DJs- 2/25

[sian.barry]

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/23/health/rafis-run/index.html?hpt=hp_

Reading this article literally broke my heart. Erin Blakeley of CNN tells the tragic and heart-rendering story of five-year-old Rafi Kopelan. She opens with a small anedoctal paragraph: "She's mastered Candyland. She's learning to read. Given a choice, she'd spend hours on the swings at the playground." However, the author essentially prepares her readers for the obvious fact that Rafi is not like the other children in her class. She suffers from a rare connective tissue disorder by the name of epidermolysis bullosa (EB). This genetic disease causes skin to break down with even the slightest amount of friction. To further enunciate the severity of the disease, Blakeley offers the scenario that even the labels inside of her shirt cause her skin to tear and then erupt in blisters. Remarkably, the Kopelan family's neighbors felt obliged to act upon Rafi's condition, trying to improve the U.S. funding for rare disease research. The controversy lies in the fact that rare disorder research doesn't benefit the masses, but this is a misconception. "Finding a treatment for a rare condition often informs treatment for a more common disease." I was moved by this piece, and I too believe that the funding finding treatments of rare conditions could definitely assist in treatments for more common diseases. My heart goes out to Rafi and her family, and once again, this reminded me to be thankful of my good health.

[sian.barry]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/22/billionaire-u-richest-alumni_n_2742329.html?ir=Business#slide=more282536

This article from the Huffington Post was extremely relevant to myself and probably most of the junior class. Titled "Billionaire U: The 15 Colleges With the Richest Alums", the writers of this piece provide a pertinent list of colleges that have the wealthiest students. For many, the reason for going to college is sparked by the idea that you need to make money, which a college education will help you achieve. Consequently, this article verifies why a college education is absolutely necessary if you want to make a lot of money. In addition, the author presents a statistic that "74 percent of this Boston-area school's billionaires are self-made." Interestingly enough, I'm very interested in the Boston area, with schools like BC and BU in mind, and it comforted me to know that Boston University, ranked 12th on the list, has 491 billionaires. I mean, if you were to mark the success of a college of how many billionaires it has, I think that would be slightly farfetched. However, in the 21st century, when jobs are impossible to come by without a college education, I believe it is comforting to know that they are preparing you with the foundation to make money in the real world. 

[Julie Daniels]

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/23/showbiz/california-mc-hammer-arrest/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

Famous rapper MC Hammer, was recently arrested in northern California. He was sitting in a mall parking lot in a car that was not registered under his name. When the officer asked who’s it was, Hammer did not respond and soon began to get violent. The Officer took him in for more questioning because of his inability to corporate. However, the real news in this situation was when Hammer tweeted after his release; calling the Cop a “chubby elvis looking dude” as well as more insulting words. He also recounted what happened on his twitter account in an attempt to get more people to side with him. All in all, I do not think it was right for him to do this because he was doing something against the law in the first place. Also, just because he is famous, does not give him permission to denounce any human being on a social networking site. 

http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/23/justice/pennsylvania-hostage-situation/index.html?hpt=hp_t3

The obsession with Facebook has been taken to a whole different level now. Gone are the days were someone just checks their profile once a day or maybe even once a week but now, people are on it continuously. Journalist Steve Almasy explains a hostage situation where the suspect was on Facebook the entire time! He was messaging people and paying more attention to that rather than working with the negotiation team. As a result, police were forced to shut down his Facebook simply to get him to concentrate to the matter at hand. The suspect surrendered and the hostage came out unharmed but this just further indicates how technology obsessed and dependent we are in this day in age. 

[Ben Skalla]

http://todayentertainment.today.com/_news/2013/02/23/17072334-twilight-finale-rakes-in-seven-razzie-awards?lite

This comical article talks about the Razzie Awards, given out each year on the day before the Oscars.  Unlike the Oscars, these are not awards anybody wants to be receiving.  These awards are given out to the actors and directors who are deemed to have done the worst job that year in movies.  This year, the finale to the series "Twilight" received seven Razzie Awards. The creator of the Razzie Awards explains why he believes that this box office phenomenon won so many awards, naming it the worst movie of the year.  He says that he thinks that "... instead of 40 million individual girls going to see it, it's 8 million girls going to see it five times each." This theory of his could explain why so many tickets sold for this movie, yet the majority of people strongly disliked it.  

http://todayhealth.today.com/_news/2013/02/22/17046479-surprise-side-effect-new-specs-may-fix-color-blindness?lite

This article mentions a new type of glasses that had the side effect of helping people with colorblindness.  These glasses were originally created to help improve the vision of health care workers, to make it easier for them to do tasks such as find shy veins.  Users of the new glasses who were colorblind reported that the glasses helped them to distinguish some colors.  The lenses in these glasses actually amplify the hues that are hard to see because of red-green colorblindness.  However, tests showed that these glasses actually made it harder to distinguish blue and yellow hues.  Because of this issue, the creator of these glasses decided they should not be used for daily vision by people who are colorblind.  

[brook...@gmail.com]

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/105-old-woman-renews-drivers-license-230525336.html

This article was very simple, but to me, it was enlightening in a way. Eric Pfeiffer writes with a proud tone of Edythe Kirchmaier, a 105-year-old woman who recently renewed her drivers license. At first, one might skim the article and think, "So what? An old woman passed a simple road test." But when one really puts this idea into thought, WHAT AN AMAZING WOMAN! Kirchmaier still drives the roads of her town daily, to and fro her Direct Relief International volunteer group she leads. Also keeping up with the current fads, Kirchmaier was given the titled of Facebook's most senior user... What an honor? Either way, this woman is still kicking, and I respect this in her. It's amazing that people like her, despite their age, do not give up. She must have a lot of vitality. Edythe Kirchmaier, as long as she is alive, will continue to do amazing things - even if it is just renewing her driver's license. So to anyone who thinks that there isn't enough time to do anything, Pfeiffer and Kirchmaier say otherwise. Get off of your asses and go live life!

