semester reflection part 1

What have you learned about the way you learn, work, and/or collaborate?

That I acquire my knowledge from in class lectures and from the books I read in class. I have learned that I am a visual learner. Once I see it I believe it. I work more diligently and I consider other ideas from fellow classmates. I tend to collaborate with friends in class. I also learn more from reading and annotating literary packets.

What project was most valuable to you, and what have you gained from it?

The slaughterhouse five project motivated me to create a mobile. I learned to manage my time more wisely. I completed my mobile two days ahead of the due date; just so that I could have time to work on something else like TPOLs. I also learned a valuable lesson and that is to anticipate any problems. I should always have a backup plan to solve the problem. I was going to create a diorama but I thought it would be difficult and time consuming. So I thought of something that was less confusing.

how they contrast with a less challenging experience.

Describe one valuable mistake you made this year.

The day when we first worked on the slaughterhouse five project. I should of been more productive. Instead of wasting valuable time working on my digital portfolio, I should of worked on my artist statement for my slaughterhouse five product. That time should of been used for writing my artist statement.

What is your greatest strength as a student in a project-based learning environment?

My greatest strength is my writing and critiquing. Over the duration of the school year, I have become a better critic and writer as well. Its because of all of the critiques we had to do in class. Also the teacher showed us examples of good critiques. I developed as a better writer by using the literary devises and the loop.

What challenges do you face as a student in a project-based learning environment?

By being the leader. I fail to take on a leadership role. This is a struggle of mine. I have always found that to be a challenge that I have yet to overcome. Its hard to keep a sharp eye on everyone and make sure they're doing their part.

Historical reflection blog

Franklin D. Roosevelt strikes me as an innovator for the future. Franklin had so many excellent characteristics instilled in him. He was certainly an articulate speaker and a great intellectual. Everyday before class he would remind us of what he once said during his presidency, "Democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The real safeguard of democracy, therefore, is education."I talked to him about all of his great accomplishments after every lecture. He was an excellent economics professor at my college. After spending time in college, he moved on to do bigger and better things. He helped correct and sustain our american economy. People known him for his plans on recovering the economy in the 1940's, Franklin D Roosevelt helped reestablish the economy after the great depression by provided more suitable jobs to the public. Essentially, He changed the live hood of the citizens of America.

Literary Reflection

If you could bring one character from any one book that we have read this year with you when you go to college, who would bring? Why?

I would have to say Jay Gatsby. Gatsby seems to be in search of a peaceful life. Some places were he is free. Some places were he doesn’t have to deal with the disloyalty and betrayal. He’s probably tired of dealing with Tom's bullshit. I would help get him away from myrtle’s husband. I would help him resolve his issue with trying to win Daisy’s heart. I'd probably convince him to start a new relationship with a college girl. As charming as he is, he should have no trouble finding someone else. After all there are plenty of attractive college women. He would probably get me into a prestigious college with his network of connections. I would probably make him my roommate or college professor. I can kind of relate to him. I’m sure we all had dealt with the same things he went through.

Trial Reflection

Post Trial Reflection

1. Summarize the facts about the case, as presented by the prosecution. Include relevant witnesses and testimony.

James Madison stated he was against illegal immigration and concluded that everyone has a right to a fair trial from the constitution. The prosecution defense said several things that they thought were unconstitutional. Raul Griphialdo explained how immigration was and still is essential to the United States. After WW2, he told us that the immigrants were contracted to work for in America. John Adam’s was also called up to the stand. She told us what she was significant for. Both sides did cross examination on the witness. Based off of the prosecution’s statements and examinations really helped formulate my decision. They also asked questions that led to explaining the amendments and how those amendments were relevant to the case.

2. Summarize the facts of the cases presented by the defense. Include relevant witnesses and testimony.

The defense, however, seemed to use a lot of repetition in their line of questioning. It seemed like they didn’t have a lot of questions. The defense kept asking if someone of the witness were slave owners, the prosecution objected to the defense because they were irrelevant. Also some of the questions from the defense could have been paraphrased or clarified. There were a few questions that were a bit vague. They could have gathered more evidence to support their ideas. I had trouble trying to follow what they were getting to. It’s not that I’m bias; I just didn’t think that they would convince me to vote for the state of Arizona

3. What was the most significant piece of evidence, in your personal opinion?

The prosecution had an array of significant pieces of evidence and it seemed like they were better organized and had relevant arguments to the case. They carved deeper into their witnesses’ thoughts. The most significant pieces were when the prosecution asked James Madison to read some of the amendments.

4. What was the most significant argument made, in your opinion?

The most significant argument made in my opinion, was when Calvin asked James Madison if he was a slave owner. Madison replied yes. The prosecution was kind of confused. I think they we’re expecting James Madison to say no. James Madison’s philosophical beliefs are implemented and are in the constitution.

