THANK YOU.
When I woke up this morning to see the interview with Obama, I was oh so happy. I am so proud of him for showing his support for equality for ALL Americans. As Ellen said, there have been times in history when one person has changed the status quo, and I can only hope this will do that. I understand voicing his support for gay rights may hurt his chance in the elections, but it was so important for him to do so. I am so proud of him for being the first President to openly declare his support for gay rights.
If you haven't watched the video interview of him, go do so now. And also watch the video where Ellen talks about the news in her show from today. So beautiful.
Other than that, not much happened today. Definitely a stressful day, what with trying to figure out apartments and studying for two finals.
*sigh* I think I know almost all of the information I can know for these finals, but I never know when to stop studying. Because I feel like maybe I should be able to absorb more information. It's very annoying. But I don't think this happens to many other people. I'm just weird. And get anxious easily.
Study practice:
(Marine biology)
Marine mammals can dive to very deep depths unlike humans due to several adaptations. At the surface, they perform apneustic breathing, where they take several deep breaths and then exhale rapidly to obtain oxygen. Their red blood cells have more hemoglobin and their muscles are rich in myoglobin, allowing them to be more efficient at taking oxygen from the air and using it in their blood. When they dive, they undergo bradychardia, which has also been shown in humans; their heart rate slows dramatically. Blood is diverted away from unessential organs (muscles) and flows to the heart, lungs, and brain. Thus, their tissues have a higher tolerance for lactic acid produce when muscles undergo anaerobic respiration. Finally, their rib cages collapse when they dive, expelling air from their lungs and causing them to absorb less nitrogen. This means marine mammals are less likely to get decompression sickness or the "bends," though evidence of it has show up in some whales.
Mesopelagic fish are adapted for the vertical migration they undergo at night to feed in the epipelagic zone. To avoid predation, these fish mask their silhouette in several ways. First, they use countershading (dark on top, light on bottom). Most fish are black, silver, or transparent and their bodies are laterally compressed so they cannot easily be seen from below or behind. They also use bioluminescence and counterillumination to mask their silhouette when seen from below. Mesopelagic fish maintain the swim bladder in order to vertically migrate. They have well developed muscles and bones. They have large, often tubular eyes for forward and upward looking and large mouths and stomachs. They tend to be of a smaller size since food is scarce in the mesopelagic and they need to conserve energy for vertical migration. These fish spend the day in a lethargic stupor to preserve energy for night. In contrast, bathypelagic fish do not vertically migrate, and thus have different adaptations for living in the complete darkness of the deep sea. First, they have lost the swim bladder and have very small eyes. These fish are often small as well, though bigger than mesopelagic fish. They tend to have globular shaped bodies, with black, silver, transparent, or red coloration. These fish use bioluminescence to capture and see prey. They have weak, flabby muscles as they are generally sit and wait predators.
(Communications)
The history of modern masculinity was shaped by four different events: the protestant reformation, colonialism, the growth of cities, and large scale civil war. When these events occurred in the 16th century, gentry masculinity developed. It included being involved in capitalistic venture and settling affronts to honor with lethal one on one combat. These men also had complete authority over women and a brutal relationship with agricultural workers. In gentry masculinity, due to the protestant reformation, heterosexuality became compulsory. Over the last 200 years, however, Gentry Masculinity has split. This has been caused by challenges by women, power relations of empire, industrial capitalism, and the growing need for technical expertise.
In recent years, the white male has come to view himself as the persecuted minority due to: the reemergence of feminism, the loss of the Vietnam war, the end of the Post WWII economic boom, affirmative action, and the lesbian and gay rights movement. Men are no longer the sole breadwinners and are expected to be emotionally involved in the family. This view of the white male as a persecuted minority has given rise to reflexive sadomasochism, wherein the individual's ego is split between a sadistic and masochistic half. The man tortures himself and is both the aggressor and victim. This stereotype can be seen in many recent movies. In these films, the man is the victim of a treacherous American society, moves in almost all male company, his courage slides into suicidal recklessness, and he is compelled to venture on dangerous solitary enterprises. His body is repeatedly torture and turned into a spectacle to be consumed. Thus, the male is simultaneously the stereotypical strong, self-confident phallic male and also feminized, as his body is put on display. This reflexive sadomasochsim and the filmic elements that reflect it allow man to be a victim (a feminine characteristic) and yet still remain a strong and resilient man.
.............And those are only 2 topics from each. My communications final covers seven topics. My marine biology final covers six topics. Each with many subtopics. Luckily, though, neither is comprehensive. And I really do think I know almost all of the information involved in my notes/study guides for both. But it's my nature to freak out over finals. *sigh*
Okay. Well, I hope you enjoyed reading that. ;) Tomorrow, I take TWO finals. But first, I wake up and go running on the elliptical, call the apartment complex, print out our paper, and study just a bit more for each final.
Phew. And then I work until 10. Ha, we'll see how I'm doing at this time tomorrow night.
Cheers!
Inspirational quote/photo of the day: “I’ve just concluded, for me, personally, it is important for me to go ahead and affirm that I think same-sex couples should be able to get married." -Barack Obama
Word of the day: depensation--the effect on a population when a decrease in the mature breeding population leads to reduced survival of offspring
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