War Song: Instrumental or Emotional?

O.A.R: War Song
Released on July 15, 2008

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZDHZnvJZFc&feature=player_embedded

http://openupyourarms.org//needs_to.php

According to this website by signing the pledge we can help the soldiers feel more welcome when coming back by giving them:
• Access to top-notch health care
• a chance to pursue a quality education on the new GI Bill
• a fair chance at a good job


There goal is to get 111,111 signatures by September 11, 2011.

This video was posted on YouTube by The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) to spread awareness about our troops and future heroes. These people are fighting and protecting our country for our futures and we should respect them and support them for their precious lives and time. These people should be able to come back to America and be supported by the citizens and the society. Many people come back with mental disorders and with PTSD, which is very common in wars period. This pledge to sign is to make sure that these warriors get their rights and are taken care of for the rest of their lives. This video was made by O.A.R. to point out the impact that we can have on America and our Veterans and show the effect that war has on the one percent of people in America that go to war. That is equivalent to about 1.8 million people since September 11.
The first time that I listened to this song, I was thinking to myself, what is this about? Then I looked down at the track name and said to myself that makes so much sense. This song was awesome because it changes the speed and pitch when it gets to points in the song that are saying in going to be fine and the idea of love being left behind. The effect that war may have on you; wondering are you going to be alone at the end of the day or should you keep hope of living and returning to America. This song ends in a good tone to reassure people that they will be fine, but connects to this pledge so easily.
I had heard this song long before I saw this video online and I had no idea about this group of people to support the troops. I knew about the Veteran Affairs and their dealings and their recent decline in money for Veterans. Although I have never personally been to war or have had a family member go to the Iraqi War, I feel a connection to this pledge. My father was a Veteran in the Vietnam War and he struggles with PTSD to this day. His life is not the same as it was before war. He is receiving benefits at this time, but he isn’t sure how long he will be able to receive these benefits due to the change in the G.I. bill. This comes off to me as instrumental art because it is trying to change the way that people look at war and the money that they spend. The song is made from the words that have been voiced from soldiers that are in the Iraq war right now. That is one of the big reasons that I find it to be art. O.A.R. went overseas to make this song and came back with a song that shows the emotions within the concept of war. This could also be emotionalist because it gives me an emotional feeling when I listen to it. The rhythm and the changes in speed change the mood of the listener. I definitely think that the visual aids in the meaning that is being put across about the impact that war has on the soldiers and how we can welcome soldiers back with open arms.
Does this get the point across to you even if you don’t have a personal connection or do you think you need that personal connection with war in order to understand the meaning of the words in the song?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Oh my God, tell me this won't last forever
Tell me that I'm not alone
Tell me this will come together now

Packed my thing up just the other day
Said my goodbyes to all these things I've saved
Out in the driveway, we laugh under the moon
Among my friends for now, but I'll be leaving soon

Many days from now, I'm sure
I'll be back among your graces
And with you I won't pretend
No, not at all

Crack the morning
Up and running quick
No sleep again last night but that's the way it is
Out in the open under broken skies
I feel every footstep
I see everybody's eyes
Oh and this is summer in another world
Far from the driveway and my baby girl
Soon comes the winter
With it quiet nights
Darker days and darker fights

But many days from now, I'm sure
I'll be back among your faces
And with you I won't pretend
No, not at all

Oh the fever is burning
Over at midnight but never like this
Hot under their fire
The stars are all falling but never like this
I hope you never see this

Wait, wait for my love
Don't forget me, never let me go
If you wait, wait for my love
I'll remember, never let you go
Until I'm fine, fine, fine
Until I'm fine, fine, fine

To be back in my room
I have the same dream every night
Just me among my things
No one else is there
There's no one left to fight
Just me among my things

Many nights from now, I know
I'll be back among your graces
Until then I'll just pretend
That I'm not cold

Oh my God, tell me this won't last forever
Tell me that I'm not alone
Tell me this will come together
Oh my God, you know

Wait, wait for my love
Don't forget me, never let me down
And just wait, wait for my love
I'll remember, every one of you
Just wait, wait for my love
Until I'm fine, fine, fine
Until I'm fine, fine, fine
I'll be fine, fine, fine
I'll be fine, fine, fine
Works Cited:
"What Needs To Happen - IAVA." IAVA. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2009. http://openupyourarms.org//needs_to.php

Little Dancer

Picture taken by me at the Louvre

Edgar Degas’s “La Petite Danseuse de Quatorze Ans”, or “Little Dancer of Fourteen Years”, was sculpted in 1881 and was originally made out of wax and dressed in silk, tulle, had a wig of hair and a satin ribbon (Wikipedia). This was his first sculpture, he usually painted the ballerinas, and I believe he wanted to capture a dancers pose in 3D. Degas was the first to make a sculpture of this sort. It was criticized by many at the Impressionist Exhibition; they said it was “ugly, [and] that it looked like a museum specimen, in part because Degas exhibited it inside a case” (National Gallery of Art). Although people were shocked by the piece, they But “were also moved by the work's representation of the pain and stress of ballet training endured by a barely adolescent girl”, which is what the piece is truly about (Tate). The sculpture was later cast in bronze and 30 casts of the original were made and reside in different museums (Tate). The bronze version still features a tulle or cotton tutu and a silk ribbon in her hair.

I have loved Degas since I was a little girl. I took ballet for ten years and we studied Degas a few times in my art classes. My ballet teacher once took us to see a replica of the Little Dancer when I was about eight and I never forgot that. I was even more excited, though, when I got to see one of the original castings at the Louvre in Paris two summers ago. To this day I’ve still never seen anything like it. It’s so rare even today to see a sculpture of bronze with a real skirt and a ribbon around her bronze braid. I feel so connected to this piece and I find it interesting that I knew this piece was special even when I was young.

Taking a chance and standing out is what really makes this piece art to me. Not only does it beautifully depict the pose of a young, struggling ballerina, it seems like it’s own genre of art because it was done so originally. The piece is fresh, while still seeming conventional, which I think is hard to find in art. It seems like people want to either be totally out there, or completely conventional. I like how this piece has both elements. I would consider this piece to be Mimetic because Degas is trying to replicate a real dancer’s pose, along with the real clothes, plus this was originally sculpted in wax and colored to look real. I would also says it is Emotionalist, though, because the fact that it is called “Little Dancer of Fourteen Years” is clearly trying to get a response about the fact that she is young and training vigorously. People may sympathize with the dancer because of this.

Works Cited
La Petite Danseuse de Quatorze Ans. 6 June 2009. 18 November 2009 .
National Gallery of Art. 2009. 18 November 2009 .
Tate. 2004. 18 November 2009 .

Mikey Welsh Paintings

Mikey Welsh is a local artist based out of Burlington Vermont. His work is getting more recognized and has done murals for several local companies in Burlington like JDK offices, Copley Consolidated offices, Frontside Foundations, and Maven. His paintings are different than most, he “never (uses) a brush and (prefers) to work only with his hands and fingers”. I found the work through the snowboard industry. Some of his art has been featured at local snowboard company Burton.

