lunes, 3 de diciembre de 2012

Unit 5: Feng Shui: Ancient Wisdom Travels West


Investigation: What is Feng Shui?

From the feng shui use of oranges to the feng shui use of crystals and fountains, from the right feng shui use of colors to the feng shui use of the lucky bamboo, there are many ways you can improve the energy of your home or office with feng shui.
What is feng shui? This is a simple question that can be difficult to answer. Feng shui is an ancient art and science developed over 3,000 years ago in China. It is a complex body of knowledge that reveals how to balance the energies of any given space to assure health and good fortune for people inhabiting it.
Feng means wind and shui means water. In Chinese culture wind and water are associated with good health, thus good feng shui came to mean good fortune, while bad feng shui means bad luck, or misfortune.
Feng shui is based on the Taoist vision and understanding of nature, particularly on the idea that the land is alive and filled with Chi, or energy.
The History of Feng Shui
 The ancient Chinese believed that specific land's energy could either make or break the kingdom, so to speak. The theories of yin and yang, as well as the five feng shui elements, are some of the basic aspects of a feng shui analysis that come from Taoism.








Presentation Two - "La Familia" terrorist group.


This group born in October 1978

Four militants were returned to El Salvador in mid-October 1978 and formalized their final project with the creation of its own revolutionary organization.
National media assumed that "communism" was behind the crimes. At the beginning of its operation, its funding and growth were priorities.

Activities:
- In 1980 supported certain struggles that were involved disadvantaged
- They made various vehicle theft operations and weapons
- Strengthened alliances with terrorist groups in El Salvador

Aguila Operations
Operation Eagle was to operate a service truck with Marines from the embassy of the United States. It took place on March 17, 1981, and resulted in several injuries and extensive material damage.

Sheep Operations.
That same day (March 17, 1981), also ran the operation Vieja, placing an explosive device at the Consulate of Honduras in San Jose, which caused property damage.
Days later distributed in various parts of the city a statement taking responsibility for the action, explaining its.

Mole Operation
On April 20, 1981, Operation "Mole", consisting of the demolition of the Bust of Kennedy Park in San Pedro by an explosive device.

The end result of the action was negative. Before his execution, and probably by failures in both the design and execution, command presence in the area caught the attention of a police patrol. He organized a small firefight, and then a chase that after several hours led to the arrest of four members of the command.

But the final blow to the organization come June 12. That night the second military command organization planned an assault on a liquor store in a suburb of San Jose.

To this day we do not know the reasons for the delay in the implementation of the action, but the fact is that the attention of a police patrol, who wanted to review their documentation. The discussion ended with a shootout generated that killed the three officers was seriously injured and a member of the command.
At the break the game against a taxi made ​​were chased by two other vehicles, and surprised a while on another street. A new shooting killed another person and wounded one more.

Soon the police arrested Viviana Gallardo, who had stayed with his wounded companion, escaping the third member of the command.

On July 1981, the day of the murder of Viviana Gallardo in the police cell where he was detained, almost all the organization had already been dismantled.

Characteristics of the group
- It was a young group
- with a mean age of twenty
- strong female presence
- Mostly single without childs.
- Their educational level was medium high, with up to ten college students, three teachers from different educational levels, and some professionals,
- Also included artisans, vendors or a housewife.


Unit 4: The Tipping Point


Vocabulary

Transmission: Passing of something from one person, place, or thing to another.
Mavens: People who know a lot and talk a lot about a particular subject.
Word-of-mouth: Related to people telling people.
Epidemic: Large number of cases of an infectious disease occurring at the same time.
Generate: Produce or create.
Got a hold of: Contacted, communicated with.
Consumed by: Totally involved in.
Win someone over: Persuade someone to do something.
Profiled: Described.
Root: Cause, source.
Goes a long way toward: Succeeds in.
Holds: Is true.



