The World Factbook

With brilliance and experience on his side, Greg Mortenson decided to take an adventure of a lifetime for his late sister, Christa Mortenson. After failing to climb K2, one of the world’s tallest mountains, he figured out what he was meant to do with his life and that was to construct and organize schools for children, but especially girls. Written in his book, but then proven false, he landed in a small Pakistani village, Korphe, and found children who wanted to learn and trying to learn…

of a time when you have felt isolated, disconnected, or even disengaged from the world or perhaps each other. I would like you to imagine what it would feel like to inhabit a world where this is a reality, where there is very little human interaction and constant darkness? How would you feel? After all, connections with others gives our lives purpose and meaning, right? Well, these are the confronting dystopian worlds represented in Ridley Scott’s compelling and evocative film, Blade Runner,…

The universal definition of heroism is, someone who has the courage to do good and stand up against the wrong. A great example of a fictional hero would be Steve Roger in Captain America. He experiences a rough patch in his life but as he gains superficial human powers, he uses them to defeat the villain. In the novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, the main heroes of the novel are Mariam and Laila. Mariam is one of the protagonists of the novel, who has a troubled childhood but…

People from all around the world heard the saying “nobody is perfect” and it is true, we are all humans, we all make mistakes, but to what extent does someone stop being clement when that person has endured all the hardship a person gives them after they are condoned several times. There is a certain point in life when some people do not deserve clemency because every time that person is condoned, that person takes advantage it because that person knows they will receive forgiveness. There is…

The Best We Can Do Roger Rosenblatt discusses the power humans have to help each other, why we do so even if it requires sacrifice, and humankind’s definition of “hero” in his article “The Man in the Water.” He shows that “heroes” are made through actions that they find unavoidable. Before becoming heroes, they are completely ordinary people (this paradoxically proves that there is no such thing). The anonymity of the subject of this story allowed people to relate to that ordinarity, and as…

Our lives are made up of different types of relationships. We depend on our relationships for many reasons such as; comfort and companionship. More or less, relationships can define us as social seeking people, but it all depends on the person you're with! As seen in “What, of This Goldfish, Would You Wish?”, Sergei's relationship with the goldfish seems to be slightly one-sided. In lines 159-163 it reads: "The fish swishes his fish tail back and forth in the water, the way he does, Sergei knows…

Hands are a part of the body that a large number of both contemporary and older literary works use to represent an overarching theme, each in a slightly different way. The two hands can represent balance between good and evil, authority and power, or a plethora of other themes. In the play, Macbeth, Shakespeare often uses this motif of hands to enhance the clarity of one of his overarching messages. At first impression, Macbeth seems to be a loyal and righteous character, however the coercing…

Jacklyn H. Lucas a Marine in World War II was patrolling Iwo Jima ravine when the Japanese attacked throwing two Grenades into Lucas’s position. He proceeded to shove the Grenades under ashes and threw himself on top of them, some how managing to survive. It is incredible that he did…

Is Lacrosse the fastest growing sport? Lacrosse top the list of the fastest growing sports. It is one of the earliest sports in the US, but somehow it went into a long hiatus before the coming out strongly in the 21st century. Many would ask, why the sharp rise in popularity in a sport which was once considered elitist? First, lacrosse is an exciting game, and it is gender-neutral; both boys and girls use the same rules. The sport is flexible on where it can be played. It can adapt to a…

What makes a hero? A hero is someone who sacrifices themselves and is selfless for the greater good. The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton and "What Makes A Hero" by Alex Lickerman both give a strong perspective on heroism. The Outsiders is a coming of age story that is about a gang of greasers that go through many hard times such as fights and a murder. "What Makes A Hero" is about what makes someone a hero and how you don’t need superpowers, fame, or lots of money to be one. The Outsiders includes…