Reflection

Up In The Air

Cody Ofisa

Mrs. Cline

Essay #4

April 21, 2012

Up in the Air

The tragic incident of September 11, 2001 has changed Americans forever. It has inspired and captivated many of us. The book and film Up in the Air is a great example of this. With the book being centered around flying and traveling and written before the incident of 9/11, the film brings a different twist to the book. It brings to life the high security and changes in American travels. The book Up in the Air and the film Up in the Air are different politically and economically due to the impact on the American society from 9/11.

In the book Up in the Air, Ryan Bingham, a business man from Minnesota that travels by plane to different companies to fire people because they don’t have the time or just don’t want to deal with the mess that may follow. This is the sad truth for many companies that do not value their employees; rather they value the profit and power of the all mighty dollar.  He is perceived from the book as a lonesome man who is socially awkward and does not maintain relationships outside of the air world other than a half hearted meaningless relationship with a woman he is assigned to fire while travelling and his sister who is about to get married for the third time. Some of his closest friends are the pilots, flight assistants, and car rental employees, all who have no inside to his personal life.

 He enjoys traveling and is trying to rack up one million flyer miles so that he can earn a card for the “Million Dollar Club.” Ryan is willing to make any changes to his already hectic schedule in order to accumulate the miles.  Mr. Bingham is trying to rack up these miles before his boss gets back from vacation and reads his letter of resignation. Ryan has decided to change his career path because he is fed up with his job and would rather work for a different company. Bingham is feeling his job has no direction and feels like he is stagnate in the company. Ryan is only driven by the new opportunity of a new job and the flyer miles. The book took place before the September 11, 2001 incident that dropped our economy and nearly eradicated the business world.

The book differs from the movie, Up in the Air, starring George Clooney as Ryan Bingham. He is a successful businessman who does not maintain relationships or have much of a life outside of work in the movie as well. As well as in the book, Bingham has a half hearted relationship with a woman he meets while travelling and his sister who is about to get married. He, like the book, is also trying to rack up flyer miles but it is ten million miles rather than one million miles, but has put no time limit on the accumulation and actually enjoys the travelling.

The difference with Bingham in the movie is that he is not trying to find a new job; rather his job is trying to eliminate his position to save time and money. They wanted to use technology and computers to lay people off rather using their own employees to travel around the country and personally do the job. Mr. Bingham was desperate to show his company the value of his position and the importance of a face to face lay off rather than communicating through a computer screen. This is a great reflection of the business world after the September 11^th tragedy. The economy decreased severely and business men started losing their jobs by the handfuls. During the time that the book was written our economy was not something American’s feared on a daily basis. The business world was blossoming and the jobs were what seemed endless. As in the book, Ryan Bingham was easily discarding his old job and searching for the next, whereas in the movie Ryan Bingham was fighting to hold on to his job and to show his company the value of himself and his position. This reflects the modern business world so accurately, as many American’s are struggling to find a new job due to the increase of lay off over the last decade.

Not only did our economy and business world change from what American’s knew of it, so did the political world. American’s were now in wartime and terrified of the Middle East. Jason Reitman, director of Up in the Air, depicts this image for a brief moment in the movie when Ryan Bingham is teaching his assistant, Natalie Keener, the ropes of traveling efficiently and in a timely manner through the airport. As Mr. Bingham goes through different kinds of people to avoid getting stuck behind in the security line, he states “Never get behind people traveling with infants I have never seen a stroller collapse in less than 20 minutes, old people are worse their bodies are littered with hidden metal and never seem to appreciate how much time they have left on earth, there you go (points to Middle Eastern group of people) five words ‘randomly selected for additional screening,’ Asians, they pack light, travel efficiently, and they got a thing for slip on shoes, God love em.” (movie.) Ryan Bingham jokingly brings to life the assumption and fear that American’s and the flight industry personal have brought against the Middle Eastern culture and people due to the 9/11 terrorist attack on America. The director was able to depict this very real and unfortunate stereotype into the movie without too much repercussion given the lagging time between September 11 of 2001 and the release of the movie in 2009. American’s had time to grief the incident and their losses, yet still relate to the fear and discomfort that people feel towards people of the Middle East.

