Grid Lines And Time Zones

In class today, we talked about grids and the lines of latitude. Geography is the study of where things are found on Earth's surface and the reasons for the locations. Human geographers ask two simple questions:
1. Where are people and activities found on Earth?
2. Why are they found there?
Map- two dimensional or flat scale model of the Earth's surface.
Cartography- the art and science of mapmaking.

Here is a world map by Eratosthenes (195 BC).

Map serve two purposes:
1. absolute location
2. relative location
Absolute Location- your position on Earth; expressed in degrees, minutes, and seconds on latitude and longitude.
Relative Location- the regional position or situation of a relative to the position of other places.
Latitude- geographic coordinate that specifies the north-south position of a point on the Earth's surface; measured by imaginary lines running parallel to the equator and used to measure distance in degrees north or south of the equator.
The most significant parallel lines:
Arctic Circle- 66 degrees, 34' (66.57 degrees) N
Tropic of cancer- 23 degrees, 26' (23.43 degrees) N
Equator- (0 degrees N/S)
Tropic of Capricorn- 23 degrees, 26' (23.43 degrees) S
Antarctic Circle- 66 degrees, 34' (66.57 degrees) S

Situation/China Compared To The United States

Today in class, we talked about situation. Situation is a valuable way to indicate location for two reasons:
1. Situation helps us to find an unfamiliar place by comparing its location with a familiar one.
2. Situation helps us understand the importance of a location.
For example, some places are important because they are accessible to other places due to their location. We also talked about the difference between China's manufacturing compared to the U.S. Why do we get goods and materials from other countries? Because it's cheaper. The factory workers there don't get paid much. They get an average of $300 a month whereas the United States factory workers get about $1,200 a month. Also, the U.S pays for insurance and covers the workers' medicine bills. China doesn't do that which allows them to sell them for less. If you get sick in China, you have about 2-3 days to recover or else you're fired. Finally, the last thing that we discussed in class is why Chicago increased in population. The city is located right near the Great Lakes, a tourist attraction. So, when tourists started coming from Europe, they moved to the city of Chicago.

Site

Today in class, we talked about site. Site is the physical character of a place. Important characteristics of site include climate, water sources, topography, soil, vegetation, latitude, and elevation. Although people have disagreed on the attributes of a good site, factors of site have always been essential in selecting locations for settlements. Humans have the ability to modify the characteristics of a site. The Southern portion of New York City's Manhattan Island is twice as large today as it was in 1626 when Peter Minuit bought the island from its native inhabitants for the equivalent of $23.75 worth of Dutch gold and silver coins. Also, we are similar to North Korea in a certain kind of way. We are both on the same line of latitude and longitude, and the weather is very similar also. One of the only things about the difference of North Korea and Maryland is that we are a democracy and they are a dictatorship.

Identifying Countries In North, South, and Central America Quiz!

Today in class, we took an online quiz about countries and continents. There was a map on North America and Central America on one quiz where we had to identify the countries. On the other quiz, it was a map on South America where we also had to identify the countries. I got a 93% on both of them.

Reviewing For The Test

Today in class, we reviewed the test. I got a good grade. Below are some questions and answers from the test. Also, Mr. Schick told us to keep the tests because it could be useful for the midterm exam.

1.  A Message to Garcia was written right after this war: Spanish-American War.
2. This man wrote the essay A Message to Garcia: Elbert Hubbard.
3. This is the US President who needed a message sent to Garcia in the first place: William McKinley.
4. Who was asked to deliver the message to Garcia? Rowan
5. When was A Message to Garcia written? March 1899.
6. The US President who was killed in 1901 was shot by Leon Czolgocz. What were the political beliefs of this assassin? Czolgocz was an anarchist.
7. A stenographer is someone who takes dictation in shorthand.
8. The main gathering place for ancient Greeks was the agora.
9. What is significant about the date 508 BC? In 508 BC, democracy was born. When the ancient greeks revolted, the start of democracy began. The ancient Greeks were the first to revolt.
10. What were the crimes of which Socrates was accused? Corrupting the youth and impiety.
11. What did the ancient Greeks mean if they called you an idiot? They meant that you were focused on yourself and you didn't help build their democratic country by not attending meetings and not talking about politics.
12. Name two words with the same word origin as polis: politics and metropolitan.
13. Name two countries- other than the United States- that have had major, government- changing revolutions since the year 1776: France and Egypt.
14. Which of the following most closely describes the Socratic Method? It is based on asking and answering questions to stimulate critical thinking and to illuminate ideas.
15. As of 2015, what is the correct name of the tallest mountain in Alaska? Denali.

