The Green Book is one of the few books that have captured my attention about how to go green? It is very interesting to see all the different things that I can do to help the environment. Some of them are easy, but of course there are things that will take me some time to do them.
Here are the things what I find easy to hard of following:
1: Since I got bank card I have been using it for everything that I buy. And I end up with a lot of atm’s receipts in my bag from things that I don’t even remember. However, lately I have stopped asking for receipts, which means that this would not become a problem for me.
2: Each time that I go to a grocery I get new bag, even if it is for a small item. However, at home my mom uses the plastic bags to put other items and for the garbage. We reuse the bags at home, but not all of them. When I read this part it reminded me of my country Ecuador. I remember that each time that we used to the supermarket my grandmother and the other woman used to take big bags and baskets for the groceries. It was really unusual to find plastic bags in the streets. But, I think that now things have change.
3: My family buys two boxes of bottle water of a gallon twice a month. We have thought of buying a water filter, but we cannot because we share the apartment with another family. And you know people do not take care of things that are theirs. Of course they are going to use it, but let’s just say they are careless.
4: At home we have a lot of electrical devices plug in the entire day. It consumes a lot of energy, but it is something that we have not paid a lot of attention. It is hard because first of all we are lazy. Also, after getting of work we just want to seat and turn the TV or radio. I do not want to spend my free time connecting the devices. This is going to take quite a time for me to follow.
5: I waste a lot of water while brushing, taking a bath, washing the dishes and flushing. It is something, that I have never pay attention to it. But, this class has helped me to see all the water that I waste each time I do a different activity. But, even after been aware of the situation I still keep on doing it. There are sometimes where I had turn off the water, but it is something that is taking a lot of me to follow.
6: The hardest thing that will take me a lot of time is recycling. First of all I have never in my life recycle something, so I don’t know how to do it. Also, I live in a building where it impossible to do recycle. I mean it is not required to recycle. In addition, I don’t have a lot of space at the apartment to have different containers for each different material. I am aware of the situation but it is going to take me a long time to follow.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Peer Sharing...
*Nisha has not publish her research paper, therefore I decided to pick the first draft she published.*
Polar Bears and the Harsh Environment
By Nisha Hereast
1. I’d like to place my concern on one of my favorite animals, the Polar Bear.
I think this is the main topic of your research paper. However, I think you need to narrow it down and decide about how polar bears are been affect by global warming.
2. These bears are very skilled swimmers. They have been seen in open arctic waters as far as 60 miles from shore. Due to the increasing amounts of water since so much ice has melted, the polar bears have been forced to swim longer distances at a time. These usually results in the bears drowning trying to reach land.
This paragraph is very interesting because it has a description of how polar bears are been affected by global warming. It is really sad to see how these animals are paying for our mistakes. However, I just think that you need to describe it more and tried doing it in your own words.
3. Honestly, the whole paper is not very engaging. I think this because the paper only has the information that you found, but needs to be explain. You need to develop more the ideas that you got and you paper will become very interesting.
4. Yes, Nisha has the name of the places where she got her information.
5. So far, no fictional human interest story.
6. Well, the whole paper looks to be copy directly from the sources. Therefore, the only thing I recommend is to explain them in your own words. Perhaps, try doing it section by section like Professor Gallardo had outline. You should start doing this very soon because you will have a lot of work to do.
Chacaltaya Research Paper
By, Jamie Quintana
1. “The natives of Bolivia, specifically the surrounding city of La Paz will lose a vital source of water.”
-I think this is your thesis for the research paper. However, I was a little confused of what you were focusing. You started by explaining the glacier, then you moved on to talk about the natives of Bolivia. I think you need to connect them a little bit more.
2. “Fortunately, the life and color of La Paz is found in its people and culture, not in its landscape. However, just outside of La Paz there is a great range of Andean mountains. In the midst of those Andean mountains you will find Chacaltaya.”
-These two sentences captured my attention because it has details and a description of the environment. For an instance, I got an image of how natives of Bolivia look and the place where they live. Perhaps the words that you used to describe this scene helped a lot.
