Top 10 Quotes:

1. "You must be the change you wish to see in the world."- Mahatma Ghandi

This is one of my favorite quotes because it applies to everyone. We must start the change within ourselves in order for the world to change.

2. "Beauty is in the eye of the beholder."
Beauty is subjective. There is no actual definition of beauty. That's the "beauty" of it! Anything and everything can be beautiful, it just depends on the person seeing it.


3. "You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you stop to look fear in the face."- Eleanor Roosevelt
With every experience, good or bad, it affects us. We must conquer our fears, which makes us stronger, more confident, and more courageous people.


 4. "Dreams are like stars... you may never touch them, but if you follow them, they will lead you to your 
                                                              destiny."   
                                                              We are told when we are little to follow our dreams, but some of our dreams may never come true. If we continue to follow those dreams, we will be shown to our destinies.

5. "Nobody is worth your tears and the one who is won't make you cry."
People always cry over other people or things that don't deserve it. The people who truly love us won't make us cry. This is what encourages me to be happy when I'm crying over something or someone.

6. "Happiness is a journey, not a destination."- Ben Sweetland
There's no need to go through life saying that you will be happier later on when you could be happy now. :)

7. "What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us."- Ralph Waldo Emerson
If we worry about our past and future, we will forget about what we are like in the present. Our past and future affects who we are, but they do not defy it.

8. "What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals."- Goethe
The reward we get by winning is not as important as who we become after we conquer many obstacles to actually win. The real reward is the character gained within us.

9. "Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do."- John Wooden
People worry more about what they cannot do more than what they can do. The worry of failing at something you can't do can prevent you from being your best at what you can do.

10. "Some succeed because they are destined. Some succeed because they are determined."
Not everyone is born a winner. Winning does not have be in our destiny for us to accomplish it; we just have to be determined.
(Also is represented by picture above.)

I chose these quotes based on how inspiring they are to me and how they affect how you think. These 10 quotes are some of the most inspiring quotes that I have read. They give you hope and help you achieve goals. There may be many other quotes that inpire people, but these quotes are what inspire me.

The Hunger Games

             

This picture is the best example of the book
because this is the moment where Katniss'
own personal games changed. This was the
moment where her destiny changed.

            The novel I chose to review was The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. In this book, there are twelve districts that make up the country of Panem, the remains of North America. The Capital is in charge of the twelve districts and they hold the annual Hunger Games. The Hunger Games is where two teenagers, between the ages of 12-18, are chosen from each district to fight in a pageant where only one person can survive. Katniss Everdeen, a 16 year old girl who volunteered as tribute to take the place of her younger sister Prim, is one of the representatives for District 12. The other representative is Peeta Mellark. As they fight in the Games, the rule of one victor changes. Now two individuals can survive, but only if they are from the same district. In the end, both Katniss and Peeta survive, but after the Games, the Capital has targeted Katniss. They targeted her because they believed that she had tried to start a rebellion within Panem.

                After reading this novel, it instantly became one of my favorite books. Suzanne Collins created something that is unlike any other book that has been recently published. The plot behind this story is absolutely brilliant. The Hunger Games is the Fahrenheit 451 of this generation. It is an example of what could happen in the future, instead of the typical teeny bopper love stories that are full of happiness. This book is a perfect combination of a love story and an action story. If I was to rate this novel on a scale of 1- 10, I would rate it a 10. I would rate it a 10 because this is a very well- written, well thought out novel. I also do not think that this novel could be improved. It is, in my opinion, a perfect book the way it is.



Technology: Harmful or Helpful?

Technology: Harmful or helpful?

                                                                                                                            

Teens spend most of their time on
their laptops instead of with their
family.

            In modern times, technology is our prime source of communication. While using technology, we can communicate with someone across the world in a matter of seconds. Mostly everything we do somehow involves technology. The progress of technology has changed our future in many ways. Though some may wonder: Is this change helpful or harmful?

Harmful?

Facebook is also both good and bad. It can be used
to just communicate or to bully other kids.

            Technology has deprived people of "real" relationships. Through Facebook, we can know everything about a person without actually knowing them. Instead of meeting people in person, people use various dating sites. In most cases, these people only get to know the alias of the other person instead of getting to know the real them. This type of online communication has deprived people of proper social skills. New York University comprised a study of the social behavior of teens. This study proved that the increase in technology use has also increased, for example, bullying. The constant use of video games programs violence into children's heads and the use of social media allows more opportunities to bully, called "social bullying".

This is one of the best examples of social media
bullying. (One of the three best examples.)

Over one third of teens send
over 100 texts per day.
(One of the best examples.)

            While growing up, children constantly hear the people of the previous generation say, "We didn't have the Internet while we were growing up. We played outside until dark". This is another thing that technology has deprived from us-enjoying nature. Instead of playing "Call of Duty" until midnight, kids should be enjoying their childhood and enjoying nature. The evolution of technology has allowed kids to grow up faster than the normal rate and their brains to learn slower than the normal rate. While technology progresses, children and teens do not progress in the proper areas.

"Our youth now love luxury. They have bad manners, contempt for authority; they show disrespect for their elders and love chatter in place of exercise; they no longer rise when elders enter the room; they contradict their parents, chatter before company; gobble up their food and tyrannize their teachers."-Socrates
"It has become exceedingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity."
-Albert Einstein

Helpful?


This is a wind lens. It is a perfect
example of positive, environmental
technology.(One of the three best
examples.)

             The advancement of technology is not only bad, but it is also very good to society. The technological progress has improved society in many ways. It has improved the medical field, various jobs, farming, schooling, etc. Without technology, scientists might not have the opportunity to find cures to diseases or kids might not learn as much as they should in school. Also, it has helped the Earth environmentally. Technology has helped create solar panels, wind lenses, etc. When people use this environmental technology, it decreases the use of electricity and it helps save the earth. Another example of the positive view of technology is the development of the war defense weapons. This helps the branches of the military help protect our country. Not every aspect of technology is bad. It is used to save lives and even save the earth. Technology was not discovered to destroy society, but to improve it.


"Advances in technology will continue to reach far into every sector of our economy. Future job and economic growth in industry, defense, transportation, agriculture, health care, and life sciences is directly related to scientific advancement. "
-Christopher Bond
 

              In every argument, there are two sides. In this case, the argument is technology. It did not start off bad, but it can be used in harmful ways. Technology has both pros and cons. I believe that it is not entirely harmful, but mostly helpful. If we use it correctly and not take advantage of it, it will be used to what it was originally created to do...to make the world a better place.