Consumer Report, Nike + iPod

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Nike + iPod

As an intermediate runner, I have had experience with running shoes. I have also, through the course of my training, used different running watches and various pace trackers, many calorie and step counters. I have been looking for a product that is easy to use and provides better ways to track my running development. I have found this product; it is the Nike + iPod Sport Kit. It was revealed on March 21, 2006.

The Sport Kit can be used to measure and record the pace and distance of your run or walk. It has great features which make it easier to use, even for those who are not very good with technology. The kit consists of two components: the piezoelectric accelerometer and a Nike + shoe model. Piezoelectric means that the accelerometer generates an electric potential in response to applied mechanical stress, the foot. The accelerometer is nothing more than a small sensor that goes inside your shoe that keeps track of the number of steps, enabling you to focus on your training. Although I only mentioned two components to the kit, add an iPod to the list of components, sold separately.

To start using the kit, you first plug the receiver unit into the iPod, and then you navigate through the iPod menu. You then set a goal, whether you set it to a specific distance, a specific training time, or the number of calories burned. When the goal has been set, the receiver seeks the accelerometer, probably by asking the user to walk around to activate the sensor. This is a great feature because it is very helpful in tracking my progress. What makes it even better is that audio feedback is provided. You can even hear pre-recorded congratulations from an athletic star, like Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods, or other very significant athletes. Depending on the type of workout chosen, different feedback will be provided. For goal-oriented workouts, feedback corresponds to significant milestones toward the goal. A distance workout will inform the user each time a mile or kilometer is completed, as well as the half-way point of the workout, and finally a countdown of four 100-meter increments as the workout comes to an end. This helps you track your training. It especially helps you stick to your training regime, especially by knowing how you're doing toward the completion of your workout.
Besides tracking your performance, Nike + integrates directly with the Nike website. Your workout data can be automatically uploaded during iPod sync with iTunes. The information uploaded isn't personally identifying. You have the ability to name runs online. There are also forums allowing you to interact online, meet and challenge others. You can also ask questions and give feedback. There is also a gallery where all user-created challenges are viewable.

It is much like a personal trainer. Feedback is provided while you're running— listen to your pace, time, distance and calories burned with your iPod. You can even see it all in the recently developed Nike + Sportband, released this month, April 2008. The sportband means you won't have to carry and iPod with you, which lowers the chance of muggings. Once you're done with your workout, take out the attached memory stick and plug it into your computer to sync your data with Nike.com.
Personally, the Nike + iPod Sport Kit makes running a lot more enjoyable. And participating in the online challenges is great.

This product would have been a great support to Ralph in helping him get better at running so he could have run a lot faster when he was running from the hunters in the last chapter of Lord of the Flies, "Cry of the Hunters." Ralph has to escape the other children, savages, who are trying to "smoke him out" of the forest on a deserted island. In the end they get rescued when Ralph runs into a naval officer who rescues them. They return to civility as they are being rescued. The naval officer is a representation of civility.

I think the only flaw some people might find is the cost. The Nike + iPod Sport Kit currently sells on the market for $29. The shoes range from $100 upwards. And an iPod nano 8GB is $200. The total comes out to about $350; this is assuming you have a computer.

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Essay for Another Class: Art

Essay for another Class: Art
Painting to be critiqued;
Double Portrait of an Artist in Time


In this painting, a young child is seated at a table. She is clothed in a billowy white dress and shiny black shoes. The child's skin is a creamy white color. Her hand is resting on a table and is clutching a pink flower that has not yet bloomed. The table is small, black, has a pale yellow cloth draped over it, and there is a clock on it (the clock reads 2:15 approximately). Under the table is a small white mat. Behind the child is a long purplish shadow that extends up to a painting hanging directly behind the child. The painting within the painting shows a woman in a dark shirt with a white collar, gazing in the direction of flowers which she holds in her hand; she appears to be seated at a table with an open dish.

