Thursday, April 18, 2024

Friday, April 19. 2024

Today's schedule is ABCD

A Block Criminology - Don't forget you have one last term three question to answer:

What can you do to reduce the chances of being victimized by a good burglar? - Consider targets (houses, cars AND commercial properties like businesses)

To Help: What makes a good burglar?

Then, in order to understand "professional" thieves, I am going to show you an episode of "White Collar". The premise of the show is that Neal Caffrey, a renowned con artist, forger, and thief, is captured after a three-year game of cat and mouse with the FBI, specifically Special Agent Peter Burke. With only three months left in his four-year sentence, he escapes to look for his girlfriend, Kate. Peter Burke once again finds Caffrey and returns him to prison. This time, Caffrey proposes a deal to help Burke apprehend dangerous white collar criminals with the FBI as part of a work-release program. After some hesitation, Burke agrees. They thus begin their unconventional and testy relationship. Today's episode is called Copycat Caffrey. When the theft of a famous painting makes the papers, Neal and Peter think they have a copycat on their hands who is taking inspiration from Neal's past exploits.






B Block Legal Studies - You'll need to answer question 5 on page 175 of the All About Law text “Explain plea negotiation and outline the advantages and disadvantages of the process. In your opinion, is justice served by plea negotiations?” 

This is not a one or two sentence answer; it requires thought and work. 






C Block Human Geography - Today the Internet and Social Media.
We'll examine the Internet and Social Media's influence on popular culture. The Internet has been a key factor in driving globalization. At its core, globalization is the lowering of economic and cultural impediments to communication between countries all over the globe. While some political and social barriers still remain, from a technological standpoint there is nothing to stop the two-way flow of information and culture across the globe.





00:05 The Media is Lying to You
10:31 Meme Culture
22:16 The Rise and Fall of Reddit
36:53 Why Facts Don't Change Minds
49:38 The Myth of Philanthropy
01:01:17 Why Cancel Culture Sucks
01:11:58 Algorithms are Destroying Society
01:24:39 This Is Why Discord Is Dangerous
01:38:15 Lies About the World You Believe In
01:52:12 The Problem With Romanticizing Mental Illness
02:04:31 Why YouTube Feels Boring Now

So, the Internet has made pop culture transmission a two-way street. The power to influence popular culture no longer lies with the relative few with control over traditional forms of mass media; it is now available to the great mass of people with access to the Internet. As a result, the cross-fertilization of pop culture from around the world has become a commonplace occurrence.

Valerie Berset-Price wrote a lovely piece called From Pop Culture to Global Culture: How Millennials and Technology Are Influencing Our World. In it she states

For Millennials (although you are iGen/Gen Alpha/Gen Z in the context of this quote that would be you - my inset), two things are happening simultaneously: culture is impacting technology, and technology is impacting culture. On one hand, culture serves as a standard of judgment. It places an importance on what is acceptably good, valuable, and ethical. It conditions how and what we communicate, and it is the lens by which we perceive the world and, in some ways, the way the world perceives us. On the other hand, technology has served as a force for sweeping cultural change, joining the ranks of war, colonization, religious influence and military expansion as cultural modifiers. The expansion of the internet has allowed global communication and information to permeate everything from apartment walls to international borders...Such global exposure has provided the basis for peaceful international homogenization as well as deep conflicts of perspective, and technological advances have increased the speed and frequency of both.


In addition to individuals contributing to culture, Multinational, nongovernmental corporations can now drive global culture. This is neither entirely good nor entirely bad. On one hand, foreign cultural institutions can adopt successful American business models, and corporations are largely willing to do whatever makes them the most money in a particular market. However, cultural imperialism has potential negative effects as well. From a spread of Western ideals of beauty to the possible decline of local cultures around the world, cultural imperialism can have a quick and devastating effect. (from Understanding Media and Culture: An Introduction to Mass Communication).