            I was drawn to Welsh’s paintings because they are different than regular paintings. The lines and colors in the paintings move your eye though out the canvas. It is interesting how the lines are soft and the color does not stay in between the lines.

            Out of Andersons four Quartet of Traditions I believe that Welsh’s pieces most resembles an emotionalist piece. This is clear because the emhpasis is on the artist emotion.  The pieces are expressing different things. In the image above Welsh is describing different types of people or animal. Each character is unique and almost has there own personality.

Mikey’s work is absolutely art. He puts time, effort, talent, and creativity into his paintings. When he adds colors color in between lines to portray a message. I consider any painting that has time, creativity, and some sort of message can be art. 

Thank you,

Links: http://www.mikeywelsh.com/ 

Banksy: Is Graffiti Art?

The piece of art I choose is a piece of public art by the artist Banksy. Banksy is a well known graffiti artist from Bristol, England; although his identity is not known and only a few people have ever interviewed with him and they have kept his identity a secret. Banksy’s art is a combination between graffiti writing and distinctive stenciling; most of his art topics are politics, culture and ethics. All of his art has a strong meaning to it and his way of expressing that is publicly on the streets that we walk down everyday and he has traveled all over the world making his mark.

The piece by Banksy I choose is a one of nine pieces he did in August of 2005 on the Israeli West Bank barrier on the Palestinian side. This has been one of my favorite Banksy pieces ever since I found out who he was. I remember the day I found out who he was, I was in Boarders downtown and I was looking at all the art books when I stumbled upon his, and I feel in love and have followed him ever since. I selected this piece in particular because of what it stands for; they are building this giant wall though the farmland to separate Israeli from Palestine on the Israeli side they cover the wall with flowers to make it look beautiful, as for the Palestine side it is just a giant blank gray wall. I feel as though he did this to give the wall character and at the same time give the sense of escape, of freedom. Banksy sees a situation like these and seizes the opportunity to say something in the way he likes to express his feelings. I have always interpreted the painting as though he painted so when you looked at it you got sense of escape, that there is another side. I strongly believe that graffiti is beautiful, but there is a difference between graffiti art and tagging, tagging is just someone being immature and inappropriate. You will find that a lot of graffiti art has meaning to it and the details that a lot of these artists put into some of their pieces are just as intricate as Michal Angelo.

To learn more about Banksy just see the link below. I hope you enjoy the meaning of his art and find it to be intriguing as well as the fact that no one knows who he is. I will end with a quote from Banksy about graffiti.

“What’s your definition of the word “graffiti”?

B: I love graffiti. I love the word. Some people get hung up over it, but I think they’re fighting a losing battle. Graffiti equals amazing to me. Every other type of art compared to graffiti is a step down—no two ways about it. If you operate outside of graffiti, you operate at a lower level. Other art has less to offer people, it means less, and it’s weaker. I make normal paintings if I have ideas that are too complex or offensive to go out on the street, but if I ever stopped being a graffiti writer I would be gutted. It would feel like being a basket weaver rather than being a proper artist.” (Swindel)

Hope you enjoyed. Thank you for listening.

Links and sources:

http://www.banksy.co.uk/

http://swindlemagazine.com/issue08/banksy/

The Eiffel Tower, Ashley Desjardins

The Eiffel Tower was constructed by a man named Alexaandre Gustave Eiffel, who was a French Structural Engineer, and was the leading European Authority on Aerodynamics of high frames. It was the main attraction at the International Expo (The World Fair), held in 1889. This event also marked the centennial of the Revolution which began in 1789. This name was decided upon because it was first a contest to see who could come up with the best design. The radical design by Gustave was unanimously chosen and hence, given the name.
The tower is located in Paris, France, and stands at 984 ft tall, and weighs 7000 pounds. It was built of wrought iron and supported truss work. It was the tallest structure in the world, until the completion of the Empire State Building. It consists of two different parts. The first, is the base. Which is composed of a platform resting on four separate supports called, Pylons, or Bents. The second part is a slender tower that rises from each of the Pylons and leads to a second platform, the third part is one unified column. The curve of the base Pylons was precisely calculated so that so that is could withstand the intense forces of the wind by turning the force into compression.
When the tower was put up there were many people who resented it. There was even a petition to get rid of it, which gathered 300 names. Some people believed that it took away from the natural beauty of Paris, and others believed that it would interfere with the birds that flew over. In 1909 the tower was almost torn down, but the final decision made against it was because of its antenna, used for telegraphy at the time. In 1910 it became part of the International Time Service, and was made useful by the French radio and television.
The Eiffel Tower was built in order to celebrate the Science and Engineering feats of its time and became a symbol for the ideals of: ingenuity, progress and beauty. The first level, base portions are detailed with the names of all the great men in French history. Today, the biggest attraction is riding to the top to view the city of Paris.
I believe that the Eiffel Tower is art for many reasons. First, there was a lot of thought put into it and a lot of debate over how it should be made, and what it should be made of. Secondly, I think that it is really beautiful and took a long time to create and has a lot of detail. I also think that it has a lot of meaning behind it which to me, makes it instrumental art. I also think that when people see this it brings forth a lot of emotion, which makes it emotionalist art. There emotions could be astonishment, happiness or maybe feeling overwhelmed because of its size. I chose to do this because it is somewhere that I have always wanted to go to.

Works Cited
Eiffel Tower by art Historian Dr. Lori. Dr Lori. Web. 16 Nov. 2009. .

The Eiffel Tower, Paris. Discover France. Web. 16 Nov. 2009. .

Lack of Sleep May be Causing Alzheimer's

There has been a recent discovery that states that lack of sleep may be linked to the Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s is a fatal brain disease that has no cure, Alzheimer’s results in memory loss. It destroys brain cells. But recently David Holtzman who is a neurologist and neuroscientist from the Washington University in St. Louis has been conducted studies associated with this cause.

Basically they have found out that the lack of sleep results in more brain plaque, which is one of the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. They preformed a study with mice, the mice that didn’t get a lot of sleep developed more plaque in their brains then than mice that got enough sleep. “This is the first experimental study that clearly shows that disrupted sleep may contribute to the disease process,’ says Peter Meerlo, a neuroscientist at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. ‘What makes it exciting for me is that it shows that chronic sleep loss, in the long run, changes the brain in ways that may contribute to disease” (Alzheimer’s linked to Lack of Zzzzs). Holtzman did a study that involved the levels of amyloid-beta. He said that even though the clumping of the amyloid-beta isn’t exactly proven that they believe it to be associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Although the mice in Holtzman experiment didn’t experience a rise in amyloid-beta tissue, they did realize that the longer the mice were awake the more their amyloid-beta levels increased. They also conducted the same experiment with humans and the cerebral spinal fluid. They found the same results that the amyloid-beta levels increased when the people were awake and decreased when they were sleeping.

