Aquatic Environmentalists

"We are... America's Aquatic Environmentalists."

My group choose a theme on America's environmentalist movement during 1970s to 1990s, but more specifically, we focused on ocean pollution by oil spills. We took a close look at the environmentalists who were siginifcant, and environmental organizations between 1970s to 1990s.

To represent our ideas, my group put plastic bottle with trash and water in it, and oil bottle on top of the box. The plastic bottle represents the trash and pollution in the ocean, specially plastic materials. The oil bottle on top of the box represent the pollutino caused by oil, it is located on the top because when there is an oil spill in the ocean, the thick layer of oil stays on the surface of the ocean, which can only be cleaned by clothes or any absorbing materials.

My part of this project was to search the organizations that had formed and participated in the environmental movement during the time and to find the photos of the wildlife suffering from the pollution. My part was mostly done by researching on the web, and it wasnt' too difficult. The plastic bottle was found inside a trashcan in campus and the oil bottle was brought to school by a group memeber.

My advice to next year's class about this project is to plan ahead and be ready because I was rushed because i did not plan ahead.

Deukkwon Yoon

Project - Protecting our Water

My group did a project on environmental issues regarding bodies of water, such as lakes and oceans. We discussed several key environmentalists such as Margaret Mead and efforts such as Earth Day. Our focus was on the coasts and the Great Lakes. Perhaps the most important problem surrounding these bodies of water is the issue of oil spills. We listed several historic oil spills and, through pictures, showed their effects on marine wildlife.

Most of our items were pictures, all taken during the era between 1970 and 1990. Some were of demonstrations during Earth Day, some were maps of the Great Lakes, and some focused on general topics such as oil spills and trash on the beach. On top is the most noticeable item, a Pennzoil bottle. This represents the oil spills. We have also included a dirty water bottle stuffed with trash, found around the Gunn campus. This symbolizes the water with trash in it.

If I could do this project over, I would probably come up with more unique found art items rather than just pictures to make it more creative. Also, my group would help assemble it at home rather than assemble everything on one day.

My advice to next year's class: Take this project seriously; don't wait until the last minute!

Bite Me

My group's theme was Apple computers and how they have influenced society since the 1960s. Our project was organized onto three boxes, where each box represented a different Apple computer.
The first box was the Apple 1, the first Apple personal computer. The Apple I looked very simple, much like a big brown box with a keyboard; it didn't even have a screen. On this box, we put information about the Apple I, along with information about how the early years of Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak.
The second box we modeled after the Apple II. It was one of the first highly successful mass produced home computers on the market. On this box we made a black and white screen, and put black and white articles of Jobs and Wozniak along with information about the computer and ads for Apple.
On the final box, we made it look like the Apple III, a more business orientated personal computer. It was one of the first computers to have colors, so we put color articles and ads on this box.
If I were to do this project again, I would try to pick a topic that wasn't as hard to find non-expensive objects for. For 2 of our objects, we had to build/model the object we wanted because we couldn't find it anywhere.
Overall this was a fun project and a great way to present information we found about our topic.

By Jeannette

We Are Children Of The Apple Generation

We chose "personal computer" as our theme to show the development of computers, especially of Apple computers, between 1970 and 1990.

Our choice of items were several articles and photos from this time period, floppies, earphones, a CD-ROM, stickers with the Apple icon, and a keyboard. We took three boxes and painted them, so that they would look like the Apple I, Apple II, and Apple III models. Since the Apple II model only had a black-and-white screen we put only black and white photos on it, whereas the Apple III model had a screen in color, so we put photos in color on it. Apple III was also the first computer to plug in earphones, so we attached a pair of them to the back side of the box.

We probably could have found more items from that time period that were not only articles and photos, but Overall I think our project looks fine.

One advice for next year's class is to meet at least once to prepare the boxes before you assemble them in class. If we had not done that, we could not have finished assembling the project.  