Today you'll need to answer:
  1. Social media (Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube) is changing the way that popular and folk cultures are diffused. Give and support an argument for how the Internet might aid the preservation, or even expansion, of some folk cultural elements.
  2. Why do many governments consider it important to limit the freedom to use social media?
  3. A recent study of University of Maryland students found that not using any electronics for 24 hours produced anxiety, craving, and other symptoms akin to withdrawal from alcohol or drugs (FOMO). How do you think you would react to a 24-hour ban on all electronics?
For help check out:
Has technology changed cultural taste?
How the Internet has Changed Pop Culture




D Block Physical Geography - Today we'll be looking at streams and drainage basins. You'll need to work on a few definitions, a diagram, and questions in your Geosystems Core textbook. Canadian Geographic has a good article on the Peace/Athabasca Mapping water flow in the Peace-Athabasca Delta



In order to understand streams we'll watch a Bill Nye the Science Guy episode on the topic - Rivers & Streams (#209). Splash down a rapid river with Bill Nye the Science Guy and explore how ecosystems work and why they are important to our environment. From waterfalls and dams, to the depths of the Grand Canyon, this is one wet and wild ride. This week's music video showcases the Talking Headwaters singing "Take Me to the River


Today's Fit -


 

 

Posted by Geo Teacher at 7:05 PM 0 comments

Wednesday, April 17, 2024

Thursday, April 18. 2024

Today's schedule is DCBA

D Block Physical Geography - Today we're looking at water. Water is the fundamental ingredient for life on Earth. About 71 percent of the Earth's surface is water-covered and you can find it in the atmosphere above us, in the ocean, rivers and lakes around us, and in the rocks below us. The volume of all Earth's water is about 1,386 million cubic kilometers (km3). A cubic kilometer of water equals about 1 trillion liters. The USGS diagram to the right shows the distribution of water on the planet and explains the amount of water available for "human use". You'll note that there is precious little water available for the 8.045 billion people that live on Earth and on a daily basis, we use 10 billion tons of freshwater worldwide and in Canada residential water use per person per day has fallen 14% from 251 liters in 2011 to 215 liters in 2019. 

If the world's water supply were only 100 liters, our usable water supply of fresh water would be only about 0.003 liter (one-half teaspoon) and all the while, water demand globally is projected to increase by 55% between 2000 and 2050. Then consider that the flora and fauna of the biosphere require water as well and you can see the importance of water to all forms of life on the planet. 

We'll look at the properties of water in its three phases (don't talk to me about plasma) and then you'll need to define: condensation, evaporation, transpiration, precipitation, sublimation, percolation, and aquifer. Lastly you'll need to complete the following questions: 

  • Sketch a simplified model of the complex flows of water on Earth – the Hydrologic Cycle (use Geosystems Core p.127)
  • What is the nature of groundwater pollution? Can contaminated groundwater be cleaned up easily? Explain (use Geosystems Core p.134-135)
  • Using Figure 5.9, identify the regions where precipitation is the scarcest and the most abundant. (use Geosystems Core p.130)

C Block Human Geography - Today we'll look at the key question, "Why Is Access to Folk and Popular Culture Unequal?" We will really focus on the diffusion of popular culture and look at the mass media of television. The world’s most popular and important electronic media format is television (TV). While the Internet has grown in popularity and importance in recent years, TV remains the foremost electronic media format. Television is a mirror of our world, offering an often-distorted vision of national identity, as well as shaping our perceptions of various groups of people.


In March 2011, then U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made the argument that U.S. television was giving people around the world a distorted view of Americans. 
"I remember having an Afghan general tell me that the only thing he thought about Americans is that all the men wrestled and the women walked around in bikinis because the only TV he ever saw was Baywatch and World Wide Wrestling," (a side note, at its peak, Baywatch was broadcast in 142 countries and around the world more than 1 billion people have watched the show).
So you'll have some questions about television to work on in your Introduction to Culture package today and if complete, you can get caught up on housing, clothing, food, sport, or music questions. 
  • Using the 2005 map in Figure 4-28 on page 126, complete the chart about television access
  • What three countries dominate worldwide television markets and what region do they dominate?
  • Why do developing nations view television as a new source of cultural imperialism?

B Block Legal Studies - Today, you'll watch the Law & Order episode “Fools for Love”... From TV Tropes 
 
Two teenage girls are found dead in an abandoned building. They are identified as Jane Kendrick and Annika Ohlman; Annika was an exchange student staying with Jane's family. Their deaths are linked to a suspect named Peter Williams. Jane's sister Laura, who had been caring for the girls, is feared to be another victim of Peter. She is found severely beaten in a hospital and says Williams was responsible. He denies harming Laura, who is in fact his girlfriend. Forensic evidence places Laura being present when Jane died, making her a key witness. With Peter about to walk free on bail, McCoy is forced to agree a plea deal giving Laura the minimum sentence if found guilty. 

