Water in Rice Production

The most interesting think I have learned about rice so far is the irrigation technique required to grow the plant successfully. Large quantities of water are required to grow rice, and this will lead to a major water shortage in Asia in 2025 unless current irrigation techniques are altered to impute less water and produce more rice. I discovered this information by reading through an article; it contained a section specifically focusing on water problems associated with rice production. A problem I’ve run into when researching my topic is convincing the audience that the issue I am addressing is something they should care about. Most of the articles I have discovered are offering suggestions to lower the water amount necessary to produce rice, not explaining that families in Asia will experience famine if water levels used to grow rice are not reduce. It is different to extend this concern, since simply stating that families will go hungry seems to be the only thing I can do, unless I add fluff or reword the concern which is not something I want to do.

Research on Bananas

So far in my research on bananas, I have tried to concentrate on the workers rights aspect of my fruit. I find it difficult to locate articles on the subject, since the workers are in third-world countries in South America and Asia. The hardest part about the research process, in my case, is weeding out the information that is relevant to my topic as I am taking a look at articles that are not completely relevant, or are perhaps all-inclusive, and only mention workers rights in one paragraph. The most interesting thing I have found out about bananas is that they are bombarded with a slew of chemicals. There are chemicals for properly ripening them, for keeping pests away, and for making them immune to the diseases in which they are prone. I am including this information into my essay with regard to workers rights because many of these chemicals are dangerous to workers, and they are not being given proper protection when using them. I found out how many chemicals are used on bananas by reading the articles on workers rights. The articles focused on a particular chemical and how it was bad for workers, and I happen to stumble upon the information regarding the purpose of the chemical. I would say that I have discovered most of my information by stumbling across it while reading articles that seemed not to fit with my topic well. This is my biggest roadblock, having to read articles that seem like they wouldn’t really fit my topic, because they are the ones that happen to have information I need. It is frustrating that banana-worker’s rights are only mentioned in about a paragraph of most of the articles I encounter, so I have to sift through all of the uselessness in order to get an article’s worth of information out of ten different articles. So far, though, I have been able to gather enough information to write an essay, and I hope that I am able to continue finding articles that are remotely relevant to my topic.

Researching Coffee

The most interesting point that I have learned about coffee is that when an addicted coffee consumer thinks there is no effect when drinking coffee, it is just that the body’s adrenal glands are exhausted that they have burned out. To me, that is a scary thought especially since I have felt that way before. I chose this piece of information to share because many consumers have felt “immune” to the coffee’s caffeine, but do not understand what the cause is and how damaging it is to the body.

This fact about coffee is helpful for my essay because it relates to coffee and the health hazards that come with it. I found this piece of information while browsing “coffee addiction” on Google. The site on which this information was located, NaturalNews.com, was not the first site listed. The first two sites did not give me much useful information. The third title on Google caught my attention: “The Hidden Dangers of Caffeine: How Coffee causes exhaustion…” Fortunately I had some luck with the third site, which did give me interesting information.

I know I can improve my researching skills by searching in more academic search engines, such as ones on the University of California, Irvine website. Finding information was frustrating because health hazards of coffee are still in the process of research and researchers are discovering new information daily, whether it agrees with current thoughts or proves ideas to be false. Therefore searching for data and statistics will be helpful in my essay. Another improvement I can invest in is to be more specific in my search terms, which will give me more sites related to my terms. As I casually browse the web I find new techniques to research for my essay.

Apollonian by nature, Dionysian by force

I am mostly Apollonian, and for that reason try really hard to be Dionysian in order to get stuff done. I love the outdoors, being silly, wild. Standing in the rain yesterday was wonderful. I don’t like to do what I’m supposed to do, what I know must get done, and getting things done on time. Staying on top of and on time with school work is a daily chore for me, as my last minute blog posts show!! My apartment doesn’t stay clean for too long, I try, but I feel like I am cleaning every single day. If I happen to skip a day, it’s that much worse! Structure is definitely not my friend; I find it hard to keep with things if I try to plan things out ahead of time. I love being surrounded by people, and building off their energies and ideas.

However, the very fact that I cannot get a hold of my responsibilities drives me crazy! I try to study, but then get so easily distracted, feel the need to clean my workspace, which leads to further distraction.. but getting back on track, I have to keep things under control in order to not be a complete waste of space. I have to keep multiple to-do lists, use my phone calendar as well as a personal calendar; reminding myself to clean my room when I can, try to consolidate my messes, and remember to put makeup on or simply brush my teeth.

