Fanny Wong - Final Eportfolio

The Health Issues

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The Social Issues

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Reading Responses

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Editor’s Note

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Health Issues

December 7, 2013

THE HEALTH ISSUES Don’t Take Them To Heaven

Today, nine out of ten people approve of organ donation. Yet, less than one in three has registered to be an organ donor. With the advanced science the world has today, thousands of lives can be saved. However, thousands of people die each year due to one obstacle that stops the doctors from being able to save all these precious lives. What kills thousands of people each year is the limited number of organ donors. For the past few

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Health Issues

December 7, 2013

years, the number of organ donors has been declining. Where as, the number of patients waiting for an organ has been increasing.

More organ donors are needed because every day the gap continues to widen and eighteen precious lives are lost. The technology is available, but the people are not. Registered organ donors are not for sure to be an organ donor until they have passed on and passed the health test. This makes it more crucial for people to sign up for organ donors.

There have been many controversial

issues as to why people will not sign up to be an organ donor. One of them is because a person does not want to spend their last moments in the hospital,

“Don't take your waiting to die. This is understandable but organs to heaven think about the good that you can do for with you. Heaven knows we need others. You can pass yourself on and be apart of another person when you pass away them here.”

-BARBARA HLADIO & THOMAS BOYADJIS

and help save as many as eight lives. Because if an organ donor does not pass away in the

hospital or anywhere close to a hospital, it becomes difCicult to transport

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Roxanne Watson is a heart transplant recipient. She keeps a photo of her heart donor, Michael Blain Bovill in her home always.!

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http:// www.lohud.com/ article/20110810/ NEWS03/108100347/!

Health Issues

December 7, 2013

the necessary organs in a timely manner to the recipients because the organs are only viable for a short amount of time after the organ donor has passed on and that may not be enough time for the doctors. Unless, it is planned with the doctors, the doctors can perform ways to make the organs viable for a longer period of time. However, that has to be planned. But this is a solution to the issue of dying outside of a hospital.

Some other issues are about paying for medical fees and how the body looks after the organs have been taken out. Good news, organ donation is free and the body does not look distorted after surgery, which is why there should be more people signing up to become an organ donor.

Registering, as an organ donor does not simply mean that the instant you die, your organs are taken out. Tests need to be performed to see whether or not the organs are healthy and of course, not everyone is healthy when they pass on because people develop

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Health Issues

December 7, 2013

diseases, as they grow old. When that person passes on doctors, perform a check up on the person’s body to see if that person has been diagnosed with a disease. If they have been detected a disease, the organs cannot be used.

Illnesses are a big factor that prevents more people from getting an organ.

There are many qualiCications for an organ donor to donate since the human body is so complex. The organs have to be a match in order for the body to accept the organ from another person because if it is not a match, the recipient’s body will view that as an intruder and attack it and reject it, which imposes a greater risk on the recipient’s life. The difCiculty of Cinding a match for an organ donor and the strict qualiCications in becoming an eligible organ donor makes it even more crucial for people to become a donor and encourage others to sign up as well.

If you were the person that were to die and had the chance to save another

person’s life and let them live, why not recycle your body and donate your organs to someone who can use it? When you pass away, there are two choices to do with your organs. One choice is let your organs be garbage and become of no use. But, the other 6

Health Issues

December 7, 2013

option is that you can recycle your body and let another person have a chance to live by signing up to become an organ donor. Why not make use of them, if they’re going to become trash? You have lived your life. Why not pass it on and let another person have a chance to live their life as well. By donating your organs, you can save up to eight lives.

Not only one life, but eight precious lives. Become a donor today and save a life.

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Social Issues

December 7, 2013

SOCIAL ISSUES

Being Stereotyped Amongst Peers

Stereotypes are created because of race, gender, age and many other reasons. Chinese

students are stereotyped with the “image” that they academically excel in science.

Stereotyping these students will cause them to feel pressured to meet the expectations of their family and peers. However, being stereotyped will influence these Chinese students negatively 8

Social Issues

December 7, 2013

and block their path on what they really want to do in life.

