fbpx
Home Blog Page 1075

Summer Reading Contest, Week 6: What Got Your Attention in The Times This Week?

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
Summer Reading Contest, Week 6: What Got Your Attention in The Times This Week?

Welcome to Week Six of our 13th Annual Summer Reading Contest.

This contest is open to students 11-19 from anywhere in the world. To participate, submit a response by 9 a.m. Eastern on July 22 that answers the questions “What got your attention in The New York Times this week? Why?”

If you are 13 or older and live in the United States, or 16 or older from anywhere else in the world, post your response in the comment section. If you are a teacher, parent or guardian and your kids or students are 11-12 years old and live in the United States, or 11-15 and live in another country, see the bottom of this post for details on how to submit.

Responses must be 1,500 characters — about 250 words — or fewer.

What should you choose? Well, as you know from the rules we’ve posted, you can pick anything published on nytimes.com in 2022, including articles, essays, videos, photos, podcasts or infographics.

So what did you read, watch or listen to this week? Maybe you were consumed by front-page headlines about the protests in Sri Lanka, the Emmy nominations, or the awe-inspiring images from the James Webb Space Telescope — or maybe you were more taken with stories about the rescue of 4,000 Beagles, the quiet fight by elite colleges to keep legacy admissions, actor Meryl Streep’s dramatic use of a simple pair of eyeglasses, a love affair with cilantro, why so many children of immigrants rise to the top, or Kate the Chemist, a college professor who is working hard to inspire more people into careers in science. We don’t care what you choose, we just want to hear why you chose it.

We hope you’ll click around nytimes.com and find your own great articles, features and multimedia. But we also know that not everyone who participates has a Times subscription. Because all links to Times content from the student features on our site are free, every week we’ll try to help by posting interesting pieces from a variety of sections.

Air Pollution Kills 10 Million People a Year. Why Do We Accept That as Normal?

The Supreme Court Dealt a Terrible Blow to Children’s Health

I Don’t Want to See a High School Football Coach Praying at the 50-Yard Line

Male Birth Control is Needed Post-Roe v. Wade

Even if Republicans Outlaw Abortion, Americans Will Soon Rebel

Crypto Is Crashing. Where Were the Regulators?

Need more details? The contest rules are all here, and you can read the work of last year’s winners here. A quick overview, though:

  • You can choose from anything published in the print paper or on nytimes.com in 2022, including videos, podcasts, graphics and photographs. (In your response, please include the URL or headline of the piece you pick.)

  • We’ll post this question each Friday from today through Aug. 12, and you’ll have until the next Friday morning to respond with your picks. Then we’ll close that post and open a new one with the same question.

  • We’ll choose at least one favorite answer to feature on our site each week. Winners from this week will be announced on Tuesday, August 2.

  • Feel free to participate each week, but we allow only one submission per person per week.

  • The contest is open to students ages 11 to 19 from anywhere in the world. If you are 13 or older and live in the United States, or 16 or older from anywhere else in the world, post your response in the comments section. If you are a teacher, parent or guardian of a student or child who is between the ages of 11 and 12 and live in the United States, or 11 and 15 and live in another country, then you must submit an entry on the student’s behalf using the form below. All entries from the comments section and the form below will be judged together.

The Large Hadron Collider

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
The Large Hadron Collider

Scientists dedicate their lives to giving us a clearer view of the mysteries of the universe. Years of study allow us to understand more and more about our past and origin. This is how the Large Hadron Collider project tries to understand what happened just after the Big Bang.

 

An article published by National Geographic explains how “in that kind of time machine, which is the Large Hadron Collider and which is always operational, except when it requires maintenance work, they continue to try to emulate the early universe on Earth. To do this, they collide proton beams, made up of 2,500 packages of 100,000 million protons each, causing up to 600 million collisions per second.

 

Image courtesy of National Geographic

 

Physicist Marta Sabaté explains, “The sectors benefited -with the LHC- are multiple: civil engineering, materials technology, robotics and automation, accelerator physics for medical applications, detection systems that are very useful in dosimetry, massive data processing…”.

 

For his part, CERN physicist Héctor García-Morales points out “many technological developments necessary to build the LHC have made possible many inventions that are now part of our daily lives. An example of this would be touch screens, invented at CERN. Or the World Wide Web, the global computer network accessible through the Internet. Nothing more needs to be added.”

 

To better explain what the Large Hadron Collider is, we are going to use the explanation made on the site www.i-cpan.es: “The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is the largest particle accelerator in the world. In this experiment, physicists from the European Laboratory for Particle Physics (CERN) collide subatomic particles (mainly protons, one of the constituents of the atom’s nucleus) into each other at selected points where large detectors (ATLAS, CMS, LHCb and ALICE). These record the particles resulting from collisions to study the elements that make up the matter from which the Universe is made, including ourselves, and their interactions.”

 

Where is the Large Hadron Collider located?

 

Located on the French-Swiss border near Geneva, the LHC is a 27-kilometer-circumference ring located 100 meters below ground.

 

Chronology of the Large Hadron Collider

The site www.i-cpan.es makes a spectacular description of the stages of operation of the LHC since its inauguration:

 

First start-up (2009–2013)

The LHC first started operating on September 10, 2008, but a faulty electrical connection caused extensive damage to more than 50 superconducting magnets and the vacuum tube. Therefore, it was not until November 2009 that it started up again, once the consequences of the incident had been resolved.

