"30 Days" Analysis

Journal 4-4


"30 Days" Analysis


I. In the last journal I said that I wanted to know more about B.Z. Goldberg, the director of the film "Promises". After doing some research I found that:
-Was born in Boston but grew up in Israel
-Attended New York University Film School
-Returned to Jerusalem in 1987 when the Intifada broke out to produce TV news
-Starting in 1992 he worked for a number of US based consulting firms
- He is fluent in Hebrew and conversant in Arabic
-Worked for the Israeli army, the Toyota group (Japan) AT&T, MIT, Columbia University, The Interfaith Committee on the Middle East, and Solidarity (Poland).

Source:

The Promises Film Project - The Filmmakers. (n.d.). The Promises Film Project. Retrieved May 8, 2011, from http://www.promisesproject.org/credits.html

 

 

Center for International and Regional Studies - Documentary Film - Promises. (n.d.). Center for International and Regional Studies - Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS). Retrieved May 8, 2011, from http://cirs.georgetown.edu/105461.html

 

 

 

II. This past week in class I can only remember doing one thing, which is watching two different "30 Days" segments. The first one involved a man named Dave living in a Muslim community. He left behind his wife and his home to go to Michigan and live with a host family. He dressed the same way they did, ate the same way they did, and basically mirrored their lives for 30 days. Dave met with various teachers to help him learn Arabic and understand the muslim faith. He found it difficult to conform to the lifestyle, because it conflicted uncomfortably with his own. The second of the "30 Days" episodes involved a man whose name I do not remember. This man had a job that was outsourced to people in India. So, he decided to travel to India in an attempt to get his job back. He is also living with a host family and attempting to conform to their lifestyle. He ended up realizing that the people over there are much more in need of his old job than he was.

 

I think that the concept Morgan Spurlock has come up with here is really cool. There's no better way to understand something "different" than to actually experience it in person. By taking on the challenge of exploring a lifestyle other than their own, these people are setting themselves up for new horizons. I think that Dave was rather stubborn and wasn't as open to the Muslim way of life as he should have been. He was opinionated and argumentative throughout his entire stay in the Michigan Muslim community. The other guy, however, was very open-minded and understanding of the unique way of life in India.The other guy ended up gaining a whole lot more because of his willingness to cooperate. I think it's really powerful that he was made aware of how difficult life is for many of the people in India. He was almost grateful that his job was outsourced by the end of the film. I think that is a really great thing for Americans who watch the "30 Days" segment to be made aware of.

 

 

Oleander - - الدفلة: 30 Days, as a Muslim in America. (n.d.). Oleander - - الدفلة. Retrieved May 8, 2011, from http://oleander.blogspot.com/2005/07/30-days-as-muslim-in-america.html

 

 

I think a valuable point to be made is that Americans are closed-minded in the way we see things. Like I just said, the guy who was willing to cooperate in an unfamiliar setting had a much better experience than the guy who was stubborn and unwilling to adapt. The stubborn guy (Dave) kinf of represents typical Americans I think. We think we know everything there is to know. It doesn't matter if we've never seen it, heard it, witnessed it, lived it...we just believe what we want and that's what we preach. Perhaps if we were all presented with an opportunity like that of the men in the "30 Days" episodes, we'd be much more understanding and cooperative with the rest of the world. We tend to be spoiled and conceited and look down upon other countries. We don't bother to try and understand how they work, we just see what we want to see and make judgements.

 

 

III. For next week's journal I would like to know some statistics for outsourcing. I'm aware that it is a reality, but I don't honestly know too much about it. Which kinds of jobs are being outsourced? How many? What are the biggest effects of it?

Lost track of everything over spring break...

Journal 4-3

Lost track of everything over spring break...

I. In last week's journal I asked some questions about the grant proposal. I wanted to know what we're supposed to do with the money (if we recieve it) if we don't plan to continue on with our project once school gets out. Due to the fact that we have not met with our HIP groups since the last journal...I have absolutely no idea what the answer to this question is. I do remember the "grant guru" saying that the grant is good for a year and is basically non-binding. The question is still open for discussion though.

