Ecology
1. What is the Gaia Hypothesis?
the idea that the Earth functions as some kind of living super-organism, which he is highly concerned about.
2. How is it expected to change our lives?
The whole European mainland is going to become a desert area by the end of this century, according to Lovelock’s Gaia hypothesis, Sahara is going north and one of the most habitable European countries will be Britain. But changes do not affect only Europe but whole world, Chinese people are going to move to a newly lush ( laśh ) Siberia as he said, and most of US will be unhabitable too. Lovelock thinks that by the middle of this century, the America-sized chunk of floating ice will melt. Lovelock envisages that Britain will be a lifeboat for whole European population, and will be spared the desert fate. On the whole, we should be scarred stiff.
3. Can climate change be tackled one step (i.e. one person) at a time?
4. Is it right to promote anti-global warming thoughts?
Of course not, because claiming that the central tenets of the global warming thesis are all unproven leads only to the continuation of our planet’s destruction by dotty behavior and comes out from human’s laziness. People realize their wrongdoing destroys the planet, but who cares?
5. Is there a danger that theories like this can damage the credibility of climate science
According to lovelock, scientists from academia, are not completely free men as it comes to doing science, they can’t speak out, so I think that credibility of climate science CAN be damaged by an individual, free-thinking and far-sighted scientists like Lovelock, and predictions that they envisage ( inwyzydż ).
Scrub-szorowac
Footling – błahy
Reckons – rachuje
Sustainable – zrównoważony
Dotty – durnowaty
Forecasts – prognozy
Cease – zaprzestac
Ruefully – smutaśnie
Wrongdoing – wiadomo co to znaczy
Grim – ponury
Giggle – chichot
Utterly groomy – całkowicie ponure
Leisure
1. How would define Second Life?
SL is a 3d online mmorpg game, which is based on existing in the virtual world on the basis of interactions between our in-game characters, which represent us within the world of SL. The game was released by linden labs In 2003.
2. Is Second Life becoming an increasingly alluring alternative to the real world?
Yes It does, because people are transferring various stuff, activities, from the real world to the world of the game, for example, politicians give speeches, musicians play gigs etc.
3. What kind of virtual residents can one encounter in Second Life? What may be their motivation behind creating a given avatar?
In the world of SL, one can encounter any kind of a character, resident, it may be a human-like character, but there are also characters like animals, rabbits, squirrels, or for example jedi knights, characters from tolkiens’s series and any others. Motivation is simple, if someone feels awkward in our real body, why not to be whatever you want to be when such an opportunity comes?
4. What would be the biggest lure of the 3D online digital world if you decided to become one of its users?
I think it would be obviously the possibilities of character creator that it provides us with, anyone can transfer a character of dreams into the world of SL, because of its character creator’s advancement.
5. What are some of the dangers posed by Second Life?
People can easily get addicted to such a game, because it is a special kind of a gameplay, not like this that other kinds of games provide us with, in other types of games there are always some kind of a story that game presents us, and after finishing it, a game ends and it’s done, in SL a player is a creator of his own story, so practically, the game never ends, besides, the game is tempting because of its form, a simulation of a real world draws us in, because it’s a game in which you can do anything. It can become an alternative to our real life.
Crime and Punishment
1. What was your first reaction to the story described in the article ‘Most Infamous Alleged Mommy Murderers in History’? Did you find it shocking/compelling?
Unfortunately, I didn’t find it shocking, but I know I should, people now hear a lot of such stories, which are unimaginable and breath taking, but the worst thing is that stories like this don’t truly surprise us any more. And this shows that there really something very bad is happening to people and world, that somewhere we went wrong with many things in this world.
2. Can you name some of the infamous cases of mothers accused of murder in American history?
A story that gripped me the most, was the story of China Arnold, who burned her child, her own flesh and blood in a microwave oven, besides Andrea Yates, or Susan Smith
3. Can such crimes be justified in any way?
I think not, not even by any mental illnesses, or insanity because we cannot treat it as an excuse to commit such heinous atrocities as were described in the article, no child needs to be protected from the eternal damnation, especially when a child is not even aware of what is happening.