When dealing with the mice they injected orexin, which promotes wakefulness and was used to help the mice stay awake. The researchers don’t know exactly if it’s the orexin, which is causing the amyloid-beta levels to increase, or if it really is lack of sleep. “Sleep deprived mice made more plaques then well-rested mice, but a drug that blocks orexin’s action was able to stop plaque buildup” (Alzheimer’s linked to Lack of Zzzzs). So in result of that it could be said that orexin inhibitors could be used to help decrease the levels of amyloid-beta, but the drug is equivalent to a sleeping pill and would in result make the patient very tired. But either way there is some reason why less sleep accounts to more amyloid-beta, but that reason is still unknown.

“It is interesting that there may be a link between sleep and the build-up of the protein associated with the development of Alzheimer’s disease,’ says Clive Ballard, director of research at the Alzheimer’s society in London. ‘However, there are many other biological factors that may have an impact on the protein’s production, so further research in this area would be needed” (Lack of Sleep Linked to Alzheimer’s). More research will be done on this topic of wither lack of sleep can really lead to Alzheimer’s, either way we should all be getting enough sleep during the night. Exercise is a good way to help induce sleep if in fact it is proven that sleep is a cause of Alzheimer’s disease.

Works Citied

Saey, Tina Hesman. “Alzheimer’s Linked to Lack of Zzzzs.” Science News. 24 Oct.

2009. 1 Nov. 2009

47580/title/Alzheimers_linked_to_lack_of_Zzzzs>.

Hamzelou, Jessica. “Lack of Sleep Linked to Alzheimer’s.” New Scientist. Sep. 2009. 1

Nov. 2009.

linked-to-alzheimers.html

Modern Day Health Records

An EHRs or Electronic Health Record, as defined by the Health Information Management System’s Society’s (HIMSS), is “a longitudinal electronic record of patient health information generated by one or more encounters in any care delivery setting” (National, 1). EHRs include the patient’s demographics, progress notes, problems, medications, vital signs, past medical history, immunizations, laboratory data, and even radiology reports. Therefore, everything that was previously stored on paper and in filing cabinets, is now stored in computer environments that allow the patient’s information to be viewed or manipulated from electronic devices such as desktops, laptops, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), and soon iPhones and Blackberries.
The development of EHRs began in the 1960s. It was reported in 1965 that at least 73 hospitals and clinical information projects and 28 projects for storage and retrieval of medical documents and other clinically-relevant information were underway. By the 90s it was estimated that about 14% of hospitals and doctor offices had implemented the use EHRs. A goal has been set that by the year 2010 at least 80% of hospitals and 50% of doctor’s offices are using EHRs. Today, just under 60% of hospitals are using EHRs. The other near 40% are unable to support the cost involved in making the use of EHRs possible.
EHRs have eight major functions; health information and data, results management, order management, decision support, patient support, administrative processes, reporting, and electronic communication connectivity. More specifically Electronic Health Records are used to store basic information on the patient, such as weight, height, allergies, diagnoses, etc., new and past test results, medications, and much more using uniform data standards that is purely confidential. They can also be used to alert or remind physicians to perform regular screenings or tests, identify drug interactions, and to facilitate diagnoses and treatments. Lastly, EHRs not only allow access to other clinicians and physicians, but they also enable patients to view their own medical records, which makes home monitoring and testing much easier.
There are a few key advantage points of using EHRs. The first being the overall reduction in healthcare costs. Although getting the system started costs over $30,000 per physician, the amount of money saved makes switching from paper methods to electronic methods well worth it; the majority of the money that is saved it through medical imaging and the reduction in medical errors. Since creating duplicates of medical images, such as x-rays, costs so much, including them in the EHRs cuts duplicating costs a significant amount. The accuracy of EHRs also helps reduce the number medical errors, which in turn reduces the funds spent on further care. Another advantage of electronically recording health information is the improvement in the general quality of care. The new fast access to medical literature and best practices at the current time enable continuing advances in healthcare effectiveness. Not only do EHRs help physicians be more aware of what medicines are most effective for a specific diagnosis, but they also enable easier communication between the physician, patients’ insurance provider, and pharmacists. The last primary advantage of using EHRs is to support evidence-based medicine; this meaning the more nationwide amounts of data collected, the higher the degree of effective medical practices can be achieved.
I chose to do further research on EHRs because the little I knew about them I found quite intriguing. My boyfriend, who works at Allscripts-Mysys Healthcare Solutions, Inc. which is a leading HER provider in the country, had told me some brief details about the systems, how they work and why they are used, therefore I thought it would be interesting to dig a little deeper. I also thought it was interesting that my own physician switched from paper records, just last year, to using Electronic Healthcare Records this year.
I believe that Electronic Healthcare Records are indisputably related to science because they are making large advances in technological healthcare. This system allows physicians to do a lot more, more easily and faster than in previous years with traditional paper records.


Sources Cited:
"EHR Overview Home." ehrCentral Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2009. http://www.providersedge.com/ehr_overview.htm.

"HIMSS - Electronic Health Record (EHR)." HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society). N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Nov. 2009. .
"Medicare Part B Imaging Services." United States Government Accountability Office. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2009. www.gao.gov/new.items/d08452.pdf.

"National Institutes of Health National Center for Research Resources." Electronic Health Records Overview. The MITRE Corporation, n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2009. www.ncrr.nih.gov/publications/informatics/ehr.pdf.

Spider Silk, Artificial Muscle?

While scrolling through the discovery channel website, I cam across this article and it immediately jumped out at me. Scientists at the University of Akron have been researching ways to use spider silk, which is known for being lightweight and having steel fibers, for artificial muscle. One of the head scientists, Professor Todd Blackledge, said “No one ever thought about using spider silk as an artificial muscle” . I was drawn to this because it reminded me of the modern day invisionaries who were combining two different types of science, this being the anatomy of muscles and the silk from spiders. Not only did this relate to our current class discussions, it is also a major breakthrough in modern medicine because it could help replace muscle tissue in those who couldn't grow it back.
The reason that this silk can be used as artificial muscle is that the silk contracts when touched with water, just as human muscles do. The new spider-silk muscle would have degrees of movement, just as human muscle does. That movement would depend on how much water is in the air around the muscle. The type of contraction is called a cyclic contraction, and could be used in microelectromechanical systems, which are tiny devices used on very small scales, such as separating individual cells. The cyclic contraction based spider silk would open and close a tiny channel to separate individual cells.
This type of artificial muscle is better than others that are currently used because it can last a lot longer than its counter parts. Though there are current artificial muscles that are superior to spider silk in terms of speed of contraction, they only last a couple hundred cycles and need high amounts of electricity or toxic chemicals to activate.
This could impact the world in a huge way, because it would have a new artificial muscle that could help people who's muscles are deteriorating due to a disease, or any other reason. The scientists have also been researching ways to make this into a power generator, though it has been difficult to find more information on this. This could be used also in prosthetic limbs, to make the muscle more real, and maybe even one day to create a fully functioning prosthetic limb.
Finds like these interest me because if perfected, this could be such a large scientific breakthrough and could help millions of people, and the materials used would be from a natural source.



