Human Lung created in lab

Researcher at the University of Texas Medical Branch Joan Nichols voices her opinion on this topic saying, " It's so darn  cool". As simple as her opinion seems, it is valid and many others hold the same opinion astonished. For the first time, scientist have created a human lung in a laboratory.

Scientists are expecting this organ engineering to be a solution to many illnesses and diseases. It all began with the reseachers starting with lungs from children that passed away in a car accident. First, the scientist stripped away nearly everything so it could be replaced. Once the new cells were integrated into the lungs, they were then submerged into nutrient rich fluids. It took a few four weeks, and viola, a human lung recreated!

Nichols shares, " It will be another 12 years or so until they'll be ready to try using these lungs for transplants" revealing the benefits of this will be reaped further into the future. The scientists have first established these lungs will first be tested on pigs before being transplanted into humans.  This event affects me because in 12 years I will be an adult voting on health propositions as this. My feelings towards this event are neutral. I'm not pro or con for it because I don't want to take a stand point on something I don't completly understand yet.

What is the central idea of the passage and how is it developed and refined throughout the selection? Use evidence from the selection to support your answer.

The central idea of this passage is lungs being recreated and how they could possibly be used in transplants. Throughout the selection the author refines it by gradually introducing the topic. For example, in the beging we are notified what it is about, then it proceeds to tell us how it was made possible.



Cohen, Elizabeth. "Human Lung Made in Lab for First Time." Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, 14 Feb. 2014. Web. 11 May 2014. <http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/14/health/texas-lungs-grown/index.html?iid=article_sidebar>.


Pete. Lung. Digital image. Flickrcc. Yahoo, 23 Nov. 2010. Web. 11 May 2014. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/23408922@N07/5202610638>.

Mind Reading

In the future it is very possible scientists will be able to read minds with brain activity data. Someday our thoughts may no longer be personal and private as we perceive them to be today. Although this is still in very early stages of development, researchers have found significant information on how to actually read thoughts.

Jack Gallant shares," There are several limitations on "mind reading" directly from the brain" revealing that there are many things that prevent mind reading from occurring.  Meanwhile, test candidates who have epilepsy are being tested to show the neural recordings towards the brains surface.

Just recently in March an extraordinary experiment of face recognition by the brain was performed by Alan Cowen. People were shown numerous photographs of faces and the scientists used the person's brain waves to reconstruct them. Surprisingly many of the faces turned out to be similar to what the original ones appeared as. This is a fairly new and extremely broad theory to have so many experiments and testing occurring on it. With the pace scientist are going now I believe this will be possible within 50 to 100 years at the least.


Landau, Elizabeth. "Scan a Brain, Read a Mind?" CNN. Turner Broadcasting System, 12 Apr. 2014. Web. 28 Apr. 2014. <http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/12/health/brain-mind-reading/index.html?hpt=he_bn5>.

Josh's Journey

This article focuses on now 7 year old Josh Hardy and his difficult health issues. Throughout his health issues he encountered various types of cancer in his thymus, lungs, and bone marrow, yet, he managed to beat all of them. Currently, he is left with a weak immune system and adenovirus all through out his body. Regardless of all his troubles, Josh and the staff at St. Jude's Research Hospital aren't giving up hope.




The medicine brincidofovir may help Josh but the company who creates it is denying his need for it. The company expressed they are not in position to administer this drug due to limited resources. I believe this is extremely unfair because he deserves a chance to regaining normal health after being in such bad health conditions.




How does the author support his claim? Use evidence from the selection to support your answer.




The author supports the claim of Josh in numerous ways, one being with the textual evidence. For example, Cohen includes a quote from Josh's father saying " He [ the company] holds our sons life in his hands", showing how he feels about the situation. I believe the author included this to show her sympathy for the family and their situation with Josh.



Cohen, Elizabeth, John Bonifield, Nadia Kounang, and Intern Arianna Yanes. "Company Denies Drug tp Dying Child." CNN. Cable News Network, 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.<http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/10/health/cohen-josh/>.

Craigslist Killer

Meeting people from Craigslist may not be as safe as it seems. Miranda Barbour confesses to murdering people she met via Craigslist for the thrill of it. Barbour confessed to a Pennsylvania newspaper that “ she [has] killed at least 22 men over six years” in various locations that were unmentioned.

