Advice for Class of 2016

8th grade isn't much different than 7th grade. Though some of your teachers will change, it'll be the same premise. There will only be a couple of "real" changes: Math, and LA. Most of you will be changing from Pre-Algebra to Algebra, which isn't all much harder. Language Arts is actually easier in 8th grade, because you write essays probably one or two in a couple of months. So there is not much change from your Seventh grade life.

High School Stuff

I thought the High School Experience was nice. We learned a little bit about the high school during that ice cream social. I don't think there will b too many problems in H.S.

Better Good

In the little black room there is life, sitting there like a rock on a stone, but of course in all of the goodness, we can have better and we might need better to succeed. So the hand of goodness, one of many types reaches upon us and we grasp it, but it never brings us up, away into an even better world. Ways of getting the besetment of infinitive good is so close, as which is read in "The Hundredth Dove", by Jane Yolen.

Goodness is superior. We all want to be happy; no one wants to be sad. There is many ways of kindness and goodness that are always there. Reading may make you happy. Your wife may be all the kindness in the world, and maybe even your own pet. But there is just that one thing that always pops out at you, rendering you "funny" inside, as it’s the "best of the best". It isn't like giving a dog a bone; you must attempt to gain this goodness. In "Speak", written by Laurie Anderson, Melinda cannot just wait for the hand; the 'dove' to take her, she must make the necessary moves to gain this boost of kindness.

This kindness, this greatness, is not necessary to most normal life. You don't need to be the one with the best lawnmower, do you? No, of course not! So why do we always try to catch the better one? We all want to have something better. The white dove is the better of the flock. She is the most majestic one. Yes, she’s also a person, but compared to the rest of the flock, she was the best of the best. How she the slid through the net just shows that you must use effort and care to capture her.

So know we have the “best”. Why was it killed? Well, besides for pure anger, we humans sometimes cannot handle to know the truth. So, it may be killed, and sometimes it gets defenestrated. If the fowler would have successfully not killed the dove, it would simply have gone away. The wife and dove are the greatness in the story. Yet, the fowler turned down the dove’s offers. Mr. Fowler was to focused on one thing: serving the king. Yet when he killed the dove, there was no wedding. The goodness had been killed.

With great care, goodness can become ours and ours to keep. You cannot destroy its, rather to let it go if you know you are going to be powerless to handle it.

Equalization

It is almost impossible to make everyone equal. It has rarely worked. This is simply because people are different. All it does is cause people to go from bad to worse. So many botched attempts have been made to make everything equal. This is described in “Harrison Bergeron”, which portrays a family’s sane son who tries to make things unequal for the better.


You cannot make everyone equal. It would be nice to live in a utopian society like that, but it is impossible. look at the racism in the world. It is still there. Communism. Everything is supposed to be better. But it never works. You may say “Well the story says it everyone can be equal”. No. They have made everyone dumb. So dumb they can’t remember what happened five seconds ago. And to the smart – you put a noise emitter in there ear to stop their thought process? And what about the beautiful? Masks? Neck weights for the strong? No. Diana Moon Glampors is sure not equal. Harrison Bergeron certainly knew. He was the only sane person there.


Equalization will most certainly never work. You cannot herd a countries citizens into a single group, as it will not go over well.

Happiness

Warm inviting happiness will always bring us away from the darkness. Keeping us away from evil and sadness. Happiness's abound with loyalty from its followers. We worship it like a god, yet treat it so contently like its not even there, like it doesn't exist.

The Dandelion

Whispering in the wind
like a mouse through a house
as the willows and grass blow
the graceful dandelion stays
planted in its final spot
where it will continue to whisper
for a long, long time

Speaking Up

A lot of things happen in High School, or Middle School. Taunting, harassment, bullying, they all happen. Unfortunately, sometimes these kinds of things lead to emotional stress, and sometimes even death. It is a sad, sad thing when people go out one night to bite the bullet. Now, not all cases of bulling, harassment or taunting lead people of thinking about doing that. One good example is in the novel “Speak”, written by Laurie Halse Anderson shows that if one will speak up, they could – and probably would get some help.

In “Speak”, the main character Melinda doesn’t speak out to her parents, to anyone about the rape until the very end of the school year. That is how some bullying cases work, but you see here, Melinda is being bullied, but the accusers (pretty much everyone at school) don’t know the whole story. How can this be? Well, once again, Melinda and the others who might be out there with this need to speak up a little bit, whether they are being taunted in school or not, because you are bullying yourself by not telling anyone about it.

High School can be a daunting place for an outcast, but remember there still is hope if you open your mouth to tell other about it once in a while. Bullying is never good, but it can always be resolved.

Does Patriotism Still Matter

    Yes. Who would serve our country? With the American flag up at every government, civil installations, and a lot of residencies, patriotism still matters. America guarantees that we have the right to say what we want, have to freedom and option to do things that we would like to do, and to live in a place where people cannot be punished because of beliefs, politics or way of living. We have built the strongest force, and we respect it each way we can. Yes, patriotism still matters. If we showed no respect to our country, wouldn't that mean that we don't care? Sure it does. If we don't respect the people who have served, the people who created a place of freedom and independence, who would we be? What would we be? Nothing. If no one cared anymore, who would want to serve in the military? Who would need to? If no one cared about the freedoms and choices available to them, America would fall apart. Yes, that's far out there, but it's hard to not want to show some sort of patriotism to America.