El pueblo is located  in Calle Blancos, San José, during all nights of the weeks, people going to this place and they have easily drugs, sex, alcohol and even violence. Nobody controlled that situation and young people can go there and be part of this social problem.
Every weekend, between midnight and one o’clock, El Pueblo is became a dangerous and problematic street for all the cars around it. Is almost impossible to drive near from El Pueblo.
At the begun, this place was built like a tourist place but in the time this change, and nowadays, neighborhoods can’t live quite.
El Pueblo should have more police control every day and every night, try to fight against all the social problems that have in El Pueblo.


Unit 2: Honesty Is the Best Policy


Vocabulary

Pervasive: Existing or spreading everywhere.
Trivial: Unimportant; of little value.
Tattling on each other:  Tell something bad that another person has done.
Mislead: Make someone believe something that is not true.
Veneer: A cover that hides the way someone or something really is.
Relentless: Continuing without stopping or losing strength.
Finely honed: Sharpened; perfected.
Conceal: Hide something carefully.
Preoccupation: The condition of thinking about only one thing.
Intrusive: Affecting someone´s private life in an annoying way.
Erosion: The gradual reduction or wearing down of something.
Inflated: Exaggerated; overly important.

 

Essay #1 – Technology Addiction

First it is important to define the concept of addiction, the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy says: Addiction is a habit who is mastered by excessive use or addiction to certain games, drugs or activities that impair their physical and mental capacity. So addiction to technology is only one of many forms of addiction that people have.
Addiction to technology is detected when there is excessive and uncontrolled used of cellular, video games, internet and social networks, which negatively impacts other areas of the life of the person. Furthermore, when the person cannot use them, they feel anxious, tense and indecisive.
As with any addiction, the technology can greatly affect interpersonal relationships. For example, it can prevent people from maintain friendships or relationships with others.
Also, it can physically affect depending on the person acquiring technology, including computers, laptops, tablets, phones, sight deteriorate generates hand injuries, even back injuries. All these technology tools are shaping our interpersonal relationships.

The problem is occurring in most cases. For example, it happens in students and teenagers, that rely heavily on technological resources in tasks, in college and university work, in social networks, among others. This creates isolation between societies. This is because these people turn away from the group experience, these people keep little contact with people, causing loneliness and low self-esteem.

Statistics indicate that 27% of students in USA, say their laptop is the most important item in their backpack (from http://edudemic.com/2011/08), this data shows that people is fully linked to technology and creates a huge dependency between these artifacts.
The 46% say they´d be more likely to read an assignment if it was in digital format (from http://edudemic.com), another example of the great dependency on technology, although it helps greatly, but causes deeply rooted in man, carrying other consequences for those who fail to channel assertively using technology.

But the most common these days is the excessive use of the smartphones. Shadya Gandur is a good example of addiction created by phones. She lies upside down with his feet toward the back of the bed to reach the outlet and to sleep with his Black Berry in hand, while the device is powered.

The psychiatrist Alejandro Ortiz reveals that there is an addiction to BlackBerry cell phone. By the time the user depends on phones to interact with people, they start to isolate that means they have an addiction to the device. The addict gives preference and privilege to virtual contact rather than personal contact. This shows, according to him, isolation from the real world, a key symptom of addiction. (From http://www.usergioarboleda.edu.co). Another example of excessive use of technology could be surfing the internet for hours.

Finally, the first thing a person with an addiction must do, in this case the technology, is first identify and accept the problem, and then seek professional help from a psychologist or psychiatrist specialized in addictions and behavioral disorders.
The best solution is prevention, which is achieved by being informed about the issues that may generate abuse of new technologies. But, once immersed in a serious addiction, we definitely recommend the help of a specialist to provide the strategies needed to solve it. Or maybe addicts can receive therapy.

References
Dunn, Jeff. (2011). Students Addicted To Technology: The Good and Bad News.

 

Essay #2 – Medias Influence on the people

The media is a weapon that produces some negative things in the people. I think that media produces a very bad influence in the people around the world, because their reports, advertising, news, articles learn a lot of private situations of the people, specially from celebrities, Examples of this situation we mention news on stars homosexuals, drugs in Hollywood, intimate relationships outside marriage, alcohol abuse, divorces between stars; information that people want to read, see and hear, news that only seek to destroy families, to the stars. We all want to know everything that is embarrassing ... especially when it comes from known stars of show business.

