Lycée Blaise Pascal Rouen

Saving paper by using new technologies

C. Reymond, yas.louati — 2012-06-19T06:58:57Z

With Mrs. Reymond we have worked on the environment and how to save it. This is why I (Yasmine) and my classmates Ambre, Chloé and Jules have chosen the subject "saving paper". We have done actions and have written the results of these in the following folder. We have also created a Facebook page to spread the word so that more people can do these things and the effect on the consumption of paper could be really great.

Please read our folder to have more informations and join us on Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/SavingPape... and above all, don't forget to spread the word !!

How an urban sport has become world famous.

Hochedé.M — 2012-05-29T07:20:59Z

- 2011-2012 New technologies, osmosis, trip to London...

How can reverse osmosis, powdered water and fog nets contribute to solve water problems on Earth ?

Corvaisier Faustine et Dupuis Benjamin — 2012-05-24T07:14:51Z

On Earth, 97% of the water is saltwater. This water can't be consumed by humans who have to do with the remaining 3%. But even in these 3%, 2% are ice. There's only 1% of the earth water that can be consumed by humans.
That's why freshwater is a problem on earth. We can't survive without water, it's an essential resource for life and good health, but there's only a very small part that can be used. This lack of water is due to the freshwater gap on earth, but also to the population pressure, especially in Africa and the Middle East : in the 20th century, the world's population has tripled, and in the next fifty years, it will increase by another 40 to 50%. Coupled with industrialization and urbanization, it will result in an increased demand : the per capita use will increase, due to those changes in lifestyle, whereas the population is also increasing : The world's population is growing at a rate of 80 million people each year.

More than one out of six people lack access to safe drinking water. Indeed, even if some people can access to water, this water is contaminated : pollution is becoming a huge factor in destroying the fresh water supply. Some 3900 children die every day from water diseases in 2002, a child dies every 20 seconds from a water-related illness and 3 575 million people die each year from water-related diseases. It's very important to find a solution to this water crisis, because it claims more lives through diseases than any war claims through guns.

Furthermore, those freshwater availabilities are unequally distributed on the earth surface. Due to this problem, water has become an inequalities and conflicts source. Indeed, over 260 rivers pass through two or more countries. If there are not strong institutions, it can lead to tensions. For example, Egypt threatened to declare war to Ethiopia if this country carries out its project : divert the Blue Nile water for its agriculture.
Africa is already one of the driest continents in the world, and it's facing water stress and water scarcity.

The concept of Water Stress

We talk about water stress when the water demands exceed water resources. The water stress indicator on this map measures the proportion of water withdrawal with respect to total renewable resources. Water stress causes deterioration of fresh water resources in terms of quantity (aquifer over-exploitation, dry rivers, etc.) and quality (eutrophication, organic matter pollution, saline intrusion, etc.). We consider a country in water stress when the water availabilities, per year and per capita are lower than 1 700 cubic meters and when annual water supplies drop below 1,000 cubic meters per person, the country faces water scarcity. Almost 600 million people are facing water stress or water scarcity, and if the current consumption patterns continue, two out of every three people on Earth will live in water-stressed conditions by the year 2025.

A lot of conflicts due to water begin inside countries, and they oppose intensive farmers and population in water stress. On the one hand, there is a lack of water in a lot of countries, but on the other hand, water withdrawals for irrigation represent 66% of the total withdrawals. Agriculture is one of the activities that use more water. It's not possible to satisfy farmers as well as poor people living in Africa, for example, and unfortunately, farmers are powerful. That's why some people don't have water ; the water that they could consume is used by farmers. For example, 5263 water liters are needed to obtain 1 kg of cotton, and 590 for 1 kg of wheat. They need water to irrigate and produce more and more, to export their productions and become richer. As Gandhi said, “There is a sufficiency in the world for man's need but not for man's greed.”