By Rabea 

Found Art Project: Being Nuclear

The theme we chose for he Found Art Project was the theme of Nuclear Technology during the 1970s and 1980s. This theme included exploring the people, written works, movies, and main events that involved nuclear technology during that time period. As a result, our artwork reflected all those elements of nuclear technology, mainly the fear of nuclear warfare. The specific items we chose highlight this. The most thematic and obvious item is our Nuclear Waste Barrel that we used instead of the normal boxes for the Found Art Project. The nuclear waste barrel reflects the fear of Nuclear waste piling up in the US. The Ronald Reagan quote on our barrel also addresses the issue of fear of nuclear waste because Reagan said all the waste from a barrel could be stored under a desk per year. We also had a number of items, movie posters, that displayed the nuclear fear during the time. Movies such as Silkwood and The Day After, all capitalized on fear of nuclear war to establish their plots. We also showed numerous written works about nuclear warfare during the time. The watchmen cover, the book "Missile Envy", and the article about jobs in the Nuclear industry all showed different aspects of written works regarding nukes during the target era.

We obtained these items through numerous methods. The barrel, book cover, article, and sample missile were all obtained through actual searching and a certain element of luck. For example, we obtained our barrel by going to the scrap metal yard, and requesting a 55 gallon oil barrel to use for our project. We also obtained a book written during the era (Missile Envy) by asking one of our parents to help us out with any old antiques. We also found the newspaper article, and the nuclear chart using the same asking method.
If I had to do this again, I would certainly try and expand my potential sources of found art. We would also have attempted to find experts on the topic to aid us in understanding the topic of choice. I would advise next year's class to definitely start early. Also, picking a manageable topic, with many found art pieces available makes life significantly easier. Furthermore, I would recommend having a plan B if team members go missing, and encourage very effective communication between group members to aid the project.

Found Art Project

My theme is conservation of energy and protection of the environment. The environmental movement really started in the 70's and has continued to exist since then. Through the found art project my group and I wanted to show some of the key events and facets of the environmental movement. We also wanted to show that with just a little effort, much can be accomplished to help protect the environment.
There are several items on our box, but to name a few there is a solar panel, recyclables, organic food boxes, a bird covered in oil, and a windmill. The solar panel and the windmill represent renewable energy sources that are crucial in saving the environment. The recyclables show represent literally the idea of recycling. The organic food boxes are present to show that organic food are better for the environment because they are not exposed to pesticides that disrupt the carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus cycles. The oil covered bird represents the Exxon Valdez incident with the huge oil spill that affects hundreds of birds.
The main way the we got our items was simply by coming upon them. I found the brochure while I was in Seattle, and the organic food boxes were just lying around. We did construct the solar panel and the windmill but they are made of household items.
If I were to do this project again, I would start earlier and always be on the lookout for relevant items. The more time you give yourself to find items, the more items you will get and the better the items will be. My group started early enough, but you could always start earlier. For this reason, my advice to next year's class is to start early.

Michael Starr

Blog Posting #2 Mrshall Plan (make-up)

The Marshall Plan was a pretty simple conduct. Keeping communism out of America, and help to create a strong foundation for countries in West Europe. The plan, otherwise known as the European recovery plan. Marshall simply asked that the US find out Europes economic needs, and help meet them, to restore europe. One of the biggest goals was economic cooperation between the 2. Conveniently, shortly after in 1948 Truman signed the ECA, economic cooroperation act. The act signed over $5,300,000,000 of US dollars. In 1951 the plan came to an end when the US spent more than half that money on restoring Europe. The overall goal was to help Europe recover from WWII, which happened. Marshall actually recieved a Nobel Peace Prize for his plan later on.

project

The theme for our found art project was conservation of energy, goiong green, enviorment safety etc. The items we have are either handmade, or boxes of organic grown foods, recycleable materials, or replicas of realy life enviornment tools. Most of the items found were obtained in oretty much everyday life, seeing almost everything now has a recycle sign on it, even things used back in the 70's such as coke bottles, can now be recycled. Others such as the solar panel were made by hand, to replicate the same models used in the 70's and 80's, and most even today. to next years class, I would say to stay on top of things, and know what your peers are doing with the project. It is easy to fall behind when you are not in good communication with your partners.

