Stressing to much?

Did you know most Americans have or have had some sort of anxiety? All of this information is from the website calm clinic where they got most of their information from National Institute of Mental Health.

SOURCE: http://www.mommyedition.com

1. Anxiety is a life altering condition.

Since it is a life altering condition, this means it could change your life completely. If it could change your life easily then it is a very important issue that needs to be stopped as soon as possible. This is interesting because I thought this condition was little but now I know that it is very serious.

2. It can affect the way you think, feel, and the way you live.

One little thing that leads to anxiety can change your whole life, which is very scary. This is scary because once you have it, it is hard to overcome, making your life very  different.

3. Millions of people in the US struggle with it.

At a school like Hinsdale central, where everyone is competing to be better you end up putting stress on yourself. Stress can then lead to anxiety. This is important because it shows that there are so many people out there struggling from this condition.

4. 86% of people with anxiety disorders do not seek treatment, or  use treatments that are not suitable for their anxiety.

This is shocking because if so many people struggle from this disordered and none of them seek treatment then it is a major issue. When such a high number of people don’t seek treatment it makes me think if people know that they suffer from the disease.  

5. Often misdiagnosed or underdiagnosed.

This is a major issue. This is an issue because if you don’t know you have it then it can not be fixed. If it is misdiagnosed it is bad because you can be treating something else that doesn't help you and  end up causing more anxiety.  

6. Genetics plays a role mostly with panic disorder.

This is good to know because if your parents have suffered from stress then your odds of also suffering from it are high.

7. Experiences also play a role.

I can very much agree that experiences may cause anxiety. I know that before finals I was so  scared and have some anxiety about all of my tests. I also know that odds are i'm not the only student that was scared for their finals.

8. About 40,000,000 people have or have had an anxiety disorder.

This is a very high number which in my eyes is not surprising. But you would think, if so many people suffer from an anxiety disorder there would be more information out there about it and support groups.

9. Women are 60% more likely to suffer from these disorders as men.

In my eyes I can see why this is true. Women have to suffer through much more than boys, which can cause stress leading to anxiety.

10. There is a 28.8% chance you will develop an anxiety disorder in your life time.

This is an issue because this percentage is so high. With a high chance the more cautious you have to be.

FUTURE RESEARCH: How does anxiety affect how individuals live and think?

Top ten ways technology has changed the way we live.

How has technology changed the way we live? The article Capturing Changes In The Way We Connect by writer Marcelo Gleiser talks about how technology has changed how we do everyday life. I found ten statements found in the article which I found were the most interesting and most changed how the article is viewed.

SOURCE: http://fc01.deviantart.net

So how do you think technology will improve or make the future worse?

#1 - The author talks about how we naturally look for ways to communicate and talk to other people, with the invention of portable ways to talk to others through many social aesthetics. We can see how humans want to connect with others, it’s a part of our lives and it was made incredibly more easy in just a few decades.

#2 - Marcelo Gleiser talks about social connections being illucinations, saying that conversations we have aren’t as real as we think we are, as having real conversations without machines is how we should connect. He’s saying we are missing a ‘true connection’ rather than a real one.

#3 - The Author continues on this of how we are missing out on things that we used to do in everyday lives, sending letters to friends, we miss out on ‘real connections’. I think this is silly to think after having phones, which basically makes sending letters 10x more easier through our phones.

#4 - Marcelo Gleiser later says that easy solutions like calling a taxi has been made much easier to do and would probably live on for decades to come.

#5 -  Gleiser says that with the growing numbers of applications helping us with every-day problems is making phone users spend more time on their phones at a very high rate.

#6 - Gleiser says that the continuing support for phones is a great thing, but can be turned around if the definition of ‘connection’ is lost through many social concepts created through phone applications.

#7 - At the beginning of the article Gleiser says that digital education can be very important as it can help the way we teach children.

#8 - Gleiser mentions that art is a growing part of our lives, saying that it can connect to many people and with the support of technology art can be appreciated from all types of people. He says that art can be critiqued by all spectrums and be seen by many.

