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Tuesday, 21 May 2019

London 1850 Story

 It's 1850, London, it is terrible. There's pollution everywhere, it's extremely overcrowded with tiny houses row after row. There's always the fear that Dylan (my younger brother), might fall ill from all the diseases passed around through unhygienic conditions. Around about three years ago my parents died of Cholera, I was devastated. Dylan was only 12 when it happened. It was a disastrous outbreak, all to blame on tainted water. Dylan is now 15, he's been doing alright, quite intelligent in my opinion. However, a few weeks ago he took in a dying cat, tried saving it, accidentally poisoned it. Typical Dylan, I say. Once he realized it was dead, he threw the biggest tantrum. You should've seen the tears. Before Dylan introduced his brand new but less than healthy cat to me, he pulled out a crumpled piece of paper advertising a new life in New Zealand. Quite a reality check, London's going to do no good for Dylan and me. So we got our tickets as fast as we could.

We board the boat paying extra expenses for a family room, instead of the crowded bunks with random strangers. I know Dylan won't have too much a rough time on this adventure, it was, after all, a 100-day journey across the ocean. Apparently, the food isn't too good on the old boat but once we get to New Zealand I'm sure everything will be better. Unfortunate for the people having to share rooms with each other, I just hope for their sake that none of them are ill or get ill anytime soon.

The nerves settle down a little but I'm getting restless, we've never been on a boat before. This is for the best though, there was nothing London could offer us. Startled by a sudden tip of the boat, Dylan sits up looking around to meet my eye. Worried, Dylan and I look out our window and we are less than happy with our results. Outside are raging seas and lightning flashing about. We hadn't thought about storms. Ignoring our stuff being scattered all around the room we rush back to the beds, hoping it will be okay.

It's been a week since we ran into the storm. Outside on the deck is a bit of a mess but it's being sorted. Expected by a 100-day trip, Dylan is noticeably agitated but he takes comfort in knowing we're halfway there. The rumors are true, the food is repulsive and occasionally unfit to eat. Although, it is better than nothing. Sadly, food isn't the only problem on this boat, many people sick from the storm and an unknown illness has spread. I'm so very glad to have made the purchase for a family room.


Wednesday, 15 May 2019

Essay Writing Structure

5. Adverb Sentence
Curiously, Quickly, Rapidly, Often, Importantly, Firstly, Remarkably, Firstly, Lastly, Similarily, Significantly, Readily, Interestingly

 Comma goes after adverb.
E.g Surprisingly, Mrs Handley was on time.

Remarkably, Dylan and Jordan participated in PE.
Surprisingly, I managed to convince Dylan to come outside.

6. Begin with a Preposition
Prepositions are words that indicate movement or position.
Against, In, Before, Between, Over, Behind, Within, Under, Below, At, For, Throughout, Near, About

Comma tells you when preposition time has ended.
E.g Within the hour, all students had finished their essays.

Within 2 minutes, Neika annoyed everyone in the room.
Behind Dylan, was Jordan trying to meet her walking speed.

8. -ed Start
Committed, Undaunted, Determined, Forced, Gifted, Blighted, Thrilled, Bewildered, Delighted, Blessed, Overpowered, Drafted, Surprised, Foreshadowed, Concerned

E.g Thrilled by the score, the coach shouted us all Maccas.

Determined to beat Sam, I typed HEHAHEHHEHHEHAHEHAHEHA
Committed to art lessons, I picked up my pencil and cried a little.

11. The 'W' Start
Who, While, Whilst, When, Where, What, Whereas

E.g Whereas Liz played Netball, I played hockey.

While I ate noodles, Dylan looked at me in disgust.
Whereas Loche likes fortnite, I don't.

7. The -ing Start
Deciding, Speaking, Seeing, Grasping, Rising, Looking, Holding, Emerging, Taking, Signalling, Analysing

After 'ing' phrase place a comma, then write the rest of the sentence.
E.g Talking about military success, one must include Alexander the Great.

Rising from my seat, I ran out of class
Standing up, I ran out of class

CLASSIC COMPARE AND CONTRAST PARAGRAPH
Key IdeaExample1→In Contrast, Example2 Why Difference Matters

Key Idea 
  Deliver your key idea.
Example1 → Write 2-3 sentences giving your first example.
In contrast, example2  Write 2-3 sentences giving your second example. Begin with phrases like: In contrast, In comparison, Conversely, Whereas, Alternatively, At the same time, Similarly. 
Why Difference Matters  Write 2 sentences telling us why the difference between these two things is important.

Suprisingly, many people believe Netball is better than basketball. In basketball, everyone on the team is allegeable to shoot into the hoop, giving everyone the chance to score. Also having access to the entire court. Whereas in Netball, there are only two designated shooters in a team. They must shoot into the hoop inside a semicircle surrounding the hoop. Comparing the freedom of Basketball to Netballs strict rules, it is easy to see why Basketball is better.