The child is emphasized in this painting. Behind her, the long shadow creates a line of movement that leads to the painting behind the child, which is the second point of emphasis. The portrait is well balanced with the painter's use of mostly neutral tones except for the dark shadow and the brightness of the dress. This painting is asymmetrical. The child and the adult are unified by being on the same line of view. They are each holding a flower in their hands, as well. The child is young, while the woman is old. The child is wearing light-colored clothing, while the woman is wearing black. You can see a pattern repeated in the folds of the clothing the woman and child are wearing.

This painting has a lot of symbolism. The painting seems to represent the passing of time through two stages of life. The first stage is childhood, and the second is adulthood. The clock in the painting represents the passing of time. The flower in the child's hand that has not yet bloomed symbolizes the innocence and the life ahead of the child, while the flower that has bloomed and the shadows of the flowers on the table symbolize growing and the memories of the past that are always preset. We can also see the smile on the child's face. It shows how carefree she is, while the more serious expression on the woman's face shows the adult's worries, which she might be enduring.

We can see this painting is clearly a work of art because there is obvious intent by the artist, trying to get a message across. She does this by organizing the painting to the very last detail. The artist was also successful in conveying a message because when you look at the painting it "speaks to you." The elements are well organized and help to convey her message through lines such as the uncluttered background, which helps you focus on the spare but very important details. It makes you sense the aesthetic experience which only good painting can make you feel.

This painting says to me that to kids, life is like an illusion, that as we grow up we have to face. It reminds me of the story "The Glass Menagerie," by Tennessee Williams. Throughout this story the characters, in order to not face reality, are tempted toward illusions, illusions that cover up the harsh reality. The story is about a family living through the Great Depression. In the living room, the memory of the husband that left the family is present at all times. The mother (Amanda) sometimes forgets she married a less than ideal man. The photography shows [pic]the face of [her husband] a very handsome young man in a doughboy's First World War cap ... gallantly smiling, ineluctably smiling.[pic] This photography of the husband that dominates the living room reminds me of this painting I just wrote about.

Advice: Advice for the Runner

I recently started to run as a competitive sport. My first race in my life went very badly especially for my feet. I had not trained or run races before so I did not know I needed to wear proper clothing. The day after the race, the soles of my feet hurt a lot, and some days later I even got blisters. It was hard for me to run or even walk for some days after the race; that is why I want to help you know what to wear, whether you run or walk.

The first thing I did was tell my friends because they might know what to do because they had been practicing sports for some time already. They told me the problem was probably the shoes I wore. I then went to get new shoes and that solved the problem. This brings me to my first point. Whether you run or walk. Either for fun, sport, or to maintain a healthy lifestyle, you need to dress properly.

It could even save your life, running from someone who wants to assault you or from you neighborhood dog. The last chapter of Lord of the Flies, “Cry of The Hunters,” demonstrates how running can be crucial during an assault. In Lord of the Flies Ralph runs for his life. Ralph tries to hide and is running from the other kids because he is, ironically, hunted. The kids in this story crash onto a deserted island, without adults, and most of them become savages. The island is set on fire by the others who are trying to “smoke him out.” He tries to hide, but when they get near, he runs, “racing trough the forest toward the open beach.” In the end they all get saved when Ralph runs into a naval officer who rescues them.

As you can see, running can even be useful when running for your life, so you need to dress properly. First, wear the right shoes. This is the most important thing to consider. The shoe you choose should be the size of your foot; consider the arch of your foot and your gait (whether you’re a pronator or a heavy heal striker, etc.). The best way to figure out your gait is by taking the “wet test.” First stick your foot in water, and then put it on a blank paper. This will give you your foot “profile.” Go to your local specialized retailer and the salesperson will be able to help you pick the type of shoe you will need with the imprint of your gait.
Runners don’t give much attention to their socks. Our attention is focused on the shoes we wear; do they cushion, do they fit, do they cause blisters. We should also be asking the same question of our socks. Like all clothing that your wear next to your skin, you should avoid one-hundred percent cotton. Most athletic socks are acrylic or cotton-acrylic. Acrylic is typically a combination of polypro, CoolMax, or nylon. The chief idea is to find a combination that effectively wicks moisture away from your skin. It is particularly important, since it is moisture and friction that cause blisters.