 

On November 20, 2009, several low-energy beams flowed through the accelerator for the first time since the incident that caused the operation delay, and shortly thereafter, the beams flowing through the LHC reached an energy of 1.18 TeV, becoming the most energetic and powerful particle accelerator in the world, surpassing the previous maximum record recorded by Fermilab’s Tevatron (0.98 TeV).

 

During the first half of 2010, the power of the accelerator was progressively increased and the first experiments with beams circulating at energies of 3.5 TeV were carried out. That same year, in March, the LHC set a new record by colliding beams of protons with an energy of 7 TeV.

 

CERN had planned to shut down the LHC at the end of 2012 to carry out updating and maintenance tasks for a second stage of operation, but the important and notorious discovery of the Higgs boson in July 2012 caused the shutdown to be postponed until early 2013, in order to obtain additional data on the discovery before the planned shutdown.

 

First Big Stop (LS1) (2013–2015)

In early 2013, the LHC was shut down to enter its first upgrade phase, which is expected to last 2 years. This first big shutdown is called Long Shutdown 1 (LS1, for its signs in English). For example, some objectives and improvements that the research community had in mind were: to improve the detectors and pre-accelerators to reach collision energies of 14 TeV, to replace the ventilation system, and to change tens of kilometers of wiring, which deteriorated due to collisions at such high energies. The upgraded collider began its lengthy startup and test run process in 2014, until in 2015, with all improvements implemented, it was back in operation.

 

Second start-up (2015–2018)

On April 5, 2015, the LHC restarted after a two-year shutdown. Between 2015 and 2017, the collision energy at the LHC reached 13 TeV. Such energy was first reached in April 2015. In June 2015, physical data began to be recorded for future analysis.

 

During the year 2016, technicians focused on increasing the “luminosity” of proton-proton collisions. “Luminosity” is the measure of the number of potential collisions per unit area and time in a particle accelerator. It is a basic indicator of the operation of an accelerator and is measured in inverse femtobarns: 1 inverse femtobarn is equivalent to 100 trillion collisions between protons. Improvements in the luminosity of the LHC increased the collision rate, reaching twice the value of the original design.

 

Second Big Stop (LS2) (2018–2022)

The Second Great Shutdown of the LHC (Long Shutdown 2, LS2) began on December 10, 2018. In this great shutdown, maintenance and updating tasks have been carried out, both in the LHC and in the entire CERN accelerator complex . During this stop, the research community has focused on implementing the improvements framed in a project called ‘High Luminosity Hadron Collider (HL-LHC)’, which aims to greatly increase the luminosity of the accelerator. The HL-LHC is expected to be operational in 2026.

 

Third commissioning (2022- )

On April 22, 2022, at 12:16 p.m. Geneva local time, two proton beams circulated in opposite directions through the accelerator, marking the start of the LHC’s third period of operation. Although these do not yet form part of the normal operation of the LHC, they are the first operational tests that aim to verify the improvements and changes implemented in the last great LS2 stop. The first beams have circulated through the accelerator tunnel with injection energy of 450 billion electron volts, which will increase as it is verified that the system works correctly.

 

Image courtesy of www.meer.com

 

07-05-2022 Start of the major start-up scheduled for 2022. The accelerator is already working and ready to reach energies of 6.8 TeV per beam, which add up to a total of 13.6 TeV of energy in each collision. In addition, the improvement and redesign of the ATLAS, CMS, LHCb, and ALICE detectors will allow the detection of a much higher number of collisions between protons and the by-products generated. According to the theoretical physicist at CERN Michelangelo Mangano, in this new 3rd Phase:

 

“We are looking forward to measurements of the decay of the Higgs boson into second-generation particles like muons. This will be an entirely new result in the Higgs boson saga, confirming for the first time that second-generation particles (charm quarks and strange, the muon and the muon neutrino) also gain mass through the Higgs mechanism.” 

 

On the sidelines, among other objectives, it is expected that with the increase in the power of the collisions it will be possible to obtain results on which particles make up the dark matter, the discrepancy observed between the theoretical prediction of the mass of the W boson and that recently calculated by the Tevatron, which disagrees with the theory predicted by particle physics, as well as the discovery of possible new particles that allow a better understanding of the standard model or the need to modify it in the attempt to find new theoretical physics.

 

The LHC is scheduled to be operational for at least 15 years. In that time, scientists hope to obtain enough data to deepen their understanding of the origin and formation of the Universe.

If you want to learn more about the Large Hadron Collider, you cannot miss the following information:

Alison Affiliate Programme: Learn And Earn

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
Alison Affiliate Programme: Learn And Earn

We often read how upskilling yourself is one of the best ways to advance your career and improve your monthly income. Every-so-often, we find something we enjoy and want to shout out from the rooftops about it. Now when you’ve found a platform you enjoy such as Alison and want to tell people about it, why not get paid to do so? We’ve made it possible for you to do both – learn and earn with Alison’s Affiliate Programme. Read on and discover how you can become a part of our Affiliate Programme and earn an income simply by sharing Alison with others.

What Is An Affiliate?

An Affiliate is the term given to individuals who have partnered with a business/organisation and receive a monetary reward for each new customer they bring into the business. That is, you can earn a commission by sharing our courses and platform with those you know. Being an Affiliate is fast becoming a way for individuals to earn passive income online.

How Alison’s Affiliate Programme Works

It’s easy to become an Affiliate. Once you’ve created your Alison account, you can sign up to become an Affiliate.

  1.     Register with Alison

Login or sign up. Join one of our informative webinar sessions with an Alison representative and learn how you can empower others by being an Affiliate. 

