It's already the beginning of a new school year and the end of my internship. As I look back on this internship, what first comes to mind is everything I learned. This has required me to do research on topics I didn't know much about. Being a volunteer at my local zoo, the only injustice I really knew was environmental. Now I see more. I've  learned about injusticce in the courts, substance abuse among teens, why Tv is bad for you, etc.  

 I was originally planning to donate the money I recieve to my local zoo, but they are not a 501c3 non-profit. So instead I have decided to donate my money to The Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Los Angeles.  This organization is special to me because three years ago I attended one of their teen epilepsy camps. Being  the only epileptic I knew, it was a surprise to me to see how many kids are in the same stiuation as me or have it worse. It was at this camp where I saw for the first time, someone my age have a seizure. After that, I realized why my parents were what I had considered "overprotecti\ve". They opened my eyes to alot.  

This academic year I plan to use the skills and information I have learned. Writing blogs about what's going on in our country will help me this year in Government class. All the blogs i wrote about the environment will help me as I finish my last year as a teen volunteer at the zoo. Overall, all the research, writing, and late night skype calls were worth it. 

As I look back, all the research, all the writing, and all the late night skype calls were worth it. 

 Over fifty million people are diagnosed with epilepsy. About one million will never find a medication that appropriately controls their seizures. So, what choices do they have. 

1. Brain surgery- removing the part of their brain that causes seizures, this however is not an option in some cases because of where the seizures are located. 

2. A High Fat diet- eating butterballs for breakfast and putting bacon grease on your food can cause weight gain and for some, prevents seizurres. 

3.VNS- a device implanted in the chest that prevents misifres in the brain from spreding to the rest of the body. 

4. Keep trying new medications and pray that one works. 

Let's recap, you have four choices. Two of which require surgery and the other two are not guaranteed to work. What would you do?  Luckily you don't have make that choice, but if you did I'm sure you would feel glad to know that there is a new method that has shown to reduce seizures. For more info  follow thhis link and watch the video. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elvRkQD53Vs&feature=player_embedded

 Everyone has heard of Washington's "don't ask, don't tell" poilcy and regardless of what your opinion on the matter is, the truth is that this polichy will be no more by September 22nd. Barack Obama told Congress that he is sure that a repeal of the law would not impact military readiness, good order, and discipline. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said repeal is consistan with military readiness, military efectiveness, unit cohesion, recruiting and retention.  Some can't help but wonder though if sexual orientation really matters? They ask, isn't what's important that they are serving their country?

Under the Defense of Marriage Act(1996) some benefits will be blocked for same-sex couples. Obama is in favor of repealing this act.  The Marine general stressed that standards of conduct will still apply to all members of the military. The general states that " the standards of the military will remain gender neutral." 

           What is the largest illegal traficking in the U.S. and worldwide? No it's not drugs. Not alcohol either.  It's actually the illegal trade of animals and endangered animal products.  People are still willing to pay hundreds to thousands of dollars to get a tiger-skin rug and an ivory necklace. In February 1998 two adults Todd and Vivki Lance were arrested for buying four adult tigers from a safari park. This wouldn't have been a problem if they weren't planing to sell them. Under the Lancey Act, it is not illegal to own endangered or exoctic animals but selling them or articles made from them is illegal. 

There aren't alot of statistics about the trade but the World Wildlife Foundation estimates that the trade brings billions of dollars each year.  In fact, the US is one of the major players consuming thirty percent of profits worldwide. in 2007 three Alaskans were found guilty of smuggling Walrus Tusks. Luckily the U.S. isn' t the hotspot, most illegal trafficking occurs in Southeast Asia. Most experts contribute this to the fact that some Asian countries still use animal parts for medicine. Tigers, for example. Most people think of the skin and fur being traded. But it's gallbladder has medicinal uses in Asia and it's teeth is used as a part of some rituals. It's not just tigers, it's turtles,bears,parrots and even animals that you think of as pets can be illegally traded. So Watch out for what your buying. 

The dentist told you when you were young not to chew gum, it had too much sugar, so you stopped. Then sugar free gum came out and you heard the news that it strengthened your jaw, so you started chewing gum again. All and all, I just wanted to hear THE TRUTH, is chewing gum good or bad for you?

Why is gum good for you? 

1. It strengthens your jaw 

2. For some, it prevents snacking. 

3. Helps salivary stimulation 

4. Cleans sugars and acid from the teeth ( if its sugarfree gum).

5.Remineralization of enamel.

6. Gum with Xytol helps prevent cavities

Why is gum bad for you?

1.   Causes unnecessary wear and tear of teeth 

2. Aspartame( a sweetener in some gums) has been shown to cause cancer,diabetes, neurological disorders, and birth defects 

3. Too much sugar which can lead to diabetes,cancer and CAVITIES 

4. Can cause stomach burns 

5. For some, chewing gum increases hunger because the stomach expects food but never recieves it. 

So is chewing gum good or bad for you, I say both. And really its all in perspective. In your opinion do the benefits outway the negative effects?

 Millions where stunned and shocked when the jury pronounced Casey Anthony not guilty of killing her child. Some were even saying that this verdict was as bad and if not worse than the O.J. Simpson verdict. People are actually saying that this was worse than OJ's because of the lack of racial issues.  Casey Anthony was also not in countless car comercials and movies, and wasn't an athlete. Overall, thhey say the Casey Anthony trial was pretty smooth  and the defense says that the coverage they recieved was heavily bias in favor of the prosecution. 

As one reporter said

Last week I volunteered at my local zoo with their summercamp program. I was a co-counselor you could say. I helped teach the six ans seven year olds about the solar system.  Overall it was a very enjoyable experience. There was one kid named Carter who got very attached to me.  I tried to make conversation with the kids so one time I asked them if any of them had a pillow pet. Carter said yes and asked me if I wanted to come over to his house to see it. I didn't want to say no and hurt the kid's feelings, but I didn't really feel like hanging out at his house either so I said he should ask his parents first.Thankfully, he forgot about the entire thing.

I found out that to deal with children you have to be an EXTREMELY patient person. Here I was trying to talk to kids about the solar system and they would go off on a rant about transformers or Avatar. All of these kids thought they were so smart. One kid asked me , '" Hey did you know that the earth revolves around the sun?". I felt like screaming YES I AM A SENIOR IN HIGH SCHOOL I KNOW THE EARTH REVOLVES AROUND THE SUN! Of course though I didn't and just sat there and said, really? I had no idea! Overall it was fun, a little irritating at times, but fun. Now I have to start preparing myself for another week of Zoocamp in 2 weeks.  Hopefully that week will be with an older age group, one that realizes that I'm too old to be hanging out with them.

 What's the number one health problem in the United States? Obesity?NO! It's actually substance abuse. And experts are saying that substance abuse and drug problems starts before the age of 16. In fact alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use is on a rise among teens. CASA found that 9 out of 10 adult addicts tried the substance their addicted to before the age of 18.In fact 75% of high school students have tried an addictive substance and 1 in 5 of them meet the criteria for having a drug addiction. Experts contirbute this to the fact the the adolescent brain is not completely developed in the areas that are responsible for judgement and discision making. 

The top four abused substances among teens are 

1. Alcohol 

2. Tobacco 

3. Marijuana 

4. presciption Drugs 

Expeerts are pointing the finger at TV . Advertisement for smoking, drinking, and even for prescription drugs on TV increase teens desire to try them. The CASA says that the masss media needs to make alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs less desireablt and fun. No more glamorous drinking on the Jersey Shore, popping pills by characters like Dr. House, and most of all no more reality shows for people who have these kinds of problems. 

