Changes Yet to Come

Looking back on the last fifty years, I've realized just how much things change in a short time. In the future, I expect to see some ground-breaking changes in the medical field, our economic standing, new automobiles, and much more.

Many significant advances were made in the medical field since the turn of the century. One of the more recent and influential advances was the da Vinci surgical system. This is a robot that assists doctors in surgery. It can remove prostates, perform gynecologic surgery, urogynecology, and gynecologic oncology. Futher study and improvements are being made on the da Vinci, but as is, it is already FDA approved for those surgeries.

As everyone is fully aware, our economy is currently recovering from a recession. Some of the steps that were taken towards coming out of this recessions was the stimulus package by President Obama. Early this yera, Congress gave their approval for a$787 billion package to jump start the economy again and rise up again after the downfall that began late in 2006. I think that in the future, there will be more effective plans in the restoration of our economy.

I think that in the future, there will be more fuel efficient cars, if not completely fuel free cars. There are hybrid cars out there now, but in the future, I expect to see more eco-friendly vehicles.

Looking back, I see many changes in lifestyle over the last fifty years, and i expect to see the same for the next fifty years. Although it may seem strange now, it will soon become our accepted way of life.

Amanda Story

The project I am currently working on is a story about my little sister, Amanda. She is five years old, and adopted from the Jiangxi Province in China. We adopted her when she was only one and a half years old. Although we have a huge ten year age difference, I still love her all the same. My dad and step mom adopted her, so she lives with them in Washington. I live in New York with my mom and step dad, so I only see Amanda on school breaks when I fly out to see my dad. I spend two months with her in the summer, so it makes up for some of the time I spend away from her during the year. I love her so much, so it's always hard to leave after the summer and come back to New York. My step mom and dad are amazing parents to us, and I love them for that. I always keep up with her and what she does in school. She started kindergarten this year! My story is about me and my sister and the love we share <3

This project was a great way to communicate and share my sister's story with the world. Not only did I complete an assignment for school, but I worked on something that helped me realize just how much my sister Amanda has changed my life. Throughout this entire project, from gathering pictures, to actually putting the slide show together, I've realized just how much our lives have changed over the years since we adopted her. Doing this project gave me insight as to how much we've grown, and just how much she has influenced me in my everyday life even when I'm not with her. Not many people have, or know of people who have adopted siblings, so her story is unique.

Here is my rubric.

The Insider Publications with the New Staff

Starting tomorrow, the process of the publication of our second issue of The Insider will begin. After school tomorrow, there will be an Editorial Board Meeting.  There, the entire staff will meet and pitch their ideas for Issue 2.  The new staff positions were announced and posted today, so we will all be together discussing ideas and filling our new roles.  As the new Assistant Features Editor, I will be covering all the school events.  This is the position I applied for, and I'm more that happy that I got the job.  I am very interested in what's going on in the school, so I will do my best to cover these stories.

I still have a lot of work to do to prepare for tomorrow's meeting.  I need to have two pitches ready to present to the Editors in Chief and Mrs. Kaplan.  

I am very excited to see what the new staff brings to The Insider.  It's always interesting to see how people bring new perspectives to stories.  With the seniors graduated and gone, there are new Editors in place running the paper.  

I am looking forward to seeing how The Insider fares this year considering the fact that our main source of funding has just been taken away.  The Insider a public forum because it is 100% funded by the students.  No money for the paper comes from the school or the Asia Society.  In the previous years, that money came primarily from the bake sales held during lunch.  This year, the chancellor passed a bill that stated that no "unhealthy food" can be sold during school hours.  The sales must be before or after school.  This has proven to be a major obstacle for us, and we are doing everything we can to overcome it.  

With the new staff and new board laws, this new year should bring lots of excitement.  

Current Event #1: Swine Flu Strikes the Backstreet Boys

Yesterday, Brian Litrell of Backstreet Boys was diagnosed with the Swine Flu. The band was scheduled to have a signing for "PINKtober" at the Hard Rock Cafe in NYC, but since he has the Swine Flu, it had to be cancelled. They also had to be pulled from a performance on the CBS Early Show because of the band member's medical condition. Thankfully, none of the other Backstreet Boys had the Swine Flu. They are all taking Tamiflu to suppress and prevent Swine Flu symptoms. This website gives more details. The video posted on that site is Brian Litrell personally explaining the situation at hand. He express his sincerest apologies for his absence and his illness. I feel bad for him because this was his chance to see his fans and meet them personally, and he has contracted the Swine Flu. The Swine Flu can get pretty bad. Some of the symptoms are listed on this site .

Blogging in Education

Blogging is beneficial to education.  It benefits education by giving teachers extra instructional time outside the classroom, and helping them understand their students better based on their thoughts and opinions. It is helpful to schools because it allows students to "find a voice" and make their expressions known.  Using blogging in schools can help teachers and students as well.  Blogging in schools helps them by allowing students to engage with each other while reading and responding to other student's posts.  This gives them insight into the mind of the students in their school.