Monday, May 2, 2011
Reflection
I believe that the way I've developed as a writer is how I look into problems. Before I used to look at the just the plain facts and figure out plain solutions. Like if something is on fire that looks like it shouldn't be, then put it out. But now I've developed to realize that maybe the thing that's on fire, is on fire for a particular reason. Clear example, in earlier papers written in high school i just tried to argue in a 'debate' format and I always got the same negative feedback. Only because I would just try and refute the argument, and not try and understand the idea of the argument and develop my own theory from there. Now from this class I've made much clearer methods to changing my thinking and provide much better logic and argument. Honestly in all reality I really think I deserve a C and no higher. Throughout the semester I have put in a half-ass job to my work, and didn't take the course as seriously as I should have. I definitely could have done much more and been much more involved this semester. If I get any higher then I would be very surprised and wonder how in the world I deserved it. Nevertheless I did enjoy this class very much and I have learned quite a lot, and I probably would have not chosen any other English class to take this spring.
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Writing Project 3
Nuclear Energy: Disaster or Environmental Savior?
As we move towards another presidential election year, we come along an important issue today as we did over the past 50 years. Should the United States implement more nuclear energy to replace the ever higher costs to produce electricity via oil and coal? Throughout history we have unlocked and discovered the true value of nuclear energy and how it could possibly save us from one facet of our oil and coal dependency. Coal, according to William Tucker, a well-respected journalist, has been used around the world for about 400 years. Our most common fossil fuel, coal is the compressed remains of vegetable matter that covered the earth 300-400 million years ago. Coal is superabundant and we will probably never run out of it. It was the fuel of the Industrial Revolution, and it is still the world’s largest source of energy. It is also the most environmentally destructive substance ever utilized. The EPA estimates that it kills 30,000 Americans each year through lung disease.
How It Works
Although the word “nuclear” causes and strikes fear into many people around the globe, atomic energy do not function much different from a coal-burning power plant. Both heat water and that turns it into pressurized steam, which creates force against a turbine generator. The important difference is how each plant warms the water enough to generate the steam. Older plants burn fossil fuels, while nuclear plants depend on nuclear fission, or when one atom splits into two and that reaction releases energy. This reaction actually occurs every day. Uranium is actually constantly undergoing spontaneous fission at a slow rate. This explains why this particular element emits radiation.
Uranium occurs naturally on Earth and has been around since the existence of Earth. There are several varieties of uranium, like all other elements. But for the production of nuclear power and bombs, only uranium-235 is used. It is used because it is one of the few elemtns that can undergo induced fission. The decay of a single U-235 atom releases approximately 200 MeV (million electron volts). That may not seem like much, but there are lots of uranium atoms in a pound (0.45 kilograms) of uranium. So many, in fact, that a pound of highly enriched uranium as used to power a nuclear submarine is equal to about a million gallons of gasoline. [1How Stuff Works] But for all of this to work, scientists have to first enrich a sample of uranium so that it contains 2 to 3 percent more U-235. Three-percent enrichment is sufficient for nuclear power plants, but weapons-grade uranium is composed of at least 90 percent U-235.
Nuclear Disasters
Japan's nuclear disaster is just another story in the long line of the misuse of nuclear energy. Some of the current nuclear reactors have been getting approved for continued running, even after there are certain vital components that we're skimmed over, needed restructuring, or to be completely replaced. In the article it states that, "Revelations from 2007 that the utilities had regularly doctored safety records were a repeat of a 2002 scandal that brought public apologies from Tokyo Electric, the resignation of its chairman and president, and a government shutdown of all 17 of the company’s reactors. The utility said in that year it had falsified reports on power plant repairs for two decades." [2 Clenfield] Now if you realize that some businesses are truly that cheap to cut corners and assume as long as it's intact and running decently, then we don't have to do anything about it and everything will be fine. Then we see disasters like the one after the tsunami/earthquake which just hit Japan because a more disastrous situation then there should be. A hydrogen-fueled explosion blasted the cement housing of reactor number 1 of the Fukushima plant, 135 miles (220 kilometers) north of Tokyo, at 3:36 p.m. on March 12, a day after the 8.9-magnitude quake also triggered a tsunami. Seven- meter waves slammed Japan’s northeast, devastating the towns of Minamisanriku and Matsushima and knocking out power at the plant, disabling the vital cooling systems. Even the most structurally sound buildings cannot for the most part be able to withstand some of the punishment nature can dish out. Our best architects building todays buildings are beginning to combat this, but people should realize that the tsunami did have a major role in the destruction of the power plant, and the lack of keeping up to code with their safety regulations was the deciding factor in whether or not the plant would be able to withstand such a destructive force.
Since for the reactors, if a company builds it properly up to code and it is maintained to that same standard, then even if the core melts down, there will be no collateral damage to any part of the world. Obviously most people will make the point about the fact of the Chernobyl disaster. But if you actually look into the reports of how the disaster happened, the USSR never built a concrete container around the reactor. Revelations from 2007 that the utilities had regularly doctored safety records were a repeat of a 2002 scandal that brought public apologies from Tokyo Electric, the resignation of its chairman and president, and a government shutdown of all 17 of the company’s reactors. The utility said in that year it had falsified reports on power plant repairs for two decades.
The disaster at Fukushima isn’t the first quake-related accident for Tokyo Electric. A 6.8 magnitude temblor on July 16, 2007, caused a fire and radiation leaks that shut down the Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear plant, the world’s biggest. It took almost two years to restart.
Potential problems
First, some fear that a nuclear reactor might explode. Natural uranium is made of two isotopes—U-235 and U-238. Both are radioactive—meaning they are constantly breaking down into slightly smaller atoms—but only U-235 is fissile, meaning it will split almost in half with a much larger release of energy. Because U-235 is more highly radioactive, it has almost all broken down already, so that it now makes up only seven-tenths of a percent of the world’s natural uranium. In order to set off a chain reaction, as I’ve noted earlier in this paper, natural uranium must be “enriched” so that U-235 makes up a larger percentage. Reactor grade uranium, which will simmer enough to produce a little heat is three percent U-235. In order to get to bomb grade uranium, or the kind that will explode, uranium must be enriched to 90 percent U-235. Given this fact, there is simply no way that a reactor can explode.