Bland, Eric. "Spider Silk Used as Artificial Muscle : Discovery News." Discovery News: Earth, Space, Tech, Animals, Dinosaurs, History. Discovery Communications LLC, 8 Nov. 2009. Web. 09 Nov. 2009. .

Children's Peace Monument

I decided to choose the “Children’s Peace Monument” also called the “Tower of a Thousand Paper Cranes” located at the Hiroshima Peace Park in Hiroshima Japan. This monument was sponsored by Hiroshima and Students Association for the creation of peace. The design was made by Kazuo Kikuchi, a professor at Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music. This monument was unveiled on May 5th 1958. The golden bell that hangs inside the monument in the shape of a crane was added and produced in 2003.
During the summer of 2007, I traveled to Japan with a group of students to volunteer in a preschool in Fukuoka Japan. While I was in Japan, the group of students and the chaperones that I traveled with took a trip to the Hiroshima Peace Park. While I was there I had the chance to look at a variety of different pieces of art, one being the Children’s Peace Monument. This particular monument stood out to me because I remembered reading the book when I was in fourth grade, and I also was interested in the art of paper cranes. My sister and I had been making paper cranes for a while, and it was amazing to see this monument and look at the millions of paper cranes people from all around the world had sent.
There is the one main monument that stands in the center of a circular plaque, and behind the monument there is several glass boxes filled with millions of paper cranes that people have sent from around the world. The paper cranes in the boxes create pictures, and are also a variety of several different colors. This makes the glass boxes very appealing to look at, and it draws your attention very quickly. It is almost impossible to look at all the paper cranes, what they are made of, and the pictures that they create because there are so many. I did have the chance to look at several of the glass boxes, and also took pictures of some of the pictures that they create.
Next to this monument is a marble plaque that states what the purpose of it is. Engraved on this plaque is “This monument stands in memory of all children who died as a result of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The monument was originally inspired by the death of Sadako Sasaki, who was exposed to radiation from the atomic bomb at the age of two. Ten years later Sadako developed leukemia that ultimately ended her life. Sadako’s untimely death compelled her classmates to begin a call for the construction of a monument for all children who died due to the atomic bomb. Built with contributions from more than 3,200 schools in Japan and donors in nine countries, the Children’s Peace Monument was unveiled on May 5th, 1958.” The rest of this plaque states what is located at the top of the monument and also the inscription on the stone plaque that lies under the monument.
This is instrumental art in my opinion because it was built with a purpose, and the monument itself is expressing its purpose, why it is there, and why it is so important. This statue reminds everyone tourist or anyone for that matter about what happened on August 6th, 1945. I think that everyone who looks at this piece of art is reminded about what happened to Hiroshima many years ago. I know that when I looked at this it reminded me of the book that I read while I was in fourth grade, Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes.
Paper cranes now have a stronger meaning to me than they did before I visited this monument. They mean more than just a piece of paper. Each time I make a paper crane it reminds me of this monument and what Sadako’s classmates did for her when she was diagnosed with Leukemia. I remember that in this book “Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes” the children tried to make Sadako a thousand paper cranes, and if they did this before she died, this meant she would survive. Unfortunately they were very close to this goal, but they did not succeed. Although I do not think that this was the reason she died, I do think that the message in behind it is important. Helping a classmate survive something as horrific as leukemia and doing whatever you can to make that person feel better is such an important thing to do.

Feather Art

Tyler Ury

I had a very hard time trying to find something to write about. I looked at pictures on the internet but I did not feel any type of real connection to them. I thought a lot about what I could do it about that would get me excited. Almost like an epiphany I realized what I should do. This piece of art is called “feather shield”, it is a tradition from the Native American Indian men to get or make a shield to represent their transition into manhood. Though I did not make this, the best artist that I know of made this for me. It is made out of goose, golden flicker, and one unknown feather. Every feather that you see was collected by myself. And the wonderful artist that made this for me is Jerrita Lake, my Aunt. The feathers are attached to a piece of drift wood, and made to look like wings. The whole thing is tied to a piece of deer hide. It is so beautifully done that it looks so natural, which shows the skill of the artist. Why do I think this is art? Well for one it is beautifully done and anything of this caliber is art to me. And secondly it really speaks to me. It reminds me of my past and where I came from. But not only that, it shows me of the future and what I can become. Every time I look at it I am reminded of what I went through and of my Aunt. If that does not make it Art then I really do not know what art is. The feather shield is so important to me that I have it hanging in my dorm room. I also have another piece done from her but I will not get into that yet. Even if it did not remind me of so many things the skill that went into making it is an Art in it of itself. I doubt many people on this earth could make such amazing feather art like my Aunt does. It is such an amazing skill that it could only be called an Art!

NOTE: No birds were harmed in any of her works of art!

Cutestest Babies Ever!

Anne Geddes Photography

Okay, so everyone has probably seen Anne Geddes photography before and quite possibly fell in love, much like myself. The babies are absolutely precious and make me just want to snuggle one up. I have always wondered how the photographs were taken and to be entirely honest had no idea that Anne even existed. I always just thought the pictures were called Anne Geddes, I never knew that she was the photographer. So with that I will give a little background on her, she was born on September 13, 1956 in Queensland, Australia. She has three sisters and was raised by her parents on their huge beef cattle property. In her biography it said that she and her sisters were true country kids. Her favorite magazine was Life because of the high value they places on the strength and quality of their photography. She remembers how she was always fascinated by images of people and the concept of a single still image and how it could capture a moment in time that would never be repeated. She started taking photographs when she was 17 to capture her day-to-day adventures working with a tourist hotel chain and worked various jobs throughout her young adulthood She got married in 1983. She quit her job and decided to open her own business taking pictures of neighbors and friends children at their homes, gardens and local parks. She advertised her business by posting something on her local community board. She moved back to australia in 1984 where she and her husband had their first daughter. Their second daughter was born in 1986, the same year Anne entered her first photogenic contest and came in second. Her first published work came out, in a local magazine, in 1988 which was first taken of a little girl named Gemma in her backyard studio.
After this photo became popular Anne decided to work specifically with children. In 1992 her husband left his highly successful career and became her business partner, that same year they began producing Anne Geddes cards. She used her cards and calendars to raise awareness of child abuse. Anne and her husband, Kel, sold the calendars from the back of their family car and raise more than US 20,000 to help prevent child abuse and neglect. After selling their house and investing their life savings into producing 20,000 copies of the calendar, turing those profits into producing 20,000 more copies Anne and Kel finally had an offer from a publishing company. In 1996 Anne created her Down in the Garden series and went on the Oprah show, which caused even more recognition world wide.
1998 was the year her first book, Until Now was published in eight different languages and she went on a world wide book tour. By the year 2000 more than 14 million Anne Geddes books had been sold worldwide! She created a baby clothing line in 2001 with the babies comfort in mind. Anne and Kel were very close to a young 8 year old girl who had cancer and who was a huge fan of Celine Dion. It just so happened that Celine Dion was a fan of Anne, so Anne asked if Celine would call the little girl at the hospital. After Anne called Celine to thank her for the call they realized they had some common interests and that Celine was pregnant. Anne wanted to photograph Celine's son, so the two worked together. They also created the music video for Celine's song Miracle with photographs Anne had taken. It was published in 22 countries and 11 different languages in 2004.
Anne and her husband continue to donate large amounts of money to charitable funds. Anne published an autobiography in 2007 titled, A Labor of Love. She also wrote Cherished Thoughts with Love(2005) and Be Gentle with the Young(2008). Early this year Anne was awarded a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Professional Photographers of America. Her two daughters now work beside her in her Sydney, Australia studio. She has sold more than 18 million copies of her books worldwide, translating into 24 languages and he images have been published in 83 countries.
The photo shoots are always very quick, usually lasting around two to three minutes. The studio plays soft soothing music and the temperature is set around 83 to keep the babies warm and cozy. Anne is said to be very professional, quick, and efficient.
I definitely consider Annes photographs art. They are not only aesthetically pleasing, especially to a baby lover like myself, but they are very thought out and clever. I would say that her photography is definitely emotionalist because her photos evoke a variety of emotions from people. They could also be seen as formalist though because of the techniques, lighting, alignment and subject.
Do you enjoy her photographs, why or why not? Would you consider them art? What quartet do you think they fit into?

