As I suffer with my spring fever, I will give you a video that is fitting for the date (Friday the 13th). I hope it scares your funny bone just enough to squirt your Mountain Dew out your nose (won't happen to me, too stuffed up today).
I will call this "Pizza Delivery: Meat Lovers with Extra NWO"
Showing posts with label future. Show all posts
Showing posts with label future. Show all posts
Friday, April 13, 2007
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Finding the Future of Schools in the Past
The past couple of months the local radio station 94.1 FM KEMB-LP (streaming on the web at emmetsburg.biz) has focused on the book They Opened the Door, And Let My Future In by alocal author Helen Phalen Augustine about teachers' experiences in a one-room schoolhouse. Listening to these stories have made me think about the current system of teaching and learning in community and private schools, and how so many kids seem to get lost in the scheme.
It seems our schools are turning backwards in effective teaching. Each teacher has a specific and special way they teach and every child has a specific and special way they learn. Our current elementary school system pegs all kids of one age into the same classroom, with one teacher, regardless of the teacher's teaching style and regardless of the student's learning style. In this system, each year a child can either excel with the teacher or struggle.
Imagine if, instead of having grades with specific aged kids, classrooms were like a one-room schoolhouse of the future with one classroom that has a teacher whose specific teaching style works well with kids who can't sit still and listen for long periods of time and learn best in hands-on situations, and another classroom with a teacher and students who work best sitting, listening and doing work at a desk.
Each classroom has students ranging in ages from 6 to 11 years of age (first through sixth grades). Advanced kids still learn the same subjects as the younger, less advanced kids with more advanced projects, assignments and experiments. The advanced and older kids also work as peer teachers to help the younger kids learn the subjects. These kids learn social and communication skills, along with teamwork in a group of varied skills, talents, and ages. Skills that are so vital to their future learning and working careers. Skills that are lacking in the current teaching and learning environments we call K-12 school.
It seems our schools are turning backwards in effective teaching. Each teacher has a specific and special way they teach and every child has a specific and special way they learn. Our current elementary school system pegs all kids of one age into the same classroom, with one teacher, regardless of the teacher's teaching style and regardless of the student's learning style. In this system, each year a child can either excel with the teacher or struggle.
Imagine if, instead of having grades with specific aged kids, classrooms were like a one-room schoolhouse of the future with one classroom that has a teacher whose specific teaching style works well with kids who can't sit still and listen for long periods of time and learn best in hands-on situations, and another classroom with a teacher and students who work best sitting, listening and doing work at a desk.
Each classroom has students ranging in ages from 6 to 11 years of age (first through sixth grades). Advanced kids still learn the same subjects as the younger, less advanced kids with more advanced projects, assignments and experiments. The advanced and older kids also work as peer teachers to help the younger kids learn the subjects. These kids learn social and communication skills, along with teamwork in a group of varied skills, talents, and ages. Skills that are so vital to their future learning and working careers. Skills that are lacking in the current teaching and learning environments we call K-12 school.
Teeth Are Bones, Right?
If teeth are bones, and bones that are broken or chipped can heal themselves, then why do we treat teeth like they cannot heal themselves, too?
Are there certain conditions that will allow a tooth to heal itself? My logical thinkings says that there must be a way that human teeth can heal themselves if placed in the right conditions, just like other bones in our bodies.
I know that there will come a day, when someone who knows teeth much better than I do, that when your dentist finds a cavity or a chipped tooth, they will use a special cast to allow the tooth to heal itself. This will revolutionize the dental industry from a destructive, drilling and filling surgically invasive business to a healing and dental wellbeing business.
People will then consider going to the dentist a part of a good day!
What's happening now? Well, I typed in "tooth cast heal dentist" in google and got this website:
PI Dental Center
I was encouraged to read this piece from a dental center, thinking maybe they are cutting edge. However, the article doesn't mention that teeth could heal just like bones in the right environment. That should have been an indicator to the fact that they are cutting edge in the same old, same old dentistry of drill, cut and fill. Just using more screws and prettier plates.
Let's take these "tooth implants" to the next, more temporary level! Tooth Casts that allow the tooth to heal on its own in an environment that promotes healing. A Tooth Cast that can be removed once the tooth has healed and repaired itself. Anyone in the dental industry ready to research and do something revolutionary for the human mouth?
Are there certain conditions that will allow a tooth to heal itself? My logical thinkings says that there must be a way that human teeth can heal themselves if placed in the right conditions, just like other bones in our bodies.
