Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
profesor question: does man need protection from himself?
Does man need protection from himself?
In the book Prodigal Summer, it is very clear that man needs protection from himself. Tobacco was the main crop grown in Zebulon County, as we all know tobacco and its products give cancer. The tobacco was not just affecting the people who bought cigarettes, cigar and nicotine gums but also affects the farmers and the people in the community. Tobacco is providing an income for the farmers but is far moor damage than good. If man is not protected from himself he will just be like a donkey following a carrot to his grave.
The Sevin powder used by Garnet Walker to rid his chestnut trees of parasite is believed to has help killed his wife by giving her lungs cancer even though neither she nor he had ever smoked. This was a lose-lose situation in modern farming because the chemical that is used to kill what we call parasites also kill other things in nature, hence, producing more of what man is trying to get rid of. Non- organic farmers are blinded to this fact and must be protected from self-destructing.
The chemicals from these chemo-farming pollute the under ground water system that the same people and many others get their drinking water. They are literally drinking pesticides in a diluted form. The chemicals also left residue on the plants and food they claim to treat, combining with the chemical laced water raked havoc on its consumers. If man is not, at this point, saved from himself, the world will be a miserable place.
The question from now on is not “Does man need protection from himself?” but who can and will protect man from himself?
In the book Prodigal Summer, it is very clear that man needs protection from himself. Tobacco was the main crop grown in Zebulon County, as we all know tobacco and its products give cancer. The tobacco was not just affecting the people who bought cigarettes, cigar and nicotine gums but also affects the farmers and the people in the community. Tobacco is providing an income for the farmers but is far moor damage than good. If man is not protected from himself he will just be like a donkey following a carrot to his grave.
The Sevin powder used by Garnet Walker to rid his chestnut trees of parasite is believed to has help killed his wife by giving her lungs cancer even though neither she nor he had ever smoked. This was a lose-lose situation in modern farming because the chemical that is used to kill what we call parasites also kill other things in nature, hence, producing more of what man is trying to get rid of. Non- organic farmers are blinded to this fact and must be protected from self-destructing.
The chemicals from these chemo-farming pollute the under ground water system that the same people and many others get their drinking water. They are literally drinking pesticides in a diluted form. The chemicals also left residue on the plants and food they claim to treat, combining with the chemical laced water raked havoc on its consumers. If man is not, at this point, saved from himself, the world will be a miserable place.
The question from now on is not “Does man need protection from himself?” but who can and will protect man from himself?
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Character Analysis of Lusa Maluf Landowski
Book: Prodigal Summer
Author: Barbara Kingsolver
Character Analysis of Lusa Maluf Landowski
Lusa was Lecturer at a university who met Cole Widener, a farmer at one of her seminar and later they got married. Lusa and Cole went on to settle to his home town in Zebulon County. Lusa was from a small family in a big city trying to fit in the humble life of a big family country girl lifestyle. Things were not too bad for her until her husband, Cole, died in a road accident. The newly widowed, naturalized country girl began to face hardship and the burden of the farm that his husband has left behind. Lusa knew she had to farm for her survival and the preservation of her late husband family legacy. She was torn between the only crop that was known to prosper in that community, tobacco but would go against her moral beliefs that tobacco is a killer. Lusa was also a staunch believer in nature and despise the use of chemicals for pest control. As a woman yearning for her independence, she needed to farm stuff that would yield her high profits yet physically manageable for her. These circumstances led to her brain child, rearing Goats, for the season when the three main religions of the world clash, hence a high demand for goat meat. The result of the goat rearing was “right on the money” which would the finance needed to repay the debts and the confidence to find innovative ways to survive in a small country town full of traditions ready to be broken.
While as was happening, her life was sweetened with the urge to make love with his late husband nephew but could not yield because it was against her standards. Things were further colored by the grief of her dying sister-in law, Jewel and her misunderstood children. In a mammoth of effort to let this marinade into life for everyone, she turns to her professional knowledge as a bug scientist to pull her through.