II. I have pretty much completely forgotten what we did in class the week before spring break. Honestly I'm not even sure if this journal is supposed to include that. None of the class was present (with exception to Gregory) on the last Friday before spring break. Therefore that was a four day week. I know that we got to take a look at what HIP part 4 looks like. It includes: expert reflections, marketing your project, and your edited grant proposal. We also watched more of the film called "Promises", a documentary featuring seven children who lived through the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. We finished watching that film this week. Also this week we talked about the guy whose magic show Kaila and Adrienne went to. The last thing that happened this week was we recieved a handout about the World Community Grid. This is some program started by IBM to use technology to solve problems.

"Promises." World Religions Documentary Films - Hartley Film Foundation. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2011. http://hartleyfoundation.org/en/promises.

I don't remember much of last week's class, as I already said. Therefore I can not accurately give any feedback. I've enjoyed the film "Promises" for the most part. I think it was very interesting that it was taken from the viewpoint of children. Although you would expect children to be innocent and not take sides, that wasn't the case here. We found that the children who had extremely religious families tended to be more extremist toward their side. The twins, however, came from a less religious family, and they weren't overly obsessed with their side of the conflict.  I thought that talking about the magician (David, I think his name was) was pretty cool. I wish I could have been there for that. I also think the World Community Grid is a pretty incredible thing. If i ever get my laptop fixed, I plan to go register it for that program.

"Today's Fast Company Assignment: Do Cancer Research in Your Sleep | Fast Company." FastCompany.com - Where ideas and people meet | Fast Company. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2011. <http://www.fastcompany.com/1632122/today-s-fast-company-assignment-do-cancer-research-in-your-sleep>.

Something that was breifly mentioned in class that I wanted to talk more about is the portion of the documentary where Faraj was crying because he was going to have to separate from the twins. He feared that as soon as B.Z. left, he would lose all communication with the twins. This basically ended up being the case. I thought it was really moving to see the true feelings Faraj had developed for his friends from "the other side". He was really passionate about their new friendship. I think that says a lot about the innocence of children. We're raised believing whatever our parents tell us to, for the most part. The children on both sides grow up knowing that they shouldn't associate with "the other side", so they miss out on valuable relationships. I upset me that when the filmmaker interviewed the kids two years later, we found out that Faraj and the twins failed to keep in touch.

"Main Negotiation Points between Israel and the Palestinian Authority for Sept. 2 Meeting in Washington | IsraelSeen.com." Israel Seen Radio | English podcasts and blogs from Israel | Israel Seen News | Steve Ornstein Israel | Israeli News | Israeli culture | Israel Scene | Israel Entertainment | Israeli Travel | Israel Information | Israel Tours | Israel Newspapers | Israel . N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Apr. 2011. <http://israelseen.com/2010/08/31/main-negotiation-points-between-israel-and-the-palestinian-authority-for-sept-2-meeting-in-washington/>.

III. For next week's journal I want to get some more information on B.Z. I didn't come up with very much when we did the background information so I want to research his life a little bit more.

HIP takes off...

Journal 4-2

HIP takes off...

I. In last week's blog I asked the question: how much do cochlear implants cost? After doing research on the question, I found the answer to be...
-The total cost, including the implant, the surgical proceedure, and the post-operative rehabilitation, exceeds $40,000.

Source:

Cochlear Implants Fact Sheet. (n.d.). American Speech-Language-Hearing Association | ASHA. Retrieved April 9, 2011, from http://www.asha.org/about/news/tipsheets/cochlear_facts.htm

 

 

II. This week in class, we started talking about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. After doing some background information, I found that this conflict is between the Arab and Jewish populations living in Palestine under Ottoman/British rule. The key issues are: mutual recognition, borders, security, water rights, control of jerusalem, and legalities concerning refugees. Then we began watching a film called "Promises". It examines the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the perspectives of seven children living in Palestinian communities and Israeli Jerusalem. The maker of the film is a man named B.Z. Goldberg, who grew up in Israel and became interested in the conflicts there. Finally, at the end of the week we focused a lot on the Heroic Imagination Project, which is now taking off full force. On Friday we had a woman come talk to us about how to effectively write a grant, so that we can edit our rough drafts before we send them off.