#9 - Later said is that technology should be shown how we should see the world and experience it, instead of technology being the experience. Technology should be part of our lives, not just our lives.

#10 - Gleiser attributes by saying that an unknown power such as constantly connecting to people will soon be universal in the way we live.

Is your school, well-being, and lifestyle influenced by geography?

Have you ever thought of why you live where you live? Your home and it's surroundings are a huge part of who you are and who you are going to be. GlobalPost.com talks about how everyday life, for people around the world, is different and why. The article "The Differences in Teenagers Around the World," talks a lot about how different things around you affect your life and well-being.    

The world is in every teenager's hands.
source: http://www.oakland.k12.mi.us/

Education for adolescents is very important.   In developed countries education is a primary source for the future, but underdeveloped countries are having trouble keeping up. Gender plays a big role in who actually gets to go to school.  Only 56% of the world completes secondary school and the number is decreasing in undeveloped countries. I think the most important part I learned from this was about how valuable education is to countries.  It is what makes the difference between successful a person and someone who is in a lower class. Adolescents around the world are the foundation on what the world will be like tomorrow.  Teens use their time to study and try very hard to succeed in learning.  

Technology has helped teens connect with each other from around the world.  Social media and other sites have made it possible, but in developing countries, technology is still a very hard to reach thing with data charges.  In more westernized civilization’s teens take to social media and internet to learn and grow as individuals.  Technology in developing countries is more scarce, but is being integrated to give everyone the same opportunities.  

Health is also a big topic for teen’s lives.  Mortality rates have dropped, but in the US and other countries obesity and other causes are  affecting teens.  When the western world is fighting obesity, Asian countries, like India, are struggling to feed their country.  One in three kids in the U.S. are obese, and 50% of girls ages 15-19 in India are underweight and malnourished. I didn’t know that teen mortality was a very big deal and that it was uncommon.  Truth is it was very common until counties took notice about food intake and health of children.  Obesity is a very big part of U.S.  because it affects so many people who live there.  Where we have obesity, other counties have famine and undernourishment. 

 

     All these factors contribute to how you live now and how you will end up living your life too. Specific places that you live in can also contribute to who you are and where you set up your life.  

FUTURE RESEARCH: A question I plan on researching is: How does happiness vary based on geography? 

How It All Began

It started as a solemn religious ceremony, but became one of the world’s favorite pastimes. Theatre was started in ancient greece around 700 B.C. as a ritual to the God Dionysus. 

In an article on wikipedia, which links to numerous scholarly references, we learn about the origins of theater in Ancient Greece.

Tragedy was created around 532 B.C. Thespis is often considered the first tragic actor. His name is where the term thespian (meaning an actor) came from. He won a theatrical contest in Athens and was put in charge of what was called the dithyrambs. These were songs and dances that were used to honor Dionysus. When Thespis was put in charge of the dithyrambs they were performances with songs and the poetry of Arion.

Phrynichus was another ancient actor of note and also wrote the play the “fall of miletus” which was so greatly tragic he was fined 1,000 drachmas (25,000 US dollars). He was also the first writer to have female characters, but female actresses were not in play until much later (starting in the 1600s). Comedies were introduced in 486 B.C. There was never a mix of the two in Greece. Satyr plays were mythological and were considered a different genre as well .

http://upload.wikimedia.org

Actors often wore masks on stage. These masks we called Prosopon. These masks were worn during celebrations and other praises of Dionysus. There was a chorus of people who would be in the background for various reasons such as narration and for setting the mood and would wear the same masks to represent being one person. Masks were worn so that the actors could become whoever they were playing. They could be used to tell the age, gender, and social status of the character based off the mask. Masks had small holes for the mouth so the audience could not see it, and the eyeholes were too small to see well out of. Masks warley covered the ears for this purpose.

Future Research: how did theatre change between ancient times and modern times?

The Myths of Greeks

Did you ever wonder how the idea of 12 gods living on top of a mountain started?

An article by a professor at University of Switzerland and encylopedia.com, about Greek mythology will provide some answers.