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/louisiana-mall-evacuated-flash-mob-gets-ugly-155709607--abc-news-topstories.html

        In this news article, Alyssa Newcomb writes of a flash mob gone horribly wrong in the state capital of Louisiana, Baton Rouge. The flash mob took place in a mall and consisted of 200 teenagers crowding the mall food court pretending that someone had a gun, or at least that is what it seems like what happened. The article is not very clear. With a relieved but almost frightened tone, Newcomb uses quotes from witnesses on Facebook to further emphasize the dramatic and horrified feelings of the citizens at the mall during the flash mob, and explain the outcome of this fresh happening. The teenagers started a brawl and scared almost everyone at the mall as they were running for exits and crowding all parts of the mall.

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:32:54 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

[Liz Anderson]

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/25/world/asia/us-confronts-cyber-cold-war-with-china.html?_r=0&adxnnl=1&ref=world&adxnnlx=1361828443-TgcrVUEs9RyI7xzsvCvzNA

This article is about the Cyber Cold War going on between the United States Government and the Chinese Government. This occured when the United States finally realized that the hacking group which had been breaking into federal government systems was rooted in Shanghai in the center of Chinese cybercommand. This article to me is particularly interesting because one large debate and controversy in the election was how to approach China. Obama's administration will be tested on how well they stick to their word, and how to adress the other economic powerhouse of the world and peacefully get the Chinese hackers out of our systems. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/25/world/middleeast/palestinians-demand-inquiry-into-detainees-death-in-israel.html?ref=world

This article investigates a body found of a Palestinian prisoner in Israel. Arafat Jaradat was misdiagnosed with a heart attack when they released the body it was evident that he suffered from abuse and torture in his interrogation. There is much controversey surrounding this because the government lied to the Palestinian government. This article is interesting to me because it baffles me that these governments are able to lie to one another, and the family was forced to believe that it was a heart attack until they saw the horrifying wounds. 

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:32:54 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

[rippeyrachel]

http://www.cnn.com/video/?hpt=hp_c2#/video/showbiz/2013/02/25/bts-academy-awards-lawrence-fall.cnn

The Oscars is one of the mos glamorous nights in Hollywood where all of the actors and actresses dress up and gather to celebrate the years best  

movies. Jennifer Lawrence, who fell on her way up to receive her Oscar for best actress assumes a young, and carefree response to fall. I loved her sarcastic and down-to-earth response to the questions she received following her trip. This video was very entertaining and humorous. I love seeing that even movie stars are human beings.

  http://news.yahoo.com/agency-releases-boaters-recorded-distress-call-212703088.html

A distress call came from a man and his family when they were abandoning their sinking sailboat off the coast of central California. The family is still missing and the Coast Guard is searching for them. The thought of this kind of stuff happening nowadays is rare, yet it still happens. My mind goes right to the TV show Gilligans Island, and how the cast-aways lived on an island without anyone knowing where they were. I hope the Coast Guard finds this family soon and they will be returned to safety.

[katherine...@gmail.com]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/25/horse-meat-ikea-swedish-meatballs_n_2757934.html

In this article, Karl Ritter examines and explains the recent report that horse meat was found in Ikea's Swedish Meatballs. My first reaction to this article was "Ikea whyyyyyyyyy?!" Once I got over the pure sadness of Ikea being anything less than awesome, I read the article and was shocked and appalled to see that this horse meat scandal is continuing to spread across Europe. Although these claims seem to be far less valid than the earlier ones centered in Great Britain, it's still worrisome that there is potentially horse meat in products that are being widely consumed. Although the article assures that this doesn't relate to the United States at all, I am still curious to have our meat tested, to see how much, if there is any, horse meat is in products that are on our shelves. 

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:32:54 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

[katherine...@gmail.com]

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-moment-youth/201302/should-school-be-no-whining-zone

Here, Marilyn Price-Mitchell, Ph.D. writes about the ongoing trend of kids doing less and less work while getting more rewards in school. She highlights the facts that children nowadays find ways to circumvent work, and are used to getting a great grade, and if they don't, they get angry and seem to blame anyone else but themselves. I found this article to be so relevant because in any of my AP classes, I can point to that one kid who will bitch nonstop if he or she doesn't get a great grade, regardless of the fact that he/she didn't study for the test, or spend long on the paper. I think that today, most, if not all children, overestimate their intelligence because they're constantly reinforced positively, and don't understand that you can't excel at everything. Especially visible among AP kids, when students don't get that A, they turn into little brats, regardless of their age. While this is upsetting, it's rather hard to avoid because at the end of the day, we often think that we deserve a better grade than we actually put in the effort to earn, and sooner or later, the realization that we truly have to buckle down and work in order to excel is going to hit us. 

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:32:54 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

[Matt Saba]

 

I found this political cartoon humorous and relevant, especially since I used an article about these hackers last week. The cartoon clearly depicts Uncle Sam’s hand holding a fortune from one of several broken fortune cookies. The caption says that the cookies are “Misfortune Cookies” from China. As the labels indicate, the fortunes are that China will control our media, business, and finally the idea that China has hacked into the American internal systems. Just the fact that the cartoonist used something as trivial as fortune cookies to represent the tension and problems occurring between the two countries, made it much more amusing and easy for people to understand.

In this political cartoon,  the cartoonist brings together the event of the meteor and a  political opinion of many people in the United States. In the four separate images, there is a scientist with a picture and a caption describing it. It goes progressively from a rock flying through space being called an asteroid, to a rock in the atmosphere called a meteor, to a rock hitting the ground being called a meteorite, and finally the punch line that a rock not moving at all, not doing anything at all can be called congress. The cartoonist is using the recent event of the meteor strike to represent his or her opinion of the inactivity in congress. I like this cartoon because it is easy to follow and as a science person, I can definitely appreciate the approach that the cartoonist takes to describing their political opinion.

[Mikaela Litchfield]

http://movies.yahoo.com/blogs/2013-oscars/awards-minute-video-jennifer-lawrence-took-edge-off-100011153.html

I personally didn't watch the Oscars, but the first thing I heard about it was about Jennifer Lawrence's fall. This video, on Yahoo, talks about both that and a small press conference that she did after. I thought she handled the whole thing really well, she was embarrassed but wasn't ashamed and she did a really good job of making a joke about it. Jennifer Lawrence is my favorite actress  because it's clear she doesn't try to put on a facade to attain a certain reputation. She looked really elegant last night and I think it's really awesome that she got her first Oscar at 22!

