So far.....

-Right now, I have done my job as the photojournalist. Racked up quite a good number in still images to send to the film group for their video and perhaps a little scrapbook for the Doc himself. -I am Pretty sure that I need to send the film group the photographs. -The benefit: I get to work on and master my craft. The benefit for others: giving them a slice of time that they will hopefully treasure and cherish for the years to come.

*The Things We Do In School.... Assemblies. (UPDATED!)

Car "Accident"..?

Click the link above for some student photojournalism...


*If that link above does not work for you for lack of a facebook account, click this to see the mock accident. This a non-facebook url where you can view the images.

OKay, so....

..... Progress: I don't really keep track of how I'm actually doing. Which is bad. However, I say: AP Exam, COME AT ME!

Star Date..... May 2nd.

Okay, so that Lit Terms quiz was.... okay-good. However, this has been a rather droll day. Aside from the quiz, I couldn't really think about AP Exam. Not that it's a bad thing, but something just felt off balanced. Probably the schedule. Anyway, I'm going day by day trying to pull out stuff like poetry rubrics and lit terms and whatnots through visual images of my surrounds and potentially my photos that I take rather than being structured with no wiggle room.

Some thoughts

Okay, so right now I am just going over words off a literature terms list with some friends. Pleases excuse some of the crude speeling because this is quite frustrating doing this on an iPod. Anyway, the going over the terms is going "okay-good" and it's off to a good start. Later today, I'm feeling like going. Over more words on my own and thinking about some of he essay prompts. Hopefully I get get some thoughts in the way I would like. So e that are quite satisfying. I have to say that today in class..... That I should work on collaborati g with others in his class. Not so much others in here right now, but more of others who take this course during different times of the day. As I type this, I cannot help but get in involved with the random word studies going on. I'll end here for now, this iPod is really frustrating me right now. Till then, またね

What Do You See?

In the comments section below, leave something that tells a story about this photo from your point of view. You are the narrator, you tell the story that YOU see in this photograph.

This photograph is my own.

AP Test Plan Prep... stuff

So here is how it goes. My plans for preparing for the AP Test is to..... prepare.

Okay, so I don't have any set plans as of this moment, nor even last night. However, I'll take up what the Doc said today in class. Proper diet, sufficient sleep and pretty much that. Mentally, I have no clear plan for that. Physically, I'm taking his advice.

Perhaps for a mental preparation, I'll.... implement whatever I know (and more) in my everyday routines to get me more familiar with the stuff.

Joy Luck Club Remix

Socratic Notes

• Play <or any sort of leisure time> is needed for anybody
• Lets creativity and freedom flow
• Beneificial in terms of sociability and creativity down the road
• Too much structure is dangerous
• Mostly influenced by what the future outcome may result in
• Too many restrictions  will destroy later life
• Keep to a minimal, guidelines would be best
• Break old habits
• Keep a straight mind
• Stand strong
• Don't fear failure or rejection

1) Considering how these concepts have been introduced, that thought where grades no longer matter is when the individual can truely learn. That free-roaming learning without that constant nagging of that "OMGBBQSAUCE! This is going to be GRADED! I must make sure I get an A+++++!!!! ksdhfvaencv" type crap which usully ends in half hearted work that still gets that stupid grade giving the student a false sense of "intelligence".

2) Bringing these concepts to help my performance on the AP exam is just to go out and look for relative subjects for the AP exam that interest me. As weird as it may sound, structured learning does not always have to be detrimental to anybody. If anything, I'll just need to find my hurdles and prepare ways I can get pass them with the limitations that I have in the structure of the AP exam itself while still maintaining the actual subject focus in mind.

3) The setting of guidelines and the usage of creative ways to collaborate with others can be extremely beneficial. Of course, some structure is needed to keep it from being too chaotic, but perhaps maybe even introduce a game of some sort to encourage the creative learning to enhance that network.