THE BETTER QUOTE
Key Idea→Quote1→Write this sentence→Quote2→Why Better

Key Idea → Deliver your key idea.
Quote1 → Quote an expert, then in the following tell us what she means by this.
Sentence → Yet, not all see it this way.
Quote2 → Quote expert 2, then in the following tell us what she means by this.
Why better → 2-3 sentences, say why quote 2 is superior, more challenging, more insightful than Quote1 and why.

In the book 'Unwind', written by Neil Shusterman, two nurses are overheard talking about law and human nature. 'You can't change human nature without first changing the law', is a quote given by a nurse in this text. The intention of this statement was to convey the idea of not being able to alter natural human behavior and instinct unless the laws have been changed first. However, not all see it this way. 'You can't change laws without first changing human nature', is another quote given to us by a nurse arguing against what the first nurse has said. By saying this, 

Thursday, 2 May 2019

Legality vs Morality

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBdfcR-8hEY&t=592s
Is it right to save one person and have five end up dying or is it right to have one person die if it means five survive. This is a question which is asked in the video so that you really think about what you consider to be more morally correct than the other. I think that it depends on the situation such as the sort of person/status they have. Say it was a scientist who had found a way to cure cancer, then maybe it would be more acceptable to have five people die. I see it working the other way too like what if the one person that dies, already has something that prevents them from living much longer or if they're okay with giving himself to save five others. So I sort of think that it really depends on the situation and all the details to do with it, but I generally don't favour having someone sacrificed to save another. Of course, it's a lot different to save five people and I'm quite conflicted :)

Wednesday, 1 May 2019

Unwind Part 7 - Consciousness

How is it that Connor was not unwound? p318
They found the ID of a 19-year-old guard who worked at the Happy Jack harvest camp and he was just lucky enough to run into people that didn't really support unwinding.

Whose arm does he now have? P319
Roland's arm with the shark tattoo.

On p321 Risa tells Connor how she won't be unwound. Do you think her decision to not accept the spine of an Unwind was purely ethical or was she also playing the system in order to stay alive?
I think that it could've been both because it seems like the second option would've been really smart to avoid being unwound. Taking the spine of an unwind goes against what both Connor and Risa believe in and are trying to stop. I think refusing the spine is more of a moral thing.

Since the explosions at Happy Jack, what have people been doing? What has Cy-Fi's role been in this? P325
Cy-Fi testified before Congress and more people are saying that unwinding isn't okay.

Lev's parents disown him. Who is trying to become his guardian? P328.
Lev's disowned brother Marcus.

Why has Pastor Dan resigned? P329
Because although he believes in God, he doesn't believe in having a child unwound for the church.

P331-332 explain what has happened to Harlan Dunfee. What do you think about the Admiral and his wife's plan? Was it what you expected?
Since Harlan was originally unwound, he found all the people that had parts of him, brought them all to a party and then slowly everyone started bringing up Harlan's memories all together until it seemed like it was Harlan there. I think it was really smart and a much better option than the rumour of them hunting down people who have parts of Harlan and taking the parts back. I didn't expect it especially after finding out about the rumour.

Who takes over the graveyard? P331
Connor does once he finds out the Admiral isn't able to come back because of his heart.

Unwind Part 6 - Unwound

Connor and Risa are sent to Happy Jack Harvest Camp. Describe what it is like, and explain why it is like this. P265-266
It was full of bright colours and the staff wore bright colours too. It also has a nice scenic view. I think it was to distract the unwinds from why they're there and so they don't fight the system of the harvest camp.

What is the exact percentage of the Unwind that you have to keep alive? Why is it not 100%, as Risa believes? P269

It's 99.44% which has to be unwound. It's not 100% because the appendix often isn't needed.

What do the unwinds call the place where unwinding occurs? P271

The Chop Shop.

Lev too is at Happy Jack but as a tithe. Why is this?

Because tithes are treated with caution because they're viewed as more healthy and superior so nothing would happen to him until it was his time to clap.
On p278 Connor and Roland finally, have the fight that's been brewing between them. What does each character realize during this?

That they'd rather be killed than unwound.
P284 - What group has Lev joined, who recruited him, and when will they follow out their plan?

He becomes a clapper with Mai and Blaine. They were recruited back to the graveyard by cleaver before he was killed.

Roland is called for unwinding on p286. Why is this?

He has a rare and expensive blood type.

Chapter 61 is arguably the most confronting chapter in the book. Here we have Roland's first-person narrative of being unwound. Do you think this chapter is necessary? Why do you think Shusterman chose to have Roland's experience detailed? Do his memories alter how you view him?

I think it was necessary because it shows how they're treated and what they're thinking about while it happens. It gives us an idea of what actually happens so we can decide how we view unwinding. I went from not really liking him to feeling bad for him because his memories showed that he was really scared and sad about being unwound.

Why does Lev decide not to clap? P310

Because he finds out Connor's there and he sees Connor go into the chop shop. He'd rather help Connor than explode.

Tuesday, 9 April 2019

Unwind Part 5 - Graveyard

Which job in the graveyard does Risa get assigned to? How does this come about? P201
Medic because she hels a kid with a nose bleed.

Why doesn't Connor volunteer for "work"? P205
Because he believes that the kids aren't actually doing work but that they're being used.