3. “Chacaltaya, as mentioned above, is the highest tropical glacier in the world. It stands close to 18,000 feet into the clouds (Herald Tribune 07). At the peak of Chacaltaya there was once a thriving ski resort. Although ski resorts in Chile and Argentina were bigger and more luxurious, die hard skiers flocked to Chacaltaya because of its altitude and because the best skiing at Chacaltaya was from January through March, instead of July to September like the resorts in Chile and Argentina. The ski resort was founded in the late 1930s and can only reached by a dirt road winding through the city of La Paz. There was once a lift, but now if you want to reach the peak of the mountain, you will have to hike for 30 minutes to reach the highest point. Unfortunately, if you ever get the opportunity to reach the top of Chacaltaya today, you will find that there is very little ice to ski on. Indeed, the ski resort was great for skiers from around the world to visit and enjoy, but the Chacaltaya glacier has or had a more important aspect to it (CNN 08).”
-When I read this paragraph I did not understand what you were talking about. Maybe it was because you got to detail with the ski resort. I think you should give a brief description of the ski resort and focus more on the glacier.
4. Yes, Jamie uses different quotes of the professional people that are trying to solve this problem. However, I do think that you should explain more the quotes and connect them to your topic.
5. Yes, his paper has fictional interview of a native Bolivian. However, I am not sure if you copy directly from the newspaper El Diario or if you created. Anyways, the interview demonstrates a lot of the problems that the natives are facing by the melting of the glacier. Some of the answers are graphic and detail. In addition, it shows that some native are planning solutions for this problem.
6. I just think that you need to overlook your paper for some minor mistakes. I do recommend that you should get more detail in each paragraph. In addition, I think you should try to organize your paragraphs. For instance, there are some paragraphs were you are describing the geography of Bolivia, then you jump to talk about the skit resort, then you go back talking about the natives and the environment. Otherwise you paper is really interesting and I think it will be great.
The Guarani: Suffering at the Hands of Change
By :Jocelyn Perez
1. "The Guarani tribes continue to suffer at the hands of change as they have for generations, due to the economic shift to cattle raising and interest in lumber.”
Your topic captured my attention because the name of the tribe you are talking about is similar to mine or I am not sure if it’s the same; maybe written in a different way. The tribe that I picked for my fictional story is the Huaorani tribe. Anyways, I picked this sentence because it’s a description of what the whole paper is talking about.
2. “When it comes to sustaining themselves, the tribes take to hunting, fishing, gathering and horticulture. They only take what is needed; each family only plants enough to feed themselves. Although the practice is often scrutinized by agriculturalists, the Guarani have long used the slash and burn techniques to replenish the much needed nutrients in the soil. They use a plot of land for raising crops for a period of three to four years, then set ablaze the vegetation and abandon it, until the alternate plot is past use. This gives the forest time to naturally rebalance itself, and return its soils to a fertile state. The Guarani share a symbiotic relationship with their surroundings. They would do so for hundreds of years, before “others” came to claim the partner they had for so long sought to protect. (Reed; “Indians”)”
-I really like this paragraph because it shows the connection that Guarani have with the environment. In addition, it has a lot of information of how Guarani indigenous use the land to sustain their selves and treat it with respect.
3. The first to encounter the Guarani, were a slew of Spanish explorers, the famed conquistadores, who came to South America in the early sixteenth century. They came in search of fertile farmland, and rubber, which was in high demand. Nevertheless, when confronted by the indigenous group, they saw ample opportunity to get involved in the slave trade. The people were hunted down and entire families were sold. It would take almost half a century for some form of help to arrive. Jesuit missions made the journey in search of new followers, and when they learned of the atrocities being done to the slaves, they offered the Guarani conversion as a form of escape. Thousands of Guarani flocked to the missions; they learned the Catholic prayers, but continued their ways in secret. Finally, in the beginning of the eighteenth century several European countries waged war in the region wanted to stake their claim on the areas now known as Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina. Many Guarani stayed to fight and die, alongside their priests, while others saw their chance and fled back into the forest. Many tribes reverted to the old way of life; those who had difficulty doing so chose to take the occasional job as a gardener or maintenance worker for a village farmer. But deep in the forest they stayed, looking expectantly into a bright future, and waiting. (“Guarani”, Wikipedia; “Indians”)
I picked this paragraph for this questions because is one of the less interesting paragraphs of your paper. Even though I think all your paragraphs are very interesting and graphic. In addition, I picked this paragraph because I was told in other classes that we cannot use Wikipedia as a source, but as a way of beginning the research paper. I
4. Yes, Jocelyn has the name of the places she got her information at the end of the paragraphs.
5. She does not have a fictional human interest story so far.
6. I do not think she needs help with the grammar. But it is not a bad idea to double check for minor mistakes.
Polar Bears and the Harsh Environment
By Nisha Hereast
1. I’d like to place my concern on one of my favorite animals, the Polar Bear.
I think this is the main topic of your research paper. However, I think you need to narrow it down and decide about how polar bears are been affect by global warming.