Lecture Notes: Tale of Two Cities

1. "The Frozen Deep" - 1857 
1. inspired A Tale of Two Cities.
2. self sacrifice
3. love triangle (how delicious)
2.  Fell in love with actress name Ellen and left wife - 1857 
3. Ellen inspired Lucie's character
1. Other characters:
2. Charles Darney and Sydney Carton (originally named Dick Carton)
1. doubleness of character
2. Charle's Dickens' initials
4. Public readings for prophit - 1858
   • separated from wife
   • left his editors
5.  New editor - 1859 
   • first three chapters of A Tale of Two Cities are pubished (woo) 
6. Experiences in London gave him a "profound knowlege of the city"
   • a dark and fascating place
   • "everything is there and disconnected
7. Paris: 1844
   • "most extraordinary place in the world"
   • strange, striking things
   • half size of London
   • visited 15 times
   • public charity readings
   • last visit was 2 years before his death
   • vibrant modernizing city
     • had a darker side:
     • dark, wicked place, but wonderfully attractiv
     • liked visiting the Morgue
       • public attraction
       • attraction of repulsion
8. Worlds of London and Paris were the same in his story
9. people were haunted by memory of French Rev.
   • very brave for confronting that fear in his story
     • published in weekly and monthly volumes
       • restricted his focus
   • "Best story I've ever written"
10. 1860: first stage version of book
11. 1899: The Only Way
    • another stage play
12. Silent film - 1909 (These are remarkably fun)
13. Sound film: 1935 
14. Thomas Carslisle
    • friends with Dickens
    • influence
    • "History of the French Revolution"

Shakespeare in ABC's "Castle"?

You may want to skip ahead to about eight minutes and twenty seconds (8:20). A dead give away thanks to Castle himself, but you can take your own guess if you skip to eight minutes and thirty-five seconds (8:35)

Big Question with a hint of Abstract

         

How does the study of music theory and mathematics help us understand music in a much larger picture?



While a surprise to most of the musicians and common people, there is not much of dissimilarity between music and mathematics. Learning music will not necessarily improve math skills to that of a genius mathematician with an individual, yet it will strengthen certain parts of the brain that are implemented in numerical properties. Some of which include relationships, a different voicing or method of solving a problem, etc. To most, math and music are very irrelevant when it comes to both subjects.



Dating back to ancient Chinese, Mesopotamians and Egyptians, the study on the principle of sound and the mathematics of it, and during the time of Plato, harmony was considered a fundamental branch of physics which is known today as musical acoustics, or just acoustics. In early Chinese and Indian times, theorists show the similar approach towards mathematical laws of harmony and rhythm was fundamental to even that of human well-being, and not just the world.



The use of mathematics to understand music is only a theory. Like math itself, there is only a certain point that is reached where the numbers don’t come out as complete whole, such as pi. Some aspects may not even exist at all when it comes to music. Both are very complementary when it comes to one another, but highly advanced mathematics wouldn’t be found in music of any simplistic or complicated form.

Lit Analysis

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini


1)The Kite Runner is a novel about the journey of boy named Amir. With the story being told by Amir, the novel begins with a flashback about twenty-six years back in time, to when Amir was a little boy growing up in Kabul. This point of the story told us about Amir's life as a child, with his father, who was a businessman, and two servants to his family. One of the servants was Amir's best friend, named Hassan. When hassled by the town bully, Hassan hit him with a rock shot from his slingshot. From there, the story jumps to winter time, and a kite fighting contest takes place. There is this tradition that the kids have called 'kite running' and they try to get the losing kite that fell from the sky. When Amir is fighting in the contest, Hassan goes to look for the fallen kite, who is then followed by Amir some time after. Amir finds Hassan in an alley way with the town bully and some of his buddies, watching as they take advantage of Hassan. Drifting apart, and overcome with guilt, Hassan and Amir leave each others' lives after Amir planted items in Hassan's bed, accusing him of thievery. Time goes on, and things start to get bad with the invasion of the Soviets in Kabul. Amir and his father flee the country, and after a long period, they soon go to Fremont, California where Amir attends school, and his father working at a gas station. In time, Amir finds a lovely girl, and soon marries her. After his marriage, Amir's father dies. Further into his life, Amir receives a call from his father's friend, and it was about Hassan. Amir, still holding the guilt of what had happened when he was a kid, goes to Kabul. Hassan's child is missing, and Amir goes to look for him. Nearly getting himself killed, he manages to save the kid and redeems himself of his wrong doings done to his best friend.


2) One of the themes for The Kite Runner is the search of redemption. Best shown by Amir and his guilt that was carried thoughout his entire life ever since the incident with Hassan. This is probably the main theme that drives the novel.

3)The tone o the author is also related to the theme itself, which is being the confessional tone. Throughout the novel, it is portrayed all through Amir's actions, feelings and decisions. One example would be the pomegranates being throw at Hassan, just so he would throw them back at Amir. Amir wanted to be punished for his actions-- or lack of. Not only did he wanted to be punished, but he also pushed away his best friend. Amir built up too much guilt all to the point of framing Hassan for a thievery he didn't commit just so that he can get away. Lastly, when Amir encounters Assef again near the end of the novel, he starts laughing only because he is getting punished for it, getting beaten to near death by Assef.