On the other hand, a reactor can “melt down.” This is what happened at Three Mile Island. A valve stuck open and a series of mistakes led the operators to think the core was overflowing when it was actually short of cooling water. They further drained the core and about a third of the core melted from the excess heat. But did this result in a nuclear catastrophe? Hardly. The public was disconcerted because no one was sure what was happening. But in the end the melted fuel stayed within the reactor vessel. Critics had predicted a “China syndrome” where the molten core would melt through the steel vessel, then through the concrete containment structure, then down into the earth where it would hit groundwater, causing a steam explosion that would spray radioactive material across a huge area. In fact, the only radioactive debris was a puff of steam that emitted the same radiation as a single chest x-ray. Three Mile Island was an industrial accident. It bankrupted the utility, but no one was injured. [6 Tucker]
This of course was not the case in Chernobyl, where the Soviet designers didn’t even bother building a concrete containment structure around the reactor vessel. Then in 1986, two teams of operators became involved in a tussle over use of the reactor and ended up overheating the core, which set fire to the carbon moderator that facilitates the chain reaction. (American reactors don’t use carbon moderators.) The result was a four-day fire that spewed radioactive debris around the world. More fallout fell on Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, from Chernobyl than from Three Mile Island. With proper construction such a thing could never happen.
Another objection to nuclear power is the supposed waste it produces. But this is a mischaracterization. A spent fuel rod is 95 percent U-238. This is the same material we can find in a shovel full of dirt from our back yards. Of the remaining five percent, most is useful, but small amounts should probably be placed in a repository such as Yucca Mountain. The useful parts—uranium-235 and plutonium (a manmade element produced from U-238)—can be recycled as fuel. In fact, we are currently recycling plutonium from Russian nuclear missiles. Of the 20 percent of our power that comes from nuclear sources, half is produced from recycled Russian bombs. Many of the remaining isotopes are useful in industry or radiological medicine—now used in 40 percent of all medical procedures. It is only cesium-137 and strontium-90, which have half-lives of 28 and 30 years, respectively, that need to be stored in protective areas.
The government failed to conduct sufficient checks for seismic faults before approving Kashiwazaki as the site, Trade Minister Akira Amari said a week after the quake. The ministry approved the reactor site based on surveys Tokyo Electric conducted in the 1970s, he said. The quake generated seismic acceleration as high as 606 gals at the reactor structure, triple the quake impact the plant was designed to withstand, Tokyo Electric reported at the time. One gal, a measure of shock effect, represents acceleration of 1 centimeter (0.4 inch) per square second. [5 Des Moines Register]
The people will want to forever stop nuclear energy because of the disaster it caused, but as long as people understand that it could have ultimately been prevented, I'm more then sure the world will still continue to use nuclear energy, but nowadays the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a tighter grip on keeping buildings up to code. For japan, there is no other solution since the oil it uses, is completely 100% imported. So then the Oil producing nations will take advantage of it and do the same thing they did to the U.S. The question is, how do we ensure we do not suffer an accident like the one in Japan? It is a serious concern and it is one the nuclear industry is taking more seriously than anyone. What we must do is to not build future plants in earthquake-prone areas and make certain those already in such areas have the best safety systems and are as structurally-robust as possible. For facilities in places like Florida however, the threat of an earthquake is very remote. Other natural disasters or acts of terrorism are almost certainly not going to have an adverse effect on these plants.
Works Cited
1. Clenfield, Jason. "Japan Stricken Reactor Just Completed Inspection for Next Decade of Power - Bloomberg." Bloomberg - Business & Financial News, Breaking News Headlines. Web. 10 Apr. 2011..
2. "HowStuffWorks "How Nuclear Power Works"" HowStuffWorks - Learn How Everything Works! Web. 18 Apr. 2011..
3. "Mike Walker: Keep Crystal River Nuclear Plant Open | Gainesville.com." Gainesville.com Gainesville FL News, Sports, Weather and More | Gainesville.com | The Gainesville Sun. Web. 19 Apr. 2011..
4. "Storage of Used Nuclear Fuel Rods at TVA Plants, Elsewhere Stir Concern | The Tennessean | Tennessean.com." The Tennessean | Nashville News, Community, Entertainment, Yellow Pages and Classifieds. Serving Nashville, Tennessee | Tennessean.com. Web. 22 Apr. 2011..
5. "With Nuclear Power, Fear Is Easy to Inspire | The Des Moines Register | DesMoinesRegister.com." The Des Moines Register | Des Moines News, Community, Entertainment, Yellow Pages and Classifieds. Serving Des Moines, Iowa | DesMoinesRegister.com. Web. 18 Apr. 2011..
6. Tucker, William. "The Case for Terrestrial (a.k.a. Nuclear) Energy." Hillsdale College. 02 Feb. 2008. Web. 29 Mar. 2011..
As we move towards another presidential election year, we come along an important issue today as we did over the past 50 years. Should the United States implement more nuclear energy to replace the ever higher costs to produce electricity via oil and coal? Throughout history we have unlocked and discovered the true value of nuclear energy and how it could possibly save us from one facet of our oil and coal dependency. Coal, according to William Tucker, a well-respected journalist, has been used around the world for about 400 years. Our most common fossil fuel, coal is the compressed remains of vegetable matter that covered the earth 300-400 million years ago. Coal is superabundant and we will probably never run out of it. It was the fuel of the Industrial Revolution, and it is still the world’s largest source of energy. It is also the most environmentally destructive substance ever utilized. The EPA estimates that it kills 30,000 Americans each year through lung disease.