 Television is  having and has had a large effect on childhood obesity. You may think you know why, but experts say its more than just sitting on the couch and doing nothing. TV is considered a triple threat because it promotes the three main factors of obesity: media, advertising, and inactivity. Advertising? Yes, experts say that advertisements for food on TV make children more likely to snack. The media obviously keeps them glued to the TV and as a result they are inactive.   Snacking while watching TV is also very popular and since there are not many ads for vegetables and fruits kids aren't going to be likely to have a desire for these. Television also causes kids to stay up late, and rakes into their  time for sleep . This also can cause obesity because the following day kids are going to feel to tired to play and will want to perform only sedentary activities. 

So what should be do? With Tv becoming a huge part of American culture, we can't possibly take it completely out of children's lives. Not to mention 1 in 5 Pre-K kids carry too much weight. These are some tipsfrom doctors. 

1. Discus food advertisements with your children and tech them about good nutrition. 

2. Limit TV time, and  DO NOT PUT A TV IN THEIR BEDROOM

3. Try to avoid putting alot of stress on your child. Studies show that the kids that watch the most TV also have alot of stress. 

Thrity years ago the federal government recognized that children are defenseless against advertisements. Now they see 5,000-10,000 food adds per year. This obviously has a negative effect, because most of the adds are for junk foods. And experts are saying, something needs to be done. 

 You did it in P.E. throughout elementary, middle, and high school. You were told it reduced the probability of injuries, sprains, and cramps. Well guess what, your P.E. teachers LIED TO YOU! Doctors say stretching before excercising isn't as necessary as you think, A study in 2007 found out that stetching " does not reduce delayed-onset muscle soreness in young heathy adults". This year a study found that static stetching( stretching in place, e.c. touching your toes) before taking a run or jog doesn't prevent injury. 

And thats not all! Not only does stretching have no benefits but it can also be harmful! This year a study found that static stretches which last more than a minute, can have a negative effect on performance. However, stretching may still be necessary for sports with flexibility like gymnastics or ice skating, it will have no effect on your every day workout routine. So stop wasting your time touching your toes before you work out! 

 I know what you're thinking, Disney? Controversies? Yeah right. But seriously, there are a large number of Disney controversies and today you will seee the top ten. 

10. Tiana form the Princess and the Frog. Yes, Disney's first African American princess wasn't a score for some mainly because of the stereotypes it played into to. The price was light skinned and had a gender ambigouis name. The movie was set in New Orleans and also had a voodoo theme. What is this implying, well thats what the controversy is about. 

9.Alladin. The movie opens with a bad description of Alladins home. They said, "they cut off your ear if they don't like your face. It's barbaric, but hey it's home." Some even say there is no way an Arab- American family can feel good about their race after watching alladin.

8. Song of the South. Yep, that's were the "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah" song came from. By today's standards the film is utterly racist. It relationships are mainly of master-slave. And the movie has not been released on video in the U.S.

7. Alice in Wonderland- This movie made people upset becausee they feel as though it didn't accurately represent the book. One critic stated that the movie took a serious book and just made it childish.  Not to mention there's a bit of controversy with the smoking catepillar and the Mad Hatter who became " hippy icons". 

6. The Little Mermaid-This one wasn't so much about the movie itself as it was about it's cover. Some parents discovered some innapropriate hidden images and although Disney denied that it was intentional, it still created alot of controversy. 

5. Dumbo- Once again, the contorversy is over hidden elements. Mainly its the group of crows that some think represent deadbeats. And the most controversial part is the name of the lead crow, Jim. As in Jim Crow. 

4. Bambi-In Bambi, some question whether death is an appropriate theme for children. Bambi's mother was killed by a hunter. The movie was almost banned in Britain for causing " pyscological harm" to children.

3. Lady and the Tramp- This movie was released shortly after the end of the Korean War. And apparently the two siamese cats represent alot of Asian stereotypes. The cats dance around to Asian music, have poor English, and are even manipulative.  

2. Pocahontas-People have a problem with Pocahontas because they say it strays too far from the real story. First of all, there was no love connection between Smith and Pocahontas. There was also no teary gooddbye when Smith left, mainly because Pocahontas was about ten.  Pocahontas was abducted by English colonists and taken to another part of Virginia; she was baptized as a Christian, married tobacco magnate John Rolfe and changed her name to Rebecca

1. The Problem with Princesses-Not a movie but a statement on Disney princesses in general. Parents and Feminists are saying that princesses do not make good role models. Too much of their time is spent waiting to be saved by men instead of taking their own actions. 

Are these all real problems or should people just forget about them and enjoy a nice movie? 

           Most of us know that smoking is bad for you. Smoking gets a bad wrap for it being a primary catalist for lung cancer. However, recent studies show that  smoking can alsso increase your chances of developing prostate cancer. In fact, men with prostate cancer who smoke are more likely to dies of prostate cancer or have it resurge than non-smokers. Unfortunately, to escape  this you have had to quit early because men who were frequent smokers ten years ago, had the same results as current smokers. 

      The study was conduccted with 5,366 men, all of whom had prostate cancer. 10% of the men died from the disease and 15% had a resurgence of the disease. The men who actively smoked or had actively smoked had a 61% more likely to experience a resurgence or even death. The conclusion was that if you smoke, you'll have a more aggressive cancer. Carcinogens in tobacco may actually speed tumor growth and the  higher production of testosterone which is also associated with prostate cancer. Overall, smokers have an 82% greater chance of developing prostate cancer than those who do not smoke. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer, right after lung cancer, both of which can be accelerated by smoking. 

 Why are they dropping hundreds of Osama's charges?  Well the FBI says its simple, he won't be in court to testify or answer any of their questions. On Thursday the assistant U.S. attorney recomended that the charges be dropped because well, Bin Laden's dead.  Of course in order to do this, he needed to supply the court with substantial evidence to show that Bin Laden was actually DEAD, and not just faked.  To prove this the assistant U.S. attorney used a full DNA analysis, facial recognition analysis, eyewitness conformation by one of the his wives, a video, and other significant materials. But the most convincing of all arguments was Al Queda's recognition of Bin Laden's death. And so, the charges were dropped. 

However people are still wondering, was this justice?Does a terrorist deserved to have no charges? And some can't help but wonder, what is this telling other terrorists? Yes, Bin Laden is dead, but does that mean he is innocent since he will not be proven guilty? While Bin Laden may be legally innocent, in the minds of the American public he will always be guilty. His legacy will continue as one of the U.S. most hated men of the 21st century.

Don't go to sleep tonight! Stay awake until the sun comes up, because tonight there will be just one of 2 total lunar eclipses of 2011.  The second is predicted to occur in December. However, this event is reletively rare because it is when the centerpoint of the earth's shadow crosses over the moon. The last time an eclipse like this occured was in July of 2000.

 This is a photo of the total lunar eclipse that occured in 2000. Unfortunately, scientists aren't sure that the eclipse will be visible to North America but you should keep your eyes peeled anyway.  If you don't happen to see anything or just fall asleep, just look online.  Some websites are currently posting live feeds of the lunar eclipse.

