Thursday, March 31, 2011

Sirena Huang dazzles on violin- Sirena Huang http://www.ted.com/talks/sirena_huang_dazzles_on_violin.html About this talk: Sirena Huang, a perfessional violinst, gives outstanding and absolutely brilliant performances. After that, she praises the design of her violin. About the Sirena: - Born in 1994 in Taiwan, she is in grade 11 by now. - Started her violin lessons at 4 and and made her professional solo debut at 9 with the Taiwan Symphony Orchestra. - won top prizes in various international competitions. - performed at TED when she was only 11 years old. - played for the likes of French president Nicolas Sarkozy and Dalai Lama. - from Connecticut. About the presentation: This talk interested me because after listening to people talking for a long time, I wanted to hear some music. Then, I saw this cute little asian girl holding a violin on the icon, and I wondered what she's going to tell us. She started the talk by a breathtaking performance that was about ten minutes long without even looking at the music!! What's more suprising was that she was only 11 year old!! I was completely blown away by it and so were the audience. Then, she started discussing about the technology, entertainment and design of the violin. Overall, her presentation was entertaining, amusing and charming. One idea or image you will take away: Technical skills for an instrument don't matter that much as long as you're emotionally attached to the music. Even though you are really good at handling your intrument, but you don't know how to express your feelings through that, it means nothing. One single word that best describes this talk: Enchanted

TeDtAlK#2- Sirena Huang dazzles on violin

Sirena Huang dazzles on violin- Sirena Huang http://www.ted.com/talks/sirena_huang_dazzles_on_violin.html
About this talk:

Sirena Huang, a perfessional violinst, gives outstanding and absolutely brilliant performances. After that, she praises the design of her violin.

About Sirena:

- Born in 1994 in Taiwan, she is in grade 11 by now.

- Started her violin lessons at 4 and and made her professional solo debut at 9 with the Taiwan Symphony Orchestra.

- won top prizes in various international competitions.

- performed at TED when she was only 11 years old.
- played for the likes of French president Nicolas Sarkozy and Dalai Lama. - from Connecticut. About the presentation: This talk interested me because after listening to people talking for a long time, I wanted to hear some music. Then, I saw this cute little asian girl holding a violin on the icon, and I wondered what she's going to tell us. She started the talk by a breathtaking performance that was about ten minutes long without even looking at the music!! What's more suprising was that she was only 11 year old!! I was completely blown away by it and so were the audience. Then, she started discussing about the technology, entertainment and design of the violin. Overall, her presentation was entertaining, amusing and charming. One idea or image you will take away: Technical skills for an instrument don't matter that much as long as you're emotionally attached to the music. Even though you are really good at handling your intrument, but you don't know how to express your feelings through that, it means nothing. One single word that best describes this talk: Enchanted

TeDtAlK#2- Sarah Kay: If I should have a daughter ...

If I should have a daughter- Sarah Kay http://www.ted.com/talks/sarah_kay_if_i_should_have_a_daughter.html
About this talk: In this talk, Sarah told us how she went from being a frightened teenager speaking in New York's Bowery Poetry Club to a teacher that teaches children to connect with each other using self expression through the project that she created called Project V.O.I.C.E. About the Sarah: - a spoken word poet and a published author - began to perfoem her poetry when she was only 14. - performed both across the country and internationally in the Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, India, and South Africa. - youngest poet competing at National Poetry Slam in Texas. - founded project V.O.I.C.E. in 2004 and has since taught Spoken Word Poetry in classrooms and workshops all over the world. About the presentation: When I first took a glance at the topic, I thought this talk is going to be about why we should have daughters instead of sons. Because I want to have six children in the future, I wanted to see what's her say on this topic. I was really excited and I clicked in without hesitation. However, I was totally wrong. This talk was not about what I thought it was going to be about. It turned out that "If I should have a daughter" is just a beginning sentence for a poem she wrote. I listened to the poem and It amazed me. It reminded me of the writing majors in our school. I admire people who can write poetries, because I can't. I wouldn't even try to start one because I know that it's too hard for me. Just when I was thinking of that, Sarah pointed out the 3 steps of her Spoken Poetry Journey. The First step was when she said I can. I can do this. Step two was when she mentioned I will. I will continue and I won't stop. Step three was to notice that she didn't have to write indignant poems if that's not what she is. Through Sarah's teaching, she learned that sometimes she has to trick students into writing poems. So she came up with lists. She started with telling everyone to wirte "10 things I know to be true." From those things, pick the most compelling one and dig into that. This is how she taught her students to start a poem. Lastly, she ended the presentation with an astonishing piece called "Hiroshima." One idea or image that I will take away: The three steps. I think these are the general steps to reach our goal. First is to tell your self that you are capable of doing that, to tell yourself that it is not impossible. For example, I can do poetries. Second is to tell yourself that you will. If this is what you love, what you enjoy doing, you will do it as long as you believe in it. Finally, the third step is to show your own personality, your character through the things that your doing. Don't do things that everyone else is doing. Be youself. One single word that best describes this talk: Breathtaking

