MY ENGLISH JOURNEY Danna Castillo Yachay University of Experimental Technology and Research English Language Program Yachay, Ecuador
MY ENGLISH JOURNEY By Danna Castillo English LanguageProgram Yachay Tech University Crash course Level 6 -009 Teachers: Mark Poese & Josephine Javens
February 25, 2017 UrcuquĂ, Imbabura, Ecuador
TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.
Portfolio letter
2.
Opinion essay
3.
Response essay
4.
Argumentation essay
5.
Final Research project essay
6.
Additional materials (pictures, videos, other works)
7.
Thank you latter
Portfolio Letter
Danna Castillo Six Yachay Way, Yachay Tech University Urcuqui, Imbabura, Ecuador February 23, 2017
Dear Portfolio Reader,
My name is Danna Castillo. Thank you very much for reading my English Language Portfolio. It is a collection of my work in English and demonstrates my ability as an English language learner at Yachay Tech. My portfolio consists of four essays that I designed and developed in my level six English course. I am very proud of my portfolio, and I am ready to continue my academic career in chemistry. My first contact with English was at the public high school, but my English classes were more similar to Spanish classes because teachers always spoke in Spanish. Thus, when I entered Yachay Tech University where the English teachers spoke and explained the classes 100% in this language, I was shocked. I still remember the first English class at Yachay Tech University with Professor Monica Vinueza. My mind was blank because I could not understand anything. At that time, I was attending the leveling course and my classmates helped me to understand the classes. When finished the leveling courses, I had progressed so much when compared to the beginning the semester. In the first and second semesters, I could not finish level three due to an incompatibility of my English class schedule with my lab schedule. So, in the third semester, I finished level three with Professor Diane McDowell; with her, I learned to have some more confidence in myself to speak. In level four my English teacher was Shelly Camba, and with her I learned grammar points. Since I was going to enter my University major and all classes would in English, one of the requirements for the students was they must have completed minimum level five. As I had no yet passed that level, I had to take Crash Course level five. In this course I learned many things about writing and making presentations. After that I had the pleasure of taking classes with Ercilia Delancer in the level six, but I did not pass with her. However, I believe with her I learned and I improved some more in my English skills in this Yachay Tech English program. I am taking Crash course level six with Professors Mark Poese and Josephine Javens. Classes with them beginning on January 30, 2017. The first essay that I wrote was an opinion essay; that essay consisted of writing my viewpoint without biases. After I wrote response essay, when I wrote this essay I learned to express my viewpoint on a certain topic, but giving my viewpoint with arguments to support my position so that it cannot be refuted. To write these essay, Mark and Josephine taught us writing techniques and some
elements such as author’s purpose and author’s tone. Both were necessary to elaborate any essay. In this crash course level six I learned to be more organized to capture on paper my ideas. Always before when I had written an essay, in my mind crossed a million ideas and I wanted to write all them. So, the final result was a disaster with many things and ideas that did not follow a sequence and people could not understand it. In level six, it has been more rigid with respect to the structure that I must have an essay. I forced my mind to keep calm and organize the ideas before writing. About speaking and listening, when I stay in front to my classmates, especially a new classmates, I forgot the structure of the sentences and mixed past, present and future. It was very terrible, but I attempted to improve these factors through confidence and forgetting the nervousness that I feel in this moment. I believe that in each presentation I felt more comfortable with my classmates and especially with the professor. I believe that a factor that helped me to improve my writing was thinking in my professional life. Scientists need to have a good performance writing if we want to publish our research. That is my motivation to learn English. A scientist also should give good presentations, and this point I still work to improve. Maybe today I am not a great speaker, but I will continue working hard to eliminate any trace of nervousness. My listening and reading are better than my writing and speaking. Maybe it is because my classes in the chemistry major are dictated in English since the leveling course. All material (even more in the major) used by professors like papers or books are in this language. Of course, my vocabulary is larger in science words (chemistry, biology, and physics) than “normal and everyday” words. Although to learn a vocabulary of common words, it is useful for me watch TV series and listen to music in English. This technique was suggested to me by Monica Vinueza, my first English teacher at Yachay Tech. I think this method helped me so much because when teachers gave us English test to put in the different levels, I was able to get level three, even though I did not know anything when I entered the university. I am proud of myself because in around two years I have made great progress learning this language. However, I have many things that I must continue polishing until I reach perfection. I feel grateful to all the English teachers that I had at Yachay Tech and contributed to my development to learn English. Thank you again for reading my portfolio. I put in a great deal of effort into my portfolio, and I hope you enjoy reading it.
Sincerely,
Danna Castillo
Opinion Essay
Our Morality Could Changes When Using a Foreign Language Danna Castillo Yachay University of Experimental Technology and Research February 1, 2017
Our Morality Changes When Using a Foreign Language “Morality is the herd-instinct in the individual” (Friedrich Nietzsche). Morality has many definitions, among them recite “Morality is a set or a system of values, principles, norms, precepts, attitudes, etc. that serves as guidance for the life of a person or group” (Cortina & Martínez, 2001, p. 29). This morality we used to judge another people or judge ourselves. Sometimes the morality is built based on environment where the individual develops. As a general rule, we usually think that decisions and our morality are intrinsic to each person, totally isolated from language that we are using. Thus, some psychologists have suggested that the morality and the verdict that each person can give are linked to their native tongue. From my view, the data presented by article author, these are enough evidence to think the foreign language can influence when we doing decisions and judgment. This is based on the relationship between a native tongue and family learning and the use our critical think. One of the reasons which I agree with the article, is due it is logical to think our native tongue is linked with our emotions. Our feelings, traditions that we learning and the sense of morality we acquired in our childhood, with our native tongue. Native tongue is involved with great emotional intensity because is totally different the learning anything with your parents and friends that a learning with teachers in a classroom (Sedivy, 2016). Humans tend us to relate our experiences and teaching with something, the same happens with language. Sometimes we link our memories with the language because it is easier to remember. I must also emphasize that those emotions together language have an important role in the moment we must take a decision or making a verdict. It is in this situation when
we made a moral judgment based on in the emotions and feelings associated to memories with our native tongue. Another reason which I am in favor what postulate the article it is about critical think. As a Spanish speaker, I can say that when we speak anything in a foreign language and even more if we doing a judgment we think twice and we do a deep analysis we are going to tell. In other words, we are more objective to give a verdict and our decisions are not influenced by emotions or feelings. It showed some experiments making by Albert Costa, where people were less condescending when they had to give an answer in a foreign language (Sedivy, 2016). One of the features of morality is the peaceful solution of conflicts. Although morality has the objective to find a solution acceptable morally and it has the approval of society. It has a dilemma when we must seek the common welfare. Set rules and values have its limits in this situations. It is clear doing verdicts and judgment about anything can be influenced by the language used in that moment. It is very different taking decisions with the cold head than take it carried away by passions and believes that we had learned in our childhood. At the end of the day, the decisions we make are a combination of feelings and deep analysis. Everything will depend on which we are most predisposed.
References Cortina, A., & MartĂnez , E. (2001). Ethics . Madrid : AKAL, S.A . Sedivy, J. (2016, September 14). Scientific American . Retrieved January 31,2017 from How Morality Changes in a Foreign Language: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-morality-changes-in-a-foreignlanguage/
Response Essay
Importance of Ethics in Science and Engineering Danna Castillo Yachay University of Experimental Technology and Research
Author Note Crash Course- L6 February 7, 2017
Importance of Ethics in Science and Engineering Once Bernard Baruch said “During my life I have witnessed a whole succession of technological revolutions. But none of them has done away with the need for character in the individual or the ability to think”. Ethics is an ambiguous concept difficult to apply in science and engineering. It goes since back to the Renaissance with Leonardo Da Vinci and the usurpation of corpses for his studies about anatomy, among others unethical practices. Until to the present days with controversial scientist techniques applied in some research from different fields. Following this timeline, I can conclude that science and engineering always face problems with ethics. Questioning whether these will really bring benefits to the humanity. I think that science and engineering have sole duty to generate knowledge and seek the truth through any research. I also need to clarify that I think humans are terrible beings. They do not measure the consequences when they want to achieve a goal; it is either it a good or bad, and some humans do not care. It is because of that I agree with this article; it shows the importance of the role played by ethics in scientific research. It does not allow us to lose us our humanity and the course towards the development of utopian society One argument that Johnson (2010) exposed in her article it is that science and engineering should never cross certain lines in religious terms. In other words, scientists “playing God.” This phrase is the most polemical argument that religious and moral people have to attack scientists. They argue that science is taking a role that does not belong them. As the recent scientist finding, the first synthetic cell. Is it ethically correct? Could we say that scientists are already playing God? Beyond to exceed the limits and entering at religious land. It is more important questions us the useful and benefits for the humanity of
our “creations.” It is in this scenery where ethics plays its role. Performing a deep analysis about the impact on society and how it affects our behavior. People fear the unknown, but ethics soften the giant steps that science and engineering are making. Hence is the importance of ethics. Another idea exposed in this article that I find interesting is the threatening that represents new ideas and new technologies. How these tend to affect our quality and character human live (Johnson, 2010). I believe it is the greatest fear that people feel with respect to science and engineering. They are afraid of the day when they will be replaced by technologies created by man. I think we are afraid to merge with technology and to lose the characteristics that make us humans. At this point intervenes ethics, and why its importance in science and engineering lies in the fact that it has the function of restricting and not exceeding its scope. All technological advances are good, even more, if these advances help us to improve our quality of life and extend our years of life. What ethics aims to avoid is that in the way to achieve the “human perfection” we destroy nature and even worse we destroy ourselves. Now let us look at ethics and its relationship with the science and engineering from another perspective. According to Deborah Johnson, sometimes science and engineering can influence the concepts of ethics and morality. An example we can see is how computers have challenged ideas about what it means to be human or how reproductive technologies have changed the concept of parenthood (Johnson, 2010). It is really amazing if we think that among them can make positive contributions. The fact that science has put in doubt our humanity, having as consequences that the same scientists and another people think twice before give a computer our same status. Reproductive technologies are another thing. It is
like “playing God” because we can give life, but we still need the help of nature. I think that is totally ethical to help people fulfill their desire to be parents. Although put in doubt the concept about parenthood, the positive is that it indicates that being parents does not depend on sperm or uterus. It depends on the willingness of our heart to care and protect another human, but above all on love of this being for a lifetime. One very interesting question that Johnson put in her article is whether science and engineering are taking us where we want to go. It is true these wonderful fields had put light in our life, allowing us to progress and develop towards an advanced society. Despite all the benefits we can get from technology, we should stop and ask if these advances are not moving away from our true and “pure” purposes. Save the humanity our own destruction instead of taking us to it. I think that ethics are necessary to hold for that science and engineering move together with the general interesting of society. The interaction between both of them results in more effective investigations for our well-being. It is undeniable that ethic plays a very important role in science and engineering because it is the barrier does not allow humans to exceed the limits of tolerance. It is also evident that science and engineering have a collaborative relationship with ethics. Doing positive gesture to each other. Some contributions have put in doubt some concepts as ethics as science. That is why man feels afraid of these two fields. Humans fear scientists will “play God” and hurt nature and ourselves because they do not understand the limitations of their humanity. Humans fear science us beyond and remove form us the characteristics that make us different from other living beings and above all what differentiates us from the machines. Humans always will feel scared. It is at this point when
ethics is more important. It is the bridge connecting science and engineering with the society and makes them useful.
References Johnson, D. G. (2010). The role of ethics in science and engineering. Science & Society , 589-590.
Argumentative Essay
Should Science Have a Common Language? Danna Castillo Yachay University of Experimental Technology and Research
Crash course- L6 February 16, 2017
Should Science Have a Common Language? In the history of the humanity, different research, some curiosities or anything were passed of generation to another through speech. After these “primitive” research was put on paper. Each research was written in the native tongue of the researcher. Despite I believe that each language of the world is important because it give us cultural rich. I think that science needs a common language for the benefit humanity and increasing knowledge. Taking this way required some “rules” because it will be injustice bringing some benefits to some groups and damaging another. If we think in the epoch where researchers wrote their research in their native tongue. Also we should think in all information that we have lost. Nowadays a lot of languages have die, and with them a percentage of knowledge. I believe that part our progress that we have got, it must be by the measures taken by scientists from 15th century. Scientists conducted their work in two languages their native tongue to discuss their work in conversation and Latin in their written work or when corresponding with scientists outside their home country (Huttner-Koros, 2015). It is here when begin the culture of sharing knowledge with the purpose of increase it. Every language in the world gives us cultural richness. It is true that knowledge is not produced via traditional academic research methods, rather through specific and scientific methods (Huttner-Koros, 2015). This way look at some uncertainty and difficult for everybody. It is for that common language used in science should be teaching in all levels of the educative system. It will be injustice that having a common language stops the climbed toward progress. If we want to achieve utopia, we would not put in in disadvantage to non-native speakers of this common language.
It does not matter that common language that science choose to become in the science’s language. The most important thing is that everybody have access it and can dominate it. We cannot allow that our knowledge disappeared when these languages also disappear. It is for that we should put all information we have until now in a common language that everybody can understand and dominate. We have the obligation to save our universal knowledge. World live difficult moments with science, so hard rules and hard moments.
References Hutter-Koros, A. (Agosto 21 de 2015). The Hidden Bias os Science's Universal Language. Retrieved from of http://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2015/08/english-universallanguage-science-research/400919/
Final Research Project Essay
Questioning the Universe: Dark Energy and Dark Matter Danna Castillo Yachay University of Experimental Technology and Research
Crash course- L6 February 21, 2017
Abstract The universe is a huge place with an infinity of things to discover and with the answers hidden between constellations and galaxies to the questions that science has from its beginnings. The present paper attempts to give an explanation in simple terms to one of the enigmas of science, dark energy and dark matter. Both have different concepts, but both need a change in the theory and laws that govern physics to be understood. Dark energy and dark matter also influence some celestial bodies and fundamental interactions like gravity. Understanding dark energy and dark matter are necessary to understand the structure of the universe and prepare to the Earth for future cosmological events that lead us to the answer about the origin of the universe and also to inquire about what could happen to the universe. To know where humanity goes, it is necessary to observe the sky and never stop questioning everything around us. Keywords: Dark, matter, energy, gravity, universe.
