Did What?(315)

A man named Felix Baumgartner set the world record of the highest free fall of 24 miles, more than 120,000 feet above the Earth. The previous world record was 102,800 feet, or 19 miles that was set 52 years ago by an Air Force test pilot named Joe Kittinger. The technology nowadays is more advanced which allowed Baumgartner to test the new limits and capabilities of bailing from aircraft at high altitudes.

More than eight million people watched the free fall that was broadcasted live on YouTube. The free fall itself lasted more than four minutes, at a speed of 830 miles per hour that was a VERY long fall. Baumgartner rode up to that altitude in what looks sort of like the capsule that astronauts fall back to the Earth in when they come back from space. The capsule was attached to a special balloon that carried him up 24 miles into space. When he reached 24 miles, he simply stepped out of the capsule and off of the platform and began his free fall. In order to withstand the extreme temperatures, he wore a special suit that provided him thermo protection and oxygen in order to breathe.

I can’t fathom how much courage and practice it would take to be ready for a fall like that. I can barely think about normal skydiving much less THAT type of skydiving, or more rather space-diving. Felix Baumgartner is fifty two years old right now. To be fifty two and do that would take a lot of courage. I might expect a twenty year old or someone like that who is young and stupid to attempt it but I guess his age just means that he probably put a lot of thought, planning, and practice into his stunt. The free fall just goes to show how many new things we can still do even though there have been so many monumental things already done.

High School (460)

Since I am absolutely fresh out of ideas for a blog post, I thought id write about my high school experience. As you might expect, I have some common themes of important people, activities, hobbies, etc. first of all, my friends. Ive had about 3 main friends through my high school experience and if that whole laughing adds years to your life thing is true, then they’ve added plenty of years to my life alone. They’ve been there for company, birthdays, boy troubles, school rants, driving vents, and so many more things. Its been great.

These three friends also participated in color guard as I did. if you wernt aware, im continuing color guard when I go to college because I love it so much. Color guard has been my main social …well, place? Whatever. There have been sleepovers, long days, cold nights, bruises, blisters, cuts, sore muscles, bashed fingers and noses and through it all we have tried our hardest to stick with it. for me, I feel like my color guard carreer came naturally. I started my first year out being in a trio, my second year spinning rifle and dancing, third year adding sabre with more duets and trios and my senior year was a combination. Ive enjoied helping newbies and joking with my friends about how I will smack the next band member who gets in my way.

Next, my teachers that ive learned from over the years have mostly been life long influences. Others… well, not so much. I would like to believe that eventually people grow up or grow out of their stubbornness or pissy ways but they don’t. And some people I swear have gained a life time of wisdom and knowledge again each time I see them.

Then theres the boyfriends. Yeah, the few ive dated have made a lasting impression on my life whether its being so happy I cant stop smiling or so heartbroken I beg my parents to let me skip school and sleep the rest of my life cuz that’s my only form of happiness. ..maybe a bit dramatic but hey, im a teenaged girl. I can say that and know the world will end in the same moment if I don’t get my way. (well at least I admit to it).

And then theres my family whos always there. They take me out to dinner every birthday where ever I want to go, wouldn’t miss a football game I perform at for the world, help me through my surprisingly lacking life of drama, and every situation possible whether I ask for help or would rather them leave me alone until graduation.

Wow I can write a lot about something when its off topic from my actual homework.

TMI (305)

A while ago, an article was published on CNN about the discovery of horse meat, or rather DNA, in hamburgers that were on sale in supermarkets in Britain and Ireland. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland published their findings on Tuesday morning. They showed that ten out of the twenty seven hamburger products that they tested contained horse DNA, i.e. they contained horse meat. Twenty three hamburger products out of the twenty seven contained pig DNA, or pig meat. To put this in perspective, thirty seven percent of the tested hamburger products contained horse meat and eighty five percent of the tested hamburger products contained pig meat.

 For those of you that are unaware, hamburgers come from cows. I will be the first one to admit that there is a lot of meat and ingredients in store bought hamburgers that may not be the plain ground beef that I really want. According to another article I found, most hamburgers probably have E. coli and the cows that the hamburgers come from are fed chicken feces. I really don’t need to go into the unappetizing meat industry so I’ll just go back to my specifically titled article.

One of the most shocking things I found out from the article was that in nine out of ten of the burger samples, there were relatively low levels of horse DNA but it one of those ten burgers, twenty nine percent of the burger was horse meat. As an AP Statistics student, I know that if that was the outcome of the sample, there is probably a higher chance of getting more horse meat in the burgers. That is absolutely disgusting. I would be curious to find the results of similar studies in other countries. Recently being in Ireland, I wonder exactly what was the meat I was eating?