How It Works
Although the word “nuclear” causes and strikes fear into many people around the globe, atomic energy do not function much different from a coal-burning power plant. Both heat water and that turns it into pressurized steam, which creates force against a turbine generator. The important difference is how each plant warms the water enough to generate the steam. Older plants burn fossil fuels, while nuclear plants depend on nuclear fission, or when one atom splits into two and that reaction releases energy. This reaction actually occurs every day. Uranium is actually constantly undergoing spontaneous fission at a slow rate. This explains why this particular element emits radiation.
Uranium occurs naturally on Earth and has been around since the existence of Earth. There are several varieties of uranium, like all other elements. But for the production of nuclear power and bombs, only uranium-235 is used. It is used because it is one of the few elemtns that can undergo induced fission. The decay of a single U-235 atom releases approximately 200 MeV (million electron volts). That may not seem like much, but there are lots of uranium atoms in a pound (0.45 kilograms) of uranium. So many, in fact, that a pound of highly enriched uranium as used to power a nuclear submarine is equal to about a million gallons of gasoline. [1How Stuff Works] But for all of this to work, scientists have to first enrich a sample of uranium so that it contains 2 to 3 percent more U-235. Three-percent enrichment is sufficient for nuclear power plants, but weapons-grade uranium is composed of at least 90 percent U-235.
Nuclear Disasters
Japan's nuclear disaster is just another story in the long line of the misuse of nuclear energy. Some of the current nuclear reactors have been getting approved for continued running, even after there are certain vital components that we're skimmed over, needed restructuring, or to be completely replaced. In the article it states that, "Revelations from 2007 that the utilities had regularly doctored safety records were a repeat of a 2002 scandal that brought public apologies from Tokyo Electric, the resignation of its chairman and president, and a government shutdown of all 17 of the company’s reactors. The utility said in that year it had falsified reports on power plant repairs for two decades." [2 Clenfield] Now if you realize that some businesses are truly that cheap to cut corners and assume as long as it's intact and running decently, then we don't have to do anything about it and everything will be fine. Then we see disasters like the one after the tsunami/earthquake which just hit Japan because a more disastrous situation then there should be. A hydrogen-fueled explosion blasted the cement housing of reactor number 1 of the Fukushima plant, 135 miles (220 kilometers) north of Tokyo, at 3:36 p.m. on March 12, a day after the 8.9-magnitude quake also triggered a tsunami. Seven- meter waves slammed Japan’s northeast, devastating the towns of Minamisanriku and Matsushima and knocking out power at the plant, disabling the vital cooling systems. Even the most structurally sound buildings cannot for the most part be able to withstand some of the punishment nature can dish out. Our best architects building todays buildings are beginning to combat this, but people should realize that the tsunami did have a major role in the destruction of the power plant, and the lack of keeping up to code with their safety regulations was the deciding factor in whether or not the plant would be able to withstand such a destructive force.
Since for the reactors, if a company builds it properly up to code and it is maintained to that same standard, then even if the core melts down, there will be no collateral damage to any part of the world. Obviously most people will make the point about the fact of the Chernobyl disaster. But if you actually look into the reports of how the disaster happened, the USSR never built a concrete container around the reactor. Revelations from 2007 that the utilities had regularly doctored safety records were a repeat of a 2002 scandal that brought public apologies from Tokyo Electric, the resignation of its chairman and president, and a government shutdown of all 17 of the company’s reactors. The utility said in that year it had falsified reports on power plant repairs for two decades.
The disaster at Fukushima isn’t the first quake-related accident for Tokyo Electric. A 6.8 magnitude temblor on July 16, 2007, caused a fire and radiation leaks that shut down the Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear plant, the world’s biggest. It took almost two years to restart.
Potential problems
First, some fear that a nuclear reactor might explode. Natural uranium is made of two isotopes—U-235 and U-238. Both are radioactive—meaning they are constantly breaking down into slightly smaller atoms—but only U-235 is fissile, meaning it will split almost in half with a much larger release of energy. Because U-235 is more highly radioactive, it has almost all broken down already, so that it now makes up only seven-tenths of a percent of the world’s natural uranium. In order to set off a chain reaction, as I’ve noted earlier in this paper, natural uranium must be “enriched” so that U-235 makes up a larger percentage. Reactor grade uranium, which will simmer enough to produce a little heat is three percent U-235. In order to get to bomb grade uranium, or the kind that will explode, uranium must be enriched to 90 percent U-235. Given this fact, there is simply no way that a reactor can explode.
On the other hand, a reactor can “melt down.” This is what happened at Three Mile Island. A valve stuck open and a series of mistakes led the operators to think the core was overflowing when it was actually short of cooling water. They further drained the core and about a third of the core melted from the excess heat. But did this result in a nuclear catastrophe? Hardly. The public was disconcerted because no one was sure what was happening. But in the end the melted fuel stayed within the reactor vessel. Critics had predicted a “China syndrome” where the molten core would melt through the steel vessel, then through the concrete containment structure, then down into the earth where it would hit groundwater, causing a steam explosion that would spray radioactive material across a huge area. In fact, the only radioactive debris was a puff of steam that emitted the same radiation as a single chest x-ray. Three Mile Island was an industrial accident. It bankrupted the utility, but no one was injured. [6 Tucker]
This of course was not the case in Chernobyl, where the Soviet designers didn’t even bother building a concrete containment structure around the reactor vessel. Then in 1986, two teams of operators became involved in a tussle over use of the reactor and ended up overheating the core, which set fire to the carbon moderator that facilitates the chain reaction. (American reactors don’t use carbon moderators.) The result was a four-day fire that spewed radioactive debris around the world. More fallout fell on Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, from Chernobyl than from Three Mile Island. With proper construction such a thing could never happen.