I know that there will come a day, when someone who knows teeth much better than I do, that when your dentist finds a cavity or a chipped tooth, they will use a special cast to allow the tooth to heal itself. This will revolutionize the dental industry from a destructive, drilling and filling surgically invasive business to a healing and dental wellbeing business.
People will then consider going to the dentist a part of a good day!
What's happening now? Well, I typed in "tooth cast heal dentist" in google and got this website:
PI Dental Center
I was encouraged to read this piece from a dental center, thinking maybe they are cutting edge. However, the article doesn't mention that teeth could heal just like bones in the right environment. That should have been an indicator to the fact that they are cutting edge in the same old, same old dentistry of drill, cut and fill. Just using more screws and prettier plates.
Let's take these "tooth implants" to the next, more temporary level! Tooth Casts that allow the tooth to heal on its own in an environment that promotes healing. A Tooth Cast that can be removed once the tooth has healed and repaired itself. Anyone in the dental industry ready to research and do something revolutionary for the human mouth?
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Be Not Afraid!
Over this past Labor Day weekend, our church celebrated 150 years of Catholic faith in our community. They spoke of brave and courageous pioneers that came to America for a brighter future.
These ancestors endured many hardships that today we can hardly imagine. They traveled with their few belongings, with horse and oxen on roadless paths to get to this point they called "home." As settlers in this foreign place, they battled the harshness of the northern plains, the bitterly cold winters and the sporatically hot summers. They helped each other to build their communities to what they are today out of their own sweat and toil. And they built their communities here, in America, for the promise of freedom and prosperity that they did not find in their homeland. They truly lived by the phrase "be not afraid."
In reflection of our ancestors' brave conquest of a new world, my own courage drastically pales in such comparison. I look at our country, and even our world today, and it seems we have lost that brave courage that spurred our forefathers to sacrifice all to live in this great country.
It is those who devalue our courage and our bravery, who say you are less of a person for standing up for what is truly right, that strike such fear against our courage. It is those who subvert the American way by demoting the values of the Constitution that create our "fear factor" today.
The "fear factor" is what brought our ancestors here many, many years ago. The fear of economic disaster. The fear of living in a corrupt country. The fear of tyranny. Our ancestors came here, to the United States, because of a document that held more power than any person could ever legally obtain in this country. It is this document that safeguards our freedom. The United States is the envy of the world, not due to our previous industrial economic success, but because of this document, the Constitution.
I am sure many of you have amazing stories of your own ancestry coming to the United States seeking the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution. Such an elegant statement could ever be made was written in another document that started our country on the path to democracy. Those words "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happinesss"--unalienable rights to the people, as the Declaration of Independence most eloquently declared. That is why people sacrificed all, for the promise of a better tomorrow.
"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
The preamble of the Constitution succinctly echoes those words from the Declaration of Independence, and places the undeniable importance of the people in this new country at the very beginning with "We the people..."
Be not afraid... Yes, be not afraid... As long as the Constitution of the United States continues to be defended and stands as a living document for we, the people... Be not afraid.
These ancestors endured many hardships that today we can hardly imagine. They traveled with their few belongings, with horse and oxen on roadless paths to get to this point they called "home." As settlers in this foreign place, they battled the harshness of the northern plains, the bitterly cold winters and the sporatically hot summers. They helped each other to build their communities to what they are today out of their own sweat and toil. And they built their communities here, in America, for the promise of freedom and prosperity that they did not find in their homeland. They truly lived by the phrase "be not afraid."
In reflection of our ancestors' brave conquest of a new world, my own courage drastically pales in such comparison. I look at our country, and even our world today, and it seems we have lost that brave courage that spurred our forefathers to sacrifice all to live in this great country.
It is those who devalue our courage and our bravery, who say you are less of a person for standing up for what is truly right, that strike such fear against our courage. It is those who subvert the American way by demoting the values of the Constitution that create our "fear factor" today.
The "fear factor" is what brought our ancestors here many, many years ago. The fear of economic disaster. The fear of living in a corrupt country. The fear of tyranny. Our ancestors came here, to the United States, because of a document that held more power than any person could ever legally obtain in this country. It is this document that safeguards our freedom. The United States is the envy of the world, not due to our previous industrial economic success, but because of this document, the Constitution.
I am sure many of you have amazing stories of your own ancestry coming to the United States seeking the freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution. Such an elegant statement could ever be made was written in another document that started our country on the path to democracy. Those words "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happinesss"--unalienable rights to the people, as the Declaration of Independence most eloquently declared. That is why people sacrificed all, for the promise of a better tomorrow.
"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."