    Yes. Patriotism still matters. When I see someone with the flag up, or the one guy wearing the flag shirt, I immediately think of how much effort was put into the US, an how much people respect should respect it. I'm not saying to where a flag shirt to school, but the simple little joys we have were not created easily. You don't necessarily have to wear American clothes to be patriotic. When you help someone is distress, your being patriotic. If you go on with your life, without causing any havoc, you're being patriotic. So, yes patriotism still matters.

Nuclear Energy

Coal, Natural Gas, Nuclear. What do they all have in common? They are all ways to make, electricity, yes. But, the electricity is made the same – by boiling water. How the heat is created to boil the water is different. In the coal industry, they burn coal, which creates heat, which is used to boil water. The steam then turns generators, which will create electricity. Natural gas works the same, except that it burns Natural Gas, not coal.

The energy or heat in nuclear power is created by splitting atoms (fission), or by putting atoms together (fusion). Fusion is experimental, and is not used in any commercial nuclear power plant. You can't just split any atom, though. Uranium is used in all western hemisphere reactors, and most other nuclear reactors around the world. You don't want to use plutonium because it is very unstable, and the nuclear process (fission) can go out of control. Uranium is much, much more stable, making it safer. When a neutron is fired at uranium, it releases kinetic energy, gamma radiation, and more neutrons. The extra neutrons created then split more nuclei form the uranium (U-238), and a chain reaction occurs. This will happen until there is no more nuclei. To sum it up, when uranium absorbs a neutron, it splits into smaller nuclei, which releases more neutrons, kinetic energy, and gamma radiation. Kinetic energy is converted into thermal energy. This is created by kinetic energy colliding with nearby atoms. Heat is created by radioactive decay. The heat is taken away by in most (75%) of nuclear power plants water, but graphite can be used, also.

There are various types of reactor design, but there are two that are used most: Pressurized Water Reactor and Boiling Water Reactor. In a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), everything is stored in a pressure vessel, which contains the nuclear fuel, control rods, moderator, and coolant. The hot, radioactive water that leaves the pressure vessel is looped through a steam generator, which will heat a second loop of non-radioactive water, which will turn turbines. The radioactive water will then loop through the pressure vessel, to be reheated. In a Boiling Water Reactor (BWR), the water is boiled right in the pressure vessel, which will run the turbines, to create electricity. The most popular type of reactor design in the US is the PWR, with the BWR following second.

To control, slow or stop the chain reaction, Control Rods are used. They are made of a nuclear poison, which absorbs the neutrons, which slows the chain reaction. They can be inserted farther into the reactor to further slow the reactivity. If they are inserted far enough, the chain reaction will eventually stop.

Misery

    When we think of what misery is, the first thing that comes to mind is someone crying, or someone in pain or even distress, which these are all forms of misery. We think Misery is only minor suffering. As in Misery, by Stephen King, shows you what it Misery really means, and how it can become a hellish nightmare.

    Hell. Horror. These are all things we don't want to be living. As with the ancient romans, and even modern day prisons, misery was a common sight. All those people in there had their freedom taken away for some reason, whether it be for murder or bank robberies. What Paul Sheldon went through was just like medieval imprisonment, but with no reason at all.

    Although insane people are normally whisked away to a loony bin, Annie Wilkes was one of the lucky ones. She was the devil—in Paul Sheldon's mind. Hell, as we know it is no different than her twisted life style. One aspect of some insane people is control. And it isn't helping Paul that he is the Stephen King of his world.

    Just like hell, the life and ways of Annie Wilkes most definitely create misery. She is the devil.

Nuclear Debate

Nuclear power is one of those "topics" debated about. Now, I support nuclear power, and, thus am going to tell you that it is good, but, it is your decision. The pros of Nuclear power: It's a cheap, reliable source of electricity. Only 150 tons of nuclear fuel is needed to produce as much electricity as 2,325,000 tons of coal. Although Nuclear power is easy, it produces a unique challenge for designers and operators. All nuclear power plants produce radiation inside of the reactor, where it is protected by concrete walls that are very thick. In the case that the reactor core heats and begins melting (unofficially called a meltdown), the concrete shield is the last line of defense. Nuclear plant designed in the western hemisphere (including the United States) is far more sophisticated than those located in the eastern hemisphere. The Chernobyl accident was caused by well, not using the reactor the way it should be. Chernobyl Nuclear was located in the former USSR, in Ukraine. That nuclear accident released a dangerous amount of radiation into the atmosphere, which eventually went all the way around the world, because the only had a thin steel shield installed, instead of many feet of concrete. The only severe accident in the US was the three mile accident. A small amount of radiation had escaped, but no injuries were reported.