Monday, July 26, 2010

Working on the project!

Being honest, i have to say that i am being lazy. I only have read some articles, but i haven't found yet the articles that will provide me the information that i need. This is the reason of why i hadn't written before.
I realize that i have to focus in this project, and also that i need to go to the library and maybe i should talk with some students who are studying Environmental Policies or something similar. The internet is not enough for the U.S side. Besides, i am thinking that it would be good if i'll talk with some people also.
I've already have my opinion, at least knowing the Chilean reality, so now i need to be involved in the American reality. With this information i'll be able to compare and develop the project.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

More words!


To depict:to describe or portray something in words; describe, represent.

To rebound: bounce, recover, come back, make a recovery.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Late it is better than nothing!


To sink: to go down, to immerse.

To Soar: to increase rapidly above the usual level.

Monday, July 19, 2010

recording myself!


I think i didn't get the idea or i didn't have all the information about the last homework. Today i realized that for me, the homework was to talk about some place that i would like to visit, but in a friendly and improvising way.
So, if i have to analize my speeking, of course it was very weak, improvising and with a lot of mistakes.
I repited a lot some words, there were mistakes like ''nobody know'' instead of ''nobody knows'', for example. Also, for me there are too many pauses between ideas, and the structure was a little repetitive and sometimes i lost the main point.
However, i think it wasn't so bad if there was an improvisation speech.

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Today in class I talked with Natalia and Trang about we talked about Food, and we answered the following questions:


The first question was What is your favorite food to cook and why?

Natalia likes to cook "Potatos to the french way", which has potatos, of course, mayoness, cheese and other ingredients. She cooks it because it is easy to cook and it is delicious.

Trang likes to cook soup with differents kind of vegetables and meats. She cooks soup because it is healthy, easy to cook and delicious.


The second question was What food reminds you of your home? Can you find it here in the U.S?

Natalia said that Herring, Pickles and Vodka make her to remind her country. Some of them there are in the US, but not always are the same like in Russia.

Trank told me that the food that reminds her to her home is Pho. It is a very typical vietnamiss food which has a kind of noodles, vegetables, meat and spice. It can be with or without soup or liquid. She said that there is a vietnamiss restaurant in Monterey which has a very good Pho.


The third question was How do you think food is tied to your culture? Do you think food represent the people and their environment?

Natalia said yes, because some food are typical from each country.

Trang said yes, but not always. Because in some countries the food is different in each region. And also because in asia, there some food very similar between differents countries.


The fourth was How can we become more conscious consumers of food? Do you think it is important to understand where your food is coming from?

Natalia told me that for being conscious is important to know where the food come and how it is made, but not always it is to get the real information about it.

Trang said that the origin and the way that the food are grown and made are very important, because with this background you can decide what you want to eat and what you want to be in the future.


*I don't know if i had to summarize my answer too! :)


Little differences.


To obligate: to force.
Ex: The course obligated the members to...

To oblige: make legally or moral bound to an action.
Ex: Palestian have been obliged to...

Monday, July 12, 2010

Chilean Salmon Companies


According to the article ''Consequences of the Chilean Milacre'', in 2008 it happend a big issue with the Chilean Salmon. A lot of these species were sick with the ISA virus. However, all the money that the companies had lost because of this issue, the main point was that this situation revealed how the chilean salmon companies were working on.

The scientits points out that the parasitic and viral infections are growing in species which are living in bad conditions; for examples, when the fishes are suffering stress, and also when they are living in confined places.
Besides, the articles explains that in Chile, the companies abused with antibiotic and some of them are not allow in countries like United State.

Additionally, the articles states the environmental point of view. Biologists and environmetalists highlight that the salmon excrements and also the food that they ate, are very dangerous for the environment; the reason is because this issues are ending with the oxigen in the water, killing other marine species and propaganding deseases.

So, the questions is, what is the difference between the way that the companies are growing the chickens and the salmons?
For me there are not differences; the companies don't care if they are working with animals, vegetables, things...they only care about money. For them the issue is, try to develop the item as fast as you can, as cheap as you can, and make as much money as you can. Don't even think in the environment, in the consumer helths, in the life of the animals and plants, nothing, just focusing in MONEY!

http://www.portaldelmedioambiente.com/articulos/6277/consecuencias_del_milagro_chileno_las_salmoneras_y_la_privatizacion_del_mar/




Sunday, July 11, 2010

Precise my Environmental Topic!



Well, being more precise, I would like to talk about how the environmental laws are developed in Chile and US. Specially, I would like to develop with facts and examples, what is the reality behind the environmental laws in these countries. For example i would like to talk about the ISOs, the Carbon Bonds, the specifics problems that it has been happening in Chile and US, and how the governments can't do anything, even with laws that there are.

I think in Chile and US, the environmental laws are not so strict because there are some big enterprise who can be danger if the environmental laws change in a better way. I think the environmental laws are not focusing in the evironment itself. In chile there is an Environmental Ministry, and also there are some department from the goverments which work in this issue too.
I am not sure, but i know that in US there are some agency and department in the government which work in environmental issues.
Well a clear example how this topic are developed in US, is the oils spill problem. What does it happen with the laws here? where are the agencies of the government? what are they doing with this big problems?