Author: Barbara Kingsolver
Character Analysis of Lusa Maluf Landowski
Lusa was Lecturer at a university who met Cole Widener, a farmer at one of her seminar and later they got married. Lusa and Cole went on to settle to his home town in Zebulon County. Lusa was from a small family in a big city trying to fit in the humble life of a big family country girl lifestyle. Things were not too bad for her until her husband, Cole, died in a road accident. The newly widowed, naturalized country girl began to face hardship and the burden of the farm that his husband has left behind. Lusa knew she had to farm for her survival and the preservation of her late husband family legacy. She was torn between the only crop that was known to prosper in that community, tobacco but would go against her moral beliefs that tobacco is a killer. Lusa was also a staunch believer in nature and despise the use of chemicals for pest control. As a woman yearning for her independence, she needed to farm stuff that would yield her high profits yet physically manageable for her. These circumstances led to her brain child, rearing Goats, for the season when the three main religions of the world clash, hence a high demand for goat meat. The result of the goat rearing was “right on the money” which would the finance needed to repay the debts and the confidence to find innovative ways to survive in a small country town full of traditions ready to be broken.
While as was happening, her life was sweetened with the urge to make love with his late husband nephew but could not yield because it was against her standards. Things were further colored by the grief of her dying sister-in law, Jewel and her misunderstood children. In a mammoth of effort to let this marinade into life for everyone, she turns to her professional knowledge as a bug scientist to pull her through.
thoughtDoes the predator-prey theory in Volterra principle the key to chemical free farming?
Book: Prodigal Summer
Author Barbara Kingsolver
Does the predator-prey theory in Volterra principle the key to chemical free farming?
Prodigal summer is mainly about man, the head of the food chain, co-existing with nature and using the right methods to control the population of organisms lower in the food chain, hence, preventing any group to get over populated and become pests.
After reading the book it become clearer to me that most farmers may not have understand what one of their biggest enemy, pests. Farmers are taught to use chemicals to rid these pests from their farms yet this method caused you to me hooked to buying these ever rising-cost chemicals with devastating health effects. Nanny Rawley spoke of a Volterra Principle on page 274-275, which is using a predator-prey balance to keep the insects and animals we call pests in check so as not to affect our crops.
The Volterra principle, a mathematical principle adapted into farming suggests that if you intervene with natures balance like using a mass killer like most pesticides would cause the animal in lower food chain to increase and the opposite effect for the higher order organisms in the food chain. In order to better understand the ideas and themes of this book, it would be an asset to understand the Volterra principle.
If the Volterra Principle is found to be true when applied to farming, it would be a breakthrough and provide foods that are free of chemicals, hence, beer food security and healthier foods for consumers. Since over 50% of the United States population gets their water from the underground water system that is mainly polluted with pesticides from farming, this would benefit a whole lot of people. This would also lessen the cost of production, hence lowering food prices worldwide while improving quality.
Author Barbara Kingsolver
Does the predator-prey theory in Volterra principle the key to chemical free farming?
Prodigal summer is mainly about man, the head of the food chain, co-existing with nature and using the right methods to control the population of organisms lower in the food chain, hence, preventing any group to get over populated and become pests.
After reading the book it become clearer to me that most farmers may not have understand what one of their biggest enemy, pests. Farmers are taught to use chemicals to rid these pests from their farms yet this method caused you to me hooked to buying these ever rising-cost chemicals with devastating health effects. Nanny Rawley spoke of a Volterra Principle on page 274-275, which is using a predator-prey balance to keep the insects and animals we call pests in check so as not to affect our crops.
The Volterra principle, a mathematical principle adapted into farming suggests that if you intervene with natures balance like using a mass killer like most pesticides would cause the animal in lower food chain to increase and the opposite effect for the higher order organisms in the food chain. In order to better understand the ideas and themes of this book, it would be an asset to understand the Volterra principle.
If the Volterra Principle is found to be true when applied to farming, it would be a breakthrough and provide foods that are free of chemicals, hence, beer food security and healthier foods for consumers. Since over 50% of the United States population gets their water from the underground water system that is mainly polluted with pesticides from farming, this would benefit a whole lot of people. This would also lessen the cost of production, hence lowering food prices worldwide while improving quality.
