Industrialized Farming

Last month, a salmonella scare raised by unsanitary conditions at a peanut butter plant in Georgia caused widespread panic and ended in a recall of millions, if not billions of products that contained the dangerous peanut paste. The fact that this scare affected as many people as it did is the way we farm now. Industrialized farming is the way of the future when it comes to farming, because the concentration of resources is the best way to make a profit in a free market economy. However, this does not mean that it is the perfect way to make food for purchase. As demonstrated by the peanut butter scare, if one plant of farm has a problem, it affects the entire country and economy, which is like putting all our eggs in one basket, a proverbial no-no. However, with enough trucks to transport california strawberries all the way to Erie Pa, it would seem like a waste not to use the countries infrastructure to diversify the food at the local supermarket. It also means that if one community is in drought, the rest of the country can pick in and send them food to eat so they don't starve. However, everyone has a niche, so try to buy from the local farm. Usually the food will be fresher anyways, and you could be saving a local job. 

Soy in food

I believe that soy will make you healthier- in moderation. Like anything in life, even food which seems harmless at first can quickly become a serious problem if it is abused. Everything is good in moderation, no matter how good it seems at first. This is why the diets that claim you can lose weight by eating nothing but carbs, which is very unhealthy. Also, your body really doesn't know what protein it's breaking down. However, soy does contain some rather unhealthy substances, and was listed as an industrial product not a food in the 1913 USDA handbook. Soy baby food is also very unhealthy for babies to eat, as a days worth of soy baby food has enough phytoestrogens to mimic giving the infant 5 birth control pills a day. The soy plant is also very susceptible to any metals in the soil in which it grows, so if it is grown in a field with a lot of aluminum, there will be excess amounts of aluminum in the end soy products. However, eating about 25 to 50 grams of soy a day can reduce your LDL, or bad cholesterol by 10%.  Soy also fights the narrowing of blood vessels, which leads to heart disease and hypertension, the silent killers of America. Like I said, in reasonable amounts, soy improve your health and improve your life. In excess, however, it can be dangerous. 

Conflict Resolution

Resolving conflicts effectively is almost as important as making good decisions, but it is much more difficult because there are two people involved, and not everyone thinks in the same ways. However, in many ways, conflict resolution is very similar to decision making. Conflicts arise over pretty much anything, a spot on a team, a girl or boy, or something that happened over the summer. One way to make sure you resolve your conflicts without violence, and ensuring that you get what you want out of the discussion. In order to resolve your conflicts, use this method.
Step One: Set the Scene
Step Two: Gather Information
Step Three: Agree the Problem
Step Four: Brainstorm Possible Solutions
Step Five: Negotiate a Solution
Using these steps, you and the other party in the conflict will find a good compromise without violence or anything nasty like that. Remember, whenever you have a conflict, violence is never the answer. It will only inflame the problem, and make you seem like a bully. Fighting is never the best way to solve your problem.

Decision making- different models

Making decisions is a very important skill that every single person on the earth needs to use every single day. Some decisions are more important than others, obviously choosing lunch is not as important as choosing whether or not to give in to peer pressure when alcohol is involved. How can you make sure that you make the best decisions possible? Using a dedicated model to guide you step by step through the decision making process can help you get the most out of life. We learned the GREAT decision making model in class, but what other models are out there to guide you? First, you can use the seven step process, which goes like this.
Identify the decision to be made - exactly what are you trying to decide?
Know yourself - what are your strengths, weaknesses, skills, values and interests
Identify options - list the various choices so far
Gather information and data - about each alternative
Evaluate options that will solve the problem, pros, cons and risks of each alternative
Select the best option- may be necessary to loop back and gather more info
Develop a plan of action - and implement it!
This will help you get more out of all the decisions that you have to make throughout your life. Next, the PLUS model, which provides for ethical decision making, goes like this.
Six Steps to Ethical Decision Making
Step 1: Define the problem PLUS
Step 2: Identify alternatives
Step 3: Evaluate the alternatives PLUS
Step 4: Make the decision
Step 5: Implement the decision
Step 6: Evaluate the decision PLUS
Both of these models look and work like the GREAT model, as you identify all your alternatives, or choices, decide which would work the best, or give you the best outcome. All these models also provide for you to look back and think over whether or not your decision was a good one or not, so you can improve in the future, if at all possible.

Weight-lifting for swimming

Obviously, the best way to get faster in the water is to swim, but not everyone can stand ten hours of chlorine exposure. So how can you gain speed out of the water? Weight lifting is a great way to get the most out of your time when you aren’t swimming. But not every exercise that uses dumbbells will work the right muscles. Which exercises will work best? Naturally, using something like a vasa trainer, which is specifically crafted to add resistance to the motions of all four competitive strokes, will be the best because you are doing the strokes as you would in the water. Other than that, these exercises should be done. SquatsLeg PressLeg ExtensionLeg CurlLat Pull-downSeated RowingBent-over RowingLateral RaiseShoulder PressBench PressDumbbell CurlPush-upAbdominal WorkAssorted StretchesThis should not be continued through your taper, and you should do no extra work for a week or two before your big meet. The stretches should be preformed after the workout in order to improve range of motion, as flexibility is vital to swimming, but not before. Dynamic warm-ups, where static stretching or holding a stretch is avoided, will maximize what you get out of your workout. Static stretching within an hour of your workout will slow you down, therefore taking a little bite out of your workout. If you follow this workout plan, as well as work hard during practice, your times should drop, providing your stroke doesn’t fall apart under heavy stress.