Post #12 4/28/09 "Earth" is a Scary Place

Recently released to theaters on Earth Day was Disneynature's first documentary "Earth." Showcasing the one year journeys of several animal families, namely the African Elephants, Polar Bears, and Humpback Whales, "Earth" gives an in depth analysis of different types of events that these animals face every day while capturing the beauty and essence of nature. So long these details sound peachy keen, and if you have seen the trailerthe scenes are stunning and adorable. However, there are some unfortunate events in nature that take place but are necessary to be filmed. In making this particular type documentary the director must include all of the realities of nature even if it requires shooting a caribou calf being killed and eaten by a wolf or a baby elephant wandering farther and farther away from its mother until it is lost.

Although "Earth" seems to capture some of our planet's most intimate moments and appears as a family friendly film, it drops the ball with a proper rating. According to Jsse Ellison in "Newsweek" he witnessed a child frightened by the scene of a wolf preying on a calf. I myself have not yet watched the movie but for a scene of that nature even giving some of the adults in the theater goosebumps, this docementary should not have been rated G. Sure this documentary may only have a very few scenes like the one just described but one bad scene can easily terrify a child. Just imagine a second grade class going to watch this movie as a field trip. Since the movie is rated G none of the adults would assume that there would be any graphic images. Most likely, only two teachers and a few parents would chaperone, so when that one scary part arrives the majority of the children would not have anyone to comfort them when they are overcame by fear.

In the words of University of Illinois professor, Barbara J. Wilson, states, "As many parents have learned, younger children were more likely to focus on the Tviolent behavior which is concrete and easy to see." With that said, children will be vulnerable and open during this violent scene and will most likely turn away a few seconds later instead of turning away so that they will miss the scene. To be safe, this movie should at least be rated PG. This way a situation like that would never occur, and parents would have to accompany their child to this movie and thus able to be there for their child during frightening scenes and to explain to them the reality of what they just observed. Although the directors meant no harm, there is no such thing as being too safe.

Here is more information on Professor Wilson's article on "Wrong Ratings."
http://www.medialit.org/reading_room/article97.html

As for everything else, there seems to be no problem with the movie in general. It looks very interesting and must be spectacular.

Post #11 4/21/09 "Up" with the 3D?

Like the creative genius, Walt Disney, said himself, "We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths," I feel that 3D in movies is a useful technique for cinema's path of curiosity. With the recent release of "Monsters Vs. Aliens" and the upcoming and anticipated release of Disney and Pixar's new movie "Up" 3D has popped up into mainstream once again.

By enhancing the vision of the audience and offering an in depth view of the movie, 3D in movies is one step closer to connecting with the audience. However, some claim that 3D is one of the "Top 10 Movie Gimmicks." They feel that it is another way to boost ticket prices, and complain that all it does is give people headaches.

Aside from these 3D haters are those who claim 3D to be the next big thing. Namely Jeffrey Katzenberg, the CEO of Dreamworks, said that "3-D is the future, but digital cinemas have to be in place first. " Although it is a plus that no one will be able to pirate any movies.

In my opinion, I feel that 3d is not the future of cinema, but a useful device to draw audiences into the movie. I can say that 3D is not going to be equivalent to the innovation of color in films. Its effects increase some of the audience's appeal depending on the movie, but the revival of this century year old practice just takes away your attention from the animation. It draws you away from the improvements in movements and caricatures, and one of its prime uses is to make the movie seem realistic. In addition, 3D is only useful in certain movies. For one thing, the purpose of animation is to make things seem magical and outlandish. If I wanted to see something realistic I would watch a regular movie with live people acting.

However, if the improvements in 3D technology help tell the story instead of showing several scenes in which portray the 3D effect, then it serves no purpose. In the case of "Up" I have had the opportunity to watch the first 45 minutes of "Up" and can say that 3D would definitely enhance the story and draw the audience even closer. In a film like this that is filled with action and the beautiful surroundings of an unknown environment you can feel the depth and the majesty of the scene. It also provides the audience with the chance to look through the eyes of the main character in emotional scenes. In addition the director Pete Docter, director of "Monsters' Inc.", was there to elaborate on the use of 3D and how it truly captures the essence of a film like "Up." I do not want to spoil anything so far but the majority of the scenes would benefit from 3D since they deal with flight and the outdoors.

Anyway I am all for 3D. It has is some defaults, but when it is used properly it definitely adds to some flare to the story. I'll just have to watch animated movies twice so I can admire the animation without the 3D too.

On a side note, so far "Up" is probably one of Disney/Pixar's funniest movies yet and will not disappoint anyone, and is a must see. Just be ready to shed some tears in the beginning. Here are some videos.