Well, an objectively point of view is that everybody knows that developing laws it is a very hard job, specially, environmental laws. I think it'll be interesting to research about this issue, and also comparing some laws in the diferents countries.

My personal opinion is that the governments and the laws that they develops are not enough strict. I think there are personal interest from the companies and the goverment behind this. A clear example is what happens with the goverment when a big company didn't fallow the laws, and they contaminated the environment sorround the enterprice. At least in my country, the agencies of the government in charge of this issue said that the enterprice has to be closed for the days that will be necessary, but against that the enterprise said, if the government closes them, they will lay off a lot of people, so the unemployed rates will be increased in this place. Indeed, the goverment only gave them a ticket and they force to clean as much as they can.

If i will speak about this issue, I would like to show facts from articles and also some laws, maybe some ones which are similar en both countries. Besides, I would like to show examples about some natural catrastrofes and I would like to point out what the government did in these cases. Another thing that I would like to talk is about other international examples, like Carbon Bonds, ISOs and OSHAS, and if they are really developed thinking in the environment or in the companies.
About technologies, I really want to learn and use prezi, but i don't know if it will be useful here. I would try, but if it won't work, i will use powerpoint. Also, I can use some videos and pictures from some blogs, google, youtube and other pages. Finally, I would like to show some fragments of the laws or articles, but perhaps i don't know if i will find it.


Thursday, July 8, 2010

New words for using in summarizes


Assert (v): state a fact or belief confidently.
Syn: Declare, maintain, contend, argue, state.

Posit (v): assume as a fact, put forward as a basis of an argument.
Syn: postulate, put forward, propound, propose, assert.

Choosing the topic!

Well, the assignment for today is that i have to choose some topic for the final project. For me...a difficult assignment, because i want to do something interesting, but i don’t know what. If i think in my future, a good idea would be to talk about some environmental problems or environmental policy. Besides, I would like to talk about another issue, like the health care system and the political problems behind it. Both topics have a lot of information and also, I can download a lot of material, articles and vidios from the internet, and perhaps I can make some interviews or surveys.
It is difficult to choose, so i prefer to see what are the other topics because i don't want to have the same topic with another person.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Writing helpful words


Perhaps (adv): used to express uncertainty or possibility. Maybe, it's possible, it could be.

Meanwhile (adv): in the intervening period of time, at the same time. For the moment, for the present, int he meantime.

Nevertheless (adv): in spite of that, all the same time. Even so, however, despite that, though.


* I don't know if it is my problem or like a friend said, it is the evolutions of the knowledge or the differents steps that the brain has when it is learning something. The thing is that i have been feeling stander, I mean, I feel like my brain doesn't want to recieve more information, it is saturated. Sometimes it is so serious that I thought: ''I don't understand anything''. I hope this sensations will disappear as soon as possible.

Monday, July 5, 2010

The economic situation in Chile

Looking the rates, the situation in Chile is little better than in United State. According to the INE, Chilean National Stadistic Institute, the unemployment rates between March and May is 8.8 percent. During May, the unemployment was increased around 0.2 percent with respect to the february-April trimester, but these numbers are not so big.

Specialists said that respect to 12 months ago, Chile is in better positions than before. One year ago, with the crisis in his pick, Chile was presented an unemployment rate around 11.5 percent. The international crisis have affected the constructions and the investments sectors. A lot of new construction projects had to stop and others can´t be sold. For around a year, in Santiago there were buildings which were uninhabited. The owners couldn´t sell them. And other projects were in the midle of the constructions, and because of the crisis, the owners couldn´t go on. So, a lot of people were laid off. Consequently, the unemployment rates were growing up.

The earthquacke was another big event. However all the bad things that was happened with this, like the structural problems, the people who have lost their homes and also theirs families; we can say, in economical therms, that Chile resisted very well an earthquacke with magnitude 8.8. The bad things is that the economical growing that Chile had been presented during the last part of the crisis had to stop. Because of the earthquacke problems, all the resources changed their purposes; After that, the government has been focusing in to resolve all the structural and social problems, so the investments or new projects that they would have thought before that, it has changed now or at least, It has to stop for a while.

*I think is important to show that in May of 2010, the population in Chile between 15 years and more are 13.234.540 people, the Labor force is 7.646.680 people, and the unemployments are 674.890 people.


References

http://www.ine.cl/canales/sala_prensa/boletines/ipv/2010/junio/Empleo140_web.pdf

http://www.ine.cl/canales/sala_prensa/boletines/ipv/2010/febrero/Empleo136.pdf

http://www.cooperativa.cl/ministra-del-trabajo-y-desempleo--no-nos-pone-contentos--pero-estamos-mejor-que-en-2009/prontus_nots/2010-06-30/113449.html

Saturday, July 3, 2010

Reading...

With respect to: as regards, with reference to.
In respect that: because

Because: for the reason that.
Ex: We did it because we felt it was our duty.

Because of: on account of, by reason of.
Ex: they move here because of the baby.

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Stuying for the quiz

Reluctant (adj):unwilling and hesitant; desinclined, unenthusiastic.
*Reluctantly (adv).

"The kicker":an unexpected and often unpleasant discovery or turn of the events.

Gaze (v):look steadily and intently, esp. in admiration, surprise or thought.
*Gaze (n)