Youth Are Awesome, commonly referred to as YAA, is a blog written by youth for youth.
YAA provides the youth of Calgary a place to amplify their voices and perspectives on what is happening around them.
Youth Are Awesome is a program of Youth Central.
Any views or opinions expressed on this blog belong solely to the author and do not represent those of people or organizations that the blog may be associated with, unless explicitly stated. All content is for informational purposes only.
I saw this movie with an open mind. I had not seen the trailer or read the Tom Clancy book, therefore not knowing what to expect, and I am glad to say I did enjoy this movie.
http://youtu.be/FeQnpM-7sEA
The plot and story of this movie was phenomenal It contained many relaxed moments as well as tense ones and I have to say this movie was really thought out.
Character development really assisted in becoming good because if I did not like or know these characters, I would not be interested in what is going on or most of the movie.
Also the action of the movie was well-balanced with the story, which really kept me glued to the screen but with a wee bit more it could have been perfect.
Rating
Character development: 4.75/5.
Plot: 5/5
Action: 4/5.
With awesome character development, the perfect plot and seasoned with action, I think this movie is definitely worth your money.
Do you enjoy the thrill of zip lining? Here are three of the best zip lines in the world!
Thailand is a beautiful country, and absolutely amazing to go zip lining in. A very popular location is the Chonburi rainforest that is filled with monkeys, giant squirrels, and gibbons. I haven’t ever been to rainforest but it seems a lot of fun to be able to see it from a birds eye view one day.
USA – SLOTZILLA, LAS VEGAS
I’m sure a lot of people travel to Vegas either for a honeymoon, or when they turn 21. However, you may not realize that there is an amazing zip line on Fremont Street. Last year, they tore the old one down and are in the process of making a bigger, better one called Slotzilla. It is rumored to open as early as next month. The fascinating thing about this zip line is that you get to go underneath the largest projector screen in the world, a laser music extravaganza that occurs at night. I seriously recommended this to anyone who is going to Vegas!
ST. LUCIA – ADRENALUNA
It’s not much of a surprise that there is a zip line here, one of the most beautiful places in the Caribbean. Many people actually go on vacations totally dependent on thrill and adventure. I recommend zip lining here because it’s so pretty you feel refreshed. This zip line is special because you have the option of a moon light experience, which happens only three times a month when the moon is full.
Tommy Crisp may look to be your normal 11-year-old boy, but through the Calgary Cerebral Palsy Association and the Cerebral Palsy Association in Alberta, Tommy has raised over $2,000 for his 9-year-old brother Kale, who suffers from a form of cerebral palsy. Recently, Tommy was recognized by Kids Up Front Calgary and Youth Central’s Pay It Forward project for his outstanding work in fundraising for The Cerebral Palsy Adaptive Bike Program. Since 2011, Tommy and Kale have become ambassadors for the disorder and work together to help other less fortunate children.
Tommy Crisp
Cerebral Palsy refers to a group of non-progressive, non-contagious motor conditions, usually causing restricted neural muscular movement in parts of the body. The specific condition ranges from patient from patient as it is not a disease, but a condition mostly as a result of lack of oxygen in the brain during pregnancy or about the time of birth. Through damage to the cerebrum, one’s neural connections within itself and to other parts of the brain are severed, often also resulting in a musculoskeltal problems and other impairments to sensation. There is no known cure for Cerebral Palsy, rather, only treatment to reduce the effect of its complications.
Growing up as a kid, Tommy loved to play hockey, baseball and soccer. However, he soon recognized that his brother could not do any of these things because of his restricted movement. Many experiences that kids took for granted, his brother could not do. When he learned that there was an opportunity for his brother Kale to get an adapted 3-wheel bike, he quickly took initiative to fundraise. Asking pledges around his local neighborhood since 2011, Tommy continues to raise money for other CP children. By giving his brother Kale one of these bikes, they could now bike together, even though Kale cannot walk!
Kale and his adapted bicycle ($3,000)
Donating his time and own money for Cerebral Palsy, Tommy hopes one day there will be cure to the condition. Seeing how this heartbreaking condition can have on the development of a child, Tommy has made an impact on the lives of many children with CP. His determination and devotion inspires many youth to take action against other issues that impact their own families.