 

FRONTLINE/WORLD . Israel - The Unexpected Candidate . Additional Resource . PBS. (n.d.). PBS: Public Broadcasting Service. Retrieved April 9, 2011, from http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/israel502/additional.html

 

 

 

To be honest, I don't remember much about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from previous history or leadership classes so I am looking forward to our studies on the issue. I think this is going to be a really cool film, seeing as it comes from the perspective of little children who are living in the midst of conflict. I remember seeing the kids on the bus saying "we never know when a bomb might go off" or "we have to watch for suspicious people". That's highly upsetting that that's how they had to grow up. As for the Heroic Imagination Project, i'm officially very scared of it. The whole grant writing process is very complex and confusing, as well as building a social network. My group effectively split up the work so we got it done in a timely fashion, but there is still a lot to be done. We have a lot of editing to do and corrections to be made. I really enjoyed having the "grant guru" come talk to us though. That was a cool experience.

 

 

ISFD hosts grant writing workshop Jan. 21-23 > UTSA Today > University of Texas at San Antonio. (n.d.). Welcome to The University of Texas at San Antonio | UTSA. Retrieved April 9, 2011, from http://utsa.edu/today/2009/01/grantworkshop.cfm

 

 

 

I think one of the interesting points that was brought up in class was Michael Trentham's question: "So what do we do with the money from the grant if we're not going to recieve it until summer?" This question didn't seem to be taken particularly seriously and was kind of brushed off as being unimportant. I think this is a very valid point, however, because what if we choose not to continue our project past this class? I'm not saying my group necessarily plans on abandoning our project as soon as we leave ethics class...but what if we do? What do we do with the grant if we don't want to continue with the project? I know the "grant guru" commented on this, saying that the grant is good for a year and is basically non-binding. However, I still don't really understand what we will do with it if we actually recieve it and don't need it anymore at that point. I think we should seriously talk about this a little more in class before we send off these grants. That is just my honest opinion/concern.

 

 

III. For next week's class I want to know the answer to my questions in the above paragraph. I want to find out what exactly should be done with a grant if we recieve it and decide we don't need it. Hopefully I can get this question answered somehow.

Completely forgot what we did in class...

Journal 4-1

Completely forgot what we did in class...

I. In last week's blog I said that I wanted to do some research on deaf statistics in the United States. Here's what I found:
-1 in 20 Americans are currently deaf or hard of hearing
-10,000,000 persons are hard of hearing
-1,000,000 persons are functionally deaf

source: How Many Deaf People Are There in the United States? Estimates From the Survey of Income and Program Participation . (n.d.). Oxford Journals | Medicine | Jnl. of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education. Retrieved April 3, 2011, from http://jdsde.oxfordjournals.org/content

There are deaf communities in all of the following areas:
-Houston, Texas
-Los Angeles, California
-Michigan
-Nashville, Tennessee
-New York City
-Philadelphia
-Rochester, New York
-Washington DC
-Wyoming
(There are probably more, but this is a small list found on the following site)

source: Category. (n.d.). American Deaf Communities. Deafness and Hard of Hearing - Deaf - Sign Language - Hearing Aids - Hearing Loss - Cochlear Implants - Ear Wax. Retrieved April 3, 2011, from http://deafness.about.com/od/americandeafcommunities

II. This week was only a four day week, and to be completely honest, the only thing I remember doing in class was talking about Sound and Fury. Mrs. Mansfield came in a few times to collect money for the field trip that we're going on. We also watched a part 2 of the Sound and Fury documentary, which showed the family years later. We did some post discussion questions for the documentary, which included questions about the conflicting issues within the film, merits and drawbacks of cochlear implants, considerations to make before surgery, the role that family plays in the decision making, the role that the deaf community plays, and whether or not the circumstances would be different if the issue was something other than hearing. Our Heroic Imagination Stage 3 is due soon...and my group needs to get working on that. I also still need to turn in my Wikipages permission sheet.