That's why the water crisis needs solutions, and we think that science could be a solution. And there are a lot of solutions to clean up water, to desalinate water…

We have chosen 3 original and unknown solutions : reverse osmosis, powdered water and fog net :

Reverse osmosis

The best-known is reverse osmosis, a process to desalinate water. It's the opposite of osmosis, a natural movement of solvent molecules through a partially permeable membrane into a region of higher solution concentration, in order to equalize the solute concentrations on both sides. This mechanism is natural, for example, it allows passage of oxygen from lungs to the blood.
Reverse osmosis consists in applying a pressure, thanks to a gas system, superior to osmotic pressure . When we apply this pressure, the flux reverses. Because the membrane is semi permeable, salt, impurities, virus, bacteria… can't pass through the membrane, and we obtain drinking freshwater. This technique makes it possible to eliminate all molecules largest than one micrometer.
The best-known is reverse osmosis, a process to desalinate water. It's the opposite of osmosis, a natural movement of solvent molecules through a partially permeable membrane into a region of higher solution concentration, in order to equalize the solute concentrations on both sides. This mechanism is natural, for example, it allows passage of oxygen from lungs to the blood.
Reverse osmosis consists in applying a pressure, thanks to a gas system, superior to osmotic pressure . When we apply this pressure, the flux reverses. Because the membrane is semi permeable, salt, impurities, virus, bacteria… can't pass through the membrane, and we obtain drinking freshwater. This technique makes it possible to eliminate all molecules largest than one micrometer. This process requires water pre-treatment to eliminate largest impurities that could fill the membrane holes and a mineralization too.

Where can this process be used ?
Firstly, desalinating water is a chemical process that can be used only in countries near to saltwater sources (seas and oceans). Countries which can desalinate water have limited water availabilities, but they have to be rich, for example, Spain, Kuwait, Kazakhstan or Saudi Arabia. The largest factory in the world is in Israel : it produces 108 million cubic meters freshwater per year, about the consumption of a city of 1,4 million inhabitants.

But desalinating has drawbacks : it can't be used in the majority of countries because of the lack of sea proximity, and it needs a lot of energy that's why it's very expensive.

Powdered water

Powdered water is an experimental scientific invention. It may be one of the future solutions to avoid wasting water in agriculture, or to transport water.
Powdered water looks like sugar, but water is actually not really powdered, it is formed with silica, and water is enprisoned in hydrophobic silica microcapsules. If we compress this powder, the water gets away from its capsules because the capsules burst.
This process is not very expensive and it can be applied on a large scale but it already needs water. It can enable farmers to do drop by drop in agriculture and it can save cultivations during drought. This use is very interesting : we can sow capsules and seeds at the same time. Later, when the ground is dry, it will become more compact and compress the capsules, thus releasing water.

Fog net

The previous two solutions are not to increase water availabilities, contrary to this one : collecting fog water. Indeed, fog is composed of 2 to 5 micrometers droplets, so small that they don't fall to the ground.
We can collect this water thanks to polypropylene nets. Polypropylene is plastic substance which is recyclable and waterproof. The fog water stream down the nets, then it is collected in drainpipes and stocked in tanks. Net meshes extract 30% of fog wetness, between 17 to 42 water liters per square meter per day. This process was inspired by spider web.
This technique can be applied only in some places, such as coastal mountains. Nets have to be installed perpendicularly to wind. Contrary to desalinate water, water fog is rich in calcium and sodium. It could be used as mineral water.
There are only a few drawbacks : the nets often tear away, and it is better to live in a non polluted place.

As a conclusion, we can say that there is a water crisis all over the world, but there are solutions : to avoid wasting water, as with powdered water, and to increase freshwater availabilities such as reverse osmosis and fog nets, but those solutions are only local. The most important is to find the right solution for each place.

EConomic and environmental impacts of the 2012 London's Olympics Games

C. Reymond, margaux coquelin — 2012-05-23T07:26:16Z

Economic Impact of the 2012 London's Olympic Games

From July 27th 2012 to August 12th 2012, United Kingdom will become the centre of the world. Indeed, one of the most important and biggest international sports events will take place in London : the 2012 Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games. To make it short : 10,500 athletes from 204 nations will participate in the 302 events in 26 different sports.

