School has been crazy. Math is hard. Writing is hard. Humanities is hard. I'm having a rough term.
Our 3rd math exam is tomorrow. I will be studying for that after this post. This one is on vectors, parametric equations, and Cartesian/polar coordinates. I better have a use for this stuff later in life. Our instructor is still awesome and I have decided to not take a math class over the summer and will go to the Southeast campus to take calculus from him next fall and winter. I don't really want to commute, but he really is that good.
I'm learning a lot in my writing class. Working on critical thinking skills, as well as writing, has been a good thing. I still struggle with the essays, but it's getting a little easier. I have a 7 page rough draft to get done before class on Thursday. The final paper is due a week from then. I really have no excuse to not do well on it. I am hoping for an "A" in this class, but might get a "B". This has been a mentally demanding class with a really good instructor and I have learned a lot. I think I would be alright with a "B".
I am still not impressed with my humanities class. I have this stupid final project that I have a week to finish. I'm not all that happy with the subject (the effect of religion on medicine in the Middle Ages) and have no idea what my visual aid is going to be. Using Powerpoint would make it easy, but I think your grade might reflect the instructor's bias against it and her need to be entertained. She still hasn't even handed back midterm tests. That was 3 weeks ago. I'll be glad when this class is over.
I changed my mind on classes for the summer term. Right now I am registered for 4 classes, although I'm on the wait list on one of them. The classes are ESR172 (same as the envir. sci class. I took last term, but from a chemical perspective instead of biological), EC203 ( in-depth look at some current economic issues), EC230 (international economics), and HE250 (personal health). These are all online classes except for ESR172 which meets on Wednesday from 9am to 12:50 for the lectures and Thursday at the same time for field trips. I might add one more class in case I don't get into the wait list class.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Another day, another 210,000 (or more) gallons of oil
I didn't realize it had been so long since I last posted. I will try to not go so long again. So, here's a small part of my opinion on the huge oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
So much for a quick and decisive response from Obama. I am thoroughly annoyed and disappointed, but not surprised. And no one should be surprised that Republicans have been blocking Democrats attempts to change liability for oil companies from $75 million to $10 billion, which potentially could be much less than the actual cost of the Deepwater Horizon spill. Republicans have been claiming that the proposed new limits are too high and will hurt independent businesses. Really? How many "mom and pop" exploratory oil drilling operations are there? If a company has the resources to do this kind of work and wants to make the associated profits, they should be liable for ANY damages that they cause. It is upsetting, but again not a surprise, that there is so much incompetence and corruption in the departments that regulate, inspect, and oversee mining and drilling. But Democrats are not blameless by any means. Corruption has become the norm for many politicians, regardless of party affiliation. Corruption, much like love, is blind.
It's always about money. Corporations regularly break laws. It has become expected. But why wouldn't they? For example, if a corporation can make a $5 billion profit on an endeavor but will likely be fined $25 million for their actions, their shareholders would likely be very upset if the corporation didn't pursue the opportunity, even if it means breaking laws. And they would most likely reward their CEO for it. This is what capitalism has come to. Would it really have made an appreciable difference in BP's bottom line to have installed additional safety equipment that is required in most of the rest of the world? A $500,000 valve could have prevented this newest oil spill. BP's profits for just the first quarter of 2010 were $5.6 billion. That's after expenses and taxes. But its been a good year for BP. Last year in the first quarter they only made $2.4 billion in profits. Poor BP. If laws change, they might only make a couple billion dollars in profit this year. How horrible for them.
BP claims that the "top kill" method they are going to use to attempt to plug the leak has a 60-70% chance of working. What chances did they give the last failed attempt? I'm certainly no expert, but considering how dishonest they have been throughout this whole affair and their past record of deceptions, I give it a 15-20% chance of working. I really hope it will work. The environmental damage and the loss of livelihood will be devastating and the effects will be felt for many years to come. But I have very little faith that it will work.
The cliche "money is the root of all evil" may go a little far, but not by much.
So much for a quick and decisive response from Obama. I am thoroughly annoyed and disappointed, but not surprised. And no one should be surprised that Republicans have been blocking Democrats attempts to change liability for oil companies from $75 million to $10 billion, which potentially could be much less than the actual cost of the Deepwater Horizon spill. Republicans have been claiming that the proposed new limits are too high and will hurt independent businesses. Really? How many "mom and pop" exploratory oil drilling operations are there? If a company has the resources to do this kind of work and wants to make the associated profits, they should be liable for ANY damages that they cause. It is upsetting, but again not a surprise, that there is so much incompetence and corruption in the departments that regulate, inspect, and oversee mining and drilling. But Democrats are not blameless by any means. Corruption has become the norm for many politicians, regardless of party affiliation. Corruption, much like love, is blind.