So far, Miranda and her husband Ellytte have been convicted of the strangling and stabbing of one man. It was a short three weeks before this couple decided to begin killing people. They come in contact with these people by posting a companion ad on Craigslist. During Barbour’s first interview,statements that involved Satanism were involved as well.  

I personally think this is wrong and something I wouldn’t expect to be occurring. This applies to my life because many people talk online without having a personal knowledge of who they are talking to. Meeting someone from online that you don’t know in person is extremely dangerous. Hopefully, people will realize that people can have different identities online.

Ellis, Ralph, and Elizabeth Landers. "Suspect in Craigslist Slaying Tells Reporter She Killed in 3 Other States." CNN. Cable News Network, 31 Mar. 2014. Web. 31 Mar. 2014. <http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/30/us/craigslist-killing-suspect-interview/index.html?hpt=hp_inthenews>.

Microsoft's next big headache: The Google Chromebook

The main idea of this article is Microsoft's attempt to compete with Google's new Chromebook. Although these Chromebooks area tiny percentage of what notebooks are being sold, Microsoft is still freaking out. This light weight, more modest computer is better in comparison to the Windows PC.






I can connect this to my school work because we recently got Chromebooks. Personally, I feel they are much better than regular laptops in almost all aspects. They are conveniently quick to turn on as well as loading web pages , making them great for school work.






Overall, I feel these notebooks are much better for various types of online work. Chromebooks are definitely my preference in comparison to any Windows. I feel that these will be appearing in numerous classrooms in the near future because of the popularity growth. Windows PC sales are big, but the Chromebooks are soon to become bigger.




Covert, Adrian Last. "Microsoft's next Big Headache: The Google Chromebook."CNNMoney. Cable News Network, 13 Mar. 2014. Web. 15 Mar. 2014. <http://money.cnn.com/2014/03/13/technology/google-chromebooks/index.html>.

Retinitis Pigmentosa

Retinitis Pigmentosa is a disorder that detroiates vision over a certain period of time. This disease is ,in fact, heriditary;and young Louis and his two other brothers are diagnosed with it. Louis and his family decided to begin an international sight seeing tour to give him many beautiful images to remember.

Louis mostly desired something rather different than a sight or place. His mother explained, "For some reason he really got hooked on American Basketball"(Corbett). His favorite team is the Celtics, and in order to see them before all vision was lost, the trip had to be planned soon. Then, the CEO of Boston-based software, Warren Casey gave a generous donation. He claims it be "a random coincidence";between Casey and other partners more than enough money was raised for this trip. Although Louie's odds of having complete vision are low, he has a lot of supporters out there. Throughout this article Conlan includes multiple quotes to emphasize the effects of this disease on Louie. For example, the mother Catherine elucidated how Louie feels by saying,"Last year was a hard one for poor Louie...his case was accelerated"(Corbett). I related this to my life to the memoir Night I'm currently reading in English 10. Determination can be described by many as the willingness to acheive a goal. In Night,Elie represents this by wanting to survive. Louie shows this characterisitic because not only himself, but numerous others, are determined he keeps partial eyesight. What is the purpose for using [statistics/quotations/headings/bullets/personal experience] (choose one of the options and write only on it.) If you have another element that you would like to discuss on this question, get the okay from me before proceeding. Use evidence from the selection to support your answer Conlon, Kevin. "Child Goes on 'bucket List' Trip before He Goes Blind." CNN. Cable News Network, 03 Mar. 2014. Web. 03 Mar. 2014. .

Holocaust Children

The kids were the most vulnerable age group during the Holocaust period, and not many survived. It is said that Germans "killed as many as 1.5 million children."(Holocaust Memorial Museum). If the child was older they had a greater chance of survival because they could perform more strenuous labor. Kids over the age of twelve would be used to conduct science experiments on that usually resulted in their death.  Since most children were too young to work, them along with the disabled and elderly were sent to killing centers first. In spite of all the mentioned hardships these children endured, many did discover a way to survive.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. "Children during the Holocaust".USHMM. 20 Feb. 2014. 20 Feb. 2014. <http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005142>

Airlines and Explosives

It is typical to enter a airport and be scanned for weapons and go through a metal detector. The government is now warning the airport employees to be sure to check the shoes of people.  The collection of information has indicated that the terrorists are now designing bombs to made into the shoe itself.