Who is the Barefoot-Bandit? He is a criminal notorious for stealing boats, planes, and cares, usually opperating them barefoot.He has made over 100 breakins and leaves bare footprints at every crime scene.  This criminal is 19 years old. Unfortunately, he was sent to juvenile hall when he 16 and was suppose too stay there for 3 years. But after 2 years he managed to escape and he has been on the run since then. He took off and went ot the Bahamas,and after two years of being on the run, the police found and arrested him after a high spped boat chase last week. 

Strangely enough, he's not completely getting a bad rap. In fact, he has more than 76,000 facebook fans and Fox has recently bought his story and plans to make a film based on his life. July11, his trail begins. Today, he stated that he plans  to plead not guilty. Will he be convicted guilty? And if so, how much time will he get?  Certainly they can't send him back to juvenile hall ( since he managed to escape).  

 Last year, Chile suffered the results of a huge earthquake. They may have thought that the worst of natural disasters was behind them, but that may not necessarily be true. Chile still needs to be kept on its toes, this the residents have learned, after a volcanic eruption last week. The Puyehue-Cordon Caullle volcano erupted on Saturday, luckily the residdents that lived near the volcano were evacuated before anything serious happened.Unfortunately though  volcanic matter and potentially toxic materials are still lindering in the valley nearby. And gusts of nearby wind are blowing the volcanic ashes and toxic materials all over the highway and local villages. Schools are currently evacuated, and the officials are not sure how long they will need to take precaution.

Unfortunately for Chile, as we have seen effects of during the last year, it is located in the Ring of Fire. An arc of volcanoes and fault lines the circle the Pacific Basin. Causing Chile to be prone, to frequent earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. How will this eruption effect Chile and for how long? Officials aren't sure, so we'll just have to see.

 You've heard of the famous endangered species: the great panda, the elephants, tigers, and sea turtles. However, these are not the most endangered because of the attention they get from people. So, below is a list of 2011's top ten most endangered species. 

1. Ivory-Billed Woodpecker 

The fact is that there is so little of this bird out there, it might actually be extinct already. Native to North America, the only reason it isn't extict yet is because of claimed "sightings". 

2. Amur Leopard 

Native to Russia, there's only about 40 left. 

3. Javan Rhinoceros

A swamp dwelling Rhino, there's less than 60 out there. 

4. Greater Bamboo Lemur 

I know what you're thinking, a lemur? Yep. Native to Madagascar this lemur species is dwindling at an unstopable rate. 

5. Northern RIght Whale

Hunted for their blubber, there's only about 350 left. 

6.Mountain Gorilla

While the gorilla has recieved alot of attention, its numbers are only about 700 with there environment getting smaller and smaller. 

7. Leatherback Seaturtle

There numbers are dropping at an alarming rate mainly due to two things; hunting and pollution. 

8.Siberian Tiger 

The world largest cat, weighing about 660 pounds, and the second most endangered cat.

9. Chinese Giant Salamander

Considered a delicacy in some countries this species is seriously getting eaten to death.

10. Hawaiian Monk Seal

This population  of  seal is dwindling and scientists don't know why. 

You may have heard of the 7 wonders. Maybe its your life's dream to go and see all of them. And with the  possibility of the world ending on Decmeber 21,2012. You better get a move on it. But you want to see more right?Not just the pyramids. Well a recent survey was taken to find the top ten places you shoudl visit before your death.

1. Amazon River- the second largest river in the world and the center of the Amazon rain forest, who wouldn't want to see that?

2. Great Wall of China( but if you're going for the 7  man made wonders you've already got this one down). Over 5,000 miles long and over 2,000 years old why not stop here on your journey.

3.Victoria Falls, SOuth Africa- Never heard of it? WEll you should have, its only about 10x more romantic than niagra falls. 

4. Pyramids of Giza( the 7 wonders already covered this)- How did they build these? We don't know! That's why you should check them out!

5.Machu Pichu, Peru- Once again, how did they manage to build this? We may never know.

6.Bora, Bora French Polynesia- In one of the most beautiful countries in the world, Fiji!

7. Taj Mahal- only one of the most awesome palaces in the world!

8.The Outback- yep the good old Austrailian outback! Go check out all of their marsupials! 

9. Santorini,Greece- never heard of it? WEll you should have! It's only one of the most beautiful oceanside cities.

10. and last but not least......drumroll please....................... Antartica!    I think I speak for alot of people when I say most haven't been here. WEll you should. After all, don't you want to see the penguins? 

 The need for medical malpractice reform is becoming a huge debate with medical profesionals. The idea behind medical malpractice reform is that patients should only be allowed to sue for a certain amount. For example if a surgeon messes up your leg during surgery you would only be able to get a certain amount of money from the hospital, lets say as an exampe 100,000 dollars. The idea of a set amound outrages some but for others it makes perfect sense. 

Why are people against medical malpractice reform? Some feel as though a set amount simply isn't just. That is if a a man becomes braindead after a mistake in removing a tumor, the family might feel as though 100,000 dollars just doesn't compensate for the loss oof the mentality of their grandfather. Another potential problem people see is an increase in mistakes becuase the punishments aren't as severe. Lats face it, we all do it. We all tend to put less effort into homework than tests because they don't count as much. 

Now with all the potential threats that come with medical malpractice reform you might ask, why are people for medical malpractice reform? The reassons are mainly economic. That is some people will sue for millions because of simple mistakes and this causes hospitaals to go into debt. This will in return cause the insurance companies to pay more, which will cause an increase in everybody's insurance payments. And with the economy in such a bad spot can we reeally afford that? Besides people say, everyone makes mistakes. 

Well there you have it, both sides. Currerntly medical malpractice reform is underway, but it still remains a heated issue. What do you think? 

Who is this man? This is a photo of Dallas Weins who lost almost his entire face in an accident three years ago. On November, 2008 when Dallas was 26 he was painting a church when his head got too close to a high voltage power lines and the burns almost destroyed his entire face. He was in a medically induced coma for 90 days and at first the doctors didn't even expect him to get out of the emergency room.Fortunately he did, but now he states that he wishes for one thing ,"to feel his daughters kisses again on his face". A recent surgery has made this possible. 

These are the before and after shots of his surgery. Dallas Weins went through a full on face transplant operation. In a 15 hour procedure doctors gave him a donor forehead,nose, lips and facfial skin. They also transplanted muscles and nerves which will allow Weins to have feeling in his face again.There's only one thing that is original about his face, and thats his goatee. The doctors were told to keep his goatee so Weins could  still have some of his old face.  Unfortunately, there is no way to restore his eyesight but thesurgery has allowed him to smell and have feeling in his face. Because of this Weins is now able to feel his daughters kisses once again. 

 Most of us have heard that one's weight will probably determine weather or not one will have heart problems or heart disease. Science has proven though that this is not necessarily true. In fact recent research shows that people with a high BMI actually have a lower chance of being diagnosed with heart disease. Doctors contribute this mystery to two things; first of all the BMI does not distinguish between muscle and fat and second of all, doctors are saying that its not the amount of fat that matters but how it is distributed.  Don't worry though, it is still possible to determine your risk for heart disease, through the size of your waist. 

So what should you watch out for concerning the size of your waist. Patients with an increased risk for heart disease generally have a waist size of greater than 35 inches for women and greater than 40 inches for men. People with these characteristics generally have a 70 % higher risk of getting heart disease than those that don't. But, that doesn't give you an excuse to not watch your weight because patients with both a high BMI and a large waist have and even higher chance of receiving heart disease. 