Yes, one week was hardly enough—there are simply so many webcomics that cover a wide range of bases, whether you are interested in fairy tales, folklore, or classical mythology, the mob or superheroes, Wild West-mysterious artifacts cross or interplanetary fantasy.
Oh, that was good, wasn’t it? It seems I have a very nice distribution in this batch.
The author, also an animator from Pixar, has made an incredibly beautiful webcomic—the use of colour is particularly striking. Even if the storyline was dull (hardly) and the characters distasteful (quite the opposite), I would still read this for the art. Bonus: expressive eyebrows.
This webcomic has begun fairly recently, but so far is completely adorable. I’m not sure where it is heading but thus far there are enough enigmatic characters and pieces of curious material to promise an intriguing plot. Bonus: the unicorn. Need I say more?
It is incredibly cruel to introduce a webcomic on indefinite hiatus, but if anything, it may help assuage my own pain. Fishbones is about two best friends, with one foot in the family business, the mob. It’s clever, cleanly drawn, and as engaging as you would expect from the premise.
Set in 19th century Scandinavia, this webcomiccharts the adventures of a witch and her three-eyed familiar. I love references and connections to folklore, and in this regard, Hemlock certain delivers. (Speaking of 19th century Scandinavia, A Redtail’s Dream is also incredibly beautiful—I have yet to read more than a few pages though, so I haven’t added it to my list of recommendations. Still, it seems pertinent while we are on the topic of Scandinavia and folklore. Although it may not be the 19th century. I have no idea when it is set.)
I usually am not a fan of superhero comics, but Minor Acts of Heroism (aptly named not for their courage, but their stature) about the children/great-great-great-great nephews of superheroes (and a king) is engaging. And cute. Bonus: that the villains are also children only contributes to the overwhelming adorableness.
Another clever and unique re-imagining of the Greek gods; in a competition to determine a new family hierarchy, they are “reset”—through a fairly arbitrary process—and given a mortal partner. With questionable fighting techniques and fun emotional goals such as “self-confidence” or “courage” (personal growth – triple exclamation mark), I have high expectations for this webcomic. And so far, they have been exceeded. Bonus: visual novel-style flash Fridays!
Not quite historical, but the atmosphere, story, and art fit perfectly well into the Western setting. The story and character development moves quickly (the poor main character has suffered a number of traumatizing events/realizations so far) but smoothly.
This week, after a long time of silence, another first world problems blog, courtesy of My Grandma Follows Me On Twitter by Craig and Marc Kielburger. I’m hoping to make you think about how you can act in response to the FYIs.
#34
The sunshine is so bright, I can’t see the movie on my tablet.
FYI:
Prince Rupert, B.C., averages 240 rainy days and 115 days a year with no glimpse of sun at all. Alert, Nunavut, has no glimpse of natural light except for a few minutes at midday for 1.5 months every winter.
#36
My Facebook feed is so full of invites that I missed by BFF’s birthday.
FYI:
There’s at least one person in your school who feels like they have no friends.
#37
My grandma follows me on Twitter.
FYI:
99.9% of grandmas would suffer a health crisis if they saw what you post on your social media of choice – or at least skip your plate in dealing out fresh apple cobbler on your next visit.
#38
I spent my whole birthday reading the birthday greetings from my 1,200 Facebook friends.
FYI:
Many children in developing countries don’t celebrate birthdays because they don’t know their date of their birth, and so have few legal rights in their country.
#40
I’m 40 and my parents still give me Christmas gifts from Santa Claus.
FYI:
If your parents think you’ve been a good kid they’re obviously not tracking you on Twitter like grandma does.
#41
They interrupted the finale of Survivor with news about an earthquake somewhere.
FYI:
They wouldn’t even interrupt the finale of Survivor for the Emergency Broadcast System.
#42
My kid’s hockey schedule is so demanding that we pre-book spaghetti night two months in advance.
FYI:
A third of Canadian kids can’t afford to play organized sports. Among them is the one who would have led the Leafs to win the 2009 Stanley Cup.
#46
I got a crummy gift for last year’s Christmas exchange, but my family refuses to raise the spending level above $50.
FYI:
With over 600,000 Canadian children (1 in 10) living below the poverty line, many families can’t afford gifts for the holiday season.
#47
My Ed Hardy t-shirts cost $60 each so I could only buy three.
