Perspective:
My English Journey María José Ayala Boada Yachay Tech University English Language Program Yachay, Ecuador
Credits Perspectives: My English Journey Maria JosĂŠ Ayala Boada English Language Program Yachay Tech University Level 6-017 Teacher: David Montenegro January 13, 2017 Imbabura, Ecuador
Contents
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Portfolio letter Response essay Literary Analysis Argumentative essay Final research project essay Additional materials (pictures/videos/other works) Thank you letter
María José Ayala Boada Yachay Tech University Imbabura, Ecuador
January 13, 2016
Dear Portfolio Reader:
Thank you very much for reading my portfolio where you will find all the work I did during Level 6, and as you read it you will be able to realize that both my grammar and my structure writing have improved a lot. My portfolio consists of four essays, a reflection, and a research project that I designed and developed in my level 6 English course. I am very proud of the work I did during the semester as it demonstrates my ability to learn a foreign language also that I'm ready to continue my academic career. As a student, I have grown markedly since the beginning of the semester. In particular, I have learned to be more responsible with the subject and to take it with the importance it deserves as well as my other subjects, especially because of the load of work to be delivered. At first cost me a lot, because I am not used to writing an essay or doing a research completely in English but throughout this semester, I have learned to plan ahead and finish my assignments in a timely manner, since now I prefer to do my works with time instead of doing everything at the last moment. And now, I could say without equivocation that I can write and speak better. First I had to write a response essay where I had to summarize an article and give my opinion. So I had to read articles related to the one I chose, which was “How the
language affects our cognitive processes and the way of thinking� by the psychologist Lera Boroditsky to finally conclude that according my investigation, Borodistky’s theory was the correct. The second essay, was about a literaly analysis where I had to read a short story and give my analysis about what the story was really and as well as its message. It was a bit difficult for me, because the story I chose seemed to talk about a child’s trip to a store, but it really was about the trance of childhood into adulthood. The third essay was a group interpretative essay where with other classmates had to choose a piece of art and give it an explanation according our perception, this work taught me how to work in group and all persons had different perceptions about something but that all were correct. Finally, the fourth essay was an argumentative essay where I had to choose a prompt and give facts to probe that it is true or not. I think my strong points in writing are to give clear arguments which look for in reliable scientific sources while my weak points are not to use varied words as synonyms. Also, I had to expose my work using didactic materials like Power Point or Prezi where I gave clear and concise arguments to defend my topic. This takes me time because I had to make slides that must have a coherent order. I also had to prepare for a round of questions where little by little I was taking away the fear and answer them better because my arguments were clearer. For example, giving ideas about what it is and how we can be good citizens or my interpretation of the painting that my group and I chose. My strong points in expositions are that, as in writing, I present clear arguments and also I presented them in a didactic way using videos or slides that are not tedious or boring, while my weak points are that at the round of questions I get confused a bit and I cannot respond as I would like. All of these works helped me, above all, to organize the way I prepare to do a long work like an essay or a presentation, for example, I learned to search not only in
internet pages but also in articles newspaper, pdf or books, also to discard pages or articles that were not very reliable or did not contribute to my research and above all to bring an order in the wat of doing my work having priorities. In conclusion, thanks to the essays my writing improved and thanks to the presentations my speech improved also. As I said before, I was able to organize my arguments to present them correctly and although I know that I need to practice more, especially to speak in a fluid way, I know that if I continue studying, practicing writing essays and reading in English, preparing to speak in front of an audience to argue my topic and taking into account the comments of my classmates and teacher, I will achieve the level that I need. 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. I am confident that you will agree with me that I have become more proficient in English and am ready to pursue my career.
Gratefully,
MarĂa JosĂŠ Ayala
Response Essay
Response Essay
How language can affect our cognitive process? María José Ayala Boada YACHAY University of Experimental Technological Research September 26, 2016
How language can affect our cognitive process?