The preamble of the Constitution succinctly echoes those words from the Declaration of Independence, and places the undeniable importance of the people in this new country at the very beginning with "We the people..."
Be not afraid... Yes, be not afraid... As long as the Constitution of the United States continues to be defended and stands as a living document for we, the people... Be not afraid.
Monday, June 12, 2006
Breaking Seals
Last week (ironically, on Tuesday, June 6, 2006), I was tucking my four-year-old son into bed and after we had read a story and sang a couple of songs, I noticed that he looked a bit scared when I began crawling out of his bunk.
I sat back next to him and asked if he was scared. He nodded his head and said, "uh-um," which means yes. I asked why, and he wouldn't say. Since he had been watching a lot of the old Scooby Doo shows and the movie, Monsters, Inc., I asked him if he had a monster. He nodded, "uh-um." I then asked him about his monster:
"What color is your monster?"
"Blue." He said in his quiet, tired boy voice.
"Is he smooth and hard, or soft and furry?"
"Soft."
"Does he like to sing?"
"Uh-aeh." (No.)
"Is he a mean monster or is he nice?"
"Nice."
Then, he went on to talk more about his monster:
"He loves to give kisses."
"What else does he like to do?"
"Seals."
"Seals?"
"Yeah, he likes to break 'em."
"He likes to break seals?"
"Yeah. P-chchchah." He said as he mimicked how the monster breaks seals.
"Really? He breaks seals?"
"Yup. P-chchchah."
My son, who was previously so tired that all I got were one word or grunt answers, was now describing what his monster likes to do, in such a matter of fact way, even though he was tired. It wasn't like he was really thinking hard to make the story up about the seals, but rather telling me what he had seen. The sound effect of breaking the seals is what really got me, because even though he was tired, he was so quietly animated about it.
I laid beside my son quietly for a while, trying to understand his "monster." Then, out of the blue, I asked him if he wanted to say a prayer, and he said, "uh-um." I don't normally pray with my kids as they fall asleep, but felt the need to do so that night. I don't remember the prayer I said, but he listened as he lay there, probably watching his monster. I then kissed him on the forehead, and said "I love you." He replied, "I love you, too." I pulled the covers up for him, and proceeded down the bunk ladder. He then quietly fell asleep.
That got me wondering. Where did he get the idea about seals, besides seals that swim in the sea? And breaking seals, of all things? We don't read Revelations stories to our kids, and the Bible stories they do hear are the watered down kid versions from hardboard books.
Then, I thought, who is his monster? It had been a while since I had read Revelations, so I was a bit concerned about the character of his monster. After reading Revelations, chapter five, I am relieved.
Revelations 5:1-10
Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, "Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?" But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. Then one of the elders said to me, "Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals."
Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits[or the sevenfold Spirit] of God sent out into all the earth. He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song:
"You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
because you were slain,
and with your blood you purchased men for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation.
You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,
and they will reign on the earth."
I sat back next to him and asked if he was scared. He nodded his head and said, "uh-um," which means yes. I asked why, and he wouldn't say. Since he had been watching a lot of the old Scooby Doo shows and the movie, Monsters, Inc., I asked him if he had a monster. He nodded, "uh-um." I then asked him about his monster:
"What color is your monster?"
"Blue." He said in his quiet, tired boy voice.
"Is he smooth and hard, or soft and furry?"
"Soft."
"Does he like to sing?"
"Uh-aeh." (No.)
"Is he a mean monster or is he nice?"
"Nice."
Then, he went on to talk more about his monster:
"He loves to give kisses."
"What else does he like to do?"
"Seals."
"Seals?"
"Yeah, he likes to break 'em."
"He likes to break seals?"
"Yeah. P-chchchah." He said as he mimicked how the monster breaks seals.
"Really? He breaks seals?"
"Yup. P-chchchah."
My son, who was previously so tired that all I got were one word or grunt answers, was now describing what his monster likes to do, in such a matter of fact way, even though he was tired. It wasn't like he was really thinking hard to make the story up about the seals, but rather telling me what he had seen. The sound effect of breaking the seals is what really got me, because even though he was tired, he was so quietly animated about it.
I laid beside my son quietly for a while, trying to understand his "monster." Then, out of the blue, I asked him if he wanted to say a prayer, and he said, "uh-um." I don't normally pray with my kids as they fall asleep, but felt the need to do so that night. I don't remember the prayer I said, but he listened as he lay there, probably watching his monster. I then kissed him on the forehead, and said "I love you." He replied, "I love you, too." I pulled the covers up for him, and proceeded down the bunk ladder. He then quietly fell asleep.