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/25/us/california-missing-boat-children/index.html?hpt=us_c2

CNN reports that a couple, their four year old child, and their cousin went missing after sending a message to the Coast Guard alerting them that they were abandoning ship. The message was received on Sunday, and the Coast Guard asked the public to help identify or find these missing people. There is still hope for finding them, and several aircraft and vessels have joined the ongoing search. The search will continue until the four are found or the levels of survivability have surpassed. 

[isabella.cuan]

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/2013/02/23/107382

This political cartoon designed by cartoonist Henry Payne is yet another depiction of the unstable foundation our economy currently lies on. In the cartoon, the federal budget is portrayed as an extremely obese man, while beside him are positioned thin exaggerations of President Obama and his wife. The caption reads "Michelle and I are committed to fighting against obesity...in children." I enjoyed this cartoon because it utilizes the very popular and modern topic of obesity as a vehicle to communicate an even more pressing subject, the federal debt. The obese man, or the federal budget, is perceived to have somewhat of an addiction to food, a possible metaphor for the addiction to spending our government has adopted. Payne conveys the irony of this situation; Obama and, in the bigger picture, the government, ardently fight for causes like obesity, but somehow, the debt grows exponentially bigger while they do this. 

http://techland.time.com/2013/02/22/nevada-governor-signs-online-gambling-bill/

In this article, Matt Woolbright writes about the recent event that occurred in Nevada over the weekend. Governor Brian Sandoval signed legislation legalizing online gambling in Nevada, passing the bill quite hastily as they wanted to pass the law before their East Coast rival, New Jersey, did. Governor Christie previously vetoed the bill, but has indicated that an amended version may be passed in the near future. Woolbright continues to inform readers about the reasons Nevada signed this bill in the first place. They believe it will usher in a new frontier of gaming and ultimately place Nevada at the forefront of gambling regulation while critically stimulating the state's economy. Personally, I think online gambling is just another example of the excess technology now offers to society. Of course, this is the way progress and technology is headed, but it is scary to think how far we will go before we comprehend the damage technology could essentially do. On a larger scale, this bill further emphasizes the ways in which we live in technology, in computers, and fundamentally, in a virtual world unlike reality. 

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:32:54 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

[Dylan Panicucci]

http://oscar.go.com/nominees

Last night was the Academy Awards ceremony.  Argo won three awards, greatest of which, was the Best Picture Award.  Life of Pi won three awards as well.  Daniel Day-Lewis made history by becoming the first actor to win three Best Leading Actor Awards.  I was so pumped when my boy Christoph Waltz won his second Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Django Unchained.  Speaking of which, it won Best Original Screenplay.  I was upset and a little surprised when Jessica Chastain did not win Best Actress.  All in all though I was pretty satisfied with the results.  What's your opinion?  Who got snubbed?

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1543548-50-cent-creeps-out-nascar-fans-tries-to-kiss-erin-andrews-at-daytona-500?hpt=hp_t4

This is possibly one of the most awkward things I have ever witnessed.  Sports reporter Erin Andrews was looking to interview Danica Patrick at the Daytona 500 when she came across rapper 50 Cent.  Fifty approached her and went for a kiss.  Andrews turned to avoid his incoming lips and then tried to walk away into the crowd.  This is not the first time men have tried to make advances on Andrews, ands it's very upsetting.  I love 50 Cent, but you cannot just walk up to women and kiss them.  This is just entirely out of line.  You're killing me 50!  You aren't "in da club", this is the real world.

[merstriolo]

This cartoon illustrates racial profiling and that colored people, more often in the south, fall victim to police targeting. It's similar to how many people say police target new drivers with stickers on their plate, the same applies, except this is racial injustice. The cartoon accomplishes this by portraying two very white police pulling over a tanner man and holding up color samples to his skin. This is a hyperbole because the man is clearly still white, but it gets the cartoonists point across that there is racial profiling in the south. 

http://townhall.com/political-cartoons/2013/02/24/107390

This is a cartoon about the potential crisis between the U.S. and China, with its advanced hacking capable of shutting down entire U.S towns. It creates the comparison between China and the predatory snake attacking the mouse (U.S. cyber security), showing that this year, an allusion to zodiac callendar, is the time that China might strike. 

[jamiemelville1]

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-207_162-57571170/the-onion-apologizes-for-offensive-quvenzhane-wallis-tweet/

This article demonstrates crossing the line. The Onion is a satrical newspaper that normally creates humor with a slightly offensive tone, usually, but last night they took things too far by tweeting a crude name about a 9-year-old Oscar-Nominated Actress, Quvenzhane Wallis. After posting the tweet, The Onion was immediately bombarded with twitter users sharply criticizing them, so the tweet was taken down an hour later, and an apology was issued the next day. How the tweet happened in the first place is one problem, but the fact that someone could be that mean to a 9-year-old girl is very much crossing the line.

[jamiemelville1]

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/25/17089689-4-year-old-kills-himself-with-dads-stolen-gun?lite

I think this article is sickening, and a perfect example of how some kids lives are ruined, and this case taken, by the fault of their parents. A young father owned a stolen handgun, which was stolen in a burglary. He left the gun out in the open, and while he was sleeping on the couch, his 4-year-old son picked it up and shot himself in the stomach by accident. Because of this careless and irresponsible father, a young boy has lost his chance in life. The man, Pratt, sold drugs, as when officers entered his apartment, there were scales, marijuana, and crack cocaine. Obviously this man feels a lot of guilt, and drugs may have affected his life to a point beyond his control. He clearly feels terrible about this, but it doesn't excuse the carelessness of leaving a gun out in the open and fall asleep while a young boy is in his home. 

