Defintions

capitalism- : an economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods, by investments that are determined by private decision, and by prices, production, and the distribution of goods that are determined mainly by competition in a free market

communism- a : (classlist society) a theory advocating elimination of private property

b : a system in which goods are owned in common and are available to all as needed

free enterprise-: freedom of private business to organize and operate for profit in a competitive system without interference by government beyond regulation necessary to protect public interest and keep the national economy in balance

free market-  : an economic market operating by free competition

citation-

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/

Countries' History

Afghanistan declared independence on August 19, 1919. It has been a popular focal point of the Silk Road and human migration. It is the hardest country in the world to live in. A man from The People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan was killed in 1978. Members of this party began to fear that the government was going to be dismantled because many were being arrested. Afghanistan is located near South Asia, Central Asia, and part of Western Asia. 

Iran declared its independence in October of 1977.It is home of the world's largest civilizations. Iran has had many different leaders in terms of leaders. In January of 1978, the Iranian Revolution occurred. This was against the first major demonstration against the Shah. It is located in Western Asia.

Saudi Arabia declared its independence on May 20, 1947. The new kingdom was on a reliant on limited agriculture and pilgrimage revenues and therefore was a very poor country. The Kingdom is called "Unification Kingdom." There was never an empire as the rulers. Saudi Arabia is located is Western Asia. 

India declared independence on August 15, 1947. The main leader that helped India gain its independence from Great Britain was Mahatma Gandhi. Europeans set up colonies in India. Luckily, India did not have to go through any war to gain independence from the United Kingdom.

Venezuela declared independence on July 5, 1811. They got it from France. The military strong men running the country main promotion was oil. Venezuela was one of the three countries that were involved in the collapse of Gran Columbia in 1830. Venezuela is located on the Northern coast of South America. 

The United Kingdom was never owned by any country so therefore they did not have to gain independence from any country. The United Kingdom controlled many countries. The United Kingdom is located off the north-west coast of Europe. 

Mexico declared independence in the early 19^th century. Before they were an independent nation, they were conquered and colonized by Spain in the early 16^th century. Also, Mexico is a site of advanced Amerindian civilizations. Some of the groups within the nation include the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya, and Aztec. They were a part of Spain for three centuries.

Germany declared independence in 1777. Julius Caesar used to be control of Germany when they founded it. But the Battle of Teautoburg Forest prevented the annexation by the Roman Empire. Germany was divided into two sections in 800-900. The Holy Roman Empire was formed and clashed in the Thirty Years’ War. This war drew an end to the Holy Roman Empire and a beginning of the modern nation-state system.

Israel declared independence o May 14, 1948. After World War II, many Arabs and Jewish people went to this area. Also, the British withdrew from their mandate of Palestine, and the UN partitioned the area. When all the people began to come in, the Israelis defeated the Arabs in a series of wars without ending the deep tensions between the two sides. Before they declared independence, The Ottoman Empire (Turkey) occupied Israel.

France declared independence in 1778. People began living in France about 1.57 million years ago. Three main entho-linguistic groups in France were the Gauls, Aquitani, and the Belgae. Then many years later, France was ruled under the House of Capet, founded by Hugh Capet in 987. In the late 18^th century, the monarchy and associated institutions were overthrown in the French Revolution.  

Brazil declared its independence on September 7, 1822. Brazil starts with Indigenous Peoples of the Americas. The first European to explore Brazil was Pedro Alvares Cabral on April 22, 1500. From the 16^th to the 19^th centuries, Brazil was a colony of Portugal. Then they decided to be an independent nation. 

Absent

November 1 and 2

The Five Key Religions

Christianity is a very popular religion around the world today. It started around 30 AD. The teachings of Christianity began to spread around the Roman Empire. Their teachings are based in their holy book called The Holy Bible. It is estimated that Christianity has about 2.2 billion following worldwide today. The central figure is Jesus Christ, meaning this is a monotheistic religion. About 40% of the Americas, 26% of Europe, 24% of Sub-Saharan Africa, 13% of Asia-Pacific, and 1% of Mid East-North Africa believe in the concept of Christianity.

Islam, next to Christianity, is the most popular religion around the world. It was started in around 622 CE by Muhammad the Prophet in Mecca. The Quraan is the holy book in the Islamic faith. Islam claims to have about 1.5 billion followers. Allah is the central figure, meaning Islam is a monotheistic religion. The geographical concentration includes Africa and the Middle East.