How did Greek Mythology start?

Around 700 BC, a poet named Hesiod Theogony offered the first written theory of Greek Mythology. It was called the Theogony and it tells the story of of the universe’s journey from nothingness (Chaos, primeval void) to being, and details a very detailed family tree of elements, gods and goddesses who evolved from Chaos and descended from Gaia(Earth), Ouranos(Sky), Pontos(Sea) and Tartaros(Underworld). Later Greek writers and artists used these ideas for inspiration for their own work. This shaped people’s beliefs about Greek Mythology.

SOURCE: https://reclaimourrepublic.wordpress.com

    Greek mythology presents several aspects: system of explanation of the world

Heroes,intermediaries between the gods and men, must affirm their value

At the beginning of all gods is Chaos, a crack dark, empty indescribable being, which is where Gaia/Earth and Eros/Love emerges. Gaia marries Ouranos and their offspring is called the Titans. Cronos marries Rhea and gives birth to the Olympians Hestia, Hera, Poseidon, Hades, Demeter, and Zeus, Cronos ate all of them at birth except for Zeus because Rhea tricked him by giving him a boulder to eat. When Zeus was older, he made a drink and gave to Cronos and he threw up all the children he ate. There was then a war between the Olympians and the Titans, and the Olympians won. 

I think the reason that the 5 gods that were swallowed was immortal or else they wouldn't be alive, and all they did was grow up in their father's stomach. The article says that the Gods could transform so I am also guessing that they transformed into something smaller which is how they grew up in a place with very few room(the stomach)

FURTHER RESEARCH: How have Greek Gods and mythology affected modern culture?

Dangers of Modern Technology

The technology used everyday could easily be hacked in a blink of the eye. In an article, from the ProQuest database, "CyberAnarchism, WikiLeaks and Computer Warfare: The Unprecedented Dangers Associated with Information Technology Today", we are told how something so complicated can be destroyed so easily.

http://cdn.themis-media.com

Question 1) Why are computers, that are so powerful and advanced, susceptible to hacking?
            Not all people are prepared for computers, and it has led to many cyber attacks. Even people who know the in-and-outs of computers can easily be attacked, "The Age of Computers has come upon the world in so rapid, open, inherently vulnerable a way. The enthusiastic adoption of the Internet and of continuously developing electronic devices has swept all before it, coming at the expense of such things as rampant identity-theft, planting of "cookies" inside personal computers, countless scams, international hacking, even (as we've seen) cyber sabotage, cyber espionage and cyber warfare." Technology developed too quickly before we could fully understand and protect ourselves from the danger that comes with it. I think that people should focus more efforts on making computers safer, before they develop the technology them any farther.

Question 2) How is our culture/system so easily wrecked by cyber attacks?

            You wouldn't think of it, but many things in our every day routines run on vulnerable technology; "such things as the transport of food to our supermarkets, the functioning of our water-delivery and sanitation systems, the intricate interactions of our financial banking business economy, our cell phones and personal computers and other means of communication, all of the main means of transportation, the supplying of electricity to homes and businesses, and endless others. If these were to shut down, not only would people starve within a relatively short time, but absolute social chaos would set in" The things people take for granted would be gone, and panic would overcome the population who had no organization or structure. I believe that there should be a backup plan for if something like this were to happen today. Otherwise we would be left vulnerable and confused if this happened.

Question 3) Are individuals, with their medical or personal technology safe from hackers?
             No, any individual with some kind of personal technology "are susceptible to assassination: medical devices - such things as insulin pumps, pacemakers, implantable heart defibrillators, intravenous drips, and oxygen systems - can be hacked remotely. 'A real attack could cause the device's battery to drain, rendering it useless, or cause it to administer an inappropriate electric shock to a patient's heart.'" Many people trust these kinds of things far too much, while really, they can easily be turned against you. After learning about this I wish that people had a first line of defense for their personal medical devices. Something like an electronic field that repels hackers and viruses.

Future Research - In the future I plan on researching safety benefits of technology.