[elizabeth.smith.24]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/02/25/sandy-beach-summer-rentals/1946469/

This article published on USA Today originally caught my eye because what did you think would happen after Sandy, tourism to go up?, but after reading the article I started to feel bad for those homeowners who no longer have their rentals and therefore lost a significant source of income. Many of these homeowners did not receive federal aid since the majority of the homes were not year round homes and only rental properties, but that leaves many to renovate or rebuild using only a small amount of savings and insurance money. Tourists who continuously go to the shore each year are trying to show their support by booking vacations, but many do not want to spend the money without being sure that there will be things to do, meaning restaurants, an attraction or two, and most importantly, open beaches. Like this hopeful article, I wish that the shore gets back on track, especially because if tourism does not pick up, there could be further consequences especially when it comes to New Jersey's economy. 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/02/25/cannibal-plot-new-york-cop-trial/1947183/

After reading this article, I have come to the conclusion that NY Cop Officer Valle is truly sick; I mean who would plan not only the murder and rape of several women, but after torturing them for pleasure, cook and eat them? Mainly talking about his wife, who was apparently one of the ones who would be killed and eaten, it followed the course of the first day of Officer Valle's trial. In addition to ploting murders, Valle is also charged with using police databases to track and identify potential victims. Being a woman myself, and one who lives in somewhat-close proxmity to the city, this case was actually quite scary. This informative article, stating that "Gilbert Valle was very serious about these plans." was meant to inform the public on the current happenings while also letting them know to be a little more aware of their surroundings. 

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:32:54 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

[Orion Farr]

http://www.inquisitr.com/542253/the-onion-quvenzhane-wallis-c-word/

The Onion calls 9 Year Old Quvenzhané Wallis "c**t" in a Tweet, Deletes it, Apologizes

So on the night of the Oscars, the onion's twitter feed caused a massive online controversy after The Onion tweeted, “Everyone else seems afraid to say it, but that Quvenzhané Wallis is kind of a c**t, right? #Oscars2013″ Now even though the Onion is a satire news site, and they are known for their mockery of people, and they are best know for their jokes, I don't feel like this was a smart thing to do. I mean, she's NINE years old, if the said the same thing about a politician or other adult it would be fine, but someone virtually innocent to things like those words shouldn't be mocked on a popular site. By all means they are allowed to do it, as per their 1st amendment rights, but it was in very bad taste, and it's good they apologized.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/feb/22/german-president-pleads-britain-stay-eu

German President succumbs to British empire, wants English as primary European language. "

Germany's president has called for English to be made the language of the European Union as he appealed to the UK to stay in the EU.

"Dear English, Scots, Welsh, Northern Irish and new British citizens, we want to continue having you on board," he said. "We need your experience as the oldest parliamentary democracy, we need your traditions, your sober-mindedness and your courage."

We obviously have the best language ever and deserve full reign over the world. I do think that since the English language is so influential and widespread all over the world, that it should be the primary language for the world's economic and political system. IT would defintly simplfy things, but at the same time it would erode all other languages, and doom them to eventual death. So it's a tricky subject, but is simplicity better than diversity

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[stephen.voc]

http://screen.yahoo.com/dog-eats-over-100-rocks-000006475.html

This article immediately stuck out to me when I saw its title because it just sounds absolutely unbelievable.  With 109 stones lodged in its intestines, this dog must have been in so much pain without his owners even realizing.  The terse article is paired with a video clip explaining the dog's ordeal, and the man reporting the story rather awkwardly attempts to bring comic levity to this sad story.  Nevertheless, this article still appeals to animal lovers everywhere.  My dog has eaten some crazy things, but man, this is just ridiculous.

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:32:54 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

[Randy May]

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/billboard-air-water-peru-lima-142159082.html

 

This article is about a billboard that can actually produce water. Yes a billboard. Before reading this, i felt as though this news story was going to be completely ridiculous, but after reading, this ridiculous story turns into an amazing one. In Peru's rain starved desert capitol Lima, agency Mayo DraftFCB and Peru's University of Engineering and Technology developed a billboard that converts the humid air of the region into water. This area of Peru gets less then an inch of rain per year, but has about 98 percent humidity in the air. From all of the humidity taken out of the year, this billboard produced 9450 liters of water in three months. This amount of water was enough to give hundreds of Peruvian families healthy drinking water throughout the constant dry season. These developers who created this billboard have made a breakthrough that could give water to thousands around the world at all times. I am very surprised that the article is not more nationally renown because it is just astonishing what these scientists were able to do.

 

http://politicalhumor.about.com/library/bl-political-cartoons.htm

 

I found this cartoon very funny even though it is pretty old. It shows Mitt Romney explaining how he does not avoid paying taxes. And as he is saying this Paul Ryan is handing him a bill saying "Ryan Plan," and Mitt smirks at the camera and says yet. I thought this was funny because it is mocking both Mitt and his partner about how Romney was always criticized on how he payed a small percentage of his taxes even though he is wealthy.   

[stephen.voc]

http://www.politicalcartoons.com/cartoon/a2c80fb8-958e-4b55-9920-bc0dffbeb2f7.html

In his political cartoon, "Worst Supporting Actor," John Darkow uses the recent Academy Awards to poke fun at the federal government.  As depicted in the cartoon, a rather robust man, who represents Congress, stands before the ruthless crowd with his award in hand.  Surprisingly, he seems thrilled to receive the award, crying in excitement, "You hate me! You really hate me!"  Darkow clearly uses this cartoon to scathingly criticize Congress.  By stating that Congress is the worst supporting actor in "The Miserables" that is American society, Darkow points out that Congress gets absolutely nothing done, only causing the country to slide deeper and deeper into a recession pit.  The tone of this piece is humorous, yet Darkow also seems fed up with his "leaders."  Clearly, as described by Darkow, something needs to change and soon...

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:32:54 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

[Alexandra Chin]

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/25/showbiz/tv/seth-macfarlane-oscar-hosting/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

While some of his jokes may have actually been in good taste I must agree with the author of the article in saying that his humor was rather immature and crude for an awards show of this stature. In general I usually do not watch the Oscars or the Emmy's or whatever else there is to watch on national television. So seeing Seth McFarlane up there as a host I expected some tasteful humor and maybe a few lewd jokes here and there which is what I got. However the few lewd jokes were definitely overboard for my taste. What did you guys think?