.:We are...Technological:.

We Are...Technological

Group:
Alana VanZanten
Aleena (A.J.) Chaudhry
Athena Phan
Kazzie Hill

Theme: Our theme was the advancements in technology through the 1970's-1990. It was the developments of the nation during this time period, as well as the beginnings of great products, even "necessities" of which we have today. Everyday uses of technology.

Item Choice: Our choice of items encompassed the idea of items invented throughout 1970 to 1990 of which we had advanced upon recently. Pretty much the "ancestors" of technology we use today. An example would be the picture of Steve Jobs, with one of the first Apple Macintosh computers. Macintosh computers have advanced quite a distance farther than the time of invention - showing what potential we had, and how much we could push forward in technology in only a matter of 10-30 years.

Obtaining Items: How we obtained items was significantly from items we had already owned, mainly objects our parents had owned that were invented and used in the 70's through 80's. I, personally, discovered that my dad had a great load of the top-notch technology of the time.We also received items from teachers.

Advice to next year's students: PLAN AHEAD. Dedicate yourself to getting the project done, even before it's due. Procrastination is the biggest folly, make sure you have things planned ahead of time so by the time you will need to display your project, you only need to touch it up a little, or not at all. Also, make sure every person in the group has equal input - this is important because the more input from various people will end up in a better, more diverse and creative project.

US History Final Project May 2009

Our group's theme for our final project was the conservation of the planet which the United States really recognized as a major issue starting in the 70s. Our main items are a model bird covered in black paint which symbolizes the quarter of a million birds that died from the Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska. We also have a 3D solar panel and windmill which symbolize the transition from reliance on gasoline for energy to less harmful ones such as solar and wind power. We also have a placard found on a box of fruit that says "Premium California Citrus", this symbolizes the desire that started in the 70s to be self sufficient and not rely so heavily on other nations for means of energy as well as other products. Lastly we have 3 plastic bottles on the top of our box to show the start of recycling instead of creating more plastic. We obtained these items by searching in supermarkets that sell organic and healthy foods as well as Diddams to find the bird. Others were found online such as pictures printed out and quotes. If I were to do this project again, I would have found more physical items and placed them on the box and not used as many print-outs from online. My advice for next year's class is to make sure to get started on this project early and not wait until the last minute. 

.:Korean War:.

.:The Korean War:.

June 25, 1950 marked the day. The day that North Korean forces ambushed South Korea with a surprise-attack on the 38th parallel.

This action launched the beginning of what we call The Korean War.

In only a matter if days, North Koreans had sunken deep into the nation of South Korea. In need of help, South Korea called upon the United Nations to stop the North Korean invasion.

The UN, who lacked the presence of the Soviet Union representatives, passed the vote to assist South Korea.

June 27, 1960 - U.S. troops stationed in Japan were ordered by U.S. president Harry S. Truman to support the North Koreans. Between China and Taiwan, an American fleet was positioned within the waters.

In total, 16 nations sent 520,000 troops to aid South Korea. The majority, over 90%, of these were American troops. These were numbered along with the additional 590,000 troops of South Korea.

These forces were placed under the command of General Douglas MacArthur.

On September 15, 1950 - MacArthur's troops made a surprise landing between enemy lines. Around half of the North Koreans troops surrendered.

Crisis over the Berlin Wall and the Bay of Pigs

Two weeks before JFK took office, Eisenhower cut off diplomatic relations with Cuba due to the revolutionary leader named Fidel Castro who was a declared Communist and welcomed help from the Soviet Union. In March 1960, Eisenhower allowed to CIA to secretly train Cuban exiles to create a rebellion to overthrow Castro. Kennedy although doubting the outcome, allowed the operation to continue. On April 17, 1961, 1500 Cuban exiles with the help of the United States military landed on Cubas southern coast called the Bay of Pigs. The main commando unit landed and faced 25,000 Cuban troops supported by Soviet tanks and jet aircraft. Some of the Cuban exiles were killed and the others were taken prisoner. The entire operation was a complete disaster and looked bad upon the Kennedy administration. Kennedy soon after admitted the whole thing to be his fault to the media and gained trust by the U.S. citizens.