4) The literary elements of The Kite Runner all have a slot within the machine that is this book. The foreshadowing in the story raises question about the surrounding events with the Islamic fundamentalists, and even when Baba questions Amir's ability to stand up for what is right. The overall feel of the book happens to be like that of a spring. It is felt all throughout the novel, even at times where it didn't appear to be as such.

Modernism

Modernism: A style or movement in the arts that aims to break with classical and traditional forms

One example can be the band, POLYSICS

Thinking Outside the Box

There is a limitation to people's thinking, but it isn't a natural born limit. It's due to the humans themselves who make themselves limited. Nothing holds us back more than ourselves. No one can just fish around in our heads, that's impossible, but we don't have any boundaries to our minds, yet Plato places those prisoners in the cave as if they were created there, but none of them have a reason to not be in the cave. Sartre, however, describes the setting and whatnot through usage of the characters (Garcin, Valet, Inez and Estelle). The cave dwellers made the choice to be dull in their minds, not think and try to entertain themselves with shadows and puppets. "The Exit", on the other hand, had it's characters ponder in their thoughts of the situation and try to vacate the room. Quite symbolic, and everything was in thirds. Three people in the room, three corners to this room and the presence of some odd bronze statue. "Allegory of the Cave" wasn't just a story, but more like a reflection, a mirror to how we think and analyze, and how it affects our actions and decisions. We can mold our own imprisonment in our minds of thinking or refusing to think. An example would be a hidebound person.

The BIG Question.... Revised

What are the quality and skills necessary for proficiency in music and mathematics, and are they related?

The Big Question.... of stuff

All I'm curious about:

How is music and mathematics even related?

How did anyone even discover that?

Maybe it ties in with this whole Music Theory stuff?

<if only this sounded a wee bit smarter>

Literary Language Essay

            Have you ever thought about what a book, novel, would or a story is like if the writing in it wasn’t what is there? As in, what if the language used in that favorite book was done by another author? For example, having Stephen King write the Harry Potter books, but the point to take away from that is how language can make a difference in the writing. For this case, it is Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, against several epic poems, such as Beowulf. For Hamlet himself, his words are all about the meaning and the power behind it all to try and reach the listener or the one he is addressing. If the pen is mightier than the sword, then the words are mightier than the pen. Beowulf, however, deals with great embellishment, metaphors and other literary elements in order to see what he sees.

            Young Hamlet’s style is mainly the power of the words. “It’s not what you say; it’s how you say it.” Not something from the play itself, but that is the general understanding when it comes to Hamlet when he speaks. “To be, or not to be--that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune or to take arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing end them.” The first example comes from Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” soliloquy. Here, Hamlet is already pondering in his thoughts about his plans. This may be a small snippet of the soliloquy, but it’s clearly written out on how Hamlet speaks. His language sounds vast and deep, and it is assumed it will get any reader to journey off into their own mind to process and think about what Hamlet is saying. There is an emotional aura to it, an aura that isn’t seen or used by someone such as Beowulf.

            Beowulf is a man of action. Some may claim he is a could-hearted fiend, while others—especially those in the story—see him as a wise man. Wise men think their actions through and will consider many factors and aspects of what is going on around them. Beowulf, however, does not do such things. “Beowulf got ready, donned his war-gear, indifferent to death; his mighty, hand-forged, fine-webbed mail, would soon meet with the menace underwater.” The following events after that was Beowulf’s encounter with Grendel’s mother. There have been tales of how dangerous it is facing her, even now with a burning vendetta towards Beowulf for killing her son. This is not a wise man, but a fearless man. When he is victorious in slaying Grendel’s mother, his words that follow afterwards are of great exaggeration. Beowulf doesn’t think twice about his actions. He is like the Energizer Bunny. Never stops. Just keeps going, and going.

            Through analysis of these two works of literature, language does play a keen role in the story and the characters. One style is about how your words affect yourself and the others around you while the other piece is about how you are affected by the others. “It’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.”

Procrastination

There isn't much to say about procrastination. There is no way to "not" procrastinate, and the term cannot be specially labeled to high school students. Surely we all procrastinate. No one can honestly say "I have not procrastinated on anything." There are times where we want to work and times where we want to relax before the work. To a certain extent, it's just plain disappointing considering how much time you've "relaxed" since the time of your relax period actually began. As for the video, it makes sense. Even though it's not the saying everyone will say or use, they always do it eventually.

"I'll get to it..... EVENTUALLY!!"