Up Exclusive Featurette

Forum Post #5 4/7/09 Cultureless Assumptions

A common misconception that the Chinese who live in a metropolitan area make about the Sichuanese migrants is that they are uncultured. Yet again, like Peter said, this is the usual assumption that people make about anyone who works in a rural area. Although people formulate bitter assumptions Peter goes on saying how the Sichuanese could care less about what others think of them, and how they just focus on the work that needs to be done or the work they can find. This way they can focus on making enough money to make ends meet. It is interesting to think how ignorant the urban population can be in assuming how those working in rural China are uncultured, since China itself and the majority of other countries have been built up from a agriculturally and rural location into a thriving world power. Sichuan itself used to be the most populous province in China and was home to more than 120 million people until it was split into two. The urban society forgets their own roots and are actually the ones who are more cultureless than those in Sichuan. Accustomed to a new age, urban citizens are not familiar with traditional Chinese styles of living that the Sichuan migrants continue to live with. The Sichuanese area is is developing very slowly compared ot other areas, but being in a rural area it holds some of the cultural customs that helped build China into what it is today.

Post #10 3/31/09 Steatlh Health

With numerous of different fast food restaurants just around the corner, along with the variety of sugar filled snacks in the cabinet, junk food is seems to be everywhere. More appealing than a juicy apple or any other fruit or vegetable, stealth health is an academic field that studies how certain methods yield a child to make a healthy or unhealthy decision at the lunch line. Instead of banning junk food the field of stealth health focuses on ways of tricking a child to eat healthy without realizing it. By giving meals creative names, asking every child if they want fruit, or even providing easy access to healthier foods in the "grab and go" section, researchers claim that these methods provide plentiful opportunity for making the health foods more appealing.

In my opinion, tricking a child into eating healthier food is insufficient and fails to provide long term solutions for bad eating habits of children. When children leave the elementary school lunch lines and grow up, there is not going to be somebody at McDonald's asking if they want fresh medley apples with their Big Mac. The foundation of good eating habits should start at home where parents encourage there children why eating healthy is best and what the consequences are for not doing so. This way children learn how to be disciplined and begin to be accustomed to making healthier decisions.

Like WebMD says, http://children.webmd.com/guide/kids-healthy-eating-habits

"By teaching your children healthy eating habits, you can keep them at a healthy weight . Also, the eating habits your children pick up when they are young will help them maintain a healthy lifestyle when they are adults."

Sure telling kindergartners that carrots give you x-ray vision may get them to eat them. However, after a few days they will figure it out and will not buy that "this week's celery will make you fly.

Eating healthy is a decision we all have to make. Yes, schools should provide healthier foods instead of junk food for lunch but having to trick someone into eating healthy is only a short term solution. Before they know it previous bad eating habits will return, and cakes and pies will be desired once more.

Post #9 3/24/09 Rumors: Volume Jon Minus Kate Plus 8

As a fan of the TLC reality show Jon and Kate Plus 8 I am quite confused and dissapointed with the recent occurrences in the news. In relation to the Newsweek article about the Duggar family of 18 children and LeAnn Rimes' incident in which she was caught making out with her costar even though she and him are married, there are rumors of a big disruption in the relationship between John and Kate. Various sources such as In Touch Magazine claimed that Jon was living with his mom and spending time away from home going to bars and hanging out with college girls. Supposedly girls from Juniata College say that Jon said he may get a divorce. According to other witnesses hew was playing beer pong with a women's volleyball team and dancing. There is even a picture of him with two girls that the media claim as evidence.

However, a TLC representing Jon said,

“It is certainly hurtful for people to spread rumors and lies about us. It certainly makes me reluctant to live my life like the average person would. This has made it very clear that the simplest innocent gesture–such as taking a picture with a fan, can be taken out of context. As you can see on the show, I am not perfect, but I am a part of a loving family and couple.”

Also, Jon said that he did live with his mother for eight days because she had a broken foot and that the alleged picture was just with two fans.

Yet, the media continued to widen the gap by making assumptions that their romance is gone and that she is tough on him. They are so outlandish that they pinpoint little things like how close they are during interviews or how Jon's tone is. They even assumed that when Jon went on a father daughter ski trip with Cara ski, that he just wanted to get away from Kate.

Some of the paparazzis information seems true, but a part of me thinks that these rumors are completely redonkulous and that they are miscontruing the whole situation. Once again, as a fan I believe John and hope that the rumors are completely false.

