threatened to tell her secrets to Pearl if she wouldn’t do so. After all the darkest secrets were told, after the flashback had ended, Winnie and Pearl had achieved a conciliatory state. All misunderstandings were resolved.

This also leads to the literary device – round character. Winnie Louie was the round character in this novel, and the readers were able to understand Winnie to the fullest because her entire life – from childhood to present – was being recounted in the flashback. Moreover, the readers were also able to see how Pearl views her mother. In brief, Winnie Louie was a multidimensional character, the readers knew almost everything about her.

You see, that is why I said that sometimes the literary devices just flow with the writing. If you are interested in reading about how China was from the 1930s to the 1950s along with a plot, maybe you would like to give this book a try.

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/w_yvr/38815183/

Books are the most common form of information, but not the only form of information.

I have seen a group on Facebook which says, “I would die if there is no Internet”. When I saw the title, I laughed. But later when I gave it a thought, I stopped laughing. I, myself, cannot live without the Internet. I use the Internet for several reasons, but mostly for doing research for my homework and socializing with friends and family. If you asked me, the Internet is extremely useful and convenient.

However, Doris Lessing, a winner of the Nobel Prize for literature has claimed that the Internet is making people dumber. I strongly disagree.

In Doris Lessing’s Nobel Prize speech, she said that in her visits to rich schools and universities, she was told “some students don’t read books at all, that the library is half-used”. Other than that, as a storyteller, Doris Lessing said  “writing, writers, do not come out of their houses without books”.

In my opinion, reading doesn’t just exist in one form. I believe that people have started to read more after the invention of the Internet. For example, I live in Vietnam now, but I used to read Chinese newspapers when I was living in Malaysia. Imagine if the Internet didn’t exist, what would I do in order to read Chinese news? True, I read the English newspapers published in Vietnam, but the Internet makes the issue easier! I don’t need to buy a newspaper and I could just read the news online. This way, I could save money, time, trees, and read in the language that I want to.

If you ask me, because of the Internet, information exists everywhere. If the Internet did not exist, we would have to buy books to read them. What if books that meet my necessities or interests are sold at places where I am not able to go to? Without the Internet, I wouldn’t know that these books existed or even if I did know, I might not be able to buy them if they were sold in another country. The places that I have access to would then only be the books, magazines, newspapers in libraries and bookstores in my neighborhood.

Can you see how different the situation would be if the Internet existed? I would know what books are sold in which country, and I could buy them online at websites like Amazon.com. My access to information wouldn’t just be within my neighborhood, we could access the whole world’s information!

Information does not only come in the form of books. We can learn through the Internet, and teach others through the Internet. As a high school student, that is what I do almost every day. Whenever I have a question when I am doing my homework, I could just ask my friend through MSN as if she was sitting right beside me. If she is unable to answer my question, I could research online. I do not need to wait until the next day when I see my teacher to ask him questions. See how the Internet makes everything faster and convenient?

On the contrary, Doris Lessing lay another blame on the Internet about people wasting their time using the Internet. According to her, the Internet “has seduced a whole generation into its inanities so that even quite reasonable people will confess that once they are hooked, it is hard to cut free, and they may find a whole day has passed in blogging and blugging etc”. True, the Internet is addicting. However, let me point my finger at something Doris Lessing said, “they may find a whole day has passed in blogging”. Isn’t blogging a form of writing? I must say, I write more when I blog and my writing has improved much since. Typing is faster than writing on a paper, and typing gives you the freedom to let your ideas flow faster. I would find writing on a paper frustrating now, because my right hand is unable to catch up with the speed of my brain. With the Internet, we could write with pictures and videos, and even include links to our sources. This gives freedom to bloggers, and convenience to readers. Bloggers could put pictures and videos to convey their thoughts more easily, and readers are  free to click on the links to learn more about the subject.

Just to contradict the statement “the Internet is making people dumber”, we could even learn foreign languages through the Internet. For instance, at SpanishDict, you just have to sign up for free, and you could learn Spanish by watching videos, playing flashcards, identifying vocabulary, and writing with words that you have learnt. All of that, is free. Learning is so much easier with the Internet!

Now, I wonder why Doris Lessing would say that the Internet is making people dumber, instead of smarter?

Source of image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/lochaven/2588186224/

For more information:

http://www.dorislessing.org/nobel.html

http://chronicle.com/blogPost/In-Nobel-Speech-Doris-Lessing/3549

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1571907/Doris-Lessing-warns-of-inanities-of-internet.html

http://www.smh.com.au/news/web/net-dumbs-us-down-nobel-prize-winner/2007/12/10/1197135340009.html

Honestly, “The Kitchen God’s Wife” was not a very enjoyable book. In fact, I was a little lost while reading it. There were two narrators, Winnie Louie, the mother and Pearl Louie, the daughter. The book began with the daughter narrating the story, then with one big whole chunk in the middle if the mother as the narrator, and finally, with the daughter narrating the story again till the end of the book. What had made me feel lost was the continuous story telling mode in the book. For example, the mother was telling the daughter her history. In her history, she was being told a story, and there was a character telling a story in the story. That, could be a little confusing for some readers.

Another factor that caused me to say “The Kitchen God’s Wife” was not enjoyable was that reading the book did not make me feel any positive feelings. However, I must say, it was a very addicting book. There were several times when I could not put down the book although I knew I had a pile of homework waiting for me. I just had to read, read, and read. I wanted to know what was going to happen next. It was not a book that could make me laugh, but a book that could make me muse, think, and reflect.

Winnie Louie said this about her uncle in Chapter 6, “I don’t know why he thought this was good, to imitate what foreigners did, as if everything Western were good, everything Chinese not so good.” (Tan par.4). I see this happen everyday, especially after I came to SSIS, that people are being westernized. Just like what Winnie Louie had said, as if one’s culture is not good enough, that one has to imitate others from another culture that one admires. Even in my home country, I have seen Chinese attempting to stop speaking their mother tongue and trying to speak and act like an American. Disgust – that is what I feel. I even feel sorry for them. Gradually, they might lose their culture and identity. Who will they become? They may not be a Malaysian Chinese anymore if they do not think, act and speak like one. They may not be an American either – how can they truly be one if they have never lived in the United States?

Allow me to explain myself. I reacted strongly with this quote because I am afraid of losing my identity as a Malaysian Chinese and my first language as Chinese – after living in Vietnam for one and a half years. Currently my brother has difficulties expressing himself by using Chinese in a complete sentence. It is extremely challenging for him. He had to – he must – speak in English in order to convey his thoughts. Would you allow something similar like that to happen to you?

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