2. These bears are very skilled swimmers. They have been seen in open arctic waters as far as 60 miles from shore. Due to the increasing amounts of water since so much ice has melted, the polar bears have been forced to swim longer distances at a time. These usually results in the bears drowning trying to reach land.
This paragraph is very interesting because it has a description of how polar bears are been affected by global warming. It is really sad to see how these animals are paying for our mistakes. However, I just think that you need to describe it more and tried doing it in your own words.
3. Honestly, the whole paper is not very engaging. I think this because the paper only has the information that you found, but needs to be explain. You need to develop more the ideas that you got and you paper will become very interesting.
4. Yes, Nisha has the name of the places where she got her information.
5. So far, no fictional human interest story.
6. Well, the whole paper looks to be copy directly from the sources. Therefore, the only thing I recommend is to explain them in your own words. Perhaps, try doing it section by section like Professor Gallardo had outline. You should start doing this very soon because you will have a lot of work to do.
Chacaltaya Research Paper
By, Jamie Quintana
1. “The natives of Bolivia, specifically the surrounding city of La Paz will lose a vital source of water.”
-I think this is your thesis for the research paper. However, I was a little confused of what you were focusing. You started by explaining the glacier, then you moved on to talk about the natives of Bolivia. I think you need to connect them a little bit more.
2. “Fortunately, the life and color of La Paz is found in its people and culture, not in its landscape. However, just outside of La Paz there is a great range of Andean mountains. In the midst of those Andean mountains you will find Chacaltaya.”
-These two sentences captured my attention because it has details and a description of the environment. For an instance, I got an image of how natives of Bolivia look and the place where they live. Perhaps the words that you used to describe this scene helped a lot.
3. “Chacaltaya, as mentioned above, is the highest tropical glacier in the world. It stands close to 18,000 feet into the clouds (Herald Tribune 07). At the peak of Chacaltaya there was once a thriving ski resort. Although ski resorts in Chile and Argentina were bigger and more luxurious, die hard skiers flocked to Chacaltaya because of its altitude and because the best skiing at Chacaltaya was from January through March, instead of July to September like the resorts in Chile and Argentina. The ski resort was founded in the late 1930s and can only reached by a dirt road winding through the city of La Paz. There was once a lift, but now if you want to reach the peak of the mountain, you will have to hike for 30 minutes to reach the highest point. Unfortunately, if you ever get the opportunity to reach the top of Chacaltaya today, you will find that there is very little ice to ski on. Indeed, the ski resort was great for skiers from around the world to visit and enjoy, but the Chacaltaya glacier has or had a more important aspect to it (CNN 08).”
-When I read this paragraph I did not understand what you were talking about. Maybe it was because you got to detail with the ski resort. I think you should give a brief description of the ski resort and focus more on the glacier.
4. Yes, Jamie uses different quotes of the professional people that are trying to solve this problem. However, I do think that you should explain more the quotes and connect them to your topic.
5. Yes, his paper has fictional interview of a native Bolivian. However, I am not sure if you copy directly from the newspaper El Diario or if you created. Anyways, the interview demonstrates a lot of the problems that the natives are facing by the melting of the glacier. Some of the answers are graphic and detail. In addition, it shows that some native are planning solutions for this problem.
6. I just think that you need to overlook your paper for some minor mistakes. I do recommend that you should get more detail in each paragraph. In addition, I think you should try to organize your paragraphs. For instance, there are some paragraphs were you are describing the geography of Bolivia, then you jump to talk about the skit resort, then you go back talking about the natives and the environment. Otherwise you paper is really interesting and I think it will be great.