Saturday, March 26, 2011

TeDtAlK#1- William Ury: The walk from "no" to "yes"

The walk from "No" to "Yes"- William Ury


About this talk: William Ury depicts a simple way to deal with negotiations and to create agreement between people.

About the presentator:
Willam Ury
- a mediator, writer and speaker
- work with complicated conflicts such as family feuds, boardroom battles and ethnic wars.

- served as a negotiation adviser and mediator in conflicts ranging from corporate mergers to wildcat strikes in a Kentucky coal mine to ethnic wars in the Middle East, the Balkans, and the former Soviet Union.

About the presentation: At first when I looked at the title, I have no idea what it was about. So by curiosity, I clicked in thinking that I will just watch the first few minutes of this then I will move on to something else. However, something caught my attention. It was the introduction story of his presentation. It is so cool and because of that interesting story, I even asked my sister to watch the talk with me. The story went like this...There was a father who had three sons. When he died, he left 17 camels for his three son. The first son can get 1/2, the second 1/3 and the last one 1/9. But there was a problem. 17 doesn't divide by 2, 3 or 9. Three sons argued because they couldn't come up with an agreement. Therefore, they went and consulted an old wise women. The women thought of the problem for a long time, and finally she said, "Well, the least I can do is to give you my camel." Now, three brothers had 18 camels. 18 divided by 2 is 9. The first son got 9 camels. The second son got 6 camels, because 18 divided by 3 is 6. Lastly, the third son got 2 camels because 18 divided by 9 is 2. Ultimately, only 17 camels were taken. They gave that one camel back to the wise woman. I think this story is telling us that by taking a step back, everything will become clearer. Basically what Ury is trying to demonstrate throughout the presentation is some simple, but not easy, ways to deal with conflicts. For example, he showed the audience that there are multiple sides to one subject, don't get restrained by one or two p
erspectives to things and try to look at things from a third party. Moreover, he mentioned that everyone should change from hostility to hospitality, from terrorism to tourism, and everyone should take the Abraham path. Finally he ended the presentation with a quote which I found really interesting, that is "When spiderwebs unite, they can halt even the lion," this shows us that everyone of us can bring the world a step closer to peace just by taking the third side. It is not easy, but it's possible and it depends simply on us!

One idea or image you will take away:
When I look at things now, I will try to push myself to think about the third side and to take a step back and look at things as a whole. By doing that, I can prevent myself getting stuck in my own little world.