That got me wondering. Where did he get the idea about seals, besides seals that swim in the sea? And breaking seals, of all things? We don't read Revelations stories to our kids, and the Bible stories they do hear are the watered down kid versions from hardboard books.
Then, I thought, who is his monster? It had been a while since I had read Revelations, so I was a bit concerned about the character of his monster. After reading Revelations, chapter five, I am relieved.
Revelations 5:1-10
Then I saw in the right hand of him who sat on the throne a scroll with writing on both sides and sealed with seven seals. And I saw a mighty angel proclaiming in a loud voice, "Who is worthy to break the seals and open the scroll?" But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. I wept and wept because no one was found who was worthy to open the scroll or look inside. Then one of the elders said to me, "Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals."
Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits[or the sevenfold Spirit] of God sent out into all the earth. He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song:
"You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
because you were slain,
and with your blood you purchased men for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation.
You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,
and they will reign on the earth."
Friday, May 12, 2006
Protecting the US Borders
So, why didn't we have this talk about immigration before 9/11/2001, or even just after that fateful day? How better to protect the US from foreign invaders like terrorists than to protect our borders?!
Where's the funding for our coast guard and border patrol, who truly protect our nation's borders? Where's the national guard, who really ought to be helping to protect our homeland at home? Oh, right, Afganistan and Iraq...
Well, I read on the DHS website (that's the Department of Homeland Security) that they have beent thinking about protecting the US borders since 9/11, and apparently into the distant future, as well... DHS Announces Long-Term Border and Immigration Strategy, November 2, 2205
Yes, you read that right--November 2, 2205! Now that's forward thinking! So, if you think our DHS isn't working toward the future, well, you're wrong.
Where's the funding for our coast guard and border patrol, who truly protect our nation's borders? Where's the national guard, who really ought to be helping to protect our homeland at home? Oh, right, Afganistan and Iraq...
Well, I read on the DHS website (that's the Department of Homeland Security) that they have beent thinking about protecting the US borders since 9/11, and apparently into the distant future, as well... DHS Announces Long-Term Border and Immigration Strategy, November 2, 2205
Yes, you read that right--November 2, 2205! Now that's forward thinking! So, if you think our DHS isn't working toward the future, well, you're wrong.
Friday, May 05, 2006
Omega Glory
With all the discuss of corruption (especially on Len Hart's blog: existentialistcowboy.blogspot.com) on Capitol Hill, and even in the White House, along with many practices by our government that seem to really subvert the Constitution of the United States, I started to think back to an old (I mean original) Star Trek episode: Omega Glory episode (#54, first aired 3/1/68). Although I am not a true Trekkie, I remember seeing this show when I was young, and the overtones of our US civilization stuck with me.
Wikipedia has a nice overview of this episode. Their summary of the Omega Glory: Captain Kirk must battle a deadly virus and prevent a meaningless war.
Sound familiar? In 1968, the good and bad guys were different than today, but it can easily be changed to today's political climate within the US. Ok, the feared deadly virus today: Avian Bird Flu (I'm sure our president will talk your ear off with coherent discuss about this, since he is way more knowledgeable about this virus than about his current war in Iraq). And today, we are in a pretty much meaningless war in Iraq (Sorry, no WMDs and really, if Saddam was really as dicky of a dictator as they say, then why is the US just as dicky or even more so. Yes, Saddam tortured and used chemical weapons on his people. Pssst--The US has done this, too, on Iraqis--have you forgotten Abu Graib and white phosphorus? Doesn't sound very nice to me.)
Can you see the word "freedom" turn into a "worship word"? I can.
Close to the end of the show, Capt. Kirk finds what looks like a tattered copy of the US Constitution and says "Look at these three words written larger than all the rest, and with special pride never written before or since -- tall words, proudly saying "We the people" .. these words and the words that follow ... must apply to everyone or they mean nothing."
Is the Omega Glory predicting our present and future?
Wikipedia has a nice overview of this episode. Their summary of the Omega Glory: Captain Kirk must battle a deadly virus and prevent a meaningless war.
Sound familiar? In 1968, the good and bad guys were different than today, but it can easily be changed to today's political climate within the US. Ok, the feared deadly virus today: Avian Bird Flu (I'm sure our president will talk your ear off with coherent discuss about this, since he is way more knowledgeable about this virus than about his current war in Iraq). And today, we are in a pretty much meaningless war in Iraq (Sorry, no WMDs and really, if Saddam was really as dicky of a dictator as they say, then why is the US just as dicky or even more so. Yes, Saddam tortured and used chemical weapons on his people. Pssst--The US has done this, too, on Iraqis--have you forgotten Abu Graib and white phosphorus? Doesn't sound very nice to me.)