London was selected as the host city on July 6th 2005 during the 117th International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session in Singapore, defeating Moscow, New York City, Madrid and Paris. Then the London Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (LOCOG) was created in order to oversee the Olympics Game's preparation and organization, helped by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) and the Government Olympic Executive (GOE). Everyone knows that the London's Olympics Game, as the others Olympics Games in the past, are the source of numerous consequences in various domains during the preparations since 2005, during the Games themselves this summer, and in the years which will follow too. To start with, the budget for the London 2012 Olympics was £9.35bn, which included a £2.7bn contingency fund. It has increased fourfold since Britain won the bid in July 2005. £6 billion is coming directly from the British government. This level of public funding, at a time when public services are coming under increasing pressure as a result of the downturn in the economy, has been subject to some criticism in the press. On the other hand, the Government's spending could be seen as an incentive to stimulate the economy and generate jobs for local people. So, the question is : What are the economic impacts of the 2012 London Olympic Games ?

Firstly, the preparations for the 2012 Olympic Games in London which began in 2005, seems to had a positive impact across several areas, according to a pre-games report funded by the ESRC, the Economic and Social Research Council. Environmental, economic and socio-cultural factors are included in the study. The Impact Study was introduced by the International Olympic Committee to develop an objective and scientific impact analysis for each Olympic Games. In total 56 impact indicators have been developed in the pre-games report which is part of the Olympic Games Impact Study. The indicators - 11 environmental, 23 socio-cultural and 22 economic – range from water quality and transport networks to crime rates and housing market. Nevertheless, for my part, I think that the economical aspect is more important and interesting than the others since the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic games will impact the United Kingdom economy.
Looking at economy, the researchers found major positive impacts on public transport, jobs creation and local house building, with small impacts on house prices, foreign investment or tourist visits in the area. For example, the government announced in January 2009 that more than 30,000 new jobs would be created between 2009 and 2012. The report concludes that "no negative impacts were found as a result of preparing for the 2012 Games, Some positive impacts were found but many indicators were inconclusive". The reason for this uncertainty is partly due to the data available, but also to East London regeneration which makes it harder to identify impacts directly related to Games activity.

Some specialist says it may be too early to identify a real positive Games effect in the economic area. However, during the seven weeks of the Games, the United Kingdom is set to benefit from a £750 million consumer spending injection. This intense positive impact on the economy will largely be generated by the massive influx of foreign visitors to the United Kingdom for the Games. Over the seven week period, international visitors are expected to spend a total of £709 million in England, an 18% increase on what would be expected if the Games weren't taking place. Also, a £41 million spending boost is expected from English residents. This will be driven by the huge public enthusiasm for the Games. What's more, the retail, leisure and travel sectors will be the biggest winners from the Games, benefiting from a combined spending injection of £508.4 million in seven weeks.

As we can see in the above table, some economic sectors seem to be potentially the most benefiting sectors ; we can take the example of hotels and high street retailers. Some others, as utilities and insurance will not make benefits during the Games or just a little. The inequalities in economics benefits inequalities are numerous between the different sectors. However, in a more general point of view, the £750 million spent by the Game's audience will generate a real revitalization of the English economy.
There is also good news for the wider economy. A net £1.14 billion increase in economic output across all sectors is expected in order to meet demand caused by this spending injection. It's important to note that this increase in economic output will also be felt in the pockets of United Kingdom residents, resulting in a potential £229 million net increase for United Kingdom resident's income over the seven week period.
This immediate economic boost will continue to have positive impacts after the Games. The post-Olympic effects are expected to increase economic output by £1.37 billion per year to 2015, a total £5.1 billion stimulus for the United Kingdom economy including the impact of London 2012. The impacts will continue to be felt by British residents too. Additional incomes generated to United Kingdom residents will be worth £296 million per year by 2015 and an average of 17,900 jobs per year will be sustained across the United Kingdom economy.
Finally, in spite of all these points which seem to be very positive, about the economic impact of the 2012 London's Olympic Games, some others economic points appear darker and less positive for the London economy. They are often more concrete and less covered by the Britain Media and the Olympic Committee. Today, we can read in the International press that the Games will badly impact the United Kingdom economy and the United Kingdom in general. Just an example : In London, some landlords will evict their renters in order to rent or sell their house or apartment a lot more to wealthy foreigners, during the Games. So, with this example, we see it's very important to put the economic impacts of games into its own perspective and especially to have a global vision without always trusting what is presented by the Olympic committee. Certainly, there will be positive impacts nevertheless negative impacts will not be outdone, that's for sure. It only remains to wait for Games to realize a real concrete economic report because at the moment, it's only a forecast ?