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/22/tech/social-media/apparently-this-matters-haunted-mirror/index.html

Through this humorous tale the author relates the tale of the "haunted mirror" he bought of eBay, poking fun at our refusal to throw away things that cause us pain and that seem possessed. I found this article to have literally the best opening I have ever read as the writer speaks of the haunted Superbowl dip tormenting the innocent tofu in his fridge. Well worth a read as it lives up to it's title,"Apparently This Matters".

[sian.barry]

Last Sunday, I stayed up pointlessly to watch the Oscars instead of catching up on my sleep. However, it proved to be worth it because it was a really good show. Not only were the dresses as gorgeous as ever, but Seth MacFarlane was hysterical and I had seen many of the movies, which allowed me to have a more personal perspective on this year's Oscars. Like Rachel, I was impressed by Jennifer Lawrence's down-to-earth and lighthearted response to her fall upon receiving the Oscar for best actress. After seeing the movie that Saturday, I couldn't agree more that she was deserving of that award. It was nice to see that celebrities and movie stars are not exempt from human error. 

[sian.barry]

Aww, this article was so heart wrenching. As an animal lover, I couldn't help but feel sorry for the poor chocolate labrador Barney who had 109 stones lodged in his intestines. Yet, I too picked up on the author's awkward attempt of lightening the situation and shying away from its dismal ambiance. I understand that situations like this need some sort of humor and the title indicates something unbelievable, but the piece border on mockery, which was kind of displeasing. In my opinion, the video clip was much more information in comparison to the article. However, it is hard to imagine how much inconspicuous pain he was in, but it is comforting to know that he was okay!

[katherine...@gmail.com]

Congrats to Jennifer Lawrence! Having a wee bit of an obsession with her hilarious interviews, I quickly went to the internet to find any regarding her fall just after seeing the story on Yahoo! The funniest thing, in my opinion, is that people think that she faked the fall. I can't imagine anyone purposely falling on national television, no matter what the potential benefits of it would be. I honestly think that it's just the ways of Jennifer to be clumsy and goofy, and not take herself too seriously. It was also funny to see, in a later interview, her be told that when she fell, not only did her costar Bradley Cooper run out to help her, but Hugh Jackman also ran to her aid. Upon hearing this, Lawrence's first question was, "Is there a video of it?!" I think she's living the dream of a young celebrity, and encourage her to continue acting like herself, not some stuck up celebrity who takes themselves too seriously.

[katherine...@gmail.com]

It's scary to think that, despite all of the improved safety measures of today's world, things like this are still possible. This article just goes to show that risk is still very present in today's world. It also shows people's willingness to take these kinds of risks. Even though boat accidents are more frequent than other types, people still go boating, and are willing to take that risk in order to have some fun in the ocean. I too hope that this family is soon found and rescued.

[isabella.cuan]

I have always loved the Oscars and each year, I stay up until midnight watching them from beginning to end. The glitz and the glamour, the prestige and the celebrity; it is an exciting night not only for those directly involved, but for us viewers at home as well. I was very impressed with the Oscars this year and as a fan of Seth MacFarlane, I thought he did a fantastic job as the host despite the controversy that has arisen as a result of his, some may say, crude jokes. (Maybe, we are just being a little too sensitive?) Regarding the awards, I, like Dylan, was, for the most part, satisfied with the results. However, it was very disappointing that neither Ben Affleck nor Katherine Bigelow were even nominated for Best Director in the first place. Both of them created powerful films and thus, I believe they deserved recognition at the least in this category. Like Dylan, it was unfortunate that Jessica Chastain did not win because she had an absolutely astounding role in Zero Dark Thirty, but hopefully, she will come back fighting harder next year and win over the academy. 

[isabella.cuan]

I really enjoyed this political cartoon because it fuses a relevant topic with a controversial issue. I think, for the most part, the public can relate to this cartoon because of its appeal to the very well-known and popular event of the Oscar's. Darkow cleverly creates an award specifically tailored to Congress, satirically targeting its current instability. The "Worst Supporting Actor" and "The Miserables" were humorously witty, and though using the Oscars as a vehicle to communicate his actual message, he is obvious in his intentions. Like Darkow implies, if Congress doesn't act soon, who knows where the fate of our country will lie. 

[elizabeth.smith.24]

I love Jennifer Lawrence and the way that she doesn't care what people think of her and her down to earth personality. I, like many, felt bad for her as she took her spill when she was going up to get her Oscar, but I'm glad she had a sense of humor about it later. I think it's great that she doesn't care that she acts like herself and has no problem making fun of herself. 

On Monday, February 25, 2013 5:02:16 PM UTC-5, rippeyrachel wrote:

[elizabeth.smith.24]

I found this article absolutely amazing. I have heard of dogs eating some strange things from Christmas lights to swimming pool toys, and rocks aren't that strange for a dog to eat, but its crazy that he was able to eat 109. I feel bad for both the dog and his owners, as they probably feel somewhat responsible. I hope that the dog gets better soon and learns that it isn't smart to eat whatever is lying around. 

[stephen.voc]

In response to the article about the flash mob gone wrong:

This article greatly frustrates me because it stands as proof that gun hysteria is running rampant throughout America.  What kind of world is this becoming when teens gathering for a flash mob suddenly turns into chaos for fear that someone has a gun?  Furthermore, I found the tone of this article to be almost denouncing the teenagers and glorifying the people who ran.  It annoys me that this author cites former incidents of violence in malls to justify the hype.  If anything, the author should have used this article as a vehicle to support the notion that gun hysteria is getting out of control and that everyone just needs to calm down.

