Unit 10 No technology No way

No Technology? No Way! Well, Maybe…

No BlackBerry, no cell phone, no Facebook, no Twitter, no iPad…NO WAY?! Well, maybe. After reading the recent Wall Street Journal article “Your Blackberry or Your Wife” by Elizabeth Bernstein, I was intrigued by the concept of going tech-free. The sidebar, 10 Signs Your Devices Are Hurting Your Relationships, sparked the rationale for doing a tech-free experiment of my own. Even the hilarious Dunphys onModern Family tried going unplugged. Ummm, maybe my husband and I could do this for one night per week? No Tech Tuesday?

My top five reasons for a tech detox:

1. Dinner, Interrupted - In the new “classic” dinner setting, electronic devices have become part of the table setting (fork, knife, spoon, iPhone). At restaurants…and at home. Let’s enjoy each other’s company. And ditch the plugged-in place setting.
2. How Did I Get Here? -Raise your hand if you mindlessly walk to work/school/the gym every day, yet never notice the architecture of the buildings along the way. Or another human being. You are pulled toward your destination like Jason and the Argonauts, except there are no Sirens. (Unless you don’t dodge traffic well. In that case, I hope you have insurance.) With head down, oblivious to everything, some miraculous feat gets you there. Call me a yoga junkie, but I miss mindfulness. I’d like to initiate a temporary ban on “texting gloves” and street e-mailing!
3. No Good Vibrations - PDAs are not alarm clocks. The BlackBerry in the bedroom is causing a perpetual state of hyper-awareness. The blinking light, the pings, the vibrations. Must make bedroom a BlackBerry-free zone.
4. Solitaire Means ONE - While great for productivity, the iPad and iPhone tempt mere mortals with an endless amount addictive games. Take this test: If you constantly play solitaire when not alone, tech detox is for you. (Confession: I sometimes wonder how I lived without the iPad and its apps.)
5. Red Light, Green Light? - Has a red stoplight become an opportunity to explore the red blinking light indicating a text, e-mail, etc.? Cars have been around since the 1800s, we can survive a 20-minute drive without technology. I think.

http://jenmaguire.tumblr.com/post/2733515420/no-technology-no-way-well-maybe

Essay N. 6 

Sonic Pollution

The Merriam-Webster dictionary  defines sonic as  “having a frequency within the audibility range of the human ear —used of waves and vibrations[1].” In sonic pollution, the effects can be auditory and non- auditory. Some auditory effects may be auditory fatigue and deafness. While some non-auditory effects may be physiological and psychological changes in human beings. Noise pollution is annoying, disruptive to people’s emotional state, and sometimes even bad for people’s health. [2]

As the world becomes more advanced, noise increases .Transportation vehicles are the worst offenders, with aircraft, railroad stock, trucks, buses, automobiles, and motorcycles all producing excessive noise. The air around us is constantly filled with sounds, yet most of us would probably not say we are surrounded by noise.Though for some, the persistent and escalating sources of sound can often be considered an annoyance. This “annoyance” can have major consequences, primarily to one’s overall health.  Noise pollution can also affect animals and the environment.

Sound is pleasant or not depending upon its loudness , duration, rhythm and the mood of person. Any unwanted sound that penetrates the environment is noise pollution. In general,  noise pollution refers to any noise irritating people’s ears , coming from an external source. Noise pollution  is  continuously disturbing human peace and tranquility. Noise induced stress creates severe tension in daily living and contributes to mental illness.

Headaches, nauseas and fatigue, phychological disorders , acoustic trauma, hyperglycaemia, hypokalaemia and hypoglycaemia are some of the issues caused by noise pollution. [3]

Noise intensity is measured in decibel units. Subjected to 45 decibels of noise, the average person cannot sleep. At 120 decibels the ear registers pain, but hearing damage begins at a much lower level, about 85 decibels.[4] Apart from hearing loss, such noise can cause lack of sleep, irritability, heartburn, indigestion, ulcers, high blood pressure, and possibly heart disease.

Noise is recognized as a controllable pollutant that can yield to abatement technology . Noise has become an important environmental pollutant and is a serious threat to the quality of our atmosphere that be foul air,  water and soil.[5]

Noise is  an unwanted, unpleasant  sound that causes discomfort. It can be minimized by reducing noise at source, population exposed, and duration of noise exposure. Individuals can take many steps to protect themselves from the harmful effects of noise pollution.

