Honors Vocabulary- Week 1

For the honors vocabulary lists, we are supposed to define the words and then write them in a sentence; 5 of the words must be described with "photo vocabulary".

1) flourish - to grow and prosper: The plant flourished under the optimal weather conditions.

2) guerilla - a member of a group of unorganized fighters: The guerillas quickly fell to the structure and power of the military.

3) renegade - a person who betrays their country, group, or principles: The renegade was shunned by all his former teammates; everyone was upset when he switched to a different soccer club.

4) tariff - a tax on goods: Governments sometimes place higher tariffs on imported goods to encourage domestic spending.

tranquility - peace, calmness: The baby was very tranquil after a warm bath and milk.

5) tumult - a loud commotion or disturbance: The tumultuous crash from the kitchen startled the dinner guests.

unanimous - united, in agreement: The citizens of University City unanimously voted him to be a town council member.

Photo Vocabulary:

6) stereotype - a widely held view of a certain group. This picture depicts some of the stereotypes commonly linked with French people. For example, many people assume that all the French eat snails and baguettes and are heavy chain smokers and drinkers. He is also drawn with a stereotypical French hat, the beret. The speech bubble indicates the general feeling that the French are rude people. Stereotypes are most often wrong and can be hurtful and judgemental. It is considered a good practice to abstain from using them.

7) tempo - speed of motion or activity. The photo to the left is a picture of New York City, I chose it to depict tempo because of the general lifestyle of the inhabitants. New York's city life has a very fast paced tempo, things are always going on, life does not wait. People are always moving, faces are always changing; it is a tempo many can't keep up with.

8) tundra - expansive area of "treeless plains" in arctic zones. This photo shows a snow deer in its natural habitat; other animals that live in the tundra include arctic foxes, white owls, hares, and moose. The tundra is the coldest biome, or natural living area and has low biodiversity because of the limited number of creatures that can thrive there.

9) repose - to rest. This picture is one of the illustrations in the children's book The Tortoise and The Hare. In the story, the tortoise and the hare agree to race each other around a park. When the race begins, the hare takes off at full speed, leaving the tortoise trekking slowly in the dust. The hare goes to repose by a shady tree, thinking he can outrun the tortoise at the finish line, but mistakenly sleeps for too long and loses the race.

10) symbiosis - interaction between organisms living close together. This photo shows a picture of actresses from popular show series Desperate Housewives. Their characters represent the perfect neighbor: offering to babysit, bringing fresh baked goods to mourning friends, and just being there to talk to. These housewives live in symbiosis: they live the same neighborhood and help each other in their time of need, they are best friends.

"What to eat?"

After reading certain excerpts from In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan and the recently introduced "Ban Poisonous Additives Act," we were assigned to answer discussion questions about eating habits and government involvement in public health.

First and foremost, I think people eat unhealthy products because as a population, we are very uneducated in matters of food. The people of society aren't all aware of the calorical intake and nutritional balance we are supposed to maintain. We aren't very well informed of the consequences of our food choices. On the other hand, I do believe that many people eat based on convenience. What I mean by that is that we tend to eat what's most available and cheap, without considering our nutritional needs.

I think the government should be involved in our eating decisions to a certain extent. I don't think they have the right to tell us what to eat; it is essentially a free choice. I do however believe that it has the responsibility of keeping society aware of the ideal nutritional meals and suggest specific foods, as well as warn us of potential health risks. I think the government's duty is to protect us from the food industries and their desire to exploit and sell; our health is the prime concern, not production revenue.

Social Deviance

For this project we had to film people's reactions to deviance in society. For our group, we chose to record the reactions of people when we approached them requesting to eat lunch together. The video quality isn't too great, so to see the subtitles you should try to watch it full screen if possible.

Finding a Voice

For this assignment, we were all supposed to write a biography about the same person; our teacher introduced us to Novelina Betancourt, who later gave us a speech about her life. The purpose of this piece was to learn how bland personal statements can be when they all sound the same, it emphasized for us to find our own voice in writing.

Biography

Who is Novalena Betancourt? You may not know her, but she already wants to help you. She’s a family-oriented Puerto Rican raised in San Francisco, taking life one step at a time. She takes each and every experience as a time to reflect and a new way of learning about herself. She’s even created her list of five values to focus on: love, connection, growth, authenticity, and relationships. She’s taken life by the reins by following her self-created philosophies without regret.

Like all of us, Novalena has had her share of struggles. Family life took a toll on her from a young age, the frequent “chemical imbalances” made it difficult to establish good relationships. Although her two long-term relationships ended abruptly, she has held her head up high and moved forward with her interests. After an exciting college experience at UC Davis, she was left frustrated and without a job, disappointed with what life was offering.

With her smooth, instantly likeable voice, she landed a job at a radio station promoting female empowerment. The callers she often spoke with gave her a desire to help and apply her philosophies. A lover of reading and self-reflection, Novalena decided to but the two together and try her hand in the writing business, and is now in the process of writing her second book The Total Female Package. She promotes introspection and the mindset that women have the inner power to do anything.

Like Aristotle, Plato, and Socrates, Novalena has used her past to dissect human nature. She believes that authenticity is key; from a young age her father taught her to be true to whatever you believe to “have faith in action”. She encourages people to love themselves and harvest their underlying feelings to create their ideal happy lifestyle.

Though young and spunky, Novalena Betancourt has developed countless philosophies and ideas about the course of life. She hopes for everyone to find a balance in their life and ultimately find happiness. She has used life’s experiences to her advantage and hopes to inspire others to do the same.