Critical Thinking & Analysis
Tobacco Regulation
Should tobacco be regulated?
- Smokeless tobacco products are not a safe alternative to cigarettes because they are still harmful to your health. Its probably better for those around them because it reduces the chances of secondhand smoke but nevertheless it still isn't safe for the user.
- Smoking bans are justified because they help keep innocent people from inhaling the harmful toxins other people create by smoking. Its justified because of public safety.
- Yes, it is necessary for the FDA to regulate advertisement of tobacco products because if they didn't little kids can see them and might want to try it, which would cause smoking at a early age.
- Tobacco should be regulated because it is a harmful drug that is unfortunately legal. It should be soon removed from deli's and big retailers.
Critical Thinking & Analysis
- Do you think schools are doing enough to stop bullying? Explain your answer.
- How should bullies be punished?
- What should schools do to help students who are the victims of bullies?
- What are the reasons that students bully other students? How can this behavior be changed
- I think schools aren't doing enough to stop bullying because they should train teachers to recognize signs of bullying or hold stricter laws against bullying although social media plays a big role nowadays and that's out of school limits.
- Bullies should have something on their transcript or whenever they need a letter of recommendation just like as if they didn't follow academic honesty.
- Schools should create groups and clubs supporting anyone who needs to speak to a friend that is encountering a similar problem.
- Bullies bully other children for countless reasons, they could feel threatened, they are abused mentally or physically at home and may have been bullied before.
Critical Thinking & Analysis
- Is standardized testing necessary to measure and evaluate what students have learned? Why or why not?
- Should students be denied promotion or diplomas based on the results of one test? Why or why not?
- Does standardized testing make teachers more accountable for what their students learn? Explain.
- In what ways can standardized tests be unfair to disadvantaged or minority students?
- I don't believe standarized testing is necessary to measure and evalute what students have learned because it should be the teacher that does it since the teacher has been working with kids the most.
- Students should not be denied promotion or diplomas based on the results from one test because students are talented in other ways which may not be test taking. Some students aren't able to recieve the best tutoring because they cant afford it.
- Standerized testing does not make teachers more accountable for what their students learn because their questions on the test that aren't taught in school but by tutors specifically for the test.
- Standarized testing could unfair to minority students because they dont have the proper living conditions to perform well on standarized testing.
- Should states adopt stricter penalties for drivers who refuse to take a BAC test? Why or why not?
- Should laws be enacted that require ignition-interlock devices for all convicted drunk drivers, including first-time offenders? Why or why not?
- Do you think DUI checkpoints should be used more often and in more places? Explain.
- Describe other measures you think could be implemented to reduce drunk driving.
- I think states shouldn't adopt stricter penalties for people who refuse to take the BAC test because Advil and other medication could effect the result leading in inaccurate readings. People who can hold more alcohol and don't show signs of being drunk and could be arrested as well.
- Yes, I believe that laws should be enacted that require ignition-interlock devices for convicted drunk drivers because they have a higher chance of doing it again and risking other drivers.
- I think DUI checkpoints should used in more places
- To always have someone responsible enough to keep you from driving or tell someone to take your keys if they realize your drunk.
- Drunk driving- I chose this topic because I'm going to be driving soon and I want to be as safe as possible. I would rather be fined than wrapped around a pole and possibly take another persons life.
- Standerized Testing- I chose this topic because as a student I feel like standerized testing takes away from the teachers oppurtunity to actually teach the subject instead of teaching the kids how to pass the test.
- Bullying- I chose this topic because its something I've experienced and its a worldwide problem. Many teenagers have comitted suicide because of other kids
- Smoking- I chose this topic because it's something thats been a big problem in the world since it became popular. Parents who smoke in danger their kids because of second hand smoke and its not fair the child.
- Common Core- I chose this topic because it doesn't allow the teacher to teach the kids instead only prepare them for the test. All students are categorized the same but everyone has different abilities.
Make a list of four or five things that "tick you off." Explain why. (Choose significant things that others might experience as well. For instance, your little brother might tick you off, but there is little chance that this annoyance will yield a possible paper topic). It is possible that one of these annoyances can be transformed into an interesting, engaging, and researchable project.
- The SAT because if you are prepped more for it then you are more likely to succeed. Also because a test makes or breaks your college career.
- When people drink and drive because not only are they harming themselves but putting other people in harms way.
- Child abuse, because children shouldn't be harmed for being a child or making mistakes.
- Animal abuse, because I love animals and they don't know right from wrong and shouldn't be accountable.
- What did wiki software allow Web users to do that the Mosaic browser did not? The Mosaic browser did not allow people to edit web pages. However, Wiki had the ability to let people edit the web pages.