The Guarani: Suffering at the Hands of Change
By :Jocelyn Perez
1. "The Guarani tribes continue to suffer at the hands of change as they have for generations, due to the economic shift to cattle raising and interest in lumber.”
Your topic captured my attention because the name of the tribe you are talking about is similar to mine or I am not sure if it’s the same; maybe written in a different way. The tribe that I picked for my fictional story is the Huaorani tribe. Anyways, I picked this sentence because it’s a description of what the whole paper is talking about.
2. “When it comes to sustaining themselves, the tribes take to hunting, fishing, gathering and horticulture. They only take what is needed; each family only plants enough to feed themselves. Although the practice is often scrutinized by agriculturalists, the Guarani have long used the slash and burn techniques to replenish the much needed nutrients in the soil. They use a plot of land for raising crops for a period of three to four years, then set ablaze the vegetation and abandon it, until the alternate plot is past use. This gives the forest time to naturally rebalance itself, and return its soils to a fertile state. The Guarani share a symbiotic relationship with their surroundings. They would do so for hundreds of years, before “others” came to claim the partner they had for so long sought to protect. (Reed; “Indians”)”
-I really like this paragraph because it shows the connection that Guarani have with the environment. In addition, it has a lot of information of how Guarani indigenous use the land to sustain their selves and treat it with respect.
3. The first to encounter the Guarani, were a slew of Spanish explorers, the famed conquistadores, who came to South America in the early sixteenth century. They came in search of fertile farmland, and rubber, which was in high demand. Nevertheless, when confronted by the indigenous group, they saw ample opportunity to get involved in the slave trade. The people were hunted down and entire families were sold. It would take almost half a century for some form of help to arrive. Jesuit missions made the journey in search of new followers, and when they learned of the atrocities being done to the slaves, they offered the Guarani conversion as a form of escape. Thousands of Guarani flocked to the missions; they learned the Catholic prayers, but continued their ways in secret. Finally, in the beginning of the eighteenth century several European countries waged war in the region wanted to stake their claim on the areas now known as Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina. Many Guarani stayed to fight and die, alongside their priests, while others saw their chance and fled back into the forest. Many tribes reverted to the old way of life; those who had difficulty doing so chose to take the occasional job as a gardener or maintenance worker for a village farmer. But deep in the forest they stayed, looking expectantly into a bright future, and waiting. (“Guarani”, Wikipedia; “Indians”)
I picked this paragraph for this questions because is one of the less interesting paragraphs of your paper. Even though I think all your paragraphs are very interesting and graphic. In addition, I picked this paragraph because I was told in other classes that we cannot use Wikipedia as a source, but as a way of beginning the research paper. I
4. Yes, Jocelyn has the name of the places she got her information at the end of the paragraphs.
5. She does not have a fictional human interest story so far.
6. I do not think she needs help with the grammar. But it is not a bad idea to double check for minor mistakes.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Open Topic...
This research paper is very interesting, since is about a serious problem that is going in my country. This paper has not become frustration because I am learning different things that I did not have idea where happening. In addition, it is a way of seeing the price that others have to pay in order for us to get what we want. It made me conscious of the damage that we are doing to our planet.
However, I am having some problems with the second part. Perhaps it is the part where you have to write the horrible experiences they are going through. It is hard to say things without experiencing them.
I think that my paper needs a lot of details, explanations and descriptions. But as you said it was the first draft to help organize the things that we and still need to develop.
However, I am having some problems with the second part. Perhaps it is the part where you have to write the horrible experiences they are going through. It is hard to say things without experiencing them.
I think that my paper needs a lot of details, explanations and descriptions. But as you said it was the first draft to help organize the things that we and still need to develop.
Friday, May 2, 2008
Getting closer to the answer...
For my research paper I decided to pick a small country, but very special and unique. I picked my own country Ecuador. Ecuador is located Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean at the Equator, between Colombia and Peru. Ecuador is divided into four regions: the Amazon, the Highlands, the Coast, and the Galapagos Islands. Ecuador is a small and poor country that is facing a lot of problems. In addition, a lot of people and countries have being taking advantage of my country and destroying its natural resources. One of the biggest problems that my country is facing is happening in the Amazons region. The Amazons is populated by a lot of people, indigenous, a huge amount of plants and animals. All of these living beings are suffering by the destruction of their environment, due to petroleum and the aerial spraying that started happing some years ago.
