NT Expansion

Last week my dad showed me this article about the possible expansion/remodeling of New Trier East. The expansion, as of right now, is estimated to be about $185 million, which would cause an increase of $335 per year for taxpayers. This renovation would include a new cafeteria and a new technology/arts building, in addition to a regulation indoor track, volleyball courts, a climbing wall, and an underground parking lot. The plan must first be approved by the NT Township School District board and if approved the article stated it would be sent to voters in February.

I wasn't sure about who these 'voters' are, because the article did not specify them, but that made me think about who the voters should be. I feel like the students and teachers at New Trier should have some say in the matter, considering that they are the ones using the facilities. However in addition I definitely think our parents should represent a majority of the voting because they are the ones paying the higher taxes.

Who has the right to vote in this situation?

Does authority result in voting rights?

What do you think about the possible expansion?

Where the Wild Things Are

Over the weekend I saw the movie Where the Wild Things Are, which as you all probably know is based off the popular childrens book. Because the book is so short (only 338 words), the director Spike Jonze was forced to take some creative leaps in the film. As a result the movie ends up conveying deeper messages about love and fear and in addition is somewhat dark. It is definitely not a cutesy kids movie. Max, the main character, learns valuable lessons about his actions from his experiences with the wild things. An interesting blog on NPR reports that the movie received mixed reviews; it received a horrible review from the Los Angeles Times whereas the Chicago Tribune review gave it four stars. These different interpretations are mainly the result of Jonze's reconstruction of the novel.
The way this movie was constructed made me think about the way most movies are created these days: from books. It seems like the ideas for new movies are always somehow based off of a book. This is definitely saying something about American culture. Apparently, the greatest source of creativity in entertainment comes from books. However from what I've observed, books don't get the credit they deserve. I bet more people first saw the Twilight movie, for example, before reading the book. Because this is a common occurrence, usually movies influence the way people read.

Has this ever happened to you? Or maybe the opposite scenario occurred. Did a book ever influence the way you saw a movie? Which form of entertainment has the greatest impact on you? Share some stories.

PSAT Identity

I just took the PSAT this morning, and like many other standardized tests a lot of time was spent filling out personal information. Something that struck my eye however, was a question bubble about qualifying for the National Achievement Scholarship Program. Before the test I knew about the National Merit Scholarship Program, but not about this one. The information question says something like: If you are Black American and want to qualify for the National Achievement Scholarship, fill in the bubble. I do not qualify for this scholarship because I am white, however I was interested in learning more about the program.

I found the website for the National Achievement Scholarship Program (NASP) and learned that the NASP is "is an academic competition established in 1964 to provide recognition for outstanding Black American high school students". Interestingly, the National Merit Program was created 9 years earlier in 1955. Something even MORE interesting is the fact that the Civil Rights Act was established in 1964, the same year as the NASP test! The Civil Rights Act outlawed racial segregation in schools, public place, and employment.

I think that the elimination of segregation in education (wow lots of rhyming) prompted the creation of the NASP. What do you think? Any ideas or opinions on founding of the NASP or its existence in general?

P.S. In one of the practice tests in the PSAT student guide there is a question that mentions Frederick Douglass!

6 Year Old Suspended for Having a Cub Scout Tool

While looking at articles on the New York Times website for a blog topic, I stumbled across one that was particularly intriguing. In Newark, Delaware six-year old Zachary Christie was suspended for 45 days after bringing a Cub Scout camping utensil to school. The device was part spoon, part fork, and part knife. There is a zero-tolerance policy for weapons in the Christina School District, where Zachary attends. However the policy applies to any student, even first graders like Zachary. The article focused on the idea that there must be greater discretion by schools regarding this policy. It makes sense that schools are taking extra precautions against violence, but to me it seems ridiculous that such a young boy is being punished for something he did not possibly intend.

These extra strict policies are in part the way school districts are reacting to events like the Colombine/Virginia Tech shootings. But it seems like, in Zachary's case, things were taken too far. I find this a perfect example of when an event triggers laws or rules to occur. The previous shootings resulted in stricter weapons policies, but these will eventually be changed due to problems that occur like Zachary's.

It is important to recognize the fact that as improvements are made on laws, people obtain a better moral understanding of what is right and wrong. What do you think about Zachary and his school's weapons policy? How can this improve society in the future?

Progress in Evolution

Scientists have recently concluded that the oldest hominid (a primate of a family that includes humans and their ancestors) skeleton provides solid evidence that humans and primates evolved from the same ancestor. This skeleton, called Ardipithecus but nicknamed "Ardi", is 4.4 million years old. The discovery tells us that humans have been evolving for at least 6 million years. Ardi challenges the idea that humans directly evolved from chimpanzees, rather than the idea that humans and chimps evolved from the same ancestor. Earlier tonight there was a special on the Discovery Channel about Ardi as well. More information can be found on the website here.

Reading the article informed me about progress in human evolution, but it made me think even more about racial evolution. In class we have been talking about slavery and white dominance, but I am curious as to how the white 'race' was developed in the first place. If race is defined by skin color, does anyone know how those skin colors evolved over time? How did different races develop?

P.S. Here is a video from the Discovery Website comparing Ardi to Lucy, a 3.2 million year old skeleton: