Courtship

Bowerbirds

In Biology, for the past few weeks, we have been learning about intraspecific relationships in animals. Intra-specific relationships are interactions among organisms of the same species. An example of this is courtship. Courtship can be described as mate-selection rituals. Animal courtship may involve complicated dances or touching, vocalisations, visual displays of beauty or fighting prowess or via chemical production. Courtship rituals are species specific. Even closely related species have different courtship behaviours. This ensures that energy is not wasted on interspecific mating. Generally, the male of the species initiates the courtship and the female selects the male based on his performance. Performing a display allows the male to present his traits or abilities to a female, allowing her to select the best mate in terms of strength, size, plumage etc. An example of courtship in animal is making bowers in bowerbird. Bowerbirds craft nest-like structures known as bowers, and decorate them with attention-getting items. During the mating season, females are attracted to males that build bowers because these structures provide them protection. The most elaborately decorated bower took more energy and resourcefulness of the male bird, suggesting a greater 'fitness' as a potential mate. This male is more likely to at least qualify food and nest resources and have an increased chance of reproductive success and therefore past those best genes in the next generation

 

hehe enjoy this video 

The Fairness or Justice Approach

For the past few days, in health, we have been learning about ethical approaches. Today, we constructed a hero using a playdoh using our ethical issue. We chose the fairness or justice approach. 

The Fairness (or Justice) Approach states "Treat people the same unless there are morally relevant differences between them." 

• Fair and equitable distribution of good and harm, and/or the social benefits and and social costs, across people in society.

• Fairness requires consistency in the way people are treated. 

• The principle states: TO BE FAIR TO ALL (is ethical) - Social Justice = to be ethical the outcome needs to be fair, inclusive and non-discriminatory.

This is our hero called 'Koro'. Our hero Koro demonstrate a judge. A judge looks at the evidence and reasoning of both people present in the court fairly. The judge's job is to serve justice by rendering a fair impartial decision on the issue.

Potatools :)

We've been learning about hominins for a few weeks now: habit,  skeletal features, diet, and so on. This week, we learned about the stone tools that were used during the evolution of bipedalism, when the freeing of the hands allowed them to make and use simple tools. These tools enabled our forefathers to gain access to protein-rich food sources.

Today, we made these tools using just potatoes and a knife.

(DRAFT) Connections - Klara and the Sun and Blade Runner 2049

What connections can you draw so far between Klara and the Sun and Blade Runner 2049? For example: themes/ideas, characters, relationships, style, etc?

• Genetic Editing: The main and foremost connection between Klara and the Sun and Blade Runner 2049 is genetic editing. In Klara and the Sun, the term "lifted" exists where kids are genetically edited to enhance their intelligence such as Josie. Similarly, in Blade runner 2049, genetic editing also exists where humans are genetically engineered known as "replicants" such as Officer K.
• Discrimination: In both text, a distinction is clearly set  between humans being and those who are genetically edited. In Klara and the sun, kids who are "lifted" are seen as superior compared to those who aren't - they are  more intelligent. In contrast, in Blade Runner, replicants are inferior as they are not normal like other human beings - they do dangerous jobs, they are known as 'slaves'.
• Dystopian/Environmental Decay: Both living worlds are set in the future where they rely more on gadgets/inventions. In the world of Klara and the sun, many citizen face pollution which is caused by the "Cooting's machine" that entirely blocks the sun's rays. In comparison, Blade Runner 2049 reveals a dystopian world caused between the conflict of humans and replicants.
• Personhood: In both texts, the theme of personhood is clearly explored. This links to Officer K and Klara where they are both not technically 'humans' (as they are edited/A.I) but personhood due to their experience with humans.

Has your understanding of what it means to be human/have personhood changed since studying these texts? 

• So far, no. From my understanding, to be human/have personhood, you need to have awareness and have the ability to personally respond to your own surroundings (without instructed or being "edited" to be). 

Osmosis Experiment

In Biology, we are doing an osmosis experiment using a gummy bear. The Gummy bear has a selectively permeable coating that allows water molecules to pass through while blocking larger molecules. Water molecules move into the bear in this osmosis experiment, enlarging it. Using two beakers filled with the same amount water, we  placed three full spoons of sugar and salt on the other. We also had another beaker with the same amount of water with nothing on it.  After we added solute in, we placed gummy bears on each three different beaker.