Author Walter Kirn does not mention any word on terrorist, long security lines or stereotypes in Up in the Air because it was irrelevant to the American culture at that time. Our means and efficiency of travel changed dramatically after the tragedy. Security was less strict and family members and loved ones could walk you onto your flight, bag checks and “pat downs” were minimal compared to today, and Americans did not fear traveling by plane with people outside of American soil. Americans were less high strung about flying and the price of flying was more affordable. Companies would pay their employees to travel and considered it an investment. Once tragedy struck, people did not want to travel, the price of flying sky rocketed, and the loss of jobs started to unfold.

It was this one terrible incident that changed the business, economic, and political world as Americans knew it forever. It was a wake up call that America did not see coming but that showed it that it needed to protect itself at all times and in all aspects. American flight industry has been deeply affected by this incident and the book and movie, Up in the Air, is a great reflection of both pre and post political and economic life of the twin tower destruction.

Word Cited

Up In The Air. Dir. Jason Reitman. Perf. George Clooney and Vera Farmiga. Paramount. 2009. Film

Unit 3 Compilation

Table of Contents

• Past and Current Population Growth are Very Different pg. 1
• Human Populations Grew Slowly Until Recently  pg. 1
• Human Populations Increases are Relatively Recent pg. 1
• Perspectives on Population Growth pg. 1
• What is the Carrying Capacity for Humans? pg. 1
• Technology Increases Carrying Capacity for Humans pg. 1
• Calculating the Impact of Human Population pg. 1
• Ecological Footprints Can Calculate Impact pg. 2
• Population Growth Could Bring Benefits pg. 2
• Many Factors Determine Population Growth pg. 2
• AIDS Affects Population Growth Rates  pg. 2
• Fertility Varies Among Cultures and at Different Times pg. 2
• World Fertility Rates are Declining pg. 2
• Fertility is Influenced by Culture pg. 2
• People Want Children for Many Reasons pg. 2
• Education and Income Affect the Desire for Children  pg. 2
• A Demographic Transition Can Lead to Stable Population Size pg. 3
• Many Countries Are In a Demographic Transition  pg. 3
• The Following Factors Help Stabilize Populations pg. 3
• Two Ways to Complete the Demographic Transition  pg. 3
• Improving Women’s Lives Helps Reduce Birth Rates pg. 3
• Family Planning Gives Us Choices  pg. 3
• The Major Categories of Modern Birth Control Techniques pg. 3 
• What Kind of Future Are We Creating Now? pg. 3
• Successful Family Planning Programs Often Require Significant Societal Changes pg. 3
• What is the Atmosphere? pg. 4
• The Atmosphere Captures Energy Selectively  pg. 4
• The Greenhouse Effect pg. 4
• Convection Currents in the Atmosphere Move Heat pg. 4
• Evaporated Water Stores and Redistributes Heat  pg. 4
• Ice Cores Inform Us About Climate History  pg. 4
• Scientific Consensus is Clear  pg. 4
• What is the IPCC?  pg. 4
• Changes in Heat Waves, Sea Levels and Storms are Expected  pg. 4
• Policy Makers Have Made Little Progress in Finding Solutions  pg. 4
• What Waste Do We Produce  pg. 5
•  The Waste Stream is Everything We Throw Away pg. 5
• Components of the Waste System  pg. 5
• Substances Into the Air and Water pg. 5
• Ocean Dumping is Mostly Uncontrolled  pg. 5
• The Great Pacific Garbage Patch pg. 5
• Landfills Receive Most of Our Waste pg. 5
• Landfills Receive Most of Our Waste pg. 5
• Incineration Produces Energy from Trash pgs. 5 & 6
• Incinerators Can Produce Health Risks  pg. 6
• Shrinking the Waste Stream pg. 6
• Recycling Continues to Face Challenges pg. 6
  Recycling Saves Money, Energy and Space pg. 6
  Composting Recycles Organic Waste pg. 6
  Reuse is Even Better than Recycling pg. 6
  Reducing Waste is Often the Cheapest Option pg. 6
  What Can You Do? pg. 6
  Hazardous and Toxic Wastes pg. 6
  Federal Legislation Regulates Hazardous Wastes pg. 6
• Brownfield’s Present Both Liability and Opportunity pg.7
• Hazardous Waste Must be Processed or Stored Permanently pg. 7
• CHAPTER 14: ECONOMICS AND URBANIZATION pg. 7
• Cities are Places of Crisis and Opportunity pg. 7
• Mega Cities Are Forming World Wide  pg. 7
• Immigration is Driven by Push and Pull Factors  pg. 7
• Congestion, Pollution, and Water Shortages Plague Many Cities  pg. 7
• Many Cities Lack Sufficient Housing   pg.7
• Urban Planning:  pg.7
• Transportation is Crucial in City Development  pg. 7
• Suburban Development Adds to Urban Sprawl  pg. 8
• Freeways Can Lead to Traffic Congestion and Wasted Fuel  pg. 8
• We Can Make Our Cities More Livable  pg. 8
• New Urbanism Incorporates Smart Growth  pg. 8
• Design Principles of New Urbanism  pg. 8
• Can Development Be Sustainable?  pg. 8
• Ecological Economics Incorporates Principles of Ecology  pg. 8
• Renewable vs. Non-Renewable Resources  pg. 8
• Managing Non-Renewable Resources  pg. 8
• Communal Property Resources Are a Classic Problem in Economics pg. 8
• Trade Development and Jobs  pg. 9
• Green Design is good for Business and the Environment  pg. 9
• Environmental Protection Creates Jobs  pg. 9