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[1] http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sonic

[2] http://www.wikihow.com/Prevent-Noise-Pollution

[3] http://es.scribd.com/doc/29062311/noise-pollution-and-its-control

[4] http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/science/noise-pollution.html

[5] http://es.scribd.com/doc/29062311/noise-pollution-and-its-control

Unit 9 : Finding a Niche

Challenges Immigrants Face  By Cathy Pearl

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¹     Moving is not an easy thing to do. A person has to leave all of his or her friends and family behind. There are new schools and new towns. A lot of times, a family will move because an adult has a new job. It is a stressful but an exciting time, too. Now imagine you are moving to a new country. You don't know anyone there. No one in your family speaks the language well. When you get there, your parents will have to find a house, jobs, and learn to survive in what seems like a different world. These are some of the problems that immigrants to this country face every day.
 ²     Immigrants come to this country for a better life. For different reasons, immigrants are sure that things are better in this country. Many immigrants come to find work. There are many jobs in this country. But immigrants who don't speak English have a hard time doing many of them. Instead, they have to take jobs that don't pay as much money. This makes it very difficult for them to afford many of the things in this country that they hoped to have.
 ³     New immigrants can have a hard time finding health care. Many of them are working in low paying jobs. These jobs don't have health insurance. Families often do not have enough money to go to a doctor. Many of them don't know where to get help because they don't speak English. When they do go to a doctor, they can have trouble understanding what he or she is telling them. This can make it hard to follow instructions that the doctor gives them.


http://edhelper.com/ReadingComprehension_54_365.html

Ellis Island  By Cathy Pearl

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¹     Ellis Island opened January 1, 1892. More than twelve million immigrants would pass through the island's immigration station between 1892 and 1954. The most came through in 1907. There are estimates that forty percent of people in the United States today had an ancestor that went through Ellis Island.
 ²     Ellis Island was first called Gull Island by Native Americans. At that time, gulls were the only things that lived on it. It was very small, about three acres. The island was made of soft mud. It was so small that it was barely above the water during high tide.
 ³     In 1630, a different owner bought the island. It was used as a place to catch oysters. The island was not good for much else. This owner did not keep the island long. Because it wasn't good for much, it was sold many times during the next one hundred years.
 ⁴     About 1776, Samuel Ellis became the owner of the island. He tried to sell the island and couldn't. Before he died, he tried to give the island to the state. He died before the paperwork was finished.
 ⁵     In 1794, New York leased the island. They thought it was a great place to build a fort. There would be a lot of construction problems. But the Ellis family could still change their minds about the lease. If they did, all buildings on the island would have to be torn down.

Famous Inmigrant 

Unit 6 : Giving to Others

The Joy of Giving to Others

Steven posted on January 06, 2009 

We know how great it feels to receive a gift from someone. I believe however that the greatest satisfaction comes from giving to others and knowing that you have made someone feel happier or made a positive contribution in some way to their life.

Think of the times when you have given to others. It may have been when you helped someone resolve a problem. You may have volunteered and given up some of your time to help out at your children’s school. You may have helped someone with directions to where they needed to go. The question I ask to you is how did you feel? I’d imagine you felt very pleased with yourself and happy inside.

There is something very nourishing to our soul when we give and help others. It provides us with an intrinsic reward that far outweighs what we give.

It also helps to take our mind of our own worries and challenges. When you are focused on how you can give to others you are less likely to consume your whole focus on your own concerns and challenges. It provides us with an opportunity to escape from our own world and see the bigger picture. There is great perspective that can be gained from stepping out of our own world and venturing into the world of other people. Your worries and challenges may not seem that significant when you compare them to other people’s situations.

There are many ways that you can give to others. You can:

• Give a smile to brighten up another person’s day;
• Give up some of your time to help others out;
• Give a helping hand;
• Give a donation;
• Give your attention to listen to someone;
• Give someone a hug;
• Give a gift;
• Give of yourself by sharing with others; and
• Give love and caring;

As you can see most of the ways that we can give to others does not necessarily have to involve money. They are many ways that we can give to others for free; yet what you give can be priceless to the person/s that you are giving to.

Look at those people who spend most of their time helping and giving to other people. What have you noticed about them? Most of the ones that I have observed are very content people. There may be a clue in that as to how we can achieve greater happiness in our lives.

I encourage you to look for opportunities where you can give and help others. It will bring a greater level of joy and happiness into your life. Try it!

http://www.clickalifecoach.com/Resources/Articles/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/92/The_Joy_of_Giving_to_Others

Unit 5 Longevity

Meditation and Longevity

Can Regular Meditation Help You Live Longer?

By Sharon Basaraba

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Meditating -- the practice of quieting the mind and focusing inwardly for a set period of time -- is an ancient practice that’s gained modern credibility as a way to reduce stress, promote relaxation, and boost memory, concentration and mood. But can it actually help you live a longer life?

There is scientific evidence that regular meditation can improve psychological conditions like anxiety and depression, which in turn can affect mortality. Meditating has been shown to bolster the immune system and reduce levels of cortisol. Elevated levels of this stress hormone are linked to higher mortality through heart-related conditions, such as atherosclerosis and metabolic syndrome. Other research has found that regular meditation may result in fewer visits to the doctor and shorter hospital stays. Even dangerous abdominal fat may be reduced with regular meditation practice, according to a small study published in 2011 in the Journal of Obesity.

