Suggested TED Talk

Briane Greene: Making sense of String Theory
This TED talk takes what seems to be one of the most confusing topics in the modern sciences and transforms it into something which is easily understood.  This TED talk is especially enlightening and provides lots of important information.

Susan Cain: The Power of Introverts

                This TED talk is especially interesting for me.  This is because I believe myself to be an introvert.  Susan Cain also seems like a fellow introvert.  Therefore, she really gets the point across to me.  Susan seems very nervous throughout this talk but I think that she is really making a good point.  I believe that life should be more introverted.  This TED talk is especially well timed since I am currently reading Walden and therefore I am especially moved by it.  

Steve Jobs Stanford Commencement Speech

I found the speech to be very moving but the choice of speaker was not the best in my opinion.  This is no slight against Steve Jobs but is instead a slight against the person who chose him.  Steve began his speech by saying he never went to college.  How is it in any way inspiring for college graduates to hear one of the most successful individuals talk about how not going to college did not affect him in the slightest.  This should have been controlled by the choosers of speakers.  But, so it goes.

Glass Menagerie Questions

1) Who is the Gentlemen Caller? 

a. Jim O'Connor

b. Tom

c. Amanda

d. Laura 

2) What does the Gentlemen caller represent for the family 

a. Freedom for Tom

b. Love for Laura

c. Relief for Amanda

d. All of the Above

3) What is so surprising for Laura after her time on the balcony with Jim? 

a. She finds out Jim has cholera

b. She finds out Jim is engaged

c. She finds out Jim wants to run away with her

d. She finds out she is pregnant 

4) Who particularly likes the glass menagerie? 

a. Critics

b. Laura

c. Tom 

d. Sparkles the Dog

5) Why doesn't Laura take business classes? 

a. She is busy with work

b. She is shy

c. She already has an MBA

d. She is still taking ESL classes to prepare

6) Why does Amanda pressure Laura so much about attracting men? 

a. She is trying to force her own experiences onto her daughter

b. She thinks it is Laura's only chance at a happy life 

c. All of the Above

d. None of the Above

7) Why doesn't Tom chase his dreams? 

a. He is afraid of what would happen to Amanda and Laura

b. He has no dreams

c. Amanda takes care of him and he can't live with her

d. He is content with his current job

8) Does Tom know his father? 

a. He knows of him

b. He knew him until he died

c. He meets with him every day

d. He and his dad meet occasionally 

9) How many characters are seen in the play? 

a. 1

b. 3

c. 2

d. 4

10) How does Laura respond to her handicap? 

a. She ignores it

b. It limits her physically but she copes emotionally 

c. It limits her emotionally and is one of the causes of her shyness

d. None of the Above

Two TED Talks Response

 Tony Robbins:
I really loved this TED talk.  This was extremely compelling and it was especially interesting because the ideas did not feel presented and completely new, but instead felt like they were simply revealed within the layers of day to day life.  I thought that Tony spoke with more passion than most speakers and he seemed both excited and extremely ready to present.  What he said seemed true to me and I think that he had a great talk.

David Blaine:
This TED talk was good.  David didn't seem to really be trying to explain a concept but instead just showed the struggles and goals that humans set.  This was a good follower for Tony because it related to motivation. David found his achievement in his goals.  This was a very interesting TED talk because I find holding your breath to be such a difficult enterprise.  His explanation was very interesting and he seemed to really like what he was doing.

Ten Tips to Save Time Online

I think that David Pogue needs to just relax.  I mean, maybe over an entire lifetime the compounded time you waste using inefficient methods of technology use will be huge.  But in a normal day, will it really have that great of an effect?  There are some great tips in this talk but I think that perhaps all David needs to do is relax and realize that he will die before he can accomplish everything he wants to do.  No matter whether he saves time by using these tips or not, his life will still inevitably be a failure in terms of productivity.  By his logic, perhaps we should just stop sleeping.

The Great Gatsby Review

            The Great Gatsby was a poorly put together film rendition of the great novel.  The movie tried too hard to make itself relatable with the sound track but there was no instance when it really fit with the movie.  The film also started poorly.  The characters seemed out of place and their lines did not seem to fit with what they were doing.  The expressions and overall acting was poor because it just seemed that the lines were forced and the emotions were not truly depicted.  I think that Gatsby could have been better if there had been more of an attempt at really showing emotions instead of just aiming at visual spectacle.  

Award Acceptance Speech

I would like to thank the committee for their consideration and for this honor.  I believe that my work towards peace was simply a necessary step in the evolution of international affairs as well as of the human race.  I am honored that the committee is recognizing the development of a stronger UN as a measure of peace and really spreading a spotlight on the effort that is necessary in order to bring about a new world order.  This change in foreign affairs is not the only thing that should really be recognized with this award.  What should be seen by the casual observer and consistent follower alike is the new mind set which allowed for this change to occur. 

            In order to realize this new world system what was needed was a new outlook. Humans judge others to be different from themselves and can therefore justify war with others.  When really no matter what their background, all humans are fundamentally the same.  What must be recognized in order to achieve world peace is the constancy of human existence. 

            Before this concept is explained I would like to perform a brief thought experiment.  I would like you to picture what you believe you want in life and what makes you happy.  Next, I would like you to determine what you believe a Western European child might want in life and what makes them happy.  Thirdly, I would like you to imagine what an Asian child might want from life.  And finally, I would like you to imagine what a child in Africa wants from their life.  I would imagine that each of the ideas you have conjured up are different in some way.  What each of these imaginary children wants is something which is slightly different from the last.  Perhaps the largest disparity is between an African child and an American one.  What you imagine these children to want appears different, but on a fundamental level it is the same.  For example, one child might hope for a new Apple Phone while another might be content with just receiving a nutritious apple.  The human condition is varied depending on the distinctive background and general location of a child but every goal is really based on the fundamental tenets of the human mind. 

            The human mind is not a blank slate when it first emerges into the world.  There are insurmountable aspects of the mind.  When a child is born, the mind is like the foundation for a home, the design is already loosely controlled by what is in place.  Humans fundamentally long for compassion and for pleasure.  Every child is born with the same basic foundation but as they develop, the manner in which these deep seated longings and fundamental yearnings are manifested differs depending on the person.  The variety of manifestations makes it seem that everyone has unique goals when really, each person longs for the same things in life.  Perhaps some strive for those things in different manners but the base of all human goals is the same for every human being. 

            This mindset, once fully adopted is what allows for global peace.  Humanity when viewed through the lens of ethnic, cultural, and spatial differences seems likes a multiplicity a unique beings, but when viewed through the lenses of fundamental wants and goals it is a singular organism.  If one can recognize that humans are not so different from each other after all then one can accept others and act in the general interest of everyone.  It is simple to make war with aliens.  It is difficult to make war with brothers.  Conflicts of interest will still arise and disagreements will not be forever extinguished but on a larger scale people will accept each other and truly appreciate the goodness within every one.