Another objection to nuclear power is the supposed waste it produces. But this is a mischaracterization. A spent fuel rod is 95 percent U-238. This is the same material we can find in a shovel full of dirt from our back yards. Of the remaining five percent, most is useful, but small amounts should probably be placed in a repository such as Yucca Mountain. The useful parts—uranium-235 and plutonium (a manmade element produced from U-238)—can be recycled as fuel. In fact, we are currently recycling plutonium from Russian nuclear missiles. Of the 20 percent of our power that comes from nuclear sources, half is produced from recycled Russian bombs. Many of the remaining isotopes are useful in industry or radiological medicine—now used in 40 percent of all medical procedures. It is only cesium-137 and strontium-90, which have half-lives of 28 and 30 years, respectively, that need to be stored in protective areas.
The government failed to conduct sufficient checks for seismic faults before approving Kashiwazaki as the site, Trade Minister Akira Amari said a week after the quake. The ministry approved the reactor site based on surveys Tokyo Electric conducted in the 1970s, he said. The quake generated seismic acceleration as high as 606 gals at the reactor structure, triple the quake impact the plant was designed to withstand, Tokyo Electric reported at the time. One gal, a measure of shock effect, represents acceleration of 1 centimeter (0.4 inch) per square second. [5 Des Moines Register]
The people will want to forever stop nuclear energy because of the disaster it caused, but as long as people understand that it could have ultimately been prevented, I'm more then sure the world will still continue to use nuclear energy, but nowadays the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a tighter grip on keeping buildings up to code. For japan, there is no other solution since the oil it uses, is completely 100% imported. So then the Oil producing nations will take advantage of it and do the same thing they did to the U.S. The question is, how do we ensure we do not suffer an accident like the one in Japan? It is a serious concern and it is one the nuclear industry is taking more seriously than anyone. What we must do is to not build future plants in earthquake-prone areas and make certain those already in such areas have the best safety systems and are as structurally-robust as possible. For facilities in places like Florida however, the threat of an earthquake is very remote. Other natural disasters or acts of terrorism are almost certainly not going to have an adverse effect on these plants.
Works Cited
1. Clenfield, Jason. "Japan Stricken Reactor Just Completed Inspection for Next Decade of Power - Bloomberg." Bloomberg - Business & Financial News, Breaking News Headlines. Web. 10 Apr. 2011.
2. "HowStuffWorks "How Nuclear Power Works"" HowStuffWorks - Learn How Everything Works! Web. 18 Apr. 2011.
3. "Mike Walker: Keep Crystal River Nuclear Plant Open | Gainesville.com." Gainesville.com Gainesville FL News, Sports, Weather and More | Gainesville.com | The Gainesville Sun. Web. 19 Apr. 2011.
4. "Storage of Used Nuclear Fuel Rods at TVA Plants, Elsewhere Stir Concern | The Tennessean | Tennessean.com." The Tennessean | Nashville News, Community, Entertainment, Yellow Pages and Classifieds. Serving Nashville, Tennessee | Tennessean.com. Web. 22 Apr. 2011.
5. "With Nuclear Power, Fear Is Easy to Inspire | The Des Moines Register | DesMoinesRegister.com." The Des Moines Register | Des Moines News, Community, Entertainment, Yellow Pages and Classifieds. Serving Des Moines, Iowa | DesMoinesRegister.com. Web. 18 Apr. 2011.
6. Tucker, William. "The Case for Terrestrial (a.k.a. Nuclear) Energy." Hillsdale College. 02 Feb. 2008. Web. 29 Mar. 2011.
Writing Project 2
Call of Duty: What Can It Really Do?
The most recent Call of Duty release proved to be one of the top selling video games of all time. With sales surpassing over 1 billion dollars on December 22nd (Raman 1), it has clearly shown that along with being a true power house industry, the kind of impact it could have is beyond what anyone can imagine. The fact that we do not tap into the full potential of what we can achieve through video games like Call of Duty is completely baffling. A teaching machine is defined as any mechanical device used for presenting a program of instructional material. But we can instead turn to video games to have one of the largest potential to be a major teaching machine to today’s culture and historical knowledge concerning American history. One simple fact remains clear; the possibilities to teach almost anything can be achieved through video games.
Most people, who never played Call of Duty, or COD, know of actual content besides the killing in multiplayer, but in ‘Campaign’ mode there is a whole other side most people ignore. Having played it and beaten it on all difficulties, the kind of story it provided about the Cuban missile crisis, Russian spies all across America, and a conspiracy to release Nova 6 gas (mustard gas) all over the United States was one of the most jaw dropping storylines ever put together. Especially since during the last level, it was revealed to the main character by a Soviet warlord that he actually was the one to kill his own president, President John F. Kennedy.
Most of the specific history the game talks about is untrue, or at least that’s what most historians would probably say. Most of the things that went on in the video game we’re highly classified. Which one could argue that it really did happen, but it’s one of those blacked out documents and pages in American history. Perhaps it’s a business industries attempt to release the truth about what actually happened during those years, or really just a well thought up story line that could actually fit into today’s history.
If we look at Medal of Honor: Frontline, the first level you play on is invading the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. No history book or lecture can ever teach someone the horrors of what those men went through. The video game and movie Saving Private Ryan may give it some justice. But for most people, seeing the heartbreak, anguish, and life altering events in epic battles like that really give people a true sense of what really happened on the beaches of Normandy. This type of lesson is showing what real life is all about, what the price of freedom truly costs, and how we should be thankful others rose to the occasion to fight for our freedom.
Although Henry A. Giroux argues in his paper, that having teaching machines, like television, are problematic and have no place in todays world because he believes they are not effective. Well what is exactly wrong with that? The famous comedian Chris Rock once made a joke that no one knows the law because no one reads the books, and if they put it in a Beyoncé video, then they’d know it. Well as troubling as that sounds, most people know that if you want to sell something, the best way to sell it is put a pair of boobs in behind it and it will sell like crazy, at least to the male demographic. Look at what television has provided for us today already, the history channel, the discovery channel, TLC, National Geographic channel, the news. All of those are definite teaching machines that exist without us fully realizing it. Although Giroux offers Disney’s movies and stories as teaching machines, it is now extended into characters in pop culture that esstenitally control a large demographic, like Justin Bieber. They are truly effective, but in today’s society with 3D video games and 3D movies, TV. is slowly becoming obsolete. So then we can look to video games, and think to ourselves, which drone on teaching history, when we can show it? Then go even further, why just show it when we can truly be a part of it?