FYI:
The cotton in one regular t-shirt requires a third of a pound of pesticides and uses 1,170 liters of water.
#49
I ran out of hot water in the shower after only 45 minutes.
FYI:
Of the more than 1,500 Olympic-sized swimming pools of water that Canadians use every day, almost 1,000 would be filled with hot water, accounting for over 20% of our total energy use.
.22 caliber bullet about to enter the spider-skin blend
Silk is a commonly known fabric around the world. Soft, luxurious, and… bulletproof?
Australian scientists may have failed to create dragons, but Dutch scientists and bio artist Jalila Essaïdi (Ja-leela Es-eye-dee), grew (almost) superhuman skin in a petri dish. How, you ask? Scientists began by taking the gene that creates spider-silk and splicing it into the DNA of a goat. They then take an embryo with this new DNA and plant it into a female goat, hoping that a young goat will be born with this new mutation. This spidergoat led to the genetically altered goat to create milk filled with spider-silk proteins. This milk is then spun into thread to create a bulletproof fabric (watch the process here!).
Jalila Essaïdi (Ja-leela Es-eye-dee), in collaboration with cell biologist Abdoelwaheb El Ghalbzouri (Abdul-Waheeb El Galb-zoory) then grew a unique combination of spider silk and human skin to create bulletproof skin. When shot with a .22 caliber gun at half its velocity, this bizarre new skin was not penetrated.
But why spider silk?
It’s a little known fact that these delicate threads are three times stronger than Kevlar – the material commonly used in modern day bulletproof vests. This revelation could change the military world – a lightweight, flexible, bulletproof vest would be much more comfortable, and who knows, someday we might replace the weight and bulk of Kevlar with this new material.
“Science fiction? Maybe, but we can get a feeling of what this transhumanistic idea would be like by letting a bulletproof matrix of spidersilk merge with an in vitro human skin,” says Jalila (full article here).
Spiders and superpowers? Looks like humanity is on its way to becoming its own Spiderman.
“We often miss opportunity because it’s dressed in overalls and looks like work” -Thomas A. Edison
Whenever you wake up in the morning, you experience something unlike any other. It’s like there’s a metal chain around you that prevents you from doing what you want. You can’t move, nor are you capable of completing tasks. To summarize it all in one word; laziness. Unfortunately, this situation can be compared, and is similar to life in many ways. Although we can feel like something is holding us back, its really just a psychological effect. The choices we make are completely up to us, and there is nothing holding us back…or is there? Today I’ll be exploring the concept of laziness, and give some personal insight on it as well.
So what is laziness? Some say that laziness is characterized as a lack of effort, or energy. It’s when you’re unwilling to work, or do what needs to be done. In my opinion, we are laziness! We are the ones who form this “bubble” of laziness around our lives. Furthermore, we create it, we are in control of it, and we can prevent it. We allow laziness to sink into our lives, and get deeper and deeper. Sometimes, it can get to a point were it can’t be undone. During our lifetime, we have countless opportunities that lay by the door, waiting to be taken. Many of us are willing to do whatever it takes to take advantage of that opportunity and use it to the best of our ability. The truth is, we are all capable of doing so, but many of us fail to, simply because we are lazy. In my opinion, laziness expends a disproportionate amount of our lives, only because we let it. Due to our lack of effort and self-motivation, we can destroy our entire life. The question is, what are different methods and techniques we can use to overcome laziness?
In my opinion, I will believe that with a little will power, and self-motivation, laziness can easily be conquered. One of the biggest problems is that once we allow laziness to enter our lives, we let it sit there and grow larger. Soon enough, staying in bed 10 minutes after the alarm goes will become a life-long habit. In order to beat laziness, we need to balance our time. Some of it can be used for work, some for physical activity, and some for relaxing. Have a positive attitude, and try to appreciate life more. With these things in mind, laziness can be conquered with ease.
Elif Bilgin, a 16 year old from Istanbul, Turkey has accomplished creating bio-plastic from banana peels. Driven to find alternatives to petroleum produced plastics, Elif used trial and error over a period of two years with 10 failed
Elif Bilgin
experiments before coming up with a plastic that could retain its quality and structure long term. Despite the setbacks, Elif was fueled by Thomas Edison’s words of, “I have not failed. I have just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.” She demonstrated the method of using banana peels in her online science entry and showed how with only a little equipment, certain plasticizer ingredients and starch from banana peels, it would be possible to create plastic retaining quality and structure long term. She is the winner of the 2013 Science in Action award, addressing the need for environmentally friendly alternatives with practical resources of easy-to-attain banana peels.