You might ask, why is the weight around your waist so bad? Well, the weight around your waist tends to be a good indicator of visceral fat, or the fat that gathers around your organs. This fat promotes insulin resistance and unhealthy cholesterol numbers.So if you want to see if you're at risk for heart disease check your waist not your weight.

Whaling has become a major problem in the past couple of years. Whales are hunted for their oil, bones, and in some countries their meat. Below is a list of products made from whales.

lamp oil( from sperm oil)                                                                                                                                                                                                                     margerine and cooking oil( from whale oil)                                                                                                                                                             candles,soaps,cosmetics, and perfumes( from sperm oil)                                                                                                                                                                   corsets and umbrellas( from sperm oil)                                                                                                                                                                                              whale-meat for human consumption                                                                                                                                                                                                          animal feed( from whale meat)                                                                                                                                                                                                                  fertilizer (from bone meal)                                                                                                                                                                                                                       string for tenis raquets(from tendons)     

As you can see, most of the products above use some sort of oil and this oil is usually taken from sperm whales, that are killed for their oil or meat. However, most products are beginning to use a desert plant named Jojoba, or goatnut, in replacement of sperm oil. Jojoba is the name of the desert plant shown below. Within the nuts of the jojoba is a waxy substance that the Indians use to use. Today it is used in conditions, lubricants, and in many products as a replacement for sperm oil. Jojoba is only native to California and the Sonoran deserts. While it may seem ironic that a desert plant is saving a marine species jojoba has earned the nickname "save the whales" plant. Because it is this plant that has stopped the mass murder of whales for the use of their oil.

This Sunday is Easter, and most women and "health conscience" men are worrying about all of the candy and bad food. Parents and grandparents are worrying about their children, what should they eat. Well here is a list of some of the more healthy options.

1. Cadbury Creme Eggs 

yes while this food is generally bad for you when it comes to Easter candy this is actually one of the healthiest candies having only 150 calories and 5 grams of fat per egg.

2. Peeps

Everybodys favorite Easter mashmallow treats, peeps have made it onto the best list! These have even less calories than the Cadbury eggs having only 140 calories for 5 peeps. The only thing you really have to watch out for is, this ones a cavity causer with 34 grams of sugar.

3.Jelly Beans

So, maybe you're not in to chocolate or marshmallows. Well you can always go for jelly beans. Jelly beans have only 140 calories for 13 beans. and fortunately if you're on sugar control, you can always go for the sugar free jelly beans.

4. Easter Eggs

Granted, its not a candy but it is still in the spirit of Easter. After you dye and color your eggs you can always peel thema and eat them. The most healthy Easter treat having only 70 calories per egg and tons of versatiliy. Egg salad, scrambled eggs, sunny side up, an omelet. The possibilities are endless.

So go and have a healthy Easter.

Most have heard the phrase ," working yourself to death". Although  we are unable to prove that no one has died of too much work, research has recently appeared that finds that too much work can be bad for your health. While it does provide people with their needed income, it also works away at their heart, and before you know it you are in a coffin. So please people take a day off every once in a while. 

 Recent studies show that people who work over 11 hours a day have an increased chance for a heart attack than people that don't. A 67% higher risk. You might be thinking, oh good, because I only work ten. Well it turns out those that work 10-11 hours are also at risk by an increased chance of 45%. Stephen Kopecky tries to explain this  by  proposing that maybe people at work have a greater tendancy to snack or eat fast food. Although he says that the main factor here is too much inactivity. Kopecky also says that this mainly occurs in people that don't like their job because they tend to put less effort into their work. Overall, cut down on your  work hours and find a job you love. But be careful with this statistic because it will only provide some ( lazy adults and teenagers) with a reason not to work or try.

Is there extreterestrial life? This question has caused numerous debates and arguments. But is there the possibility of life on another planet? With the discovery that was made this week, there just might be. 

In 1969 a meteorite hit Antartica. But it wasn't until now that scientists discovered something truly puzzling within the metorite. A substance they are calling,wassonite. This mysterious substance is raising numeruos questions, the main one being, what is it? Belived to be a combination of sulfur and titanium it posesses a " crystal like structure never before seen in nature". And although this mineral is less than 1/100 of a human hair, its stucture is curious enough to leave scientists flabergasted. 

This mineral came form the meteorite now named Yamato 691. This meteorite is said to have originated from an asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter. From what planet this astroid came, we do not know. Linsay Keller, a researcher from NASA says " Meteorites are wondows to the formation of our solar system". With this in mind, scientists are wondering if this meteorite was from the formation of a new solar syatem and possibly one with life. Overall, scientists don't know what to think of this new alien mineral. But maybe at some point it will hold the answer to the age old question. Is there life outside of Earth?

Remember the movie Finding Nemo that came out in 2003? Rember Crush the sea turtle and his offspring Squirt? Most kids, if they have seen the movie remember that character. Unfortunately, currently 6 of the 7 species of marine turtles are endangered, meaning that there is only a small select population of them left in the wild.

Sea turtles produce alot of offspring, but since they lay there eggs on the shore few offspring find their way back to the ocean because of predators, heat, or maybe they simply never hatched at all. Another problem is some humans are bothering the eggs. When a person is running on the beach they might accidently step on an egg, cover it in sand, or move it. This makes its chances for survival even worse. The few turtles that do survive, most of the time do not reach adulthood. This is due to them getting trapped in fishing nets, in lines of fishing fleets, and because of pollution and disease. This means that not alot of turtles are living long enough to their reproductive stages which will greatly hinder the sea turtle population in the future.

Currently there is also a big problem with humans that live on the coast, using turtles as a source of food. Overall to keep the sea turtle population from extinction, we need stricter regulations for fishing boats, eating sea turtles needs to be illegal, and please watch where you're stepping! In the end it will all help to SAVE THE TURTLES!

Most of us currently think hybrid cars are a great idea. It saves people money while helping the environment. But too many people associate hybrid cars with retired folk and nerds to want to drive one. Well now you can help the environment, save money, and look cool with the new hybrid supercar from Porsche, the Spyder. Not only will this be the first super cool hybrid it will also be the world's first plug-in hybrid supercar! You might be thinking that this is the car of your dreams and that you're definetely going to get one but in order to cruise around in this hot car you're going to have to find your way around the 845,000 dollar pricetag.

This new car can reach top speeds up to 199 miles per hour. It also includes a battery pack that can be charged via a home electrical outlet, which provides up to 16 miles of battery-only range at speeds up to 94 mph. This car can also go 0-60 in 3.1 seconds! With all these great features it's no wonder why this is Porsche's most expensive car ever to be put out in the market! If you want to get your hands on one of these then you also have to be quick because Porsche is only making a grand total of 918 of them starting in September 2013. In just 2 short years, you just might be able to get your hands on the world's first hybrid supercar!

All of us have been told over and over that smoking is bad for you. The main reason people seem to come up with is an increase in the possibilities   of getting lung or throat cancer. There are however many other reasons why one should not smoke and the market for stop-smoking products is growing larger every day. Recent studies show however that in addition to throat and lung cancer and addiction, smoking also increases one's risk for breast cancer. Thats right, breast cancer.