In context, we can realize that most of the veterans of those wars are dead or close to dying, most of their stories will be passed on through their families and kept there, but keeping the story alive through a video game (even with a factitious character) will forever preserve the knowledge of what few people know of what happened on June 6, 1944.
Call of Duty can have this same potential, as well as games that are going to be coming out later, like Homefront, can teach us plenty of what our past, present and future will hold. Especially since Homefront’s story line is where the Korea’s are united to form the Greater Korean Republic, where they spend most of the first half of the current decade to take over all of Asia, then move on to Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP) the United States and invading her borders. This kind of video game suggests something crazy and somewhat impossible since most people wouldn’t consider Korea the greatest threat right now. But it is still a possibility and shouldn’t be ignored so lightly.
We can also look to what actual first person shooters do to all the game players, in the video ad released for Black Ops, titled “There’s a Soldier in everyone”, it shows that everyone who plays could someday be fighting in wars like the ones presented in the video game. From personal experience I can tell you the video game will not prepare you for the kick back on an actual weapon (especially Light Machine Guns) and you won’t respawn (or come back to life) every time you die. Your health won’t recover over a period of time and you don’t get little kill streak (multiple kills in succession) rewards like an C4 remote control car or attack dogs to sic on the enemy, but the kind of rush it gives you when you’re playing in certain games modes where you’re the last one left on your team and you must finish the mission. There are plenty more aspects of the video games that plenty of my Army, Navy and Marine buddies would argue definitely wouldn’t happen in real life, but there are plenty of ways to prove that video games could and should have a larger impact on today’s pop culture.
Giroux’s insurgent cultural pedagogy is unique in the field of cultural criticism because he not only deals with the pedagogical aspects of popular culture, he engages and wants to transform the political structures that are given purpose in part through a highly refined system of public pedagogies. Recognizing the historical importance of other work, Giroux nevertheless distinguishes himself from other social critics. But in reality video games are always going to be a part of our society today, and ignoring their potential will eventually be a mistake to teaching the many ignorant Americans, and will ultimately throw away the potential to save and preserve our history, along with allowing people to be apart of it.
Works Cited
Raman, Manikandan. "Call of Duty: Black Ops Sales Top $1 Bln - Entertainment & Stars."International Business News, Financial News, Market News, Politics, Forex, Commodities - International Business Times - IBTimes.com. Web. 04 Mar. 2011..
The most recent Call of Duty release proved to be one of the top selling video games of all time. With sales surpassing over 1 billion dollars on December 22nd (Raman 1), it has clearly shown that along with being a true power house industry, the kind of impact it could have is beyond what anyone can imagine. The fact that we do not tap into the full potential of what we can achieve through video games like Call of Duty is completely baffling. A teaching machine is defined as any mechanical device used for presenting a program of instructional material. But we can instead turn to video games to have one of the largest potential to be a major teaching machine to today’s culture and historical knowledge concerning American history. One simple fact remains clear; the possibilities to teach almost anything can be achieved through video games.
Most people, who never played Call of Duty, or COD, know of actual content besides the killing in multiplayer, but in ‘Campaign’ mode there is a whole other side most people ignore. Having played it and beaten it on all difficulties, the kind of story it provided about the Cuban missile crisis, Russian spies all across America, and a conspiracy to release Nova 6 gas (mustard gas) all over the United States was one of the most jaw dropping storylines ever put together. Especially since during the last level, it was revealed to the main character by a Soviet warlord that he actually was the one to kill his own president, President John F. Kennedy.
Most of the specific history the game talks about is untrue, or at least that’s what most historians would probably say. Most of the things that went on in the video game we’re highly classified. Which one could argue that it really did happen, but it’s one of those blacked out documents and pages in American history. Perhaps it’s a business industries attempt to release the truth about what actually happened during those years, or really just a well thought up story line that could actually fit into today’s history.
If we look at Medal of Honor: Frontline, the first level you play on is invading the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. No history book or lecture can ever teach someone the horrors of what those men went through. The video game and movie Saving Private Ryan may give it some justice. But for most people, seeing the heartbreak, anguish, and life altering events in epic battles like that really give people a true sense of what really happened on the beaches of Normandy. This type of lesson is showing what real life is all about, what the price of freedom truly costs, and how we should be thankful others rose to the occasion to fight for our freedom.
Although Henry A. Giroux argues in his paper, that having teaching machines, like television, are problematic and have no place in todays world because he believes they are not effective. Well what is exactly wrong with that? The famous comedian Chris Rock once made a joke that no one knows the law because no one reads the books, and if they put it in a Beyoncé video, then they’d know it. Well as troubling as that sounds, most people know that if you want to sell something, the best way to sell it is put a pair of boobs in behind it and it will sell like crazy, at least to the male demographic. Look at what television has provided for us today already, the history channel, the discovery channel, TLC, National Geographic channel, the news. All of those are definite teaching machines that exist without us fully realizing it. Although Giroux offers Disney’s movies and stories as teaching machines, it is now extended into characters in pop culture that esstenitally control a large demographic, like Justin Bieber. They are truly effective, but in today’s society with 3D video games and 3D movies, TV. is slowly becoming obsolete. So then we can look to video games, and think to ourselves, which drone on teaching history, when we can show it? Then go even further, why just show it when we can truly be a part of it?
In context, we can realize that most of the veterans of those wars are dead or close to dying, most of their stories will be passed on through their families and kept there, but keeping the story alive through a video game (even with a factitious character) will forever preserve the knowledge of what few people know of what happened on June 6, 1944.
