2009年11月29日星期日

my first thanksgiving in American

There are many historical holidays in China, such as Spring festival, moon festival and so on. while in America,Thanksgiving Day is the most truly American of the national holidays in the United States and is most closely connected with the earliest history of the country.
This year, as a international student in America, I am very fortunate to have such an opportunity to have my first thanksgiving day here.
The pattern of the Thanksgiving celebration has never changed through the years. The big family dinner is planned months ahead. During the thanksgiving break, I visited my sister who lived in Wisconsin and had a family dinner during the holiday. Usually, On the dinner table, people will find apples, oranges, chestnuts, walnuts and grapes. There will be plum pudding, mince pie, other varieties of food and cranberry juice and squash. The best and most attractive among them are roast turkey and pumpkin pie. They have been the most traditional and favorite food on Thanksgiving Day throughout the years. But cause I stayed in a multiculture family, the dishes on table is more attractive. My sister and I made the hotpot ourselves! it is the famous food in our hometown--Chongqing China. Everyone enjoyed it a lot though it is very spicy.
Thanksgiving today is, in every sense, a national annual holiday on which Americans of all faiths and backgrounds join to express their thanks for the year's bounty and reverently ask for continued blessings.except this, the most attractive part of thanksgiving is the crazy shopping especially at black Friday!
For my won experience, I had waited for a store open in Chicago outlet for nearly 2 hours and kept shopping in the whole night.When it comes to the early morning, my friends and I were heading to Michigan ave to continue our shopping tour. When we walk out of the mall, it was already dark outside.And there are other people bring the tents to wait in the line. they came to wait at night until the store open in the early morning.
I have to say it is a good way to stimulus the national economy and a good chance for people to find the cheapest price to buy things, I can't deny that even a foreigner like me would love this shoping way a lot. But sometimes I feel like its not the right way for people to celebrate. In thanksgiving, the most important thing we should do is show our thanksgiving to god, to our families, lovers and friends. people should have enough time spending around them and don't worry about if they miss the best time to shop.

2009年11月12日星期四

the influence of the visual media

  
I'm a movieholic as well as a TV-holic. In my eyes, there is no doubt that watching movies and television can influence the way that people behave. Moreover, it seems that people are spending more and more time watching some sort of visual entertainment, whether it is television, a video tape or a DVD. Therefore, the effects of visual media cannot be ignored.

  One obvious effect of these media is that we can know every kind of information by watching them. they are the small window of the change world.For example, the most common thing we see through them is advertise. Television advertising is widespread and,nowadays, even movie theaters permit advertisements. There are usually left 20 minutes for advertisers introduce their products in the movie cinema.And lots of them would be preview of some new films, which attract audience a lot.
Another way TV and the movies affect people is that they give people either a broader view of the world or a distorted one, depending on what type of program they watch.Those who watch news and educational program can learn many new things while those who watch primarily entertainment shows may come to believe that most people in the world possess great wealth and good looks. It may make them become dissatisfied with their own lives. Take thriller movie for further explanation, some people know that they would be scared but they still want to have such experience. It mostly because they want to get out of their current situation and release themselves from daily pressure by a extreme way.Movies, TV shows all present the different visual angles of our thoughts, in order to allow us to understand the world much better.
Finally, perhaps the most susceptible viewers are children, who may be unable to tell fact from fiction and may try to imitate acts that they see on TV or in the movies.Sometimes it will bring them nice dream even lead their life goals. While sometimes it only shows illusory and has negative effect on children's growth. Such as violent movies, once one addicted to it, it would be hard to avoid fight in one's real life.

therefore, though i love watching movies and TV shows, i am not a totally supporter of watching them too much.Considering the influence they bring,we should explore more about our real life and gain useful experiences from it not in movie or TV.
outline

introduction: whether China should remain the one-child policy.

Thesis statement: There are many arguments against one child policy, while based on its importance and current situation, China should remain one child policy for at least another decade.
1. the history of one child policy dates to the founding of people's republic of China.
A.economic boon.
B.Mao Zedong's proclamation in 1949.
C.The communist government condemned birth control and banned imports of contraceptives.
D.In 1955 officials launched a campaign to promote birth control, only to have their efforts reversed in 1958 by the Great Leap Forward.
E.by 1962 a massive famine had caused some 30 million deaths,In the aftermath, officials quietly resumed a propaganda campaign to limit population growth.
F. interrupted by the turmoil of the Cultural Revolution in 1966; it began it again in 1969.

2009年11月6日星期五

Research Log

A. TOPIC:China should retain its one child policy for at least another decade

1.
One-Child Policy. CQ Researcher [serial online]. July 25, 2008;18(26):613-616. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed November 6, 2009.
It is stated that advocates of women's rights has been emphasizing the threats of such policy. It is implied that included in the threats which the advocates are referring to is forced abortion. Forced abortion has been noted as the long-term problem associated with the government's one-child family planning policy.

2.
Chang M. Tipping the Scale. Harvard International Review [serial online]. Spring2008 2008;30(1):10-11. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed November 6, 2009.
This policy, which generally limits couples to one offspring, has helped the country to reduce the rapid growth of population in the country. A growing gender imbalance can be seen in the country's male-dominating birth rates, matchmaking services and school classrooms. Currently, there is a growing concern among academics and older Chinese generations on plans for reform of the one-child policy, wondering whether it will help the country to solve the widening gender gap.

3.
Yardley J. China Says One-Child Policy Will Stay for at Least Another Decade. New York Times [serial online]. March 11, 2008:10. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed November 6, 2009.
China's top population official said the country's one-child-per-couple family planning policy would not change for at least another decade. The announcement refutes speculation that officials were contemplating adjustments to compensate for mounting demographic pressures. The official, Zhang Weiqing, minister of the National Population and Family Planning Commission, said China would not make any major changes to the overall family planning policy until roughly a decade from now, when an anticipated surge in births is expected to end.

4.
Chao L. China to Retain Its One-Child Policy. Wall Street Journal - Eastern Edition [serial online]. March 11, 2008:A7. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed November 6, 2009.
Zhang Weiqing, Minister of China's State Population and Family Planning Commission, has announced that family-planning policies will continue until 2018. He said that abandoning China's one child policy will cause economic strains and more problems and has to remain to ensure stable and balanced population growth. Critics link the policy to social problems including fewer young people in the future, sterilization and abortion. Before the announcement, expectations were building that the policy might be relaxed.

5.
Zamiska N. China Bolsters One-Child Policy. Wall Street Journal - Eastern Edition [serial online]. January 8, 2008:A14. Available from: Academic Search Premier, Ipswich, MA. Accessed November 6, 2009.
the efforts of China to bolster its one-child policy.The policy limits urban couples to one child and promotes small families throughout China. Although criticized as harsh, the policy is the government's way of controlling the population according to the article.