Personally, I have to say that this girl is amazing and has a brilliant creative mind to make this bio-plastic, and that her invention shows how environmentally friendly alternatives are starting to become more prominent in today’s world.
If anyone remembers watching Disney Channel in their younger years, you probably remember how great the shows were. And if you check out the Disney Channel nowadays, the shows are exceedingly different. I personally think that the old Disney shows were infinitely better, and here is why.
The message being sent to the viewers
Let’s compare two popular TV shows. Surely you’ve heard of That’s So Raven, and you’ve probably heard a bit on controversy over the show Shake it Up.
“Because in case you haven’t noticed, people come in all shapes and sizes and they are all beautiful. Put that in your magazine.”
To the left is from an episode of That’s So Raven, a show that dealt with problems such as racism, self confidence, relationships, and much more. That’s So Raven, despite being overall a very lighthearted show, also demonstrated real life problems that are dealt with in everyday life. The picture shown on the left is from Season 2, Episode 8 of That’s So Raven. In this episode, Raven designed a beautiful dress, and a magazine company decided they wanted it displayed in their pages. Raven, ecstatic, models for them in her dress, and is thoroughly disappointed when she finds that they have Photoshopped her photo. At the show where her dressed is to be premiered for the first time, she goes to the show, wearing her dress, and she tells the editor of the the magazine that “Because in case you haven’t noticed, people come in all shapes and sizes and they are all beautiful. Put that in your magazine.”
In the controversial episode of Shake it Up, Rocky and Cece are headed to work at a very prestigious event, and one of the guests attending says to them, that they are adorable, and that she “would eat them up, you know, if [she] ate” (click on link to see video). People saw this and immediately assumed that Disney was making fun of eating disorders. This would be a reasonable assumption, considering that Demi Lovato had left the show earlier that year due to her struggle with eating disorders. Disney denied the allegations but took down the episode anyway.
Lessons being taught
In the new Disney shows, kids get away with doing whatever they want. Kids are disrespectful to their parents and are constantly breaking rules, without consequence. In older shows, such as the Suite Life of Zack and Cody, although they were rather mischievous, they always learned their lesson in the end. They always received consequences for whatever they did wrong. That show ultimately taught kids not to lie, to never steal, and to have good intentions, all while having fun.
Hannah Montana is another example of shows that taught good lessons for kids. That show always stayed true to its message of being a true friend, and staying loyal to those you love. It also showed that lying comes with a lot of consequence, and that you should always be responsible for your actions. I learned a lot from that show. I learned about maturity and being the bigger person, and how to forgive others as well.
To those of you who haven’t seen any of the old Disney shows, I strongly suggest you watch some!
Exam stress forces many of us to stay up late at night or get up early in the morning. Then most of us run to our rescue-COFFEE. Here is what your coffee reveals about your personality!
BLACK COFFEE DRINKER: Sharp, neat, and to the point. Black coffee drinkers are considered minimalists. No sugar-coating, no faking, and no drama. They are usually associated with high flyers and professionals. Consult these coffee drinkers on money advice. Don’t be surprised if their piggy banks are quite obese. They are resistant to make changes and can be moody.
ESPRESSO DRINKER: This person is known as an experienced, exciting, and energetic partner. They are fast talkers, always looking for a good time. The downside is they tend to be moody and over-impulsive at times.
CAPPUCCINO DRINKER: People who drink cappuccinos are cute, loving, and warm. They are usually passionate and caring. Since they are creative, honest, kind and hard working, they put a lot of effort into personal relationships. They go out of their way to make their special person feel even more special.
LATTE DRINKER: They like to savor their coffee, taking time to ponder life’s complexities. They are indecisive, usually let their partners make the decision. They are super laid back, calm, and appreciate chivalry in a man. They are very supportive in a relationship. These people have an ‘open-book’ personality.
MOCHA DRINKER: They are complete romantics and love to be in love. They can be very affectionate, compassionate, and insightful. These spontaneous flirts are unreliable and have a hard time committing to long term relationships.