Call of Duty can have this same potential, as well as games that are going to be coming out later, like Homefront, can teach us plenty of what our past, present and future will hold. Especially since Homefront’s story line is where the Korea’s are united to form the Greater Korean Republic, where they spend most of the first half of the current decade to take over all of Asia, then move on to Electro Magnetic Pulse (EMP) the United States and invading her borders. This kind of video game suggests something crazy and somewhat impossible since most people wouldn’t consider Korea the greatest threat right now. But it is still a possibility and shouldn’t be ignored so lightly.
We can also look to what actual first person shooters do to all the game players, in the video ad released for Black Ops, titled “There’s a Soldier in everyone”, it shows that everyone who plays could someday be fighting in wars like the ones presented in the video game. From personal experience I can tell you the video game will not prepare you for the kick back on an actual weapon (especially Light Machine Guns) and you won’t respawn (or come back to life) every time you die. Your health won’t recover over a period of time and you don’t get little kill streak (multiple kills in succession) rewards like an C4 remote control car or attack dogs to sic on the enemy, but the kind of rush it gives you when you’re playing in certain games modes where you’re the last one left on your team and you must finish the mission. There are plenty more aspects of the video games that plenty of my Army, Navy and Marine buddies would argue definitely wouldn’t happen in real life, but there are plenty of ways to prove that video games could and should have a larger impact on today’s pop culture.
Giroux’s insurgent cultural pedagogy is unique in the field of cultural criticism because he not only deals with the pedagogical aspects of popular culture, he engages and wants to transform the political structures that are given purpose in part through a highly refined system of public pedagogies. Recognizing the historical importance of other work, Giroux nevertheless distinguishes himself from other social critics. But in reality video games are always going to be a part of our society today, and ignoring their potential will eventually be a mistake to teaching the many ignorant Americans, and will ultimately throw away the potential to save and preserve our history, along with allowing people to be apart of it.
Works Cited
Raman, Manikandan. "Call of Duty: Black Ops Sales Top $1 Bln - Entertainment & Stars."International Business News, Financial News, Market News, Politics, Forex, Commodities - International Business Times - IBTimes.com. Web. 04 Mar. 2011.
Writing Project 1
The National Identity: What It Shouldn’t Be
We are an English only country. We speak only English and demand every citizen to speak it and adopt the American culture. Now take that into perspective, think about it honestly, if we we’re to do that, what would happen to the culture that shaped America as it is today? The repercussions of making the national identity could be astronomical and deliver such a devastating blow to the infrastructure. Foreigners who immigrate here should not have to adopt our ideals or beliefs and be demanded to speak English if they do not choose too.
From Reinventing “America”: Call for a New National Identity” was published in 1998. The main point this excerpt argues what the ‘American’ identity should be today. Sadly, 13 years later none of the issues brought up in this book have been solved or are near to being resolved. At the end of paragraph 3, Martinez mentions an interesting anecdote that reads, “It seems nostalgia runs rampant among many Euro-Americans: nostalgia for the days of unchallenged White Supremacy – both moral and material – when life was “simple.” For the longest time, even to myself I always saw the yester days that have been described through the History Channel, stories from my parents and grandparents, & even old movies. It all used to be simple and life was just simpler. Until now, I only realize that is because of the white supremacy that took place up until the African American people we’re allowed to vote and desegregation began.” For a long time I saw this as being the truth, times we’re simpler, it seemed like there was less crime, less hate, the people could be trusted and America was the ideal country. Until I realized that there was the dark side to that history, and it included the oppression of so many races and religions to make this country strive.
Another major topic in Martinez’s reading mentions in paragraph 8 is the “English only” attempts to change the United States today. What she means is the general stance taken by white America to make everything that is done, like in businesses, make workers in all different areas of the workplace speak English, and even down to the education system. What is so amazing about this, she talks about this in 1998, and 13 years later, again we find ourselves facing the same issue. Even though despite the fact this nation holds promises, even in its own constitution, this protects freedom of speech, religion, and doesn’t say anywhere what the national language is or ought to be. There are plenty of places, Little Italy, Chinatown, Korea town, the South Side of Chicago (which is predominately Hispanic) and other various places that allow people of certain faiths, beliefs, or languages to live freely from the persecution to speak English or follow the ‘American’ lifestyle. Which is the irony of the idea, when White America demands that since this is her land, we need to speak her language, when since the nation was founded; it first of all was never just white people. An entire population of indigenous people lived here and ruled this land. So despite that, they demand their own culture, which in fact today’s true culture is not one, but many, because as an entire country, we are so diverse that any one language, religion, or lifestyle should not dominate or tell the other what to do. Furthermore, from what we discussed during class, despite how difficult it is to talk with someone, especially who is foreign, speaks none or very little English. We cannot tell them they have to learn English just to come to America. Our own constitution protects speech in its first amendment, while saying that is a bit of a stretch of the amendment, it can also be noted that nowhere in the US Code, Constitution, or Declaration of Independence, does it say that the national language is and always will be English. Since you can logically think, if I go to France for a long period of time, I ought to learn French just for the convenience of being able to communicate. On the other side of the coin, if you come to America, most people think that you should learn English. I’ll be the first to say you really ought to, but you do not have too for the reason that we have no established national language. So you create your own problems not learning English and are going to make your life difficult in the United States, but it is your own choice and your own freedom to make the decisions that determine your life.
