I recently attended a drug and alcohol awareness lab at school. My experience at the lab was a positive one, as it brought to light some of the prevalent issues that college students face regarding drug and alcohol abuse.
At the lab, I learned that many people underestimate the amount of alcohol they consume. I learned that 12 ounces of beer is equivalent to 4 ounces of wine and 1.25 ounces of hard alcohol. It is also commonly underestimated how much alcohol is in a mixed drink. The speaker mentioned that binge drinking is considered five or more standard drinks for males and four for females. Alcohol is metabolized differently by females, so it is easier for them to over-drink without realizing it. Before coming across this information, I would have imagined that binge drinking to consist of a much higher volume of alcohol. This brings to light how many college students are binge drinkers and may not realize they are in this category. In my personal experiences many of my fellow college students consume significantly more than the above stated amounts. She also stated that the legal limit (0.08 BAC) to drive is reached a lot quicker than you may notice.
An intense part of the presentation consisted of a story about a college student that fell through a dorm window and died because he was under the influence of drugs. When the autopsy was performed it showed that he had consumed the equivalent of eight ecstasy pills (MDMA). The presentation showed the dark side of drugs and alcohol rather than the social and partying aspect that we so often see and hear about.
The speaker gave tips on how to limit drinking and how to drink safely at parties. She advised against putting your drink down and to watch your drink being made. Many times Rohypnol and GHB may be slipped into a drink of an unsuspecting date in order to take advantage of the individual. It has also been shown that sexual harassment is more prevalent in situations where drugs and alcohol is involved. As alcohol lowers your inhibitions, you are more susceptible to make decisions that you would not normally make. Drinking and driving was also an important issue that was addressed, since it is the leading cause of death in the 15-24 year age bracket.
Other topics addressed were the effects of excessive partying, drinking and usage of drugs on school work. After all, sometimes it forgotten that we are at school to further our education and not to party. Excessive drugs and alcohol use can impair the brain and make it more difficult to retain information in the days and weeks after drinking. Many students assume that after the “drunken effect” has worn off, so have all other effects to the body.
The lab was very informative and highlighted the importance of protecting yourself and peers from the negative effects of drugs and alcohol. In my experiences after the lab, I have educated my friends about the concerns addressed at the lab in hopes that they will make the right decisions in the college years ahead of us.

New York City: Driving and Demising Force- a look at E.B. White's "Here is New York"

When reflecting upon New York City, what comes to mind is a thriving superpower overflowing with opportunity, and sky-high success. New York is incomparable to any city in the world, on a large scale or small. It has a radiating vitality, and boasts a confident air. Its fortitude is manifested through its inhabitants as well as its infrastructure. In every way, New York City transcends dominance. But this very dominance, this driving force and “omnipotence”, is the same quality that makes New York so vulnerable.
While meditating upon the city’s greatness, I think that our greatest strength is dually our greatest and most imminent weakness. Fifty-two years before New York’s defining tragedy, E.B. White saw New York for what is was, in both positive and negative light. His prophetic writings demonstrate his analytical ability, and his adeptness to see past the blinding glamour and straight into our biggest flaw.
“…The city, for the first time in its long history, is destructible. A single flight of planes no bigger than a wedge of geese can quickly end this island fantasy…” This excerpt from White’s essay clearly defines New York’s susceptibility. The manner in which E.B. White words this quote is the key in understanding its significance. He states that for the first time New York is destructible. If the city has become destructible, this infers that it previously was not. What has changed about New York that has made it more vulnerable? It has strengthened, and with this increased power comes a certain arrogance and feeling of invincibility. When a city as a whole reaches the point where they feel that they are unconquerable, they in turn let their guard down. White’s usage of the term “island fantasy” is used to show that as New Yorkers we were in fact living in a fantasy. Not until the horrific events of September 11th, 2001 did we realize that we are not as invincible as we thought we were. When reading White’s quote, it seems as if he were writing in retrospect, but he is in fact highlighting the inevitable. His references to “the towers” and “flight of planes” may have just been coincidence, but the nature of his writings was not. He acknowledged the significance of the target New York has become, and the lack of attention we have paid to this development.
“All dwellers in cities must live with the stubborn fact of annihilation; in New York the fact is somewhat more concentrated because of the concentration of the city itself, and because, of all targets, New York has a certain clear priority. In the mind of whatever perverted dreamer might loose the lighting, New York must hold a steady, irresistible charm.”
E.B. White’s observations are not to be viewed as pessimistic, rather as calculating and logical. As seen in the great ancient cities of Rome and Athens, whose inhabitants would have never thought they would be defeated, cities are naturally targets. White explores the various aspects of New York’s weaknesses, including its physical structure. Manhattan being a relatively small island has a huge concentration of people per square foot. As White states in his book, for lack of space New York City grew upwards physically and symbolically. This alone is grounds for increased susceptibility. This notion is seen in White’s quote that reads, “ A single flight of planes no bigger than a wedge of geese can quickly end this island fantasy, burn the towers, crumble the bridges, turn the underground passages into lethal chambers, cremate the millions.”. He is highlighting every notable physical aspect of New York City and showing how they can be used against us.
Furthermore, another factor in New York’s target potential is what the city symbolizes. Ever since its establishment, New York has been a place where immigrants come to build lives and take advantage of opportunities. The city continually sees a regular influx of all nationalities ready to take part in the American dream. It has always been a place where all citizens can actively participate in their success, and make a living for their families. New York has the greatest ports in the world, and has become an economic superpower. It is seen as the capital of the world, and the epitome of success. Our towering skyscrapers are beaming with pride and accomplishment. What New York symbolizes is grounds for envy from enemies, and wrongfully so.
E.B. White further explores the concept of the potential destructibility of New York. “The intimation of mortality is part of New York now; in the sounds of jets overhead, in the black headlines of the latest editions.” Through this quote one can imply that White sees the potential for destruction in all the places he frequents in New York City. In particular he names a setting that is familiar to him, referring to “headlines” and “late editions”. As E.B. White worked for The New Yorker, he is placing himself in the midst of the chaos. Throughout the book he seems to write from the perspective of an outsider looking in, but also shows a great connection being that he used to be a New Yorker. This makes his views all the more personal because he is not criticizing New York; he just perceives the facts of the matter in hopes bringing them to light.
E.B. White’s perceptions of the world around him were so accurate that it is in a way eerie to read back upon them. He was a true New Yorker in the sense that he appreciated and noticed every aspect of the city. New York is indeed a wonderful and incomparable city and even after attack remains a leading force as well as a unified one. Hopefully now that we have seen that our greatest force is also our greatest weakness we can work to improve this fine line.