The experts in terrorism state, "airlines continue to be a target of terrorists wishing to make a spectacular impact with an attack".  Rather than hijacking the plane, the focus of terrorist groups have switched to just bombing the entire aircraft. In fact, just a couple of weeks after the 9/11 occurrence, Richard Reid pleaded guilty to having a bomb embedded into his shoe.


Although the security requires the passengers to be X-rayed without shoes before boarding, many terrorists still manage to bypass this detection. This warning was issued to make the airports perform more thorough searches on the passengers before allowing them access to the aircraft.







Perez, Evan. Sciutto, Jim. "Airlines warned to beware of possible shoe bombs". CNN.  Turner Broadcasting System: 19 Feb. 2014. Web. 19 Feb. 2014. <http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/19/us/airline-security-
threats/index.html?hpt=hp_t3>

Spreng, Ben. "Travellings The World for Awhile". Image. Flickr cc.  Yahoo: 25 June 2012. Web. 19 Feb. 2014. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/37010090@N04/7497500748>

Dooley, Kevin. "Southwest Airlines". Image. Flickr cc. Yahoo: 9 Nov. 2010. Web. 19 Feb. 2014. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/12836528@N00/5171856178>

Smartphones as hotel keys

If you've ever had the issue of losing your hotel key, it is no longer as big of an issue in the Starwood Hotels & Resorts. They are introducing an app for their guests eliminating the need of old fashioned hotel keys. Guests would not even have to approach a registration desk upon arrival as well.




If all goes as planned, they are hoping to introduce this new technology to more hotels and resorts. Starwoods CEO told The Wall Street Journal, "...we think it will become table stakes for managing a hotel". This hotel chain is known for its innovating techniques and ideas and currently employs a personal digital team. Also, they are participating in an Instagram Integration project allowing guests to see various images of the hotel and what it has to offer.



Although this event doesn't necessarily relate to my current classes it will have an impact on my future. Possibly when I'm older having an actual hotel key could be considered unusual. This event is a good example of how far every industry is coming along in the technology related departments.



How does the author support his claim? Use evidence from the selection to support your answer.
The author of this article thoroughly supported his claim by including evidence from a spokeswoman as well as the CEO of the company.

Citations:

Gross, Doug. "Your smartphone could replace hotel keys". Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, 28 Jan. 2014. Web. 2 Feb. 2014. <http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/28/tech/mobile/smartphone-hotel-keys/index.html>

Halog, Glenn. "Leave on The Light For Me". Photograph. Flickr cc. Yahoo, 17 Jan. 2012. Web. 2 Feb. 2014. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/59886204@N08/6721662997>

Hook, William."Iphone". Photograph. Flickr cc. Yahoo, 5 Sept. 2008. Web. 2 Feb, 2014. <http://www.flickr.com/photos/83542829@N00/2830319467>
 

Current Event #1: Google to make smart contact lenses.

1) What is the central idea of the passage and how is it developed and refined throughout the selection? Use evidence from the selection to support your answer.

Google is developing that smart contacts that will have a huge impact on those with diabetes. This new technology will eliminate having to use a painful needle to check glucose levels. It will measure the blood sugar once per second so the person will always be aware of their limit.

The visibility of the actual contact wouldn't be a problem because “The electronics in the lens are so small that they appear to be specks of glitter”(Goldman). Google is also working on incorporating a type of LED lights that will flash if the glucose becomes too low or too high.

These contacts will have the ability to measure blood sugar levels through tears making the measuring painless.  The X labs of Google where these are being developed are also working on things such as driver-less cars and balloons with Wi-Fi.

This event affects me because I have relatives who have diabetes and use needles to check glucose levels. If this is developed my Aunt and Grandmother will no longer have to use needles. Google is making a huge positive impact on those with diabetes.

Goldman, David. “Google to make smart contact lenses”. Cable News Network. Turner    

Broadcasting System, 2014. Web. 21 Jan. 2014. <URL>

Duisburgbunny. “The Pincushion Effect”. Photograph. Flickr cc. Yahoo, 3 Jul. 2007. Web.   21 Jan. 2014.

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Luna, Carlos. “Google”. Photograph. Flickr cc. Yahoo, 3 Sept. 2008. Web. 21 Jan. 2014.

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Ragan, Sean.”Life Size Lego Syringe”. Photograph. Flickr cc. Yahoo, 6 June 2010. <URL>