Annegeddes.com
http://www.annegeddes.com/modules/Anne/Galleries/index.aspx

Neil Young- Don't Be Denied

Matt Kavanagh
Neil Young- Don’t Be Denied

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-972pm8AhQ

The song Don’t Be Denied by Neil Young was released on his 1973 live album Times Fade Away, which consisted of all new material. The album itself never made the transformation from vinyl to CD, so the only way to hear the album without an original record is to pirate it from the internet. Anyways, the album tour was a complete mess to say the least. Neil’s former Crazy Horse bandmate Danny Whitten had recently died of heroine overdose and Neil toured with a backing band called The Stray Gators, of who received poor reviews from audiences. Also, Neil and his fellow musicians proved to be intoxicated at all times and Neil was said to be mentally unstable as the tour ended.
This is the recording from the album as it was released more the thirty years ago. In the song, Neil sings about his childhood, everything from his Dad leaving home, and him trying to make it as a musician. The chorus sings “Don’t be denied” over and over inspiring the listener to never give up, just as Neil had to do has he faced his share of hardships while growing up.
I think this is definitely a form of emotionalist art for Neil Young is clearly putting all he has into trying to sing in key, as he also was suffering with a throat infection. Full of voice cracks and the possibility of a complete breakdown at any moment, Neil Young and the Stray Gatos put on an intense performance. It may be stretching it but this may also be instrumental art for it may inspire people. Maybe not this song in particular but Neil Young certainly has some songs that I’ve gained a strong connection to so in general, Neil could be called a instrumental artist as well as an emotionalist.
The reason I choose to do a Neil Young song for a blog is because he is my favorite artist and I believe he is pure genius. The song Don’t Be Denied relates well to last years Concept of Self class when we were all asked to design a self -portrait of ourselves. This song tells the story of Neil Young growing up until he was about the age we were when we did those projects so in a way it’s his own self portrait, just through song.

Source
Mcdonough, Jimmy. Shakey Neil Young's Biography. New York: Anchor, 2003. Print.
"Don't Be Denied"

When I was a young boy,
My mama said to me
Your daddy's leavin' home today,
I think he's gone to stay.
We packed up all our bags
And drove out to Winnipeg.

When we got to Winnipeg
I checked in to school.
I wore white bucks on my feet,
When I learned the golden rule.
The punches came fast and hard
Lying on my back
in the school yard.

Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.

Well pretty soon I met a friend,
He played guitar.
We used to sit
on the steps at school
And dream of being stars.
We started a band,
We played all night.

Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.

Oh Canada
We played all night
I really hate to leave you now
But to stay just wouldn't be right.
Down in Hollywood
We played so good

The businessmen crowded around
They came to hear the golden sound
There we were on the Sunset Strip,
Playing our songs
for the highest bid.
We played all night
The price was right.

Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.
Don't be denied, don't be denied.

Well, all that glitters isn't gold
I know you've heard
that story told.
And I'm a pauper
in a naked disguise
A millionaire
through a business man's eyes.
Oh friend of mine
Don't be denied.

Is Bone Marrow Cure for HIV?

Everyone knows that that HIV/AIDS is big problem in most parts of the world. In Africa in particular it has reached epidemic proportions. For years researchers have been searching for a cure. In November of 2008 Dr. Gero Huetter, a German hematologist, reported that he had successfully treated a patient with the HIV virus in Berlin. The patient, who was a 42-year-old man who had AIDS for over 20 years, underwent a bone marrow transplant for Leukemia. Afterward he showed no signs of HIV. Dr. Huetter had intentionally used bone marrow containing a genetic mutation making the donor immune to the AIDS virus. The mutation prevents the CCR5 molecule from forming on cells. CCR5 is what allows HIV to enter cells. HIV must bond with CCR5 to infect the cells. The mutation is incredibly rare. Only 1% of people of European decent have the recessive mutation and people of Asian, African, and South American descent almost never inherit it. Bone marrow is where the immune system cells are made, which are the cells HIV target. Dr. Huetter’s theory was that if he could replace the HIV positive bone marrow with the mutated bone marrow, it would make the patient immune to HIV. Since the transplant, the virus has remained undetected in the patient for almost two years. Other researchers believe that its possible that the HIV could still be in the patient’s blood stream, but cannot start an infection because the target cells are immune. They call it a “functional cure”. The biggest problem with it is that this cure depends on a bone marrow transplant, which is very painful and dangerous. Such transplants kill about 30% of patients and are usually only given to those in the late stages of cancer. As a result, this cure will probably never be widely used.

Like many other scientific discoveries, this has been met with skepticism. Some scientists in the field are not convinced and want to se more tests done. There will probably be a lot of trial and error as scientists pursue this research. Relating back to what we have been discussing in class, almost all of Newton’s ideas were also initially met with skepticism. He was coming up with theories that were unheard of at the time, however he ended up changing the world of science. Maybe in the future Dr. Huetter’s discovery will have a great impact, just like Newton.

I think this discovery could have a huge impact on research in the future. Even though at this time it does not seem like a realistic cure fore every HIV patient, the doors have definitely been opened. Hopefully with the help of gene therapy this will become a more viable option.

I was drawn to this article because HIV/AIDS is a growing problem in the world. I think this discovery represents new hope for patients with the HIV virus. This may provide researchers with a new direction, and hopefully they can take the knowledge learned from this discovery and develop a cure that is not such a high risk.

Works Cited

Schoofs, Mark. "A Doctor, a Mutation and a Potential Cure for AIDS - WSJ.com." Business News & Financial News - The Wall Street Journal - WSJ.com. Web. 11 Nov. 2009. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122602394113507555.html.