The episode is based on Karla Homolka. Her husband, Paul Bernardo was sentenced to life imprisonment for his part in the murder of Tammy Homolka (Karla's sister) and the kidnappings /murders of Kristin French and Leslie Mahaffey (Bernardo was classified as a ‘dangerous offender,’ meaning it is unlikely he will ever be set free). In exchange for pleading guilty to manslaughter and testifying against Bernardo, Karla Homolka accepted a ten-year plea bargain for her roles that was later upgraded to a twelve-year plea bargain – a far lighter sentence than many Canadians believed, and still believe, she deserved. Homolka was released on July 4, 2005, and originally opted to live under the name Karla Teale (Bernardo and Homolka had originally planned to change their surname to Teale, in honor of fictional killer Martin Thiel). For more news on Karla Homolka (who tried to change her name to Leanne Bordelais but now lives under her new name of Leanne Teale) check out the article at the Globe and Mail here...or The Toronto Star here or this CTV Montreal article.

You'll need to answer question 5 on page 175 of the All About Law text “Explain plea negotiation and outline the advantages and disadvantages of the process. In your opinion, is justice served by plea negotiations?” 


A Block Criminology - Since we didn't get to it on Tuesday, we'll look at Burglary along with Break and Enter. Just to note that in 2020, during the early days of the pandemic, although there was a 22 per cent decrease in residential break and enters in Canada between March and June, in the four weeks between March 18 and April 15, compared with the same period the previous year, Vancouver saw a 147 per cent increase in commercial break-and-enters. Residential break-and-enters were up 51 per cent (from CBC Vancouver Commercial break-ins up 147% during COVID-19 crisis)…check out the Vancouver Sun Break and Enter Crime section and from July, last Summer, Police report spike in vehicle break-ins in Courtenay


You'll have one question to answer:

What can you do to reduce the chances of being victimized by a good burglar? - Consider targets (houses, cars AND commercial properties like businesses)

To Help: What makes a good burglar?


Today's Fit 


 

Posted by Geo Teacher at 5:29 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, April 16, 2024

Wednesday, April 17. 2024

Happy Birthday to my wonderful wife!


Today is a Flex Day. If you are not currently passing a class, there is an EXPECTATION that you'll be here for help, especially given that the end of the term is this Friday.

Don't be a Maybe...be here if you need help and let's get you to a much better place, academically 

 

Posted by Geo Teacher at 3:13 PM 0 comments

Monday, April 15, 2024

Tuesday, April 16. 2024

Today's schedule is CDAB

C Block Human Geography - I believe the words were "Straight up work block"


Get after it! I'll come around and help where needed. From last Wednesday's blog...the tragic story of Choi Jin-ri, also known as Sulli.


From the National Public Radio article Sudden Death Of A Young K-Pop Star Spurs Talk Of Action On Mental Health, Bullying
Women in the K-pop industry are particularly scrutinized and harassed accordingly online — whether for reading a book that allegedly promotes feminism, for wearing clothes that are too scandalous on stage, or even just for sporting a phone case that reads, "Girls can do anything." These types of "scandals" have been exacerbated as Korea experiences both a growing feminist movement and a backlash against it. Sulli was one of the most outspoken female celebrities on women's issues — after Korea's Supreme Court ruled that abortion should be legalized, she posted a message of support, drawing the ire of many online commentators.
This is a strong example of the conflict between folk and global culture. I have a question for you to answer about this in your Introduction to Culture package today.




D Block Physical Geography - Today, you'll have time to finish your mass wasting work. We'll also look at three types of snow avalanches (loose, wet, and slab). We'll understand where they occur, why they happen and figure out the physics of snow mass movement.
 

A Block Criminology - Today we'll look at Burglary along with Break and Enter. Just to note that in 2020, during the early days of the pandemic, although there was a 22 per cent decrease in residential break and enters in Canada between March and June, in the four weeks between March 18 and April 15, compared with the same period the previous year, Vancouver saw a 147 per cent increase in commercial break-and-enters. Residential break-and-enters were up 51 per cent (from CBC Vancouver Commercial break-ins up 147% during COVID-19 crisis)…check out the Vancouver Sun Break and Enter Crime section and from July, last Summer, Police report spike in vehicle break-ins in Courtenay

You'll have one question to answer:

What can you do to reduce the chances of being victimized by a good burglar? - Consider targets (houses, cars AND commercial properties like businesses)

To Help: What makes a good burglar?