After WWII, the city of Berlin was split into four sections then eventually into two, West Berlin and East Berlin. East Berlin was under Communist control by the Soviets whereas West Berlin was under Democratic control by the United States, France, and the UK. In the 11 years since the Berlin Airlift, 3 million East Germans crossed the border into West Berlin in order to escape Communism. Khrushchev, leader of the Soviet Union threatened Kennedy in a summit meeting in Vienna, Austria, to close all roads to West Berlin from the east. During this time, the US and the Soviet Union were under great stress and were at the brink of a nuclear war. Khrushchev, on August 13, 1961 started to create the Berlin Wall which separated West Germany and West Berlin from the east. This construction ended the crisis but aggravated even further Cold War tensions. The US and Soviet Union eventually signed the Limited Test Ban Treaty which prevented nuclear testing in the atmosphere and the crisis died down.  

The Other America

Michael Harrington first exposed the public to the poverty of many Americans through his book The Other America: Poverty in the United States. Many had been previously unaware of the harsh conditions that some had to face, while some who knew chose to ignore them. The Other America showed the Americans that those in poverty were just as human and could feel the suffering that they had to endure. Harrington’s book was powerful enough to bring about attempts to increase the living standards in America, especially in crowded urban areas.

Although the 1950s was a time of prosperity for many, some simply could not escape poverty. During this time, poor farmers moved into the cities to find better work, while the urban areas spread out as suburbs developed. Due to overcrowding, cities lost money, and businesses could not pay their employees.

Because of racism and segregation, African-Americans and Mexican-Americans lived in unsanitary slums in the cities. A policy of urban renewal began when the National Housing Act of 1949 constructed inexpensive new housing and formed the Housing and Urban Development cabinet position. Despite these efforts, they were not adequate to meet the needs of those living in slums. Also, some existing living spaces were torn down to make room for new ones, displacing some who had homes.

Many poor Americans demanded employment, especially African-Americans, Mexican-Americans, and Native Americans, who wanted equal opportunities and demonstrated though civil rights movements and organizations. This unrest continued, exposing an unstable country and economy that was not as secure as many had initially believed. Although some believed the Americans were in a time of plenty, they had not seen that there was a gap between the visible America and the Other America.

.:The Other America:.

The Urban Poor

By 1962, almost one out of every four Americans were living in conditions under poverty level. By this time "The American Dream" was out of the question for most Americans. The majority of the poor consisted of: the elderly, single women with their children, and minority groups (such as African-Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans).

White Flight

During the 1950's, millions of middle-class white Americans fled the cities to live in the suburbs - dividing them from other races, as well as classes.

Reversely, about 5 million African Americans abandoned the rural South for urban areas.

Due to this "migration" of middle-class whites to suburban areas, the urban poor whites, as well as non-whites, were greatly impacted. They had lost a huge part of their businesses, tax-payers, and property. The cities could no longer support facilities such as school improvements and transportation.

The Inner Cities

The majority of suburban residents were not even aware of the poverty within the cities. Many refused to believe that poverty could exist in such a powerful nation as the USA.

Michael Harrington had lived amongst the poor in the urban areas and had later published a novel that stunned the rest of America. The Other America: Poverty in the United States (1962). He released the shocking and harsh realities of the urban poor to the rest of America. He also showed how widespread it had become.








Urban Renewal

The majority of minorities such as African-Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans lived in unkempt, overpopulated slums.