  1.     Invite

Using the Affiliate link generator, share your Affiliate links online with your friends, family, colleagues, neighbours and anyone else you can think of who might benefit from our free educational and professional tools. 

  1.     Earn money

You will receive 20% of the revenue generated by the new learners who come to Alison through your Affiliate links. 

Why You Should Be Part of Alison’s Affiliate Programme

There are many reasons why you should become an Affiliate. The first is that you enjoy learning with Alison. The second reason is just as good. You love sharing and want to introduce your inner circle to the easiest way to upskill and empower themselves in their career. Our range of courses means whatever industry they’re in or field of interest they have, they too can take their career to the next level, like you have.

Joining our Affiliate Programme is not only easy. It’s free. We don’t have a long and complicated application process. As soon as you register, you can start earning with Alison.

  •       Earn And Gain Experience

The wider your circle and the more people you share your Affiliate links with, the more you will earn. As soon as you register, you can add Affiliate marketing to your skillset.

  •       Get Alison’s Support And Help

You don’t need to be a marketing guru, our programme is suitable for everyone, no matter your level of experience and expertise. Alison provides you with a comprehensive Affiliate Marketing Guide with all you need to know to spread the word of Alison on different online platforms. So, if it’s your first time or you’ve been at it for a while and need to know how to get better, we’ll guide you through the programme.

  •       Exciting New Features Coming Soon

We have fun features like unlocking badges and receiving points based on your Affiliate activity. You can also compete with our other Affiliate members to get to the top of the leaderboard. The more you share and earn, the higher up you climb on the Affiliate leaderboard.

How To Become A Great Alison Affiliate?

Anyone can be an Affiliate. But we want you to become a great Affiliate! If the below sounds like you, then you’re well on your way to being a top-earning, successful Affiliate.

  •       Get Active On Social Media

You don’t necessarily need to have a large social media following. Nor do you have to be overly active across social media platforms. The Affiliate Programme is designed for everyone to make use of. You can use numerous platforms that you’re active on to share your generated links. Remember, the more you share, the more you earn. Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram, it’s time to get posting.

  •       You Love Sharing

We all love getting free things. And studying with Alison is free. By sharing our platform and online resources with your friends and family, you’re spreading the word and helping them get closer to achieving their career goals. They will thank you.

  •       You Enjoy Learning With Alison

If you’ve completed just one course, or have several under your belt, you have enjoyed your learning journey with Alison and you want others to experience the same thing. You not only love learning but appreciate the free opportunity Alison gives you to empower yourself through our many courses, certificates and diplomas.

We offer a holistic approach to empowering yourself in the workplace, financially and mentally which you can share alongside Alison courses using the Affiliate quick link generator. We also have a career guide to round things all up.

Learning and earning has never been easier with Alison’s Affiliate Programme, and you too can be a part of it. If you love studying through Alison and want to make extra money on the side, this is the way to go. All you have to do is sign up, share and start earning.

“Hello Alison, I just discovered Alison Enterprise not too long ago and I must confess, you guys are the best there is. Am very certain that this Alison company and platform is going to be a life-saving discovery for me. Right now, I am currently studying a number of courses and am proud to say that I am an Alison Affiliate. Be rest assured that the name “Alison” will never cease to come out of my mouth wherever I go. You guys are my rock. Big shout out to Sir Mike Feerick. I remain your ever loyal affiliate, thanks.” – Kennedy Emeka Uzor

Digest #164: Sustainability and Climate Change in Education

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
Digest #164: Sustainability and Climate Change in Education

 1.      Education for sustainable development, UNESCO (@UNESCO)

This is an excellent general resource that provides an overview of many aspects of the importance of sustainability in education. There are many stories from around the world with examples of climate change education. Resources on this website can be used as material in the classroom to engage students with this topic.

 

2.      Sustainability in the Curriculum, Australian Education for Sustainability Alliance (AESA).

This website provides an abundance of information and resources to be used in the classroom to teach and engage students with the topic. Under the “Resources Portal“ you’ll find resources and activity ideas organized by school subject. This way you can introduce students to climate change knowledge within different disciplines.

 

3.       Episode 65: Teaching about Climate Change with Protect Our Future, Lyndsey-Lee Dunwoody (@LyndseyDunwoody) of 1851 Trust (@1851Trust) with Althea Need Kaminske (@DrSilverFox) from The Learning Scientists (@AceThatTest).

A thought-provoking podcast episode on the Protect Our Future project that supports young people to understand the climate change crisis by providing information and resources. Young people are increasingly worried about climate change and their future and so this initiative is a great platform to direct students to.

How To Get A Job In Tech If You Don’t Have “Enough” Experience

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
How To Get A Job In Tech If You Don’t Have “Enough” Experience
How To Get A Job In Tech If You Don’t Have “Enough” Experience

Applying for entry-level tech jobs (or even just looking) can often send you in circles: You want professional work experience, but the jobs you’d like to apply for require years of experience; so you don’t apply, and end up right back where you started with no experience. This is what’s called the “experience trap.”

So should you stretch the truth about your experience just to get in the door? Being honest is always the best route, but there are strategic ways you can approach this job-seeker’s dilemma.

For starters, people at all levels experience impostor syndrome or the feeling that you have to “fake it till you make it,” explains Francesca Galbo, Codecademy Talent Director. But it’s especially common among career-switchers or folks hoping to break into tech. “You have to have a level of confidence even just to get into the room or the Zoom meeting,” she says. “That also needs to be paired with a sense of transparency.”