Texaco is the oil company responsible for the contamination of the land and water. Texaco started working in Ecuador approximately 30 years ago. During all the time that they spend at Ecuador they didn’t respect the environment. They throw all the waste into the water and land. They didn’t even fixed the broken oil pipes. All of these responsibilities poised the land and water of many people, plants and animals. This has become a great issue since different people are getting health problems, just as mutations and new diseases.
The second problem that is affecting the Amazons is the aerial spraying. The aerial spraying is not being done by our country, but by our neighbor country Colombia. The government of Colombia has decided to due aerial spraying to kill all the plantations of cocaine. This has become a problem for us since the aerial spraying is being done at the borders of Colombia and Ecuador. All these chemicals are poising the land and water of many rivers that a lot of people are depending on. In addition, people are getting a direct contact with these chemicals during the spraying.
I decided to pick this topic for my research for many different reasons. The first and most important is because a serious crises that my people is facing. In addition, I want to get more knowledge of this problem. I wasn’t aware of this problem because I didn’t use to put a lot of attention to the things that were going in my country. I want to see how the Amazons are being destroyed. It is really sad to see how a beautiful place that is the house of many people, animals and plants is being destroyed by our negligent. The most important thing I want to learn who the responsible people are. Furthermore, I want to see the things that the government of my country is doing to help these people.
With this research paper I hope to reach different people. I want to inform Ecuadorians that live in other countries about the crises that their country is facing. In addition, I want to demonstrate regular people the price that innocent people are paying so we can get our lives easier. Perhaps this paper can capture the attention of professional people that can help my country to restore its environment and help the people with their health.
So far I have being able to gather a lot of information about my topic. I am using reports from the United Nations, a couple of books, reports from local newspapers, a blogs, and YouTube Videos. All of these sources contain information about the effect of the petroleum and aerial spraying to the environment. Each resource contains different information that is related to my topic. They do not only inform about the conditions of the environment, but also about the solutions that people and indigenous are looking for. Furthermore, the videos and some articles contain the personal experiences of these people.
"Watch me, I need to be spread"
Texaco is the oil company responsible for the contamination of the land and water. Texaco started working in Ecuador approximately 30 years ago. During all the time that they spend at Ecuador they didn’t respect the environment. They throw all the waste into the water and land. They didn’t even fixed the broken oil pipes. All of these responsibilities poised the land and water of many people, plants and animals. This has become a great issue since different people are getting health problems, just as mutations and new diseases.
The second problem that is affecting the Amazons is the aerial spraying. The aerial spraying is not being done by our country, but by our neighbor country Colombia. The government of Colombia has decided to due aerial spraying to kill all the plantations of cocaine. This has become a problem for us since the aerial spraying is being done at the borders of Colombia and Ecuador. All these chemicals are poising the land and water of many rivers that a lot of people are depending on. In addition, people are getting a direct contact with these chemicals during the spraying.
I decided to pick this topic for my research for many different reasons. The first and most important is because a serious crises that my people is facing. In addition, I want to get more knowledge of this problem. I wasn’t aware of this problem because I didn’t use to put a lot of attention to the things that were going in my country. I want to see how the Amazons are being destroyed. It is really sad to see how a beautiful place that is the house of many people, animals and plants is being destroyed by our negligent. The most important thing I want to learn who the responsible people are. Furthermore, I want to see the things that the government of my country is doing to help these people.
With this research paper I hope to reach different people. I want to inform Ecuadorians that live in other countries about the crises that their country is facing. In addition, I want to demonstrate regular people the price that innocent people are paying so we can get our lives easier. Perhaps this paper can capture the attention of professional people that can help my country to restore its environment and help the people with their health.
So far I have being able to gather a lot of information about my topic. I am using reports from the United Nations, a couple of books, reports from local newspapers, a blogs, and YouTube Videos. All of these sources contain information about the effect of the petroleum and aerial spraying to the environment. Each resource contains different information that is related to my topic. They do not only inform about the conditions of the environment, but also about the solutions that people and indigenous are looking for. Furthermore, the videos and some articles contain the personal experiences of these people.
"Watch me, I need to be spread"
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