When choosing your shorts, try to avoid heavy fabrics, along with shorts that are so loose that they may irritate your inner thighs as the miles stack up. It will hurt, trust me. Try to get shorts that are made of Supplex nylon. It is soft, light, and fast drying; best of all, they usually have an inner CoolMax contour to help wick away moisture from the skin.

If you don’t want to be reminded how hot or cold it is, don’t get yourself a cotton singlet. Don’t get me wrong, cotton shirts are soft, comfortable, and they breathe, but when they get wet with sweat, the cotton swells and is very uncomfortable (on cold days it makes you chill quicker). For a much more comfortable run, try one of the lightweight synthetics designed to wick moisture away from your skin and allow it to evaporate quickly. These synthetics are soft and non-abrasive, and are often ventilating mesh or more tightly woven fabric. CoolMax or DuPont are probably the well known kinds of these fabrics, but Nike has a similar product named DriFit. When choosing winter tops, Corium by Asics is the most recommended. It stands up to the drier, although it can become rather fragrant with use, although less than polypro. On mild days this alone is enough. On cooler days, it’s a good idea to wear another layer of absorbent material (cotton or wool, for example) to draw away moisture and trap warmth between the layers.

I hope this advice helps, and good luck if you decide to run a race. Now you can lace up your shoes and go for it.

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Cause & Effect: The Spanish Inquisition

The word Inquisition comes from the Latin word inquiro, which means “to investigate.” Inquisitors were members of the Catholic Church who were dispatched through Western Europe to seek people who were accused of heresy. Among the church leaders, heresy meant a philosophy that disagreed with the teachings of the Orthodox Catholism, which threatened the unity of the church.

Although Christianity was powerful at this time in history, it had often been a victim of persecution. The Christian religion started around the first century AD with the teachings of Jesus Christ. Christ himself was a victim of persecution because the Roman governor of Judea, Pontius Pilate, believed that Christ’s teachings represented a threat to the Roman government. Christ was then condemned to be crucified. Persecutions continued through to 312, after a great number of converts from the Roman religion became part of the Catholic Church. The future of Christianity was assured because of the emperor Constantine. This resulted because of a manifestation he had that changed his way of thinking. He even converted himself to the Catholic religion. He was struggling for control of the Roman Empire against a powerful rival, Maxentius. Before the start of a decisive battle at the Milivan Bridge, Constantine reportedly saw a cross in the sky with the inscription “conquer by this.” He also said that God had appeared in his dreams. After he won, he took control of the empire and gave religious tolerance to the Christian Church. After the Catholic Church got powerful, it found itself persecuting others.

The Spanish inquisitors began to preside at trials that involved alleged heretics about the year 1231, after Pope Gregory IX called on the Franciscians and Dominicans, which were orders of friars, to undertake a special role in the Christian Church. Their role was to seek out people who were accused of heresy and put them on trial. It was fear of having a “fifth column” among them which was one of the reasons why the inquisition was started. The Inquisition also brought profit to the state because property of heretics who were found guilty was taken from them. They also wanted to establish a political and religious homogeneity; the strengthening of the main political authority also caused weakening political opposition. The Inquisition would get rid of the threat to the government, those who practiced heresy. Before the Inquisitors took their role in the cities, mobs of boisterous townspeople had taken matters into their own hands. The Inquisitors had burned supposed heretics at the stake without first holding a trial. By 1255, the Inquisition was operating across Western Europe.

The Inquisitors usually followed a fixed procedure. They arrived in an area and gave the residents a month’s “term of grace” in which to come before the Inquisitors and willingly confess heresy. The repentant heretics were given penance and punishment for their sins.