Here’s how to avoid this “experience trap,” what to say in an interview if you don’t have the required level of experience, and other tips for breaking into the tech industry.

Lead with your strengths

Before you worry about how to address the gaps in your experience or the areas where you need to grow, think about what you can do. “Have an understanding of what you’re going to bring to the table,” Francesca says. “You want to come in hot with your strengths and what you can contribute to an organization.”

You might want to prepare a list of things you feel really confident doing or past projects that illustrate your abilities well, and weave those into your cover letter. If you have prior work experience in other fields, be sure to include any skills that could be transferable in a new role.

Emphasize your “learnability”

Most of the time, hiring managers don’t expect candidates to know everything — but they do want people who are willing to learn on the job, Francesca says. “It’s much more of a matchmaking process,” she says. “We want to see if someone is coachable and trainable. Are their strengths applicable for what we’re looking for right now? And are there weaker spots that we can train up so that they won’t be so green 6 months from now?”

Stress the fact that you are very adaptable and a quick learner, Francesca says. If there are specific skills you’re missing (like languages that aren’t in your current tech stack), express that you’re confident in your ability to learn it quite quickly, she says.

Bring up courses and projects

Programmers are lifelong learners, so be sure to mention any action that you’re taking to bulk up your skill set, Francesca says. For example, maybe you’re working through a course or skill path on Codecademy, or are exploring certifications that could be useful for a position. (You never know: The organization might be willing to pay for your upskilling as part of the compensation package.)

Maybe you’ve completed Codecademy portfolio projects or you have a robust Github profile that showcases your contributions to open-source software — if so, mention it all. “Have a very clear understanding of where your knowledge set is, and then have a confident demonstration of that when you come into the interview process,” Francesca says.

Err on the side of transparency

Once you’ve applied and landed a job interview, don’t choke if you’re asked about a language or framework you’ve never used before, Francesca says. If there are comparable technologies that you are familiar with, see if you can draw parallels, and again, express your enthusiasm for learning.

For example, here’s how you could answer an interview question about a language you don’t know:

“To be totally honest with you, I’ve never touched C++. My primary focus has always been working within JavaScript, which I’m told is very similar. Since these are two languages that do relatively the same thing, I’m very confident in my ability to get trained up quickly on C++, considering I have such a robust knowledge of JavaScript.”

Extinguish your self-doubt

Fortunately for job-seekers, lots of employers are moving away from these sorts of experience requirements, because they’re looking for candidates with diverse professional experience and educational backgrounds, Francesca says. The fact that you have an unconventional path to programming could be the thing that makes you stand out as a solid candidate.

Your mindset throughout the job application process can have an effect on the outcome, so it’s important to keep your head up and stay positive. “If you approach the situation like: I do not have enough experience for this job. I do not deserve this job. I will probably not get this job. People will read that off of you,” Francesca says.

At the end of the day, it’s not personal if an organization doesn’t move forward with your application because you don’t have the experience under your belt that they’re looking for. Let the feedback motivate you to fill those knowledge gaps and develop the skills you need to get hired — you got this!

Looking for ways to build out your tech experience so you can start applying to jobs? Check out our library of portfolio projects for hands-on practice that you can use in your professional portfolio. We also have code challenges based on real-world technical interviews that you can explore and put your skills to the test. And if you’re ready to jump in and add a new language or framework to your tech stack, check out our full catalog of courses.

Career Center | Codecademy

Get ready to get hired. Make your next career move with the tools, resources, and support you need to reach your goal.

How Fast Fashion Became Faster — and Worse for the Earth

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
How Fast Fashion Became Faster — and Worse for the Earth

This essay, by Evelyn Wang, age 17, from Naperville North High School in Naperville, Ill., is one of the Top 11 winners of The Learning Network’s Ninth Annual Student Editorial Contest, for which we received 16,664 entries.

We are publishing the work of all the winners and runners-up over the next week, and you can find them here as they post.

How Fast Fashion Became Faster — and Worse for the Earth

The spring dance is in two weeks, and my friend needs help choosing a dress. She beckons me to her phone where an endless mosaic of elegant dresses, not one over $20, dances before my eyes. After much deliberation, she settles on a glamorous sapphire gown with pleated details lining the bodice. Another two weeks later, the dress carpets the bottom of a landfill, worn only once.

Welcome to the world of fast fashion.

Fast fashion is a relatively recent phenomenon. During the 1990s, retailers began to introduce trendy, cheaply-priced, poorly-made clothes on a weekly basis, intending to match the breakneck pace at which fashion trends move. Style became cheap, convenient and consumable.

Fast fashion, however, is ultimately a privilege. It is a privilege to buy clothes solely for their style, and it is a privilege to ignore the environmental consequences of doing so. In reality, the aggressive cycle of consumption perpetuated by fast fashion means that the clothes we wear are now more likely than ever to end up as part of the 92 million tons of textile waste produced annually.

During the pandemic, as stores closed, consumers ditched fast fashion staples such as H&M and Zara, instead opting to order from e-commerce social media sensations such as Shein and Asos. (Shein is now valued at $100 billion, more than H&M and Zara combined.) These brands represent an escalation of both fast fashion and its environmental toll.

These fast fashion newcomers thrived during the pandemic because of their unique business models. They exist entirely online, allowing them to ship the thousands of new styles they release daily to consumers directly from their warehouses, avoiding supply chain snags and U.S. import duties in the process. Meanwhile, a reliance on cheap overseas labor and synthetic textiles keeps prices irresistibly low.

