Human Trafficking; The Ugly Truth

Though we may like to think that human trafficking is something that just happens in third world countries and really just anywhere other than where we live, the ugly truth is that human trafficking is a major issue right here in the Bay Area. Today we learned that human trafficking was not only a major problem in the past, such as in San Francisco in the 80's, but is also a huge issue today. For example, in October 10 people were charged for running a collection of 40 brothels throughout the Bay Area which employed women trafficked mostly from Asia. Another example would be the also relatively recent exposure of the story of a Los Altos High School alumni whose parents sold her to work in brothels in her free time away from school from the age of 10 up through college.

Based on these examples (and other information you can find from Sarah and Caitlin's website http://sarahmcallan6.wix.com/human-trafficking ), we can see that human trafficking is a major issue that not many people know about. What we need to do is bring light to the situation and find a way to end human trafficking for good, not only in the Bay Area, but throughout the world as well.

Making a website? Here are some helpful tips for presenting!

I know a lot of you have made websites for your muckraking projects, so here are a couple helpful tips for making the presentation easier to follow!

1. Try to summarize each page and let the audience read the rest of the details for themselves. Include the main points, but don't just read the entire page out loud. This makes it easier to follow along.
2. When telling people to put in the URL so they can get to the website, try using a URL shortener to make it easier to reach. This means that the URL is shortened to a quarter of the size and abbreviated so it is much less likely to make mistakes while typing it in. You can shorten your URL at https://goo.gl/ . Just copy and paste and, voila! You've got an easy to follow, shorter URL.

These were just a few helpful tips. Good Luck on the presentations!


PS. Not sure why this posted now. It was supposed to post yesterday...

U.S. History Semester One Final Guide

As many of you are aware finals are coming a lot closer than we expect. The final for this class is Friday, December 19.

Although there is not a study guide for our final, there are practice tests for each chapter. The final only covers chapters 7-9 and know important information from previous chapters. These practice tests are super beneficial and usually include a lot of similar questions on the final. Another resource to use, is your notebook. Review worksheets, readings, movies, and anything in your notebook. Another helpful resource is reviewing edmodo presentations/notes.

A study technique that I used and found helpful was taking the practice test and seeing what I got wrong, then using my book to work on what I need to improve on.

Attached is the link for the practice tests:
https://www.edmodo.com/home#/group?id=9272723&sub_view=folders

Study up and good luck!

The pros and cons of electric cars

Automakers around the world are pulling out all the stops in the latest and greatest vehicle answers. Car consumers have more choices of engine technologies with the new hybrid vehicles coming out of production, however for those who want the pure electric vehicle experience, buyers are wading in unknown waters. What exactly are the pros and cons to owning and driving an electric vehicle? Here is a definitive list of both pros and cons to give you an unbiased look at the future cars. First of all, electric cars are the quietest cars on the road, even the sound of a smaller engine can not beat the virtual silence of an electric car on the road so much that even U.S. lawmakers have proposed pursuing and installing "noise-makers" in the stealth-like cars to inform inattentive pedestrians of their approach. Owners of these cars also do not have to ever fill up those seemingly bottomless gas tanks while simply being able to plug the electric vehicle in at home and drive off in the morning. Most models can even run up to 80-100 miles on a single charge, some even offering more staying power. Electric cars also do not run on oil, therefore you do not have to change the oil, the filter, or any parts that accompany a combustion engine, saving not only gas but your wallet as electricity as far much cheaper than petroleum. Third of all, electric cars are incredibly environmentally friendly. They do not require an exhaust system and therefore have absolutely zero emissions. Even on areas that rely on coal burning plants to produce electricity powering EV's, the emissions to produce the charge are far lower than a combustion engine vehicle. Now onto the cons: It's true that the range of electric vehicles would make a coast-to-coast driving vacation next to impossible, making the lack of charging stations top the list of electric car cons. Until charging stations are as common as fueling stations, an electric car can only get you so far. Second, while electric car drivers can skip the gas station on the way home, they best not forget to plug in their car before anything else.Most EV engines can about 25 miles for every hour they are charged and can take up to 4 hours to completely charge. Such models, such as the Ford Focus EV, can take an excruciating 15-20 hours to reach their full potential. Last but not least, although electric car vehicle owners realize significant savings on energy and maintenance costs, the initial price tag for the top selling EVs is still too high for most consumers. As battery technology advances to newer and cheaper designs, and as EV's become a larger share of the domestic car market, these prices should come down. For now, however, EV's are a considerable investment. In conclusion, I certainly believe that the development of electric vehicles is definitely efficient as it serves its purpose in being able to aid in the progress of keeping our planet from environmental turmoil and danger, it also, like anything else, has it's definitive faults, however I also believe that as time continues, they CAN certainly find solutions and be fixed.