Apollonian vs. Dionysian

There are many things that are apart of me that determines if I am an Apollonian or a Dionysian. For example, I like my desk organized and in order, but there are other times that when I'm trying to find something or if I feel lazy, I just leave it the way it is- papers stacked, photos scattered, and in a complete mess. Also, the way I put my clothes in a certain order or style, the way I organize my shoes, jewelry, and makeup. I have to always put everything in a certain way that when my moves it, it really bugs me, and this part of me I am an Apollonian.
However, there are other times that I am a Dionysian. For example, I love doing things in the spur of the moment. I like drinking and relaxing with my friends on the weekend- to be stress free from school and to be with my closest buddies. I like going to beach and watching the sunset, I would want to do so many things but the Apollonian side of me holds me back like going to school, finishing my homework before the due date, going to work and making money, doing chores, etc. I also feel guilty if I didn't do what I was suppose to do like not studying hard for a test and then when I get the results and I did poorly, I start to get disappointed in myself. I also like listening to music, watching online shows, movies, chatting with my friends, texting my friends, and talking to people. There are other times that I want to be alone and do my own thing. It's so hard to choose between an Apollonian and a Dionysian, but I think because we are all humans and because we're very complex, we are a mix of both.

Ok, not 100% ... but more of a Dionysian than Apollonian

I would consider myself more of a Dionysian than an Apollonian because I am the type of person who would prefer a comfortable natural way of life over a high-tech extravagant life. School and responsibility would be unnecessary because it’s all about having fun and being lazy, but I can’t really ditch those because they are needed for survival. I see life like this… if there is something I need to do to survive, I’ll do it. So I wouldn’t need the mansion, the Bugatti, or the Karl Kani clothes … just a plain white tee, a sweater, boxers, a pair of $30 jeans, and shoes will do. And I would definitely love to live outdoors, but bad weather can ruin it for me. (I heard it is illegal to live like a bum here in Irvine, so I could get in trouble for that … but I thought about tenting out in Aldrich Park if I could, and if the sprinklers were off.) Of course, I don’t live like a wild animal right now, but I do wish that sometimes I could. Life would be so much simpler (and peaceful) if all we had to do was survive.

I think a lot of people today lean towards an Apollonian style of life with technology leading the world to destruction within itself. I see an Apollonian as a person who doesn’t value nature, and probably unspiritual, disconnected from the essence of living as one with everything else around him. There are many good things to being a “successful” Apollonian because you would live a fancy life without a care in the world but yourself, which I see as kind of selfish. I consider other humans as part of nature too…

People may see a Dionysian as a lazy and unproductive person, but I wonder if the world would be a better place if everyone was more of a Dionysian than an Apollonian. What do you think?

100% Dionysian

100% Dionysian

I am 100% Dionysian…. That’s why I’m not going to do this blog because I’m drunk off my ... !!!

(just kidding, I posted another one above)

Dionysus and Apollo

I feel like I have a mental tug-of-war between my Dionysian and Apollonian tendencies. Growing up, I was not the best of students, and I almost never did homework at one point. I definitely did not care too much about school. It was not until later in high school and when I started going to college that I really got serious about doing work and being disciplined in my studies. Because I spent so much time without applying myself, I feel like I have a bit of Dionysus that will never leave me. Also, most of my friends are good representatives of the Dionysian lifestyle, and they tend to drag me back to that direction when I see them.
I try to avoid being Dionysian as much as possible. Ideally, I would like to be as much like Apollo as possible. I can pull it off most of the time. When I have work to do now, it always gets done. When I study, I don't get distracted easily and leave to go do other things. I also never let partying get in the way of finishing anything that needs to be done. I think I have become more and more like this lately because I have developed a lot of ambition, and I know that my Apollonian side needs to be present as much as possible to get me there.
The Dionysian side of me still exists, but in smaller doses. I would say that it only comes out in little bursts, and only when I feel the time is appropriate. I still have that side of me that wants to ignore school and go back to playing in punk bands, and the side of me that would rather fall asleep or do anything besides study or do homework. I guess I have to work on developing the perfect combination of the two.

Contradiction in Our Personalities

When I first read Pollan's description of Nietzsche's mental transcendence, I knew exactly what he was talking about. I have experienced this transcendence myself, when I would run cross-country or track races in high school. My mind and body would move to a different place; even though my body ached with every step I took I pushed through it until I felt as though my mind and body weren't connected anymore. This disconnection between mind and body is like the different and sometimes contradictory aspects of people's personalities; like Apollo and Dionysian. I know there are many parts of my personality and beliefs that seem to contradict themselves, but when you look at the whole picture, it makes up who I am. I love going out with my friends, going dancing, to parties, bars, or anything where there are lots of people. The next night however, I can be just as happy curled up on the couch reading a good book or watching movies all night. Also, how I project myself to other people changes depending on the situation I am in and the people I am around. In my classes I think people sometimes get the wrong idea about me, because I usually don't talk that much and I am pretty anal about getting all my work done ahead of time. If you meet me outside of class, though, I am quite outgoing and talkative. After thinking about Dionysian and Apollo I thought about why I give off a different personality in the classroom. I realized that I am anal about my schoolwork, because I want to get good grades and I like to stay ahead on my work, because the other fun-loving side of me likes to go out and be completely care free when I do. The way I satisfy both contradictory sides of myself is stay focused in the classroom and get my work done ahead of time, so when I go out I can be completely care free. It is interesting to look at yourself in this way of contradictory aspects, because usually these things are done without notice or question. If is good to look inwards and look at why some of our behaviors and actions seem so different from one moment to the next.