Buddhism was founded by a prince named Siddhartha Gautama around 460 BC. The holy book is called the Tipitaka and they claim about 2 million followers. Buddha is the central figure in Buddhism, meaning this religion is also monotheistic. The place with the largest number of Buddhist in the world is called Tibet.

Hinduism was founded around 1500-500 BC in India. The holy book is called the Vedas and they claim to have about 950 million followers. 

Test Questions

1. Parts of a groups everyday life is.... (cultural characters)

2. What are some examples of cultural characters? (language, religion, ethnic heritage)

3. Name a nation that is bilingual? (Canada)

4. What is the world language? (English)

5. Name 3 of the 5 world religions (Christianity, Judaism, and Buddhism)

10/8/12

volleyball game

October 5

absent

God Grew Tired of Us (Final Day)

Today in class, we finished the movie entitled 'God Grew Tired of Us.' This movie was about how the people from Sudan, coming to America to make a better life for themselves and their family back in the U.N Refugee Camps. The movie ended by saying what happened to the main people in the movie. Panther got married back in Africa and reunited with his mother and brothers. He also received a Bachelors degree and wants to open a school in Africa. John Bul is now working to get his Bachelors degree and wants to open a medical clinic in Africa. He also united with his family. Daniel is now working in job core. But sadly, he found no members of his family. I think we could help the Lost Boys by donating money to organizations or fundraising. We could also make a school-wide project and have everyone become aware of the Lost Boys and the Civil War in Sudan. 

Second Sudanese Civil War

-a conflict that lasted from 1983-2005 between the central Sudanese government and the people of Sudan
- about 2 million people died in this conflict, famine/disease/etc.
- 4 million were displaced during the war
- caused by the government shutting down Christian ministries in Sudan
- government was taking lands from farmers in order to retrieve oil
- armies enlisted child soldiers
- peace agreements were made in 2005

CIA questions

1. 313,847,465 

2. China, India, United States, Indonesia, Brazil

3. 190,291,129

4. Democracy

5. 95%

6. Russia

7. Mexico

8. China

9. Saudi Arabia

10. United States

11. United States

12. yes

13. Gross Domestic Product

14. Liechtenstein, 141,100

15. no

16. Africa

17. Africa

18. India

19. 18th

20. no

21. 23.9%

22. 76.5%

23. 3.11 immigrants per 1000 people

24. no

25. 7 billion 

Evaluating Websites

1.       Yes, because the CIA is a trustworthy organization. Many professional people work for the CIA and they would most likely not post false information on their own website. I would use this as a primary source for a research paper.

2.       Yes, because PBS is an educational program. The goal of their website is to give knowledge and information to others so they wouldn’t post anything that is false. I would probably use this on a research paper.

3.       No, because there is not enough information about the sources and the author. When I went on this website, there was no information besides the author’s name. Also, they ‘author’ never posted where they got any of the information from. This would not be a reliable source for a research paper.

4.       Yes, because NASA is a well-known organization and very trustworthy. NASA is very well known across the globe so they would never write something that isn’t true. I would defiantly use it as a primary source.

5.       Yes, because CNN is a news source and many people use it as place to learn more about current events. I used CNN at my old school for research on many topics. They are very reliable and keep up to date on current event. I would use it as a primary source.

6.       Yes, because New York Times is a reliable news source. New York Times is a new paper as well as a website and they are very trustworthy when it comes to giving out correct information. I would use this as a source.

7.       No, because Fox News is not always reliable with some news stories. I’ve heard from many people that Fox News sometimes twists their news stories to make them more entertaining and boost their ratings. I would probably not use them as a source

8.       Sort of, because Wikipedia can sometimes be a reliable source but not always. Some of the pages on Wikipedia are protected and people cannot make edits on them. But on others, anyone could write anything on it. So, if the thing I am looking up is well-known, like Barack Obama, I would use it as a way to learn more about the person but not as a source for a research paper.

9.       No, because we don’t know if Mr. Schick is correct on all of his information and there are no editors besides him. Anyone could make a website just like Mr. Schick but you don’t know if it’s reliable or not. Since Mr. Schick is my teacher, I can trust him but not the websites on blogger. 

Essays

                Arête, to me, means to show excellence in anything or any kind. It can also mean to show your highest potential or doing the best you can. Knowledge or wisdom could also be used as words similar to arête. The ancient Greeks demonstrated arête by creating their own government that no one has ever used before. They also created cities out of nothing and made outstanding governments within them. Also, the ancient Greeks discovered things about astronomy and agriculture. They accomplished many obstacles in human history, and that is how they demonstrate arête.