Then, in order to understand "professional" thieves, I am going to show you an episode of "White Collar". The premise of the show is that Neal Caffrey, a renowned con artist, forger, and thief, is captured after a three-year game of cat and mouse with the FBI, specifically Special Agent Peter Burke. With only three months left in his four-year sentence, he escapes to look for his girlfriend, Kate. Peter Burke once again finds Caffrey and returns him to prison. This time, Caffrey proposes a deal to help Burke apprehend dangerous white collar criminals with the FBI as part of a work-release program. After some hesitation, Burke agrees. They thus begin their unconventional and testy relationship. Today's episode is called Copycat Caffrey. When the theft of a famous painting makes the papers, Neal and Peter think they have a copycat on their hands who is taking inspiration from Neal's past exploits.




B Block Legal Studies - We'll start the class with pre-trial negotiations (resolution discussions). From the Department of Justice here in Canada: Broadly speaking, the promises that may be made by Crown counsel fall into three, overlapping categories: (1) promises relating to the nature of the charges to be laid (charge bargaining); (2) promises relating to the ultimate sentence that may be meted out by the court (sentence bargaining); and (3) promises relating to the facts that the Crown may bring to the attention of the trial judge (fact bargaining). Plea Bargains and Public Prosecution Service of Canada: Resolution Discussions
  1. Charge Bargaining
    1. Reduction of the charge to a lesser included offence;
    2. Withdrawal or stay of other charges or the promise not to proceed with other possible charges; or
    3. Promise not to charge friends or family of the defendant; or
    4. Promise to withdraw a charge in return for the defendant's undertaking to enter into a peace bond.
  2. Sentence Bargaining
    1. Promise to proceed summarily rather than by way of indictment;
    2. Promise to make a specific sentence recommendation;
    3. Promise not to oppose defence counsel's sentence recommendation;
    4. Promise to submit a joint sentencing submission;
    5. Promise not to appeal against sentence imposed at trial;
    6. Promise not to apply for a more severe penalty (for example, by not giving notice to seek a higher range of sentence based on the accused's previous conviction – s. 727 of the Criminal Code);
    7. Promise not to apply to the trial court for a finding that the accused is a dangerous offender (s. 753 of the Criminal Code) or a long–term offender (s. 753.1 of the Criminal Code);
    8. Promise to make a representation as to the place of imprisonment, type of treatment, etc.; or
    9. Promise to arrange the sentence hearing before a particular judge.
  3. Fact bargaining
    1. promise not to "volunteer" information detrimental to the accused during the sentencing hearing;
    2. promise not to mention a circumstance of the offence that may be interpreted by the judge as an aggravating factor (see, for example, the aggravating factors listed in s. 718.2(a) of the Criminal Code).
After, I'll have you work on the following from yesterday:

Questions 1 & 3 from page 167 of the All About Law Text
1. Following arrest, under what circumstances is the accused more likely to be released until his or her court appearance? When is someone not likely to be released?
3. Why is habeas corpus an important legal right in a civil democracy?

Questions 2, 4, and 5 from page 178 of the All About Law Text
2. Identify the legal rights of an accused on arrest or detention.
4. Identify the different types of pre-trial release, and provide an example of each.

5. Puneeta was sitting with some friends at the park when two police officers walked over to the group. When the police noticed several open beer cans near Puneeta, they demanded identification, assuming that she was guilty of drinking in public. Puneeta told the officers that the beer cans were not hers and that she had not been drinking. She demanded to be let go, but the police grabbed her by the arm. Puneeta became frightened and noisy, and struggled to get free. The police then fined her for drinking in public and arrested her for causing a disturbance. When the officers began to handcuff her, a shoving
and pushing match broke out. Puneeta was charged with two counts of assault.

a) Why was Puneeta charged with assault?
b) Should Puneeta be found guilty of assault? Explain.


Today's Fit...