5. What do you personally believe the correct verdict should be? Do you agree with the jury? Why or why not?

I believe the verdict is correct because I feel that it’s not fair to be pulled over on the side of the road just because you look like an immigrant. That’s a ridiculous and unjust. This law should not be enforced. The governor of Arizona is a bias republican conservative. What she is doing is not reasonable for the people of Arizona. What if someone who has the documentation to prove that he is a legal citizen of the United States of America is sent to jail or deported. Does that mean that everyone who looks like a foreigner

WW2 Letter

I am going to be a U.S marine of a raider Battalion stationed in Okinawa off the south pacific occupied by Japanese forces. Its 1944 and I'm bandaging up the wounded and stocking up on ammunition. I'm going to talk about the last few months on Okinawa. I will be writing about the Empire of Japan and my opinions about it. my mission which is to rescue a reconnaissance team. My letter is going to have a warlike feel to it.

Letter

Draft 1

It’s been months; years it seems since I was stationed back on Pearl Harbor before the Japs demolished it. Now it’s just rubble. Now I’m thrown into the pacific war with all of the other war junkies. My jacket drenched in blood and the smell of turmoil makes me sick to my feet. I’ve seen it all from the banzi strikes to soldiers carrying dead weight. I thank god every that I’m alive. I lost a dear friend of mine. I didn’t see it coming, as a matter of fact we all didn’t see it coming. I’m fighting alongside General McArthur. We’re spending our last days on Okinawa. Nothing more than sand, trees and a small Japanese military base. I was briefed on my mission. We're being asked to rescue a reconnaissance team that left about a week ago. For all we know there already dead.

The last few months on Okinawa have taking their toll. Morale is low. Military supplies aren’t getting through. We can’t even mange to get the wounded out to safety. We’re running low on ammo. Good news is we rescued the reconnaissance team safe and sound. Pretty much everyday, we crawl through the mud and dirt while bullets whistle over our heads. Each day we carve deeper into the jungles of Okinawa, hoping that the Japanese don't slit our throats. We're making our final stand. This is the last time we put our lives on the line. The extraction point is a couple of klicks ahead. Today we're going home.

not done yet...

References

World War 2 books by Howard Zinn

WW2 Honors history

One might think of World War I and II as barbaric conflicts with much bloodshed and loss of property and life. Despite how horrific they were, many great ideas emerged. They sparked global interest in politics, technology, allegiances, and international agencies. Many aspects of these wars set the foundation of things to come in the future. After World War I, The League of Nations strove for peace but never really managed to succeed. In order to stop disputes between nations, the League of Nations sought the assistance of neighboring countries. The United Nations is a modern-day version of the League of Nations with peacekeeping forces at its disposal. After World War I, the demands of the League of Nations created resentment in Germany. In time, this resentment gave Hitler the support he needed for the Nazi Party to succeed. Hitler’s Nazi Party wanted to conquer other European nations and establish a super race.

Alliances played a crucial role during both wars. The Axis powers against the Allies. Forming alliances between several large nations enabled the Allies to win the war. Conversely, President Bush’s doctrine of going it alone during the Iraq War without the support of major super powers has hurt American foreign policy abroad. Nations other than Great Britain were against America’s invasion of Iraq. Without their solid support, achieving victory has been elusive. Having a strong coalition of nations could have resulted in trade embargos or other ways to get Iraq to cooperate without the need to go to war. Currently, the presidency of Barack Obama is trying to get support from other countries to win the war in Afghanistan. He believes that it is in everyone’s best interest to fight terrorism. In order for this to happen, America has to enforce the three doctrines. These doctrines are used to create cooperative alliances with other countries. Establishing these alliances can influence foreign governments to become more democratic.

After World War II, the Marshal plan proposed by Secretary of State George C. Marshal was implemented to provide economic aid to rebuild Europe. After winning a war against another country, the winning side is obligated to liberate the country and help it rebuild. When World War II ended, Germany had to pay reparations for all of the damage to other countries’.

The liberation of Europe towards the end of World War II by Allied forces freed Jews that had been imprisoned in Concentration Camps. Before the war ended, millions of Jews had been killed by the Nazis.

The atomic bombs that were dropped in the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki were horrific enough to bring an end to World War II. Ever since, nations around the world have agreed to seek nonproliferation of atomic weapons because of the incredible destruction they can cause to mankind.

History has taught us that all war exacts a heavy price. Because of this, super powers have sought alliances that will insure their freedom from invasion. We must seek to prevent war through peaceful means and end the proliferation of nuclear weapons so that mankind will not destroy itself but live in peace.

Blog #15: WW2 technology

Technology

World War 2 introduced an array of deadly and destructive weapons. A very special weapon that was available to the modern infantry was the phosphorous grenade. In ground combat, a soldier would use a phosphorous grenade against a machine gun post during battle. Napalm was another useful and affective weapon. It was used to take out more than 1 enemy. Napalm was mostly used to burn enemies inside bunkers. There was also aerial combat in World War 2. Jet fighters carried bombs over countries and were used to destroy military bases. There was also tactical combat in which soldiers use to distract or eliminate the enemy. Soldiers would dig trenches to shield themselves from enemy gunfire. All of this stuff interests me. I’m eager to learn more about the technology.

Blog #14

There was one interesting aspect that stood out to me. How the war began. I know that the war erupted after the Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand’s death. I found it quite interesting because it triggered a very large and bloody war all over Europe. Everybody in ever part of the world was fighting.

