Vocabulary: week 6

Embezzle (verb) - to take dishonestly
"The accountant embezzled thousands of dollars while working for the wealthy family"

He enjoyed his job very much since he oculd easily embezzle cookies from the cookie jar.
Emaciate (verb) - cause to grow thin or weak
"The treatment emaciated him"
Obsolete (adjective) - no longer in use; grown old, worn out
"The obsolete weapons are in the attic"

Obsolete United States Navy Battle ships.
Obviate (verb) -do away with
"To obviate the risk of serious injury" When dieting, people often obviate their health instead of the fat.
Penchant (noun) - a strong liking
" A penchant for outdoor sports"
Paucity (noun) - an insufficiant quantity or number
"A country with a paucity of resources"
Sycophant (noun) -a person who tries to please someone in order to gain a personal advantage "flatterer" Sycophants are also known as suck ups, and to usually make more money in buisnesses, that's what it takes to do so.
Taut (adjective) - pulled tight; neat and tidy or concise
"Nerves taut with anxiety"
Tenuous (adjective) - very thin; having little substance
"A tenuous argument"
Tenacity (noun)- persistent determination; tenacious (firm hold, tough)

Current Event: 02-25-08

Smoking could kill 1 billion by 2100

Tobacco use killed 100 million people worldwide in the 20th century and could kill one billion people in the 21st unless governments act now to dramatically reduce it. Governments around the world collect more than $200 billion in tobacco taxes every year. What they need to do though is increase their efforts to prevent young people from smoking, help smokers quit, and provide more protection to nonsmokers from exposure to second hand smoke. Tobacco use is also rising fastest in low-income countries as well. The tobacco epidemic already kills 5.4 million people a year from lung cancer, heart disease, and other illnesses, and that number will increase to more than 8 million a year by 2030. Unless urgent action is taken more than one billion people could be killed by tobacco during this century. Personally, this really upsets me how the tobacco industry's could be so heartless. My mother is addicted to tobacco, and she has tried stopping repeatedly yet with no positive results. Even though the tobacco industry's bring in a lot of income to the governments, I think our families are more important and their lives are at stake.

For more information, click here

Current Event: 02-19-08

Music speeds recovery from stroke

A recent study says listening to one's favorite melodies can speed a recovery from a stroke. When stroke patients in Finland listened to music for a couple of hours each day, verbal memory and attention span improved significantly opposed to patients who received no musical stimulation, or who only listened to stories read aloud, the study reported. Those who listened to music also experienced less depression than the ones who didn't.
Interestingly three months after a stroke, verbal memory was boosted by 60 percent in music listeners, 18 in audio book listeners, and 29 by non-listeners.

This is the first time music alone has been shown to have a positive effect on victims of brain injury, in this case stroke. Sarkamo speculates that this is because music stimulates a part of the brain in feelings of pleasure and reward that is stimulated by the release of dopamine. Previous research shows that increased dopamine enhances alertness, speed of information processing, attention, and memory in healthy humans. He also stated that music listening might not work for every patient.

This is significant because stroke patients don't always recover and finding new ways and techniques for them to do so, is a major plus factor especially for the families going through that hard time.

For more information click here

Vocabulary: week 5

lucidity: noun. easily understood; clearness of thought or style

"a lucid explanation"

conciliatory: to regain or try to regain (friendship or goodwill) by pleasant behavior; overcome distrust

"a conciliatory manner"

Candidate John McCain spoke after the New York Times wrongfully accused him of infidelity. They stated he had an affair with his wife even though that had no evidence of him doing so. It was strange because they had been working on this article for over a year, and a couple of months ago they published another article endorsing him focusing on why he would be good for president. McCain stated in his speech that it wasn't true and that it was an attempt at loosening the weight off of Clinton.

countermand: an order or command canceling or reversing a previous command

acumen: quickness, accuracy and keenness of judgment or insight

"remarkable acumen in business matters"

insurrection: an act or instance of rising in revolt, rebellion, or resistance against civil authority or an established government

The insurrection of the people allowed for them to gain independence and freedom as well.

fidelity: loyalty; faithfulness

"a servant's fidelity" "fidelity to one's country"

Fidelity is what holds friendships and marriages together. Who could believe in or share something with someone they don't trust?

complicit: adj. choosing to be involved in an illegal or questionable act or a crime

"the newspapers complicit with the propaganda"

Some speculate that the government was complicit in the 9/11 attacks. They also say that the government did so to gain the trust of the American people so then they go to war with Iraq for different reasons of their own. People are divided on this argument though, due to evidence and whether or not the government would do such a thing.

steadfast: literally means fixed in place, but is used figuratively and means firm in purpose, faith, attachment; sure; dependable; reliable; constant/unwavering

emancipation: The act of freeing from restraint; to free (a slave) from bondage

Emancipation is what freed the slaves from slavery. Their various attempts and efforts freed them from restraint and cruelty.

bolster: a cushion, often used figuratively not literally. basically something used for support or to aid.