 

Posted by Geo Teacher at 3:23 PM 0 comments

Sunday, April 14, 2024

Monday, April 15. 2024

Today's schedule is ABCD

A Block Criminology - Today we're in the library where you may finish your shoplifting poster or answer the following for an online post about auto theft.


I'd like you to answer the following:
  1. Explain what the five reasons are why people steal cars
  2. Where in Canada most cars are stolen from and what types of vehicles are most commonly stolen
  3. What are some prevention methods / methods of protection (how to stop your car from being stolen).
CTV News Vancouver has a short video on the top 10 most wanted auto theft suspects here and the Vancouver Sun did a nice piece on Auto Theft (actually catalytic converter theft) in the Lower Mainland here.




B Block Legal Studies - Today, we'll review your rights upon arrest and detention and then focus on Release and Bail Procedures, Judicial Release Procedures, Disclosure, Arraignments and Preliminary Hearings. After being arrested, a person may be released on the spot. This may be when police officers believe that the accused presents no further danger and will appear on the trial date. Others are taken to the police station, where the police record the criminal charges and take fingerprints and photographs. Some of these people will also be released, usually if they are charged with less serious offences. If the police believe that an accused may commit further offences, is a threat to the victim or witness, will interfere with the investigation, or will not appear in court, she or he may be detained until a bail hearing takes place. Just so you know...this is not legal in Canada

I'll have you work on the following:

Questions 1 & 3 from page 167 of the All About Law Text
1. Following arrest, under what circumstances is the accused more likely to be released until his or her court appearance? When is someone not likely to be released?
3. Why is habeas corpus an important legal right in a civil democracy?

Questions 2, 4, and 5 from page 178 of the All About Law Text

2. Identify the legal rights of an accused on arrest or detention.
4. Identify the different types of pre-trial release, and provide an example of each.

5. Puneeta was sitting with some friends at the park when two police officers walked over to the group. When the police noticed several open beer cans near Puneeta, they demanded identification, assuming that she was guilty of drinking in public. Puneeta told the officers that the beer cans were not hers and that she had not been drinking. She demanded to be let go, but the police grabbed her by the arm. Puneeta became frightened and noisy, and struggled to get free. The police then fined her for drinking in public and arrested her for causing a disturbance. When the officers began to handcuff her, a shoving
and pushing match broke out. Puneeta was charged with two counts of assault.

a) Why was Puneeta charged with assault?
b) Should Puneeta be found guilty of assault? Explain.

C Block Human Geography - Today, we'll look at housing (looking at folk housing vs popular housing). We'll watch the video on Toraja village in Indonesia and then we'll talk about feng shui and popular housing locally...The Comox Box.

During the 1970s, affordability became a major factor in the home buying process. To help make housing more affordable, builders reduced lot sizes and increased the density of developments. To appeal to first-time buyers and stimulate the housing market, CMHC (then Central, now Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation) introduced the Assisted Home Ownership Program (AHOP) in 1971, to help low-income people attain home ownership. This meant that the average lot size in "newer" (1970's) Comox and Courtenay developments was reduced to 0.19 acre and the house size was increased to about 1800 square feet. 



You'll have some questions to work on for me





D Block Physical Geography -  Today we'll look at Mass Wasting (falls, slides, and flows). We will figure out the causes of Mass Wasting by looking at both the driving and resisting forces on hillsides and slopes. We will try to figure out some slope stabilization practices and specifically we'll look at what has been done at Goose Spit to stop erosion of the Willemar Bluffs along Balmoral Beach. We'll also review the problems of the  Sea to Sky highway (Hwy 99 from West Vancouver to Squamish), The Trans-Canada through the Rockies (Highway 1), The Number 3 Highway from Hope (1965 Hope Slide) and we'll review the Oso Washington slide from March 2014 as well as the 2019 Joffre Peak landslides. And, of course, the Coquihallla Mudslides of 2021...Highway 5 was closed to regular vehicle traffic on Nov. 14, 2021, due to damage caused by an atmospheric river. Flooding and washouts associated with the November 2021 rain damaged more than 20 sites along 130 kilometres of the Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Merritt. This included seven bridges where spans completely collapsed or were heavily damaged.


You will define rock fall, debris avalanche, landslide, mud flow, and soil creep and work on questions in your Geomorphology workbook.



Today's Fit...


 

Posted by Geo Teacher at 7:05 PM 0 comments
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