In Which I Go On a Long-Winded Rant

(Bear with me. I'm kind of just going to go with my stream-of-consciousnsess so it'll probably wander.)

I don't blog much anymore because life has been keeping me fairly busy. Around the time I stopped posting semi-regularly, I got into graduate school and a teacher credential program. I was once again consumed with being a full-time student who was basically working for free, and that was seriously the hardest thing I ever had to do. Then I got my first teaching position, and THAT was the hardest thing I've ever had to do.

Now I sit here, one week into my summer break after an amazing year with some amazing people and kids, spending my time on BuzzFeed, YouTube, Tumblr, or writing in my Pokemon fanfiction. I eagerly await my camping trip in a month and know I will at some point have to start preparing for the next school year since we go back in early August.

But there is something else I feel I need to write. In my work, I've added a little bit of political backstory that is sort of a caricature of what is going on in our actual reality. Because what is going on is freaking ridiculous. We have as a frontrunner for president a man who has alienated nearly every group of people in this country aside from rich white people or the poor, uneducated ones who fear anything different than them. The world literally laughs at us. What is more frightening is the fact that, up until recently, he was standing a good chance of winning because Bernie-or-Bust assholes believe the lies spoonfed to them about "Shillary" (it's not even an imaginative insult, ffs). Some are coming over, even though he still hasn't ceded the race (get out already, old man). If anyone thinks for one second that Clinton is as bad as or worse than Trump, then you are mistaken. Voting for a third party in system such as ours (where, at the district level, we award votes in a winner-take-all fashion) is pointless. Sorry, Libertarians and Independents, but that's just how it is for now. If you waste your vote on a third party, refuse to vote, or write in Bernie Sanders, then you are ignorant and deserve what you get. Unfortunately, you assholes will take everyone else with you.

Brexit has shown us in quick fashion how dangerous this reactionary, "fuck the government and immigrants" nonsense is. It doesn't just affect them, either. Whether people like it or not, we live in a global society. The USA already tried isolationism once after the first World War. When Germany started conquering Europe and killing people, we shrugged and stayed out of it until it finally hit close enough to home. Sadly, war is what helped finish pulling us out of the Great Depression, which was brought on in part by the similar deregulatory practices of our current times. We don't call it the Great Recession to be cute. Speaking of WWII,  part of Hitler's successful rhetoric was to blame various groups (Jews, gays/lesbians, immigrants) for the country's woes. One of the best professors I had in university taught me the important lesson that everyone but my generation especially needs to be able to recognize those sentiments. When you dehumanize a group, you can blame them for everything and do anything to them. Due to the destabilizing of the Middle East (thanks, Bush and friends!), immigrants have been flooding into parts of Europe. Racism and bigotry was definitely a reason many voted to leave the EU. What do you think is coming out of the mouths of so many Republican politicians here at home? Ban Muslims. And people are literally throwing their fists into the air in agreement with this. Trump supporters scare me almost as much as the man himself becoming president.

While this didn't start off to be a political rant of that sort, but it does lead me into the point I was going to make. Those same talking heads warning us about the dangers of Islamic terrorism also want to make sure those same theoretical boogiemen can obtain weapons of mass destruction. I'm not meaning the ones Bush went to Iraq for (really it was just oil)- I mean the kind that really exist and can mow down a crowd in under a minute. Perhaps mass is a little extreme, but guns are a larger threat to this country than plutonium bombs and terrorists, and yet because they are enshrined in our constitution as a right, no one wants to do anything about it. (Although I applaud the Democrats for finally doing something in the House, even if the ruling party gave them the figurative finger, voted on something else, and adjourned for a two-week vacation.) When children were gunned down and nothing changed, I knew nothing ever would. Two terrorists even shot up a holiday party in my city, and all I did was shrug. I hate to admit it, but I shrugged over Orlando, too. It has just gotten so frustrating that these things happen on a regular basis and that all of the outrage and loss from people across the nation falls on ears deafened by the NRA.

Naturally, the pro-gun people (affectionately termed 'ammosexuals') came out right away, blaming terrorism because he was a Muslim. No, it wasn't his likely mental illness or the fact (now questionable, I guess?) that he was a closeted gay man who probably hated himself to a degree. (I blame his religious and intolerant father for this one.) This case I feel is a cross-section between the larger discussion on tolerance and acceptance of the LGBTQ+ community and more effective treatment of and education on mental illness. I don't believe he even knew what he was talking about when he pledged to ISIS. Sadly, the LGBTQ+ community is already marginalized by the politicians saying guns = good. They are also stoking fear of the Muslim community, again.