In the University at

Buffalo, there are Chinese students who are stereotyped and because of the Chinese stereotype, parts of their lives have been affected. For this ethnography, Chinese students who are in their sophomore or junior year will be interviewed because they are the ones who have had a year or two to think about what they want to major in. Furthermore, this is the time for them to apply for their majors; so, these students are the ones who know what they want to do. During the interview, the students will be asked about their experience in choosing their majors and how difficult it was. In addition, the students will be asked if they have ever been stereotyped and if so, how has is affected them.

Throughout this interview, there will be three main groups. The first group will consist

of the students who chose to stray away from the stereotype. The second group will be the students who came into the university as an intended science major and later on, changed to a different major. The last group will be the students that fit the stereotype and choose to major in science. These three groups will show how the stereotypes impact on a person’s life and decisions and show the traditions that are forced to be broken.

In the University at Buffalo, there are many Chinese students who do not fit the Chinese stereotype yet this stereotype continues to exist. Chinese students at this school have  

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Social Issues

December 7, 2013

chose to major in a variety of subjects such as business. In this school, some of the biggest professional fraternities is Alpha Kappa Psi (AKPsi) and Delta Sigma Pi (DSP). AKPsi and DSP are well-known professional business fraternities throughout the school and in these fraternities; most of its members consist of Chinese students. In these two fraternities, there are students who choose not to major in science because they do not like science. However, they have faced pressures from this stereotype by their families and friends.

One of the members in AKPsi, Mary, has been stereotyped and faced the pressures that come along with it. Mary’s parents have always wanted her to become a doctor or a pharmacist because her parents always thought that these two professions was the way to be successful and make a lot of money. When Mary entered college, she chose to do business and her parents were extremely disappointed. But when she explained to them that not only would be in the science field waste their money, it was not what she wanted to be. Her parents understood and accepted her decision.

Mary always knew that science wasn’t for her because she never understood it. She always liked business. She knew what she wanted to do and she chose to stay away from the stereotype because she knew what was good for her. In the interview, she explained why it was hard breaking the dream. She said, “As a child, I always listened to my parents and did

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Social Issues

December 7, 2013

everything they said. When I wanted to do something different, it was hard because I always listened to them and this time I didn’t. What made it harder was that this was about my life, which was a huge matter to them. This was a big deal in my family and I didn’t want to seem as a disobedient daughter, which was why I went to my parents to seek approval and made sure they were okay with it.”

Children have always followed the Chinese tradition because they grew up living with that kind of environment.

Going against that tradition and disobeying the parents is considered disrespectful and when others hear of it, the parent’s are viewed as shameful because they cannot control their children. This plays a role with the stereotype and affects Chinese students’ decision on what they want to be. Mary overcame the stereotype, but nonetheless, it affected her. The stereotype made her decision become cloudy as she broke her family’s heart. Luckily, the cloud cleared up when she got the courage to talk to her parents and make them understand her.

Besides Mary, Charlie, a member of AKPsi, faced with the Chinese stereotype as well.

Charlie had always excelled in both science and business. His parents dreamed of him becoming a doctor but he felt like business was always his path. When he was applying for colleges, he kept going back and forth in choosing his intended major until he finally decided that he wanted to do business. His parents were utterly disappointed and threatened him to choose science because they said that was the best for him. But, he went against his parent’s wishes and chose to be in a business major and till this day, he is faced with pressures and his

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Social Issues

December 7, 2013

family is still disappointed in him. However, he is happy with his decision and he is hoping that his parents will understand one day.

Charlie’s parents believe in the stereotype of Chinese students pursuing in the science

field and believe that every other Chinese student is doing that and will make a lot of money in becoming a doctor. Charlie’s parents are being narrow-minded and are not thinking of any other majors as an option. This caused Charlie to face a great deal of stress and because of the stereotype; Charlie and his family are not on good terms. This stereotype has ruined his relationship of his family. Because this stereotype has been lurking in parents’ heads, causing the parents to not think about anything else but science for their child. This stereotype is like a virus, spreading and infecting Chinese parents’ heads thinking that this is the only way to success. Because of this, it causes the children to disobey their parents and breaking the Chinese tradition. It makes the children look like they are the wrong ones when they are only trying to do what they love. For Charlie, his parent’s have not accepted his decision and Charlie continues to be viewed as a disappointment to his family. These are the students who chose to break the stereotype and pursue other paths in life and have experienced unpleasant memories and obstacles in their life.