One of the Essay answers:
     A) Socrates was accused of "corrupting the youth" and impiety. When he said his defense, he didn't talk about how sorry he was and that it'll never happen again. Instead he spoke, "I am the gadfly to the sluggish horses. In fact, I should get free dinners for life." Basically, he told the court that someone has to make sure that people are working, and that their democracy is still thriving; he's just doing his job. He pleaded not guilty. However, 279 out of 500 jury members found him guilty. Socrates was sentenced to death. Many of the guards in prison liked Socrates, so they were going to let him escape. But Socrates refused to escape. He was going to stay loyal to the Athenian Democracy. Socrates died of Hemlock poisoning in prison. With this sentence, he was his own executer.

Difference between Mercator and the Peters Projection Map

Today in class, we talked about the difference between the Peters Projection Map and the Mercator Map. The Peters Projection Map is useful because it has the correct size of each continent and country unlike the Mercator. On the Mercator map, the size of the continents and countries are inaccurate; Greenland looks like it's about the same size as North America when in reality, it's much smaller. Africa looks so much smaller on the map when it is actually bigger than Europe. The Peters Projection Map can give you an accurate shape and size of the continents. However, though they make the size and shape accurate, they also stretch countries and continents near the poles to an inaccurate location.

The Mercator Map is useful because they give you an accurate destination with longitude and latitude unlike the Peters Projection Map. On the Peters Map, they don't give you an accurate location. The Mercator Map is useful for sailors mainly because they give you an accurate direction for small areas.
However, the Mercator Map doesn't give you the correct size and shape of the continent and the countries. Both maps have their pros and cons. I believe that they should both be used. The Mercator Map should be used if you're only looking at the United States, and the Peters Map should be used for the world.
                                                                         Mercator Map:                                                 
 
Peters Projection Map:

Maps

Today in class, we talked about maps. We looked at 3 maps, A, B, and C. Map C is a type of map called a Peters Map which gives you the right size of each continent unlike Map B. May B is a certain type of map called a Mercator Map. The Mercator Map has the correct description and the exact latitude and longitudinal location. Mexico on Map C is more realistic than map B because it's a more accurate size. If you turned Map C upside down, then it will be the exact same than if you kept it right side up. The only difference is that Australia would be in the upper left corner, and the U.S would be in the bottom right corner. In Map A, the shallow water is lighter than the deeper water because the ocean is darker than the lakes. Below are some differences between the three maps.

Map A:

• map of the United States
• interstate highways
• mountains
• oceans
• scale

Map B:

• Map of the world sized incorrectly
• Oceans
• Compass rose
• Mountains
• All of Greenland
• Mercator Map
• Grid Line

Map C:

• The world sized correctly
• oceans
• Part of Greenland
• Grid Line
• mountains
• Laminated
• Peters Map

Test Day!

Today in class, we took a test on excellence and a Message To Garcia. The test was made up of multiple choice, fill in the blank, short answer, and two essay questions. There was also a bonus question. The bonus question was, "In 2015, what was the correct name for the tallest mountain in North America? My answer was Denali which is in the state of Alaska. I can't remember many of the questions on the test, but I do remember one of the essay questions.

Describe and explain the Socrates trial and death: 
Socrates was accused of "corrupting the youth" and impiety. His defense was, " It's my job to be gadfly to the lazy, sluggish horse that is Athens. I should actually be rewarded with free dinners for life. He pleaded not guilty. However, 279 out of 500 jury members found him guilty. He was sentenced to death. The guards in prison like him, so they let him escape. But Socrates refused to. He wanted to stay loyal to the Athenian Democracy. He died by drinking Hemlock poisoning. In this situation, he was his own executer.

Overall, the test went well in my opinion. Studying really helps you with a quiz. It helped me. Hopefully I got a good grade. We will know our grade around Sunday.

End Of The Excellence Power Point/Information For The Test Tomorrow

Today in class, we finished the power point and talked about what would be on the test. Below are what topics will be on the test and the end of the power point.

Power point:

• An Idiot in Ancient Greece was someone who didn't go to meetings or help build the Athenian democracy; they were often self-centered around themselves and were more worried about private affairs than public affairs.
• not participating in Athenian Democracy was considered "dishonorable".
• "Idiots were born and citizens were made" according to Athenian Democracy.
• Socrates summary- The unexamined life is not worth living.

What we need to know/Information about the Test:

• Made up of multiple choice, fill in the blank, and essay questions (bonus question also).
• When was the Message To Garcia written?
• Describe the Socratic Method:
• Memorize vocabulary (one of the words will be on the test):
• Spelling counts!
• Meaning of Idiot:
• Who wrote the Message To Garcia?
• McKinley's assassination/ what was the tallest mountain of North America name (until 2015)?
• Who was the messenger in the Message To Garcia?
• Importance of the year 508 BC (they revolted)- fill in the blank:
• Socrates was a member of the working class (not royalty, just a normal guy)
• The Socrates Trial:
• What was he charged with?
• What was his defense?
• Why he didn't escape prison:
• What was his punishment?
• Second essay is an opinionated question.