Photographic Memory in a Pill?

Smith, Dan. "Coming Soon: Photographic Memory in a Pill? | Popular Science." Popular Science | New Technology, Science News, The Future Now. 6 July 2009. Web. 09 Nov. 2009. .

A group of scientists from the Spanish University of Malaga believe that they have found the group of proteins that aid in the retention of visual memories. These proteins, called RGS-14, are created in the visual cortex of the brain. The scientists found that, in rats, the increased production of these proteins led to the retention of visual memory increasing from one hour to 2 months. They determined this by first removing the section of the brain thought to be responsible for photographic memory, the visual cortex, from a number of rats. They then extracted the RGS-14 proteins and injected them into rats whose brains had not been tampered with. They found that the rats that had had their visual cortex removed had virtually no visual memory, while that rats with the addition RGS-14 proteins had a photographic memory 1500 times better than they did naturally. “Memory extension only applies to memories made through the poorly-understood visual cortex of the brain” (Smith). They have determined that this protein may be able to be put into a pill and then ingested by humans, potentially increasing our photographic memory to the same extent of the rats.
I located this information originally through Yahoo! News, but traced it back to many scientific blogs, publications, and, originally, to Science magazine.
I was drawn to this discovery because, as a college student, I often wish that I had a better memory. I wasn’t looking for a scientific breakthrough for my blog, but when I saw this, it caught my eye and made me look further into the discovery. The thought of a pill increasing photographic memory both fascinates and horrifies me, and I felt as though I could use this idea as a springboard for an interesting class discussion.
The impact that this could have on our world is massive. For students in particular, there will be no need to cram for exams, and the information learned in class, visually, at least, would be retained much longer. This pill, however, could be deemed cheating by some institutions, and the integrity of its use in different circumstances would have to be debated.
The scientists are essentially claiming that they have found the protein that enables our brain to process and store visual memories, and if the amount of that protein is increased, retention of visual memories will follow suit. In order to validate this hypothesis, the scientists really did two experiments. The first was questioning the impact of the visual cortex on visual memory. The rats without the visual cortex proved that this part of the brain has a huge role in visual memory. They then used this information to find out what component of the visual cortex was responsible for photographic memory. Once they isolated RGS-14 and tested its effect in high quantities on memory in comparison to normal levels, they found that RGS-14 increased the retention of visual memories significantly.
The fact that this group of scientists used an experimental method and systematic elimination to obtain their results is one element that makes this discovery “scientific.” Another reason that this is “science,” is that it explored what was previously known about the brain, and used that knowledge to further our comprehension of ourselves in a logical, cohesive manner.
This connects to what we are learning in class on multiple levels. This discovery could be considered heretic or immoral according to many parties, but could ultimately lead to a standard of information that is widely accepted and put to use in the coming years. In addition, it connects to our study of the re-envisionaries in that these scientists used existing knowledge in new ways to develop a revolutionary finding.

Additional sources:
Gutiérrez, Antonia, Zafar U. Khan , Manuel F. López-Aranda, Juan F. López-Téllez, Mariam Masmudi-Martín, Irene Navarro-Lobato. "Role of Layer 6 of V2 Visual Cortex in Object-Recognition Memory." Science 3 July 2009: 87-89. Print.

Virtual Reality Helps Smokers Kick the Habit

http://news.discovery.com/tech/virtual-reality-smoking-addiction.html

http://www.sciencecodex.com/crushing_cigarettes_in_a_virtual_reality_environment_reduces_tobacco_addiction

A study published in CyberPsychology and Behavior has shown that virtual reality treatments in conjunction with other methods can help smokers quit. The study, conducted by researchers from Canada's GRAP Occupational Psychology Clinic and the University of Quebec, consisted of 91 smokers split into two groups. One group entered the virtual reality environment and chased down and crushed floating cigarettes, while the control group crushed floating balls. This particular treatment took place four times a week.

During a six month follow up after the research concluded about 20% of the control group reported having abstained from smoking during the past week, while 39% of the experimental group reported having abstained. Although the researchers weren't sure of the exact cause of the cigarette crushers' higher success rate, they did partially attribute it to helping motivate smokers to resist the urge. 23% of the experimental group reported having flashbacks of the crushing exercise during cravings, and said that this helped them to resist it. This is opposed to only 3% of the control group. However, the session was not always helpful. Some of the participants rationalized that they were capturing and storing the cigarettes during the exercise, instead of simply crushing them.

It is also important to note that participating in the cigarette crushing exercise increased retention rates. People in the experimental group, on average, stayed with the program for more than 8 weeks. People in the control group stuck it out for an average of less than 6 weeks.

I think that this is an extremely interesting study. I find it particularly interesting to see virtual reality, something typically associated with gaming or other less than productive activities, being applied in a new way that can actually help people with emotional disorders and addictions. There has also been use of virtual reality in recent years by the University of Southern California to try to help Iraq vets deal with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. I think that this is a growing technology to be watched in upcoming years as it expands to be used in various areas of therapy.

Ashley Desjardins- Simple blood test spots early stages of Lung Cancer

Currently, in the United States over 150,000 people die of Lung Cancer. This makes it the cancer with the highest death rate, followed closely by colon, prostate, and breast cancer. The reason it is so dangerous is because before symptoms due to the tumor show up, such as coughing up blood, the cancer has spread. A recent scientific discovery has been made that would allow 99% of these cases to be detected and possibly treated to avoid the devastating results of this disease.
This innovation, called the LC Detect, was developed by Mark Semenuk, a researcher at Panacea Pharmaceuticals in Gaithersburg, Maryland. It consists of a simple blood test that measures levels of the protein human aspartyl beta-hydroxylase (HAAH).This is a protein that is visible in all patients with lung cancer but rarely in healthy patients. Scientists believe that HAAH has several properties that make it cancer causing. One is that it travels to the surface of a cell which makes it more susceptible to chemical signals that promote growth. Also, if it stays on the surface for too long then it can fail to mature properly and can become cancerous, as well as the levels in the blood getting too high. The high levels can be detected when certain antibodies are put into the blood that change color when they bind to the protein. Abnormal levels that would be picked up are anything more than 3 nanograms of HAAH per milliliter of blood.
While this test alone cannot determine the existence of cancer, when it is paired with chest x-rays, CT scans, and other imaging technologies the results are almost always definite, as to whether or not the person has cancer. This can then help the doctor decide if treatment is possible and if the disease is curable.
In one experiment, 303 people’s blood was tested, 160 of these people were known to have lung cancer at various stages. The test accurately diagnosed the existence of cancer in all of these patients, except for one.
In another study, 60 patients, 15 of whom had the earliest stage of lung cancer were tested. All 15 cases were detected, proving that this test can accurately detect the illness early on.
What attracted me to this was the fact that it is so deadly because there are no symptoms until it is too late. With this test people may have more of a chance of surviving and it could no longer be a death sentence because it could be detected early on.