For women that smoke, smoking has an effect of increasing their chances of getting diagnosed with breast cancer by 6%, but for those that smoke a pack a day regularly it increases their risk by a total of 28%.Many scientists feel perplexed though because, the chemicals in cigarretts also lower the levels of estergin in the body, which is one of the driving factors of breast cancer. Studies also showed that women that smoke after menopause have a lower risk of getting brest cancer than women that don't. The discoveries just seem to constantly contradict themselves.

Regardless of how it is conected with breast cancer, doctors say that smoking should still remain as something that causes severe heath issues. Smoking can cause heart problems,COPD, lung cancer, and more. In fact over 1,000,000 people died last year from a disease connected to smoking. So if you are looking for motivation to quit smoking, I hope this helps.  

On Saturday, I volunteered at the Odessey of the Mind county tournament in my home town. Odessey of the Mind is a competition for kids that encourages them to use their creativity to solve problems. This year the problems were: Extreme Mousemobiles, Good as Gold...berg, Le Tour Guide, Unhinged Structure, Full Circle, and Money Maker. In Extreme Mousemobiles, the teams were challenged to constuct a vehicle that is powered souly by mousetraps and encorporate it into a skit. One team pretended to be at a race and another was inventing means of transport for bedbugs. 

Good as Gold....berg was a competition  where teams chose a simple, existing item used in everyday life. The teams had to come up with a new item that has the same purpose but is much more complicated and present a sales pitch for their new item. For example, one team replaced a cast for broken bones with a potato cast,which was apparently more effective than the average ordinary cast.

If you want to see the attempts at these challenges, simply google them or look them up on youtube.

For more info on the challenges just go to

http://www.odysseyofthemind.com/materials/2011problems.php

Overall, it was a great program to volunteer with and I had a great time looking at all of the contraptions and skits that the kids were able to come up with. I am looking forward to doing it next year.

An endangered species is any population on the verge of extinction. This may be because of various causes such as poaching, disease, overuse for research or commercial use,  and destruction of habitat. Scientists estimate that over 25,000 species of plants and animals exist in the world today all of which have not necessarily been discovered. Action is being taken to protect these endangered species, some however cannot be completed without help from the public. The truth is that the public is fueling the need for poaching of endangered species for their products. 

What you see here is a comb made of ivory. Ivory trade is currently illegal, but because it is a popular sell the trade of ivory still continues thus putting thousands of elephants in danger of being slaughtered for their tusks.  

These are guitar picks made from tortise shells. Contrary to cartoons and popular beliefs tortises cannot escape from their shells. The shell and the body are connected because the tortise's backbone is in the shell. Thus to get the shell, the tortise needs to be dead. Tortise and turtle shell products are popular in Asia and world wide.

   This is a picture of tiger and leopard pelts. Both tigers and leopards have become endangered because of their fur. A tiger pelt can sell for 35 hundred dollars. Tiger and leopard fur are used for coats, rugs, purses, and much more.There is no doubt that humans play a considerable roll in the endangerment of numerous species. Do your part by not supporting the illegal trade. Go for the real-looking fake stuff instead of the real stuff because it might just save an animals life. So watch out for what your buying because you might simply be feeding the poachers lust and causing a population to go extinct.

 Today, cancer is a rapid growing problem and most of us have know or met one of the 11.6 million people in the United States that have or had cancer. Most families are devistated when they hear that someone in their family has cancer because they feel that there is no hope, mainly because their is no cure. But as of this year, scientists are on their way to making a breakthrough to ending cancer and the answer may lie in a group of dwarfs. And soon all may be cured of cancer, if you are willing to compromise a few feet.

Dr.Jaime Guevara-Aguirre of Ecuador is a doctor for severly short people, and through the years he has noticed that his patients do not necessarily recieve the same aliments as the average human being. His patients have a genetic mutation that stunts their growth and generally are not over 4 feet high( the height of a seven year old). As they got older Dr.Guevara-Aguirre noticed that none of them was ever diagnosed with diabetes or cancer. Because of this, they launched a 22 year study. After studying 100 very short people they came to the conclusion that what is stunting their growth may also be whats preventing them from getting cancer and diabetes.

 In his study, Dr. Guevara-Aguirre compared the normal Ecuadorian population to that of his dwarfs. Over the study only one of the dwarfs deveolped cancer compared to the normal population of which 20% died of cancer. The dwarf that was diagnosed with cancer, was cancer-free after a short treatment session. This is leading to numerous studies about horomones and their relationship with cancer. It seems as though in the future if we have a cure for cancer, Dr.Guevara-Aguirre and his patients will be on the list of people to thank.

For most parents and students there is a big difference between public schools and religious private schools. For parents that follow certain religions, religious private schools with bible classes can be a great idea. But for parents who don't necessarily follow a religion this is seen as an unneccessary subject. This issue is being brought to light in Kentucky with a bill that offers Bible classes to public school students. 

    In Kentucky this is becoming a very controversial issue. Many parents are worried that their children will be forced to learn about the Bible in school and be forced to accept its principles and beliefs instead of their children making their own decisions. However, Senator Joe Boewen says that these classes will not be mandatory, but simply optional. This however brings the quesion of how Christian kids in Bible classes will respond to the kids that refuse to take the classes. Will these classes break frienships because it introduces religion into the school system?                                                              

Senator Joe Boewen says that bible classes will prove to be useful because kids will be learning about "the most influential book ever and one that has certainly impacted our government".  While its impact on our government is indeed present, some parents can't help but think about the possibilities of a theocratic school system. After all they ask themselves, "Isn't this why I decided to send my kid to a public school and not a religious school?" Many also ask themselves, " The greeks and romans had a huge impact on democratic societies as a whole, so why don't they offer Greek mythology classes?" 

In the end , the question is up to the natives of Kentucky, should Bible classes be offered in public schools or not?

 Since the invention of the light bulb, humanity has been using excesive amounts of light. Artificial light allows us to see things at night as well as we can during the day. Worlwide, we spend about 5.5 million dollars on light bulbs every day and use about 12.2 billion light bulbs each year. This invention has greatly impacted technology and is vital to our way of life but recent studies show that it may be having a detrimental effect on wildlife.

Light pollution is the result of bad lighting design which causes light to shine outward and upward instead of focusing it downward where it should be. This eliminates the darkness of the night and negatively affects light rythms which many organisms, including ourselves, depend on  in order to continue our natural processes and behaviors.Light pollution interferes with mating rituals,migration,, and feeding habits of the natural world. There is currently an enormous amount of nocturnal mammals on the planet. For these mammals, it is utterly confusing to see light during the night and some scientists say that light acts as a magnet drawing animals into it. Birds are also drastically affected by this because it interferes with their migratory patterns. Bird have been noted to repeatedly circle the lights and some even do this until they suddenly die. There are also reports of birds crashing into lit buildings in the middle of the night.

Light pollution is also taking its toll on bats. Insects( which are bats main source of food) are attracted to the light and tend to cluster around it. This is affecting the bat species because it is becoming harder and harder to find food. The horshoe bat in Swiss valleys significantly decreased in number after the installation of the first street light. This is also causing bats,rats, and other nocturnal animals to be easily preyed upon.They have also found that some birds including nightingales, tend to sing at unnatural hours when in the presence of light pollution. This is also having a detrimental effect on sea turtles because their young tend to migrate towrds brighter areas.So maybe its time that we start taking light pollution into consideration with our conservation efforts.