Language is the way to communicate between different species, and each has a characteristic. Humans include a variety of languages, every human being learns the language of the place where they grew up, but is it possible that the language learned can influence the thoughts and the way we see the world? The psychologist Lera Boroditsky proposes (according to recent research it along with a group of students from Stanford and MIT) that both the language and the grammar is adopted as natal influences various cognitive processes such as perception of the environment around us and thought. In this article, her investigations will be analyze and describe to give an opinion to prove her thesis about the repercussion of the language in the brain. In 2009 Borodistky started her investigation with a simple question to her students about what cognitive faculty they would not lose, and the majority of students answered that the faculty of language. This impulse her to improve a reach with associated scientists, they could overthrow the erroneous theory that language cannot affect the thinking. To do this, she gathered information from various countries such as Greece, China, Russia and others and she found an important information to propose her theory: “People who speak different languages do indeed think differently and that even flukes of grammar can profoundly affect how we see the world�[CITATION Ler09 \l 12298 ] For her, the most important cognitive faculty is the language because is the only form to interact with others. Even though not all countries have the same language, they have the same purpose: to communicate, that means that does a Spanish speaking person thinks differently than a person who speaks Russian or Italian? The answer is YES because the mere fact that a language is more complicated than another to understand,
makes our cognitive abilities change, but not everyone will think so. Other scientists think that even though the information is similar it is not expressed the same way. Also, they said that if the all languages has the same purpose so it will be easy learn other idioms but unfortunately this is false. This debate has been maintained for years where each group has tried to refute theories of the opposing group, but Boroditsky and associated found an answer to the discussion across through experiments to prove that basic aspects of daily life are affected by language. As quoted above thesis, Boroditsky states that the language changes the way you see everyday things of life, such as spatial orientation (p. example, the shape and direction of which you begin to write, or what direction you should start to read) and should take into account the differences caused by the language and the culture of each region. That is, culture brings identity to the human being as it is the medium in which a person develops and brings customs and traditions that affect their behavior. So how differences between cognitive changes caused by language and those caused by the culture? Boroditsky has the answer: she performed an experiment with a group of English speakers where they were taught to talk about the time of the Greek form and mandarin and found that while they learned about these languages unconsciously also learned how to think like them. Another fact that proves that it is true what they said Boroditsky is the varied perception of color in different regions, for example even though in English there is only one name to define a range of colors associated with the same pattern, not as such in the Russian language where each of these color range receive a different name. As in gender distinctions in the English language is not necessary to identify the gender of an object while in the Castilian language to things if they are given a genre. From these simple
things like the distinction of color or gender of an object is based Boroditsky to assert that a polyglot person thinks differently to a person who speaks only one language. It is also, as I refer to my cousin Pauline, she throughout her life for job issues has studied several languages to dominate English, Hebrew, French and more recently Japanese. When I talked to her, she told me that although all languages without difficult to learn, for her the Japanese was made the more difficult language because has different roots than Spanish and French. But as she was learning the different forms of writing she was developing an ability to think alike in Japanese. For example, when Paulina was reading something in another language she tried to put into her mind a Japanese or when watching television. That is she developed a "polyglot brain" because it could perform simple everyday things like going to buy something in the market or solve an equation in different languages and scripts. In the experiments conducted by the scientists were able to demonstrate that indeed the thought is influenced by the language is learned both in the sense of making common actions and critical thinking. The points were explained properly and are scientific underpinnings. Although I think that a fundamental pillar is missed and are studies published in 1985 by Pearl and Lambert scientists on the relationship between bilingualism and intelligence where it is found that "A prevailing attitude among bilingual people resolve cognitive enigmas bypassing the language: as if, facing a mathematical equation, a bilingual have more capacity to resolve the dispute "[CITATION Ken \l 12298 ] Besides the author shows comparisons among influential possible in thought and culture, all in a normal tone following a pattern writing, presented a comparison between language and another subject, developed and refuted with scientific experiments and livelihoods . Although she was in favor of the theory about the
influence of language on thought shows also the other point of view. The language used is very friendly to any reader either one illustrated on the issue as one that read only a hobby and even a scientific text and use some scientific terms most words are easy to understand. In conclusion the evidence shown by Boroditsky are sufficient to show that in fact, thinking and way of seeing the world are strongly influenced by the language support. Language is the way to express feelings and ideas of each person and the more languages you learn, will develop a better perception and cognitive activities will improve greatly.