The History of Medicine

Have you ever thought about how the medical field advances? Have you ever thought about the history of medicine?  The article How Technology Is Changing the Medical and Health Care Field from the Huffington Post by a tech writer named Drew Hendricks will tell you how technology is changing the medical field.

SOURCE: https://www.asme.org

Over the centuries, new medical developments and techniques have changed the face of healthcare.

• Q: Okay, well then what is the history of medicine to begin with?
• A: The ancient Egyptians had a system of medicine that was very advanced for its time and influenced later medical traditions. The Egyptians and Babylonians both introduced the concepts of diagnosis, prognosis, and medical examination. The Greeks went even further, and advanced as well medical ethics. The oath that is historically taken by physicians, the Hippocratic Oath, was written in Greece in the 5th century BCE; although it significantly changed from the original.

• Q: How are the people working in the medical able to do better in the situations?
• A: As biomedical research improves, the people working in the medical field are able to do better in and on the situation that must be needed to attend to.

• Q: What and how has enabled us to revolutionize the medical field?
• A: Population science is essentially the study of health and illness within groups. In the past, public health workers primarily applied this field of study during outbreaks. Now, new technology has enabled the study of population science to revolutionize the medical field.

• Q: What allows doctors to figure out more information about a symptom and treat it?
• A: Evidence-based guidelines allow doctors to figure out the likely causes of a symptom and the best way to treat it.  

• Q: What advancements have been made and improved the medical field; such as in medical billing?
• A: Medical billing and coding has changed from being a paper-based system to a computerized format. This makes it easier for doctors to see the medical records and carry out their processes in the medical field more efficiently.

• Q: What other technology has been incorporated into the medical field?
• A: Also, there has been a machine known as the “International Statistical Classification of Diseases, or the ICD-10”, is the latest revision of a diagnostic tool, only making the medical field more efficient and improved.

• Q: What do you planning on researching in the future blog posts?
• Well, I am thinking about researching how the medical procedures have been proven to be working.

Keep Calm and Leave the Animals Alone

A friend of mine witnessed a young girl climb over a cage in a zoo just so she could pet the tigers. Luckily, she was out without any injuries, but the tigers were left feeling stressed and also a bit too rough to feed.

Louis Dorfman, a animal behaviorist who works at an exotic animal sanctuary that cares for wild animals, is an expert on the goods and bads about human interaction with wild animals. He had repeatedly talked about how you need to be trained in order to interact with wild animals and earn their trust. But there are ways that humans can interact with animals, but it can leave a long-lasting affect on both humans and the species.

http://www.animalequality.net

"Many wrongs have been committed in the attempt to use animals for entertainment....dressing primates in foolish human clothing and having them do undignified and demeaning activities, having exotic cat shows where....the cat is expected to do "tricks" such as leaping through a hoop of fire or balance on a platform while the trainer brandishes a whip or other device....the elephant is trained and controlled with a "bull hook" and required to do inappropriate and unnatural tricks such as sitting on a pedestal or standing on one leg."

I believe with Dorfman on how animals are being abused with being forced to do tricks. Making animals do tricks and forced to become a "prop" is wrong in many ways. The animal is a living creature and deserves to be either out in the wild or being well taken-care of in a zoo or animal sanctuary (Dorfman runs an animal sanctuary for exotic animals). Animals deserve to be treated by what they are, and using them for our own entertainment in a circus can lead to animals being in despair.

"The following inappropriate, and stressful activities....photo shoots with the public in close proximity or holding wild animals, taking wild animals on television shows where they are ridiculed or used only as props for jokes, walking large carnivores on a leash in proximity to the public, and allowing the public to fondle and pet wild animals that are confined."

Leaning back at my first comment, I agree with Dorfman and how these promote stress on the animals. Stress is not healthy for them and can cause them to become out of control. Also, it is highly unsafe for children and other people who have not been trained to interact with these species. If a child were to "pet" the animal in such a way that the creature doesn't like, it could lead to many injuries to the human, and depending on the species that attacked, it could lead to death. Also, just like certain house pets who don't like wearing Halloween costumes or go on a walk, many species could feel humiliated when forced to engage in an activity that they don't enjoy.