Those who were believed to be heretics but did not confess were put on trial before the Inquisitors. The accused were forced to testify against themselves and were not given the help of any legal counsel. They never saw or knew who accused them of heresy. If the supposed heretics still did not confess, the Inquisitor might resort to horrible torture to induce those who practiced heresy to confess. If the torture was successful and the heretic confessed, he or she could put a hand on the Bible, kneel, and renounce heresy. The confessed heretic would then have to serve out his or her penance. Heretics who still did not confess were burned at the stake. Other methods of the Inquisition included imprisonment, torture, confiscation of property and public execution. Preceding these burnings of heretics, a religious ceremony called an auto-da-fe (act of faith) was performed. In their ceremonies heretics who were accused were marched in procession into a church, a mass was held, and the death sentence was read. Then the convicted persons were handed to the state for execution.

The peak of the Inquisition was from 1483 to 1498. During this time Dominican priest Tomas de Torquemada presided over thousands of trials. He also supervised over two thousand burnings at the stake.

A story which demonstrates the torture used during the Spanish Inquisition is “The Pit and the Pendulum,” by Edgar Allan Poe, where the main character, a captured heretic, is put inside a dungeon. In this horrifying story, he goes through a horrible experience as he faces death, which in his case takes the form of a pendulum. The method of his sentence of death is as follows: The condemned is fastened upon a table on his back and suspended above him is a pendulum. The blade of the pendulum, which is very sharp, is constructed so that with every swing it takes, it drops down until it reaches the condemned and finally kills him. Luckily for the condemned in this story, he is released by rats and is saved by General Lasalle because the French army arrives at Toledo (where the story takes place). “The Inquisition was in the hands of its enemies.”

The Inquisition persisted in a limited form until about 1834 in Latin America and Spain.

Due to the Spanish Inquisition, many Jews and Muslims were expelled from Spain, and on March 19, 1815, the Spanish Liberal Constitution was accepted and became the first step in a long journey toward religious freedom in Spain.

Story: A World of Kids

About eight years have passed since beings from Sector 2 planet V67 came and started a war with us, the human race. They wanted to obtain our world for their purposes, which are unknown to me, or any of us. The adults have sent us here to protect us from them. They have decided to transport us, the kids, to planet X715, which is unknown to other races of beings.

We are sent in SPD-spheres, which are spheres made of a man-made element and whose interior is completely secluded from the outside. We are transported in these SPD-spheres through black holes to Sector 9 planet V67. The trip is brutal; some of us are hurt, because of the compression of matter, which feels like being put inside a bottle. When we land here we are identified, and we become part of a kids’ world.
I was part of the first generation to come here, and now I am fifteen years old. I will have to leave soon, and go back home to fight and take part in the Great War, like many others who have gone before me.

Unlike the planet we left from when we became four years old, this planet does not have violence, anger, envy, or war. The other kids have not experienced it and don’t know what it is, but when they return—besides facing the war—they will also experience the real world. Without the adults and their different world, we have lived in peace, with respect towards each other, and we have fun.
Right now I am in the “World Centre,” planning what the others and I must do to face the evil among us.

It all started three days ago, when some of the older teens started what must be a war, after many years of peace among us. I, along with the other three world leaders of the four sovereignties, have to join forces to plan what we are going to do.
I said, “What are we going to do? We are the future of the human race.”
“I don’t think there will be any following generations. The others are very strong, and many have died,” answered Jonathon, another world council president.

“But…”

“That is enough. We are fighting; I don’t know with what, but we are not just going to stand here and not put up a good fight!”

One of the council assistants, JK, came in running. He looked very exhausted and was out of breath.

“Hello, Smiley,” he said.

“Yes, what do you want?”

“The others have started to attack the main cities. Many have died. They have declared a fight. Look!”

He turned on the monitor in front of the world council leaders. On the screen there was a news broadcast, and in it were two huge buildings. They were the tallest in the world and they were on fire. About nine minutes had passed since they had started seeing the broadcast, and they just stood, petrified, as they saw people running. There was smoke everywhere. Then one of the buildings collapsed.

“I can’t believe this! How could this have happened?” I exclaimed.