Questioning the Universe: Dark Energy and Dark Matter “The universe is no narrow thing and the order within it is not constrained by any latitude in its conception to repeat what exists in one part in any other part. Even in this world more things exist without our knowledge than with it and the order in creation which you see is that which you have put there, like a string in a maze, so that you shall not lose your way. For existence has its own order and that no man's mind can compass, the mind itself being but a fact among others� (Cormac Mccarthy). This words from Cormac Mccarthy make a lot of sense in current research on dark energy and dark matter. Both are unknown for a lot of humans and even more, these are far to be understood totally. The positive of this situation is that scientists spare no efforts to get the answers to this great uncertainty. Finding an explanation to dark energy and dark matter could give to mankind a clearer perception about their origins and what could be coming in the future both for the outside with the stars and the Earth. The purpose of this research project is to understand in simple terms the behavior of dark energy and dark matter and how they influence their surroundings and the physical laws. It is possible to achieve it to by understanding the differences between energy and baryonic matter and dark energy and dark matter. These need to modify the existing physical laws as the gravity or introduce new theories to be understood. It is necessary to start with a brief explanation of the differences between dark matter and dark energy. Starting with the dark matter, it helps the scientists to understand the behavior of the celestial bodies in the universe. Dark matter and dark matter have a relationship 1:5 because for every gram of ordinary matter, the Universe contains around five grams of dark matter. “Dark matter lacks a charge, so it does not respond to
electromagnetic force. The only way to directly detect the particles is if they bump into of ordinary matter” (Hecht, 2016). Among characteristics of dark matter can be found it has a high density in the galactic center, which it is one the brightest source of high energy photons generated by dark matter self- annihilation. It is possible that annihilation makes positrons. The importance of dark energy is that it could play a fundamental role in galaxy formation and structure (Spergel, 2015). On the other hand is the dark energy, it could explain accelerated expansion of the universe. It contributes to the 70 percent of the total energy of the universe. This universe acceleration could be by cosmic acceleration or evolving scalar fields that fills space. Dark energy is the negative-pressure fluid which explains cosmic acceleration (Spergel, 2015). Dark energy uses the equations of general relativity to give an answer to the expansion the universe. It is for that questioning the cosmological constant introduced by Albert Einstein in his fundamental theory of nature and even more important the destiny of the universe. Sometimes it gets confused the definitions and explanations for dark energy and dark matter. These are totally different because dark matter pulls and dark energy pushes. While dark matter explains the gravitational attraction, dark energy explains fact negative gravitational attraction (Biello, 2006). For these differences that both present, some physics theories and law that try to understand the universe would suffer some “modifications” when adding these “new components”, dark energy and dark matter, in the scene. Explaining dark energy and dark matter can be some difficult doing in simple terms. Even more when the existence of both implies review and analyze the current physical laws that “explain” our Universe. Dark energy and dark matter could change slightly these theories or laws to introduce new concepts and a constant cosmological in the physical
laws. One of the laws could suffer some "changes" is the Newton's second law which states that “acceleration is produced when a force acts on a mass. The greater the mass the greater the amount of force needed” (Sirois, 2009). Newton’s second law is involved with the gravity and scientist believed that only it pulling in on galaxies. Scientists are aware of the existence of dark energy and dark matter because only the baryonic matter is not enough to hold it together by gravity. It is for that the scientists propose the possibility that there some extra material “invisible”. This extra material could not only explain about the expansion of the Universe, also it could the greatest curiosity that all scientific community and mankind have. The birth of the Universe. The existence of dark energy and dark matter can change known theories and laws, also these can help to understand how they affect the behavior with normal energy and normal matter (Quiñones, 2017). According to some studies carried out by scientists, dark energy and dark matter could be the basic building block to form the biggest structures in the Universe like galaxies and clusters. Possibly without the existence of both will be impossible consolidation the universe as it is now known (Biello, 2006). Some that dark energy and dark matter are affecting is the gravitational phenomena, which would affect the perihelion shift of planets, gravitational bending of light and gravitational time delay. Other cosmological phenomena affected is the cosmic acceleration. It is explained by Einstein’s theory of general relativity and it determine the cosmic acceleration is “average energy density and pressure of all forms of matter and energy in the universe” (Biello, 2006). It is here when dark energy and dark matter could be responsible.