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 11:12:43 PM UTC-5, brook...@gmail.com wrote:

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/105-old-woman-renews-drivers-license-230525336.html

This article was very simple, but to me, it was enlightening in a way. Eric Pfeiffer writes with a proud tone of Edythe Kirchmaier, a 105-year-old woman who recently renewed her drivers license. At first, one might skim the article and think, "So what? An old woman passed a simple road test." But when one really puts this idea into thought, WHAT AN AMAZING WOMAN! Kirchmaier still drives the roads of her town daily, to and fro her Direct Relief International volunteer group she leads. Also keeping up with the current fads, Kirchmaier was given the titled of Facebook's most senior user... What an honor? Either way, this woman is still kicking, and I respect this in her. It's amazing that people like her, despite their age, do not give up. She must have a lot of vitality. Edythe Kirchmaier, as long as she is alive, will continue to do amazing things - even if it is just renewing her driver's license. So to anyone who thinks that there isn't enough time to do anything, Pfeiffer and Kirchmaier say otherwise. Get off of your asses and go live life!

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/louisiana-mall-evacuated-flash-mob-gets-ugly-155709607--abc-news-topstories.html

        In this news article, Alyssa Newcomb writes of a flash mob gone horribly wrong in the state capital of Louisiana, Baton Rouge. The flash mob took place in a mall and consisted of 200 teenagers crowding the mall food court pretending that someone had a gun, or at least that is what it seems like what happened. The article is not very clear. With a relieved but almost frightened tone, Newcomb uses quotes from witnesses on Facebook to further emphasize the dramatic and horrified feelings of the citizens at the mall during the flash mob, and explain the outcome of this fresh happening. The teenagers started a brawl and scared almost everyone at the mall as they were running for exits and crowding all parts of the mall.

[stephen.voc]

In response to the article about the billboard:

I found this article to be both fascinating and well-written.  The author here does his job perfectly; he takes an unbiased approach and simply reports on the innovative measures some people are taking in Peru to supply more people with drinking water.  Due to the technology that this billboard uses, I cannot help but be awestruck as to how many different things people can do with technology nowadays.  I believe that America needs to invest in more technology like this, which is helpful for both the environment and the people.

[Dylan Panicucci]

I wrote a journal about this man when he was first arrested.  Obviously, I agree with Elizabeth in that Valle is an extremely sick man.  I noticed another article about his court hearing and read it.  It contained dialogue between Valle and other conspirators as evidence against him.  It is literally the most sick, twisted, perverted, disgusting thing ever.  My brain cannot even fathom what goes on in his and all these other people's minds.  This man needs to be put away forever. 

[Julie Daniels]

When considering all of the technology advances in the past decade, to me, this has to be one of the coolest ones. Although it more falls under the category of a medical advancement, It will improve people's lives forever. Individuals with color blindness often have a difficult time seeing not all but only certain colors. These new glasses help these people by enhancing certain cells in their eyes to make them be able to see the colors that they could not before. However, they also cause them not to be able to see other colors as well. Advancements are being made to fix this minor side effect. Even with its little glitch it is still something that will help people for years to come. 

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 8:57:56 PM UTC-5, Ben Skalla wrote:

http://todayentertainment.today.com/_news/2013/02/23/17072334-twilight-finale-rakes-in-seven-razzie-awards?lite

This comical article talks about the Razzie Awards, given out each year on the day before the Oscars.  Unlike the Oscars, these are not awards anybody wants to be receiving.  These awards are given out to the actors and directors who are deemed to have done the worst job that year in movies.  This year, the finale to the series "Twilight" received seven Razzie Awards. The creator of the Razzie Awards explains why he believes that this box office phenomenon won so many awards, naming it the worst movie of the year.  He says that he thinks that "... instead of 40 million individual girls going to see it, it's 8 million girls going to see it five times each." This theory of his could explain why so many tickets sold for this movie, yet the majority of people strongly disliked it.  

http://todayhealth.today.com/_news/2013/02/22/17046479-surprise-side-effect-new-specs-may-fix-color-blindness?lite

This article mentions a new type of glasses that had the side effect of helping people with colorblindness.  These glasses were originally created to help improve the vision of health care workers, to make it easier for them to do tasks such as find shy veins.  Users of the new glasses who were colorblind reported that the glasses helped them to distinguish some colors.  The lenses in these glasses actually amplify the hues that are hard to see because of red-green colorblindness.  However, tests showed that these glasses actually made it harder to distinguish blue and yellow hues.  Because of this issue, the creator of these glasses decided they should not be used for daily vision by people who are colorblind.  

[Julie Daniels]

One of every girls greatest fears is tripping in her heels when she's all dressed up. Whether it be on her wedding day walking down the isle or if she is making an appearance at a prestigious event. For actress Jennifer Laurence however, that nightmare became a reality, and worse yet, it was on television for millions to see. She was walking up the stairs to accept her first ever Oscar when she had a little stumble. When making her acceptance speech moments later she was able to remain cool and collected and give a carefree response. All in all I love her and what she was able to do and I would never be able to do that myself. 

[Ben Skalla]

After watching the documentary about the bombing of Hiroshima today in class, I was already feeling depressed today.  This article didn't quite help me out with that.  This man carelessly left a gun in reach of his four-year-old son, who picked up the weapon and accidentally shot and killed himself with it.  The father was also found in possession of marijuana and cocaine.  After getting to hear Chris Herren speak about his experiences, I began to think about how these drugs can control a person.  They can cause people to lose all power over their own actions and their entire life can become solely based on these drugs.  Drugs may have caused this man to neglect the safety of his child, allowing the young child to handle a firearm.  

[Dylan Panicucci]

I agree with Orion.  I guess they are allowed to say it, but they really, really should not have.  That's just one of those unspoken rules: you never use the c-word.  This is a little girl we are talking about!  It is just so wrong on so many levels.  It was the right thing to apologize.

http://www.inquisitr.com/542253/the-onion-quvenzhane-wallis-c-word/

The Onion calls 9 Year Old Quvenzhané Wallis "c**t" in a Tweet, Deletes it, Apologizes

rSo on the night of the Oscars, the onion's twitter feed caused a massive online controversy after The Onion tweeted, “Everyone else seems afraid to say it, but that Quvenzhané Wallis is kind of a c**t, right? #Oscars2013″ Now even though the Onion is a satire news site, and they are known for their mockery of people, and they are best know for their jokes, I don't feel like this was a smart thing to do. I mean, she's NINE years old, if the said the same thing about a politician or other adult it would be fine, but someone virtually innocent to things like those words shouldn't be mocked on a popular site. By all means they are allowed to do it, as per their 1st amendment rights, but it was in very bad taste, and it's good they apologized.