Scopes Trial Reflection

Based on all of the information and research on the Scopes "Monkey Trial", I can fully testify my personal perspective on the purpose of the case in confronting the forces between religious fundamentalism and rational secular thought. The trial degenerated into an extended debate over evolution vs. creationism and for this reason, it obtained national controversy and coverage. I believe that the significance of the case is that it was ultimately the first nationally famous public debate over creationism, which contemporary politicians have recast as "intelligent design" which results in the debate still being semi-discussed. Not only did the trail exhibit the conflict between conservationists and modernists, focusing on the debate of scientific analysis and the culture of religion, yet it also generated much more spotlight on Darwin's Theory of Evolution and the increase in it's widespread development during this period of time. On a personal level, this case introduced me to the fact that the system of education should not obstruct from theories such as Darwinism, Creationism, evolution, and intelligent design they for they serve a purpose in expanding the minds of students and allows them to develop/sharpen their minds to a world of different perspective. I believe that science, although messy at times, has the capacity of holding the answer towards many of life's questions and is the answer to the world's organisms, living things, and the creation of life, itself.

The misconception of Mental Illness and Prisons

On Wednesday,one of the Muckraking projects were based on overcrowded prisons. Along with the numerous amount of new facts that were presented to the entire class not only about the excessive amount of prisoners being kept behind bars but also the invalid reasoning behind it as well, wasting more money each year and vastly raising the cost of money that is purposely used to spend on each prisoner. Something Paige had pointed out certainly seemed to have widened my attention and convinced me to provide a discussion on it in this blog, the topic was:mental illness. Prisons and jails have become America's "new asylums" as the number of individuals with serious mental illness in prions and jails now continues to exceed the number in state psychiatric hospitals tenfold. Most of the mentally ill individuals in prisons/jails would have been treated in the state psychiatric hospitals in the years before the deinstitutionalization movement led to the closing of the hospitals, a trend that actually continues even today. The treatment of mentally ill individuals in prisons and jails is critical, especially since such individuals are vulnerable and often even abused while incarcerated. Untreated, their psychiatric illness often tends to get wore, and they leave prison or jail sicker than when entered. Individuals in prison and jails have every right to receive medical care, and this right pertains to serious mental illness just as it pertains to tuberculosis, diabetes, and hypertension: all, yes, physical conditions. This right to treatment has even been affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court which,fortunately, suggests the basis that mental illness IS just AS important as any physical illness. The solution to this problem would underlie in using the tactic of maintaining a functioning public mental health treatment system so that mentally ill individuals do not end up in prisons/jails which would consist of a reform of mental illness treatment laws & practices, reform jail and prison laws & practices, implement and promote jail diversion programs, use court ordered outpatient treatment, encourage cost studies, establish careful intake screening, institute mandatory release planning, and finally provide appreciation mental illness treatment. Not only would we be preventing jail/prison overcrowding and the deterioration in psychiatric condition of inmates but we would also be allowing the reduction of taxpayer costs, thus going back to the main focus of the project. -Andrea Torres Period 4

The Benefits of Electric Cars in California

In California, there are many reasons to purchase an electric car, including the access of a free HOV sticker to avoid the crowded roadways of California by driving in the carpool lane, a benefit I enjoy when I drive my mom's volt. While purchasing the most efficient electric cars (Tesla model S) may be out of the price range of most, many electric cars can now be purchased for around 20000. Califronia currently owns the most public domain PEV's or charging stations, which makes it very pratical to drive an electric car around, and the fact that many work places like google have added 100s of parking spaces dedicated to electric cars only, and the charging at work is free. The average mpg of fossil fuels used to charge your car is about 99, as opposed to the mere nationwide average of 23 mpg on the average car. You will save on average 600 dollars per year in fuel costs, not to mention all the tax refunds and deductibles you get on your car, plus a much lower insurance rate for an electric car of the same price as a fossil fuels car. An electric car also uses 1/2 the amount of fuel per gallon of a gas run car, and costs 1/2 as much for this new egallon fuel. Gas prices for normal cars also tend to fluctuate drastically, while egallon's have remained relatively constant for the last 13+ years. The amount of rebates you get per year + the low gas prices, you will practically make money off of your car before you sell it. It's the fact that Califronia's high amount of PEV's and roadway accessbility + good temperature that allow the electric car to be a better choice for california drivers.

The 1920's

This post will give a brief over view of the 1920's. The 1920's was a vibrant era in American history. skyscrapers represented the strength, wealth and accomplishments of the american people. Cities became more popular and more populated. There quality of life seemed to be coming up, with new technologies, more wealth, and new culture. In particular, Harlem New York became a popular place for jazz and new types of dancing. Blacks in this community were more accepted and noticed for their musical ability then ever before. During this time the prohibition was also occurring. This brought to life places called "speak easys". A speak easy was in a way an old time night club. You needed a password to get into these hidden clubs, and paid to enter. You would pay to enter because the sale of Alcohol was illegal at this time because of the prohibition. Though once you got in alcohol was served and you could enjoy music and shows. The shows often featured the new type of American women that had more autonomy.

