October Sky

     In class we watched a movie based on a true event called October Sky! To give you more insight, in the movie, the main character was Homer Hickam and he was astounded by the Russian sattelite Sputnik. He was extremely facinated by rockets after he saw Sputnik and with the help of some friends he makes his own homemade rockets that amaze the town, especially their teacher Ms. Riley. Although, some people didn't approve of this and the boys were forced to stop making their rockets because of a forest fire they were accused of starting. However, they proved their innocence by calculating where their rockets had landed using math. Fortunetely, because of their great efforts, the Rocketboys won the science fair and were able to go to college! This allowed them to escape the coal mines which have many health dangers(cave-ins and diseases)!

    All the topics in this movie had many science/math connections. For example, Homer's Father's coal mine related to health science because it presented the danger of black lung disease. Also, Homer was able to build rockets by using scientific method and math to build his rocket and also to prove his innocence using complex mathmatical equations. Without the sciences physics and engineering all this would have been impossible for Homer to do.

    On the other hand, character education traits were shown throughout the movie. The Rocketboys all showed cooperation because without it they would never have been able to live out their dreams. They each did their part! Homer exercised self-control when he didn't get mad at the people who didn't believe in his dreams. Also, Homer's teacher, Ms. Riley, showed respect for the Rocketboys because she never stopped believing in them and always supported them.

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Response to Cystic Fibrosis

The blog I read was Crazy4coke091. This blog was about the genetic disorder of Cystic Fibrosis and it left me very sorry for those with this disease. People with this disease die very, very early--an average age of 37. Sadly, most children and adolescents are more vulnerable. How would like to hear that your child's life span is cut in more than half when s/he is only at the age of two? I feel like we should have more funding to find the cure of this disease because many people are dying. People should do their best to give people with this disease the best lifestyle than can have and to try to find ways to cure it. This disease make me sad, but now I'm educated about this disease which is one step forward to helping people with this disease.

FRAGILE X SYNDROME!

Fragile X syndrome is a genetic disease. This disease was discovered in the late 1970s and patients with this disease suffer from learning disabilities to more severe cognitive or intellectual disabilities. Sadly, there is no cure but antidepressants, anxiety medications, sleeping medications, and depressants provide patients with the best quality of life and independence that is possible for people with this disease. Also, occupational and speech therapy are often prescribed. Unfortunately, the average age of death is twelve years lower than normal. This disease occurs in about one in three thousand six-hundred males and one in four thousand to six thousand. As you can see, this disease is more vulnerable to males. The genes of this disease are mutated. We should know about this disease because we might be able to find a cure and prolong the lives of the people who have it and help them have a normal life they otherwise would not have. Also, we have to be informed of this disease because it will help us better understand how to help those who have this disease and that people actually suffer from this disease. Click here to learn more and help the cause!