4. Does punishment always fit the crime in the case of child-killers?
I think it never fits such crimes, they are so shocking, that no punishment Is going to fulfill its role, when it comes to cases of child-killers, those are utterly abhorrent.
5. Do you think that the death penalty would prevent such crimes in your country?
I think not, because punishments are not the thing that is going to solve the problem, because it lies somewhere else, it would be worth it to search for what causes such crimes, we would need to search for it very deeply in our minds, or in how this world is constructed by people. I think that when someone commits such a crime, he or she does not care about any penalties. What must be happening In a mind of a child-killer? It’s totally impossible to understand them, and most of us don’t want to do that. It doesn’t surprise me, so there is some kind of a vicious circle.
Addictions
1. Would you define addictions as obsessive-compulsive physiological disorders that need a medical treatment?
Personally, I would divide this category ( katygri ) into addictions and obsessions, addictions definitely need/require a medical treatment, at least in most cases, while obsessions not. Saying obsessions I mean those bizarre activities like sleeping with a blow dryer running or eating toilet paper.
2. List some examples of strange addictions exposed by American reality shows. Which one did you find the most outrageous?
Ice chewing, hair pulling, eating toilet paper. The last one I find to be the most outrageous, because it is the most pointless among the others, it’s just so stupid. In my opinion. It is just so difficult to find any psychological explanation for that odd behavior.
3. In what situations can addictions become detrimental to one’s health or even life?
When it comes to the examples from the article, leaving a blow dryer running for example can become detrimental. Even highly detrimental I would say, if someone is capable of leaving a blow dryer running and going to bed then, They should expect bad things to happen, as it was in the article, it just caught ablaze! As a second example let’s take tanorexia, which in some extreme circumstances may result even in a skin cancer.
4. What are today’s most common addictions?
The internet, gaming, smoking of course. The first two are more like invisible addictions for our society, but the growth rate of these is definitely on the increase. As the internet gets more popular, the more people are getting overwhelmed with the systematic need of checking what is new on the web.
5. Is the Internet addiction disorder on the increase? If so, why might this be?
Yes, it’s definitely on the increase. Not only the usage of computers these times gives us an acces to the internet. Now when it’s available via mobile phones for example, it’s more commonly used by a wider range, wider group of people.
Food
1. What are the most startling facts about the state of health in America according to Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me?
According to the documentary, 60% of American adults are either overweight or obese. As the documentary points out, more than 400,000 preventable deaths per year in America are caused by obesity related illnesses which is second only to smoking
2. Do you find Morgan Spurlock’s one month binge of eating from McDonald’s credible?
No, because the intake he was supposed to have throughout the month eating from McDonald’s, is highly unreasonable. Probably, nobody who eats at McDonald’s, does not normally use the kind of a diet, that Spurlock was to try.
3. How far are fast-food restaurants and the ‘super-size-me’ culture to blame for the rise of obesity?
The Spurlock’s diet showed only, that overeating is unhealthy, because of his suicidal diet. Tom Naughton’s reasonable diet showed us, that fast food is not to blame. I think everything is unhealthy in unreasonable proportions, it’s hard to expect fast food to be exception to this rule.
4. Would you agree with the statement that fast food restaurants do more good than harm?
Yes, I think most foods are unhealthy these times, and when you go to a fast food restaurant, at least, you are aware that you are going to eat something unhealthy.
5. How to make people more knowledgeable about healthy eating habits?
The problem is, that people don’t really care about what they eat, as long as it’s tasty. At first, we should get aware of the consequences of our careless nutritional habits.
Work
1. Is workaholism an addiction? If yes, can you list its main symptoms?
Yes it is, just like the other addictions, The main symptoms would be that a workaholic needs to be occupied by work, so it prevents from maintaining relationships, besides he can take measures to protect his health. They ignore their friends and family, avoid going to vacations. Even if they go to vacations, their minds are still on work unfortunately. Lastly, workaholics tend to seek for high-stress jobs to keep the adrenaline rush going.
2. Why are people becoming more susceptible to being workaholics nowadays?
People nowadays seem to carry a mandate for perfection, so the risk of becoming a workaholic grows.
