Blog template is updated :)
Hope it's not too colorful, lol
I was playing with GIMP for hours because of the typhoon.
But I still like Photoshop the best!
Monday, September 29, 2008
Thursday, September 25, 2008
worried...
Just some thought about being in the Advanced Placement English class....
I know my English level is not as good as the rest of my classmates. I feel pressured to speak in front of them. When reading hard materials like Baldwin essay, I wonder if other classmates understand the essay. I usually assume they understand least 50% of it and therefore I question my own English ability quite often.
In short, I guess I'm not confident enough to sit in that class. Although Ms. Galland always cheers me up, I still feel worried. :-(
It's only the start of the school year.... hope by the end of my senior year, I will, at least, get used to college-level work!!!
I know my English level is not as good as the rest of my classmates. I feel pressured to speak in front of them. When reading hard materials like Baldwin essay, I wonder if other classmates understand the essay. I usually assume they understand least 50% of it and therefore I question my own English ability quite often.
In short, I guess I'm not confident enough to sit in that class. Although Ms. Galland always cheers me up, I still feel worried. :-(
It's only the start of the school year.... hope by the end of my senior year, I will, at least, get used to college-level work!!!
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Stranger in a Village - author's intention
What's Baldwin's intent of writing this essay:
Baldwin talks about how different the Europeans and Americans sees him as a black man. In a way he is sort of saying how Europeans are naive about what's going on with the racial issue in the US. I think Baldwin's intention of writing this essay was to criticize how white men treat the African Americans in the US. He was reinforcing how racial justice issue has always been a huge part of the history in earlier years. Yet, there was nothing the African Americans can do about these racial injustice problems.
Support:
The whole paragraph 14: "There is a dreadful abyss between the streets of this village and the streets of the city in which I was born, between the children who shout Neger! today and those who shouted Nigger! yesterday—the abyss is experience, the American experience. The syllable hurled behind me today expresses, above all, wonder: I am a stranger here. But I am not a stranger in America and the same syllable riding on the American air expresses the war my presence has occasioned in the American soul." explains that there is a difference between how people view him as a black man in this small European town and back in America. When a Swiss village kid called him Negger from the back, he didn't really feel anguish at all, but it certainly reminded him of how he was treated in America.
Paragraph 10 says "The rage of the disesteemed is personally fruitless, but it is also absolutely inevitable: this rage, so generally discounted, so little understood even among the people whose daily bread it is, is one of the things that makes history. Rage can only with difficulty, and never entirely, be brought under the domination of the intelligence and is therefore not susceptible to any arguments whatever."--- this supports how Baldwin feels in America. There is nothing he can do about the situation, but being hurt and furious.
Baldwin talks about how different the Europeans and Americans sees him as a black man. In a way he is sort of saying how Europeans are naive about what's going on with the racial issue in the US. I think Baldwin's intention of writing this essay was to criticize how white men treat the African Americans in the US. He was reinforcing how racial justice issue has always been a huge part of the history in earlier years. Yet, there was nothing the African Americans can do about these racial injustice problems.
Support:
The whole paragraph 14: "There is a dreadful abyss between the streets of this village and the streets of the city in which I was born, between the children who shout Neger! today and those who shouted Nigger! yesterday—the abyss is experience, the American experience. The syllable hurled behind me today expresses, above all, wonder: I am a stranger here. But I am not a stranger in America and the same syllable riding on the American air expresses the war my presence has occasioned in the American soul." explains that there is a difference between how people view him as a black man in this small European town and back in America. When a Swiss village kid called him Negger from the back, he didn't really feel anguish at all, but it certainly reminded him of how he was treated in America.
Paragraph 10 says "The rage of the disesteemed is personally fruitless, but it is also absolutely inevitable: this rage, so generally discounted, so little understood even among the people whose daily bread it is, is one of the things that makes history. Rage can only with difficulty, and never entirely, be brought under the domination of the intelligence and is therefore not susceptible to any arguments whatever."--- this supports how Baldwin feels in America. There is nothing he can do about the situation, but being hurt and furious.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Senior Project Inquiry Question - draft 1
Topic:
How does media (ads, commercials) influence women's status on the society?
Reason why I choose this topic:
- Last year (11th grade) for English class, I choose to investigate women in media. Therefore I am very interested in topics concerns with women's rights and raising women's status in the society. I think this senior project allows me to start to actually go out and do something instead of just writing or discussing about this issue. Also, I want to incoorporate graphic design skills that I will learn in my internship experience with making posters to raise awareness of women's status.
