A Living Book

     If I were able to impart the information of only one book and I was the only copy of it in existence I would choose to be a college level Biology book. Biology encompasses all of life as we know it. Many of the advancements in technology that have become common place in this world build their foundation on an understanding of basic biological principles. The very first college level biology course I took impacted me in ways that no other educational experience has.

     As an upper level biology book, I would be able to impart my knowledge on millions of people. Knowledge of what we are surrounded in. Every second of everyday we interact with living things in symbiotic and opportunistic ways. As this living book I would wish to change the way in which people see the world, very much the way my world view changed after learning many different scientific theories.

     I would show to everyone the progress that has been made in the understanding of life processes' happening all around us: Photosynthesis, the Krebs cycle, the Electron transport chain. I would be able to challenge the people; I want them to surpass my theories, to make their own. I would want nothing more than to become an outdated edition as the biology I have taught gives way to new theories that are more complete and complex than mine.

     I believe that being a biology book would give the most wisdom and guidance to all of humanity. It is arguably one of the most important topics of research that has ever been completed. Continuation of biologic theory must continue at all costs and this is the reason in which if I had to choose one book and only one I would choose to become a biology text.

Abortion Rights

Abortion is a topic that has created controversy for decades.  On one side people believe that a mother has the right to terminate the life of the fetus if she is unwilling or unable to take care of the child.  The other side of the argument is that every child is sacred and that the mother does not have the right to terminate another person’s life no matter what the consequence. 

                Peoples beliefs and values influence the way they see this argument.  There are two distinct sets of beliefs and values at play: religious and moral.  Certain religious groups believe that life is sacred and at no cost should a life ever be terminated.  This is an abomination in their eyes.  Morally some people come to the conclusion that it is not within the women’s rights to be able to terminate someone else’s life.  According to Gregory Koukl abortion is no different than slavery.  Then there are some people that look at the issue more pragmatically and think that it should be the women’s choice.

                Another issue that plays into this debate is the question of when a human life starts.  Does an embryo, blastocyst, or fetus count as human life?  This unanswerable question influences people’s decisions regarding abortion.  When people believe that human life starts at conception they are apt to take the pro-life stance.  If people believe that the first few weeks after conception do not constitute life then they are more likely to take the pro-choice view. 

                What these two sides don’t realize is that there is no correct answer to this dilemma.  They cannot even answer the question of when life starts which is vital to being able to determine if abortion is ok to perform in the first place.  Then after this question is answered you still have the moral and religious objections to sort out.  No matter which way the law swings on the matter of abortion there will always be outrage from the opposing side.

               

                 

The Internet and the Global Community

     The internet has changed our global society in a positive way. Since the inception of the internet people can now exchange large amounts of data almost instantaneously. User generated content has enhanced our culture with: Facebook, Youtube, Blogger, and Flickr. Many things that were hard to find are a mouse click away with Ebay at our fingertips. But with these positive enhancements to society, we must note that certain things have fallen to the wayside with the popularity of the internet.

     The internet (especially sites like Google) have made finding information their best attribute. The Direct government website for the United Kingdom (Listed Here) even states that children with internet access perform better in the classroom setting. The internet has allowed business' to share large amounts of data around the globe. It has even revolutionized some industries; with the healthcare field talking about digitizing healthcare records so that all of a clients data can be pulled from multiple sources(hospitals, doctors offices, outpatient surgery centers) instantly. This provides a more accurate health and history profile for the healthcare workers involved in this clients care.

     The internet has pushed some industries to the wayside. Magazines and newspapers are finding it harder and harder to keep their subscribers when it is much easier to just hop on the internet and read an article you are interested in. This is even evidenced by instant news reporting of local events by people who upload video camera footage on the internet. Within a half of an hour I can open a window on the internet and watch footage of a tornado that landed near my family's house in Kansas. This type instant gratification on the user is hard to duplicate when using a magazine or newspaper article that comes out from a day to almost a month after the event has happened.

     Although the internet has and will still, destroy certain positive attributes of our society I believe that this is still a positive change. The internet has enhanced our daily lives and culture through user generated content. Revolutionizing business' and bringing in trillions of dollars to the United States through the start up of high tech internet dependent companies. The internet is a positive technological advance for the global community.

First blog entry

Well, I have never blogged before so this should be pretty interesting. Looking forward to hearing from all of you soon.