I already learned about World War 1 last year. I am looking forward to learning more in depth about World War 2. I am very eager to learn about the frightening battles that took place during the war. I’m more interest in about the outcomes of each battle. I want to learn about the equipment and resources they used during the war.

This war was probably the most costly and destructive war of the 1900's. You can relate World War 2 to the war that is going on today. Financing the Iraq war was partially the reason why America is in an economic rescission.

Blog # 13

How does Jim Casey's moral philosophy guide the novel as a whole?

In the novel, Jim Casey the ex-preacher feels an obligation to practice and preach Christianity to the people. The characters christen faith is constantly being tested by the obstacles they face. Jim considered being himself like Christ, a savor of the common man even though doing so put his life in jeopardy. He encourages Tom to become more socially conscious to help his fellow man. Jim Casey see’s the good in all men. Casey develops strong morality and shares a handful of similarities with Jesus Christ. The Joad’s belief, that justices will ultimately triumph keeps them from giving up. Casey exemplifies the suffering of Jesus by becoming a martyr. His words are meaningful throughout the story which makes him the moral force of the novel

Jim Casey considers all people as a whole to be good. In the story, he states, “All that lives is holy”. Jim wants the Joad’s to not let go of their christian values no matter what. Jim was asked to say grace at the dinner table and says, “ …I been in the hills, thinkin’, almost you might say like Jesus went into the wilderness to think His way out of a mess of troubles. He says this because he wants the Joad's to know that he journeyed to the wilderness to seek answers to hidden questions thus made him feel like Jesus Christ. He does this to renew his faith. Furthermore, Casey provided comfort to them after the unfortunate death of Granma Joad, stating that, “every’body got to die” and helps them to understand and tolerate the inevitability of death.

Jim Casey’s strong sense of justices also leads him to try and organize a riot to demand fair and decent wages. Jim Casey speaks of consequences to the people saying, "Tell 'em [the people who are picking peaches] they're starvin' us an' stabbin' theirselves in the back.’Cause sure as cowflops she'll drop to two an' a half jus' as soon as they clear us out,", he knew that as soon as the riot had completely ended the laborer’s salaries would decrease to unfair wages. Just like Jesus Christ, a staunch friend of Tom Joad, Jim Casey allegedly takes the blame for the attack on the deputy and thus sacrifices himself for Tom.

In conclusion, Jim Casey is a very spiritual man who drives the story with the good moral values of life. Whether it’s helping other to better understand them or to accept faith for what it is. He will always be known as that Christ figure of the novel. He lives up to his title. I guess you can say that he was triumphant in his quest in helping the Joad’s and the unfortunate soles of the story.

Blog #12

What were "public works projects"? What famous ones were part of the New Deal? What public works projects would you recommend for our society today?

The Public Works Administration was developed to repair the nation's infrastructures like bridges, highways and public parks. You can generate more employment for the American people in the areas of green projects like self-sustaining projects of the future. During the New Deal, Congress appropriated millions of dollars to provide employment for the improvement of public buildings, rivers, harbors and highway construction. The Federal Emergency Relief Act appropriated 500 million for aid to the poor to be distributed by state and local governments. The Civilian Conservation Corps enrolled young men to work on fluid control, soil conservation, and forest projects under the direction of the way department.

Honor Novel #1

Steinbeck’s Turtle

By

Osamah Elhams

Steinbeck’s Symbolism

By

Osamah Elhams

The turtle in John Steinbeck’s novel The Grapes of Wrath symbolizes the perpetual struggle of the hard luck farmers will to survive against all odds. In Chapter three, the turtle that Steinbeck describes crossing the road overcomes obstacles that cross it’s path. It’s very life is in peril when a man tries to run it over. It is at the mercy of its surroundings and can do very little to escape its fate. Even so, the turtle struggles on.

Much like the farmers who are striving to get to California to start a new life, the turtle is also struggling to get to a safe place. Like the farmers, it encounters dangers along the way. Even though the farmers get beaten down in life, they like the turtle, persevere. Tom Joad’s character is much like the turtle on the road. They both show strength and tenacity when confronted by life’s difficulties. The turtle doesn’t give up when a passing car causes it to flip over. It struggles to get itself upright so it can continue it’s journey. Likewise Tom Joad doesn’t give up even though he experiences many hard times with his family. The Joad’s are forced to leave the land they grew up in order to survive. Drought has destroyed their ability to grow their crops and they have been forced into a desperate situation. Once fertile farmlands are turned to dust. People are being thrown out of their homes by greedy landowners and unsympathetic banks. Without an income, people find themselves without food or shelter. The turtle on the road is probably also seeking food and shelter. It must venture out in the world in order to find what it needs to survive. Doing so however, puts it at great risk to the dangers of it’s environment. Even though there are some kind people that try to avoid hitting the turtle when it crosses the road, there are those who would deliberately do it harm. The farmers on their journey encounter many hardships but they, like the turtle, have no other choice but to keep moving in order to survive.