These practices, however, are hurting the Earth more than ever before. Because these retailers rely solely on international shipping to move their products, they only exacerbate the annual billion tons of greenhouse gasses released by shipping. Virtually all of these brands sell clothes that contain petroleum-based, resource-intensive synthetic fibers such as polyester and nylon. During their lifetime, these fibers are responsible for 35 percent of the microplastics contaminating our oceans and can subsequently take centuries to decompose in landfills.

Though fast fashion represents an understandably alluring combination of style and savings, now, more than ever, we simply cannot quantify the true cost of our clothing with a price tag. When consumers want to update their wardrobe, they can do so sustainably by thrifting, reworking old garments or researching environmentally-conscious brands.

For now, I’ll be at my next school dance rocking the same dress I did last year.

Works Cited

Beall, Abigail. “Why Clothes Are So Hard to Recycle.” BBC Future, 12 July 2020.

Monroe, Rachel. “Ultra-Fast Fashion Is Eating the World.” The Atlantic, 6 Feb. 2021.

Nguyen, Terry. “Shein Is the Future of Fast Fashion. Is That a Good Thing?” Vox, 13 July 2021.

Okamoto, Katie. “Your Laundry Sheds Harmful Microfibers. Here’s What You Can Do About It.” The New York Times, 21 April 2021.

Saul, Jonathan. “Shipping’s Share of Global Carbon Emissions Increases.” Reuters, 4 Aug. 2020.

Williams, Lara. “Rise of Shein Tests an Industry’s Go-Green Commitments.” Bloomberg, 10 April 2022.

ORGANIC FOOD

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
ORGANIC FOOD

You are what you eat. This is a true saying that links your food consumption to your health.

When I first decided to make a lifestyle change, I received numerous recommendations, some relating to my age, others to my weight, and still others for the prevention of age-related ailments. All I wanted was to stay healthy so that I wouldn’t become a burden to my children in my old age. Among the suggestions was that I eat more fruits and vegetables, preferably organic ones. Now, the latter part of the advice presented some difficulties for me because I do not own a farm. How do I tell if something is organic?

 

“Organic food, ecological food or biological food are food and drinks produced by methods complying with the standards of organic farming. Standards vary worldwide, but organic farming features practices that cycle resources, promote ecological balance, and conserve biodiversity. Organizations regulating organic products may restrict the use of certain pesticides and fertilizers in the farming methods used to produce such products. Organic foods typically are not processed using irradiation, industrial solvents, or synthetic food additives.”- Wikipedia

 

Organic produce has the following characteristics:

 

  1. Organic foods are grown with natural fertilizers, as opposed to inorganic foods, which are grown with chemical and synthetic fertilizers. When chemicals and synthetic fertilizers are used to grow produce, some residues remain in the produce after harvesting, which may be consumed and cause one or more ailments.
  2. Pest control is done with natural pesticides during organic product farming. Chemical pesticides are used to control pests in non-organic produce, and some of these pesticides are transferred to the produce.
  3. Organic produce is weeded by hand, whereas non-organic produce is weeded with herbicides. The manual weeding process ensures that no chemicals are transferred to the harvested produce.
  4. Organic livestock feeds are GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) and hormone-free, whereas inorganic livestock feeds contain chemicals to aid growth, making it unsafe for human consumption. Animals are more likely to contract diseases when fed chemically induced feeds or animal bye products.
  5. Organic livestock use hygienic environments, healthy feeds, and rotational grazing to prevent disease, whereas inorganic livestock use antibiotics and other medication, and when animals are treated with antibiotics, they tend to develop antibiotic-resistant disease over time.
  6. Organic livestock are permitted to graze outside, whereas inorganic livestock is normally confined and may not be permitted to graze outside. Allowing animals enough space to move around keeps them healthy.
  7. Organic foods are typically fresher, though they have a shorter shelf life, particularly perishables like fruits and vegetables, due to the absence of chemical preservatives in such produce.

 

 

Organic farming is good for the environment because it reduces pollution, improves soil fertility, poses no health risks to people and animals living near farms, and reduces soil erosion. The produce obtained through the Organic farming method has been found to be more healthy, owing to the fact that the product is in its natural state, having not been tempered by the introduction of chemicals or having their genes altered by the GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) and GE (genetically Engineered) farming methods.

 

The efforts and resources put into producing organic products cannot be compared to those put into producing inorganic produce. Inorganic farmers produce on a large scale, which is why they require chemicals to aid their fast production in order to meet demand. A six-month-old organic chicken, for example, cannot be compared in size and weight to an inorganic chicken because the inorganic chicken has been fed feeds that will cause it to grow large in a few months and aid in egg production.

 

Because of the above, organic products are typically expensive and, to some extent, scarce. If you want to save money while still buying organic produce, consider the following:

 

–      Go to your local markets. On most occasions, farmers will arrange to take their produce to a pre-arranged market on certain days of the week; these markets are usually in the open air, where they will sell their freshly harvested produce; you can be certain to buy organic produce from such environments. So learn about the various market days for various products in your area.

–      There are different types of products for different seasons; make sure to buy produce that is in season. You can also buy such products in bulk and keep it with you for when it is no longer in season. However, not all products can be handled in this manner. A good example of what I do is buy fresh tomatoes in bulk during their season, enough to last me until the next season, blend them, boil and freeze them, and use them gradually until the next season.

–      You might want to join a food cooperative, where organic food is purchased in bulk and shared among members. Buying in bulk almost always equals buying at a lower cost and buying directly from the source, a local farm. The sources, in this case, are local farmers chosen by the cooperative.