Environmental Impact of the 2012 London's Olympic Games

The promise was to deliver the 'greenest Olympics ever‘. As the London 2012 planning application is submitted, the possible environmental impact of the Games is causing increasing concern. Now, London‘s Green Party has delivered a damning report on the low environmental standards being set. So just how short does the Games fall in its green credentials ?

We can divide the green projects of the Olympic Games in 6 main fields : Green energy, green technology, water, wastes, green spaces and transports. But are all of them perfect and realizable too ? Let's study them.

Firstly, we can deal with the projects regarding Green energy. A lot of promises were delivered about it for example the Olympics Delivery Authority (ODA) has pledged that 20 per cent of the site's energy will come from renewable sources (wind, hydro, solar and biofuel). But there are shortfalls : the Government is aiming for all new housing to get 25 per cent of its energy from renewable by 2010. By 2014, this figure will rise to 44 per cent, and by 2016 all new homes will be zero-carbon. At this rate, the houses in the Olympic Village will use less renewable energy than other new homes in the capital.

After that, we can talk about Green technology. The promise is that 3% of the energy will come from solar and wind-turbine sources. But the shortfall is that though the 3% will no doubt be achieved, the figure is tiny. In 2000, during the first “green Games” every home in the Olympic Village in Sydney had solar panels which allow economizing 20 % of energy.
Then, there were also promises about water : the ODA has said it would reduce the water consumption by 20 per cent on present levels. Indeed, the UK has consumed 14.6 billion litres of water per day in 2010. But it's not a perfect project because it amounts to a reduction of 130 litres of water per day per person and it seems difficult to achieve. The proposed minimum standard for the Government's code for sustainable homes is 120 litres per person per day. The Athletes' Village would be awarded zero stars under the new code.
The London's green party has also some project about wastes : they want to reuse and recycle wastes on-site as far as possible. The 2012 London Olympic Stadium is the most environmentally infrastructure ever built. Steel resources are limited so they use it for the construction of the stadium. (75% less steel than for other stadium in the world). They also used a low-carbon concrete, produced from industrial waste, the carbon content in the concrete is 40% lower than the usual materials. They want zero waste games so they minimise wastes, maximise recovery and recycle and develop clean waste-to-energy systems. But the shortfall is that no new waste reprocessing or recycling plants are being provided on-site ; some existing plants are being relocated outside the area.
They also want to create 110 hectares of new open space as part of the legacy development to develop the green spaces. But the shortfall is that sites being lost include : Arena Fields (permanently), East Marsh (for up to two years), the Manor Garden allotments (to be relocated)
and parts of the Bully Point Nature Reserve. Although new green spaces are being created, environmentalists are concerned that biodiversity will be affected as a result of the relocation of plants and animals. For example, great crested newts and kingfishers are being moved from areas around Hackney Marshes, but survival rates are low for animals that are relocated this way. In addition all the trees that line the corridor leading from the A12 to Stratford High Street are being cut down, which reduces bird and insect habitats.