But not everything is negative, media informed some situations positive of the people, of the rock and Hollywood stars, but this is not the main reason of the media, they want and try to find private information to show at the rest of the world. Positive news can be mentioned: worldwide sports information, weather, business, health, personal cares, education and technology.
On the other hand, the movie called: “The Social Network”, teach us how the Internet as a part of the media´s influences, try to keep closer the people, how friends, couples and families are very close each other wherever they are.  But specially in the University students, is a tool to find a lot of fun, friendship, be nice with other people.
Of course, I am a user of Facebook, and I find a lot of friends and family that I can´t see, but with Facebook, can talk wherever we are. Facebook is a good tool or application created for all of us, around the world, is one of the best inventions of the century.

Finally, some diseases or affections that can be result of the media´s influence in people are: headaches, depression, loss of sleep, stress, accidents or suicides (why not…!). I believe that media´s influence more than showing positive things is concerned about the personal lives of the stars (movies, singers, sports) and see them fall from grace to show the world ... And make privacy a fun story to others.

References
Yeomans, Matthew. (2012). How social media will drive meaningful sustainable action. Retrieve from http://socialmediainfluence.com/2012/10/16/how-social-media-will-drive-meaningful-sustainable-action/.

Wu, Michael. (2010). The 6 Factors of Social Media Influence: Influence Analytics 1. Retrieve from http://lithosphere.lithium.com/t5/Science-of-Social-blog/The-6-Factors-of-Social-Media-Influence-Influence-Analytics-1/ba-p/5708


Grammar


Modals – Degrees of certainty. Use modal verbs to express different degrees of certainty about the present, the past, and the future. The modal you use shows how strongly you believe something is true or not true.




Unit 1: The Internet and Other Addiction



Vocabulary


Grammar


Wish Statements – expressing unreality.


The group presents the topic as a “Talk show”
Tonight we will introduce a topic related to addiction to drugs and alcohol. Both as social problem of our country. In addition, we have a skit to illustrate a case of drug addiction. Finally, we will present a short video to call awareness and teach people the importance of preventing drug addiction or alcoholism.
We hope you will enjoy it.
Drug Addiction
What is the drug?

According to the World Health Organization (OMS), which is the most used today, drug is any substance which, when introduced into a living organism by any route (inhalation, ingestion, intramuscular, intravenous), is capable of acting on the system CNS, causing a physical alteration and / or psychological testing of new sensations or changes in mental state. Be able to change the behavior of the person, and possessing the ability to generate dependency and tolerance in their consumer.
Now, according to this definition not only marijuana, cocaine, crack, ecstasy, or heroin are drugs but so are alcohol, snuff, caffeine, and some drugs.
The term refers to drugs then the modification can be harmful or beneficial to the living, and that depends on the time of administration and the dosage and the characteristics of the self.
For a drug to be considered as such must meet the following conditions:

·    Being substances introduced into a living organism can alter or modify one or more functions of this psychic (psychotropic or psychoactive character).

·         Induce people who take them to repeat their self for the pleasure they generate.

·    The cessation of consumption can lead to significant discomfort or psychological somatic (physical or psychological dependence).

·         They have no medical use and if they do, can be used for non-therapeutic.

Drugs and teens
Adolescent problems are a cause permanent consultation to professionals in mental health today. Risk behaviors of these young people are associated with the consumption of alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, ecstasy and other chemicals. Such complex behaviors have consequences for health, in different types of medical and psychosocial problems. The causal factors go through individual, family, cultural and group of friends.

Source: Information provided by the Ministry of Public Security (DATI), Police and Drug Control Office of Plans and Operations OIJAuthors. Statistical Information Unit and National Drug

Retrieved from:

In the case of drug seizures for the second half of 2011, there was an increase in cocaine seizures from the first semester, a total of 3222.5 kg (representing approximately 112.5% increase over the semester above).
This means that the country drug use is quite high in the population, and the government made ​​significant efforts to help people with programming both suspicious activity detection and education programs for children and adolescents.