Veganism: The World Keeps Spinning Whether One Eats Meat or Not
By Jamie Lance, V Form
Veganism: The World Keeps Spinning Whether One Eats Meat or Not
Unfortunately, instead of speaking up about being vegan, I often feel the need to remain silent to avoid falling victim to stereotyping.
In the world we live in, cruel treatment of animals and unsustainable practices dictate both our present and our future. Deforestation is a legitimate problem with irrefutable effects. One and a half acres of trees are destroyed each second, resulting in a loss of biodiversity that contributes to vaccine research, greenhouse gas absorption, and oxygen production. If current rates continue, estimates indicate that no rainforests will be left by the year 2120. [1] Despite the significant effects of deforestation, a single factor drives the continuation of this practice: agriculture. The primary use of the cleared land is to create soybean farms, which are utilized in the production of a protein-rich food supplement for livestock kept in feedlots. 33% of all arable, or farmable, land is used for animal (more…)
Drawing on Our Brains: How Neuroscience and Art Can Teach Us About Learning
By Gabe Brower, VI Form
Drawing on Our Brains: How Neuroscience and Art Can Teach Us About Learning
I have yet to meet a single student at Saint Mark’s that has never crammed for an exam. They fill up their brain temporarily with information for an upcoming test in a vain attempt to not fall flat on their face the next day during their test. To be honest, it sometimes “works”, as defined by a good score, and I can speak from experience in this area. However, that doesn’t mean cramming is effective. It is the result of disengaged students and ineffective teaching methods that culminates in temporary information retention, and over the long run the crammed information isn’t retained. Therefore, no valuable learning takes place. (more…)
Empathy Through Education in China’s Xi Ma Yin Village
By Carrick Zhu, V Form
Empathy Through Education in China’s Xi Ma Yin Village
My mom and I began our volunteer teaching trip in 2014. With the help from the local Red Cross Organization in Ning Xia, China, we were able to find a local primary school situated in Xi Ma Yin village. Xi Ma Yin rests at the base of the Helan Mountain where the water supply is scarce. The villagers are mostly immigrants from the other side of the Helan Mountain. The elementary school where I worked is called Xi Ma Yin Immigrant Development Zone Elementary School. (more…)
Race in Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God: an Infographic
By Haley Dion, IV Form
Race in Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God: an Infographic
We were given a project that instructed us to create an infographic on a key theme from
Their Eyes Were Watching God. My infographic focuses on the theme of race in the novel. It discusses the characters’ connections to race, the relationship between race with other themes in the book, and the presence of race throughout the chapters. I enjoyed creating this infographic because I got to look at the importance of a modern day issue in the 1920s/1930s time setting of the novel. The elements of the infographic are below or you can access the full infographic by clicking here. (more…)
Global Connections of Media and Skin
By June Seong, IV Form
Global Connections of Media and Skin
Amidst the chaos that is my life – including the future I must decide upon, the necessity to be “special,” and my attempt to make this post somewhat grammatically correct – I am struck by my simultaneous privilege and ignorance. This privilege and ignorance is exhibited through myriad ways at this very moment: 1) this dull MacBook Air that I am communicating through and that was probably configured by an underpaid or unpaid laborer; 2) the whizzing air conditioning that is breathing on my neck so that I might not die from heatstroke whilst the world scales up a few sweltering Centigrades; 3) the immensity of the world that is within computer click’s reach via Facebook. (more…)
On Defining a Nation in The Global Seminar
By Laura Sabino, III Form
On Defining a Nation in The Global Seminar
A nation does not need to have a large number of members or consist of one piece of land. A nation is a group of people that are connected to each other because there is something that unites them, such as a common leader or government.
Different nations can be defined by politics. Politically, a nation is a group of people that live in the same certain country, follow the government of said country, and live together as a community. In politics, a nation is a country’s land and all that is in it. However, different types of nations can share something in common that is unrelated to politics. This is like a music artist who has a nation of fans because those fans are brought together by something they all have in common: a love for the performer. (more…)
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