Works Cited
Simple blood test spots early stage Lung Cancer. New Scientist, 18 Sept. 2007. Web. 7 Nov. 2009. .

Matt Eschbach - Antimatter

Antimatter consists of "negative" particles called positrons which directly oppose matter. If a particle and an anti-particle collide, they annihilate each other and leave behind a burst of energy. This does not violate the theory of matter and energy creation and destruction, rather the two particles become the energy from the collision. Thwe following is a quote by the Stanford online News Service: "The Big Bang, according to the most basic physical laws, created equal amounts of matter and antimatter. Whenever a particle of matter meets its antimatter twin, they annihilate each other, leaving behind only a burst of energy. The particles of energy -- photons -- zipping through the universe today are evidence that a lot of annihilations took place. However, the fact that we are here is proof that the annihilation was incomplete: There is one particle of matter for every billion photons. It's the cause of this one-in-a-billion imbalance that scientists are trying to understand." (Stanford News Service)

Antimatter is not just a theory: it has been artifically produced in science lab experiments! In 2008, physicist Hui Chen, who works at the Jupiter laser facility of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, has discovered that shooting a laser through a piece of gold the size of a pin head produces over 10 billion positrons of antimatter! "'We’ve detected far more anti-matter than anyone else has ever measured in a laser experiment,' said Hui Chen, who led the experiment. 'We’ve demonstrated the creation of a significant number of positrons using a short-pulse laser.'” (Sciencedaily.com)

Discovering the secrets of antimatter is a huge step towards understanding our universe. If scientists can figure out why there is more matter in the universe than antimatter, they may be able to uncover new information about the origin of the Big Bang.

Sources

Calder, Neil. "Antimatter experiment hits a key milestone." 19 July, 2004. 8 Nov. 2009 <http://news.stanford.edu/pr/2004/luminosity-719.html>.



DOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. "Billions Of Particles Of Anti-matter Created In Laboratory." ScienceDaily 18 November 2008. 8 November 2009
http://www.sciencedaily.com/.

Photo from: http://science.howstuffworks.com/antimatter1.htm. Image was taken by NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Hubble Space Telescope.

Gila Monster Saliva: Medication and Weight Loss Drug?

Who would have imagined that this venomous lizard could actually provide humans with an essential ingredient that helps type 2 diabetics maintain healthy blood sugar levels and lose weight? And through proteins in its saliva, nonetheless.

The Gila monster is one of two venomous lizards in the world, located in the Southwest of the United States and in Mexico. Although posing little threat to humans due to its extremely sluggish movements, its venom (when released through its salivary glands through chewing) causes edema and a sudden drop in blood pressure.

“Over the past decade, researchers have isolated over a dozen proteins and individual toxins from the lizard’s saliva. One of these, exendin-4, was found to be almost 50 percent identical to a hormone found in the human digestive tract that boosts the production of insulin when blood sugar levels spike” (Servoss). “The endangered lizard's poison stimulates the body's production of insulin, a hormone that helps cells process blood sugar. It can prevent blood sugar levels from dipping perilously low, or stop it from spiking and causing damage to the liver, kidneys, eyes and limbs” (“A Hormone…”). While this medication described is based off of the saliva (because it was only 50 percent identical) and not directly taken from the venomous creature, the studies and findings of this particular protein (exendin-4) within the saliva was the main starting points in determining the correct medication. Byetta (the FDA approved medication) is a synthetic form of the said protein secreted from the Gila monsters teeth. This medication was FDA approved in 2005, when a three-year study on the synthetic version – renamed exenatide – “showed that it helped patients with type 2 diabetes maintain healthy blood sugar levels and lose weight” (Servoss). While insulin injections have proven to be effective for this disease, this new drug has provided people with a less stressful application piece, where the drug will remain in the body for a longer period of time, allowing the patient to not have to inject the drug quite so much and with much more ease. More recent studies have even been able to find that this drug is helping non-diabetic patients lose weight as well. With this new discovery, people have reported losing much more weight with this drug than with other weight loss supplements they’ve used.

While it was only a few years back that this drug Byetta was established, it was during the early 1990s at the Bronx Veterans Administration Medical Center in New York that endocrinologist John Eng discovered the active ingredient in Byetta, called exenatide, while studying a sample of Gila monster saliva (Hammons). Dr. Eng was known for testing animal subjects in hopes of identifies hormones that may have benefits to humans or to the advancement of science. When discovering this hormone that could potentially benefit diabetics and the input of drugs into their bodies, he intently studied this protein and went to the Veterans Administration (VA) for support. The VA, however, denied their support and did not patent his idea because “it did not address a veteran-specific ailment, such as spinal cord damage or some other combat injury” (“A Hormone…”). Knowing this, Eng had to work that much harder to get someone to patent and look upon his discovery in hopes of accomplishing something with this newly discovered protein.

Personally, I find this discovery and new drug so fascinating because of where it originated from. In some random way, scientists tested the saliva of a Gila monster (something I wonder how they ever came about) and ended up finding this useful protein. I think it is remarkable that it so closely resembles a human protein that helps with blood sugar levels. I was drawn to this article because of the fact that a venomous animal who is becoming endangered has something to provide humans with a disease as big as diabetes is really wonderful. The advancement with this discovery might then, in turn, cause scientists to research other animals and perhaps discover other things that will be greatly useful for diseases that humans are facing in our world today. But because of the growing endangerment of many animals (including the Gila monster), it might be extremely detrimental for humans. If we begin to lose certain animals, than we will ultimately be losing discoveries and medications scientists have found (like Byetta). We must somehow find a way to savor these animals, if you will, and protect them from becoming completely extinct.

Diabetes is the fifth deadliest disease in the United States, and it has been increasingly raised as the obesity levels have skyrocketed. This drug will not only help these people by lowering and improving their blood sugar levels and weight, but it will allow for improvement on previous diabetes drugs (such as insulin injections), because it is an advancement on it. This discovery will greatly impact humans in the United States and around the rest of the world because with the decrease in diabetes and obesity, our society might become less economically unstable and start working towards bettering our society as a whole – physically, economically, and socially.

This discovery clearly demonstrates a scientific finding because of the use of experimentation of an animal’s proteins and salivary substances. As dictionary.com states, science is the “systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation” (“science”). Using this term, this discovery that Dr. John Eng found would absolutely be considered science because not only did it ultimately prove successful in helping people with a disease to live longer and healthier, but he identified the knowledge of a new protein through observation and experimentation of the saliva of a Gila monster.

As seen through the readings and discussions we have done in class, many of the scientists and researchers from past times have found new discoveries through intense experimentations and observations of several things. Many were also rejected by others (whether it be society, the church, or other scientists) and their research was often supported by few people. People like Paracelsus and Newton had research that wasn’t supported because it lacked information or went against what people thought. Just like these scientists, Dr. John Eng was rejected when he found his discovery because there wasn’t enough evidence and information to support and prove that his findings would come of anything.