The technologies that were becoming popular at this time the automobile, electricity, credit cards, and radio's. The automobile allowed people to travel more and even expand business. Electricity lit up the night and speak easys all across the US. Credit allowed people to buy more expensive things than they could have before because now they could have time to pay it off. The radio connected the US and brought a larger sense of community to people. Everyone would hear the same jokes and shows and would be able to connect over the. Also broad casting let people listen to sports games like baseball, and their automobiles could drive them 20 miles to see the game.

Many things that really picked up steam in the 1920's are still around today. If you guys can identify these things and how they relate to modern day, post it so we can all learn.

A Post in Response to Scott Delmar's "Conservation of Water" Post.

Here are some other ways to conserve water.(a) use a nozzle on your hose when washing your car so you can more easily moderate the water flow and are not using any extra. (b) do not take baths, quick showers are more efficient. (c) make sure that when it rains, that you turn your sprinklers off, especially in a down poor like this one. According to the local news channels this storm will help the drought and the snow pack will re-fill reservoirs, creeks, rivers and lakes in the spring. Even with this large amount of rain, we will still be in a drought.  While this rain is good for the drought it is causing some problems such as flooding and mud slides. California needs the rain to say the least but it would be better and safer if the rain came in smaller more frequent sequences.

Students Rights and Virtual Rights

On Wednesday, my group presented on students rights. Towards the end of the presentation, Mr. Stewart brought up a something he would call "provocative". He asked the class to think about understanding their rights in regards to new types of privacy and what that could mean. Recently the school loans out lap tops, what you do on their could potentially viewed by the school. After all those laptops are school property. This is something to take note of. There is quite a bit of uprising technology uses and devices, know what rights you have in that area would be very beneficial. For instance if you save things to the cloud then you should maybe find out who can see it, can apple look through it because after all it is their creation that you are using? Or perhaps your gmail is owned by google could they search your email and documents? My group focused on more basic rights on and off campus but it seems to me there is plenty of research to be done on your rights as a user of technology. Perhaps next years Muckraking assignment sheet could include rights over your virtual property as a possible topic.

Conservation of Water

I know we haven't yet gone over this muckraking presentation, but I remember the title being the Conservation of Water in California. It's been pretty clear to me (both on the news and with real life experience) that California is in a severe drought. What are some of the best ways to conserve water? I know that I personally try to take shorter showers and not leave the sink running while washing your hands with soap. Are there obvious other ways? Also with this huge rain storm, do you think California will still be in such a severe drought? Something to think about going into tomorrows presentation!

Overcrowded Prisons

On Wednesday, one of the muckraking projects address the issue of overcrowded prisons. I was previously not aware of how terrible the system was. Many prisons are holding more than 200% of their designed capacity. This is a ridiculous number considering some inmates being sent to prison for pointless reasons raising the cost of money that needs to be spent on each person. Millions of dollars could be well spent on education around the state. California needs to focus on either transferring inmates to other facilities to prevent overcrowding or simply reevaluating the reason for each individual who is being sent to these prisons. Does anyone have other solutions for this problem? What can we do to prevent this in the future?

What do you guys think about gender inequality.

According to the presentation on Tuesday, women are paid less than men in general. Does it have to do with the job itself? For instance if both men and women work in a day care centre, men has to put more work force than women because they usually work as maintenance and they are the ones who carry heavy objects around. However, the women's job at a day care centre is just to do some clean up and take care of the children so if they were to be paid less, it is totally reasonable because they contributed less than the men. Also, now there are many female ceos and many professional positions were also taken up by female. Do you guys think that women are paid less because of their gender or it is because of the job itself?

Electric Cars

It is a common misconception that electric cars are absolutely green and are harmless to the enviorment.  Although electric cars do not require gas, they do require coal power plants to create their batteries.  Also, electric car batteries only last two years, and they have compnents in them that are extremely toxic, and the batteries tend to only last a few years.  As of now, both gasoline cars and electric cars have their pluses and deltas, but overtime electric cars will become by far more eco friendly with the devolopment of greener power plants, and more efficient batteries.

Muckraking Project - Electric Cars

Today one of the presentations is about the pros and cons of electric cars. Although electric cars are not as user friendly, I think that the use of electric cars should be further developed because it is beneficial to the society in a long run. The use of electric cars can reduce the amount of pollutants thus improves the problem of air pollution/ global warming. Global warming is a huge issue that affects human so we should try our very best to slower the pace of global warming. And the best way to solve this problem is to reduce the use of fossil fuels. Since most people in the bay area has a car, the amount of fossil fuels used in the bay area is enormous. If people started using electric cars, the amount of fossil fuels used would decrease. So I think that the use of electric cars should be widely promoted in order to safe the world.