Last but not least they propose that the 2012 Games are being touted as car-free. But it's not so easy : the Olympic planning applications include a 1,300-space multi-storey car park at the media centre and up to 974 car parking spaces to be built as part of the Athletes' Village. This is in addition to the 5,440 parking spaces that will be provided by the Stratford City development (a retail and office development). Up to 10,000 park-and-ride spaces are planned for spectators. Overall, the application forecasts a threefold increase in traffic in the area in the aftermath of the Games.

As a general conclusion to both parts : Today, the International Olympic committee showed itself very confident. During the last verification survey in London, the committee of coordination and more precisely, the president of the committee Denis Oswald concluded : « London is ready to welcome the world. London feels the fever of the Games. » In spite of some problems of managements at the beginning of the project, the organizing committee succeeded in staying below a 9.3 billion £ of budget. " We have no doubt that this summer will be a summer as any other one in the United Kingdom ", declared Oswald in press conference. Finally, « the world expects much on behalf of London, but we know that London is ready and that people will not be disappointed. »

How do fireworks work ?

gregoirenoel — 2012-05-09T07:31:13Z

How do fireworks work ?

Black powder and the art of making explosions have been known by the Chinese since at least the eighth or nineth century. In Europe, black powder was brought back by Marco Polo from China. It has been used for firearms since 1346. The first real firework was fired at Anne of Austria and Louis XIII's wedding in 1615. It contained black powder, gold dust and silver dust.

Fireworks have been a traditional part of New Year's celebrations since they were invented by the Chinese almost a thousand years ago. Today fireworks displays are seen on most holidays. There are different types of fireworks. Firecrackers, sparklers, and aerial shells are all examples of fireworks. Though they share some common characteristics, each type works a little differently. Firecrackers are the original fireworks. In their simplest form, firecrackers consists of gunpowder wrapped in paper, with a fuse. A sparkler consists of a chemical mixture that is molded onto a rigid stick or wire. I will focus on the aerial shells through my presentation because when most people think of fireworks an aerial shell probably comes to mind as it is the most used at fireworks display.

Aerial shells

Aerial shells are one of the most beautiful and certainly one of the most complex types of fireworks. A shell consists of those main parts : a container, a lift charge, a time fuse, a burst charge, and stars/effects. The container, or shell casing, is a strong wall that protects the contents. The lift charge propels the shell out of the tube, and the time fuse ignites the burst charge at the right altitude. Then, the blast of the burst charge ignites the effects.

Shells are launched from a tube known as a mortar. A string loop is often attached to consumer firework shells so it can be lowered into the mortar by the fuse. When the fuse enters the lowest part of the shell – which contained the lift charge -, it ignites the lift charge, creating an explosion that ignites the time fuse and shoots the shell high into the air.

As the shell ascends, the time fuse burns towards the burst charge. At the precise altitude - which is determined by the length of the time fuse - usually where the shell is briefly hanging in the air - the time fuse ignites the black powder burst charge, causing the shell to explode. The powerful explosion blasts apart the shell casing and ignites the stars, scattering them in all directions across the sky. These stars burn brightly and give off sparks, creating a huge spherical pattern in the sky.

Black powder

A major component of fireworks is the black powder which is a combination of about 20% charcoal, 10% sulfur and 70% potassium nitrate or sodium nitrate. Black powder burns rapidly and produces a lot of gas. If this gas is confined in a tube it reaches very high pressures. This can be used to launch a firework into the air from a "mortar" which is a tube with one open end ; like a gun or cannon. It can also be used to make a rocket by allowing the gas to escape through a small hole at one end of at tube.

Redox reaction

Redox (portmanteau for reduction-oxidation) reactions refer to all chemical reactions in which atoms have their oxidation state changed.

Like acid-base reactions, redox reactions are a matched set, that is, there cannot be an oxidation reaction without a reduction reaction happening simultaneously. A redox couple consists of two chemical compounds which are the main involved during a redox reaction.

An oxidizer is an atom, ion or molecule able to capture one or more electrons.
A reducer is an atom, ion or molecule able to release one or more electrons.