disTHIS! - January 2008. (n.d.). April2010. Retrieved April 3, 2011, from http://www.disthis.org/January2008.htm

I really enjoyed the Sound and Fury documentary. Infact, I enjoyed it so much that I offered to go over to Adrienne's house and watch it with her because she hasn't seen all of it yet. I thought Heather's dad was a pretty funny guy, and Matt James and I believe that he will lead a deaf revolution. After watching part 2 of Sound and Fury, I was glad that they decided to let Heather get the cochlear implant. She seems a lot happier with her life now. I think it's awesome that the family has five of its members all successfully implanted with hearing aids. They're being offered a blessing that they lacked for the first few years of their lives. I also didn't expect Heather's mother to get implanted, so that came as a surprise to me.

TerpTopics: HEARING AIDS & ALDs: Introduction to ASL and SignLanguage Interpreting . (n.d.). TerpTopics: WELCOME - Introduction to ASL and Sign Language Interpreting . Retrieved April 3, 2011, from http://www.terptopics.com/HearingAids.htm

One thing that was brought up in class but not discussed is the question about how one family pays for that many cochlear implants. They put five kids and one adult through the surgery, which must be incredibly expensive. I think Lainey shared with the class the price of each implant, which was a whole lot of money. I don't understand how they afforded that, plus the hearing tutor and what not. I guess it was worth every cent though. Giving a person his or her hearing back is a pretty incredible thing. I assume they found a way to pay for it because it was worth it.

III. What exactly is the cost of a cochlear implant? Lainey did say something about it but I don't remember what it was and I would like the know.

Technology week!

Journal 3-8

Technology week!

I. Last week I said that I wanted to research the latest and greatest technological advancements.
Most websites that I found didn't have specified lists of the most important or most beneficial advancements.

One website said the top 10 most influential tech advances of the decade are:
1) Flat-panel TVs/HDTVs
2) DVRs
3) High-speed internet
4) Wi-Fi
5) Smartphones
6) Bluetooth
7) Online Media Services
8) Online Gaming Services
9) Social Networking Sites
10) Flash Storage

source: Top 10 Most Influential Tech Advances Of The Decade - Next: The Birth of Facebook and the Death of the Disk | PCMag.com. (n.d.). Technology Product Reviews, News, Prices & Downloads | PCMag.com | PC Magazine. Retrieved March 27, 2011, from http://www.pcmag.com/article2/

fusion. (n.d.). Only 17 Percent Of Americans Own A Smartphone. Metrolic - World News, U.S. News, Multimedia and more.. Retrieved March 27, 2011, from http://www.metrolic.com/only-17-percent-of-americans-own-a-smartphone-140370/

II. This week in class we really started looking into how technology is affecting the present. We talked about how much social networking has done to our lives, because people can be anyone they want to be online. Also, we discussed the possibility that texting and online messaging are talking away people's ability to effectively socialize. Is this all true? Is society surrounded by a completely different and potentially harmful technological atmosphere? On Wednesday and Thursday we had a substitute, so we watched a film about cochlear implants. Various members of the family are faced with the decision whether or not to implant their children with hearing aids. The argument is that giving a child the ability to hear is taking away his or her "deaf culture". On one side of the family, every member is deaf, and the child is fluent in sign language. Therefore the parents don't want the child to be able to associate with the "hearing world". On the other side of the family, one of two twins is deaf, but the rest of the family can hear. Therefore the parents of this child want it to be able to become a part of the "hearing world".