I even read this one comment on a BF article (a powerful video about growing up a Millenial under the shadow of mass shootings) that partially inspired me to rant tonight. She said the one thing these shooters have in common is that they have been on SSRIs and other drugs for various mental illnesses. I'm, like, duh? Unstable people do unpredictable things? I thought that was obvious? That's why they're on drugs, so they can function. Here's where it turned. She blamed the DRUGS for making them unstable and for messing with their mind. She proceeded to rant about Big Pharma and the chemicals in our food (a sad testament to the lack of science education in our country...everything is a chemical., anything can kill you in the right amounts, and poor people in the developing world don't have the privilege to reject non-organic, non-GMO food because they're too busy starving). As someone who has a brother living with bipolar disorder, I know firsthand what not treating that disease looks like. He hasn't been on his meds in months, and some days I really have some horrible thoughts about what should happen to him to get him out of my life. (Sidenote: I also likely have some form of anxiety disorder and should get it checked, but I am total hypocrite on this right now, I freely admit.) When used properly, these drugs save lives and let people function, have jobs, and even have families. If the Church of Scientology agrees with your opinion, that should be a red flag that you are WRONG.

I was watching a YT video where Piers Morgan was interviewing a pro-gun supporter on GM Britain. Somehow, the conversation devolved into comparing guns to Kinder Eggs. (We had something similar here called the Nestle Surprise, but they disappeared a while ago.) Those eggs are banned here because they pose a choking hazard to children. I thought, 'So if we can ban candy, why can't we have reasonable restriction on guns?' That's basically what Piers was trying to get at. The asshat actually said that choking is a common cause of death for children and avoided Piers' question totally. Then he brought out how many deaths a year from gun violence are suicides. This is sadly true. People who are at the darkest of dark places and want to end it all will find a way to do it. But guns make that much easier. There is also much less of chance to screw up. Guns are more permanent. Just yesterday a mom in Texas snapped for whatever reason and killed both her daughters. People started arguing in the comments about how she could have stabbed them to death so let's ban all knives!!!11! They also brought up that mass stabbing in China in 2014 (there were multiple stabbers, though, and it was not as deadly if divide the 33 deaths by the 4 men). Plus stabbing someone involves getting their blood on your body, feeling the metal pierce their flesh and fat and organs. It's more personal and thus harder. Pulling a trigger is way easier.

Last point: we regulate female reproductive organs more strictly than we do guns. Same goes for birth control, which leads to fewer abortions. I thought that was the goal but guess I am wrong? (I read the story of a couple whose child would not survive and had to go through hell thanks to the 20-week ban in Texas. So sad and so maddening.)

So...here I am, at the end of my thought train. I feel mentally tired after all of this, but it also feels good to get it out there in written form. Now, someone might ask me what am I going to do about any of these things? And the answer is I don't know. It feels like nothing can be done, which may sound like the so-called typical millenial apathy my generation is famous for. We rant all we want on Tumblr and Facebook but don't actually get stuff done (one reason why the Occupy Movement fell flat).

I want to be able to change the world. I want a place where people love who they love and we can click 'like' FB wedding announcements equally. I want a place where people aren't afraid of science so we can use it to grow food sustainably for more people, so we can understand, prevent, and cure disease. I want a place where everyone can worship their god/s and I don't have to hide my atheism from anyone. (I'm not militant, I promise. Those people are assholes.)

There is so much I want for this world, and I could go on and on for a while. What I want doesn't matter because it isn't a reality. But it can be. Right now, the best place I can be is teaching the next generation. If anyone is going to get things done, it's them. My generation screwed it up. Or maybe we're all just fed up with the huge debt of student loans and credit cards, a menial job even with a Bachelor's, the unobtainable goal of owning property, of the crushing reality that we'll have to work forever before we retire and that SS may not be there, that healthcare is still largely unaffordable. Worst of all, when we bring these concerns up, we're mocked by the generation that led us down this path. That is a rant for another time, though (maybe).

For the most immediate future, though, I'm going to write some more in my Pokemon fanfic, listen to my playlist, and get lost in a world I can control.

Peace.

Bad Night Turned Okay

So I was having a crappy night. My brother used most of my gas (again), and I had to go to work in the evening for only three hours (when I have to drive 20 miles to get there and 20 more to get home). I was not happy, even after listening to my "happy" playlist loud for about ten minutes after hearing the news on NPR, which I like a lot.

