A Trustworthy Device

Posted on by Standard 3

I really enjoy the school iPads. They are helpful for school assignments, they teach me about modern technology, and I have to admit, I play plenty of games on there too. A lot of adults don’t like kids like me to be playing too many video games. I agree with the statement of too much gaming, but not for the reason that it “rots your brain.” I think that playing video games allows you to play with friends, learn strategy which stimulates your brain, and my favorite excuse: hand-eye coordination. It’s still not healthy to play video games all day though. Your body needs exercise to stay healthy.

The main thing about iPads that is just sad, is how secretive you can be in class. Before electronics, people could play board games and card games for entertainment. At school, teachers would easily be able to notice if you had a deck of cards out, if you were talking to a friend, or if you were cheating on a test off of a piece of paper. Now teachers can’t tell if everyone is on task, playing games, messaging friends, or searching the internet during an iPad assignment, because switching apps can happen with just a flick of the wrist.

To solve this problem, the school came up with the iPad oath, which states that you’re not permitted to play on your iPad while in class, unless the teacher says otherwise (something like that). This would have worked perfectly, except for the fact that not everyone obeys the iPad oath and they never get caught breaking it. The people who do this think that it’s just playing games, but while that is true, these people have also crossed the line of honesty.

Last year, when the iPad-tech-people came to make sure no one was jail breaking their iPad, they found that all the students had their restrictions on(which was good). As soon as they left, about 1/6 of the class said that they had their restrictions turned off and turned them back on right before the check. They were relieved that there wasn’t a way to check for that and that they didn’t get caught. As we are developing new ways of technology to help with new learning and discoveries that expand our knowledge…

Technology is advancing faster than our systems of discipline can keep up with.

Preposition Poem 2

Posted on by Standard 3

Aboard the Star Command’s most prized ship
In the captain’s chair
Beside him stands Commander Spock
In front of him, a weapon of destruction, from the future
Off in the far reaches of space, being the only 2 ships in the sector
As the deadly ship is gravitating towards a black hole
With nobody there to help
Besides the USS Enterprise
Except the enemy is not willing to surrender
At that moment, Captain Kirk gives one order to ensure the safety of the galaxy
“Fire everything we’ve got!”

Preposition Poem

Posted on by Standard 3

Aboard the Death Star
At the throne of the emperor
On a mission
Concerning the fate of the entire galaxy
With his lightsaber, glowing brilliantly green in hand
Inside his mind are thoughts, of what must be done
Of what all of his training has prepared him for
Of his destiny
As he raised his weapon above his head to strike
The final battle had begun!

Star Wars Episode VII

Posted on by Standard 8

As you should already know, I’m a big fan of Star Wars. For the other Star Wars fans, we all know episode VII is coming out in 2015. You would also know that Lucasfilms was bought by Disney. Most people are thinking that because of this, the next Star Wars movie is going to be horrible. Now, Disney isn’t a bad film making business, but it isn’t Star Wars movie making material. Either way, I’m hoping that all be able to see the midnight premiere when it comes out. Even if Disney is producing the movie it can’t be that terrible because, we’ll, it’s Star Wars. That being said, if the next Star Wars movie doesn’t come close to my expectations, then I’m going to be very angry, and lose a lot of respect for Disney.

I’ve done a lot of reading of Star Wars the old republic, and the EU (extended universe) and throughout all of the books I’ve read, all of the books never contradict each other. What I mean by this is, no 2 or more books have several different things going on at the same place, and same time. An example would be if one book said (and this is silly) that Luke Skywalker caught a disease and died right after the 6th movie ended, while another book says that he never had a disease, and went on fighting rogue Jedi that he trained. Anyway, it’s beginning to look like Star Wars episode 7 is not going to be based off of a book or series from the EU. If this was to happen, then Star Wars should lose half of its ratings in my opinion.

I’ve also done some research on rumors, and there were a few sites that had rumors on the characters’ personalities. Based on my the information I found, I believe Star Wars episode 7 still has a chance of not being ruined an even exceeding my expectations of it. This could only work if the movie was based on a trilogy called The Jedi Academy. The first book is called “Jedi Search”, which is what episode 7 should be based on, and the other two books for episode 8 and 9.

The plot of this series has everything to make the movie perfect. First, there is the seemingly boring political business that contains a surprising twist. Then there are the remnants of the once great Empire with another super weapon, even more horrifying than the Death Star. Of coarse, to make Star Wars what it is, you have to have the Jedi vs Sith, which there is plenty of.

If Star Wars episode 7 were to be as great as the book was, then Disney will be rich, just from how many times I went to see the movie in theaters. To all of the people hoping the same as I am about the outcome of the 7th movie, may the Force be with you.

 

Lightsaber unboxing, part 6: glowing!
Creative Commons License Photo Credit: Steve Marshall via Compfight

A Good Ending

Posted on by Standard 1

I really enjoy reading books.    Even throughout the action of the book, I don’t enjoy it unless it has a good plot.  My favorite kind of books are the ones that have a variety of things going on, or  if there are several different stories that are coming from different perspectives.  The most important part though, is the ending.  If the protagonist worked so hard just to have his life ruined, then there was no point in  writing the book.  The bad endings are where the author leaves you hanging, or does something completely unexpected that is the exact opposite of what the plot has shown.  A good ending would be where the antagonist is gone, everything falls into place, and the protagonist is better, or the same as he was before.  If this not happen t the end of a story, then  I can guarantee that the ending isn’t good.   For instance, in the book Insignia, the antagonist was a poor, kid who was recruited into a high-tech army organization that was based on a lot of new technology.  The kid starts working, and becomes one of the top trainees in the project, but also starts a secret relationship with a recruit from the other side. The plot seems like it’s going extremely well, until in the very end, when the kid’s first real opponent is his “girlfriend” from the other side.  But in the ending, instead of uniting both sides, showing that neither is bad, he becomes vicious and mean to end the story and win.  What was really sad was that I was keeping my dad posted on what was happening in the book, and he was enjoying it as much as I was, and then when I told him how bad the ending was we were both very upset.  If you’re looking for a good ending, then I would recommend the Homelanders series.  Its a book about a teenager who wake’s up as a prisoner who is wanted dead by a terrorist group, and he cant remember the last year of his life.  He eventually escapes and finds the police, and ends up being arrested for a murder that he doesn’t remember doing.  Throughout the story, everything that’s going on is so confusing, but packed with action.  And when all seems lost, in the last (fourth) book, everything makes sense, and the main character ends up a hero.  Now that’s a good ending.