But not all students realize what they want to do in life until they come into college.

For students, college is a place to explore, to have freedom and to be pressure-free from their families. For Johnny, living away from home has given him the freedom to browse around and decide on what he wants to become. He began as a Biomedical Science major, but later on, changed into Fashion major. Johnny struggled to break the stereotype because his parents disapproved of this and told him, “We’re paying for you to succeed, not to fail.” His parents believed that science was the only way to excel and make a good living. After Johnny talked to

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Social Issues

December 7, 2013

them, his parents were finally convinced and trusted him. But not only did his parents disapprove of his decision, so did his peers. His peers thought that it was not a safe choice and advised him not to do it because fashion seemed more like a hobby rather than a job.

Johnny struggled between the decision on what he really wanted to do and after contemplating for a year, he realized that if he didn’t pursue in his passion he would regret it forever. Johnny was affected by the stereotype greatly because he almost chose to do science because of the job security. It made Johnny and his parents believe that it was the only way to make money.

Attention needs to come to these stereotypes. Chinese parents need to realize that

science is not the only field with secure jobs. There are many secure and well-paid jobs in the world. Johnny has many chances of becoming successful because in this world, everything deals with art and fashion. There are millions of people in this world and they all have a different style of fashion and aspiring fashion designers are always getting recruited. Science isn’t always a secure job because everyone is always competing in that field. Therefore, parents should not always think that joining the science field would guarantee them a job and money.

On the other hand, even though there are many Chinese students who pursue in other

careers other than science. There are some Chinese students who fit the stereotype such as Han  

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Social Issues

December 7, 2013

and Fiona. Han is a Biomedical Science major and wants to become a doctor. Han says that he feels pressured to excel in science by his friends and peers.

Everyone thinks that he is naturally good at science because he is Chinese. But he says, “What people don’t realize is that I study four hours a day for my science classes.” Besides his friends, his family lectures him to be the best of the best because that is the only way he will succeed. All these pressures add up and cause his grades to slip. Fiona, Pharmacology major, faces the same problems. Her family and friends pressure her to succeed even though she struggles to keep up in her sciences. Her friends are always relying on her for help because they assume that since she is Chinese, she knows the material already. Because of that, she feels more pressured to succeed and when the pressure adds up, her grades begin to drop. Even though these students fit the stereotype, they do not want to be stereotyped. They choose science because they love it. However because of the stereotypes, their grades have been slipping. “Failure is not an option” haunts in the student’s minds. These pressures refrain them from performing to their full potential.

Stereotypes have negatively impact on

these students and caused them a phenomenal amount of stress emotionally and mentally.

From these stereotypes, pressures are created

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Social Issues

December 7, 2013

from their families and friends and because of the pressures; it deters students from pursuing in what they truly want to do in life. People must realize that these stereotypes do not exist anymore. People are breaking this stereotype and from that, traditions are being broken as collateral damage. Children are forced to disobey their parents’ wishes and pursue their dreams. Maybe from the broken traditions, a new modernized Chinese tradition is being created, where the children pursue their dream and the parents’ learn to accept their children’s wishes.

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Reading Responses from the Writer !

Competing 24/7!

In college, students are more competitive than ever. For pre-medical students, students

are competing for the few spots of going into medical school. But there are always two choices: a healthy competition or a fierce competition. At University at Buffalo, not many students will help one another because they feel as if it is your job to rely on yourself only.  

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In my science class, I observed the students for a few days and I knew that this would

be the perfect timing to test my hypothesis since the homework for the class was due soon. It was the perfect opportunity to see my students’ competitive nature slowly come out. I saw that students will do anything in order to the right answers and get a high score on their homework.

People began asking their friends and then random people on Facebook. Then homework answers began trading as if it was a product.

Then there were a young lady who needed help on a question, but many people were

stuck on it. There was this young man that finished the homework but refused to give her the answers. He said it was her fault for not studying hard enough. It was cruel and you could feel the competitive aura coming from him.

This observation was interesting and I chose to observe this community because not

many people from other majors are like this. The amount of competitiveness is surprising and it is only present in the science classes. This is important to be looked at because these are our future doctors here. Doctors are supposed to help each other and help their patients. Doctors should not have this kind of attitude. Helping fellow colleagues is an amazing attribute to a person’s personality and needed in a future doctor which is why I chose this.