FRAPPUCCINO DRINKER: They are trend setters. Full of life and an adventurous spirit, they like to mix things up. Unlike the cappuccino drinker, they are more on the extrovert side, and make friends easily. Usually known as life of the party, they are always looking for new activities and would never turn down a challenge. They usually need someone who can put them in check once in awhile.
DECAF SOY MILK DRINKER: A self-righteous, attention seeker with a tendency to be picky, fussy, and squeamish in the bedroom. This person is usually high maintenance high value.
Whatever the type of coffee drinker you are, enjoy your coffee but don’t drink too much of it because you will prove to be harmful to your health and general well being. For more interesting facts about coffee, click here.
If you understood my title or are wanting to know what I’m talking about, this article is for you! I finished the first two seasons of BBC’s hit show Sherlock at the end of December. Luckily, I only had to wait four days for the Season 3 premiere, unlike others who weren’t so lucky and had to wait two years. The show is very interesting because it only has three episodes a season, but they are an hour and a half long each, which makes it very easy to catch up however it is disappointing to know that Season 3 is already all done and I have to wait now for Season 4! I did cheat a bit and live streamed each episode because it already aired in England. The official North American release date is Jan 19, so don’t worry, you haven’t missed it. You can still catch up with the first six episodes and watch the new season on television.
This action-packed and hilarious show stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock the great detective, who has recently taken up crime solving to get over his drug addiction, and Martin Freeman as John Watson his ex-army doctor assistant. Benedict is sarcastic, intelligent and humorous, he does Sherlock great justice. In fact
Martin (left) Benedict (right)
he reminds me of the Doctor from another famous BBC show called Doctor Who! Martin Freeman is by far one of my favorite actors, he takes on the role as Watson greatly, and he is very entertaining to watch on screen; he is most famous for playing Bilbo Baggins in the Hobbit movies.
The show stays incredibly true to the Sherlock novels written by Arthur Conan Doyle; so much so that even some of the lines are
the same as in the books. But there is also a huge twist, the show is completely modern. It is definitely not a boring old history show because it is set in the 2000s, so the crimes they are solving and the language they use are more up-to-date. The fact that Mark Gatiss, who is co-writer of the show, actually plays Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock’s older brother, is amazing because we really get to see his character unfold and see his ideas come to life.
I highly suggest you go check out this show, I guarantee you will quickly become a fangirl and will want to come back to 221B Baker Street every week to catch the next episodes of Sherlock!
I used to want to go to Hawaii for vacation, but now, I want to go to outer space. Richard Branson’s private space-tourism company, Virgin Galactic, will hopefully be offering commercial space flight for about $250,000 per person. One trip can take about 553 people; there are already almost 700 people signed up. People will be preparing for about three days at Spaceport America, and they take off on the fourth day. The company will also launch a reality show, Space Race, for people to compete for a ride on Virgin Galactic.
Currently, many private companies are sending spaceships into space. For example, Elon Musk launched SpaceX (Check out this article on Elon Musk). Another example is Soyuz, who have transported US astronauts to the ISS. Now, Virgin Galactic is going to make 550 people into astronauts every trip.
As a two hour suborbital trip about 359,000 ft attitude, these trips won’t go very far and will not reach the International Space Station, but they are designed to be affordable and accessible and they are definitely a giant leap for mankind.
When you eat the wrong thing, it can often lead to having a bad day. Fortunately, I’ve got a great list of some super foods that will make you feel great.
Apples
We all know that “an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” but it could keep much more than that away, too. Apples are a source of antioxidants, which can help reverse the aging process and might extend your lifespan.
Oatmeal
Having a bowl of oatmeal to for breakfast is a great way to start your day, because it’s very high in fibre and slows digestion, giving you energy throughout the day. Oatmeal is also very high in vitamin B and potassium.
Avocados
Avocados have 35% more potassium than bananas and are also very high in vitamins B, K and E. They can boost your overall diet quality and might even help cure diabetes. There’s also so many delicious ways to prepare them!