[Ben Skalla]

This article is interesting and relevant as Sian said, because in about a year from now, the junior class will know or will be finding out where they will spend the next years of their lives.  Although becoming a billionaire might not be the most realistic goal for everybody to set in today's society, it might be nice to know that the school you are going to does produce a large number of self-made billionaires. Personally, I would be more interested in finding out which schools have the highest percentages of students who find a job within 6 months of graduating.  It seems insane to be thinking about college when I feel like I just got to high school, yet four or five years from now, I will likely be saying that I feel like I just got to college and it will already be time to figure out where life will take me next.  

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:48:48 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/22/billionaire-u-richest-alumni_n_2742329.html?ir=Business#slide=more282536

This article from the Huffington Post was extremely relevant to myself and probably most of the junior class. Titled "Billionaire U: The 15 Colleges With the Richest Alums", the writers of this piece provide a pertinent list of colleges that have the wealthiest students. For many, the reason for going to college is sparked by the idea that you need to make money, which a college education will help you achieve. Consequently, this article verifies why a college education is absolutely necessary if you want to make a lot of money. In addition, the author presents a statistic that "74 percent of this Boston-area school's billionaires are self-made." Interestingly enough, I'm very interested in the Boston area, with schools like BC and BU in mind, and it comforted me to know that Boston University, ranked 12th on the list, has 491 billionaires. I mean, if you were to mark the success of a college of how many billionaires it has, I think that would be slightly farfetched. However, in the 21st century, when jobs are impossible to come by without a college education, I believe it is comforting to know that they are preparing you with the foundation to make money in the real world. 

[merstriolo]

I like this cartoon. It's simplicity is above all the most attractive feature of it, for it puts a small twist on something commonly known to all, the fortune cookie, and creates a whole new perspective. It is the perfect combination of national symbolism and humor, making it a successful cartoon.

On Monday, February 25, 2013 6:14:47 PM UTC-5, Matt Saba wrote:

 

I found this political cartoon humorous and relevant, especially since I used an article about these hackers last week. The cartoon clearly depicts Uncle Sam’s hand holding a fortune from one of several broken fortune cookies. The caption says that the cookies are “Misfortune Cookies” from China. As the labels indicate, the fortunes are that China will control our media, business, and finally the idea that China has hacked into the American internal systems. Just the fact that the cartoonist used something as trivial as fortune cookies to represent the tension and problems occurring between the two countries, made it much more amusing and easy for people to understand. 

[merstriolo]

Yet another typical cartoon denouncing Congress. I as well like the scientific approach, and its relevance to the asteroid passing through our satellites' orbit and the meteorite that struck Russia. It definitely appeals to a majority consensus among Americans as Congress deals with the sequester, and is an appropriate metaphor for the situation. 

In this political cartoon,  the cartoonist brings together the event of the meteor and a  political opinion of many people in the United States. In the four separate images, there is a scientist with a picture and a caption describing it. It goes progressively from a rock flying through space being called an asteroid, to a rock in the atmosphere called a meteor, to a rock hitting the ground being called a meteorite, and finally the punch line that a rock not moving at all, not doing anything at all can be called congress. The cartoonist is using the recent event of the meteor strike to represent his or her opinion of the inactivity in congress. I like this cartoon because it is easy to follow and as a science person, I can definitely appreciate the approach that the cartoonist takes to describing their political opinion.

[Orion Farr]

In response to your first article

the whole gun control situation is such a messy one, no one seems to have the right answer because they have to blame one thing for it. It's either guns,video games, drugs, etc. The real problem is the way our media sensationalizes all the stories about gun crimes, whether the sandy hook incident or the aurora theater, the media makes the gun man infamous and that's exactly what the crazy people want. It's not because of guns, video games, or tv, but the nation's mental health control is severely lacking. This along with the media making killers famous is the problem, people should protest that over guns.

In response to your article

ITs amazing that she is still kicking and active at 100 years old, I hope this generation is able to extend their lives to reach that age and beyond!

--

[Matt Saba]

The idea that something as commonplace as a billboard can be used to produce a resource as vital as water is truly astounding. Every day we see so many billboards and if each of those produced even a tenth of what this one in Peru produced, no one would go thirsty ever again. Peru is not the only place that these billboards could benefit though. Many South American and African countries have high humidity and yet get very little rain. This kind of technology, if applied correctly, can incredibly change the lives of many people all across the world.

On Monday, February 25, 2013 9:37:45 PM UTC-5, rjmay43 wrote:

[Matt Saba]

I had never heard of the Razzie Awards before this, and now I definitely approve of them especially after their condemnation of the Twilight Finale. In this age where everybody gets a "participation award" it is nice to get a dose of reality now and then. And the idea that Twilight is a terrible movie series is definitely a reality. The article describes all of the reasons why Twilight "won" all of these awards, but my favorite part was by far the part Ben described about how the creator of the Razzies believed that very few people actually watched the movie and it was mostly repeat views that gave it its massive number of views.

[rippeyrachel]

I'm glad The Onion had the sense to apologize to this girl for their EXTREMELY uncalled for, and rude tweet. First off, I couldn't agree more that the offensiveness of the word used adds to the distaste the Onion had in tweeting that. Whoever was behind this should be ashamed of themselves.

On Monday, February 25, 2013 7:55:49 PM UTC-5, jamiemelville1 wrote:

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-207_162-57571170/the-onion-apologizes-for-offensive-quvenzhane-wallis-tweet/

This article demonstrates crossing the line. The Onion is a satrical newspaper that normally creates humor with a slightly offensive tone, usually, but last night they took things too far by tweeting a crude name about a 9-year-old Oscar-Nominated Actress, Quvenzhane Wallis. After posting the tweet, The Onion was immediately bombarded with twitter users sharply criticizing them, so the tweet was taken down an hour later, and an apology was issued the next day. How the tweet happened in the first place is one problem, but the fact that someone could be that mean to a 9-year-old girl is very much crossing the line.