One single word that best describes this talk:
Accepting

TedTalks Assignment

Choose 10 Ted videos you are interested in watching and record each of the following for each video:
1)Name of presenter
2)Title of presentation
3)Topic
4)Go to the "About this Talk" section. Paraphrase what it says.
5)Go to the "About this Presenter" - take a few biographical notes on the presenter.
6)What is the main point/thesis the presenter is making about the topic.
7)Why are you excited about this particular Ted talk?
8)How has the presenter changed the way you view his/her topic.
9)What is the one image or idea you will take away from the talk.
10)Choose one single word that best describes this talk.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Definition and Overview
Bergen-Belsen was a Nazi concentration camp in northwestern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen.
Wikipedia
In April 1943, the SS(Secret Police- police that Hitler put directly under him) took over part of the Bergen-Belsen POW(Prisoner of War)camp and established a concentration camp for Jewish hostages. These prisoners were to be exchanged for Germans interned abroad
From spring 1944, the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp also served as a camp for prisoners from other camps who were no longer able to work.
From August 1944, female prisoners from Auschwitz were transported to Bergen-Belsen to be transferred to other concentration camps as slave labourers.
From October 1944, Bergen-Belsen became the destination for evacuation transports from concentration camps near the front lines.
On 15 April 1945, 55,000 prisoners were liberated by British troops.
More than 50,000 prisoners had died in Bergen-Belsen due to the insufficient food and medical care and the inhuman treatment they received at the hands of the SS.
Belsen Memorial http://www.scrapbookpages.com/bergenbelsen/BergenBelsen01.html
This was what a survivor said when British armies liberated people in the Bergen Belsen camp : Belsen was in the beginning bearable and we had bunks to sleep on, and a small amount of soup and bread. But as the camp got fuller, our group and many others were given barracks to hold about seven hundred lying on the floor without blankets and without food or anything. It was a pitiful scene as the camp was attacked by lice and most of the people had typhus . Many people talk about Auschwitz -- it was a horrible camp. But Belsen, no words can describe it ... From my experience and suffering, Belsen was the worst.
Surprising Facts
Belsen's most famous inmate was doubtless Anne Frank, who had been evacuated from Auschwitz in late October 1944. She and her sister succumbed to typhus in March 1945, three or four weeks before liberation.
Institute for Historical Review
http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v15/v15n3p23_Weber.html

• POW Camp – Concentrated camp
Bergen Belsen was originally established as a POW camp but then it was later turned into a concentration camp. A Prisoner of War camp was a place that captured soldiers from the other side were kept. A concentration camp was where civilians that were considered dangerous or undesirable were kept to isolate them from the rest of the population. POW camps were inspected by the Red Cross and the rules were set by the Geneva Convention. Concentration camps had no rules on the treatment of the people there and millions were killed in them.
Wiki answer

Read more: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_difference_between_a_POW_camp_and_a_Concentration_camp#ixzz1H0zL3koc
Bergen Belsen was the first death camp entered by Western allies.
http://isurvived.org/Bergen-Belsen_liberation.html
So here’s an interview of a 1995 Bergen Belsen camp, Fela Warschau Describes the Liberation by British forces at Bergen-Belsen.
We got weaker every day because there was nothing to eat. Finally, the last day when we had nothing, I could barely drag myself. I said to my sister, "I'm going into the barrack, and I'm going to lie down and just die in there. I do not want to die and people should just step over me like others do."
. They followed me. We all lie down there and just almost said goodbye to life. One of our friends --she was even younger than I was, the youngest --she was always searching, trying to find a way. So she said she has to take the last look outside and see what's going on.
. When she came back she said to me, "There's something funny going out there. People are running all over the place" and it's, it's unusual. It's not what usually happen. And I told her to just lay down and die in peace. She must be hallucinating. She insisted, so my sister walked out with her. When my sister came back, I don't know with what strength she came back, grabbed me by my arm, and she says, "Get up, get up. Guess what, everybody's running, and the gates are open.
. There's a man sitting, is it a tank or whatever" --we couldn't distinguish at that time one thing from the other-- "he is speaking through a loudspeaker. His words are being translated. I think we were liberated." When I got up and walked outside, my eyes couldn't comprehend. It just didn't register. It's unbelievable. I couldn't believe this was really true, so I said to my sister that she has to grab me by my arm and do something physical so I realize I am really alive and we were liberated. It was the English army that liberated us.