For most Americans Chinese food is a smash hit and most of us, regardless of how good we are at it, try to use a pair of chopsticks. Some people even feel awkward asking the waitor for a fork or spoon because some feel as though they should eat it the "right" way.  However, although using chopsticks may be seen as culturally appropriate its impacts on the environment are far from good.

A woman named, Akhila Vijayarghavan exposes this impact in her series of articles called, "Green Living:Chopstick Wars". In her articles she states,

"Does anyone ever give thought to a pair of chopsticks? It sometimes is present at your table at a meal or comes along with your take-away meal. It can be made of plastic, wood or bamboo. Chopsticks like most other disposable cutlery items pose an environmental hazard depending on what they are made with. Japan for example is the top importer of tropical and temperate hardwood. A lot of this wood goes into making disposable chopsticks. Trees from as far as the US, Canada and UK are cut down, cured, shipped to make little sticks which are thrown away after a single use. The carbon footprint is scary to think of."

Several hundreds thousand acres of forest are leveled each year for chopstick production, this ends up being about 100 trees each day. China is already attempting to change this by imposing a 5 percent tax on all disposable chopsticks. However, this has not been entirely successful and chopstick production and disposal remains at a high.Restaurants are also taking part in this movement by having customers bring their own indisposable chopsticks and some companies are manufacturing easy travel chopsticks. But the most successful has been biodegradable chopsticks.

So as it turns out chopsticks do in fact have a scary environmental impact and as always it just proves to show that the little things add up.

Today,Organ donors play a major role in the medical field. But most people, including doctors, have never heard of Ronald Lee Herrick even though they shlould have. Ronald Lee Herrick was the first successful organ transplant donor. In 1954 he donated one of his kidneys to his dying twin brother, Richard Herrick. The donated kidney expanded the life of Ronald's twin borther by eight years. But last December Ronald passed away. 

 The surgery took place in Boston with doctor Joseph Murray who later recieved a Nobel Prize for his work in organ donation and transplantation. This procedure was the begining of a new medical era because at the time most doctors considered it unethical and wrong to take an organ out of a living human being. This opperation was also considered groundbreaking because it proved that transplants were possible and effective. The operation also led to many more kidney transplants and the transplanting of many other organs.

Currently about 77 organ tranplants are completed every day. Each operation has mixed success but to all of the people out there who are living with a donated organ or have a family memeber with one, you have one other person to thank other than your donator and doctor and that is Ronald Lee Herrick.

        Inception is a movie that came out this year about a thief( Leonardo DiCaprio) who learns how to manipulate dreams and takes on the ultimate task of inception. For most this movie was a hit and  it recieved 4 and a half stars. This movie made people think about their dreams, controlling them, and if we will in the future have technology to do the same. However, Gary Schwartz  has done some research and has found out that we as humans can in fact control our own dreams.

Schwartz calls the people than can manipulate their dreams, lucid dreamers. He states that a lucid dreamer is, "  a person who is aware that he or she is dreaming and is able to manipulate the plot and outcome of the dream, like a video game." He says that lucid dreams are common in children and it will sometimes happen frequently and children are able to control the outcome of their dreams as a way of showing their creativity. However, this is not new news to people in the science field because people have been aware of lucid dreams for centuries, going back to the Buddha.

So, many people begin asking themselves,how exactly do I have a lucid dream? Schwartz says that one method is reminding yourself before you go to sleep that you wish to be aware of when you are dreaming. Schwartz also states methods to help one distinguish their dreams from reality, which was the inspiration behind the movie Inception. The Luciditiy institue says to read text during a dream, if they change or seem blury than you are probably dreaming. 

However most of us will not get confused over what is reality and what is a dream because health experts state that this is a clear sign of mental illness. Though experts say that most of us should stay away from lucid dreams because they don't want people to think that  what they do in their dreams can also be accomplished in real life.

Most of us have been told over one hundred times in our lives that watching TV has negative effects. To the spokesperson on the diet commercial to your parents telling you that "it kills brain cells" watching TV excessively has always been looked down upon. Other than the increasing rate of obesity and the effects that advertisement has on your children, watching too much TV has lately been shown to hurt your heart and even shorten your life span.

A recent study was conducted in Scotland, where the hours of viewing television were recorded along with the health of the patient. The study consisted of 4,500 people age 35 and older. The majority of them claimed that they generally spend two to four hours of watching TV or spending time on the computer a day, while 29 percent said that they spend more than four hours a day doing so. By the end of the study 215 participants experienced a heart attack or other cardiovascular problem and 325 of them had died from other causes. The people that spent more than four hours in front of the TV increased their chances of a heart attack by 2.3 fold compared to those that watched less than 2 hours. 

Scientists and health professionals say that TV isn't the real culprit here, sitting is. Studies have shown that sitting slows down the action of an enzyme that breaks down fats in the blood. Researchers also say that excersize in addition to excessive TV watching doesn't reap much benefits. If people really want to be healthy, they need to watch less TV. Studies have also shown that people are more likely to snack while watching TV, thus leading to unnecessary weight gain. Watching TV therefore, doesn't necessarily kill your brain cells but it will kill your heart. So next time you are debating over whether you should watch your favorite show or opt for the gym, it’s probably better that you don't watch TV.  

Just three years ago the polar bear was placed on the threatened species list. Because of climate change the polar bears habitat is slowly melting away and their methods of getting a food source just aren't working anymore. However, many scientists have a new found hope that the polar bears can be safe in the end.

Scientists from numerous different universities have found that if we are able to reduce greenhouse gas emissions significantly in the next decade, enough Arctic ice will likely remain to keep the species prosperous. Steven Armstrup with the U.S. Geological Survey says "What we projected in 2007 was based solely on the business-as-usual greenhouse gas scenario, that was a pretty dire outlook, but it didn't consider the possibility of greenhouse gas mitigation." A study in 2008 also stated that, "only about one-third of the world's 22,000 polar bears might be left by mid-century if the dramatic Arctic ice decline continued and that eventually they could disappear completely". This study is what eventually led the species to be placed on the Threatened Species list in the first place.

Scientists hope that this news of saving the polar bears will provide an incentive to reduce greenhouse gas emissions instead of the unstoppable slippery slope philosophy for the species that makes many feel as though they can do nothing for an already hopeless cause. Before scientists were looking for a tipping point, where the arctic ice could not recover. But now scientists are leaving the tipping point in the dust and are working towards finding other effective methods to obtain energy that will also help the polar bears. The philosophy currently is that if we prevent the melting of arctic ice in the future than that time can be spent replenishing the arctic ice that we already lost. There is hope and the polar bears can be saved.   

Yes, its getting  close to that time of the year. Tons of kids singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and writing letters to Santa across the country.  Few of them actually belong to those wealthy care free families that aren't worrying about what their kid will ask for. Many families are beginning to worry about whether or not they can actually get what their kid is asking for this year, but their is a growing number of familes that for the first time may not be able to get anything for their children this year. 

 Toys for Tots is a corporation aimed at collecting presents for children in needy families hurt by the growing recession. Toys for Tots states that their goal is to "to deliver, through a new toy at Christmas, a message of hope to less fortunate youngsters that will assist them in becoming responsible, productive, patriotic citizens". Toys for Tots has been supported by celebrities such as Bob Hope and Ronald Reagan. Two years ago the Toys for Tots foundation brought in over 81 million toys and they hope to top that this year.

So, how can you donate to Toys for Tots? You simply visit the Toys for Tots website and find a dropoff site near you and donate some new and wrapped toys. This year, while your sitting around the tree opening up your presents, think about the child that is opening the present that you donated and the giant smile on their face.