[rippeyrachel]

Wow this is very upsetting. Obviously the father was completely in the wrong and was not a suitable father for this young boy. I wish someone could have figured this out and gave the child a suitable home before it was too late. 

[Alexandra Chin]

RE: 50 cent trying to kiss Erin Andrews

Yeah, kisses between two people who know each other are one thing but this is harassment. This is not okay and it really needs to be made a pint that even if you are famous you can't just go up and kiss people. That's not right and it's not socially acceptable. I really hope that more people understand why this is not okay more so than the people in the comments section. You wouldn't touch someone who didn't want to tbe touched and you wouldn't want to be touched if you didn't want to be touched, plain and simple.

[Randy May]

In response to the MC Hammer article, this is not the first time that MC Hammer has been disrespectful towards a police officer or an authority figure. Throughout his career, Hammer has made a name for himself for disrespecting authority figures. He was one of the original rappers that rapped about not listening to the police and disrespecting them. It is sad that at one point kids all over the country looked up to a guy like that. I didn't even know he was still prominent in any sort of way until I read this article. Anyone will do anything to keep their fame up.

 

In response to the Onion article, it is not right to call anyone that let alone a nine year old girl. I find the onion disrespectful and not very funny and this just tops it all off. How could they possibly think that doing that would be OK? It s just a pretty stupid situation if you think about it. The Onion often crosses the line, and this is just one of the times the public has recognized it.  

[grace miller]

In response to ‘N.Y. wife: Officer wanted to kill me, eat others’

                This article truly disturbed me. There is not much to say about it other than it is disgusting horror story. To think that this person was a police officer is very scary. It is evidence that people who are mentally insane can mask it pretty well and can also manage to become police officers. This article left me horrified and sickened and I hope that i do not have to read another story like this one any time soon.

On Mon, Feb 25, 2013 at 8:58 PM, elizabeth.smith.24 <elizabeth...@me.com> wrote:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/02/25/sandy-beach-summer-rentals/1946469/

This article published on USA Today originally caught my eye because what did you think would happen after Sandy, tourism to go up?, but after reading the article I started to feel bad for those homeowners who no longer have their rentals and therefore lost a significant source of income. Many of these homeowners did not receive federal aid since the majority of the homes were not year round homes and only rental properties, but that leaves many to renovate or rebuild using only a small amount of savings and insurance money. Tourists who continuously go to the shore each year are trying to show their support by booking vacations, but many do not want to spend the money without being sure that there will be things to do, meaning restaurants, an attraction or two, and most importantly, open beaches. Like this hopeful article, I wish that the shore gets back on track, especially because if tourism does not pick up, there could be further consequences especially when it comes to New Jersey's economy. 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/02/25/cannibal-plot-new-york-cop-trial/1947183/

After reading this article, I have come to the conclusion that NY Cop Officer Valle is truly sick; I mean who would plan not only the murder and rape of several women, but after torturing them for pleasure, cook and eat them? Mainly talking about his wife, who was apparently one of the ones who would be killed and eaten, it followed the course of the first day of Officer Valle's trial. In addition to ploting murders, Valle is also charged with using police databases to track and identify potential victims. Being a woman myself, and one who lives in somewhat-close proxmity to the city, this case was actually quite scary. This informative article, stating that "Gilbert Valle was very serious about these plans." was meant to inform the public on the current happenings while also letting them know to be a little more aware of their surroundings. 

On Sunday, February 24, 2013 4:32:54 PM UTC-5, sian.barry wrote:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/23/health/rafis-run/index.html?hpt=hp_

Reading this article literally broke my heart. Erin Blakeley of CNN tells the tragic and heart-rendering story of five-year-old Rafi Kopelan. She opens with a small anedoctal paragraph: "She's mastered Candyland. She's learning to read. Given a choice, she'd spend hours on the swings at the playground." However, the author essentially prepares her readers for the obvious fact that Rafi is not like the other children in her class. She suffers from a rare connective tissue disorder by the name of epidermolysis bullosa (EB). This genetic disease causes skin to break down with even the slightest amount of friction. To further enunciate the severity of the disease, Blakeley offers the scenario that even the labels inside of her shirt cause her skin to tear and then erupt in blisters. Remarkably, the Kopelan family's neighbors felt obliged to act upon Rafi's condition, trying to improve the U.S. funding for rare disease research. The controversy lies in the fact that rare disorder research doesn't benefit the masses, but this is a misconception. "Finding a treatment for a rare condition often informs treatment for a more common disease." I was moved by this piece, and I too believe that the funding finding treatments of rare conditions could definitely assist in treatments for more common diseases. My heart goes out to Rafi and her family, and once again, this reminded me to be thankful of my good health.

--

[grace miller]

In response to “Apparently This Matters: Selling a haunted mirror”

I thought this article did a very good job in taking a humorous spin on refusal to throw things away. Even the title was funny and I thought the entire article lived up to it. It also addresses the ridiculous things that are often sold on ebay which I found to be hilarious.

On Mon, Feb 25, 2013 at 10:01 PM, Alexandra Chin <alexandr...@gmail.com> wrote:

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/25/showbiz/tv/seth-macfarlane-oscar-hosting/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

While some of his jokes may have actually been in good taste I must agree with the author of the article in saying that his humor was rather immature and crude for an awards show of this stature. In general I usually do not watch the Oscars or the Emmy's or whatever else there is to watch on national television. So seeing Seth McFarlane up there as a host I expected some tasteful humor and maybe a few lewd jokes here and there which is what I got. However the few lewd jokes were definitely overboard for my taste. What did you guys think?

http://www.cnn.com/2013/02/22/tech/social-media/apparently-this-matters-haunted-mirror/index.html

Through this humorous tale the author relates the tale of the "haunted mirror" he bought of eBay, poking fun at our refusal to throw away things that cause us pain and that seem possessed. I found this article to have literally the best opening I have ever read as the writer speaks of the haunted Superbowl dip tormenting the innocent tofu in his fridge. Well worth a read as it lives up to it's title,"Apparently This Matters".