Miranda v. Arizona

One of the countries largest and most well known cases still in use today is the case of Miranda v. Arizona. In 1963 a man named Ernesto Miranda was arrested in his home and convicted of rape and kidnap. The police questioned him for two and a half hours before he finally gave up, and signed a confession. Later, when he was convicted he revealed that he was unaware of his right to an attorney, or his right to avoid self-incrimination, because the police never informed him. Miranda brought his case to the court and eventually got his conviction overturned by the Supreme Court in 1966. Chief Justice, Earl Warren argued that police were violating the 5th amendment which states that nobody can be a witness to themselves. Warren also stated that in the situation that Miranda was in, it was intimidating, and he felt forced. After the decision, they could no longer use his confession as evidence in the case.  The decision was 5-4, a landmark case in American history, changing the way that the legal system works today. Now, when a police officer is taking someone into custody, they are obliged to read the person their rights,  known as the Miranda warning. 

 

Election of 1960 and the Camelot Years by Brent

The Election of 1960 was a close race between Democratic senator from Massachusetts, John Kennedy and the Republican Vice President Richard M. Nixon. Both candidates had similar stances on issues but John Kennedy was better prepared for the new source of media, the television. During a televised debate on September 26, 1960 about 70 million Americans watched the two candidates duke it out on the big screen. Kennedy was only 43 years old and Nixon hoped to use his knowledge on foreign policy to make Kennedy look bad, but Kennedy was coached prior to the debate by television producers. Kennedy learned how to look at ease and confident and also spoke better than Nixon. Another event that put Kennedy over the top of Nixon was that Kennedy was his stance on civil rights. When Martin Luther King Jr. was arrested and sentenced to several months of hard labor, Kennedy used his influence to get MLK released on bail, pending appeal. This gained support of the African American community. After the votes were counted, Kennedy had won by more than just 100,000 votes.
The Camelot Years were the years of Kennedy's presidency. His family, with his beautiful wife Jacqueline and their cute children, represented the ideal American family. Many Americans began to copy the trends of the family living in the White House. Women looked to Jacqueline for fashion advice while a great deal of other Americans had hopes of becoming a speed reader like Kennedy. Kennedy could read 1600 words per minute which is quite amazing and must have helped him out as president. In addition, Kennedy surrounded himself by the "best and brightest" people to help him out as president. One of these people was his brother, Robert Kennedy who was appointed attorney general. His inauguration included many skilled writers, artists, and scientists which was a humble prelude to the beginnings of the Camelot Years.
Images courtesy of www.nydailynews.com

Crisis Over Berlin and the Bay of Pigs

The Berlin crisis occurred in 1961, just 11 years after the Berlin Airlift. The issue was brought about due to the fleeing of an approximate 3 million East Berliners to the democratically-controlled West Berlin. Not only did East Berlin lose much of its people, the people leaving were often in skilled positions such as doctors and tailors. To stop this mass exodus, Khrushchev made the decision to erect a wall splitting off West Berlin from East Berlin. Within a few days, the Berlin Wall was made with soldiers manning it day and night. While this wall did fulfill its task of preventing East Berliners from leaving, it was also a sign of weakness that Kennedy full took advantage of. He told the American people that Communism had to build walls to keep people from fleeing, which gave the Americans
confidence in capitalism and democracy.

Another crisis that arose was over the situation in Cuba. The United States tried to secretly overthrow the Cuban government and Fidel Castro, but the plan went seriously awry. The small advance group did not even reach the shore, while the main force of 1,300 Cuban exiles was met by 25,000 Cuban troops with air and tank support. Overpowered as they were, the Cuban exiles were either killed or imprisoned, which reflected badly upon the U.S. Kennedy, who had approved the mission with the advice of his staff, wondered how the mission could go so wrong.
Both of these events were just the start of the Cold War, and they tested both the U.S. and the Soviet Union to see to what lengths each were willing to go to.