The oxidation alone and the reduction alone are each called a half-reaction, because two half-reactions always occur together to form a whole reaction.

Oxidation is the loss of electrons or an increase in oxidation state by a molecule, atom, or ion.
Reduction is the gain of electrons or a decrease in oxidation state by a molecule, atom, or ion.

Combustion

Fireworks are based on combustion. Combustion is the sequence of exothermic chemical reactions between a fuel and an oxidizer (redox reactions) accompanied by the production of heat and conversion of chemical species. The release of heat can result in the production of light in the form of either glowing or a flame. The reaction starts with a transfer of electrons between the fuel and the oxidizer. Then the fuel atoms bind to oxygen atoms released by the oxidizer and release at the same time energy such as heat and light. In black powder, the fuel is charcoal and sulfur, the oxidizer and oxygen-producer is potassium nitrate.

Rate of reaction

If black powder is confined in a closed tube or container while it burns it will burst and spread the contents of the firework out in a large ball. Black powder does not technically explode : it just burns very fast. However if it is confined while it burns it can generate enough pressure and heat to do just as much damage as an explosion. The rate at which the powder burns can be controlled by how it is made, how much powder is used, and how it is confined. That helps manufacturers control how high fireworks go when they are launched from mortars or by rockets and how large a display they produce when they burst and spread the bright burning metal compounds inside.

Light and colors

Creating firework colors is very complex and requires considerable art and application of physical science. Excluding propellants or special effects, the points of light ejected from fireworks, termed 'stars', generally require an oxygen-producer, fuel, binder (to keep everything where it needs to be), and color producer. There are two main mechanisms of color production in fireworks, incandescence and luminescence.

Incandescence

Incandescence is light produced from heat. Heat causes a substance to become hot and glow, initially emitting infrared, then red, orange, yellow, and white light as it becomes increasingly hotter. When the temperature of a firework is controlled, the glow of components, such as charcoal, can be manipulated to be the desired color – determined upon the temperature reached - at the proper time - when the stars are ignited by the blast of the burst charge. Metals, such as aluminum, magnesium, and titanium, burn very brightly and are useful for increasing the temperature of the firework.

Luminescence

Luminescence is light produced using energy sources other than heat. Sometimes luminescence is called “cold light”, because it can occur at room temperature and cooler temperatures. To produce luminescence, energy is absorbed by an electron of an atom or molecule, causing it to become excited, but unstable. When the electron returns to a lower energy state the energy is released in the form of a photon (light). The energy of the photon determines its wavelength or color.

The energy exchanged between an atom and the external environment is quantified. That is to say it can take only certain discrete values of energy. To each atom corresponds a unique set of discrete energy levels. The level of lowest energy of an atom is associated to its stable state, called the ground state. The levels of higher energies are associated with the excited states of the atom. Thus, to each atom corresponds a characteristic spectrum and therefore a specific emission color.

For example : Strontium and Lithium are used to create a red burning firework. Calcium is used for orange while Sodium is used for yellow. Green is created by adding Barium while blue is created by adding Copper halides. A white color is emitted when Aluminum, Titanium, Beryllium or Magnesium. A gold color is created by adding charcoal or iron.

Our Trip to England

C. Reymond, Coline Bodin — 2012-04-12T07:29:13Z

Our trip to England : evenings in the families

During our trip, we were hosted by families. We were two, three or four students by guest house, so we could help one another to discuss and communicate with the family.

The organization in the house was very different depending on the groups. In the morning, we woke up between 6:15 and 7:00 am, and we went to bed between 22:00 and midnight.

A lot of us ate alone ; the family didn't eat with us. Indeed, English people don't eat a meal with several courses, but they eat their main course at 6:00 pm, and eat another time at 8:00 or 9:00 pm. But often, they stayed with us to discuss, and they were curious about our life in France.

We didn't eat any special breakfasts with bacon and eggs, but cereals, toasts, and tea. However, in the evening, a lot of us ate baked beans, big garden peas, etc... But some of luckier students ate chips, pizzas and pastas.