–      Compare organic produce prices at the store, online, and at the farmer’s market, but don’t be fooled; some produce at the store may appear cheaper but be low-quality organic produce, or they may simply be labeled organic; read produce content to determine the level of preservative they contain. Remember, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

 

 

If you are having second thoughts about eating organic food right now, consider the following saying:

 

“Organic is something we can all partake of and benefit from. When we demand organic, we are demanding poison-free food. We are demanding clean air. We are demanding pure, fresh water. We are demanding soil that is free to do its job and seeds that are free of toxins. We are demanding that our children be protected from harm. We all need to bite the bullet and do what needs to be done—buy organic whenever we can, insist on organic, fight for organic and work to make it the norm. We must make organic the conventional choice and not the exception available only to the rich and educated.” – Maria Rodale

 

 

 

Sources 

https://www.helpguide.org/articles/healthy-eating/organic-foods.htm

RADICAL ACCEPTANCE

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
RADICAL ACCEPTANCE

Hall K. defines Radical Acceptance as the ability to accept situations beyond your control without judging them, thereby reducing the suffering caused by them.

Although both are unpleasant situations, the terms pain and suffering are frequently used interchangeably. While pain is a physical or external unpleasant situation over which we have no control, suffering is primarily our reaction to the pain we experience; it is internal and under our control. When faced with a particular type of pain, we may choose to ignore it, struggle with it, live in denial, or allow ourselves to sink into self-pity, then depression.

Suffering is a choice we make; it is internal, but the pain is external; we have no control over it.

Because pain is unavoidable as a part of life, there will always be opportunities to practice radical acceptance.

 

The Buddhist belief that suffering is caused by one’s attachment to the pain inflicted on such a person is the foundation of Radical Acceptances. In other words, the appropriate reaction to pain is to acknowledge it but not become attached to it, because the pain is not our responsibility, but how we deal with it is. Marsha Linehan, a psychologist, proposed dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) in 1993 for people who have been diagnosed with dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) and are gradually drifting towards depression. He taught them how to practice tolerance of their situation by accepting it but not dwelling on it in order to alleviate their suffering.

 

Radical acceptance does not imply that one does not feel the pain; rather, it is an intentional act of refusing to allow the pain to result in suffering. It is not an act that can be completed overnight; it takes time to reach the point where pain is accepted but suffering is rejected. As long as there is pain, which can take many forms, not getting caught up in it is always one step closer to overcoming it. This is extreme acceptance.

 

Radical Acceptance does not imply approval of the painful situation; rather, it indicates that you are not in denial but do not approve of it. When you reach this point, you will want to do something other than wallow in your misery. Acceptance is not the same as approval. For example, instead of dwelling on the loss of a close relative, someone who has gone through grief may want to seek professional help.

 

Radical acceptance does not imply giving up on yourself. A 2019 meta-analysisTrusted Source demonstrates that cancer patients who accept their situation have fewer psychological issues than their counterparts. This is due to the fact that those who accepted their situation feel more relaxed and at ease while undergoing treatment.

 

Forgiveness is not the same as radical acceptance. Pain inflicted by another requires you to forgive the person who inflicts the pain on you, but radical acceptance requires you to forgive yourself so you can move away from the situation rather than dwell on it until you suffer.

 

If you have thoughts like the ones below when confronted with pain, you know you need to practice radical acceptance.

-Why me?

-I don’t think I’ll be able to get over this!

-This is totally unacceptable!

-This should never have occurred!

-This does not seem fair!

-Why do bad things keep happening to me?

-I’m sorry this happened to me.

-This has never happened before to anyone 

-This is not right

 

In a situation over which one has no control and which elicits strong emotions, radical acceptance is required. Mind your thoughts, take note of how the situation is affecting you, take a deep breath, go for a walk, and accept that pain is an inevitable part of life. Recognize that you are not perfect, and forgive yourself if you believe you contributed to the occurrence.

 

Radical Acceptance should not be practiced in cases of harassment, abusive relationships, extremely dangerous situations, situations where you have control, and so on. It can be used in situations such as divorce, loss of a loved one, painful pasts, job loss, and so on.

 

 

 

 

Sources 

https://www.verywellmind.com/what-is-radical-acceptance-5120614#citation-1

https://psychcentral.com/blog/what-it-really-means-to-practice-radical-acceptance#when-to-use-it

An interview with a CU Boulder MS-EE alumnus John Trytko

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
An interview with a CU Boulder MS-EE alumnus John Trytko

Learn how performance-based admissions, affordability, and flexibility of the MS-EE program with CU Boulder helped John Trytko achieve his goals.

An interview with CU Boulder Graduate John Trytko

John Trytko graduated with a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

We recently spoke with John regarding his background, active role, and overall experience with the Master of Science in Electrical Engineering (MS-EE) program, hosted by Coursera, and how the program helped him achieve his goals. 

When did you first enroll in the MS-EE program on the Coursera platform?

I enrolled in October 2019, the first semester the MS-EE on Coursera program was launched. I received an email regarding the program and was at a point in my life where I wanted to go in a new direction.

Can you tell us about your educational and work experience background before you enrolled in this program? 

I graduated with my bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering in 2012 from the University of Colorado at Boulder. 

I started work as a research assistant at the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 2009 while I was an undergraduate at CU. Later, I worked at Seagate Technology, and then Particle Measuring Systems. I left Particle Measuring Systems to pursue my master’s degree full-time.