References Boroditsky, L. (6 de Noviembre de 2009). How does our language shape the way we think? Retrieved from Edge Foundation: https://www.edge.org/conversation/how-does-our-language-shape-the-way-wethink Hakuta, K., & Diaz, R. M. (s.f.). The relationship between degree of bilingualism and Cognitive ability: A critical discussion and some new longuitudinal data. Retrieved from http://www-leland.stanford.edu/~hakuta/Publications/ (1985)%20-%20THE%20RELATIONSHIP%20BETWEEN%20DEGREE %20OF%20BILINGUALISM%20AND.pdf
Interpretative Essay
Balance
Steven Brito, Oscar Yanchatuña, María José Ayala YACHAY University of Experimental Technological Research November 16, 2016
Balance
Art does not have a whole meaning however, change the meaning according to the artist or the feelings and ideas that produces in the observer. Art is represented in many ways such as paintings, music, dance, pictures, and others that shows beauty. In the same way, the interpretation of art pieces is not always the same, and considering this point, here is an example of a piece of art interpretation. The image called "Balance" by Digitalessandra expresses the battle between good and evil that is directly related to life and death. To support this, we will interpret this piece of art in parts taking as principal objects: the birds, the chessboard, the big clock and the peach.
First of all, Digitalessandra (Alessandra) is an artist DeviantArt website who specializes in editing photographs. For four years she started to create works of art based on the photographs she took. Her style is more based on surrealism, which is an abstract way of representing the reality. Balance is one of her most important pieces of art because on March 23, 2012 she caught the attention of the majority of people who today are part of her followers.
In the picture, there are some elements that we will consider; one of them are the two birds playing chess. One bird is a pigeon that represents the goodness, the peace of the people and the good side of life. On the other side there is a crow that represents evil, things that people have done wrong and how the bad side try to steal the peace of the world. Another important interpretation about birds, is that even though good fight well evil also tries to take advantage whenever they can.
The big clock is placed in the center of the image, it that draws the attention and for us has two principal interpretations. According to the point of view of the chess game, the clock represents the time that each bird has to realize its movement but always it is in shifts. Secondly it can be interpreted by the time that from the beginning of life to playing an important role. Accompanying this struggle of good and evil in every moment from the beginning of life to the end. Accompanying this struggle in every moment since it never stops from the beginning of life to the end.
Additionally, the chessboard and its parts represent the fight between good and evil. Chess is a strategic game in which players move pieces with the objective to attack the opponent or to defend himself. It is suspended on a fruit and it is straight, that means the battle is not in favor of nobody and the fight is equal for both sides. Also, there are five black chess pieces and five white chess pieces on the floor, this makes us think that a tough competition is underway. All of this points together shows that it is important the existence of good and evil because their confrontation provides the balance in life, it is to saying, good would not have since without evil, or the life would not be the same if the death does not exist, and so on.
Besides, it is important to describe the ground as the representation of a cracked world by the constant struggle. This world has remained empty, without nature or living beings only cracks in what was once the world, the peach represents the last remaining trace of nature and the world that is why it is the support where the game happens.
In conclusion, the piece represents the battle between good and evil. Chess is a strategy game in the same way that life is, where people have to choose make bad or good decisions every day. This is what the artist tried to show with her image and that is the reason why she called it "Balance" because means the equilibrium between good and evil, the darkness and light that govern everything that happens in the world that is the support where the game develops, each piece of chess represents a human and depending on each decision that he takes will be a piece for the pigeon or the raven. And that is what we as observers managed to understand, what the author conveyed that makes us feel that just as in the world there is a battle inside us as well. Every decision we make is a step that we walk on board and depending on those decisions the winner will be good or bad.
REFERENCES What Does Art Mean? - Boundless Open Textbook. (n.d.). Retrieved from November 14, 2016, https://www.boundless.com/art-history/textbooks/boundless-art-historytextbook/think ing-and-talking-about-art-1/what-is-art-38/what-does-art-mean243-5704/
Digitalessandra on DeviantArt. (n.d.). Retrieved from November 14, 2016, http://digitalessandra.deviantart.com/
Argumentative Essay
Should be there one global language?
MarĂa JosĂŠ Ayala YACHAY University of Experimental Technological Research November 29, 2016
Should be there one global language?