The next reading was in “Hispanic in America: Starting Points” by Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz, in paragraph 5, she brought up an interesting fact that I had no knowledge of before. That is that when the Cubans we’re forced to move here because of economic and political prosecution, because of Castro, they we’re given special rights to make citizenship and immigration simple. And she follows at the end of the paragraph, what about the other Central American citizens who suffer the same fate of persecution? Also, why stop at just Central America? Why not include South America, and even very far north. We are all one America, we should begin to act like it and ignore selfish values and practices. It is beyond frustrating when you look at the actual methods to immigrate here to America. The process is long and difficult, not only just to be here on a temporary visa, but if you want to stay here and be an actual American citizen, you literally go through years of paper work, have to take citizenship tests and essentially jump through hoops for our government just to be allowed to stay here. Ironically if you actually look at the tests, they’re full of so much U.S. history, that your average everyday American could probably not pass or otherwise barely do so. If you really think about it, why do we give them tests about things that most people that have been here and grown up here with their family longer then they can remember, it’s unfair to demand so much from a foreigner who just wants the freedoms that we so easily forget we have, that most people in other countries don’t. So then because it is tough to come here, there are two routes most people take, work or education visas, which can be reapplied for periodically, or as we see today, people just walk in through the front door and move on in. Which considering our immigration laws, and the penalty for breaking them, I would honestly just rather take the chance of being deported, and then have to go through the complete nonsense to become a citizen. Since the most that’s going to happen, you will be deported and sent back to your home country. If we look at this all into context we can clearly see that we should make becoming a citizen easier and start allowing the people who want to come here, come here. As a famous cartoon character Homer Simpson said, “Ah Ethnic town, where hard-working immigrants come to have dreams of being lazy, overfed Americans”.
The assimilation issue should not exist. Simply for the fact that if we would have implemented it years ago, or even now, we would begin to lose our culture. There would be a massive emigration out of the United States. We would lose so much more than most people understand. We can look at this into a simple perspective, if we made all the Chinese leave because they didn’t speak English, we would also remove most people who make Chinese food, or people who help import cheap Chinese-built toys. Just for that the effects of losing China’s business would such a devastation economic blow to both countries; it seems almost not worth collapsing our economy just because we want everyone speaking English.
We are a nation with an identity of many, not just one. The true American culture does not mean white and English speaking. It should not be demanded nor required. At the very most suggested, but we cannot force our ideals on another group, that is oppression, and definitely not what America has stood for over all these years. Assimilation will and never should be a topic today, tomorrow or in the future, every citizen deserves their freedom given to them.
Works Cited
Martinez, Elizabeth. "Amazon.com: From Inquiry to Academic Writing: A Text and Reader (9780312451653): Stuart Greene, April Lidinsky: Books." Amazon.com: Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, Books, DVDs & More. Web. 19 Jan. 2011.
We are an English only country. We speak only English and demand every citizen to speak it and adopt the American culture. Now take that into perspective, think about it honestly, if we we’re to do that, what would happen to the culture that shaped America as it is today? The repercussions of making the national identity could be astronomical and deliver such a devastating blow to the infrastructure. Foreigners who immigrate here should not have to adopt our ideals or beliefs and be demanded to speak English if they do not choose too.
From Reinventing “America”: Call for a New National Identity” was published in 1998. The main point this excerpt argues what the ‘American’ identity should be today. Sadly, 13 years later none of the issues brought up in this book have been solved or are near to being resolved. At the end of paragraph 3, Martinez mentions an interesting anecdote that reads, “It seems nostalgia runs rampant among many Euro-Americans: nostalgia for the days of unchallenged White Supremacy – both moral and material – when life was “simple.” For the longest time, even to myself I always saw the yester days that have been described through the History Channel, stories from my parents and grandparents, & even old movies. It all used to be simple and life was just simpler. Until now, I only realize that is because of the white supremacy that took place up until the African American people we’re allowed to vote and desegregation began.” For a long time I saw this as being the truth, times we’re simpler, it seemed like there was less crime, less hate, the people could be trusted and America was the ideal country. Until I realized that there was the dark side to that history, and it included the oppression of so many races and religions to make this country strive.
Another major topic in Martinez’s reading mentions in paragraph 8 is the “English only” attempts to change the United States today. What she means is the general stance taken by white America to make everything that is done, like in businesses, make workers in all different areas of the workplace speak English, and even down to the education system. What is so amazing about this, she talks about this in 1998, and 13 years later, again we find ourselves facing the same issue. Even though despite the fact this nation holds promises, even in its own constitution, this protects freedom of speech, religion, and doesn’t say anywhere what the national language is or ought to be. There are plenty of places, Little Italy, Chinatown, Korea town, the South Side of Chicago (which is predominately Hispanic) and other various places that allow people of certain faiths, beliefs, or languages to live freely from the persecution to speak English or follow the ‘American’ lifestyle. Which is the irony of the idea, when White America demands that since this is her land, we need to speak her language, when since the nation was founded; it first of all was never just white people. An entire population of indigenous people lived here and ruled this land. So despite that, they demand their own culture, which in fact today’s true culture is not one, but many, because as an entire country, we are so diverse that any one language, religion, or lifestyle should not dominate or tell the other what to do. Furthermore, from what we discussed during class, despite how difficult it is to talk with someone, especially who is foreign, speaks none or very little English. We cannot tell them they have to learn English just to come to America. Our own constitution protects speech in its first amendment, while saying that is a bit of a stretch of the amendment, it can also be noted that nowhere in the US Code, Constitution, or Declaration of Independence, does it say that the national language is and always will be English. Since you can logically think, if I go to France for a long period of time, I ought to learn French just for the convenience of being able to communicate. On the other side of the coin, if you come to America, most people think that you should learn English. I’ll be the first to say you really ought to, but you do not have too for the reason that we have no established national language. So you create your own problems not learning English and are going to make your life difficult in the United States, but it is your own choice and your own freedom to make the decisions that determine your life.