But AHA! One man asked if we still carried disposable cameras, which sadly we do not. The push for digital has destroyed that medium so well in so many places, even though plenty of people can still benefit, like kids going on a field trip where the parents either don't have or don't want them to use a digital camera. At first I just thought it was odd, but then later, another lady asked for a flashlight, bug repellant, and....a disposable camera. For her daughter who was going to a science camp for three days. I asked my regular customer as I was helping her choose a flashlight what grade her child was in, and it turns out she was in sixth. Then it it hit me. The sixth graders of the Etiwanda School District still go on that three-day trip me and my friends went on back in 1998, the fabled trip that we had heard about for so long and that cost the parents of those lucky enough to afford it $150.

Awesome.

I remember the cabins (same gender, of course). I remember the amazing dining hall where my tablemates drank shakes 'til we all got headaches. I remember the night hike and eating mints, which sparked in the dark as we all learned how to work together while we walked with our hands on each others' shoulders and our eyes closed. I remember the time we all made creatures and had to come up with their biology and habitat. I remember Dana Point and dissecting squids to find out which sex they were.

I remember taking showers and sharing with the nearby cabin. I remember having to hide the fact that I still wet the bed, even with medicine. I remember the lie my dad told me to tell anyone who asked about my medicine (some sinus problem). I remember feeling bad that I almost admitted to some girls that I washed my hair every day (a trait passed on to me by my dad, something I later questioned whether or not contributed to my questioned OCD personality).

But mostly I just remember how much fun it all was, even fifteen years later. So I hope all of the kids leaving early tomorrow enjoy the heck out of themselves. I came home with a sunburn and so many memories and so much knowledge. I wish more kids could have a a similar experience. It really started me on my way to liking science. If trips like this can inspire more kids to find their passion, that would be great. Life is too great to not experience and enjoy, even that young.

Statement of Purpose

I am pursuing a Masters in Education and a single subject teaching credential, which will allow me to teach in the public school system. Specifically I want to obtain an M. Ed. with a general education teaching emphasis and become authorized to teach general science courses as well as my specialty of biology. As a move towards this goal, I have taken and passed both CSET general science subtests and the biology/life science subtest. I have also earned an Associate of Arts in University Studies with an emphasis in math and science and a Bachelor of Science in Anthropology. Both sets of coursework have prepared me in different ways to become an effective teacher.

My time spent studying biology as well as other physical sciences gave me a strong foundation for understanding and appreciating the natural world. Aside from that, the lab work and more specifically the fieldwork and field trips I participated in brought out my curiosity. My professor, Doctor Robin Ikeda, inspired me to look at the world, ask questions, find my own answers, and test them out. Concretely, she allowed me and a partner to carry out a fungi survey in the canyon Chaffey College students had been studying for over twenty years, something that was very different than most other projects but just as enlightening. The area had been destroyed by fire five years prior, and this survey allowed us to not just catalogue species but to inquire as to why these particular types were thriving above others and to try and understand the recovery of the environment. I have taken this skillset with me since, and it will be helpful as I not only teach scientific concepts but also how I approach teaching itself. Teachers who show their own passion for the subject and who demonstrate that they still look for answers in the world are much more likely to get the students interested as well. I experienced this first hand in junior high and high school with two different but equally inspiring teachers.

As for my anthropology coursework, I have garnered an invaluable way of approaching others in our very diverse society. Specifically, because of my study of culture, I feel I am prepared to deal effectively with the very diverse student body I will face. One thing that was emphasized in my courses was taking a bottom-up approach to studying situations, which means to look at them from the perspective of the individual rather than the group. This gives better insight into what situations people are really dealing with, and this allows me to tailor my approach in the most effective and meaningful way. A second, equally valuable lesson I learned was that you cannot approach a situation from your point-of-view alone because, chances are, the students you are trying to educate and help will come from a different one.

My time spent at UCR, one of the most diverse learning environments in the country, has also prepared me for this, and I want to return to earn my M. Ed. and credential so I can share my love of learning. Aside from this reason, my experience taking two education classes in the graduate school allowed me to see what kind of experience I could have within the program. The GSOE has also shown its commitment to attracting and preparing math and science teachers with the Copernicus Project, something I as a community college student was fortunate to participate in. All of these are strong reasons why I want to pursue my Masters and credential at UCR and to further my own learning.

I have always enjoyed learning, which is what compelled me to take so many classes and why it took so long to earn my Bachelor Degree. My broad education in liberal arts and sciences also garnered me the greatest recognition an undergraduate can receive from an honor society- an induction into Phi Beta Kappa. This passion for learning I have wanted to turn into a passion for teaching for as long as I can remember. It started out as a simple reading of my favorite book to my first grade class and was further nurtured by the multiple times I led study groups and privately tutored friends and fellow classmates.