The Election Of 1960 And Camelot Years

In the election of 1960 the Republicans nominated Eisenhower's Vice President Richard M. Nixon as president candidate, the Democrats chose Massachusetts senator John F. Kennedy. Both nominees had similar positions on policy issues. Although Kennedy was much younger than Nixon, and many people felt that he was too inexperienced, he won the election, and would be the second-youngest president in the history of the United States. Two important factors helped him to win the voter's sympathy. On one hand, there was the first televised debate between presidential candidates on September 26, 1960. Since Kennedy had been coached by TV producers he appeared more confident, and spoke better on TV. On the other hand, Kennedy won the voter's sympathy with his support of civil rights, and his willingness to discuss issues openly.
John F. Kennedy's presidential term is often described as the "Camelot Years", since Kennedy and his wife Jacqueline often invited artists, writers and celebrities to the White House. The press loved his smooth style, and he would often appear on television. The Kennedy Family represented the "perfect" American family.

Rabea

The Other America -by Vivek Sainanee

The urban poor made up almost 1/4 of the American population. These were the people that were below the poverty level. In the 1950s, many of the middle-class whites decided to move to the suburbs to start again. On the other hand, much of the black population moved to the urban areas. Unfortunately, the poverty level increased, and many minorities had to live in slums . The proposition of Urban renewal proposed a solution to this problem. It proposed that they tear down the poorly constructed buildings of the current neighborhood. Then, they would build new housing that could fit as many people as possible in the smallest amount of space possible. The proposition did not come into place, however, and parking lots, shopping centers, highways, parks, and factories were built instead of the new housing.


During the Second World War, much of the workforce was off fighting the war. During this time, American Government started a plan in which Mexicans known as braceros were allowed into the US to contribute to the work force. The braceros mostly harvested crops. The Longoria Incident was a Mexican American hero of World War Two who was killed, but the government in his home town refused to pay the funeral services. Many Native Americans gained citizenship, fought for rights, and joined the American army to fight in World War Two. In 1953, the United States Federal Government announced they would cease to take responsibility of the Native American tribes. This became widely known as the termination policy. The Bureau of Indian Affairs, however, took charge by starting a relocation program to help Native Americans settle in cities. Many of the Native Americans in cities were not able to get decent jobs. Many were subject to racial prejudice and many did not have access to health care. By 1963, the government realized what they were doing and abandoned the termination policy.

by Vivek Sainanee

Creating the Great Society

BY Kuleen Nimkar:

Lyndon Baines Johnson (LBJ) had a sweeping vision for the potential of the United States, a vision he named in May 1964: the Great Society. To achieve his vision, LBJ implemented domestic reform in 5 main categories: addressing poverty, improving cities, providing education,helping the environment, and empowering customer advocacy. To fix the aid the poor, LBJ passed the Medicaid Act in 1965 to ensure those on welfare received medical assistance. He also passed the Economic Opportunity Act in 1964, creating the Job Corps., VISTA, Project Head Start, and a variety of programs to win the war against poverty.

To improve cities, LBJ passed the Omnibus Act of 1965 to provide funding for low income housing for the needy. He also formed the Department of Housing and Urban Development to monitor and develop federal housing programs. Along with this line of aid, LBJ significantly increased funding for public education. The Higher Education Act of 1965 funded scholarships and low-interest loans for college students. Another piece of legislature to improve education was the Elementary and Secondary Education Act provided over 1 billion dollars to fund schools with textbooks, libraries, and special education.

To protect the slowly eroding environment in the U.S., LBJ implemented a trio of acts: The Water Quality Act, the Clean Air Act Amendment, and the Air Quality Act. These 3 acts ensured safe water in the U.S. for all to drink and use, and it set standards on air pollution and emissions to stop factories from polluting to a dangerous extent. Finally, to empower consumers, LBJ created the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act to make sure the government monitored safety in automobiles and tires. On top of that, LBJ convinced Congress to pass the Truth in Packaging Act of 1966 to make sure companies could not lie to consumers about the consumer products they sold.

This myriad of laws and acts that were established during LBJ's presidency were all aimed at creating LBJ's dream Great Society. While they did not make the country perfect, these programs and laws still function to this day because they provide a valuable and necessary part of the American infrastructure, and help citizens every day.