More than ten years ago, a fourteen year old girl named Elizabeth Smart was abducted from her bedroom in Salt Lake City, Utah. Nine months later they found her alive, eighteen miles from her home in the prescence of a man named Brian David Mitchell and a woman named Wanda Ileen Barzee. Barzee and Mitchell were both indicted for her kidnapping but the family was gravely upset when the court ruled that they were unfit to stand a trial.Today the case finally came to a close.

Today the jury will decide if Mitchell, the man who held a knife to Elizabeth and kidnapped her, is legally insane or unfit to stand a trial. The judge said that in order to plea insanity they have to prove that Mitchell was insane to the point that he did not know the difference between what is rihght and wrong.  Elizabeth claimed that Mitchell kidnapped her and led her to a camp where he raped her and made her his spiritual wife.  The defense attorney's claimed that Mitchell did not know the difference between right and wrong and had many mental illness experts testify saying that Mitchell could be diagnosed as schitzophernic.  However, the prosecutors provided some metal heath experts that claimed that Mitchell did know what was right and wrong, but simply used God to justify his actions.

Mitchell claims himself to be a prophet by the name of Immanuel David Isiah who will take his 49 wives and battle the AntiChrist. He also says that in the next life he and his family will hold exhalted positions. Smart also justifies his actions by saying that the whole point behind his sexual intercourse with Elizabeth and his other wives was because God wanted him to teach women how to perform sexually. 

 Today, Barzee took a plea bargain and will be serving fifteen years in prison and states that her husband is a manipulator and took advantage of her religios beliefs. Currently the case was moved to federal court and the fight still continues over whether or not Mitchell is mentally ill. 

    As most people get older they tend to look in the mirror and think to themselves, “why do I look so old?"? Many even question, “Why can't I look the way that I did when I was 20?". Most of these questions are answered with the popular responses, "You can't beat time" or "It's impossible". But as of last week, people are beginning to think a little bit differently about the subject and many people are beginning to wonder, can we really reverse the aging process?  Scientists at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute are beginning to think so.

Thanksgiving is a special time of the year when people can get together with their families, eat until the belt breaks, and be thankful for what they have.  But at this point due to the recession and constant loss of jobs, many families are beginning to wonder how they can even put on such a celebration. The price of some commonly used thanksgiving products have raised. These products include milk, sweet potatoes, and bread rolls. As a result the numbers of families eating at food banks and soup kitchens have risen. In one area of New York, the demand has risen almost seven percent on top of a twenty percent increase in 2009. This has also led to many food banks and soup kitchens not being able to meet demands. In fact, over fifty percent of food banks found that they were not able to meet demands last year. 

Another statistic shows that last year one in eight households qualified as "food insecure". Food insecurity refers to the lack of access to enough food to fully meet basic needs at all times due to lack of financial resources. There are many different levels of food insecurity. And the number of food insecure households in the United States has risen to about 49 million.  And 17.3 million people lived in households that were considered to have "very low food security," a USDA term (previously denominated "food insecure with hunger") that means one or more people in the household were hungry over the course of the year because of the inability to afford enough food. This was up from 11.9 million in 2007 and 8.5 million in 2000.  Many households have also turned to food stamps. Last year, 1.7 million people in New York were on food stamps, and the number has risen to about forty million nationwide.  

Many people are urging that the general public in the United States do something to help the national crisis. These range from donating food to donating a couple of cents. Volunteering at local homeless shelters has also proven to be extremely helpful. Many are hopeful that when the recession improves so will the national hunger problem. So remember, tomorrow when you are sitting around that large table saying, "pass the stuffing", that there are some less fortunate than you.

 Pineapples are a delicious and nutritious fruit that many enjoy daily. However some are beginning to wonder if the benefits of growing pineapples outweigh the consequences.  Currently the pineapple is damaging Costa Rica (the world’s largest exporter of pineapples) socially and environmentally.

Some of the reasons for why the pineapple is beginning to be seen as dangerous is because of its harmful affects to the environment. In fact, the constant use of agrochemicals has led to the contamination of drinking water supplies to communities in the radius of the pineapple plantations. This is causing many problems within the communities and people are struggling to find clean water. Contaminated drinking water has been found to increase one’s risk for cancer and contains many viruses and bacteria that can greatly damage someone that does not have a sufficient immune system.  Pineapples also cause many chemical accidents that have inflicted serious damage on the local environment. A lot of land is being cleared out for pineapple plantations and it is causing great damage to the original plant and animal species that lived there.

     Another repeated problem with the pineapple industry is that many workers are reporting health problems from exposure to the chemicals used on the pineapple plantations on which they worked. Some of these cases even include accidental chemical poisoning. Some workers wonder if this is worth the risk because the price cuts in Europe have led to lower wager in Costa Rica because Europe was its main purchaser of pineapples. Many people are trying to improve the working conditions but at the end of the day, they have said to ignore their claims.

People are beginning to wonder if pineapples are really worth it.  Is it better if we just learn to live without the delicious fruit that we all love?

On November 11, 1918 the armistice which ended World War I was signed. President Wilson originally claimed it as an Armistice Day. Twenty years later an Act was passed by congress to celebrate November 11^th as a legal and national holiday.  A day to originally celebrate world peace and be called “Armistice Day”. This day was originally set to honor soldiers that had served as well as those who had lost their lives in World War I.  However, about twenty years later World War II had erupted. World War II had the greatest mobilization of soldiers, sailors, Marines, and airman in the Nation’s history.  Congress than passed an act that replaced the word “Armistice” with “Veterans”.  The legislation was passed on June 1, 1954 and November 11 became a day to honor all veterans.

        Yesterday numerous celebrations took place on Veterans Day in Washington D.C. These included a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, which apparently holds the remains of unknown soldiers from World War I, World War II, Korean and Vietnam Wars. This ceremony was open to everyone and occurred in the amphitheatre.  A wreath laying ceremony also took place at the Vietnam memorial, World War II and Navy Memorials. In addition, at the Vietnam Women’s Memorial veterans and children of veterans were encouraged to attend and share their stories or experiences of the Vietnam War.  At the National Marine Corps Museum, they had a ceremonial sword cake cutting which served dual purposes to celebrate Veteran day and the birthday of the museum.

         Other celebrations included the beginning of construction for a new memorial honoring American Veterans. This memorial will be The Americans Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial, and will be dedicated to people who are disabled as a result of serving their country. Like every year, the Manassas Veterans Day Parade took place. This parade is aimed to pay tribute to all military active personnel that are serving overseas or at home. It is the largest Veterans Day parade in Washington D.C.  and had performances from high school bands and military units from the Armed Services.  It was truly a great way to honor our soldiers.

    Thanks to all our soldiers and I hope everyone had a happy Veterans Day.   

When most people think of species that are on the verge of extinction or endangerment they think of polar bears, whales, and even tigers. But what the general population does not know is that currently the world is having a global amphibian crisis and many frogs, toads, and salamanders are on the verge of extinction. Many scientists believe that this is happening because of pollution, habitat destruction, and pathogens. If action is not taken soon, some believe that most of the amphibian population will die out. 

