2007年9月30日 星期日

CNN Interactive (9/17)

After I finally finished the news summary and that afterthought, I realize that I did it wrong, again. I found my article in CNN and thought that CNN Interactive are the same thing as CNN. I tried the functions in CNN Interactive and truly think that It does great help in practicing English. I especially like the vocabulary section, because it gave me the chance to practice remembering words and its English definitions. I know this is important not only because tests like TOEFL requires ability to define words in English, but also because by doing this helps me to understand the word better and allows me to use the words in a more suitable way.

All in all, CNN Interactive is a very useful website. I'll make good use of it in the future.

2007年9月29日 星期六

Victim uses Facebook to finger suspect (9/17)

The news URL--

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/US/09/28/facebook.finds.attacker/index.html



Summary--

A attack happened near the campus of Georgetown University a few days ago. The victim tried to seek on Facebook the person who attacked him and eventually found Phillip Cooney, a sophomore in Georgetown University. The authority is very surprised that Facebook can be used to help finding suspects. Because the victim heard the person abusing him yelling homophobic epithets, Phillip is now charged for simple assault with a hate/bias crime specification. If the charge is convicted, Cooney will receive a more serious punishment than misdemeanor simple assault.



Afterthoughts--

I think the attack happened because the abuser does not know how to respect others. According to the article, it is very likely that the abuser assaulted the victim mainly because he is homosexual. The abuser beats him up and made cuts and bruises on the victim's face. Why on earth does he think he has the right to do this to other people?

Living in this world we need to know there are different kinds of people, and we have to respect their different points of view. You might hate the ways other people behave or dislike the methods of how they deal with problems, but it does not mean you are right and they are wrong. Sometimes, it's just different concepts and different attitudes toward life. You don't just jump on other people and start a big fight just because he or she is acting the way you don't approve.

The victim, on the other hand, I consider made a admiring act of move. He browsed from one profile to another, fully made use of the mass population of Facebook users, and finally found Phillip Cooney. Although the case is still under investigation and I cannot sure if Cooney is the real abuser who commited the crime or not, but sooner or later, this abuser will have to accept the consequences for not respecting other people.

I hope the abuser will learn a lesson from this event, just like I did.

2007年9月11日 星期二

Add something to my self introduction (9/10)

After I finally finish my self introduction, I found Ms. Liang post a note on the Blackboard saying we should write about our English learning and computer use experiences. So I come to add this part in it.

I had been studying in New Zealand when I was grade three and four in elementary school. I lived in my uncle's house and studied in a local school. It's a really special experience to me not only because that I get to learn English, but also because the chance to experience the cultural difference between Chinese and Westerners. I encounter much trouble in learning English after I came back in Taiwan. The obstacles in writing English essay troubles me the most. I found Westerners don't really care about teaching kids to know grammar while People in Taiwan consider it something very important. Anyway, I am still working on my writing skills and hope one day I can be a better writer.

As for my computer use experiences, I have learned to use computer ever since I was grade one or two in elementary school. My father bought one of those early computers home and taught me the basic ways to use the wonderful machine. Until now, I have learned how to put a computer up by myself and become pretty good at using Internet sources. Still, I know there's much for me to learn.

2007年9月10日 星期一

Hi~I'm Coya! (9/10)

Hi everyone! I'm Coya!

I am a freshman in National Central University. I'm eighteen years old and will soon become ninteen. I like surfing the Internet, reading novels, listening to music and watching movies.
Some of you might be wondering where did I got my name from, for it's a name you don't see often.Well, my dad was reading a novel about Inca when I told him I want to change my English name. (I was "Sally" at the time.) He saw the name "Coya" and think it's actually a really nice name, because it isn't difficult to pronounce at all. He has a faint in names without complicated pronunciation. Anyway, he strongly recommand me to use the name and that's where I got the name from.

Being one of the students who studies in this wonderful school makes me happy. I have got the most friendly classmates ever and also the teachers are nice and patient. I am looking forward into the future and hope to start a fantastic college life in this beautiful campus. Undoutedly, I will enjoy learning through the next four years.
Hope we get along well. :)