3. How do workaholics’ obsessive behaviors affect their own life and workplace?
They turn out to be ineffective employees, because it’s difficult for them to work in a team, they take on so much that they aren’t as organized as others. Workaholics inflict collateral damage on their co-workers. Their own life seem to disappear in face of their work.
4. Should workaholics seek psychological treatment?
Yes they should, unless they want to work, not to live. Life of a workaholic seem to be filled up with anxiety and fear, that for example, someone is waiting to replace us.
5. Is the hard work belief still valid or is it just a myth?
It’s not valid any more, because of growing problem of income inequality, it depends on areas, but generally speaking, it’s rubbish nowadays. There are few examples of the richest people in the world, who were not believers of the idea, that hard work is the way to wealth, bill gates, warren buffet or Ronald Reagan.
Communication
1. What do you think is good communication?
Good communication is when people not only wish to get needed information from each other, but when they understand each other well, sometimes not only by words, but also using various senses. Good communication is when a transmitter’s message is understood well by a receiver, and makes him reply at once. It is when they transmit and receive on the same wavelength. Basically, replication means good communication, which unfortunately seems to be missing nowadays.
2. Is haptic communication an effective communication tool?
Yes it is, words often tend to hide meanings, haptic communication or non-verbal communication is more honest way of interaction. Besides, it conveys more information, transferred in different ways, it can be used to express a wide variety of feelings.
3. Is communication that is not face to face being adopted too much nowadays?
Yes It is, it shallows relations to the level in which the goal of communication Is to get some information from another person and nothing else matters for us. A message may be clear for both of the communicators, but such kind of the low-level communication does not involve any emotional processes, and is caused only by necessity of communication.
4. How would you feel if you had your mobile taken away for a week?
I would feel more free honestly, people would have to put much effort in getting to me, or would not contact me at all, which is funny. My social life wouldn’t fall apart, because that one provided by mobile phones is just illusory.
5. Are today’s generation good communicators or not?
No, we aren’t because we don’t have to be, everyday usage of mobile devices made us unable to communicate with other people well. People seem to be isolated by their mobiles, because those devices just apparently simplify communication. Communication based on the technology, creates somekind of a social circle, which is closed. For example, people perceive talking to strangers as an act of the great courage.
6. What communication problems can people encounter?
People can encounter various communication problems, such as being deaf or mute, but I think the more interesting problem comes out of the previously metioned issues. One can be extremely shy, to the point in which it’s a painful experience to communicate with others, which in my opinion, may be caused by the widely known non face-to-face communication.
EDUCATION
1. What is wrong with public education in America according to John Stossel’s ‘Stupid in America’?
Teachers are so dull that students fall asleep during classes, they don’t even prevent students from smoking weed at schools. National graduation rates and achievement scores are flat. Moreover, students are trapped in schools that are not satisfactory ones, because each student Is assigned to learn at a school within their area of living.
2. Why American schools don't teach as well as schools in other countries?
Teachers have no control over their students. Quality of teaching is low, because every teacher is paid the same so none of them cares. They tolerate mediocrity, and show great incompetence. Those schools are government monopolies, so there is no competition within the American education system. Most parents don’t realize what happens at their kids schools’, they are completely or somewhat satisfied with public schools.
3. How can American students benefit more from their education system?
At least theoretically, they could start learning at charter schools, just like that one described in the article, it thrives because of its innovative ways of teaching. The methods described in the article thrilled me, but it’s still a large improvement, comparing it to the regular public schools’ methods. The situation looks poor, students can try to cheat, and get themselves to better schools illegally, just lying to beat the system. Students can move somewhere else, in order not to be zoned out of a good education.
4. How would you compare this situation with that in Poland? Are there any similarities/differences?
Polish students would not try to smoke weed at schools with as much courage as amercians do. Moreover, polish students are definitely more disciplined I think, Polish education system doesn’t bloom comparing it to the American one, but comparing it to the situation from the article, it seems to work a bit better.
5. Can you think of any areas in education where American students would outperform Poles?
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smaaally