Towards the end of the novel, as the Joads along with other families continue to struggle against the injustices of landowners who take advantage of them, Steinbeck also speaks of the “grapes of wrath” symbolizing the growing anger of the migrant families. Grapes that could have provided nourishment have instead been left to decay because of greed. Rich landowners unjustly seek to get farmers who have no other choice to work for very low wages. Because they are desperate and starving, migrant families will accept the low wages to feed their children. Even though bad things happen to them they try to show kindness to others that are also struggling. They suffer many misfortunes like the loss of several family members and pets throughout the story. The Joad family grandparents die during their move to find a better life in California. A baby is stillborn. Many things happen to test their endurance but through it all, they still survive and never lose their humanity.

Blog# 11

Dear Mr. President,

Mr. President, this is a very important letter that I would like you to read. We need to discuss America’s future. We need to end this economic crisis. I understand your efforts to restore the American economy are good but America is asking for more than just a stimulus package that helps the banks. We need to turn the tables and start convincing our enemies to stop hating us and become allies. That way we can use the money spent on the war effort towards stabilizing and growing our economy.

We need you to pass bills through congress and I hope that these bills will bring a positive change. Congress needs to stop this war against you and start acting towards the benefit of the people. Congress doesn’t seem to realize that they are only delaying the economic recovery. The American government is not as stable as it should be. America cannot afford to fail.
Let’s start with the banks, Mr. President. People are demanding reasonable mortgages from their banks to be able to stay in their homes. We need the banks cooperation to help them do this. Homeowners should be given a five year extension to make payments at their present rate to give them time to adjust to a higher interest rate or by selling their home if they need to and buying a home they can afford. Like Franklin D. Roosevelt, you should regulate the banks so they only make loans to people that can really afford to buy a home.

We need to create more jobs for the American people. We need to reward businesses that keep Americans working instead of taking their jobs to people outside the US. FDR saw that it was necessary to increase employment for the American people. People should be taught new skills that will help employ them for jobs of the future. Workers should be able to organize and demand decent wages and medical benefits.

The most important thing is to gain the support of the American people. They need you and you need them. Your powerful speeches will only have an effect on the people who believe your words. We need to convince those who don’t trust you with action not just words. FDR also liked to speak to the people directly through his “Fireside Chats”.

I hope you take my suggestions into consideration and know that I as well as other will be here to support your efforts. I know you cannot accomplish this on your own.


Sincerely,
Osamah Elhams



Works Cited

Feldmeth, Gregory. AP U.S. History. 8th ed. Piscataway, New Jersey: Research & Education Assoc., 2009. Print.
Hirsch, E. D. The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy. Company: Houghton Mifflin, 1988. Print.

Parenti, Ph.D., Michael. Democracy for the Few. 8th ed. Boston, MA: Thomson Wadsworth, 2008. Print.

Zinn, Howard. A People's History of the United States. New York: HarperCollins, 2003. Print.

Honors History Blog #1

Dear Mr. President,

Mr. President, this is a very important letter that I would like you to read. We need to discuss America’s future. We need to end this economic crisis. I understand your efforts to restore the American economy are good but America is asking for more than just a stimulus package that helps the banks. We need to turn the tables and start convincing our enemies to stop hating us and become allies. That way we can use the money spent on the war effort towards stabilizing and growing our economy.

We need you to pass bills through congress and I hope that these bills will bring a positive change. Congress needs to stop this war against you and start acting towards the benefit of the people. Congress doesn’t seem to realize that they are only delaying the economic recovery. The American government is not as stable as it should be. America cannot afford to fail.

Let’s start with the banks, Mr. President. People are demanding reasonable mortgages from their banks to be able to stay in their homes. We need the banks cooperation to help them do this. Homeowners should be given a five year extension to make payments at their present rate to give them time to adjust to a higher interest rate or by selling their home if they need to and buying a home they can afford. Like Franklin D. Roosevelt, you should regulate the banks so they only make loans to people that can really afford to buy a home.

We need to create more jobs for the American people. We need to reward businesses that keep Americans working instead of taking their jobs to people outside the US. FDR saw that it was necessary to increase employment for the American people. People should be taught new skills that will help employ them for jobs of the future. Workers should be able to organize and demand decent wages and medical benefits.

The most important thing is to gain the support of the American people. They need you and you need them. Your powerful speeches will only have an effect on the people who believe your words. We need to convince those who don’t trust you with action not just words. FDR also liked to speak to the people directly through his “Fireside Chats”.

I hope you take my suggestions into consideration and know that I as well as other will be here to support your efforts. I know you cannot accomplish this on your own.


Sincerely,
Osamah Elhams



Works Cited

Feldmeth, Gregory. AP U.S. History. 8th ed. Piscataway, New Jersey: Research & Education Assoc., 2009. Print.

Hirsch, E. D. The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy. Company: Houghton Mifflin, 1988. Print.

Parenti, Ph.D., Michael. Democracy for the Few. 8th ed. Boston, MA: Thomson Wadsworth, 2008. Print.

Zinn, Howard. A People's History of the United States. New York: HarperCollins, 2003. Print.

Blog #8

I noticed that both FDR and Obama inherited the recession. One may agree, Barrack Obama and FDR have some similarities. Both of which had many interactions with the economy. In the 1930's, We had an in-class discussion on FDR's (Franklin .D Roosevelt) plans on reviving the economy from the Great Depression. FDR formulated a plan to grant $500 million to state agencies for direct relief. Our president, Obama recently introduced the stimulus package to the American Economy. His initial plan was to provide money for the economy to basically to get the economy back on its feet. Most people notice that Barrack Obama is highly respected in America much like FDR in 1930s. In relation, FDR began an organization called the WPA short for Works Progress Administration. Obama has his own organization called the Barrack Obama organization which facilitates the country.