- What do blogs and wikis have in common? Blogs encouraged user generated content and that is what Wiki is based off of to involve user generated content in web pages. That is what Wiki's and Blogs have in common.
- What problem did a young Jimmy Wales find with the World Book Encyclopedia? The problem he found was that there was a lot of things in it but not everything. That's what he wanted to fix.
- How was Jimmy Wales inspired by the World Book Encyclopedia to create Wikipedia? He was inspired by stickering his encyclopedia that his mom bought him. He did this to update the original encyclopedia which is what Wikipedia is, people can edit the original content on the web page.
- How have encyclopedias inspired you in your own life? Encyclopedias as books have not had much of an impact on my life but Wikipedia has. Wikipedia has helped me with many projects in school and just random thoughts on things i wondered about.
- Why did Nupedia fail? Nupedia failed because there was only one dozen articles published and there was 150 in drafts which shows how long the process is.
- How did wiki software change the ideas behind Nupedia? Wiki software changed the ideas behind Nupedia by allowing the general public to modify pages with no review by staff.
- What is “ crowdsourcing?” Crowd-sourcing means to obtain any information into a particular task by enlisting the services of a number of people either paid or unpaid.
- What do you think about the concept of “any fool in the world” being able to write articles for Wikipedia? I believe he means that wikipedia will become biased a website and people will edit things to fool around.
- Do agree with the idea that “total idiots” could edit Wikipedia and of that being a good thing? Explain. No I don't believe the idea of "total idiots" editing Wikipedia could be a good thing. I don't believe this is a good thing because it will provide false information and not many people would use it.
- Why do you think Wikipedia grew so fast and became so popular in such a short amount of time? I think Wikipedia grew so fast and became so popular in such a short amount of time because it was made clear Nupedia had no connection to Wikipedia.
- Do you believe Sanger’s elitist attitude was a good thing or a bad thing for Wikipedia? I believe Sanger's elitist attitude was a good thing because the Wikipedia community proved him wrong.
- What did you learn from the anecdote about the Wikipedia article on Einstein going to Albania for a passport in 1935? I learned that people with correct information can correct other peoples statements helping balance out the information.
- Explain this quote from the article: “I can’t imagine who could have written such detailed guidelines other than a bunch of people working together...It’s common in Wikipedia that we’ll come to a solution that’s really well thought out because so many minds have had a crack at improving it.” The article written by a bunch of people helps spread a neutral viewpoint of things such as world hunger.
- The author of the article states that Wikipedia “grew organically.” What does he mean by that? I think that the author of the article means that the Wikipedia site grew by the people of the community contributing to help develop and grow.
- How has Wikipedia “been the greatest collaborative knowledge project in history?”
- Based on your own opinion and experience with Wikipedia, do you agree with the above statement or disagree with it? Explain.
- What does the author mean by “wiki-crack?” The author means its a rush of "dopamine" that goes to the brain's pleasure center. The happens when the person makes an intelligent edit and it immediately appears in a Wikipedia article.
- Based on the article, do you believe Wikipedia is a reliable source of information? I still don't believe Wikipedia is reliable source of information because of the amount of teachers who tell me to use a more reliable source.
- Do you believe its possible for a 16-year-old from New Jersey to write “insightful” Wikipedia articles? I do believe its possible for a 16-year-old from New Jersey to write an "insightful" Wikipedia article but the article would need to be revised and proof read by a teacher with great knowledge of the subject.
- How do you feel about basing your own research on something a 16-year-old wrote on Wikipedia? I would feel a little iffy on basing my research on something a 16 yr old wrote because, I would always have doubt on whether or not my information is correct.
- What does Jimmy Wales mean by this mission statement: “Imagine a world in which every single person on the planet is given free access to the sum of all human knowledge?”
- Do you agree or disagree with this mission statement?
- Do you think Wikipedia has succeeded in its mission?
- Do you agree or disagree that ordinary people, people without degrees, can “be part of the process of creating and distributing knowledge?” I believe that people with out a degree shouldn't be a part of the the process because it can be credible site if they weren't.
- Based on your reading of the article, would you yourself use Wikipedia for your academic research? No I would not use Wikipedia for my academic research because other people could falsify the information of the topic I am looking at. I would rather get my information from a trusted site written by someone with credibility.
- Would you yourself like to write and/or edit Wikipedia articles in order to be “a part of the process of creating and distributing knowledge?” Why or why not? I would not like to write or edit Wikipedia articles because I believe I would not have all the correct information and wouldn't want to give misleading information.