One of the reasons for this mass endangerment is because of a pathogen known as the Chytrid fungus. This fungus has the affect of hardening the amphibian's skin. This proves to be detrimental to many amphibians because they are said to have a "permeable membrane". This membrane allows them to soak up water through their skin, and extract the oxygen through the water. Therefore the amphibians "breathe" through their skin. However, the Chytrid fungus hardens the skin so that the amphibians can no longer breathe through this membrane and most die from lack of oxygen or nutrients. Another reason for their rapid endangerment is pollution. Because of their permeable membrane, polluted water has taken a terrible toll on the species. When amphibians absorb polluted water it ruins their digestive and sometimes immune system. Also, because their eggs are layed near water and their first stages of life are in water, many of the eggs become polluted or they simply die as tadpoles. 

Another reason for this crisis is habitat destruction. It is getting more and more difficult for amphibians to find a place to live. Another result of this is that their food supply is getting smaller because there are fewer plants around. Because of this many amphibians are starving, but for some carnivorous frogs this is not a problem. Also, when there is a smaller habitat, many frogs don't know where to lay their eggs or raise their young and competition for land increases.

   Scientists believe that this crisis will have detrimental effects on the biosphere that will echo forever.  When the amphibian population decreases, the insect population will increase and become a bigger pest than what they already are. Also, the population of amphibian predators will decrease because their main food supply is disappearing and this will start a never ending chain of predators losing their main supply of food. Some even think that eventually this will affect humans, because at one point it may hit our main sources of food. 

Thankfully, many zoos are beginning to take action for the sake of all amphibians. Many zoos are introducing amphibian exhibits and informing the public about the current situation of most of the amphibians. Zoo's hope that they will be able to maintain a control of the amphibian population and prevent further damage and loss of species. Hopefully within the next couple of decades the amphibian population will return to its original size, however there is some damage that is simply irreversible.

       Many of us have been told one hundred times over and over that we are lucky and that our situations and troubles could be alot worse than what they already are. I never felt like that was more true until last Friday. My history class is right next to one of the special ed classrooms and we were to meet the kids so that in case we had an earthquake or fire drill we could help the teacher and the kids get down to where they needed to be safely.It was an eye-opening experience to me ,being a person with a mental disability, and I could not help but think to myself how severe my situation could be and how lucky I really am. 

   All of the class went into the room next door right after the bell rang. We were immeadiately introduced to the teacher, Mr.Pruett. He had about ten kids in his class and he was said to have the more independent ones. Not long after, a kid screamed. Everyone in our class was shocked but we were all able to mantain our cool. We were then introduced to the kids, all of which he told us had a problem speaking. He mentioned that the kids could comprehend whatever they were told or whatever anybody said so we were not to say anything innapropriate. No one did, yet most of us wondered if they really could. We all looked at their schedule on the board, they had activities like coloring, reading, counting, and spelling. For a moment, some of the kids wished that they still did activities like this.   

      I remember the teacher telling us, "This is Jorge, and we are hoping that one day he will be able to get a job at McDonalds." I was in shock, that they would consider that an accomplishment and felt like people were possibly not seeing the kid's full potential. This comment made me flash back to a year ago when doctors told me that I was going to fail Geometry because they had removed the part of my brain which most kids use for visual math. I howver, had a "prove you wrong " attitude and was able to get passed this. All in all, I was just tired of people telling the mentally disabled that they can't do certain things because of their "disability".  

     I left the classroom feeling offended and shocked, but mostly I felt thankful. I felt gracious that although I do have amental disability, I have one that allows me to keep up with the average person. I felt thankful that I am able to express myself in a way that those kids would never be able to. I realized what my situation could have been. So, at the end of the day, be thankful for what you have and what you are. Realize that your situation could be worse. And, no matter how hard it might seem, count your blessings.  

Dolphin hunting has become a major problem within the last couple of decades and although it has been outlawed throughout most of the globe there are still a select number of places that allow it. These places mainly include: Japan, the Solomon Islands, and the Faroe Islands. Many environmentalists are currently becoming aware of the major threat that this imposes on the marine ecosystem. Dolphin Hunting is becoming a major threat to the dolphin population, in fact thousands of dolphins are being slaughtered each year and many scientists feel that if it continues, many dolphin species will soon be endangered.

  For many the question still remains, why do some people want to capture and sometimes even kill wild dolphins? One of the primary reasons for capturing the wild dolphins is to keep them in captivity at aquariums. At times, a single bottlenose dolphin can sell for at least one hundred and fifty thousand dollars.  Dolphin shows and entertainment is becoming a major source of business and profit for many Japanese aquariums and marine zoos.  Another reason for the mass slaughter of dolphins is for their meat. Dolphin meat is often sold as whale meat which is more expensive and nutritious than dolphin meat. But because whales are much harder to kill, many fishermen are resulting to dolphins as their main source of income.  Many fishermen are also killing dolphins as a form of “pest control”. Because the dolphin’s primary source of food is fish, many fisherman justify killing dolphins because the dolphins are eating all of their profit.  Strangely enough, dolphin teeth are also considered to be extremely valuable and are actually used as a function of currency in the Solomon and Faroe Islands.  Because of this, many dolphins are either killed for their teeth or captured and their teeth pulled out before they are released. Having no teeth has proven to be detrimental because the dolphins are unable to consume or catch fish without them. 

       Most people in Japan are completely oblivious to this mass slaughter of dolphins. This is why some  people like Animal Planet’s Ric O’Barry believes that if he can simply spread the word that people will soon come to realize that this is unjust and that dolphin hunting will eventually become outlawed in Japan and the Solomon and Faroe Islands. However, in Japan dolphins are not the only species that face endangerment because of mass slaughter. Other species include: pilot whales, which are constantly hunted for their meat and blubber. As mentioned above, whale meat is very expensive and extremely nutritious. The term “Blood Dolphins” refers to this mass slaughter and Animal Planet’s hit series. Luckily, many conservationists and marine parks, like SeaWorld are speaking out against this. But, since dolphins are such an attraction at Japanese marine parks, many refuse to give up their dolphins or stop buying them. However, many scientists hope that within the next couple of years dolphin hunting will be outlawed throughout the entire planet and that the species will be saved.       

      Hi, My name is Amanda Lukas and I am a junior at Palm Desert High School. I am a child of three and have an older brother and a younger sister. When I was nine months old I was diagnosed with epilepsy. So far, I have been unable to come across a doctor who actually knows why I have this medical condition. No one else in my family has ever had this condition, I have no history of head trauma, and there were no complications at my birth, so I have many doctors that find me to be a medical mystery. However, this is something that indeed entrigues me too. I would like to know for myself  why I have this condition. Epilepsy has been a struggle but it intrests me alot and makes me want to learn more about nuerology. 

      Currently, I am also a volunteer at my local zoo, The Living Desert. My job as a volunteer consists of interpreting carts ot the public, assisting in the petting kraal, and helping out with special events. This happens to be another intrest of mine, animal science. Animals intrigue me and I personally would like to know more about them. Another example of this intrest is within my household. Currently my family owns two cats, three dogs, three horses, and a fishtank. For most people, this is considered to be alot of pets, but I love every one of them. 

 This year I want to get a job, do well on the SAT, pass all of my AP tests, and of course go another year without having a seizure. Also, this year hopefully I can dig down deep and find the inspiration and motivation to learn how to drive. From this internship I hope to gain experience and knowledge. I have never had a paid job before, so hopefully this internship will give me insight into what having a real job is like. I also hope to learn more about the world that I live in and how I can have a positive impact on it.