Sign Language. (n.d.). • ASL • American Sign Language. Retrieved March 27, 2011, from http://www.lifeprint.com/asl101/

My personal opinion on the technology argument is that it is potentially dangerous to our society. In all honesty, we say things differently over the phone or the computer than we would if we were face to face. This takes away individuality and the ability to properly socialize. I still talk to my best friend on the phone every day as opposed to texting him because I'm more honest and genuine that way. I also think that dating websites and social networks are detrimental to people's true identity. On the internet, you have the power to be anyone that you're not. I don't think that's a benefit to society at all. As for the cochlear implant debate, I think it's rather stupid that the deaf parents wouldn't want their child to have to opportunity to hear. I repsect that they want to keep her associated with her "deaf culture", but she deserves the chance to live normally as well. She's still going to have to communicate with her parents in sign, so she isn't losing touch with the "deaf world". I believe that there's no reason why the child shouldn't recieve the cochlear implant.


While watching the documentary, I was actually able to make a connection to my own life. I went to elementary school with two kids, a brother and sister, who were both deaf. I don't ever remember them without their hearing implants because I didn't know them prior to that. However I do remember watching them be able to communicate with the other kids. Both of their parents had perfect hearing, and I can imagine they wanted nothing more than for their kids to be able to communicate with them. Neither Kelly nor Kyle could speak very effectively, but I'm sure it was better than not being able to hear or speak at all. I still run into them at the gym occasionally and it makes me happy to see how they've grown up normall due to the hearing aids that they were provided with as children.


III. For next week's blog I want to know some statistics on deaf people in the United States. In this video they showed a whole entire community of deaf people hanging out together in a park, all speaking in sign. Are there really existing "deaf communities" where deaf people all live together?

Shift to technology unit...

Journal 3-7

Shift to technology unit...

I. In last week's blog I said I would like to know what the result of the Tank Man incident was. We finished watching the video, and basically what happened is that the man was removed from the street by other pedestrians. He first stood in front of the tank and refused to move, and then he mounted the vehicle and proceeded to yell at the driver. Once he got off the tank, some other pedestrians grabbed him and walked him off the road. Nothing is sure about the status of the tank man at this point. He has become a figure that symbolizes heroism. However his information is yet uncovered by the media, or anyone else for that matter. Whether or not the Tank Man can be identified, he is still honored.

Golan, S. (n.d.). Marking the 20th Anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre | frgdr.com. frgdr.com. Retrieved March 19, 2011, from http://frgdr.com/blog/2009/05/21/marking-20th-anniversary-tiananmen-square-massacre/

II. This week in class we finished up the Tank Man video. We did a reflection on the issues in Tiananmen Square and the Chinese government. Then, we began the technology unit. We did a worksheet called "Technology and You" that helped us organize our personal thoughts on technology. We discussed which technologies we take for granted, which technologies we think will develop, which ones we could do without, which ones we use the most, which ones have the most potential, and which ones have the biggest risks. We also talked about how frightening some aspects of technology can be, like social networking and advertisements. Finally on Friday the freshmen joined us and we worked on our Heroic Imagination projects. We will now begin to create a network, market our project, and draft a grant proposal.

iPhone - BusinessWeek. (n.d.). BusinessWeek Slide Shows and Multimedia. Retrieved March 19, 2011, from http://images.businessweek.com/


As for my opinion on the Tank Man incident, I think it's a really cool situation. The fact that the Tank Man is so incognito and unidentified makes his character all the more powerful. It proves that ordinary people can become heroes, and not even be around for recognition. Obviously that man had no desire for the publicity, he genuinely just wanted to stand up for his country. As for the technology unit, it's something that really interests me. Our generation is experiencing technology in an unimaginable way. We take it all for granted too, which is why I appreciate that we're digging into it in this class. I never stop to think how much my technology does for me. It entertains me, educates me, keeps me connected, enhances my basic needs and so much more. Finally, my thoughts on the Heroic Imagination project are shifting from excited to frightened, honestly. It's all very confusing and complex at this point and i'm worried about how my group will handle it.