Broccoli
Broccoli contains an enzyme that can reduce the risk of cancer and is very high in vitamin C. In fact, one serving contains approximately 150% of the daily recommended amount of vitamin C, which can reduce the length of the common cold and help prevent diseases like osteoarthritis. However, if cooked for too long, all these amazing benefits aren’t effective.
from, [http://www.cbc.ca/gfx/images/news/topstories/2013/04/23/mars-one-brian-versteeg.jpg]If you haven’t yet heard, there is mission to Mars that is has been under the spotlight recently. The project, proposed by Bas Landorp, is called Mars One, and is currently undergoing preparation and development, and is in the midst of its candidate selection program. Many Canadians have applied to join the mission, although there are obvious risks involved in addition to the fact that they would very likely never return to Earth.
Due to its similarity to Earth, there is constant speculation that life was previously existent on Mars many years ago. Research shows that life is possible on Mars. Mars is the second smallest planet and is the fourth planet from the Sun. It is a terrestrial planet; soil on Mars contains nutrients essential for the growth of plants. The minerals on Mars include oxygen and silicon, as well as other metals and minerals which are found in rock. The iron oxide on the surface of Mars gave it the name “Red Planet.” Water is typically frozen on Mars, but there is evidence that liquid water has existed in the past.
Mars One mission proposes a one way trip to Mars. It takes eight years of training and eight months of travel. It involves groups of four astronautical settlers arriving on Mars within two years of each other. The settlers on Mars will be able to live in small homes and grow their own vegetables. Outside, they will have to wear Mars suits. The goal is to build a sustainable human civilization on Mars with functioning technology. Along with a common superstition of Martians, if the project succeeds one day we will have human Martians.
My last post talked about taking care of your body in preparation for those dreaded exams to keep you preforming at your best. The most vital VITAL part of this is your brain (duh!) because that’s what you’re going to be using on the test. While studying is definitely the #1 thing you can do to prepare for a final
exam, treating your brain right will definitely also make a difference. Feel like you don’t have time? Well, that’s not a problem; in this post I’ll give you the lowdown on the best nutrients to fuel your final with and how to squeeze them in.
Before we begin, I’d like to introduce you to one of the key nutrients we’ll be talking about: omega-3 fatty acids. According to the University of Maryland Medical Centre, omega-3 is highly concentrated in the brain, and believed to be important in cognitive functioning, including “brain memory and performance.” Omegas come in three “types” so to speak, ALA; DHA; and EPA, and are considered “essential” fatty acids. What becomes so important is getting enough omega-3 in your diet, because it is not naturally produced within your body. ALA and DHA are found in certain kinds of fish, while EPA (which in your body is converted in part to ALA and
DHA) is found in plants. For some more information on omega-3 click here.
Study Snacking:
1. Blueberries– Berries are super high in antioxidants in general, but blueberries have the added benefit of improving short term memory and attention to detail, according to Tufts University. So next time you’re cramming in a last study session get a bowl of blueberries to pop in your mouth instead of candy.
The Night Before:
2. Fish– The night before a big test I like to have fish for dinner, usually salmon, mostly because this is my favourite, but also because it’s high in omega-3. An excellent chart which tells how much omega-3 can be found in different kinds of fish can be found here, just scroll down a little until you get to the
“omega-3” section. While people often think fish can be a time consuming meal, its easy to get salmon in by making a smoked salmon sandwich for lunch or putting smoked salmon on a salad. Or, if tuna is your thing, have a tuna sandwich or melt.
The Morning Of:
3. Eggs– This is always what I have for breakfast when I have a morning exam. Not only are eggs high in protein and sure to keep you full throughout your exam, but they’re also high in omega-3 and super quick to prepare. Not to mention versatile: scrambled, poached, fried, breakfast-burritoed, omelette, frittata… the list goes on.
During the Exam:
4. Walnuts– Just like eggs, walnuts are high in fatty acids and protein. The great thing about walnuts
though is that often you can take a snack bag of them into your exam. This way, if you start getting a little hungry or worn out during the exam you can pop one or two in your mouth. If you’re exam is still days away don’t exclude our nutty little friends, eat them for breakfast stirred into cereal or oatmeal.
5. Dark Chocolate– Along with my walnuts on the day of the test I like to bring a little dark chocolate with me for those tough parts of the test. Not only do I love dark chocolate (I swear that alone would get me through!) but it’s also high in flavanols which increase blood-flow to the brain, improving cognitive capabilities. Now thats the tastiest A+ I’ve ever heard of!