Blog #7

I don’t think there was a news corporation similar to mine back in the 1930s. However, if my company existed during the Great Depression then my company, without a doubt, would be on the brink of collapse. My company cannot afford to own part of the third floor of the building. If they lost the 3^rd floor then NBC 7/39 would have to start laying off certain employees. They would have to downsize the 3^rd floor. Cut back on funding. So my answer is NO. NBC would not survive the Great Depression of the 1930s. NBC wouldn't last one day during the Great Depression.

Blog #6

For the Character sketch, I selected Casey because he has interesting beliefs. There a particular quote in the story. Where Casey tells Tom hes on parole and orders him to follow him.

Blog #5

http://lupesandoval.blogspot.com/2010/02/photo-essay.html

Lupe's article it is well written. I like how she begins her article with a quote that was said by her mentor.

http://hthmaadle.blogspot.com/

I liked Audrey's article. Everything seems to flow nicely. When you read the article is as almost if your have a conversation with her.

http://yeseniaalvarado.blogspot.com/2010/02/semester-two-blog-3.html

I like how Yesenia added dialog to her article.

Internship Photo Essay

(BLOGGER underlined each sentence and I don't know why)

Resting my elbows on the edge of the window, I could feel the gentle breeze touch my skin. The noise of horns honking and negligent drivers swearing at each other irritated my ears. Words begin to slip out of my mouth, “Do you think I’ll get a future job offer as a college student?” She strokes her wavy hair and then adjusts her eyeglasses, “Of course you will, I have no doubt about. If you make a good first impression and they will certainly think about offering you a summer time job”. As we drove aimlessly through the rush hour traffic, my mom paying attention to the road turns her head. She looks at me with envy accompanied by a smile. She was sort of jealous of me having the opportunity to intern at a place like the NBC 7/39 new station. We drove down the pavement into the through the concrete entrance of the parking structure

I could smell the foul stench of the exhaust from inside. I couldn’t last one minute. So I take a deep breath and exited the car. We reach the parking lobby and stretch my legs. I gasped for fresh air as soon as I walked into the room. My eye balls navigated the lobby in search of a dispenser machine or water fountain. I continued on pace and said my last goodbyes. I grabbed my NBC identification card hanging from my khakis. I scanned the card and punched in 3 inside the elevator. I waited for a while in the elevator. My head angled up and my eye balls were focused on the elevator meter… 1… 2… 3… bing! My mind clogged with so many thoughts about internship. I had no room to think of anything else.

I entered the 3^rd floor lobby, a tranquil place. I seamlessly chew on the decadent chocolate that I got from the counter. Just to ease the anxiety. I walk straight into the office and see my mentor and fellow interview in a meeting together. I join in to listen. “We’re required to do a project for internship” says one of the interns stomping his toe on the floor and folding his arms together. My mentor replied, “I have a great idea why don’t you develop a documentary of your own”. Everyone looked at each other to confirm it. “That sounds like a wonderful idea.. I mean we are capable of using certain programs”. I walked over to my cubical and]spin my chair around.

We devoted so much time on consecutively completing the documentary. We got a chance to videotape ourselves for our intern interviews. I looked over my own interview and edited it a little using a program that I am most familiar with. I also had to keep up with the daily blogs for Randy. In all honestly I had a handful on my plate because I had to write a marketing 2 page proposal, prefect the documentary, package laptops and blog.

We began videotaping our working on dissecting computer units. I’m wielding the camera this time keeping a steady hand of the shot. I walked behind some of the interns. We captured all sorts of footage of the NBC building. We even found b-roll of footage of the building. We compiled all of the footage and started the first phase of the documentary which would the introduction. We then watched some of what we had so far and edited it.

Blog# 3

-This pictures all about cooperation.

-This picture is more about being helpful to your fellow interns.

-This picture basically means that I have established a network of connections.

-I introduced myself to many different people who actually work at the NBC building.

-This picture has Marty levine, Sai, marcus and I.

-I learned how to properly operate most of the machines in the studios.

-I was eager to learn how to use all of them.

-This image obviously means that I am extremely busy.

-Multi-tasking

-I care about my work and thats why I brought my own personal computer to work.

-Me accomplishing my goals

Mentor interview

NBC’s computer whiz teaches four young interns how to be tech savvy.