                Elbert Hubbard and Socrates were both really intelligent people. They saw life threw a pair of rose colored glasses and understood things that a normal person would ever think of. I think if they both traveled to modern day America, they would be surprised on how much things are developed. They would probably be shocked on how the government grew. They would probably be disappointed on how people don’t think for themselves and just use technology to think for them. I think they would both agree that the world changed dramatically in both good and bad ways. For example, I think they would both be satisfied that their names are remembered and teachers talk about their life and methods of learning.  But they probably wouldn’t like that our world is now all computer based and not a lot of people use logic in their everyday lives. We tend to depend on our phones and internet to give us answers or the latest news on something, which is not really a trustful source. But in Elbert Hubbard and Socrate’s life, they had to actually think about a situation and find a truthful source for an answer.

                During the next four years at John Carroll, I want to achieve the best grades I possibly can while also maintain a healthy social life with my friends. To accomplish this goal, I would have to study really hard for any graded assessments and put forth my best effort on everything I do. I would have to still take breaks and have to make sure the friendships and relationships in my life are healthy. Also, I would have to finish all my homework and never slack off or procrastinate which is going to be pretty challenging, but it is possible. School is the highest priority so sometimes I will have to stop socializing and focus everything on my work. I will have to be prepared for class and focus on the teacher and what he or she is saying. This plan is going to be difficult to maintain sometimes but I know I can if I put worth my greatest effort.

Socrates

Today in human geography, we learned about the life of Socrates. He was an ancient Greek philosopher that enjoyed thinking outside the box. He was a very ugly looking man and never wore shoes when he traveled among the streets. He would often go along the streets in his city, and ask people questions using the Socratic Method. This was a method Socrates invented to help people think and understand a problem or situation. By the end of his life, he was sentenced to death for the charges if 'corrupting the youth' and not obeying the gods. He supported governments that practiced democracy so he did not want to oppose the governments ruling, so then he died. I think Socrates wants us to understand that sometimes you have to think outside the box to truly understand a conflict or problem occurring. For example global warming is a very controversial problem going on in the world right now, some people believe it isn’t true while others agree it is true. In these types of situations, you need to really think and keep asking questions like Socrates would do to see if global warming would have enough facts to say it is either a myth or not.

A Message to Garcia

Today in Human Geography class, I learned about a messenger man who, without any questions asked, brought a letter to Garcia during the Spanish-American War. The messenger man did not know the location where Garcia was or how far his journey was going to be, but he still agreed to go this mission. Many people today in this society don't agree to do the job given. We always make up an excuse on why we can't do it or say someone else should. In the animal kingdom, only the most fittest survive. This is the same for our lives. Only the most successful people survive. If you are lazy and not a functional part of society, you will wind up broke and unemployed. But if you try your best and work hard, you will be a very successful person. The key to success is to always work hard and put forth the best effort.

My First Day of High School

                This was it. I was actually an official high school student. I’ve been waiting years and years to be in the position I was today. I took a few steps out of my car and walked inside the school I would now call my own for the next four years. I went to my classes and got to know my teachers a little better than the last time I saw them. Then I went to lunch and met a few new friends. The freshmen are so kind and understanding when it comes to inviting and acknowledging you to join in their conversations and groups. I can already tell that John Carroll is going to be so exciting and be a new adventure every day. There are so many new friends to meet, along with a new beginning to just be myself. This year, I am going to try my hardest in school and focus on building strong friendships that would last throughout my high school career. 

My First Day at John Carroll

          As I took my first steps into John Carroll, many emotions were overwhelming. I was no longer in my small school where everyone knew everyone. I had to now step out of my comfort zone into a new part of my life. I began to make my journey to the cafeteria, where I saw some people I knew. They helped me to feel less stressed and actually excited for my high school years. Then all the new freshmen took a seat in the auditorium. We all listened attentively at the faculty’s speeches to the future class of 2016. After we went over a few rules and regulations of the school, then we went to start a normal day in high school. I got my locker and saw how to get to my classes. Throughout the day, my anxiety for high school began to decrease substantially. A lot of my classmates were so friendly and inviting, as well as the teachers. I can’t wait for all the new adventures and challenges that await me in my years at John Carroll. 

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