I want to examine things such as:
- What is the current status of women in media?
- How women being portrayed as objects in media?
- What are people's thoughts about idealized beauty?
- Explore stereotypes or limitations being put on women in different culture (or at least in some Asian countries)
Methods I can go out and gather information:
- survey: How women/girls feel about themselves?
- survey: How men view women in media?
- interviews: models, fashion industries, advertising companies
- get in contact with DOVE - Campaign For Real Beauty: http://www.campaignforrealbeauty.com/
My "actual production" will be creating ads to:
- raise women/girls self-confidence
- portray women in healthy, non-sexual, positive angle
These are just my very first outline of what I want to do. Feel free to give any suggestions! :)
How does media (ads, commercials) influence women's status on the society?
Reason why I choose this topic:
- Last year (11th grade) for English class, I choose to investigate women in media. Therefore I am very interested in topics concerns with women's rights and raising women's status in the society. I think this senior project allows me to start to actually go out and do something instead of just writing or discussing about this issue. Also, I want to incoorporate graphic design skills that I will learn in my internship experience with making posters to raise awareness of women's status.
I want to examine things such as:
- What is the current status of women in media?
- How women being portrayed as objects in media?
- What are people's thoughts about idealized beauty?
- Explore stereotypes or limitations being put on women in different culture (or at least in some Asian countries)
Methods I can go out and gather information:
- survey: How women/girls feel about themselves?
- survey: How men view women in media?
- interviews: models, fashion industries, advertising companies
- get in contact with DOVE - Campaign For Real Beauty: http://www.campaignforrealbeauty.com/
My "actual production" will be creating ads to:
- raise women/girls self-confidence
- portray women in healthy, non-sexual, positive angle
These are just my very first outline of what I want to do. Feel free to give any suggestions! :)
Sunday, September 21, 2008
KUSO T-shirts : )
Here are a lot of creative T-shirt designs made by Taiwanese artists:
It's called " POPPOPPOP"
http://poppoppop.cc/en/
It's a website where anyone can upload his/her design, and the design will be open for other people to vote. If the artist's design get most votes, the sponsor will print your design on T-shirts and sell them on this website. The artist will also get $10,000 NT fee.
The artist's intent is to tease how fast food
It's just another T-shirt I find very cute and funny!
Perhaps, it's a nice t-shirt to make fun of yourself or others?
Image Reference
It's called " POPPOPPOP"
http://poppoppop.cc/en/
It's a website where anyone can upload his/her design, and the design will be open for other people to vote. If the artist's design get most votes, the sponsor will print your design on T-shirts and sell them on this website. The artist will also get $10,000 NT fee.
The artist's intent is to tease how fast food
It's just another T-shirt I find very cute and funny!Perhaps, it's a nice t-shirt to make fun of yourself or others?
Image Reference
Monday, September 15, 2008
Skype with Soule
Today, during our Social Sculpture class, we had an oversea skype with Ms. Sheila (our teacher)'s friend Soule. The purpose of connecting with different artists is that Ms. Sheila want us to get a sense of how community art is like. Soule works both as free-lance and with the community. She work voluntarily with the community , but at the same time, she can earn money by getting cases on her own. When working with as free-lance, she receives cases such as designing the costumes for actors and actresses. On the other part, she works with community opera, which allows her to get involved with improving and benefiting the whole community welfare based on good motivations.
Soule talked about how she was concerned with aesthetic when she started to learn art, but later, she found out that the most important thing is not necessarily the beauty but meaning or intention behind the art piece. I agree with what she said because I think an artist's intention is the inspiration of his/her art works. A piece of art does not necessarily need to be very beautiful or eye-catching, it can be as simple as a red dot on a piece of white cloth. Unfortunately, I'm still in a state that I concern with the beauty more than the intention when I am creating my art works...
Soule also showed us how she organizes her art portfolio; inside, she puts many resources that inspired her to design all the different costumes. For me, it is quite interesting to see what a portfolio looks like and see the actual design of the costumes. She also showed us some t-shirts that she made by stencils!