There were a variety of factors as to why I decided to get my master’s. I was looking to do more design engineering, and my work was shifting to a different role which would further move me away from that goal. I was considering my options, and then I learned about the MS-EE program.

What initially drew you to this program?

Initially, it was the flexibility and the cost of the program, as well as the performance-based admission. The program was significantly less expensive than most master’s degree programs, and I had the option to switch to on-campus courses if I didn’t like learning online. Since the program was performance-based admission, I could skip the tedious admission process and just start learning.

I think people assume that an online program is going to be inferior to an on-campus program. I certainly started with that line of thinking but found the reverse to be true.

Back during my undergraduate degree, I would wake up earlier than I would like, go to a lecture, wait a bit, go to another lecture, wait, get lunch, and then go home to start my homework. At that point, I’d have lost the details presented in the first lecture. I would complete the homework, turn it in, and a week later receive back graded work. If I had answered questions incorrectly, I had no context for why they were wrong, and I didn’t remember why I answered them that way a week ago. The feedback wasn’t especially useful.

With remote learning, I would watch the lectures and start the homework within the same half-hour. If I submitted incorrect answers, I received feedback immediately. I could then go back to the lecture to see what I had missed and try again until I understood the question. The remote learning homework problems could be more difficult than those in an in-person class because your answers were checked along the way. I didn’t expect the online platform to have harder questions and better feedback, but that was the case.

Can you tell me how the MS-EE on Coursera program fits into your life? 

I am currently a course facilitator for the MS-EE program, on the Coursera platform, and I will continue to be a facilitator in addition to working as a full-time electrical engineer.

My timing for entering the program was ideal. Covid emerged just a few months after I started online. I would have been remote regardless of my initial decision.

What are your favorite parts of the program?

There are many great parts about this program. I facilitate several of the power electronics courses – those are wonderful. 

Ironically, during my undergraduate degree, I never took a power electronics class. I stayed away from them because they didn’t seem interesting to me at the time.

I think my favorite class was the Power Electronics Capstone. As part of that class, I needed to make my power supply stable. My loop had a few different modes it could be in, so I was solving for a solution to multiple problems. But, I did the math, performed the analysis, and when I plugged the values into my simulation the whole system was stable. That was the moment I realized “Wow, I just earned my master’s degree.”

That was my last semester and the last hurdle I needed to get through. Now, I get to guide students through that process, which I really enjoy.

What do you hope to do with your MS-EE degree? 

I hope to get more design work in my career. That was the original motivation for me to join the program.

Would you recommend this program to others? 

I would absolutely recommend the program. You can learn a great deal in a short period of time. You can also start taking classes not-for-credit for a low cost, and then upgrade to take the course for-credit. The overall cost is still significantly less than a traditional master’s program.

There is a high percentage of students who come to my office hours that have other obligations and can’t spend the necessary time to go to campus full-time or part-time. This program is great because you can fit it in where you can.

What’s one tip you have for students who are starting this program?

Don’t procrastinate! The MS-EE program semesters are short, so your next final is never more than eight weeks away. If you’re self-motivated, this is an excellent program.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

It’s nice to be in a position to give back to the community. I have always enjoyed teaching, and I’ve always been good at it. Now, I work as an engineer, and on the side, I help students.

Learn more and apply

Alison Publisher Spotlight Interview – Sharon Bolt

By
onlinefreecourse
-
0
Alison Publisher Spotlight Interview – Sharon Bolt

A dog is a man’s best friend. These family-friendly four-legged pets are incredible creatures that can reduce stress, play, encourage exercise, and ease feelings of loneliness. But there can be a disconnect with our beloved pets when we, as owners, don’t understand their behaviour and what they’re trying to communicate with us. This month, our Alison publisher spotlight interview is shining on Sharon Bolt. Sharon is a dog behaviour expert and she spoke to us about publishing on Alison, her courses, dog training and more.

Sharon Bolt Background

Please share with our learners a bit about your background.

In 2004 I had a thriving complementary therapy practice. I am a proud co-author of 2 wonderful books called, ‘Successful Women in Business’ and ‘Every Entrepreneurs Guide: Running Your Own Business.’

How did you get into dog training?

My husband and I decided to get two eight-week-old Parson Terriers in 2004, brothers from the same litter. We tried to enrol them into a puppy class, but the trainers all said the same thing to me: “You have taken on real trouble, it’s the worst-case scenario”. 

They explained that because the puppies were blood related, they would look at each other for direction rather than us and would fight for the ‘top dog’ position. This meant that aggression and nasty fights would result and we would very likely need to rehome one of them. 

My mission began to find a natural way of communicating with my two dogs in a way they would really understand and stop the worrisome predictions from coming true.  I studied, went on courses, researched, and most importantly watched the way my two dogs communicated with each other.   

Around that time BBC Radio 2 was looking for a dog trainer to come on their show to talk about unwanted dog behaviours.  Three days later I was on the show speaking to millions of listeners. That interview changed my life overnight. It launched my new dog training career and was the beginning of my journey.

Being An Alison Publisher

You’ve been a self-publisher with Alison for several years. What do you enjoy most about publishing on this platform?

I love that Alison really cares about both their instructors and students. Alison has researched thoroughly into the best ways in which students learn and are committed to publishing only the highest quality courses on their site. As an instructor you know that you are being represented at the highest level. Alison has marketing experts and SEO (Search Engine Optimization) specialists who are dedicated to getting your course/s in front of the people who will benefit from your content. It is a great partnership that they offer for course creators.

What lessons or takeaways have you learned as a self-publisher on Alison?