By: Osamah Elhams

Off of 225 Broadway, I jogged across Broadway Circle, dodging the incoming taxis. I jump over the corroded red curb and onto the sidewalk. I think to myself, “Is this really it?” On the gigantic grey slab of concrete stands the enormous NBC building. I could feel the freezing cold temperature from the air touching my soft skin. I passed by businessmen, investigators, and lawyers walking casually in and out of the building through the glass paneled doors. A nice bespectacled old man kindly holds the door for me. I thank him. Inside the building, the cold brown pale marble covers the entire lobby way. I immediately sprint towards the stainless steel elevator in a hurry as the doors begin to steadily close shut. The elevator was crowded with people. It gets stuffy inside and I slowly take off my leather coat. I arrive at the 3^rd floor lobby. The lobby, a tranquil place; I look around and see college interns staring directly at me. I could already feel the tension stirring up in the room. I finally see a familiar face. An elderly man in his mid 30s befriends me. He gives me a firm hand shake accompanied with a smile. Words begin to slip off my tongue, “Do you mind if I interview you for a school project… do you have time?” He replies enthusiastically, “I’ve got time for an interview, she’ll we?” Craig quickly reaches into his light brown khakis and grabs a badge with the words, “NBC” imprinted on the card. He guides me into this peaceful room, with piles of machinery lying onto of the desks. It was kind of like a garbage dump. He carries a cup of coffee from Starbucks in one hand. We walk straight in front of the cubical offices. Craig then slips the plastic badge into his pocket and grabs a hold of his blackberry cell phone. He walks in front of me along the blue hallway and blissfully greets, Bill, the head of technical operations. Then he takes his leisurely walk into the 3^rd floor cubical offices. As Craig continues his pace and stumbles upon Dave McKinnon. The portraits of NBC’s critically acclaimed hit drama shows, Chuck, ER, Seinfeld, The Office and Heroes line the ocean blue halls as we walk by.

Craig Merry is formally considered the head honcho of the technical department. With his open personality, Craig entertains people with his entire arsenal of enthralling stories about the NBC 7/39 news station. Stories like working with incompetent people in different NBC news stations across America. Merry has an understanding of the hardware aspects of manufacturing. Craig normally wears a stylish dark brown sweater with diamonds and a white collar sticking out. His NBC 7/39 badge hangs from the right side of his olive colored khakis. With a degree in computer manufacturing, Craig Merry is more than capable of productively repairing CPUs and all sorts of computer equipment.

Interview with Craig Merry

What skills are necessary for your position?

My background is in manufacturing, it is not in IT. I got started because the manufacturing company I worked for needed an IT guy and they didn’t want to hire one. I got skills in IT just from on to job training. What is required to keep my job is you have to have PC upgrade and build up skills. You have to have the ability to analysis network operations as far as how computers attach together. You have to the ability to integrate software into PCs and into the network and be able to understand the hardware aspects of all that.

What exactly do you do?

My core responsibility is to make sure all that all of the clients which are all of the users on the machines here have everything they need for day-to-day operations. Keep the servers running, the network running and software upgrades.

Did your interns help you with your daily work?

You guys did a couple of good installs. All of the machines that we installed and upgrade downstairs in the news room were up and running. They had no problem with start-up and I’ve done a check of the clients down there that have the machines been very happy with the process. I would say this was a success.

Is there anything you would do differently knowing what you know now?

Yeah, knowing what I know as far as education goes, I probably would have got a degree in technology because my degree is not technology. Another thing I would probably do is gear up more for software.

Blog# 2 mentor interview

Craig Merry

Off of 225 Broadway, I jog across Third Avenue, dodging the incoming yellow taxis. I jump over the corroded red curb and onto the sidewalk. I think to myself, “Is this really my site”. On the gigantic grey slab of concrete stands the enormous NBC building. I could feel the freezing cold temperature from the air touching my soft skin, as I pass by businessmen, investigators, and lawyers walking casually in and out of the building through the glass paneled doors. A nice bespectacled old man kindly holds the door for me. Inside the NBC building, the cold brown pale marble covers the entire lobby way. I immediately run towards the stainless steel elevator in hurry as the doors begin to gradually open. The elevator crowed with people. It gets stuffy inside and I slowly take off my leather coat. I arrive at the 3rd floor lobby. A tranquil place, I look around and see college interns staring directly at me. I could already feel the tension stirring up in the room. I finally see a familiar face. An elderly man in his mid 30s befriends me. The first question I ask him was, “Are you ready for the interview”. He replies, “I’ve got time for an interview, she’ll we?” He guides me into this peaceful room, with piles of machinery lies on the desks.


Craig Merry, gently reaches into the pockets of his light brown khakis and pulls out an NBC 7/39 badge with one hand. He carries a cup of coffee from Starbucks in the other. He walks straight in front of the cubical offices. He then slips the plastic badge into his pocket and grabs a hold of his cell phone. Craig Merry then walks along the hallway and blissfully greets, Bill, the head of technical operations.
A tall, clean shaven man in his mid 20s with a buzz cut hairdo takes his leisurely walk into the 3rd floor cubical offices. Craig Merry is formally considered the head honcho of the technical department. With his open personality, Craig entertains people with his entire arsenal of enthralling stories about the NBC 7/39 new station. Stories like working with incompetent people in different NBC news stations across America. Merry has an understanding of the hardware aspects of manufacturing. Craig normally wears a stylish dark brown sweater with diamonds and a white collar sticking out. His NBC 7/39 badge hangs from the right side of his olive colored khakis. With a degree in computer manufacturing, Craig Merry is more than capable of productively repairing CPUs and all sorts of computer equipment.