Some More on Kevin Trudeau

As I've previously stated, I find a lot of useful information in publications by Kevin Trudeau. In particular I have found "Natural Cures they Dont Want You to Know About" and "More Natural Cures Revealed" to have alarming content that we should be aware about. One of the chapters in "More Natural Cures Revealed" describes the dangers associated with over-the-counter pain relievers, and in particular the chemical found in them called phenylpropanolamine. This chemical has been proven to cause bleeding in the brain and significantly increase strokes. If you don't have time to read his book, I'd reccomend reading Trudeau's list below to see what medications you may be currently using that contains this dangerous chemical:

 Acutrim ® Diet Gum Appetite Suppressant
 Acutrim ® Plus Dietary Supplements
 Acutrim ® Maximum Strength Appetite Control
 Alka-Seltzer ® Plus Children’s Cold Medicine Effervescent
 Alka-Seltzer ® Plus Cold Medicine (cherry or orange)
 Alka-Seltzer ®Plus Cold Medicine Original
 Alka-Seltzer ® Plus Cold & Cough Medicine Effervescent
 Alka-Seltzer ® Plus Cold & Flu Medicine
 Alka-Seltzer ® Plus Cold & Sinus Medicine
 Alka-Seltzer ® Plus Night-Time Cold Medicine
 BC ® Allergy Sinus Cold Powder
 Comtrex ® Flu Therapy & Fever Relief
 Day & Night Contact ® 12-Hour Cold Capsules
 Contact ® 12 Hour Caplets
 Coricidin D Cold, Flu & Sinus
 Dexatrim ® Caffeine Free
 Dexatrim ® Extended Duration
 Dexatrim® Gelcaps
 Dexatrim ® Vitamin C/ Caffeine Free
 Triaminic ® 3D Cough Relief Yellow 3D Expectorant
 Dimetapp ® Cold & Cough Liqui-Gels
 Dimetapp ® DM Cold & Cough Elixir
 Dimetapp ® Elixir
 Dimetapp ® 4 Hour Liquid Gels
 Dimetapp ® 4 Hour Tablets
 Dimetapp ® 12 Hour Extentab Tablets
 Naldecon ® DX Pediatric Drops
 Permathene Mega-16
 Robitussin ® CF
 Tavist-D® 12 Hour Relief of Sinus & Nasal Congestion
 Triaminic ® DM Cough Relief
 Triaminic ® Expectorant Chest & Head
 Triaminic ® Syrup Cold & Allergy
 Triaminic ® Triminicol Cold & Cough
 Triaminic ® Orange 3D Cold & Allergy Cherry (Pink)
 Triaminic ® 3D Cold & Cough Berry
 Dimetapp ® Cold and Allergy Chewable Tablets

Comparative Analysis of Empire State Building and World Trade Center

The Empire State Building and the Twin Towers were all hit by aircrafts, but only one of them remain standing today. Was the collapse of the World Trade Center preventable, due to precautionary measures that designers could have taken to make the buildings more structurally sound? Or were the demise of the buildings inevitable, not being able to withstand the impact of the airplanes no matter how they were structured? Extensive research and studies have been done on the collapse of the World Trade Center and many key failures of the structures have been found. Still the question remains to why the Empire State Building remains standing with hardly any structural damage while the Twin Towers were totally destroyed. Many factors contributed to the fate of each of the buildings including the force of impact, amount and type of jet fuel, and the support structure of each building.

