For my capstone I wanted to do something that would have a lasting effect on the school.  I was thinking about giving something to the school as part of my project.  I started to think about my interests.  One of my biggest interests is botany.  I then decided I wanted to donate plants to enhance the decor of the school.  I began my research at the Horticultural Society Library where I learned about which plants grow best indoors.  I also learned about the effects plants have on work places - that they increase productivity and attendance.  As well, there is the benefit of the oxygen that plants provide.  My project then took me through the steps of purchasing, transporting and repotting the plants I chose for the area on the second floor outside the elevators (near the nurse's office).  One of the greatest experiences I had while repotting the plants was with all the people who were walking by at the time. Everyone was saying that it was really nice, and it looked great.  Other people stopped to asked me questions about my knowledge of plants and how to take care of their own plants.  And some people had advice for helping me.  My project will continue on after I leave SLA.  I have passed on the torch to the students in the lower grades who have volunteered to take on the responsibility of watering and caring for the plants.  I really enjoyed my project and I hope others will too for a long time to come.  Below are some pictures of the area where the plants have found a new home. 

https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/1H7HAETsdhznA6gwaf_iKW7aLbt6N5WMJjDWOItWUdnM/edit

Roe vs. wade, i'm chosing this case because it's a very famous case which relates to states rights.

Brown vs. bord of education, I choose this case because it involves civil rights.

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https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/1p583CpHC_hV_1qvVX6TZwzBAHgWHUb4PAntrXhP5Nao/edit

https://www.dropbox.com/s/cxhx7msn7qvhu7w/AmerGovMBMark1.pdf

This is Copied and pasted from a contact form from Pat Toomey's website.
Dear Mr.Pat Toomey,

https://docs.google.com/a/scienceleadership.org/document/d/1eFZ7B-5wgdoipOKqTbQAHCmZVwUnn7llCl0mkxRctfE/edit

After researching different peoples opinions on the patriot act and looking up about the effects that is has had on people I have formed my own opinion on the subject. I have not herd that many stories about injustices being committed under the patriot act, there are only a few I have read and in those cases the suspect is not specified as being guilty or innocent, these supposedly innocent suspects who were apparently unfairly arrested under the patriot act may very well be guilty. Mostly what I have read are objections to specific sections of the patriot act, such as section 215 which covers the governments right to seize peoples library records, which many people are saying could be misused. a lot of the complaints are of possible problems that could occur from the patriot act, not actual events. I am in complete agreeance with people who say that the patriot act can be harmful, However I believe that the government will do whatever they have to in order to protect the country and meet their goals, they don't need the patriot act to do things, they need it to do things in public and have people agree with it. I have not experienced any injustices due to the patriot act and I am not concerned about it. The government will do what they want regardless of the patriot act. In summation I think that unless the patriot act is shown to have a significant impact on fighting terrorism, it should be reviewed for being useless.    

Watching the film made me concerned about the power that is held by the government and politicians. That power can be very dangerous because it can fall into the wrong hands, and be used by a person with their own agenda. The power of such surveillance methods can really be useful for monitoring and capturing criminals and terrorists, but the film portrayed how it could also be used to ruin an innocent persons life. If there is any lesson from the film it is that the surveillance technology should be monitored and restricted to trusted officials.   

This year for English and history my teacher Mr. block did a good job pusshing us to elxplor the texts and stories more and more analiticaly. That Actually helpped me to make my papers mr meaningful and detailed, It also allowed for me to find hidden facts that help put my story togeather better.

William Potts                                                                                                            5-19-11           

                                         Reflection On Prisons Readings

            The most important point that I had come across in these readings was a comment made about the amount of time the inmates are held on based on the severity of their crimes. It said that in America we treat a ten year sentence like its nothing while anywhere else a decade behind bars is seen as a sever punishment for a serious crime. There was a story written about a marijuana dealer who was caught by the police while he was carrying a gun. According to the article he was sent to prison for 55 years. Although this sentence seems to be outrageously long for man who was only cough carrying contraband and a weapon, I have recently heard a story of a drug dealer who offered drugs to a high school student in Philadelphia, The student replied with "I don’t want any of that S***"The man responded by shooting the teenager and killing him. The 55-year sentence was more than unfair, but it would seem that the police are giving people sentences for crimes that they have not committed but rather that they could commit because of their position.

 

            That is also the reason that kidnapping is now treated like murder case. The police are going hard on offenders, this is understandable, but this may cause an increase in the severity on the nature of the crimes. A clear example of this is a terrible story of about a man who hade a criminal record. The man has a young daughter to take care of and of coarse with a criminal record it was nearly imposable to find a legitimate job. So he had started selling drugs again. One day he was driving with his daughter on the highway. The man hade an incriminating amount of cocaine in the car. A highway patrol car pulled him over for speeding. The officer was a lone young woman who was new to being a police officer. She asked the man for I.D he handed over his information and she started to walk back to her car to run the information through her computer, the man realized it was only a matter of time before she learned of his history and search his car to find the drugs. So in a desperate act the man jumped the women and threw her to the ground, he started to beat her severely beating her and breaking bones and knocking her on the verge of consciousness. As he got up he stated in a voice riddled with guilt, fear and sadness “ I’m sorry, but I just cant go back to jail” he got back in his car and sped away leaving the police women on the side of the highway.

 

            The only good thing about this story is the fact that the women survived her attack. The perpetrator was caught several days later, instead of avoiding prison; he was sentenced to 60 years behind bars. He was atleast 30 years old, so he basically received a life sentence.

This is the best class.