Something really curious in the influence the dark energy and dark matter on gravitational time advances. Gravitational time advances is called negative delay from of the position of the observer when “gravitational time delay is influenced by gravitating object the average global speed of light is reduced from its special- relativistic value and hence the signal suffer an additional time delay” (Ghosh & Bhadra, 2015, p. 2). According Ghosh and Bhadra dark energy leads to a gravitational time delay give a time delay and time advancement depending on the position of the observer. Dark energy and dark matter can be verified through measurements of gravitational time advancement at large distances putting an upper limit on the dark energy and dark matter parameter (Ghosh & Bhadra, 2015). It should be considered that the possibility the existence of dark energy and dark matter is some "uncertain" because some experiments did by the scientists in different parts of the world has failed dark matter. Very few experiments can be able to detect it, so that it is contradictory. One the events that evidence its existence is the high- energy photons produced when dark matter self- annihilation, but the galactic center also contains an astrophysical source that emits high-energy photons. Another aspect makes question the existence of dark energy and dark matter is the lack of concrete laws that can explain easily the behavior of both. Although also there the possibility that this extra ‘stuff ’can be normal matter, and the same occurs for the energy (Spergel, 2015). Another point against or that difficult that explain in the theories of gravitation and how to relate them to the cosmos and their behaviors between each other. A great evidence that sustains and ratified the existence of dark energy and dark matter is the constant expansion of the universe. The Universe is speeding up, instead of
slowing down owing to the mutual gravitational attraction of matter, indicates that there is much more to the Universe than we understand at present. About failed experiments, The Gran Sasso Dark Matter experiment can be able to detect dark matter with just the theoretical predicted form. “Searches in external galaxies have also suggested the existence of dark matter with yet a different mass� (Spergel, 2015, p. 1101). Scientists think that observations of nearby dwarfs could give them concrete signals about existence of dark energy and dark matter. Another point in favor of the existence of the dark energy and dark matter it is possible to explain through Newton's laws. It states that the mass of a body can be determined by the motion of its satellites (Caldwell & Kamionkowski, 2009). What if it can be affirmed is that the scientists work very hard to demonstrate it. The human regardless their race, creed or economic status has always had the ambition to see beyond what is possible them. The human being is curious by nature and it is skill what had allowed progressing to mankind. The curiosity in the science have allowed to mankind break down boundaries in the science; in their huge attempt to find answers to the questions that they have since they were able of question anything without repressions from society. It is because of that curiosity that possesses men, their instinct told them that there was some detail that they were overlooking them and made it difficult to understand the behavior of the universe. After the respective research and deep analysis, they gave names. These variables, that "something" that could not be explained by conventional physical laws and theories were called as dark energy and dark matter. These are intended to revolutionize the world of science and to give an answer to the question that humanity has about where we come from and where we are going.
References Adams, A. (2017). Stanford physicist suggests looking for dark matter in unusual places. Retrieved from February19, 2017 PhysOrg: https://phys.org/news/2017-01stanford-physicist-dark-unusual.html Biello, D. (2006, August 28). Energy, and how are they affecting the universe? Retrieved from February 20, 2017 Scientific American: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/what-are-dark-matter-and/ Caldwell, R., & Kamionkowski, M. (2009). Dark matter and dark energy. Nature , 587589. Ghosh, S., & Bhadra, A. (2015). Influences of dark energy and dark matter on gravitational time. The European Physical Journal C, 1-6. Hecht, J. (2016, September 28 ). Dark matter: What's the matter? Retrieved from February 19, 2017 Nature : http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v537/n7622_supp/full/537S194a.html QuiĂąones, D. (2017, January 6). Giant atoms could help unveil 'dark matter' and other cosmic secrets. Retrieved from February 18, 2017 PhysOrg: https://phys.org/news/2017-01-giant-atoms-unveil-dark-cosmic.html Sirois, M. (2009, July 23). Second law of motion. Retrieved from February 19, 2017 Houston TeacherTECH Archives: http://teachertech.rice.edu/Participants/louviere/Newton/law2.html Spergel, D. N. (2015). The dark side of cosmology: Dark. Science , 1100-1102.
Additional Material
Research project presentation
THANK YOU FOR READING MY PORTFOLIO. I HOPE YOU ENJOYED READING IT AS MUCH AS I HAVE ENJOYED WRITING IT.
SINCERELY, Danna Castillo