Works Cited

“A Hormone That Treats Diabetes Better Than Any Other Medicine." Diabetes In Control. A free weekly diabetes newsletter for Medical Professionals. 18 Sept. 2007. Web. 4 Nov. 2009..

Hammons, Steve. "American Chronicle | New diabetes medicine from Gila monster saliva causes excitement ." American Chronicle . 26 Sept. 2006. Web. 4 Nov. 2009. .

"science." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. 04 Nov. 2009. .

Servoss, Jeff. "Treating Disease With Nature’s Deadliest Toxins | Unusual Organisms | DISCOVER Magazine." Science and Technology News, Science Articles | Discover Magazine. Web. 4 Nov. 2009. .

Lose Yourself

The music video for the song “Lose Yourself” by Eminem was directed by himself, Paul Rosenberg, and Phillip G. Atwell. The video was made in 2002 by Shady Records. Eminem is an American Rapper who was born in Detroit who become a household name after his first record, The Slim Shady LP in 1999. He then went on the release four other albums since then including the newest this year, Relapse. He has sold more than 75 million cds worldwide. Marshall Mathers has rose from a screw up nothing from Detroit to a worldwide superstar name Eminem. He married his high school sweetheart, Kim and had a daughter named Hallie. His publicity and popularity has made him travel so much that he has family problems and gets divorced with Kim. He talks about these problems with Kim and Hallie in the song, with clips of his family.

In the video it shows clip from his movie, 8 Mile, which was loosely based around his life growing up in the poor area of Detroit. I was drawn to this music video because Eminem is one of my favorite artists and I have listened to all of his cds, and this happens to be one of my favorite songs by him. The music video is very meaningful because he raps about his life and struggles to become who he is today, a true rags to riches story. The subject is his life growing up on 8 mile road and coming from underground rapper to worldwide phenomena.

This is art because it takes a lot of time and creativity to write a song with meaningful lyrics and even more time and creativity to create a video that can portray the meaning of that song. In my opinion art is something that one creates a work that creates an emotional reaction from the viewers, whether it be positive or negative.

I also chose this because it is a rap music video, and I'm sure there's a good chance that nobody else would choose from this genre so I hope my choice was original.

Digital Ants

Works Cited 

Ant Intelligence. Digital image. Dsc.discovery.com. Discovery, 10 Sept. 2010. Web. . 

When recently searching for a scientific discovery I went on Discovery Channels web page. This was helpful because there are many scientific discoveries’ that are being explained. One that intrigued me was Digital Ants discovered by scientist at Wake Forest University and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.  So what do these digital ants do? The ant’s act as an antivirus software but better, they crawl inside your computer looking for suspicious activity. Once the ants discover unusually activity it reports it to a superior and multiples many more ants around the virus or “worm” to control it. When a problem is fixed the ants “die” and just a few crawl through the computer. This makes it better sense because usually an anti virus program is on a timer and operates on a schedule. Most people have the anti virus operate at night. When operating during the night the computer uses most of the computers power, which then leaves the computer vulnerable to infection of a virus. The ants can operate all the time because they are so small and use minimal power.

I was drawn to this breakthrough because I hate it when I get a virus on my computer. I uses my computer a lot more than I would like to and when it is infected with a virus its difficult to keep up with school and work. This break through seems as if it could be very helpful on many computers. I also like it because it makes sense. I never knew how previous anti virus software worked and when you understand how something works I think you feel more comfortable using it. This idea is relatively simple and makes sense.

In our world this could stop people from infecting computers with viruses and control and detect virus quicker. Obviously, this would make a lot of peoples lives easier not having to deal with annoying viruses and broken computers. The scientist made this clear by explaining what the Digital Ants do and how they work.

In my opinion this is science because computer viruses is a problem that many people have and their needs to be an easy way to deal with them. This is a break through that helps people deal with the problem. Scientific break through do not have to have to be huge all the time like inventing the telescope. They can be small things that could help everyday people. 

If the scientist we are discussing in class were still alive I would say that Newton could have easily invented Digital Ants. Newton was obviously a very smart man who if was still alive would be a leading scientist making ground breaking discoveries. The things he invented in comparison to Digital Ants were much more complex. Newton did not have anybody’s examples to look at. I believe he could have easily worked on the project of Digital Ants.

Sustaining Human Life in Space

It's been 37 years since the last person walked on the moon. Since then, more countries around the world (aside from the USA) have been planning to launch another moon exploration mission sometime in the future. On these missions the astronauts clearly need food, water, and air. As most of us already know, when we inhale oxygen our bodies release carbon dioxide. Along with that, a basic knowledge of the digestive system would tell you that our bodies also naturally convert food and water into liquid and solid waste. So what do they do with these excretions?

They had previously developed a physio-chemical life support system that recycles water by purifying membranes and uses electrochemical processes to replenish the air with oxygen and rid it of harmful carbon dioxide. Bodily waste is ejected outside the rocket to burn up in the Earth's upper atmosphere. So why haven't we been exploring space even more since we have this technology down? The problem is that the limitations on the amounts of food they can supply their crew members also limits the amount of time they can explore.

So, right now they're working on the ability to grow their own ecosystems off planet. Who's really working hard to develop this idea? Mike Dixon, an environmental scientist at the University of Guelph in Canada. He came up with the idea of developing "green plants" that give oxygen, consume carbon dioxide, recycle the water, and supply nutrition. Also, NASA's Ames Research Center in California are studying this idea of generating a similar ecosystem. The biggest problems they're facing are that the infrastructure and power needed to support a "plant-based regenerative life support" is large, which requires a lot of material, money, and time. One plant isn't enough, there needs to be an entire ecology maintained for a long time first.

The MELISSA Project (Micro-Ecological Life Support System Alternative) is currently studying bacteria and organisms that turns urine and feces into vegetables, water, and fresh air. By first obtaining the idea from the organisms found in a lake, they are now trying to apply the same type of processes (of converting solid waste into nutrients and photosynthesis) to the ecosystems of human living.

In recent news, the MELISSA Pilot Plant Project at the University of Barcelona, Spain is spending the next few years testing a "crew" of 40 lab rats. If this study proves to be successful, they will eventually move onto human testing (which may take years). Also, two companies by the names of Odyssey Moon and Paragon Space Development are planning to land mini greenhouses of mustard seeds on the moon in 2014. The current research has already helped decrease chemical runoff in our environment, and has also created a new process of water recycling that reduces the amount of required water in the military's laundry.

If these experiments end up working as planned, this could mean that we may one day sustain human life on the Moon or even on Mars. The implications of this advancement are that we would have the capability of human colonization beyond just one planet.

Billings, Lee. "Living Off the Land." SEEDMAGAZINE.COM. 20 July 2009. Web. 03 Nov. 2009. "Billings, Lee. "Living Off the Land." SEEDMAGAZINE.COM. 20 July 2009. Web. 03 Nov. 2009. http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/living_off_the_land/.

This was fascinating to me because the idea that applying natural ecosystems to human life and improving space exploration could eventually lead to establishing space stations with sustainable living conditions! It's crazy to think about!