The Empire State Building and the Twin Towers were built and designed very differently. While the Twin Towers facing materials consisted of aluminum and steel, that of the Empire State Building consists of limestone, granite and brick. The distinctions in facing material would later prove to have an impact on durability. Another difference between the structures is the way in which the support beams were situated within the buildings. The Twin Towers were built to be economical and modern, so the designers chose to situate most of the support beams on the outermost perimeter of the buildings as well as significant support beams in the center. In this design, the floors were critical in supporting the building. This design allowed for large open spaces, and prime real estate. The Empire State Building has a more conventional structure with its beams distributed evenly across the area of the building to support its weight.

Other distinctions between the buildings include methods of fireproofing the steel support beams. The Empire State Building’s structural steel beams are encased within eight inches of limestone and slabs of concrete. This prevents excessive heating from fires. Instead, the fireproofing method used in the World Trade Center was a lightweight spray on coating of insulation.
Other fireproofing methods that the buildings featured were fireproof staircases and walls. The Empire State Building, being very compartmental within each floor was divided by thick masonry walls. This would prevent the spread of a fire and contain it to a small section of the building. The World Trade Center, having vast open spaces within each floor opted to build walls consisting of dry wall, a lightweight and fireproof material. Since there were not many sections to each floor as compared to the Empire State Building, fires were susceptible to spread more easily.

The skyscrapers’ different features would prove to work in different ways when put to the test. However, it is important to include that the pressures that the buildings’ suffered were of different measures. The Empire State Building was hit by a B-25 Bomber weighing approximately 21,500 lbs. flying at a speed of about 200 miles per hour. The Twin Towers were hit by a Boeing 767 weighing nearly fifteen times more than the B-25, and traveling almost twice as fast. In turn, the impact to the Twin Towers was 60-100 times greater. When the B-25 hit the Empire State Building, it was nearly out of fuel. This type of aircraft burned a high-octane version of gasoline, not as combustible as the fuel used in commercial jetliners. A Boeing 767 has thirty five times more fuel capacity than that of the bomber. At the time of impact it was half filled to capacity. Boeing 767s burn a type of kerosene that tends to burn more intense fires.

When the planes hit all three buildings, each was ignited in flames around the point of impact. A key factor is that since the facing materials of the Empire State Building was of stronger material and hit by a smaller plane, the plane did not penetrate very far into the building, sparing important structural support. Much of the impact was absorbed by the exterior wall. The fire in the Empire State building was contained in a small section of the building and did not burn as intensely. Since it the interior of the building was separated by heavy masonry walls, it aided in the spread of fire. Another factor was the heavily fireproofed stairways.

On the other hand, the impact of the Twin Towers caused severing of about two thirds of support columns. The inner core was severely damaged and aviation fuel saturated it. Thousands of gallons of jet fuel ignited, spreading to other combustibles including the dry wall. At the point of impact, the spray-on fireproof insulation was simply blown off by the force. This left the building, floor trusses and support beams vulnerable to the raging fires, spreading it through the vast spaces and across different floors. The impact also cut off the water supply to sprinklers used to put fires out. The dry wall used to protect the stairways was either on fire or blown off, making evacuation for people above the impact difficult or impossible. One particular positive aspect of the weak dry wall was that a man stuck in an elevator escaped by prying himself out and breaking the wall with his cleaning tool. A difference between the impacts at the World Trade Center and the Empire State Building is the size of the holes that the aircrafts caused. Since the hole in the exterior was much smaller, less oxygen could come in the building to feed the fire. It was also a very foggy day so some speculate that the damp air could have reduced the growth of the fire.

Ultimately the support system of the World Trade Center failed due to the fire. The intense temperatures weakened the unprotected steel and caused the failure of the floor trusses, a vital part its support system. Evidence revealed that most of the interior core stayed in tact while the outer walls supporting the floor trusses were significantly damaged. The failure of one floor began a domino effect to each floor below it causing the structures to collapse. This would make the World Trade Center the first building in the world to collapse due to a fire.