What is Osmosis? Osmosis is the movement of water molecules from a region high concentration to a region of low concentration. The water molecules move across a semi-permeable membrane. 

Hypothesis:

Normal Water: I predict that the gummy bear will increase as it's hyper-tonic to water - gummy bear has a high concentration of sugar than water.

Salt Water: I predict that the gummy bear will decrease as it's hypo-tonic to water - salt water has a higher concentration of solute compared to the concentration of the gummy bear.

Sugar Water: I predict that the gummy bear will stay the same as both sugar particles are present between the solute and solvent(iso-tonic). However, I predict that it'll increase a bit since I think the sugar in the water has a higher concentration than the gummy bear.

Results 

(red  = normal water)

(yellow = sugar water)

(white = salt water)

As a result, my hypothesis were correct. The gummy bear in the normal water increased as it's hyper-tonic to water. In contrast, the gummy bear in the salt water decreased as it's hypo-tonic to the (salt) water. Interestingly, the gummy bear in the sugar water increased a bit as it's hypo-tonic to the (sugar) water.

gummy gummy!!

SEXXY Paragraph Practice

Brief: In English, we started practicing writing SEXXY paragraphs for our film study. We we're given the scene where K arrives home to based it in our own (practice) paragraph. Below is the one I wrote :)

Movie: Blade Runner 2049

Movie Definition
Replicants - Genetically engineered humans that are not a robot but artificial beings used for slave labour and difficult/dangerous jobs.

Statement: In the scene where K comes home to his apartment, we see the aspect of two shot combined with body language effectively.

Evidence: In this scene, Joi receives an 'emanator' as her anniversary gift from K that lets her move freely. With this gift, she is able to go anywhere without the device she's programmed in(a projector-like in K's apartment that lets her move around). To try this out, both K and Joi stepped outside—on their apartment’s rooftop—finally letting Joi outside and feel the rain. We see the use of these two aspects when K and Joi were captured in the same frame while trying to feel each other’s touch. 

Explanation of director’s purpose: The purpose of this was to depict both Joi and K’s emotional reactions in one shot. In this case, the longing feeling of gratitude they felt for each other. To express this, the director purposely combined this aspect(two shot) with body language where K puts his hand on Joi’s head while she digs her head deep in his neck showing affection. 

Explanation of effect on audience: This helps us understand that Joi was more than an object(AI) to K. She was a person and he treated her as such. This also meant that K was beginning to develop emotions and grow as a character.

Link: These aspects also worked effectively with the use of back-lighting where two silhouettes(K and Joi’s) were created to produce a dramatic effect as they stood in the rain.

As a theme, this is also important because we get to learn that artificial beings(they are considered so in the movie) have learned to love and have affection for each other just as how meaningful human interactions are.  

Unfamiliar text ll Text #3

Text 3 - "The Cellist of Sarajevo"

By: Steven Galloway

1. Define 3 words you do not know

Charred - burnt and blackened
Besieged - (a place) surrounded by armed forces aiming to capture it or force surrender
Inviolable - never to be broken, infringed or dishonored  

2. Identify 3 examples of emotive language (words or phrases that evoke some kind of emotion in the reader)

"He would very much like to feel his father's hand on his shoulder again."

"The war will go around him as he sits in the small crater left at the mortar's point of impact. He'll play Albinoni's Adagio. He''ll do this every for twenty-two days, a day for each person killed."

"It wasn't always like this."

3. What is the tone of the excerpt (author’s attitude towards what he is writing about) and what mood does this suggest (overall feeling of the text)?

- a melancholic mood

4. Identify an example of imagery from the passage (when something is described in vivid detail, making it easy to imagine) and explain its effect on the reader. How effective do you find it?

"It screamed downward, splitting air and sky without effort. A target expanded in size, bought into focus by time and velocity. There was a moment before impact that was the last instant of things at they were. Then the visible world exploded." As a reader, this example of imagery definitely made me feel somewhat hopeless. Just imagining a missile darting from the sky while going on about your day made me realized there are things that sneaks up on us that we would never expect. I find this language feature very effective from its diction to the combinations of words to create a vivid picture.

5. Personal reflections

This excerpt gives a dark flow yet a hear-warming feeling. It's incredibly amazing how the cellist commemorate for the dead during the midst of war.