The actual world is extremely changing and competitive where most people learn another language to expand their opportunities but why not agree that it is the same language? Language is linked to the culture, and therefore is proper to the place where a person was born and grows, it means it is something that gives us identity like a last name or physical characteristic, therefore the creation of a global language would cause that the identity and interculturality of different countries to be lost. First of all, globalization is a dynamic process on global scale, consisting of growing communication between countries joining their markets, societies and cultures. From the above, it has many effects on language, both positive and negative. These effects on language in turn affect the culture on the language in many ways. Thanks to globalization it could speak of a global language that improves different areas. A common language would provide society with better trade, tourism, interaction with other cultures, more knowledge, greater opportunity to get to know others, etc. But even if globalization is an unstoppable process, it should not affect the culture of a region showed in the language. Languages, as is known, distinguish peoples, carry their system of cultural values, constitute an important element of nationality as a concept, and are a unifying factor, both within a multi-stature nation as the Arab, for example, or within a group of states that use the same language, as is the case in Latin America. Languages are the essential medium in which the ability to communicate across culture develops, knowledge of one or several languages enables us to perceive new horizons, to think globally, and to increase our understanding of ourselves and of our neighbors. Languages are, then, the very lifeline of globalization: without language, there would be no globalization; and vice versa, without
globalization, there would be no world languages. However, with globalization allowing languages and their cultures to spread and dominate on a global scale, it also leads to the extinction of other languages and cultures. Secondly, travel to another country would be simpler since there would be no need to learn a different language to develop correctly in an unknown place. Having a universal language is equivalent to a more globalized world. Communication between societies was extraordinary, people easily enriched their knowledge and expanded their chances of success. Even though, the travels to other countries would be facilitated much, on other hand also it would be lost the charm of traveling and learn about other cultures and consequently an unknown language. Part of traveling is also wanting to feel part of the culture of that place that is visited and this is reflected in learning their customs and the way of speaking, besides part of the experience of traveling is to learn little by little to say simple words. In conclusion, language contributes to the formation of culture, such as through vocabulary, greetings or humor. Language is in a sense the substance of culture. And for that reason the creation of a global language would cause that the identity and interculturality of different countries to be lost, a Languages serve as important symbols of group belonging, enabling different groups of people to know what ethnic groups they belong to, and what common heritages they share. Without a language, people would lose their cultural identity.
References
(22 de July de 2011). Retrieved from Language and Globalization: https://hdelhumeau.wordpress.com/2011/07/22/language-and-globalization/ Cancio, C. (s.f.). What if everyone on Earth spoke the same language? Retrieved from How stuff works science: http://science.howstuffworks.com/science-vsmyth/what-if/what-if-everyone-spoke-one-language1.htm
Fina l Res earc h Proj ect Ess ay
Organism Genetically Modified. The food of the future? MarĂa JosĂŠ Ayala Boada YACHAY University of Experimental Technological Research December 11, 2016
ABSTRACT The present work treats Genetically Modified Organisms, better known as Transgenic as a good alternative to avoid world hunger in the future. Relying primarily on the benefits this would bring to agriculture, human health, and economy of each producing country. It is important to talk about genetically modified organisms because in the future they will feed the entire world population and at the same time avoid common pests that affect many types of crops. There is the bad information about GMOs that provokes controversy, but its benefits have allowed research for the improvement of these products to continue.
