catch up day

Today in class we had time to catch up on late assignments and finish our maps. I found this day really helpful because I had a lot of work to do and I won't have to do as much on the weekend. Labeling the maps has helped me learn more about them and understand where the continents are placed. Mr. Schick also checked our blogs to see if they were good enough, hopefully mine is good.

drawing maps

Today in class, Mr. Schick came in late and everyone was very talkative. We had a shorter class today because of the community bell and we labeled different types of maps. We found the equator, tropic of cancer and capricorn, the prime meridian, the seven continents, and the five oceans. I enjoyed doing this because it was interesting to see how the maps were printed differently. I thought it helped us learn the maps and understand where things were placed.

longitude and latitude

Today in class we talked about longitude and latitude on a map. We also learned about why we have different time zones. These are some notes:

• geographic grid: a system of imaginary arcs drawn in a grid pattern on Earth's surface
• meridians: drawn between the north and south poles (longitude 0 to 180 degrees)
• parallels: arcs drawn parallel to the equator (latitude 0 to 90 degrees)

the points on Earth's surface can be communicated by referencing latitude and longitude

• for example, Denver is 40 degrees North Latitude and 105 degrees West Longitude

further accuracy can be obtained by dividing each degree into 60 minutes and each minute into 60 seconds

Earth telling time

• Earth as a sphere is divided into 360 degrees of longitude
• divide 360 degrees by 24 time zones, which equals 15 degrees
• each 15 degree band of longitude has a certain time zone

Greenwich Mean Time is 

• located at the prime meridian 

• it passes through the Royal Observatory at Greenwich England 

•  it is the master reference of time for all points on Earth

organization of cartographers for social equality

            In the video we watched in class, they made many points on why the maps should be switched. The first reason was because the Mercator projection gained European attitudes and created an ethnic bias against other 3rd world countries. I think this is unfair because we should be learning what the map looks like in reality, not what the Europeans perceive it as. This map was originally made to help European sailors, it wasn't made to learn about in a classroom setting.
           In the video, the cartographers also compared the size of Greenland to Africa. In the Mercator map, Greenland looks as if it is half the size of Africa and I've always thought Greenland was really big, but in reality, Africa is around 14 times larger than Greenland. I think this is crazy how we've been using the Mercator map to learn the whole time, even though its very different from the real world. For example, many countries on the map aren't even placed in the correct spot and everything is distorted, while we had no idea.
           I think the points the cartographers made in the video are extremely valid and make sense. I don't know why the map hasn't been changed even though it has been wrong and bias for thousands of years. I think if we did switch the maps it would be very beneficial and better for learning about in a classroom environment. If we ended up making the southern hemisphere at the top of the map and the northern hemisphere at the bottom, it would be confusing but it would help continents that have been overlooked to finally have people learn more about those areas. I believe schools should start enforcing the Peters projection map because it would help teach students where the continents are correctly located and how big their sizes actually are.

mercator and peters maps

Today in Human Geo we talked about the maps and what the different types mean. There is a map called The Peters Projection Map and The Mercator Projection Map. Schools have used the Mercator Map for a long time but in reality, it is less accurate than the Peters Projection Map. The Mercator Map has had bias measurements of the countries because the Europeans created it originally to make traveling easy for them. Which caused European countries and the United States to appear larger than some of the 3rd world countries, even though its not actually the correct size. I find this interesting because its weird how I have been learning the sizes of countries wrong this whole time and had no idea.

maps

In class today, we talked about maps and began learning section 1.1.1, 1.1.2, and 1.1.3. They key issues we began talking about were:
How do geographers describe where things are?
Why is each point on Earth unique?
Why are different places similar?
Why are some human actions not sustainable?

map: a 2 dimensional or flat-scale model of Earth's surface, or portion of it
cartography: the science of map making
       
         2 purposes of maps;
         - reference tool for navgation
         - communication toll to show human activities or physical features

In early mapmaking, maps were only used as reference and navigation tools. The first world map was made by Eratosthenes (276-194 BC). Maps were revived during the age of exploration and the age of discovery. In class today we also learned that the middle of the earth was believed to be the mediterranean.

test today

Today we had our first test in Human Geo. The test was about The Message to Garcia and Socrates. I feel like I did pretty well because I knew most of the topics on the test. We had to write an essay about life or Socrates trial. I decided to write my essay about Socrates' trial and outcome because I knew a lot about that topic.

first test on monday

Today, we had a shorter class and talked about what is going to be on the test on Monday. We are going to have to write an essay thinking about the topic, "the unexamined life is not worth living." This means that you should live life to the fullest and do good things in the world. I think this is a good thing to live by because it can make your life more interesting.

socrates

We talked about Socrates today and found out he was charged with two crimes for teaching young people different lessons that the government didn't agree with. He took the blame because he didn't think anything was wrong with what he was teaching. Later, he had the chance to escape prison, but he decided to take his punishment to show that he agreed with Athen's government and laws. I think that was the right thing to do because he is now he is respected.

democracy

Today in class we learned that Mr. Schick’s wife has three horses and we learned about Democracy, Excellence, and Socrates. I enjoyed talking about how if there is democracy in a country there is excellence because the people enjoy making decisions for themselves. This will then cause them to love and appreciate their country because of the decisions they were able to make. I thought this was true because people will be more supportive and love their country if they get a say on what is going on around them and in their lives.

message to garcia notes

A Message to Garcia written by Elbert Hubbard
notes-
Publication:

• was created as an inspirational essay in March, 1899
• sold around 40 million copies of the book

Backstory:

• was written during the spanish-american war
• garcia- a revolutionary looking for cuban independence
• rowan- army officer

Message:

• initiative
• doing the right thing without being told
• areté - greek word for initiative
• excellence
• moral virtue
• fufilment of purpose/function
• is most importantly the act of living up to one's full potential

a message to garcia opinion

In my opinion in the essay, A Message to Garcia, Elbert Hubbard explains that people should do what they are instructed without complaint or question. He writes that his heart goes out to everyone who works hard and does it with pride. I think this relates to the world today because there are some people who slack off and complain when their teacher or coach gives them an instruction that could be beneficial to the classroom or a practice. Hubbard uses Rowan as an example of "the ideal man." I think that he does have a point because if everyone did what they were told just like Rowan, things would run a lot smoother. This essay also shows that even if you are smart on tests, it doesn't mean you have common sense. Hubbard believed common sense and hard work were good things to have. That still is true to this day because most things are not right from something you have learned in school. You have to use your brain and understand what you have to do without being lazy about it.

my experience at JC

My experience at John Carroll for the first few days has been very exciting. Everything is new and thrilling. I have met so many new people and have tried many new things. For example, I've only played field hockey for one year and decided to join the JC team. As soon as I joined, I was welcomed in every way possible. All the girls were excited to see new faces and meet new people. Our team has established a great connection and the season is going to be extremely fun. I am exceedingly thankful that I joined the team because it has allowed me to meet and bond with many new types of people before the school year had even begun. I am really looking forward to all of the spirit days and joining more teams or clubs in the future. I've had a lot of fun so far and I'm ready for the years to come!