"Half a century ago humans were guilty of classing other humans in a subordinate classification and treating them as something to be separated and treated differently....Perhaps better understanding and knowledge of wild animals-particularly wild predators-will allow humans to recognize that the animals' emotional makeup is more similar than different from ours, and the gap....between us is more a result of lack of verbal communications than....substantial differences."
I do agree with most of this passage. Although, I disagree that we need to focus on more how the animals are similar to humans. We, as humans, live differently, eat somewhat differently, and live differently that wild animals. We act differently, most humans don't hunt for food in the forest or lick water to get a drink. I feel as though we should continue to study the differences with wild animals in how the act and what they're like in order for humans to have a better understanding of their diversity. We could figure out the animals that are similar as well, and which families they belong to. Isn't it said that humans evolved from chimps? If that's the case, why are we treated our ancestors like they are props?

Future Research: If humans are using animals as props when they are in our control, how are we affecting their lifestyles in their own habitats?

Is Your Religion Who Your Really Are?

Religion is heavy. It’s a constant buzzing that many of us are numb to, forgetting it exists as a defining part of our lives. It’s been ingrained throughout our society. While the United States claims to be separate from the church, the very basis of our country is “founded under God.” The US dollar bill is marked with “In God We Trust.”, sweeping over us like a plague. If we were such a secular state, why would we have a religious inscription on the very foundation of our economy?

According to an article by Arthur Lee Jackson, an author who writes about nature and various other issues, discusses and debates religions.

https://www.thesocietypages.org

Why are there so many different religions?

According to some estimates, there are roughly 4,200 religions in the world. The word religion is sometimes used interchangeably with "faith" or "belief system", but religion differs from private belief in that it has a public aspect. Many people do not want to believe in a God who demands righteousness and morality, so they invent a God who makes no such requirements. Many people do not want to believe in a God who declares it impossible for people to earn their own way to heaven. So they invent a God who accepts people into heaven if they have completed certain steps, followed certain rules, and/or obeyed certain laws, at least to the best of their ability. Many people do not want a relationship with a God who is sovereign and omnipotent. So they imagine God as being more of a mystical force than a personal and sovereign ruler.

How Do You Determine Moral Principles Without Religion?

Consider moral principles that you do not always follow. Most people would argue that stealing is wrong but is stealing wrong if it is necessary to feed your family? Why do you hold moral principles that you do not follow in all instances? Consider lying. When is it wrong to lie? If someone asks, "Does this make me look fat?", and it does make them look fat, is it morally wrong to lie to them? Would you be doing them a disservice by insulting them and possibly damaging your relationship or a service, by helping them appear better to other members of the community?

Is There an Afterlife?

There is scientific evidence to suggest that life can continue after death, according to the largest ever medical study carried out on the subject. One man, however, gave a “very credible” account of what was going on while doctors and nurses tried to bring him back to life and says that he felt he was observing his resuscitation from the corner of the room. Although no one will ever know if there is life after death or where our soul goes when we die there have been signs of what happens. This question will always remain a mystery.

Question: If you were born without a religion and got to choose what you believed in would you still be what you are now?

Future Research- In my future research I plan on answering the questions of what are the similarities and difference between some religions in terms of Gods they worship, and how they worship their Gods.

Middle East Fashion Dilemmas

How do Middle Eastern women balance being fashionable and conservative, at the same time?
A teacher wrote women's fashion in the middle east using other reliable sources to put this excerpt together on laws and restrictions of the Middle East.

In many Mid Eastern countries not just the women but the men cover themselves from head to toe while in public.  You will likely never see an Arab man in an Arab country in shorts, unless he is on the beach.  In this environment, where covering up for modesty’s sake is the norm, seeing us dressed in anything less than modest attire can be uncomfortable for the locals.  

I found it interesting that people who are pretty much as bright and modern as Americans still go by their rule book, the Quran. It would be weird to wear a full headdress in the summer when its hot and you don’t. I agree that you will never see an arab man who covers in shorts because I believe it is considered disrespectful and looked down upon from their peers and friends.