Camp officials even traded important prisoners, including Jews, in exchange for money from different governments.
http://isurvived.org/Bergen-Belsen_liberation.html
The worst killer was typhus, a severe disease that claimed many lives.
http://www.ihr.org/jhr/v15/v15n3p23_Weber.html
Death rate: 300 a day
Peter Coombs, British soldier, May 4, 1945 letter to his wife after liberation of Bergen-Belsen.
"The fact is that all these were once clean-living and sane and certainly not the type to do harm to the Nazis. They are Jews and are dying now at the rate of three hundred a day. They must die and nothing can save them - their end is inescapable, they are too far gone now to be brought back to life. I saw their corpses lying near their hovels, for they crawl or totter out into the sunlight to die. I watched them make their last feeble journeys, and even as I watched they died."
http://isurvived.org/Frameset4References-2/-Belsen-CampHistory.html
• Women guards in Bergen Belsen concentration camps were extremely obnoxious. One of the youngest woman guards there even go around slapping women for no reason and she punished them by cancelling their bread and meals. So basically her job was to bully everyone. (This was surprising for me cause it’s so unreasonable and I just can’t understand why they would do stuff like that)
These are the women guards, as you can see they were well-fed some were even overweight
http://www.scrapbookpages.com/BergenBelsen/BergenBelsen08.html
There were more than 60,000 inmates- dead and alive- found at Bergen- Belsen when it was liberated by the British in April 1945. Many victims died because of severe starvation and illness.
http://www.angelfire.com/ky3/bergenbelsen10/

10 Images
This is a picture of emaciated bodies of dead prisoners at the Bergen-Belsen horror camp http://www.scrapbookpages.com/bergenbelsen/OldPhotos/EmaciatedBodies.jpg


This is what the place look like now. It had became a memorial place called Bergen-
Belsen Memorial http://www.scrapbookpages.com/bergenbelsen/BergenBelsen01.html
These were the children that were still alive at the Bergen Belsen Liberation.

Two things that we still want to know
The British Army first used concentration camps against the Boers of South Africa during the Boer War. And they were the country who liberated the concentration camp and the Bergen Belsen was the fist one that was freed.

Were there any reasons or standards for Hitler to believe in German Superiority? The Nazi’s had solders that were not Germans Hitler had soldiers originated from Africa, Arab and Asia. Did Hitler actually care about the German Superiority?
One Word
Outrageous

Relating to real life
Foot and mouth disease is a infectious disease that affects animals. The virus causes a high fever for 2 or 3 days followed by blisters inside the mouth and on the feet that may rapture and cause lameness. Foot and mouth disease of livestock broke out on November in Korea last year. People buried the pigs alive because they have disease on them. And this is one of example that we can relate it into holocaust. Because when we think of the food pyramid, we consider ourselves being on the top and so did Hitler in concentration camps (Nazi). We killed pigs and cows like Hitler tortured Jews. People in Korea had to killed them by euthanasia before the disease spreads but instead what the Korean did was burying them underground when they were still alive. So basically we are causing harms to ourself by doing that.


Conclusion
In conclusion, Bergen Belsen was the most horrifying concentration camp. Many people died and suffer severely from that and for the survivors, this was probably the worst experience they've had and it will definitely affect them in their lifetime.
We could never undenstand why and what made hitler and Nazi to do stuff like that, because it is obviously wrong.

Famous Quotes

Monday, March 14, 2011

Halocaust

Halocaust:

Halocaust happened in the mid 1900s. It is an action to kill the Jewish people. It started when Hitler told all the Germans to see the jewish people as inferior and thought that it is the ''cancer" to human race and the only thing that stopped German from becoming successful. Therefore, Germans had decided to get rid of the jews race. They suddenly arrested jews for no apparent reason and they put them into places where germans would conduct all sorts of experiments on humans. For instance, they put jews into hot boiling water just to test how long the human body can survive in such heat. Moreover, they poisoned them with toxic gases and they took out all their gold fillings and put them into a pile. What's worse is that they use jews body fat to make soap for germans. It is such a shocking and terrifying thing to witness or even to just think about and it creates an indelible impression on people.
My question is why the jews?? why that particular race??

Friday, March 11, 2011

Literary Essay "And Summer Is Gone"

Friends might take on seperate paths in life. Susie Kretschmer's short story "And Summer Is Gone" is about a friendship that didn't last between two friends. Amy and David, people were once best friends, grow farther and farther apart from each other as time has passed. Amy has her own unique characteristics while David has his.

Amy has a different personality compared to David. She is an outgoing girl who is unafraid of anything. In fact, she is so entroverted that she greets David by "jumping agilely over the exposed water meter and looking right into [his] face" (3). In addition, she is an insecure girl who cares a lot about what others think of her. This is revealed when Kretschmer writes that "[Amy] hardly [speaks] to [David] at school, ever " (11). Moreover, Amy has lost herself in highschool, she tries to fit in and become popular; therefore, "though Amy wore cutoffs and grungy T-shirts in the summer, during the school year her clothes were the same as theirs" (11).