Aimed at examining the effect of meditation specifically on mortality, a review of two randomized controlled trials was published in 2005 in The American Journal of Cardiology. A total of 202 subjects with mild hypertension, or high blood pressure, were recruited in the first study from a residence for elderly people (mean age 81) in Boston, MA, and from community-dwelling older adults (mean age 67) in Oakland, CA in the second trial. Subjects were given instruction in Transcendental Meditation (TM), mindfulness training, mental relaxation or progressive muscle relaxation techniques. The control subjects were offered general health education classes.

Transcendental Meditation is described as a simple technique that involves sitting comfortably with eyes closed, 15-20 minutes per session, twice a day, to achieve a state of “restful alertness.” Mindfulness meditation training focuses on breathing, and observing thoughts dispassionately as they arise in the mind. Study subjects using mental relaxation techniques were encouraged to repeat a phrase or verse to themselves during each session. Finally, subjects using progressive muscle relaxation were coached to gradually let go of tension in each major muscle group, to promote an overall state of calm.

All participants were evaluated after three months, at which time the Transcendental Meditation groups from both trials had significantly lower blood pressure than the other meditation or control groups. But it’s the long-term follow-up data that is most dramatic: After an average of 7.6 years (up to a maximum of almost 19 years), the subjects practicing TM were 23% less likely to die of any cause during that period, and 30% less likely to die of cardiovascular disease during the same period. Subjects were 49% less likely to die of cancer during the follow-up period. The authors of the review suggest that the longevity benefits are almost as good as those resulting from drug therapy for hypertension, without the side effects -- though they do not recommend using meditation instead of medication that’s been proven to lower high blood pressure.

According to the authors, this is the first long-term analysis of the effect of non-drug therapies on the mortality rate for people with elevated blood pressure. Two main questions remain: Will meditation improve longevity for people with normal blood pressure, and which type of relaxation or meditation technique provides the greatest longevity benefit? In this review, Transcendental Meditation offered the highest protection against death.

Though future research might answer these questions with certainty, many people are satisfied with the boosts to energy and wellbeing that meditation offers in the short-term. If you’d like to try to incorporate regular meditation practice into your own life.

Sources:

Pan A, Lucas M, Sun Q, van Dam RM, Franco OH, Willett WC, Manson JE, Rexrode KM, Ascherio A, Hu FB. “Increased mortality risk in women with depression and diabetes mellitus.” Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2011 Jan;68(1):42-50.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3081788/?tool=pubmed

Paul-Labrador M, Polk D, Dwyer JH, Velasquez I, Nidich S, Rainforth M, Schneider R, Merz CN. "Effects of a Randomized Controlled Trial of Transcendental Meditation on Components of the Metabolic Syndrome in Subjects with Coronary Heart Disease." Archives of Internal Medicine June 12, 2006.

Unit 7 Homework

THE IMPORTANCE OF HOMEWORK IN YOUR CHILD’S EDUCATION
By
Dr. Sam Goldstein
Dr. Sydney Zentall

Homework is important because it is at the intersection between home and school. It serves as a window through which you can observe your children’s education and express positive attitudes towards your children and their education. As children grow older, homework and the amount of time engaged in homework, increases in importance. For teachers and administrators, homework is a cost effective way to provide additional instruction in practice.

Lets examine the six constructive purposes for homework in the context of your child’s educational experience. The first two are the most important and obvious. Through (1) practice and (2) participation in learning tasks, homework can improve your child’s achievement. Thus, it would be expected that if homework were completed accurately, not only would your child’s general knowledge and grades improve but your child would also increase mastery of basic academic skills, such as reading, writing, spelling and mathematics.

Homework can provide other benefits. Your child’s ability to bring an assignment home, gather and organize necessary materials to complete the assignment, return the assignment and receive a grade, strengthens his or her sense of responsibility. Time management skills are learned. There is also improved (3) development of personal skills such as time management gained by completing homework. Further, when homework proceeds smoothly it can become (4) a positive aspect of your relationship with your child.

Finally, although we often do not consider that homework serves a school administrative role, it offers schools an opportunity to let parents know what their children are learning. Thus, homework can play a public relations role by (5) keeping parents informed about class activities and policies. Homework can also fulfill (6) an administrative role in helping schools achieve their overall mission of improving student’s achievement.

Homework is a bridge that joins schools and parents. From the school’s perspective there is the opportunity to monitor students' independent progress. For parents there is the potential to gain a greater appreciation of education and to express positive attitudes towards their children’s achievement.

In this weekly column we will provide tips, guidelines, suggestions and solutions to common homework problems. Homework is an essential part of your child’s education and can serve not only to enhance your child’s achievement but also to enhance family relationships.