Hopefully things won't turn out like this.


http://www.bittenandbound.com/2009/03/17/jon-kate-plus-8-finale-marital-problems-video/

The rumors about the Gosselins just goes to show how the media spreads many unpleasant rumors that are aimed for the downfall of stars. Whether rumors are true are not, dealing with these remarks is the difficult part. Whether rumors are about celebrities or just regular people, rumors are hard to cope with. "They make it hard to be at peace." Not only do they tear the person they are about, but they disrupt the mutal trust in the relationships they have with other people. The keys to dealing with rumors is to

• First, some mechanism is needed for determining what rumors are actually circulating.
• Second, an effective strategy is needed for determining which rumors are true, and which are false.
• Finally, mechanisms are needed for correcting inaccurate rumors and replacing them with reliable information.

When we recognize what is being said, then labeling the true from the false, and then provide the correct statistics we will be able to deal with the rumors. Although the whole situation may not be fixed, knowing that you are correct and attempted to state your case is all one needs to be at peace. Then again we can simply just stop spreading rumors.

Here's a link for an in depth analysis of rumor control.
http://www.beyondintractability.org/essay/rumor_control/

Post #8 3/17/09 Quiverfull

When it comes to watching television shows that portray how life is raising a huge amount of children, you just can not believe how a couple can have that many kids. Now I have never watched the show "18 Kids and Counting," but found their family story to be quite interesting. In this week's edition of Newsweek there was an article that discussed the religious conviction called Quiverfull. Claiming that the twenty member Duggar family follows this religious conviction, this family believes that any form of birth control is a form of abortion. They also believe that births should not be planned and that only god can control the amount of kids a couple has. Those who follow this are open to all "unqualified blessings."

This type of "extreme motherhood" seems to be overbearing and extreme. There is no doubt that the majority of couples are even considering about having a quarter of the amount of children the Duggar family has. When you think about costs having twenty kids is going to tough to handle, especially when you do not get any money for showcasing your life on television.

The link below provides answers for some questions on the issue of Quiverfull. They are answered by a Quiverfull follower who has many kids of his or her own. So, obviously the answers will be supportive to the subject.

http://lotsofkids.com/LOK-Features/quiver/quiverfull.htm

The parent does make decent arguments stating that "Therefore deliberately preventing the conception of a child is saying, in effect, that that child is unwanted and worthless." and that "Age wears your body out along with having babies."

Althoug I am not very religious, I feel that there needs to be a plan in births. Having and raising thirty kids is something I can not fathom and there is nothing that can change my mind about how crazy this conviction is. Especially when the woman said that "Guiness" has a woman with 69 children in Russia.

What do you guys think?

Post # 7 3/10/09 Dancing With the Athletes

Yesterday "Dancing With the Stars" returned to ABC's programming schedule for an eighth season. Out of the thirteen stars two of them were professional athletes NFL legend Lawrence Taylor and Olympic medalist Shawn Johnson. In this week's issue of "Newsweek" Jesse Ellison talked about how five NFL players have competed in this dance competition and how Lawrence is focusing on not embarrassing himself.

Well, some of you may have heard of how some athletes take dance lessons to improve their overall performance. Aside from being an art form dancing incorporates speed, strength, and grace. Many forms of dance are looked at as ways of making athletes better. Whether it is improving foot work through steps from the Tango, or toning your muscles with a variety of ballet moves, coaches and players have become open to dance as a form of practice drill. John Shepherd said "This has led researchers and sports team players and coaches to experiment with ballet and other dance forms as a conditioning method." In the article below Sheperd discusses the aspects of how dance improves athletic performance. Sheperd even researched about skiers in Sweden who evaluated several skiers who had dance training comparing their results to those of skiers who did not have any dance training. Their experiments resulted in the dancers having more mobility which decreased back pain. In another experiment to test balance results concluded that the risk of falling was majorly reduced.

http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/can-athletes-dance-their-way-to-agility

He recognizes how dancing improves speed and balance, thus making athletes more graceful as they move even faster. This is mainly due to how dancing deals with being light on your feet.

In this article below M. Lane talks about how ballet improves athletic performance saying, "Specifically, ballet will tone muscles and help the dancer develop better body awareness. Ballet improves strength, flexibility, coordination, dexterity and agility. Adding ballet to a workout will complement just about any sport." Supplementing athletes workouts, ballet uses a barre attached to the wall to warm up parts of your body which improve muscle symmetry.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/319617/ballet_training_for_athletes.html?cat=14

With dance athletes can become more tone through different exercises and improve their balance and increase their speed, becoming swift and graceful in the game. Dancing makes normal movements look even better and prevent performance mishaps.