Do you believe that science could create a modified organism using genes from animals or plants and in the future, will feed the majority of the population by providing them with benefits in agriculture, economy and human health? Genetic engineering is the science that manipulates DNA sequences, making possible their extraction and inclusion, as well as the modification or elimination of genes. One of the most significant events occurred in 1986 when the first tests were carried out with transgenic tobacco crops in France and the United States, and a few years later, in 1922, a transgenic tobacco plant resistant to certain viruses.[ CITATION Sot \l 12298 ] Certainly this type of methods to improve the lineage of the treated species means an important advance for science. However, several questions are exposed to the air, what are the benefits of transgenic foods? Are they safe? And if so, what are their possible effects? The World Health Organization, the National Academy of Science and several scientific organizations have reviewed research on transgenic food and found no evidence that they are harmful. That is why it is important to talk about genetically modified organisms because in the future they will feed the entire world population and at the same time avoid common pests that affect many types of crops. There is the little information about GMOs that provokes controversy, but its benefits have allowed research for the improvement of these products to continue. Advances in Molecular Biology and Genetics allow humans to transmit genes between species in a controlled manner through transgenic agriculture. The rise of transgenic agriculture is evidenced by figures such as that in 2009 were used for these practices more than 180 million hectares of 25 countries. And in US more than 90% of plantations of soybeans are transgenic. By the end of the century, we are expected to be 11 billion people in the world. Many mouths to feed for a tired land that will also have to face the new climatic conditions, in many extreme cases, generated by the
phenomenon of climate changes. That is the reason why science has designed a new generation of plants more productive and resistant to diseases, drought and insect attack known as transgenic plants. Transgenic plants are promoted as a tool to overcome any obstacles that prevent us from continuing to produce food, selecting the characters that we need, accelerating the genetic improvement used until now based on crosses between plants. Currently, the most used in agriculture are mainly of two types, those that have tolerance to herbicides such as the glyphosate-resistant "Gts soy", by incorporating a gene of the bacterium Agrobacterium. And those resistant to the attack of some type of insect such as Bt Maize, which incorporates a transgene of the bacterium known as Bacillus thuringiensis that can synthesize a specific toxin that kills maize "bore" larvae when they feed on the plant, That is, the plant generates its own insecticide. For this reason, transgenic agriculture has proven to be better than conventional agriculture because of improved performance and simplification of agricultural work. These advantages depend to a great extent on each productive area, climatic conditions, the incidence of pests and weeds, humidity and many other factors. The greater the incidence of pests and weeds, the greater the benefits will be obtained from transgenic crops and these will enjoy greater simplification. In addition, by requiring less agricultural labor and work, in the medium term should increase labor productivity and in the long term could restructure the agricultural sector. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the safety assessment of genetically modified organisms is the result of research into the possible direct effects they may have on health, toxicity, trends and allergic reactions, specific components suspected of having nutritional or toxic properties, stability of the inserted gene, nutritional effects associated with genetic modification and many others unwanted
effects that may be produced by genetic insertion. Although traditionally grown foods are not generally evaluated for allergenicity, the protocols for testing for genetically modified foods have been evaluated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and WHO and No Gains and losses in the GMO sector that are currently on the market.[ CITATION Gar \l 12298 ]. Therefore, it can be said that GMOs do not cause health damage by their composition and that they can contribute in the future, in the field of the prevention and diagnosis of cancerous and degenerative diseases through the application of genetic therapies for Respond better to nutritional and food needs, and market preferences, as well as anticipating the problems of vaccine carriers. It is important to note that transgenic seeds have a higher cost than conventional seeds, and its price includes a depreciation of research and development expenses. The technological quota raises the annual expenditure of the farmers, causing them to lose part of their autonomy. However, they can offset the increase in their costs by reducing costs for insect and weed control, and thanks to less need for labor and equipment. Seeds that tolerate herbicide rely mainly on four advantages: - They allow to use a single compound instead of several herbicides to control weeds. This is usually glyphosate, which is less expensive. - Chemical control reduces the use of machines and equipment to control weeds, except those used to apply biocides. This reduction is further accentuated by tillage techniques and ends up leading to lower costs. - Less labor power is needed to control weeds and apply herbicides. - If chemical control takes effect, farmers will receive higher incomes by reducing pest or weed losses, as long as the other components of the cost decrease or remain