The next reading was in “Hispanic in America: Starting Points” by Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz, in paragraph 5, she brought up an interesting fact that I had no knowledge of before. That is that when the Cubans we’re forced to move here because of economic and political prosecution, because of Castro, they we’re given special rights to make citizenship and immigration simple. And she follows at the end of the paragraph, what about the other Central American citizens who suffer the same fate of persecution? Also, why stop at just Central America? Why not include South America, and even very far north. We are all one America, we should begin to act like it and ignore selfish values and practices. It is beyond frustrating when you look at the actual methods to immigrate here to America. The process is long and difficult, not only just to be here on a temporary visa, but if you want to stay here and be an actual American citizen, you literally go through years of paper work, have to take citizenship tests and essentially jump through hoops for our government just to be allowed to stay here. Ironically if you actually look at the tests, they’re full of so much U.S. history, that your average everyday American could probably not pass or otherwise barely do so. If you really think about it, why do we give them tests about things that most people that have been here and grown up here with their family longer then they can remember, it’s unfair to demand so much from a foreigner who just wants the freedoms that we so easily forget we have, that most people in other countries don’t. So then because it is tough to come here, there are two routes most people take, work or education visas, which can be reapplied for periodically, or as we see today, people just walk in through the front door and move on in. Which considering our immigration laws, and the penalty for breaking them, I would honestly just rather take the chance of being deported, and then have to go through the complete nonsense to become a citizen. Since the most that’s going to happen, you will be deported and sent back to your home country. If we look at this all into context we can clearly see that we should make becoming a citizen easier and start allowing the people who want to come here, come here. As a famous cartoon character Homer Simpson said, “Ah Ethnic town, where hard-working immigrants come to have dreams of being lazy, overfed Americans”.
The assimilation issue should not exist. Simply for the fact that if we would have implemented it years ago, or even now, we would begin to lose our culture. There would be a massive emigration out of the United States. We would lose so much more than most people understand. We can look at this into a simple perspective, if we made all the Chinese leave because they didn’t speak English, we would also remove most people who make Chinese food, or people who help import cheap Chinese-built toys. Just for that the effects of losing China’s business would such a devastation economic blow to both countries; it seems almost not worth collapsing our economy just because we want everyone speaking English.
We are a nation with an identity of many, not just one. The true American culture does not mean white and English speaking. It should not be demanded nor required. At the very most suggested, but we cannot force our ideals on another group, that is oppression, and definitely not what America has stood for over all these years. Assimilation will and never should be a topic today, tomorrow or in the future, every citizen deserves their freedom given to them.
Works Cited
Martinez, Elizabeth. "Amazon.com: From Inquiry to Academic Writing: A Text and Reader (9780312451653): Stuart Greene, April Lidinsky: Books." Amazon.com: Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, Books, DVDs & More. Web. 19 Jan. 2011.
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
What will happen after Japan's nuclear disaster?
Japan's nuclear disaster is just another story in the long line of the misuse of nuclear energy. In the article published by bloomberg.com, some of the current nuclear reactors have been getting approved for continued running, even after there are certain vital components that we're skimmed over, needed restructuring, or to be completely replaced. In the article it states that, "Revelations from 2007 that the utilities had regularly doctored safety records were a repeat of a 2002 scandal that brought public apologies from Tokyo Electric, the resignation of its chairman and president, and a government shutdown of all 17 of the company’s reactors. The utility said in that year it had falsified reports on power plant repairs for two decades." Now if you realize that some businesses are truly that cheap to cut corners and assume as long as it's intact and running decently, then we don't have to do anything about it and everything will be fine. Then we see disasters like the one after the tsunami/earthquake which just hit Japan cause a more disastrous situation then there should be. Since for the reactors, if a company builds it properly up to code and it is maintained to that same standard, then even if the core melts down, there will be no collateral damage to any part of the world. Obviously most people will make the point about the fact of the Chernobyl disaster. But if you actually look into the reports of how the disaster happened, the USSR never built a concrete container around the reactor.
The people will want to forever stop nuclear energy because of the disaster it caused, but as long as people understand that it could have ultimately been prevented, I'm more then sure the world will still continue to use nuclear energy, but nowadays the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a tighter grip on keeping buildings up to code. For japan, there is no other solution since the oil it uses, is completely 100% imported. So then the Oil producing nations will take advantage of it and do the same thing they did to the U.S.
The people will want to forever stop nuclear energy because of the disaster it caused, but as long as people understand that it could have ultimately been prevented, I'm more then sure the world will still continue to use nuclear energy, but nowadays the Nuclear Regulatory Commission will hold a tighter grip on keeping buildings up to code. For japan, there is no other solution since the oil it uses, is completely 100% imported. So then the Oil producing nations will take advantage of it and do the same thing they did to the U.S.
Monday, March 21, 2011
General Inquiry
According the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) there are 35 operational Boiling Water Reactors (BWR)that we're built by GE. BWR's are the 2nd most common nuclear reactor right next to a Pressurized water reactor (PWR) which is the most common type. The most obvious main difference is in a PWR, the water which is the main coolant is pressurized, whereas in a BWR, the water is boiled hence the difference in the names. Although now currently there have been new reactors being built called Advanced Boiling Water Reactors, according to GE the ABWR is a direct cycle Light Water Reactor that reflects the continued evolution from GE’s initial BWR concept. Some modifications include a sophisticated control system, which are now fully digital, providing reliable and accurate plant monitoring, control, and diagnostics. These reactors produce about a 1350 to 1460 megawatts range, which in comparison to a coal power plant, or you basic hydroelectricity power plant, dwarf the output in both MW produced and the cost to produce the energy, in the sense that the cost is significantly less.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Quick bio
Hello, my name is Alexander Wingate. I am currently a biology major at Purdue University North Central. I graduated from Chesterton Senior High School in June 2010. I decided to attend PNC because of its closeness to home, since I didn't feel the need to go to Purdue West Lafayette because I knew I would end up being a party animal down there and ultimately drop out of school, and be completely screwed over. Along with the fact I didn't want to leave my girlfriend Kristin here at home, in Chesterton, I decided to attend PNC. And now I have chosen to stay here the entire 3 years because I can get my degree in Biology in only 3 years. My only real goal right now is to graduated from PNC and then move into medical school. Although I do not foresee myself being in medicine for very long, because I always have wanted to own a business, I will probably end up doing that and hope to be very successful.
The issue I will be discussing is Nuclear energy. This has been one of my favorite issues since although i know a great deal there is still plenty of things I want to explore about it, especially with the most recent happenings in Japan with their nuclear reactor in Fukushima not being able to cool down and causing a giant public scare.
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