How does Roland unsettle Connor? P206-207
He offers Connor a deal of taking the admiral down together.

P208-209 detail Lev's arrival, and Connor's reaction. Make sure you fill in your character profiles for both characters.
His arrive was sudden and unexpected because Connor thought that Lev would've gone to be tithed.

P214-215 Connor learns the truth about the Admiral here. How does the Admiral gain Connor's trust?
He shares his backstory on his son Harlan Dunfree and that he got dentures made to look like his teeth.

What, according to the Admiral, is it that Connor is becoming famous for in the Graveyard?p212
Getting into fights.

What happens to the Goldens?p217
They suffocated in a crate that originally killed 4 people.

How does Roland begin to assert his power in the Graveyard? (you'll need to look throughout the section)
He takes them on rides in the helicopter and slowly inserts ideas of the admiral into their minds so that they are suspicious of him.

P222-226 give us an insight into how the Unwinding Bill was passed into law. Summarise what happened, then explain whether or not you think it is plausible.  
During the heartland war, someone joked about terminating a pregnancy when a child was of age but once they found out that someone had actually perfected neurografting, the American military proposed that all the unwanted could be unwound which is said as living in a divided state, so both sides of the war liked the idea since no one would actually be killed. I think it was unfair and that it wasn't needed because of the neurografting technology originally being made to heal people.

The Admiral was there when the Bill of Life was signed - do you think this detracts from the believability of the commonplace nature of Unwinding? In your opinion, do you think the book should have a few more generations between those who signed the Bill, and the present state in the novel?
I think so yeah because then we would have a better understanding of how people were affected when unwinding first became a thing.

What job does Lev volunteer to do? P236
Working on a pipeline in Alaska until he was 18.

Which part of Harlan Dunfree does Emby have? P240
His asthmatic lung.

Chapter 39 is from Roland's point of view. Why do you think Shusterman changes the narrative here? What do we learn in this short chapter?
I think it's so that we get to find out about how Roland thinks and the way he connects everything together.

By the end of this section, things at the Graveyard have deteriorated, with the unwinds turning on the Admiral, and tearing the place apart. Which character is beaten to death on p250?
Cleaver because the unwinds believe that he works with the admiral.

What does the Admiral refuse on p255? What is the doctor's reaction to this?
A heart transplant from an unwind and the doctor just tells him that his chances of surviving are lowered.

Why does Roland have the Juvey-Cops called? P259 Why doesn't his plan happen? P260-1
He calls them so that Risa and Connor get unwound and since he would be giving them information on the graveyard, that they'd stop him from being unwound too. They just explain that they already knew about the graveyard and they could turn a blind eye on it but that they cant with unwinds right in front of them, which results in Roland being sent to a harvest camp with Connor and Risa.

Unwind Part 4 - Destintations

This section opens with Lev in a pawnbroker's. What does this tell you about how his character is changing?
It shows that he's no longer as innocent or naive as he used to be.

While being transported to possible safety, some of the kids on the run wonder, "Would it be better to die or be unwound?" If given the choice, which would you choose? Why? This response requires more than one or two sentences! Put forward at least three reasons why you think what you do.
I would choose to die. Mainly because of anything that's personal or something to do with my brain could be passed on to someone else and that might not be something I'd want them to deal with, sort of like Cy-Fi. If I was going to be unwound I wouldn't want the possibility of me living on through someone else. I feel like dying would be much more preferable than being unwound because there are so many future things that could go wrong plus it's sorta sad that your parents are gonna unwind you based on past mistakes and stuff.

Another question the kids in the book discuss is, "If every part of you is still alive but inside someone else, are you alive or are you dead?" They also wonder if consciousness can exist even if it's spread out and if the soul remains intact. What do you think? Read Thomas Hobbes' Ship of Theseus puzzle to help you make a decision. Be sure to reference it in your answer!http://metaphysicist.com/puzzles/ship_theseus/
I'm not sure because it seems like something that probably shouldn't be messed with. I don't really know if your consciousness would go with every part but probably not in my opinion. You would probably get the choice for which part you'd go with or if you went with any part at all. Or maybe you don't get a choice :) We'll never know.

This section of the novel sees Lev and Cy-Fi finally make it to Joplin. As they get closer, Cy-Fi's behaviour becomes increasingly erratic. What are some of the things he does, or things he likes, that are not his own behaviors or memories?
I guess the need to go to Joplin in the first day counts, the way he talks, stealing things, the streets that aren't his memories and the house, exactly where the box full of stolen stuff is buried and located.

What was Cy-Fy hiding in his backyard? Pg 185-194
A box was full of stolen jewelry/shiny things.

The section ends with Cy-Ty reaching his destination. What do you think of his parents' behaviour? What does Lev's support show you about his character?
The parents were scared, probably sad about seeing Tyler again, or more accurately, talking to their son. It shows that he was mad at the parents for unwinding Tyler and that he wanted Cy-Fi to not have to deal with Tyler's impulsiveness and stuff. That he doesn't support unwinding or that he doesn't really acknowledge being a tithe anymore.