“They want to rule over our planet, like the adults,” said Eva.

“Where did they get ammunition, first of all?” questioned Jonathon.

“We must do something!” cried Eva.

“But we don’t have weapons!” reminded JK.

“We should try talking with them,” suggested Smith.

“No; they’re like the adults. They won’t listen,” I said.

Lately this group of older kids had been acting very strange; they were very distant from the group and hardly ever participated in anything.

Now that I think of it, they did not come in SPD-spheres; they just appeared one day and incorporated into our world.

“Maybe they are not humans, maybe they’re aliens, like those in the book Childhood’s End, which took over the world,” said Smith.

“Or maybe they are disguised aliens, like Valentine M. Smith in Stranger in a Strange Land,” JK added.

“You got that wrong. Valentine was human, but he grew up on Mars, smartass,” I corrected.

Eva said, “Whatever they are, what is going to happen? What if the adults come and see there is no more Kid’s World?”

“We are going to have to fight back.”

“…But the rules—”

“Would you want to die?”

“Of course not!”

“Well, then, let’s go.”

I communicated back to Earth and gave the situation to the Earth military chief, Reltih Izan.

He responded. “We anticipated this might happen, which is why we left weapons in a subterranean chamber: Region 0, Zone 3. Good lu—” The transmission stopped abruptly.
While Smith and I went to look for the chamber, Eva and Jonathon called the older children to come and get ready for a war.

After Smith and I found the chamber, we went back to the main hall. Many had been summoned there; then Smith and I headed to the chamber and got ready for the fight.
Many died, but in the end—after weeks of a well-fought war—we won. Few lived to tell the tale.

I never thought this would happen. How could a war have started here, among kids?

I thought that I would never see a war; not until I got back to Earth. But I was wrong.

Documented: The Cold War and Space Exploration

Are you mystified by the objects in the sky? People have been wondering about the universe since humans appeared on Earth. Questions like why the moon sometimes disappeared, or why stars sometimes fell from the sky have been answered, but we are still left with new questions. Not many years ago, the United States and other countries around the world started to embark on the journey to explore space. Russia started the Space Age with the launch of the first artificial, satellite Sputnik 1, into space on October 4, 1957. This marked the beginning of the Cold War and the space era.

This happened after World War II. Due to the intense rivalry mounting between the communist and non-communist nations, a “cold war” started. The war was called that because there was no armed or “hot” conflict; instead, they fought indirectly by taking part in conflicts around the world. The USA and USSR both developed inter-continental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and hydrogen bombs. It was on that October day that the Soviets used a missile to launch Sputnik 1 into space and the “arms race evolved into a space race” (Essortment).

This event made space exploration part of daily conversations of everyone around the world. The author Homer Hickam clearly demonstrates this in his book, October Sky, where Sonny, the main character, gets an interest in the subject of space exploration after he sees the satellite Sputnik 1 pass above his house. He first hears about it, one early morning, when his mom wakes him up after hearing about the launch by the Soviets. Although she is clueless about what the radio presenter was talking about, Sonny figures he was talking about a satellite because of all the science fiction books he reads and his dad’s science magazines. His interest grows so much that he is “fascinated by the whole thing.” He reads articles that have reference to “Cape” and keeps himself close to the television set, “for the latest on what they were doing.” When he says “Cape,” he is talking about Cape Canaveral in Florida, where the American scientists and engineers were “desperately working to catch up with the Russians” (Hickam).

It was on November 3, of the same year, that Sputnik 2 was launched, with a dog named Laika in it. However, it did not take long before the United States launched their first satellite.

With the help of German émigré Wernher von Braun, and the V-2 rocket, upgraded with designs for very powerful rocket engines, the United States had the ability to become part of the Space Age. In 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was formed to become a good example for technological excellence, which was another goal of the United States with its participation in the Cold War, to demonstrate a superiority in technology by claiming mastery of the sky. It was on January 31, 1958, that Satellite 1958 Alpha (sometimes referred to as Explorer 1) was the first United States satellite launched into space. In April, Russia was the first to launch a piloted space flight. The person who orbited the Earth was cosmonaut Yuri A. Gagarin (Booth).