My closest taste of being an actual teacher then came when I spent thirty-five hours in a ninth grade science class with my mentor teacher Ms. Erikca Brown. Most of what I did at first was simple observation as I tied it to concepts I was learning in my education course. Slowly I came out of my shell and was more comfortable taking an active role in the student's learning. This culminated in me preparing my own lecture, approved by my mentor and presenting it to the two classes. The entire experience was fulfilling as I got to use the knowledge I had acquired in my own study of biology and present it with a game I myself had played as a college freshman and as a Copernicus Project intern. Receiving compliments and seeing them have fun while learning was so rewarding.

I also understand that teaching will have its fair share of challenges that will vary in degree. An effective teacher must be able to recognize such challenges and work with students, parents, and colleagues to find solutions. As such, I feel my personal qualities of patience and understanding coupled with the broad worldview I acquired as an anthropology student will allow me to do this. A good teacher must also be able to communicate well, a skill I have been able to grow and refine in my eight years of customer service and my experiences in study groups and tutoring.

To me, teaching is not just telling someone information. It is inspiring others not just to learn but to want to learn. I was fortunate to have two great science teachers, one in middle school and one in high school and even more lucky to study under professors who know their subject and conveyed it with such passion that it inspired me to think and explore on my own. Our students need, especially in math and my subject of science, teachers who will do this for them. My passion for learning and teaching, my love for science, my drive to encourage and help others, and my abilities to listen, understand, and communicate with others I know will allow me to be that kind of teacher. No matter where I end up teaching, I look forward to sharing not just my knowledge but my passion and being not just an effective and fun teacher but a voice and an ear for my students.

Skydiving from the edge of space

In 2008, I was made aware of Captain Joe Kittinger who jumped from 102,000 or so feet and set the record for longest free fall and highest jump among other things (thanks to my physics professor in her attempt to teach us about free fall). Then, this past Sunday October 14, 2012 I had the fortune to watch Felix Baumgartner jump from about 127,000 feet. And man, was it ever epic. Both men were amazingly brave and patient to go through with their projects. I cannot imagine hurtling towards the earth from so high up yet I imagine neither of them will ever forget it. Go science!

And yet still, I see them both differently. Kittinger did it in 1960, when technology was nowhere near where it is now. He easily could have died. In fact, his right glove malfunctioned on the way up and caused his hand to swell twice its size, but he kept going. For the experiment. Not to take away from Felix because I could never do what he did, but the tech was so much better this time 52 years later. It was still f---ing amazing but somehow just not as impressive.

Personal opinion. Both guys rock and have collected so much valuable data that it doesn't really matter. Just thought I would put that put there.

Dual Comment Win of the Day II

*Shrug*

Aspartame

Saw this on Facebook. Clicked and read it. Went back to drinking my Diet Coke.

Kids & Science = Awesome

UK science journal publishes study done by 8-10 year olds

Anything that makes kids like/be into science is great.

An Unfortunate Difference

The difference between being a science major and being a social science major, for me, sucks. Reading and getting info and being able to apply it is nice and all, but give me adventures in the field over papers and notes. In populations biology, we went camping twice and hiked into a canyon for five weeks. We got wet and dirty (and some of us sunburned). Hands on is just so much better. The nature of the social sciences, though, is different, I understand that. I just miss it. Guess I have to try and remedy that myself. Just because I don't have classes that go into nature and observe doesn't mean I can't for fun.

So that's where it stands, I guess.

Aussie scientists find coconut-carrying octopus

tool use in an invert

"The scientists filmed the veined octopus, Amphioctopus marginatus, selecting halved coconut shells from the sea floor, emptying them out, carrying them under their bodies up to 65 feet (20 meters), and assembling two shells together to make a spherical hiding spot."

All kinds of awesome right there.

No surprise

Allegations of Inflated Production Estimates

The IEA has been criticized for allegedly inflating estimates of global oil reserves. Proponents of the Peak Oil hypothesis in particular have charged that the agency's published estimates are unrealistic and, in fact, they often have been subsequently revised downward. In November 2009, an unnamed "senior official" stated that the IEA consistently over-estimated global oil supply in response to pressure from the United States government.

source

Just doing a little bit of background on who the IEA is since I had to read an article for earth science. That last sentence from Wikipedia does not at all surprise me. IN fact, when I read that they had overestimated the amount of oil production, I had a feeling it had something to do with this country and our government. Sadly I was right.