Current Event: 02-14-08

Laser can detect diseases in your breath

There is a new laser technique that could allow for doctors to detect certain diseases, such as lung caner or asthma, simply by analyzing a patient's breath. The new study shows that this new laser system can identify certain compounds in a breath sample that may be signs of diseases. Doctors show interest towards using this device for routine use in doctor's offices. The advantages of this new technology would be that it would provide a painless and non-invasive way of detecting certain diseases. In addition it could enable physicians to detect some signs sooner which in return allows for quicker treatment.
Breath analysis systems have been around for several years, but a common problem with previous method is that they could only detect one or just a small amount of compounds in a breath sample which wouldn't provide enough information to determin is the person had a specific disease and so on.
So far this device was able to detect higher levels of carbon monoxide in the breath of a smoker compared to a non-smoking participant. It also has distinguished ammonia. Most importantly though this device would be most useful for detecting lung problems, such as lung cancer and asthma.

For more information click here

Current event: 02-07-08

The manhunt for the gunman continues...

Five women were found dead on a Saturday inside a store in this chicago suburb. The dead included the store manager and four other customers who unfortunately happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
"Sadly, this is a commentary on our society that no community is immune to what can happen," Mayor Ed Zabrocki stated.
Police are on the look out for a 5-foot-9 black male weighing 230 to 260 pounds.
Sadly two other incidents similar to this happened not too long ago, nine people killed in one, and five in the other.
Now seriously, what is happening to our society? How come more and more tragic incidents like this are happening almost everytime we blink? People are not as safe as they used to be, and this is not right nor humane. A mom should be able to drop off her teenagers at the mall and have no worry of something like this happening, but since that can't happen anytime soon at this rate, safety needs to be taken into more consideration.
Those shootings drew attention to mall safety as well. About 190 million people visit a U.S. mall every month, so this was a necessary notion. One of the things they are going to progress on for mall safety is in-store training, so retailers know how to respond to a threat of any sort, have more surveillance so it is caught on camera, and add a silent alarm system so in case this did happen again help would be on its way.

Click here, to find out more...

Book Report 1: The Hobbit

The book I chose to read is known as The Hobbit. It is a well known classic and was the first book written before the entire Lord of the Ring series which is why it interested me, also because I am interested in fantasy novels. The Hobbit is the first book that many people think of when it comes to goblins, dwarves, and elves and it was a must read.
The Hobbit is about a Hobbit named Bilbo Baggins, and his journey from a quiet sheltered home to a life of adventure. The plot begins with Bilbo being tricked into volunteering to join an adventurous band of dwarves who wish to get back their faraway home from an evil dragon, Smaug. The Dwarves know of an ancient treasure guarded by the dragon, and they offer Bilbo a generous portion of it if he manages to make himself useful on the journey. While at first Bilbo is reluctant to leave his sheltered life, much of the story revolves around him learning to embrace the life he has and takes to the life of adventure. Their Journey takes them through forests filled with both monsters and elves, caves filled with goblins and trolls, and eventually to the Ancient home of the dwarves known as The Lonely Mountain. During this journey, Bilbo progressively proves himself to the dwarves, and the band eventually becomes very close. While lost in a dark cave, he comes across a ring with the power to make him invisible. The ring then becomes his secret weapon, and makes him very useful to the group. They also make many strange friends along the way. Afterwards they stop for supplies from a nearby town before facing Smaug, and then camp in a secret entrance to the Mountain. As they sit around and try to find a way to kill Smaug, they wake him up. Knowing the dwarves are there to kill him, Smaug goes crazy and starts attacking anyone in sight. He nearly destroys the nearby village and is eventually killed by a human, whose home was destroyed. With Smaug dead, the Dwarves settle in the mountain and send word to their families. Many dwarves answer the call and come to help rebuild their homes. However, the elves and humans who were attacked by Smaug surround the Lonely Mountain and the Dwarves because they want to be repaid for killing the dragon and taking so much damage. As things get worse, Bilbo desperately tries to save the people from even more innocent killings. Just before war breaks out Gandalf appears and spots the Goblins downhill on the Lonely Mountain. At first everything seemed hopeless, but when the armies of the Dwarves, Elves and Men finally united, they managed to force the Goblins back. Everyone who survived then returns home to rebuild and live happily ever after, including Bilbo.
The main character in the book was Bilbo Baggins who is a hobbit. In the beginning of the book he is quite the gentleman and as the book progresses, he also becomes clever, wise, and adventurous. Smaug is the evil dragon who scared away the dwarves from their homes. Thorin is the leader of the Dwarves and his grandfather was killed by Smaug the dragon when he took over the mountain. Gandalf, who is my favorite character, is the kind and wise wizard.
As for the significance of the book, in my opinion The Hobbit is a classic. Even though it is quite old, I’ve always wanted to read it after seeing all of the Lord of the Ring movies, which the author wrote the books for too. I’ve also always had a vivid imagination and adventurous, fantasy, horror, and romance novels are my favorite. Not only that, but they are the ones I can never put down.