There was one group before von Braun and NASA that also made major contributions to space exploration and still is one of the leading centers for planetary exploration. It was formed by a group of Caltech graduates who began experimenting with rockets in 1944, but did not want to take part in the race for political prestige; they did it for scientific investigation. And they did accomplish lots of goals, like the Mariner 2 travel-by of Venus in December, 1962 (Booth).

The Russians were viewed as rivals, and they were very smart in the eyes of Americans. Other space probes had been launched and had reached their destinations, like Mercury and Venus, before the trip to the moon. On July 20, 1969, the United States made a great advancement when astronauts Neil A. Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo 11 lunar module. That day, Armstrong became the first man to set foot on the moon.

The Cold War started to fade around 1970 when both countries began to pursue different goals in space.

These events led to the beginning of the Space Age, which won’t have an end because the universe does not end and still continues to grow. We could say that if there had been no Cold War, there would not have been so much advancement in space exploration, because the Cold War was the drive that led to major steps in the journey of humanity to explore the unknown.




Works Cited
Booth, Nicholas. Exploring The Solar System . Cambridge: Cambridge University press, 1995.
Essortment. 5 September 2007 .
Hickam, Homer. October Sky. New York: Delacort Press, 1998.

About the essays

I have written these essays for my English essay portfolio. I attend the Science Academy of South Texas (scitech.stisd.net), it is a great school located in southern Texas, and part of the South Texas Independent School District.

Sci-Tech is not a normal high school. We, the students, choose to come here and we acknowledge that we have to give up some extracurricular activities i.e. sports and music. Most of us are willing to sacrifice these enjoyable activities so we can attend Sci-Tech. Students decide to attend Sci-Tech because we want a better academic challenge, which our most of our home schools cant provide. Sci-Tech has the brightest students in the RGV. This school serves three counties; Hidalgo, Willacy, and Cameron. Sci-Tech has three sister magnet schools BETA, Med -High, and Med-Tech, which are as good. I got to attend BETA freshman year, I really enjoyed and made lots of new friends. Each school has a curriculum centered on specific types of careers. Sci-Tech, as you can probably tell from the name, is centered on careers in science and engineering.

We participate in the program Lead the Way, which is a engineering program that enables students to receive college credit for engineering courses we take. Our school has notable partnerships with Rice University, Rochester Institute of Technology, University of Texas-Pan American and South Texas College. As I have mentioned out school has no athletics department but many of us participate in academic competitions regularly.

In 2008, The Science Academy finally received its own gym, no longer sharing with our sister and neighboring school Med High.

We have a radio station that is run by students, on school, and is airs in the morning, during lunch, and afterschool. We have a variety and unique clubs, like the bible, astronomy, environmental, KQSA (radio), newspaper, art, and many more!
The engineering classes are very fun and we get a lot of hand on experience, the districts slogan is, “Think outside the book”. All classes are college preparatory (Pre-AP) and AP/ DE courses. This prepares us for college. The school has a very college like atmosphere. The food in the cafeteria is way better and more assorted. Our school has the latest computer programs, updated every year.

I wrote these essays for my English portfolio. English 2 students have to so thirteen essays, each is a different type. There is a process. We write them, turn them in, our English teacher check and circles errors. Then we correct the errors and resubmit, hoping it will be accepted, although usually more errors are found:) When the essay is finally accepted, we submit it to Turnitin.com, which checks for plagiarism. Every essay has to include an essay to a work we have read in the year, so each of the essays will have an allusion. I will post accepted essays here for your enjoyment. Please feel free to leave a comment. Tell me what you think.
Thanks for visiting.

Resources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Science_Academy_of_South_Texas
http://scitech.stisd.net/
http://stisd.net

Contact info.
ismael.melendez1@gmail.com
www.myspace.com/smileforlife2010