Humbling

Yesterday my family watched the shuttle Atlantis launch into space to go repair the Hubble Telescope. I've never really watched one before, and it was a sight indeed. What other country has the technology to do this? What other country has been mostly behind the technology that is continuously discovering things about our universe? Stuff we never would have guessed? Even if we could guess, we couldn't prove it. If there's one thing America is still good at and ahead of of the world in, it's this.

The Great Eye of Sauron-one of many amazing pics. Just go search Google.

Zombie Ants

from this page

By Bill Hanna, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Bill Hanna, Fort Worth Star-telegram Tue May 12, 2:09 pm ET

It sounds like something out of science fiction: zombie fire ants. But it's all too real.

Fire ants wander aimlessly away from the mound.

Eventually their heads fall off, and they die.

The strange part is that researchers at the University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M's AgriLife Extension Service say making "zombies" out of fire ants is a good thing.

"It's a tool — they're not going to completely wipe out the fire ant, but it's a way to control their population," said Scott Ludwig , an integrated pest management specialist with the AgriLife Extension Service in Overton , in East Texas .

The tool is the tiny phorid fly, native to a region of South America where the fire ants in Texas originated. Researchers have learned that there are as many as 23 phorid species along with pathogens that attack fire ants to keep their population and movements under control.

So far, four phorid species have been introduced in Texas .

The flies "dive-bomb" the fire ants and lay eggs. The maggot that hatches inside the ant eats away at the brain, and the ant starts exhibiting what some might say is zombie-like behavior.

"At some point, the ant gets up and starts wandering," said Rob Plowes, a research associate at UT.

The maggot eventually migrates into the ant's head, but Plowes said he "wouldn't use the word 'control' to describe what is happening. There is no brain left in the ant, and the ant just starts wandering aimlessly. This wandering stage goes on for about two weeks."

About a month after the egg is laid, the ant's head falls off and the fly emerges ready to attack any foraging ants away from the mound and lay eggs.

Plowes said fire ants are "very aware" of these tiny flies, and it only takes a few to cause the ants to modify their behavior.

"Just one or two flies can control movement or above-ground activity," Plowes said. "It's kind of like a medieval activity where you're putting a castle under siege."

Researchers began introducing phorid species in Texas in 1999. The first species has traveled all the way from Central and South Texas to the Oklahoma border. This year, UT researchers will add colonies south of the Metroplex at farms and ranches from Stephenville to Overton . It is the fourth species introduced in Texas .

Fire ants cost the Texas economy about $1 billion annually by damaging circuit breakers and other electrical equipment, according to a Texas A&M study. They can also threaten young calves.

Determining whether the phorid flies will work in Texas will take time, perhaps as long as a decade.

"These are very slow acting," Plowes said. "It's more like a cumulative impact measured across a time frame of years. It's not an immediate silver bullet impact."

The flies, which are USDA -approved, do not attack native ants or species and have been introduced in other Gulf Coast states, Plowes said. Despite initial concerns, farmers and ranchers have been willing to let researchers use their property to establish colonies. At the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association in Fort Worth in March, Plowes said they found plenty of volunteers.

Wondering

Just a quick little thought I remembered right now.

I woke up this morning feeling kind of down (no money for stuff as usual...I spent all of my tax return on stuff or loaned it to my mom). For a moment I thought about school. I dropped all of my classes and changed my major. But was it the right choice? I love biology so much. I can't adequately put into words how much I do. But I just can't handle the extra crap needed to major in it. Calculus, organic chem, and college physics. I know all of that is important, but for me, I just do not care. I like biology, ecology, earth science, and stuff like that.

It was fleeting, but still. Did I make the right call? I hope so. I was going to look into seeing what a minor in bio would entail. Maybe if it doesn't require so much extra non bio stuff I'll do that.

But gods how I adore life science.

Truth.

Random Thought

So I'm watching The Suite Life of Zack & Cody when they start talking about how dirty your pillow gets. I do a quick Google search and find some interesting things. Then I look at my pillow sitting all innocently on my bed being six years old and the case having not been washed in a couple of weeks because I'm too lazy on my day off to do so.

I wonder how many germs are living there. Think of the cool little ecosystem going on. It kinda creeps me out, but then I get over it.

You Know You've Had Too Much Chemistry When...

-They mention a compound on TV and you picture its Lewis structure.

-The infinite sign on your doctor's business card reminds you of a p orbital.

-They mention diamagnetism dealing with UFOs and you think of a molecular orbital model.

-You Google for fun chemical formulas and read up on them on Wikipedia.

I could go on. This is just off the top of my head spur of right now.

And hence the need for a semester away from chem. I should be seeing bio stuff everywhere.