constant. Expenditures on equipment, herbicides and labor decrease, but the purchase of transgenic seed may imply a higher expenditure. Thus, the net balance of all these factors tends to reduce the costs of the products, and therefore to increases the incomes of the farmers, besides simplifying their work. Another plus advantage to the use of GMO’s is that will positively affect the economy of both farmers and the country. The debate on the use of genetically modified foods is on the order of the day. However, the clear impression left by this discussion lies in the degree of disinformation that is worrying some who will ultimately be benefited or harmed by the use of them: the consumer. Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are created when a gene from one species is transferred to another, creating something that would not be found in nature. A large percentage of domestic crops (up to 85% of soybean yields) have DNA that was tweaked in a lab, yet it is nearly impossible to know which food items contain these genetically engineered ingredients. Also, the health consequences of eating genetically modified organisms are largely unknown because genetically engineered foods have not been shown to be safe to eat and may have unpredictable consequences. Another point is genetic engineering reduces genetic diversity. When genes are more diverse, they are more robust so plants with reduced genetic diversity cannot handle drought, fungus invasions or insects nearly as well as natural plants, which could have dire consequences for farmers and communities dependent on GMO crops for survival. And finally, the development of transgenic is in the hands of a few multinational companies that will eventually control the entire world seed market and, thus, the production of food on the planet. In parallel, herbicides and other synthetic products are specific to these varieties and are also in the hands of these companies. [ CITATION Urb10 \l 12298 ]
On the other hand, the scientific community states that Growers produce GM foods to increase their crop yield, improve the appearance of foods and increase plant hardiness. Soybeans and corn are the most common transgenic crops in the United States, increasing crop yield is one of the main reasons that growers use genetic engineering. Some transgenic foods have genes to increase their resistance to insect damage this reduces the need to use pesticides and improves crop output. Farmers also use genetic engineering to create herbicide-resistant plants, these plants aren't damaged by herbicides, which allows farmers to spray fields with herbicides to kill weeds without worrying about damaging the plants. This improves productivity and output and reduces environmental damage from chemical run-off by reducing the amount of spray needed, resistant to viruses that destroy crops has also been bred into some plants. Also, farmers can produce more nutritious foods through genetic modification because it has the same nutritional quality (or also called substantial equivalence) than traditional ones, next the date will count on products oriented to benefit more to the consumer, like soy that incorporates in their composition of omega fatty acids. In development are rice with more vitamin A and forage maize with better availability of minerals such as phosphorus. Future benefits of transgenic food include the ability to grow and develop with less water, leading to significant savings for areas with irrigation problems, as well as the possibility of obtaining larger crops. Transgenic foods have great potential for improving life on Earth, and even at such large levels that they are difficult to elucidate, for example, offering a great tool to fight hunger in the world. In conclusion, faced with the prospect of an imminent increase in population, the difficulties presented by current agricultural technology in order to satisfy the need to feed the new generations and the declining economy around traditional agriculture, it is necessary to resort to alternative production, that increase agricultural yields. This
possibility today comes with the introduction of biotechnology and the GMO’s, for that reason modified organisms in the future they will feed the entire world population and at the same time avoid common pests that affect many types of crops. However, it cannot be ignored the fact that this market is still developing the seeds that are known as "first generation", that is, until now is being limited to those seeds that have characteristics that reduce production, The use of pesticides and insects. However, a further revolution in agricultural markets is expected when seeds of product differences begin to develop.
References García Menendez, J. R. (s.f.). Productos transgénicos: Efectos en el ambiente, la economía y la salud. Retrieved from Revistas Bancomext: http://revistas.bancomext.gob.mx/rce/magazines/116/2/RCE2.pdf Lozano Teruel, J. A. (12 de Abril de 2012). Agricultura transgénica y agricultura ecológica, ¿incompatibles? Retrieved from Ciencia y Salud. La verdad: http://cienciaysalud.laverdad.es/la-alimentacion/tecnologias-adicionesmodificaciones/agricultura-transgenica-agricultura-ecologica-incompatiblesarticle.html Soto, C., Pizarro, B., & Rodriguez, J. (s.f.). Transgeniteca. Retrieved from Alimentos Transgenéticos hasta el día de hoy: http://tecnogrup1d.jimdo.com/historia-delos-alimentos-transg%C3%A9nicos/ Urban, S. (23 de August de 2010). 8 Reasons GMOs are Bad for You. Retrieved from Organic Authority: http://www.organicauthority.com/foodie-buzz/eight-reasonsgmos-are-bad-for-you.html
Add itio nal Mat erial s
http://prezi.com/mly1u8zdan5u/? utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy&rc=ex0share http://prezi.com/smsyrl_7mrph/? utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy&rc=ex0share
Thank you again for reading my portfolio. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it.
Sincerely,
MarĂa JosĂŠ Ayala Boada