Pan's Labrynth (329)

In world humanities we recently watched a movie called Pan’s Labrynth. The movie combined history and fantacy into  one. It was kind of creepy at some points but ill get to that later. Basically the movie starts with a girl and her pregnant mother moving somewhere for an important reason concidering they don’t want to be late and upset whoever is waiting and the fact that the mother is obviously having troubles riding such a great distance in her circumstance and needing a break every so often. When they arrive, a captain is waiting. He has recently married the mother who is pregnant with his son which is an important fact concidering he will pass on his last name. The Spanish war has just ended or almost ended. The mother falls ill and is to be taken great care of so the baby will survive. Meanwhile, the girl has made friends with a fairy who leads her to a fawn. She is the princess of some kingdom with no pain or sun and is to complete a few tasks before the full moon. Her tasks start out with fetching a key from a toad’s stomach and enabling the fig tree to flourish again. The second she is to walk past a feast and retrieve a dagger. After taking a bite of the feast, a very creepy white man with no eyes until he puts them in his hands with long nails like tallons or daggers, wakes up and comes after her. She learns from the pictures on the wall that he eats children.

Anyway, in the end it doesn’t end so well for her or her mother or the captain. But.. the captain was bad anyway so I think that’s a good thing.

I didn’t really like the movie though it was sort of interesting with the guard/army guys and the rebel civilian kind of guys and how they go back and forth probably just as the history goes.

Dont Let Them Take Over (347)

I watched a video that talked about how scientists have made discoveries pertaining to computers and linking them with thoughts. It started with a guy that was paralyzed that was able to communicate through a computer. There was a cap with neuron sensors that was placed on his head and a screen in front of him flashed a bunch of letters. When the guy saw the letter he wanted, he would think “that’s it” and it would record the letter. In this way, he could spell out words and make sentences that the computer would read. There were other discoveries that the video mentioned as well.  They followed the study of a neurosurgeon that implanted a neuron sensor into a monkey’s brain and recorded the neuron impulses in the brain. By determining what this meant, he was able to program a robotic arm to the monkey’s thoughts and the monkey was able to move the arm with only his mind. The study has progressed into human’s brains as well. They were testing the technology in a woman that was paralyzed and she was able to move the cursor on a computer screen and steer a wheelchair.

 I understand the benefits of this technology but to be honest it kind of scares me. I mean, if someone can operate a computer with their mind what can’t they do? What can’t computers do anymore? Hasn’t society learned anything from the science fiction movies? Robots take over, computers get so powerful that they control every aspect of human life, and then they take over. To be fair, the humans always win in the end, but they were made in Hollywood. With all of the new technologies emerging, what would keep people from turning into potatoes that live in a computer programmed world? The fact that these new things can help paralyzed and body-dead not brain-dead people renew their ability to move and communicate is a fantastic thing but what will stop people from abusing that technology and turning it into something you would see in a futuristic science fiction movie?

Interrupted Flight (299)

Ever wish you could fly? Me too. Ive kinda always wanted to see how those birds live. Don’t get me wrong, I like being a human. A species that is very dominant on our planet is perfect for me… im not so sure how id survive as an animal fending for myself. But anyway, i have always loved planes. I love that moment when you realize that you arnt attatched to the ground any more in any way and gravity no longer holds you to the Earth. Its one of my favorite experiances so im glad im so fortunate to have been on a plane once or twice every year of my life. But… what if I didn’t have to pay money to fly? What if I was a bird? Thatd be kinda cool. Maybe for a day or two. Im not sure how my fear of heights would be though.

Anyway, I began thinking of those things after seeing an article about two bald eagles on the internet. The thing is, these are still animals with no laws who settle disputes by themselves. A pair of eagles got into a fight in the air, locking their sharp tallons and started falling to the ground. Ironically, this happened over an airport and they were unable too unlock their tallons before hitting the ground. They lied there on the strip, tangled, as people viewed them and took pictures until a man showed up to take them for medical care. Once he arrived, he loaded them in his truck bed (because he didn’t have containers big enough) and trew mesh and coats over them and tied them down. During the ride, there was a rustle and then one of the eagles flew away. The other stuck around for medical attention though.

Sole Survivor (302)

On yahoo, I looked at an article about a girl who has a rare past. The odds of being in an airplane crash are so little but sadly, it happens. Crocker was only four years old when the crash changed her life-when she lost her family and obtained physical scars as long as her later mental scars. She claims she has no memory of the crash being so young but she thinks of it every single day. She is reminded of it by the scars on her body and the tattoo she decided she wanted to have as a reminder- a part of her so present past. After the crash, Crocker went to live in Alabama with her aunt and uncle who she was raised by. She remembers that she realized that she was the sole survivor of the crash in middle school or maybe high school and kept thinking, “why me?” “why didn’t my brother survive?”. Out of the 154 people on the plane, she survived.

 The plane left a trail of debris as it crashed. Anything from seats to food to carts and parts. But not only that, there was also a trail of bodies. They lined a street showing the horror in the situation.

I think it would be hard to live through your life probably feeling somewhat normal until you grow old enough to be curious and realize that something didn’t add up. I bet its hard to think that you were the only one to live and ask yourself why you? Why didn’t someone else survive? Anyone. Im not sure if I could feel innocent.

Crocker, despite her past, still flies today with no worries believing that the odds are most likely in her favor. If its happened to her before, whats the chance itll happen again?