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Response on “The One Who Walked Away From Omelas”

As I read Ursula Le Guin’s “ The One Who Walked Away from Omelas”, one section caught my attention. The section is, “Happiness is based on discrimination… ought to be beer.” What this section told me was that despite Le Guin’s beautiful descriptive words describing about the happiness people have in Omelas, she discretely tells us that the people of Omelas are not truly happy as she makes them sound.

Le Guin mentions drooz and the importance of drooz and how it makes people have amazing feelings. Seeing the importance of drooz has on the people of Omelas, it shows that people of Omelas are not happy and they need substances to make them feel happy. It makes the readers feel that the people of Omelas are in despair and in a world of nothing but sadness.

The happiness mentioned is not true happiness. It is a cover up for the unhappiness in Omelas, which shows that Omelas and the people of Omelas are not perfect and ideal. In fact, it shows that they are people just like us because they need something in order to escape their troubles and find a way to be happy.

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In addition, Le Guin mentions beer and sex. Beer and sex is another way to escape the stress and serves a purpose in the real world, which is to make people happy in the real world and for the people of Omelas, it serves the same purpose as well.

Reading this passage makes readers realize that nothing is perfect. Le Guin states, “But they seem to know where they are going, the ones who walk away from Omelas.” What Le Guin states is true because those who do leave Omelas know that Omelas is not a happy place like how it is described in the beginning. Omelas is a place filled with despair and those who leave, know it and want to find a better place to live in because they know that there is no such thing as utopia. A utopic world is a place that is made up and some people of Omelas have realized this.

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“Twisted”: Breaking the Stereotypes

The new ABC’s family series called Twisted is about a 16-year-old teenage boy named

Danny Desai. Danny is a criminal and he murdered his aunt when he was 11 years old and he is not out of juvenile detention center after five years. Desai is back into Green Grove and tries to rekindle his old friendships with his best friends, Lacey Porter and Jo Masterson. Lacey Porter and Jo Masterson both witnessed Danny murdering his aunt. Twisted revolves around Danny and how that whatever crime that happens in Green Grove, he is the number one suspect because of the crime he committed five years ago. This show reinforces a stereotype of

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criminals of how they will always revert back to their old ways by using Danny Desai and observing his actions.

In one episode, one of the girls named Regina Crane was murdered on the day she

hosted a house party. She was found beaten to death and when the police arrived, the head sheriff, Kyle Masterson, saw that Regina had texted Danny and immediately made him as his number one suspect. In the next few episodes, Kyle Masterson and the town of Green Grove all suspect that Danny Desai is the killer and that everyone is blind-sided by all this.

But no one can blame them because the town is in fear because Danny Desai may murder again. No one knows if he will ever commit a crime. There are scenes that audience gets to see him holding the evidence and signs where he may be guilty but in the show, the evidence isn’t shown. Danny Desai may be the culprit because most of the time convicted felons will act again after they have been released from prison. Green Grove is not to blame for the terror that they are in because they are aware that criminals usually revert back to their old ways. Statistics have proved that criminals act again after they have been released from their previous convictions.

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DECEMBER 8, 2013

LETTER FROM THE WRITER

CURABITUR LEO

DON’T TAKEN THEM TO HEAVEN

BEING STEREOTYPED AMONGST PEERS

READING RESPONSES FROM THE WRITER

EDITOR’S NOTE The Struggle of Writing !

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DECEMBER 8, 2013

CURABITUR LEO

complete%the%task%that%was%asked.%In%my%ethnography,%I%did%not% analyze%my%interviewees%and%missed%a%lot%of%key%points%that%are% suppose%to%be%in%the%ethnography.%Therefore,%I%chose%to%do%that% one%because%I%felt%that%my%ethnography%piece%was%the%one% where%I%could%revise%substantially.%% %

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Bring Someone To Life Again.

Become A Donor.

DECEMBER 8, 2013

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CURABITUR LEO

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DECEMBER 8, 2013

CURABITUR LEO

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DECEMBER 8, 2013

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CURABITUR LEO

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! !

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