It's always about money. Corporations regularly break laws. It has become expected. But why wouldn't they? For example, if a corporation can make a $5 billion profit on an endeavor but will likely be fined $25 million for their actions, their shareholders would likely be very upset if the corporation didn't pursue the opportunity, even if it means breaking laws. And they would most likely reward their CEO for it. This is what capitalism has come to. Would it really have made an appreciable difference in BP's bottom line to have installed additional safety equipment that is required in most of the rest of the world? A $500,000 valve could have prevented this newest oil spill. BP's profits for just the first quarter of 2010 were $5.6 billion. That's after expenses and taxes. But its been a good year for BP. Last year in the first quarter they only made $2.4 billion in profits. Poor BP. If laws change, they might only make a couple billion dollars in profit this year. How horrible for them.
BP claims that the "top kill" method they are going to use to attempt to plug the leak has a 60-70% chance of working. What chances did they give the last failed attempt? I'm certainly no expert, but considering how dishonest they have been throughout this whole affair and their past record of deceptions, I give it a 15-20% chance of working. I really hope it will work. The environmental damage and the loss of livelihood will be devastating and the effects will be felt for many years to come. But I have very little faith that it will work.
The cliche "money is the root of all evil" may go a little far, but not by much.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Still confused
So I have once again decided that I don't really know what my major is going to be. I've been thinking (and stressing out) a lot about this lately and am swinging back in the direction of Environmental Studies with a minor in economics. As I have said before, this decision may not last.
I registered today for summer term classes. I decided to not take a math class over the summer. This is more due to the fact that the math requirements are different for an ES major and an economics major.
I am registered for four classes. I wanted to take HE250 (required health class) online, but apparently waited too long to register, even though today was the first day. I still signed up, but am #5 on the waitlist for this class. I may or may not get in to it. The decision to not take math freed up the time for ESR172, which is the same as the ESR class I took last term, but from a chemical perspective instead of a biological one. And I already own the book. I think that this class will have more field trips than the last one and it should be a fun class. It will be on Wednesdays from 9am to 12:50pm and field trips will be on Thursdays at the same time. I registered for on online version of the economics class that I wanted to take this term. Hopefully this one won't be canceled since it is online instead of on campus. I already have the book for this one also. And just in case one of these classes is canceled or I can't get into the health class, I signed up for CH105, which is the second chemistry class in the series for non-chemistry majors. I took the first one, CH104, last summer. This class is a long one. It's 5 credits and will be held on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6pm to 8:45pm (lecture) and Tuesdays from 5:30pm to 9:20pm (lab). The book for this class is outrageously expensive at $189 plus $38 for online access to OWL.
I still have nearly $2000 left from my IDA account and that will more than pay for classes this term. Even so, I have been seriously entertaining thoughts of getting a part-time job soon. I could just spend all of my savings and start getting student loans, but I want to push those options off as far as I can. I'm thinking about getting certified and working as a security guard, mostly because it's easy, there are a lot of part time opportunities, and I can probably work weekends which will leave the whole week free for school.
I registered today for summer term classes. I decided to not take a math class over the summer. This is more due to the fact that the math requirements are different for an ES major and an economics major.
I am registered for four classes. I wanted to take HE250 (required health class) online, but apparently waited too long to register, even though today was the first day. I still signed up, but am #5 on the waitlist for this class. I may or may not get in to it. The decision to not take math freed up the time for ESR172, which is the same as the ESR class I took last term, but from a chemical perspective instead of a biological one. And I already own the book. I think that this class will have more field trips than the last one and it should be a fun class. It will be on Wednesdays from 9am to 12:50pm and field trips will be on Thursdays at the same time. I registered for on online version of the economics class that I wanted to take this term. Hopefully this one won't be canceled since it is online instead of on campus. I already have the book for this one also. And just in case one of these classes is canceled or I can't get into the health class, I signed up for CH105, which is the second chemistry class in the series for non-chemistry majors. I took the first one, CH104, last summer. This class is a long one. It's 5 credits and will be held on Mondays and Wednesdays from 6pm to 8:45pm (lecture) and Tuesdays from 5:30pm to 9:20pm (lab). The book for this class is outrageously expensive at $189 plus $38 for online access to OWL.
I still have nearly $2000 left from my IDA account and that will more than pay for classes this term. Even so, I have been seriously entertaining thoughts of getting a part-time job soon. I could just spend all of my savings and start getting student loans, but I want to push those options off as far as I can. I'm thinking about getting certified and working as a security guard, mostly because it's easy, there are a lot of part time opportunities, and I can probably work weekends which will leave the whole week free for school.
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