Those families are used to hosting students so they often have some rooms especially for us. For example, those who were two or three in a family were in the same bedrooms, but with twin beds or a bunk bed, but those who were four in the same family were in two separate rooms.

We thank a lot the families for this great week, because even if sometimes their habits seemed quite strange to us (for example that they didn't eat together), it was a rewarding experience, and we are all happy to have lived it.

Edited by Eve-Anne Otero & Coline Bodin

Capturing science

A. Pouliquen — 2012-04-10T08:24:57Z

Fast food Nation : The truth behind your burger

C. Reymond, Ines A. — 2012-02-13T07:19:30Z

A few weeks ago, I read a book about what our burgers are really made of. It's a simplified version of Fast Food Nation, written by Eric Schlosser. I will try to give you the best parts and interests of this story, and maybe you'll change your mind about burgers and fast foods …

The story

In this book, the story is separated in two parts that will be joined as the adventures go by. The first side of the book tells the story of 3 Mexicans : Sylvia and her husband Raul, and Coco, Sylvia's sister. They want to reach the country where dreams become true : the United States of America. We will follow them during their journey across the desert and near the border.

The other side of the book tell us about Don, a marketing manager for Mickey's, the fast food where he recently started to work. He still has to discover the truth about the meat in Mickey's hamburgers : is there really manure in it ? (Manure is animal dung used for fertilizing the ground). Therefore, he has to go to Cody, a town in Colorado where there are a lot of fast food restaurants and the biggest meat packing factory.

Cody is also the destination of our Mexicans, who will work at the factory. They still are clandestine and they have no choice if they want to stay in USA. They are not very well paid, but they earn much more than in Mexico so they don't really complain about their work. Don will investigate about the factory and discover terrible conditions of work and safety. But if you want to know more about the story, you'll have to read the book !

About the story

Could you imagine there is manure on your burger ?
Did you know that Mexican immigrants are exposed to danger and under paid to prepare the dirty meat that all American frequently eat in fast foods ?

Well, Eric Schlosser confronts us with the truth in this book. Fast foods are just interested in producing at the lowest possible cost, and close their eyes regarding the conditions of meat preparation. But when someone like this writer bends over the subject, we learn the past of our burger in a story inspired by the reality and it doesn't feel the same to go to a fast food after that. The version that I have read is the same that has been adapted in a film, which is also called Fast food Nation. The original book is more an investigation, whereas the film or this version of the book is fictionalized : the aim of the adaptation is to affect the American population more easily by telling a story.

Avril Lavigne is one of the actresses that took part to the film because she also wanted to denounce how dirty the meat of fast food restaurants is. The film and the book had a real impact on people's state of mind, but a lot of Americans still think it would be hard to live without fast food restaurants.

If you want a survey of the book, you can look at this video :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0U7w...

10 Questions to an Australian Girl

C. Reymond, Estelle T. — 2012-02-09T07:26:32Z

10 Questions to an Australian Girl :-)

I've been to Australia during the summer holidays for about three weeks. Then I received an Australia correspondent at my home for more than a month. Actually it was my sister's correspondant, so she went to Flaubert High School. She flew back to Australia a month ago. I'm now wondering what she remembers from France and how she feels about our country.

1.) When I tell you “France”, what first comes to your mind ?

When you say France, I think of your house and Mont Saint Michel. I also think of the food !

2.) What will stay the most surprising thing that French people do ?

I think the thing that shocked me the most was how there was bread at every meal ! ALL THE TIME ! I will never forget that. I love bread !

3.) You lived during a month in a French family, surrounded by French people 24h/day, Did you find that the french mentality is different from the Australians' ? Do the French people do things that you guys don't even think about ?

The french people do not talk as much as Australians. If we meet a stranger on the street and we are walking past them we will say ‘hello' whereas in France, I didn't see any of that. Also, French people walk a lot. In Australia, it's very hard to walk everywhere, because every place is so far away. Other than that, French people are exactly like Australians !

