Super Bowl Sunday

Super Bowl XLVIII 

I have many specific predictions for one of the most hyped up games in NFL history. I believe that the Seahawks will win, but I want the Broncos to win. I am not a huge fan of the Richard Sherman, and the whole story behind him. He angers me with his constant taunting. Anyways, I believe the result will be 21-17 in Seattle's favor.

I think that Peyton Manning will throw for two touchdowns, with 287 yards. I believe Russell Wilson will throw for two touchdowns and will run for one. He will have a total of 198 passing yards and 64 rushing yards. I believe that Richard Sherman will have a good game, but he will not show fans what he is truly capable of.

In weather of 30 degrees or less, Peyton plays worse than what he has shown. He is 3-7 all time in both regular season games and postseason games with the temperature being under 32 degrees. His numbers are way down from usual numbers, including interceptions and yards. Not to mention he is not used to the cold, being raised down South his whole life and attending the university of Tennessee. I believe people give way too much credit to Peyton and Richard, but so be it. They are elite players of the National Football League, and I cannot take that away from them.

All in all, I think this will turn out to be a great game to watch, and will be very close towards the end. Americans watching this game will definitely not be disappointed by any means.

College Imbusiles

There were many things that intrigued me about the article pertaining to college athletes not being able to read at a college level. CNN did a good job of showing data saying some students playing football and basketball have an elementary school grade level. This is mind blowing to me because they are not by any means ready for a college commitment. My overall impression of the article is that I am pretty oblivious to the performance of college students in higher division schools. I believe they should not be accepted into an institution solely based on their athletic ability or performance in sports. It isn't particularly fair to everyone that actually did exceptional in academics that work harder to get into a good university.

the world without us essay

          Homo sapiens have been roaming the Earth for thousands and thousands of years. Advancements in technology and ways of life have led our species into a flourishing industrialized world. It was a scientific marvel for species like us to evolve, and to create such amazing, beneficial tools such as buildings, roads, schools, etc. Although, with all great advancements comes setbacks. Industry and commerce has been overlooked from an ecology standpoint. Pollution is a huge repercussion from factories and create atrocious problems for urban and marine ecosystems. The world without humans would be drastically different all in all.

          Humans alter with thousands of natural occurrences on our Earth. We pave over grass and already living beings to create roadways and railroads just because of our need for fast transportation. We also disrupt the flow of evolution and extremely tamper with the natural equilibrium of organisms. Each species is bound to die off due to natural disasters, or other natural means of extinction. We kill off species in an unnatural way, and in a barbaric, accelerated way. This being said, adaptation in certain organisms are done away with or thrown out. Other species cannot adapt fast enough to our growing need for food and luxuries such as fur coats, shoes, leather, etc. Not to mention the diversity of our world has decreased over the past 300 years from a worldwide standpoint. Our misuse of the soil is also a contributor to extinction and decreasing population rates in animals. The current rate of deforestation is 160,000 square kilometers per year. This makes it impossible for most organisms to survive in a drastically changed ecosystem. Our world was not made just for humans to keep destroying every natural resource and accommodation possible. One could not argue that what we are doing is beneficial to the world we live in. 

          We produce tons of toxic waste every year, and it all ends up somewhere. Humans create factories that either pollute the air we breathe, or the water marine animals live in. Pollution is a huge risk of having conveniences that ultimately could be replaceable. It puts toxins into our lungs, and kills millions of animals per year. In an anonymous survey, students from Norton high school were asked what their thoughts were about the impact humans have on our Earth. 90% of students believed that the world would be better without us. Also, 25% of students said pollution is completely our fault, and would decrease substantially without us. Many impactful things would change in urban areas such as cities. Cities would deteriorate and become jungles and inhabited with trees once again. Alan Weisman, author of "The World Without Us", was scholarly in saying, "Floods in New York's subways would start eroding the city's foundations, and how, as the world’s cities crumble, asphalt jungles give way to real ones." Without the skyscrapers and cement jungles, the actual jungles would recover and flourish. Maybe this shows how cement and skyscrapers should not be disrupting our underground jungles in the soil beneath. Maybe it shows how life would be better in urban and industrial areas without our never ending shadow being cast upon underestimated and under appreciated soil. Humans complicate the general flow of life in urban areas with pollution and cement blockades, thus retreating the overall process for all living things. 