As Craig continues his pace and stumbles upon Dave McKinnon, the technical manger. The portraits of NBC’s critically acclaimed hit drama shows, Chuck, ER, Seinfeld, The Office and Heroes line the halls as he walks casually by.


OE: What skills are necessary for your position?


CM: My background is in manufacturing, it is not in IT. I got started because the manufacturing company I worked for needed an IT guy and they didn’t want to hire one. I got skills in IT just from on to job training. What is required to keep my job is you have to have PC upgrade and build up skills. You have to have the ability to analysis network operations as far as how computers attach together. You have to the ability to integrate software into PCs and into the network and be able to understand the hardware aspects of all that.


OE: What exactly do you do?


CM: My core responsibility is to make sure all that all of the clients which are all of the users on the machines here have everything they need for day-to-day operations. Keep the servers running, the network running and software upgrades.


OE: Did your interns help you with your daily work?


CM: You guys did a couple of good installs. All of the machines that we installed and upgrade downstairs in the news room were up and running. They had no problem with start-up and I’ve done a check of the the clients down there that have the machines were very happy with the process. I would say this was a success.


OE: Is there anything you would do differently knowing what you know now?


CM: Yeah, knowing what I know as far as education goes, I probably would have got a degree in technology because my degree is not technology. Another thing I would probably do is gear up more for software.

Interviews

Professional interviews:

Interview with Jon Stewart

Interview with Barrack Obama

An interview is an informative conversation about something. In order to produce a good interview, you have to make sure that the person is comfortable. You want to obtain a lot of solid responses to every single question. You want to make sure that your audience understands what the interviewee is talking about. Motivate the interviewee to elaborate on their answers. Throw a couple of jokes into the interview to ease the mood.

Internship #13

The most enjoyable aspect of this internship was watching the new crew prepare for the 4 'o'clock news. That was probably the highlight of that day when I saw them provide the news. I actually got a chance to introduce myself to Marty Levine and Susan. We sat there while they were on air. I just thought that that experience was just great. Seeing them give the news in person. I always wanted to know how they know when to start filming or stop filming.

Internship #12

As a group we worked together to finish every component of our documentary. We collaborated on certain parts of the projector whether it was trying to gain access to a camera from the lockup or come up with a storyboard and script. We always came through. We all had confidence in our assign roles and had fun. Everyone looked interested in what they were working on. I worked mostly on the script for the documentary, Sai and Marcus worked on editing the captured footage of the NBC building. Over the duration of this project, I would have to say we had a stable and active work. We all weren't afraid to ask for help from each other. I would have to say we each had an equal amount of work to do for our documentary.

Internship #10

Internship #10
Hey everyone, this entry is a three-parter, so make sure you do all of them.
First, post a picture that sums up your day (make sure you get permission for the pic!).
Second, post a caption in which you use the pic to get into a discussion the following: What new questions has your internship inspired you to ask about our world? What has it made you wonder about? What are you moved to go out and do or learn about on your own time?
Third, post at least five possible questions that you'd like to ask your mentor (or other important coworker) in your upcoming interview. Your questions should be based on yesterday's blog post. If you did not do yesterday's blog post, then you should do it as background for this post.

Picture

Explain to me what you everyday schedule look like thought the week?
What skills of your own do you use at work?
Have you acquired any useful skills in the past few weeks?
What was the first day at work like?
Have you encountered any challenges?
Tell me alittle bit about your job?

Internship #9

Please post a summary of your week at internship. What were the highlights? What were the challenges? What was memorable and why?

The highlight of this week would have to be starting up our documentary. We each had a major role in creating our documentary. I wrote the wonderful script for the documentary. Sai and Marcus, who are experienced with a lot of the mac software worked on editing the first part of the documentary using a particular video editing software called Final Cut Pro. Marcus worked mostly on creating a soundtrack for our documentary using a specific software excursively for the Mac. There were challenges that we had to face, one them was trying to get our hands on a decent camera for our documentary. We had trouble trying to access one of the cameras in the NBC lockup (lockup: where they keep most of there news equipment). We were not able to use the NBC cameras because they were all reserved for the week. All of the interns and I had a short meeting on what we should do to resolve this issue. So we all wanted Sai to bring his own camera from home. In addition, we were able to access the NBC archives, where they have all of the footage of the building. We thought it would be nice to have past footage of the NBC building in our documentary.

Internship #8

Choice A: What characteristic and qualities do you see in the people at your internship that you'd like to develop in yourself? Some of these qualities and characteristics that people could have, so look around and think of a few good ones that you see in the people you work with.

I see a lot of qualities in the people I work with. Especially, Kreg. I see a lot of great qualities in him. One, he is very assertive, formal, and tech savvy. I would like to develop these qualities myself. Because If I have the qualities people will look up to me. They will see that I am taking my work very seriously. I also want to mention that I see leadership in him, a skill that I am lacking. I would like to put my foot forward and take on the leadership role. If I become a leader then people will not think of me as a push over. Someone who can be taken advantage of. I want to develop these qualities because it will increase my popularity in the work environment. People would ask me for directions and follow me as a role model.