From the journal Chic Under Wraps that I found through the ProQuest database talks about how women in the Middle East care about their fashion just as much as us.

Even though there are laws restricting women to what they can wear in public, there are some women who rebel and get away with showing a little more than the law allows. Rebellious women are found in the more populated, more common downtown city areas

One of the great aspects of America is we have freedom of choice. In the M.E women are not really given a choice to wear a hijab or headdress because when following the Quran it says to cover to show respect. Some women believe they should have freedom of dress and rebel against the laws. All the protests have been turned down and people leading this outbreaks, punished.

Women in most Muslim countries cover their heads and bodies in public in keeping with religious tradition. But underneath, a growing number of them are wearing elegant, fashionable attire. "We can mix the East and the West in fashion," says Desiree Sadek, publisher of Elle's Middle East edition, which is part of Hachette Filipacchi Medias, a division of French media group Lagardere SCA.

Even though women in the Middle East have to cover for religious reasons they can still be fashionable like everyone else in the world. Since women don’t have to cover in front of other women they can embrace their fashion in female only parties. Most of the time, women wear in style clothing to compete with other female being conservative.

http://www.hijabscarves.com

Discussion Questions 
1. In the next couple years, do you think Middle East women will slowly start refusing to wear a hijab?
2. Has Middle East fashion developed as quickly as U.S fashion?
3. How do different styles develop?

Where Would You Like To Go?

There are so many beautiful cities in the world that are full of life and opportunities! However, do you ever wonder why people like to visit certain cities more than others? There isn't a “best” city out of all of them, yet so many people still only chose to go to certain cities in our world. The article/ slideshow “Top 25 Cities in the World: Readers’ Choice Awards 2013” shows us how every city is different in its own way, and that not all cities need to be full of lights and tall buildings to be a “one of a kind” city. It's a reliable article since it's from a website that provides many tips and information on traveling that many people find useful.

http://i192.photobucket.com

1. Some of the most popular cities in America are either close to a sea, or close to a lake, such as Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles. Much of the cities on this top 25 list are close to a body of water, such as Barcelona.
2. It's not the cities and lights that make a good city, it's the history. In 2013, San Miguel de Allende was rated the top city since it had rich history and a "traditional feeling of a small town in the heart of Mexico".
3. Cities such as Tokyo has a culture so diverse, that some people even said that it feels as if you have everything there. As in diverse, people had never seen such a different culture before, which is what makes Tokyo special.
4. Cities also have to be safe! It's not a surprise that people enjoy Vancouver since not much crime happen there.
5. Transportation needs to be convenient! Whether it's on a bike or on a train, people still need to travel to many places in a short amount of time. Gondolas in Venice are exceptional since people find them traditional, and most of the city in in water.
6. A city full of jobs and opportunities? Sounds like New York and London to lots of people, but those cities are definitely crowded and full of diversity. Diversity is what makes tourists want to go to that city, but when a city gets too crowded people, tend to move away to cities that have a bit more of a "countryside" feeling to it.
7. Every city has different kinds of food. San Sebastian not only has a wide amount of seafood cuisines, but it is also called the "food capital of Europe" surprisingly, instead of Paris because of its wide variety of delicious food.
8. This may be a bit unfair, but developed cities were ranked higher than developing cities since people still prefer cities that have convenience and many places to shop instead of relaxing on the beach drinking out of a coconut.
9. Fresh air, sunshine, beautiful view of a clean lake, is all a part of nature. Nature is different from a "countryside" feeling, since there can also be nature in a city, such as parks. Yet cities that have more nature can make people feel more peaceful oftentimes. Sydney ranked 17 on the list since it possibly had more "nature" and beautiful sights.
10. Lastly, people should be generous. Who who would want to live in a city full of people that rant and yell at each other daily? When people are living in peace and not so focused on jobs and work, the atmosphere can really change drastically.

What are some attractions that each city has which makes it special?