          Marine life would benefit greatly from the extinction of humans. Crustaceans, fish, mammals, etc. would live in a very different place without Homo sapiens. Pollution affects every means of life in our oceans, and bodies of water. One cigarette butt can kill and create problems for a 100 foot radius of water around it. It can contain toxic carcinogens and chemicals that aren't organically made or ingested in any way shape or form. Taking this into consideration, one cigarette can be a small scale factor in a large scale problem. Pollution in our oceans can contain millions of cigarettes, and other harmful liquids, and chemicals. This does not make for a healthy relationship between a marine ecosystem and humans. We have been slowing the natural code of marine animals evolving as well. Our constant killings to animals have slowed down their ability to reproduce and live like they were made to. We use their skins, organs, and other body parts for material items and an alternative means for food. In other cases, we don't use fish for anything  after killing them. We hunt them and just end up doing it for recreational reasons. Possibly because its just a pastime for some, or because of how fun it can be. The ocean would experience huge changes without us, and would benefit and thrive by being much cleaner and more efficient.

          The food chain would change ten-fold without interference with humans. Predators would flourish, whereas, prey would over populate and there would be more nutrients for predators. There wouldn't be scarce numbers of food for animals, unless of a natural distaste or natural occurrence. Although, that is the "beauty" of it. It is completely natural for problems to evolve in that sort of way. Not in the way we make it for creatures that live on the same planet as we do. Relatively speaking, there would be many more animals that would thrive and reproduce without humans present. They would flourish, and intelligent life would evolve from other animals. Over millions of years, another species like ours would evolve and possibly create the same huge problem we cope with today. 

          "Given the mounting toll of fouled oceans, overheated air, missing topsoil, and mass extinctions, we might sometimes wonder what our planet would be like if humans suddenly disappeared." There's no argument in saying humans have been harmful to the world we were put in. We are a very curious, over intelligent species that have advanced farther than ever expected. The Earth is like a delicate glass vase, and people are like an infant playing with it. Someday, at sometime, it is bound to break or shatter. Therefore, the beautiful world we inhabited would be completely different without us living in it. 

A bear quietly walking towards a picnic table.

Fishing on Lake Champlain.

Captivation of a fish.

Works Cited

- "January/February 2014." Discover Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2014.

- "The World Without Us - Alan Weisman." The World Without Us - Alan Weisman. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Jan. 2014.

- Gammon, Katharine. "Pollution Facts | Types of Pollution." LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 27 Aug. 2012. Web. 21 Jan. 2014.

- Interview with 10 anonymous students pertaining to their thoughts on humans and the environment.

Pet Peeves

1) Loud chewing- I do not want to hear a person chewing in my presence. It bothers me because it is common courtesy, and it is also rude. At the dinner table, it is very rude.
2) Loud people- When people speak outrageously loud it makes me very uncomfortable. If we are having a person to person conversation, there is absolutely no need to yell in my ear. It shatters my eardrum, and there is no need for it.
3) Lebron James' intelligence- The Heat forward Lebron James is an absolute moron. He grew up in a bad part of Ohio, so I guess I can see where this comes from. In his interviews he talks like an absolute idiot and completely looks like an incompetent individual.
4) The pledge of allegiance- I believe the pledge of allegiance is kind of not necessary. I already swear my allegiance to the United States, and shouldn't have to do it on a daily basis.
5) The existence of Broccoli- Broccoli shouldn't bother me, but it does. The fact that people actually eat this food makes me mad. It is repulsive.
6) Itchy clothing- I do not like when itchy clothing is on my body. I hate when it itches my back because I know that it is a direct result of a worker in China messing up on the assembly line.
7) Computers- Computers bother me greatly. I believe it was the downfall of the human race. It is really helpful, but some people get glued to their phone or computer. I hate that.
8) Stupidity in school- When I come to school I expect to be around young scholars like me. Not juvenile deliquents, nor stupid people. School does not take much effort.
9) Lazy eye- When I talk to people with lazy eyes I get uncomfortable. I don't know where they are looking, or what they are looking at. I like eye to eye contact.
10) Corruption in the National Basketball Association- I hate when basketball players flop around and get calls from referees when the call is not really there. All the superstars in the NBA get so many calls for themselves just because they are good at the game. It is corrupt.