Just a random thought of my own, we can design our own t-shirts and sell it for charity purpose! :)
Soule talked about how she was concerned with aesthetic when she started to learn art, but later, she found out that the most important thing is not necessarily the beauty but meaning or intention behind the art piece. I agree with what she said because I think an artist's intention is the inspiration of his/her art works. A piece of art does not necessarily need to be very beautiful or eye-catching, it can be as simple as a red dot on a piece of white cloth. Unfortunately, I'm still in a state that I concern with the beauty more than the intention when I am creating my art works...
Soule also showed us how she organizes her art portfolio; inside, she puts many resources that inspired her to design all the different costumes. For me, it is quite interesting to see what a portfolio looks like and see the actual design of the costumes. She also showed us some t-shirts that she made by stencils!
Just a random thought of my own, we can design our own t-shirts and sell it for charity purpose! :)
Saturday, September 13, 2008
As a Hsinchu citizen...
As a Hsinchu citizen, I've not really heard any bad news about the Hsinchu Science Park polluting the environment. It is interesting to question what impacts the Science Park had bring to our daily life after I read the article "The Silence of Silicon Lambs", by Shenglin Chang and Wenling Tu .
I am not really surprised by any part of the article, but I would like to make few comments on the entire article:
It is mentioned in the article that media tend to show bias toward Science Park and the government ignored the opposition force. I think this article doesn't provide enough concrete statistics or evidence to prove this is true, but by observation, it seems true. I believe this is a problem because people have the mind set that expanding the science park is a positive thing to do. I also believe in this mind set because I've never heard any bad news criticizing the pollutions made by the Park. I found a parallel between Science Park development and China's dramatic industrialization: China is becoming industrialized in a rapid speed, but has ignored a great deal of environmental problems. Chinese government does not concern about building environmental friendly development; all they want is turn China into a civilized city. As result, China is becoming a top threat to issues like Global Warming and pollution. Both Science Park and China are trying to expand their technology further, but have ignored the environmental sustainable issues. Science Park, indeed, do seem like it is using the name of "high-tech" to make pollution.
It is interesting to know that 1 out of 4 household works in the Science Park. Many of my friends' parents or relatives also work in Science Park.
My parents worked in the Science Park thirty years ago; it was when the Park had just began its expansion. They told me stories about working as a assembly worker. They have to sit there for hours and hours, the only time they can get up is going to the restroom. The rapid change of production process is indeed scary. Everyday, my parents have to change the manufacturing process (eg: a component of the computer) in order to suit the need of down stream companies.
On the whole, the local and Taiwan government should really be concerned about environmental and labor issues in the Science Park. As environmental-sustainability problems are mainstream issue around the world now, the government should think of plans that are flexible to suit quick changes. Development of high-techs is for sure beneficial, but without proper planning, Science Park will create more and more negative side-effects to the community and the economy of Taiwan in the future.
I am not really surprised by any part of the article, but I would like to make few comments on the entire article:
It is mentioned in the article that media tend to show bias toward Science Park and the government ignored the opposition force. I think this article doesn't provide enough concrete statistics or evidence to prove this is true, but by observation, it seems true. I believe this is a problem because people have the mind set that expanding the science park is a positive thing to do. I also believe in this mind set because I've never heard any bad news criticizing the pollutions made by the Park. I found a parallel between Science Park development and China's dramatic industrialization: China is becoming industrialized in a rapid speed, but has ignored a great deal of environmental problems. Chinese government does not concern about building environmental friendly development; all they want is turn China into a civilized city. As result, China is becoming a top threat to issues like Global Warming and pollution. Both Science Park and China are trying to expand their technology further, but have ignored the environmental sustainable issues. Science Park, indeed, do seem like it is using the name of "high-tech" to make pollution.
It is interesting to know that 1 out of 4 household works in the Science Park. Many of my friends' parents or relatives also work in Science Park.
My parents worked in the Science Park thirty years ago; it was when the Park had just began its expansion. They told me stories about working as a assembly worker. They have to sit there for hours and hours, the only time they can get up is going to the restroom. The rapid change of production process is indeed scary. Everyday, my parents have to change the manufacturing process (eg: a component of the computer) in order to suit the need of down stream companies.
On the whole, the local and Taiwan government should really be concerned about environmental and labor issues in the Science Park. As environmental-sustainability problems are mainstream issue around the world now, the government should think of plans that are flexible to suit quick changes. Development of high-techs is for sure beneficial, but without proper planning, Science Park will create more and more negative side-effects to the community and the economy of Taiwan in the future.
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