We didn't take very much time going over the "Technology and You" worksheet in class, but it really sparked some thoughts for me so I want to touch on that a little more. I want to pay special attention to the top 10 technologies that I take most for granted. They are: radio, cars, cell phones, ipods, social networking, search engines, hair dryers/hair straighteners, On Demand television, laptop computers, and microwaves. Each of those things is something I use multiple times per day. How much time do I take to appreciate them? Not a single second. I can't even imagine these things not being around. I can remember my life before ipods and Facebook, but other than that those things have all been around since I was born. Many of them actually shape who I am, such as: the cell phone I talk on, the Facebook account that I present myself with, the hair straightener I create my everyday appearance with, the ipod I fill with my music, etc.

Facebook: a step closer to the end of anonymity on the Internet | Alpha Blog. (n.d.). Alpha Blog. Retrieved March 19, 2011, from http://www.alpha-aic.co.cc/facebook-a-step-closer-to-the-end-of-anonymity-on-the-internet

III. For next week's journal I want to research what the top 10 latest and greatest technological advancements are. I don't always keep up with the development of technology so I want to look into that.

I really don't know what we did in class this week...

Journal 3-6

I really don't know what we did in class this week...

I. In last week's journal I said that I wanted to do a comparison between the Rwandan Genocide and the Holocaust. After doing some research, this is what I found out:

Rwanda:
-method of killing was guns and machetes
-length of time was roughly 100 days 
-ethnic group that was killed was the Tutsis
-there were peacekeepers involved in Rwanda
Holocaust:
-method of killing was sophisticated gas chambers
-length of time was roughly 3 to 4 years
-number killed was around 6 million
-no peacekeeping involved in Germany

source: Differences Between Rwandan Genocide & Holocaust? - Yahoo! Answers. (n.d.). Yahoo! Answers - Home. Retrieved March 13, 2011, from http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20081027145600AAzdaLy


II. This week we only had four complete days of class, in which I don't completely remember what we did. I do know that we finished watching the film called "Ghosts of Rwanda" and wrote a reflection paper on it. I wrote my reflection paper from the viewpoint of the Red Cross. I said basically that they are sympathetic toward the whole incident and they wish they could have done more. Also, that unlike most cases, the Red Cross chose to intervene aside from simply caring physically for the victims. It is typically not in their best interest to take sides in such instances, but they couldn't possibly refrain from doing something about this particular genocide. At the end of the week we began watching another film called "The Tank Man". This deals with the student protests that occurred in Tiananmen Square in 1989. It highlights one particular civilian who stood in front of a tank and told them to get out of his country.

pictures that changed the world - Photos. (n.d.). Photos - A new interesting or beautiful photo every day. Retrieved March 13, 2011, from http://www.photosfan.com/pictures-that-changed-the-world/

My personal opinion of the Rwandan genocide is also very symnpathetic. As a girl, I tend to look past any political, cultural, and social standpoints and just be upset about the violence. I really can't stand to look at the pictures and hear about all the brutal things that happened. I appreciate the work of the peacekeepers and the Red Cross. They worked hard to save lives and succeeded to a certain extent. I think those organizations exemplified heroism throughout the duration of the genocide. As for the tank man that we've started researching, i'm interested in the story. That man also engages in heroic action when he jumps in front of a tank that could literally run him over. I'm looking forward to finding out more regarding the student protests and the tank man's motives.

For some reason, when I heard the story of the tank man I made a connestion to Rosa Parks. I'm not completely sure why, but both individuals made bold moves to make a point. The tank man and Rosa Parks were both just ordinary citizens who took heroic action to put an end to something. For Rosa, she refused to give up her seart on the bus in order to take a stand against segregation. The tank man jumped in front of an army tank to put an end to the military intervention in his country. Both individuals risked their lives because of strong internal feelings. Both of them recieved praise and attention for what they did.

Albin, K., & 1996, i. c. (n.d.). Choby.us « Gather Trends. Choby.us « Gather Trends. Retrieved March 13, 2011, from http://choby.us/

III. For next week's journal I want to know what the outcome was of the tank man incident. What happened after he jumped in front of the tank and then proceeded to hop on top of it and yell at the driver?