Metallica - Fade to Black

Metallica- Fade to Black

Life it seems, will fade away

Drifting further every day

Getting lost within myself

Nothing matters no one else

I have lost the will to live

Simply nothing more to give

There is nothing more for me

Need the end to set me free

Things are not what they used to be

Missing one inside of me

Deathly lost, this can't be real

Cannot stand this hell I feel

Emptiness is filing meTo the point of agony

Growing darkness taking dawn

I was me, but now He's gone

No one but me can save myself, but it's to late

Now I can't think, think why I should even try

Yesterday seems as though it never existed

Death Greets me warm, now I will just say good-bye

A song is a mixture of a message along with a melody, sometimes just one instead of both. It is also a form of art that you appreciate through listening. The song I chose is called Fade to Black by Metallica. In the song, it begins with an acoustic guitar introduction and becomes progressively heavier as the song goes on. Also the song name is never mentioned in the lyrics.
The song Fade to Black is on the ride the lightning album, which was released in 1984 and the lyrics are based on the story of a man contemplating, and eventually committing suicide because he felt like he had nothing to live for and he would be better off dead. It was also stated that the lyrics were made from the last words of a suicide victim.
The band Metallica is an American heavy metal band that formed in 1981 in Los Angeles, California. They were influenced by bands known as black Sabbath and led zeppelin and they have been a major influence to bands such as Korn and Godsmack. Their songs have been influenced by the corruption of the US government and its justice system. Some of their songs also include distinct anti-war messages. They became more popular when they started creating shorter songs, simpler song structures and slower tempos overall. Yet in the album ride the lightning the riffs and arrangements were more complex.
Overall Metallica is well known for how well they convey emotion in their music and are remembered for their own distinct style that is easily recognized. In the mid-1980’s glam metal became very popular with mainstream and during that time underground bands produced more aggressive styles. Metallica is one of the bands who did so and broke into the main stream with thrash metal. What separates Metal from other genres is the unique heavy sound and extreme display of emotion especially through the intense guitar solos.
Heavy metal is often referred to as metal and is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960’s and 1970’s with major roots in blues-rock. It is usually characterized by distorted guitars, fast guitar solos, intense bass and drum sound, and vigorous vocals. The tempos in early heavy metal bands tended to be slow, but now range from slow tempos to extremely fast blasting tempos. Like other genres, heavy metal as been accused of being the “devils music” and of influencing violence and other poor behavior. But in my opinion it gives people something to hold on to, to relate to and gives people something to release their pain anger or sadness through, especially through times of war, or when facing depression or hopelessness of some sort.

Vocabulary: week 3

1.Disseminate (v): cause to become widely known; "spread information" "disseminate information"

2.Eloquence (n): Powerful and effective language; "his eloquence attracted a large congregation" Basically the power of expressing feelings or thoughts in words that impress or move other people

3.Austere (adj) severe and strict morals; uncompromising; serious; rigorously self-disciplined

4.Baleful (adj) harmful, miserable, evil, wicked; sinister (threatening, or portending (to indicate by predicting) evil, harm, or trouble)

5.Bigot (n) a prejudiced person who is intolerant of any opinions differing from his own; a person who constantly and stubbornly holds a certain point of view

"You can try to convince him, but since he is a bigot I doubt you'll get anywhere"

6.Relapse (n) and (v) to fall or slip back into former/previous state; a failure to maintain a higher state

7.Repudiate (v) to reject with disapproval; discard; condemn

"He repudiated his son after realizing he had disregarded honoring the family"

8.Resilience (n) the ability to recover from being hurt or damaged

9.Sanguine (adj) cheerfully optimistic, hopeful or confident; high spirited; enthusiastic

10.Renovate (v) to restore to good condition; repair