Unlike Amy, David has distinct charactersics. He is an introverted boy who is shy and timid. This is depicted when Kretschmer writes that he "[hides] alone" (20) in high school. Moreover, while Amy surrounds the populars and goes to "every party, every football game, every prestigious events at school," (20) David has only "a few acquaintances good enough to talk to between classes" (16). In addition, he "[dreams] of college" (19) and gets "straight-A's" (18) whereas "Amy's grades [slips]"(18).

Overall, it is clear that Amy and David have two contrasting character traits. Although they were once best friend, they took on distinctive roads for the future.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Ha

Bell rang. Some students from Jin Xing elementary school rushed out from their classroom with exaltation and ran towards the playground while others decided to stay in and chat with their friends. "Would you like to go for walk?" I asked my friend. "Yeah, I would love to." she uttered. So there we were, strolling down the hallway, we talked about a lot things. However, the conversation ultimately

Monday, March 7, 2011

“The Lottery” Literary Essay

“The Lottery” Literary Essay

Tradition can cause harm to people who embrace it blindly. Shirley Jackson’s short story “The Lottery” is about an outrageous tragedy that takes place in an uneducated community. Tessie, the lottery winner, is stoned to death. Although there is evidence that the lottery will continue, there are also hints that the lottery will eventually fall out of practise.

There are indications that the lottery will linger on. It has existed for more than seventy years, and people still can’t find reasons for it to stop. In fact, the villagers have adapted to the practice so well that even before the lottery starts, “Bobby Martin [has] already stuffed his pockets full of stones” (147). Moreover, after listening to the news that “over the north village [people] are talking of giving up the lottery” (152), Old Man Warner, the oldest man in town, states that there is “nothing but trouble in that” (152) and that this is the "seventy-seventh time" (152) he has partaken in the lottery. In addition, he even uses the phrase “pack of young fools,” (152) to depict the people who want to give up the lottery.

However, information in the story also supports the idea that the lottery will later be abolished. When Jackson writes that “years and years ago this ritual [has] been allowed to lapse,” (149) and “there had been, also, a ritual salute” (149), she shows that a lot of the customs in the lottery have been abandoned over a period of time. Furthermore, when Tessie comes running to the square, she utters that she “clean [forgets] what day it [is]” (150), this shows that the lottery isn’t as exciting and thrilling as before. The concept of forsaking the lottery in the future also strikes when Mrs Adams utters “some places have already quit lotteries” (152).

Overall, although it appears that the Lottery will continue indefinitely, there is evidence that the tradition will not last.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

The Painted Door- Literary Essay

Marriage is something that is sometimes hard to keep and brings struggles to people’s lives. “The Painted Door”, a short story written by Sinclair Ross, involves a married couple who goes through multiple conflicts and endeavor to live with each other on a distant farmland. Ann, John’s solitary wife, has fallen into an unusual attraction to John’s friend Steven. Although John is partly responsible for his tragic end, Ann should also take the blame for John’s death.

John is partly accountable for his own death. In fact, he is an introverted man who works all day. He doesn’t take the time to spend with Ann or enjoy his life. Even when they go out for relaxation ”John never dance[s] or enjoy[s] himself” (367). Moreover, he tends to ignore his wife’s need for attention which eventually leads to Ann running towards another man. Even though John’s ignorance to his wife’s emotional needs cause some problems between them, Ann should also take some blame for the tragedy.

Ann is obligated for her husband’s outcome. She constantly groans about her loneliness and how she is unaccompanied. When Steve comes, she finds him so different from John. This idea is supported by the phrase"His young lips [curve] soft and full. While John... "(377). Failing to resist Steven’s appeal, Ann falls for him. In fact, she tries to impress him by changing to ”another dress, hair rearranged”(377). These all result in John abandons the house and gets freeze in the bitter storm.

Overall, the couple are both responsible for John’s misfortune. The lack of communication, attention and support between them lead to the misunderstanding of each other’s needs. Furthermore, they pursue for different things in their lives. It is true that marriage can sometime result in people living confused and miserabled.