Internship #7

My fellow internees and I worked together to assemble monitors and mail laptops through Fed Ex to New York, for our mentor. We worked together to accomplish our tasks here at the NBC building. We recently fixed alotof the CPUs from the sale department. After we were done replacing the video cards in the CPUs with new video cards. We will begin by gathering the required equipments for our film. We had technical difficulties with backing up work files onto an external storage devise. We had some problems with trying to transfer work files into those store devises and we over came these challenges by asking for assistance from Kreg, who has alot of experience with computers. My role in all of this was to return the new CPUs to the employees in the sales and graphics department. I plugged in the ethernet cable, mouse and computer wires, and etc.

Project title:
NBC internship documentary

Project description:
We are going to gather some technical equipement and use it to put together a documentary one what we have done so far here at the NBC building.

Project schedule: We are going to be conductively, working on it starting on monday of next week. My fellow internees are diliberating a plan on how we are going to shoot our documentary.


Project documentation: How will you keep track of your work? How will others know about it? What will you have to show when internship is over? Please note that some internship projects cannot be fully documented for legal reasons or because of organizational regulations (i.e., if you are working on an ongoing case at a law firm or working on a project that will receive a patent, etc.).

Internship #3

1. What academic skills could you use on the job?
I can use my journalism skills to write the script for our nbc documentary project. I did alot of heavy lifting today. We packaged some laptops and desktop monitors and shipped them downstairs to the first floor. There were 16 Dell laptops that we had to package. We also handed out keyboards to the employees downstairs because some of the keyboards had their letters missing. We also had to assemble monitors that just came in from Fed Ez for the sales representives in our building.
2. What forms of collaboration could you use in a project?
Maybe I could sit down with my fellow internees to collaborate a plan on what equipement we should use for our NBC documentry. We'll probably need to use final cut pro to edit the video and use a camera to shoot the different areas inside the NBC news station. Divid up the work amongs the group members.
3. What technical skills can you use at your internship?
I'm familiar with several different programs such as final cut pro, InDesign and etc. I know how to operate a camera and other techincal machines. I helped one of the employees connect their computer keyboard and mouse to the CSU.
4. What new things can you learn while working at your site?
How conductively make a runoff before the 4 'o'clock news. Its basically a script that lets all the other employees know where the cameras should be position and where the teleprompters should go for the four 'o'clock news.
5. How can you exhibit, showcase or otherwise share your work?
I would have to say we could create a documentry for the students at hthma to see. It might interest some people into working out NBC. Its a great way to encourage people who our interested in broadcast journalism.
6. How can your work or your skills & abilities help your company or organization?
Well, my tape wrapping skills did come in handy for Greg, the IT guy.

Internship #2

What have you actively done to start off on the right note?
I kept a notebook for writing notes on what they do there at the NBC building and helped move packaged computers.

What have you actively done to create interesting opportunities for yourself?
I went to the first floor of the build to meet with the video editors and asked questions about what their expectation are at NBC.

What have you actively done to advance the interests of your mentor and/or site?
I spoke with my intern about my computer skills and what I would like to do over the duration of the internship.

What can you do in the immediate future to improve yourself and your experience in the above area?
I need to improve on my computer progamming skills.

Internship #1

1. When did you wake up?
I woke up early in the morning at 6:56.

2. What did you have for breakfast?
I ate a bowl of cheerios cereal.

3. How did you get to internship? How long did it take? How did it go?
My mom drove me to my site in down town. The drive from my house to my internship site was 30 minutes. It went well, surprisingly, I learned many things about the different stations in the NBC news station. I had many questions for the video editor, and the director of the control room.

4. What did you do when you first arrived at internship? Who did you see? Who did you talk to?
I saw my fellow internees in the lobby of the NBC building. My mentor introduced us to her co-workers around the office. They gave us a tour of all of the rooms inside. From the News studio to the command station.

5. Where do you work (in the company, in the building, etc.)? What is your area like?
They didn’t specify what my job was. The first day was sort of like an orientation for all the interns. We will get a chance to familiarize ourselves with the news software.

6. What did you do for lunch?
Right across the street there is a mall called “Horton Plaza”. I ate a caprici salad with a bottle of water at the food court area.

7. What did you do during the afternoon?
We continued working with our mentors on revising a runoff script. We used a software called I-News, which had all of the top stories.

8. What type of work do you see yourself doing in the next few days?
I'm probably going spend my time on editing or working with the teleprompter. I can also see myself in the next few days working on additional work from the mentors.

9. What do you feel prepared to do? What do you think you'll do well?
I feel prepared to focus on my work at the NBC building. I am ready to operate a teleprompter or act like a coordinator.

10. What are you going to need to learn to succeed at your internship?
I'm going to have to familiarize myself with the NBC software. NBC computers run programs like I-news, outlook program, and final cut.

11. What makes you excited about working there?
What really stirs up the excitement for me is when they prepare the NBC studio and provide viewers with the weather and ground-breaking news.

12. What makes you nervous about working there?
Whats really nerve racking for me is not knowing how well my fellow internees work. What I mean is have they failed to do the task at hand when working on past school projects. Are they ready to put their foot down and handle the pressure.

13. When did you get home? What was your afternoon/evening commute like?
Unfortunately, I didn't get home until 7:30. My mom who works on the 9th floor of the NBC building, was at a trial.