Major differences between the buildings that ultimately distinguished the outcome were fireproofing the support structures and how these support structures were situated across the building. These are two factors that may have prevented the collapse of the World Trade Center, had the designers and engineers calculated this. In retrospect, it is important to realize that when many people’s lives are at stake it is essential that economical and business decisions (such as vast floors for real estate; cheaper building materials) should never supersede safety.

Re-Evaluating Christianity,-Back to the Basics

I recommend reading Joshua and the Children by Joseph F. Girzone if you are a person that ever thinks about all of the politics surrounding religion. Although the book is directed at appreciating the founding morals in Christianity, I feel that most religions are based upon the same basic ideas, therefore making the book suitable for anyone to read despite ones religious background.
Joshua and the Children is an inspirational novel that takes the reader back to the central influence and events that have made Christianity as widespread as it has become. Through the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ moved people’s hearts so immensely that it has numerically surpassed every religion in the world. The book also shows how in recent history the church’s teachings have been influenced more around doctrine and tradition. Joseph F. Girzone feels that Christianity is supposed to take the place of Jesus in a loving and nurturing way to teach the people the way of God rather than acting as authoritarian.
The book succeeded in telling the story of Jesus’ life and works indirectly. Throughout the novel, the protagonist Joshua represents Jesus in the modern day and shared New Testament experiences and relates it to what is happening currently. Since the book’s theme was about treating all humans as fellow children of God and not focusing on denominations, race, or social status, the book did not focus on doctrine or tradition. I personally enjoyed the book, as it represented a different perspective on Christianity and it reminded me what Christianity is truly about.

Life Perspectives

As members of a bustling society we are often burdened with many pressures of day to day life. We play many roles such as the hardworking student, the reliable friend, a son or a daughter, and the eager employee. Days, weeks and months go by in a flash because we are so busy trying to keep up with life, that we walk around day to day half conscious. Can you remember what happened on your voyage to school today? Unless you almost got into car accident or tripped and embarrassed yourself, you are less than likely to remember details of occurrences that happened just a few minutes ago. We are so caught up in our routines and thoughts that half of the time we are not conscious to the world around us.
But what are we doing all of this for? Is there a point to our lives as human beings other than succeeding in order to make money? I believe there is a purpose for us, and we are not able to perceive it if we don’t take the time out to evaluate our lives, and realize what is really important. In our fast paced society we rarely take the time out to indulge in the beauty of the world around us. If you died today, what are the things you would regret not doing? Who are the people you would regret not appreciating? Would you be satisfied with the way you carried your life, or wish you would have slowed your pace to enjoy yourself? Who would you regret not helping?
We sometimes do not appreciate our relationships as much as we should. After all, when we die and many years pass, we will not be remembered by loved ones for our monetary success, rather for our relationships that we shared, and the impact we made on their lives. At the end of the day, what matters most are our happiness and the joy we bring to others.
It is not wrong to want to be successful, but we should not let the desire for success take over our lives. After all, why are we aiming to be successful? Is it in the hopes of being happy? If so, we should try to be happy on our way to success and not stress ourselves out to the point of unhappiness. Life is precious, but unfortunately does not last forever so we should make the best if it. We should embrace our loved ones, enjoy their company and cherish the little things that make life worthwhile.
So tomorrow on your way to wherever your schedule requires, take a different route and see how such an insignificant change can open your eyes to the world around you. You will no longer be unconsciously going about your day, rather opening your eyes to the beautiful world we inhabit.

Reflecting on St. John's University's Vincentian Mission on Vincentian Thursday

As I went about my day off from school I reflected the concept we are honoring, and the ways we embody the Vincentian spirit and fulfill St. John University's mission statement. A mission statement distinguishes the objectives and values of a particular institution or individual. Being that no two people or organizations are the same, a mission statement allows for their different intentions and qualities to be highlighted.

St. John’s mission statement reads, “St. John's University is Catholic, Vincentian, and Metropolitan.” This mission statement portrays a culturally rooted university founded on Catholic values that follow the life and work of St Vincent De Paul.The values stated in the mission statement of St. John's University is comparable to my own mission statement.

My mission is to learn about myself and my environment while making an impact on my community. I plan to achieve this through community service and my intended field of study, speech pathology. Through community service I can learn about the lives of people I would not interact with on a regular basis. It can also bring to light the social differences we face and help me learn about myself. I anticipate that speech pathology will be fulfilling because verbal communication is very important to me, and to be able to share this with others that are impaired would bring me great satisfaction. My mission statement compares to that of St. John’s in the Vincentian aspect because I have a great desire to aid the less fortunate. This reflects the life and work of St. Vincent de Paul, a man who dedicated his life to alleviating the hardships faced by the poor.