-* 4.) Since you left, does something French miss you ?

I really miss the way of life over there. For example the food, the places and the people. I miss my French family the most and being able to see new things.

-* 5.) In your daily life in Australia does something remind you France every time you do it ?

Yes, FRENCH CLASS.

-* 6.) Today, when you think about your trip, would you like to have done things differently ?

I would have liked to do less school and maybe more exploring around Rouen !

-* 7.) It's always interesting to have the point of view of someone from the “outside” so, what do you think about the French school system ?

I think honestly, it's strange. Firstly, you guys have long days BUT we don't get very many breaks and you do. Also, in Australia we tend to get close to the teachers and have a sort of bond with them. In the French school system, there did not seem to be anything like that.

-* 8.) You, Australian, are wearing a uniform for school, how did it feel to come to school with regular clothes ?

Honestly, it was difficult to find clothes to wear everyday haha ! I personally like having a uniform, it makes everyone equal ! AND you don't have to wake up earlier to find clothes to wear. I did like the comfort aspect though.

-* 9.) How did the people react when you told them that you were coming from Australia ? Did they have some prejudices/stereotypes ?

Well, I got asked some pretty stupid questions. And yes some people did use stereotypes even though they didn't know ANYTHING about Australia. People reacted differently. Some were excited to speak to someone from the other side of the world, and others used it as an opportunity to make fun of Australians.

-* 10.) In Australia (on the TV, the radio...) do they speak about France ? What did you discover about France that you are going to remember forever ?

In Australia, we do not really speak about France unless you are listening to the News. I discovered that France is full of wonderful places to visit and no matter where you go, there is always going to be something interesting there. I love how historic and different France is. I will be coming back Estelle. I really miss France. I would love to see you again.

Thank you very much Alysha for all this answers. I'm so happy to know you. You made me discover Australia a way that I can't forget. Best wishes to all of you.

Trip to London : The natural history museum... a glimpse into one british museum

baudoinf, C. Reymond — 2012-01-23T07:35:55Z

During the time we had to eat on the Wednesday of the trip to London, I decided to visit the Natural History Museum of London, which is free and located near the place we visited in the morning : the Science Museum.
I have completely visited only two rooms in the museum but I have also strolled in the rest of the museum.

wasps'nests

So the first room I have completely visited was the minerals gallery : there are a lot of stones coming from all over the world and almost all type of stones or geological apparition which exist nowadays.

Agate

And the second room was the Fossil Marine Reptiles gallery : there are a lot of skeletons or reconstitution of skeletons of extinct species of animals.

Diplodocus skeleton

Fossil of Marine Reptiles

skeleton of a marine reptile

Before this gallery you can see a Glyptodon (an animal you can see in the movie “Ice Age 1”), it is the ancestor of the Armadillo which live nowadays.

Glyptodon

This museum has a huge collection ; it is very interesting to see how much British museums are different from our French museums.
For example we can compare the natural history museum of London with the Natural History Museum in Paris which is the most similar to this of London. In Paris it is not free whereas in London it is almost free (you have to pay only for the exhibition rooms). In the same way in France most of the museums are free if you are a student but it's only for students, which is better than nothing…
I have also noticed that in French museumS there is no noise or not much while in the British ones the noise is present everywhere in all museums we have visited during the trip. Perhaps there is aN exception to this observation. In the Tate Modern museum there is a room that we have visited with our guide James where silence is required : the room of the painter Mark Rothko who requiered that if he gave some of his painting to this museum he wanted this room to be quiet, free and also that his paintings would be always showed to the public in a special room for his creation.
After this observation, I asked myself how people who visit museum in London can read something or hear the guide (if they have one), understand or learn something in that noise because it's a fact that we cannot learn something in noise.
I imagine that when people who visit or guides who do the visit come back home, the first must have a ferocious migraine and the second need a syrup because of their loss of voice. The only advantage for these people is that they cannot after that yell on their better half or on their children if they have any…..