I’ve learned that it’s important to include all learning modalities when creating a top-class course (written, audio and video). It’s important to create quizzes (with different Q&A formats) to ensure that the student has fully understood what has been taught during the lessons.

How has being a self-publisher on Alison changed or impacted your life?

I feel that being a self-publisher on Alison has made me a better course creator for my courses. Alison is a professional company and I feel that their ethics and high standards rub off on their self-publishers.

What words of advice would you give someone who would like to become an Alison publisher?

Becoming a publisher on Alison is a very thorough process, which is a good thing! There are online courses on Alison that help you with the required format and support articles that explain things step-by-step, plus the support from your account manager is brilliant. It can feel a bit overwhelming initially but is worth it, so go for it!

Published Dog Training Courses on Alison by Sharon Bolt

Please tell our learners about your courses on Alison.

There are so many goodies to choose from!

Who should take your courses?

I have 9 courses on Alison in total which means that the people who would benefit from taking my courses are somewhat varied. My courses are for dog owners, people who have a desire to become a professional dog trainer and for people who already work in the dog industry. My business and marketing course is for people who have (or would like to have) their own dog training business.

For individuals interested in taking one of your courses, what can they expect to get from it?

My dog training courses focus on empowering you, the dog owner. I give you the tools, knowledge and dog training methods that get your dog to listen to you and respond favourably to what you say. I also teach you exactly how to do the dog training methods through step-by-step video demonstrations. This uses the pack leader theory combined with positive reinforcement techniques. The methods I teach are simple, easy, and gentle. They will change a stressed-out dog (and owner) to a happy and well-behaved pooch fast.

What feedback have you received from learners about your course?

It’s so rewarding reading student’s feedback about my courses. Here is some of what people say:  

“Wow! This is a fantastic course – it’s obvious that Sharon knows her stuff and has a great way of explaining what to do in a way that makes sense and is ‘doable’. I love the idea of treating my dog naturally and this course has given me the knowledge to feel confident to do that. A ‘must have’ course for every dog owner – highly recommended!” – Amy Bentley.

“So much wonderful information packed into these courses! Sharon breaks down the information and backs it up with videos in every scenario. I have a beautiful career in front of me working with dogs -Thank you, Sharon!” – Arin Davis

“I loved this course and learned so much, not just in techniques, but in new ways of thinking about dog behaviour. Can’t wait to watch more courses! Highly recommended.” – Chase Night

Why Dog Training Is Important

Why should people be invested in training their dogs?

So many dog owners that we speak to are at their wits end, they don’t know what to do. Often, their dog’s behaviour is going from bad to worse and they don’t know how to stop it.

Dogs are not complicated animals – they just want simple, clear, and concise communication. By the end of my courses, you’ll have the dog training knowledge and confidence you need to make a positive difference to both yours and your dog’s lives. You’ll also know how you can become your dog’s pack leader without shouting, hitting, or using force.

What misconceptions, if any, do people have about dog training and how would taking your courses help with this?

The biggest problem I see is dog owners trying to ‘humanise’ their dogs. Dogs are animals and speak a different language, which is through non-verbal communication and body language. They also have different needs and expectations than humans and when misunderstood they display a host of stressed, hyperactive, and undesirable behaviours. That’s why I empower and educate dog owners on how to give the right communication to dogs and how to ‘speak dog’, when you get this right stressed out dogs become happy and well-balanced pooches.

Becoming A Dog Trainer

What set of skills should one acquire if they want to go into dog training?

Building knowledge and confidence through online courses that have video demonstrations and written documents is a great way of gaining dog training skills. For people who’d like to become professional dog trainers they will need to know how to resolve many unwanted dog behaviours.

  • Know how to run a professional business
  • Marketing skills
  • Learn how to create transformational packages for clients
  • Hands-on experience is also vital for building confidence. I recommend volunteering at rescue centers and dog pounds and ‘practicing’ the skills learned online on your own dog/s plus friends and family dogs.

What career paths are available for individuals interested in dog training?

Becoming a professional dog trainer is a popular career path for people who are interested in dog training. We also find that people who already have a dog related business, such as dog walkers, dog groomers, pet sitters. They often want to add ‘professional dog trainer’ to their services and regularly enrol in my courses.  

What do you enjoy most about your job?

I love hearing about (or watching) stressed out dogs become calm, happy, and well-balanced pooches once their owners apply the methods that I teach. Seeing how the dog owner’s confidence grows, how their self-belief soars and how empowered they feel makes me happy.

I enjoy helping people to become professional dog trainers so that they can make a difference in the world and pay their bills at the same time. I take pleasure in teaching people how to use natural remedies to heal their dog’s ailments. They can use this knowledge to feed their dog a raw, natural diet that gives them optimum health, body weight and longevity. In a nutshell, I love EVERYTHING about my job!

What The Future Holds For Sharon Bolt

What else can Alison and its learners look forward to from you in the coming year to two?

There are no plans at this time for additional courses, but you’ll be the first to know as and when that changes.

Any last words, advice, or wisdom you’d like to share with our learners?

Dog training takes time, consistency, and dedication. There’s nothing better and more rewarding in life than the strong bond and unconditional love shared between an owner and their dog. I highly recommend that you invest in either online dog training courses or local professional dog trainers (or both). With these, you will get the knowledge and methods that will give you a happy, well balanced, and well-behaved dog – both you and your dog will be pleased that you did!

Keep up to date with our blogs for another Alison publisher spotlight interview coming soon.

 

1...1,0741,0751,076...1,660Page 1,075 of 1,660

Recent Posts