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Monday, September 14, 2009
Using State of Fear, discuss why the media is so interested in global warming
According to the excerpt from State of Fear, it’s the notion of social control. “….To the requirement of every sovereign state……to keep paying taxes……. is best managed by fear” (pg500). The media is believed to using fear to promote safety. The reason for the media to do is not explicit but it may be to generate revenues. What was crystal clear though, was that FEAR is the tool politicians used to control the people. According to the passage, the media is so interesting in Global warming because of its dedication to promote fear, the effects of global warming is right up its streets. Associated with Global warming is the effect the effect of melting of the glaciers which would have a CATASTROPHIC effect on the sea level and the marine life, rise in ambient temperature, and a host of other bi-products from this phenomenon….hence its interests.
It would not be absurd to imply that since the media is tool that informs the world, the politicians spend tidy sums of money to get there messages across to its people. In this case the media does not have a environmental concern from global warming but a financial appreciation because this is what pay the bills and keep the investors happy.
It would not be absurd to imply that since the media is tool that informs the world, the politicians spend tidy sums of money to get there messages across to its people. In this case the media does not have a environmental concern from global warming but a financial appreciation because this is what pay the bills and keep the investors happy.
Thinking like a mountain
THINKING LIKE A MOUNTAIN: To what extent would Leopold say humans are separate from nature?
According to the passage,” think like a mountain” Leopold would agree that humans are separate from nature because nature has a way creating balance. The mountains are the only creatures that live long enough to fully understand the owling of the wolves and the footsteps of the deer. Nature including the mountain, work in harmony to preserve lives of all forms, the wolves keeps the deer in check by killing some; the deer keep the forest in check by eating some of the plants and leaves. The absence of wolves to keep the deer in check means that the population of deer will get too large. The large population of deer means that the forest would have to provide food for these deer, hence, a natural deforestation occurs and the mountain it self is about to become extinct. The only problem is, man is the one that made the mountains wolf-less. If man was not separate from nature, then his natural instinct would urge him to let some of the wolves’ lives.
In the cycle of nature, the predator always the next level above the prey, the wolves don’t kill the deer because the wolf wants more grass. Instead, the wolf kills the deer because he wants what the deer can provide. Man, on the other hand, kills the wolves because he wants more deer. If man was not separate from nature, he would kill the wolves for food and not for killing deer
According to the passage,” think like a mountain” Leopold would agree that humans are separate from nature because nature has a way creating balance. The mountains are the only creatures that live long enough to fully understand the owling of the wolves and the footsteps of the deer. Nature including the mountain, work in harmony to preserve lives of all forms, the wolves keeps the deer in check by killing some; the deer keep the forest in check by eating some of the plants and leaves. The absence of wolves to keep the deer in check means that the population of deer will get too large. The large population of deer means that the forest would have to provide food for these deer, hence, a natural deforestation occurs and the mountain it self is about to become extinct. The only problem is, man is the one that made the mountains wolf-less. If man was not separate from nature, then his natural instinct would urge him to let some of the wolves’ lives.
In the cycle of nature, the predator always the next level above the prey, the wolves don’t kill the deer because the wolf wants more grass. Instead, the wolf kills the deer because he wants what the deer can provide. Man, on the other hand, kills the wolves because he wants more deer. If man was not separate from nature, he would kill the wolves for food and not for killing deer
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
The Media, Global Warming and its Effects
It is undisputable that the average temperatures had being increasing in recent years. These are direct results of global warming, according to “The inconvenient truth”. The effects of global warming have being disastrous and will continue to be detrimental unless we change the way we take care of the environment, portrayed by “The inconvenient truth”.
What I found questionable though is that the big players in the world are not as concerned, like United States, China and the United Kingdom are not as concerned as they should. This leads to another question, if they are not as concerned, Is this some private interest of a selective few to market a philosophy? I have also noticed that the excerpt, “the inconvenient truth”, that it did crave for a legislative overhaul to curb or even prevent the deadly effects it portrays. Which leads to another question, Is this just lip service?
What I found questionable though is that the big players in the world are not as concerned, like United States, China and the United Kingdom are not as concerned as they should. This leads to another question, if they are not as concerned, Is this some private interest of a selective few to market a philosophy? I have also noticed that the excerpt, “the inconvenient truth”, that it did crave for a legislative overhaul to curb or even prevent the deadly effects it portrays. Which leads to another question, Is this just lip service?
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