Can you see the word "freedom" turn into a "worship word"? I can.
Close to the end of the show, Capt. Kirk finds what looks like a tattered copy of the US Constitution and says "Look at these three words written larger than all the rest, and with special pride never written before or since -- tall words, proudly saying "We the people" .. these words and the words that follow ... must apply to everyone or they mean nothing."
Is the Omega Glory predicting our present and future?
Friday, February 10, 2006
Your Child Taking Drugs ... for ADHD?
If you have a child that has any indication of cardiovascular or heart issues, and he/she is on drugs for behavioral issues, you may want to speak with your doctor and get them off the drug as soon as possible. You may just want to speak with a doctor or psychologist anyway if your child is taking or has been suggested to take drugs to ward off ADD or ADHD.
Even though the drug companies say their ADHD drugs are safe, sometimes they may not have researched every possible complication or effect of their drug.
In this case, ADHD drugs like ritalin can have a negative effect on the cardiovascular system, leading to heart arrhythmia, strokes, heart attacks, and death. Wonderful, huh?
Now the rant: Teachers are selfish imps that should be stripped of their teaching licenses if they demand your child take drugs for behavioral issues, without a thorough psychological evaluation with a competent psychologist and medical doctor. There are many other physical and mental issues that could be the underlying issue for your child's behavior, and treating the symptoms with drugs instead of researching the underlying causes may do more damage than good.
The teacher needs to be able to establish rapport with her students, be able to control child who are unruly, and work with children who need additional guidance. There's a significant amount of work entailed in such teaching endeavors, so thank goodness they get summers off, they deserve it.
When I went to school, doing drugs were bad, and the government spent a significant amount of money to keep kids from doing drugs (remember Nancy Reagan's Just Say No campaign?). Now, an ever increasing amount of kids are forced to do drugs by schools. And these aren't just another type of Tylenol, these are major drugs! Say no to cocaine, but here's some Ritalin (which has very similar components and affects the same areas in the brain).
What's the message here?
(In child behavioral cases where drugs were the first resort...do I really need to preface this? Oh, yeah, the same people I am talking about here get terribly offended, too. Good grief.) Teachers are lazy, parents are ignorant, and society will suffer because we are drugging our kids. This is the new drug revolution and if it continues, we are doomed.
Is legislation needed to make sure teachers and parents are assessing our children that show signs of behavioral issues with the appropriate psychological and medical evaluations, and using non-drug treatments as the first resort, exhausting all non-drug measures, before falling back on what ought to be the last resort: drugs? Maybe. This is our future we are talking about.
Even though the drug companies say their ADHD drugs are safe, sometimes they may not have researched every possible complication or effect of their drug.
In this case, ADHD drugs like ritalin can have a negative effect on the cardiovascular system, leading to heart arrhythmia, strokes, heart attacks, and death. Wonderful, huh?
Now the rant: Teachers are selfish imps that should be stripped of their teaching licenses if they demand your child take drugs for behavioral issues, without a thorough psychological evaluation with a competent psychologist and medical doctor. There are many other physical and mental issues that could be the underlying issue for your child's behavior, and treating the symptoms with drugs instead of researching the underlying causes may do more damage than good.
The teacher needs to be able to establish rapport with her students, be able to control child who are unruly, and work with children who need additional guidance. There's a significant amount of work entailed in such teaching endeavors, so thank goodness they get summers off, they deserve it.
When I went to school, doing drugs were bad, and the government spent a significant amount of money to keep kids from doing drugs (remember Nancy Reagan's Just Say No campaign?). Now, an ever increasing amount of kids are forced to do drugs by schools. And these aren't just another type of Tylenol, these are major drugs! Say no to cocaine, but here's some Ritalin (which has very similar components and affects the same areas in the brain).
What's the message here?
(In child behavioral cases where drugs were the first resort...do I really need to preface this? Oh, yeah, the same people I am talking about here get terribly offended, too. Good grief.) Teachers are lazy, parents are ignorant, and society will suffer because we are drugging our kids. This is the new drug revolution and if it continues, we are doomed.
Is legislation needed to make sure teachers and parents are assessing our children that show signs of behavioral issues with the appropriate psychological and medical evaluations, and using non-drug treatments as the first resort, exhausting all non-drug measures, before falling back on what ought to be the last resort: drugs? Maybe. This is our future we are talking about.
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