Socrates and Democracy

Today we took some more notes using Mr. Schick's power point as a guide. Below are the notes that we took today and an example of working synergy. We have a test on Friday about Garcia and Excellence (Aretè)
Example Of Working Synergy:

• Democracy and Energy

Socrates:

• worked as a stonemason
• fought in the Peloponessian War.
• working class background
• met young students outside of the agora.
• founded the socratic method which is the use of questions to develop an idea or belief.
• Athens was a great city (in Socrates' mind).
• visitors shared their knowledge about astronomy, meteorology, literature, medicine, philosophy, and more.
• teachings were centered around the gods and made people question their beliefs.
• accused of "corrupting the youth" and impiety which is not believing in the gods of the state.
• defense was: "It's my job to be gadfly to the lazy, sluggish horse that is Athens. I should actually be rewarded with free dinners for life." 
• The jury founded him guilty and sentenced him to death by poisoning.
• Guards let him escape, but he refused; He was loyal to Athenian democracy.
• Died by drinking poison sent by the guards; in this case, he was his own executioner.

Democracy:

• Greece (508 BC)
• United States (1776)
• France (1789)
• China (1851 & 1949)
• Russia (1970)
• Iran (1979)
• Egypt (2011)

Excellence

Today in class, we talked about Excellence. Ancient greeks called it aretè.  Aretè is described as excellence of any kind, moral virtue, fulfillment  of a purpose, and the act of living up to one's full potential. The highest human potential is knowledge-highest human knowledge is knowledge itself (what separates us from dogs). We also talked about some key terms. Below are the key terms and their definitions.

• agora- public open space used for markets and meetings.
• polis- city state in Ancient Greece in its form for philosophical purposed.
• The importance of the year 508 BC to the ancient Greeks- democracy begins in Athens by a man named Cleisthenes who establishes a constitution called the "Father Of Athenian Democracy".
• Socrates- ancient Greek philosopher who was known for his self-mastery, integrity, philosophical insight, and his argumentative skill.
• Death Of Socrates- Socrates was accused of "corrupting the youth" and disrupting the gods, and sentenced to death. While he was in is prison cell, the guard came and gave Socrates a cup of poison to drink as his punishment; he was his own executer in this case.
• Socratic method- the use of questions to develop an idea founded by Socrates.
• What the ancient Greeks meant if they called you an idiot- people who didn't contribute to the community and didn't talk about politics.

We also have a test on Friday about Garcia and Excellence.

Message To Garcia

Today in class, we finished the reading of A Message To Garcia. The message to Garcia was about how Rowan went on a mission to find Garcia who was fighting for Cuban independence at the time. The writer, Elbert Hubbard, shared his point of view about Rowan's heroic courage compared to other workers. Unlike Rowan, many workers try to get out of doing work. They asked a bunch of random questions, come up with excuses, and run away from their problems even when their job is simple compared to Rowan. However, Rowan didn't run away. He stepped up and took charge without having to be asked twice. Hubbard is not happy with the poor workers. He thinks that they should be fired, beaten with a club, and more. He believes that the boss deserves all of the credit because in his opinion, the boss' job is very stressful finding the right workers. It says in the passage that the boss' would just keep firing the poor workers until they came across the hard workers. I'm not sure that I believe some parts of the story, but what I do believe is that the Message To Garcia shows Initiative: doing your job without being told to.

Likes And Dislikes About High School/Garcia

Today we talked about our likes and dislikes of high school so far. Below is a list of our likes and dislikes. We also talked about a message to Garcia. In the message, it talked about how Andrew Summers Rowan was on a mission to carry a message to Garcia. Rowan went on a journey to find Garcia. He found Garcia's hideout, and delivered the president's message. Rowan was a courageous hero to go on a deadly mission, but he knew that Garcia had to know. So, he toughened up and carried out the mission. In my opinion, Rowan's act of bravery is the central theme of the story.

Likes:

• Off Mods
• Lunch
• Advisory

Dislikes:

• Homework
• Time management
• Might not have an off mod every day

High school can be tough with all of the homework, extracurricular activities, and sports. However, it is a learning experience that you will never forget. Eventually we will get better at time management, and we will have a great year.

Best And Worst Part Of The First Day Of John Carroll/ Why I Do And Don't Like My Seat In Class

Today was the first day of high school at John Carroll. There were many highlights in the day. However, there were also a couple lowlights throughout the day. There was a good part of my day and a bad part of my day. The best part of my day was that I got to visit every class and meet every teacher. They were all so nice and welcoming. The worst part of my day was when I got lost finding my last mod class and trying to get my locker opened. I still am figuring out those locker locks.

I like the seat I was given in class today because I have a little more space than if I was in the middle. It feels like you're not too isolated, yet you still have a little bit of space. John Carroll is feeling like a second home and the JC patriots are feeling like a second family.