UNIT 3 COMPILATION

CHAPTER 4 HUMAN POPULATIONS

Past and Current Population Growth are Very Different

It’s up to us to determine the population growth over the years. If we take care of one another and look out for the environment then there should be little problems with determining the length of life.

Human Populations Grew Slowly Until Recently

Since the birth of agriculture human population has grown tremendously because earlier societies had only a few million people. Now days there are so many people some countries have to regulate the amount of kids they can have to ensure there will be enough room for everyone.

Human Populations Increases are Relatively Recent

Human population was very slow in building numbers and it was not until 1804 that the population reached 1 billion people and that’s including all of the human history before then. After the first billion was recorded it did not take long for many more billions to accumulate.

Perspectives on Population Growth

There are debates that discuss whether too many people would risk us running out of food and risk starvation. Then on the other side Karl Marx thought that maybe population growth was due too the fact that so many people live in poverty and have to go without certain resources which can bring on illnesses.

What is the Carrying Capacity for Humans?

It depends on what you believe but a gentlemen by the name Joel Cohen thinks that the earth can only handle about 10 to 12 billion people which we are closing in on very quickly. Then there’s David Pimental who believes that by the year 2100 there will be 12 billion miserable people living difficult lives on Earth. I think that the earth can handle as many people as God allows to be alive.

Technology Increases Carrying Capacity for Humans

`With the advances in technology it’s easy to say that we could possibly live much longer than predicted a few hundred years ago. The progress in medicine will help keep people healthier and the revamp of sanitation should help keep pollution low and engineering should keep us advanced.

Calculating the Impact of Human Population

Depending on the area in which you live can have an impact on the population. If you live in a hot dry desert without water then the chances of you being able to disperse water evenly among the people might not be possible. If you live in a farm community then there’s a chance you with have the benefits of eating chicken eggs and fresh meat unlike those who live in marsh lands.

Ecological Footprints Can Calculate Impact

It’s important to know the ecological footprints of your homeland so you can determine how much land will be needed to support everyone.

Population Growth Could Bring Benefits

It’s a simple concept to think that the more people that inhabit an area will help that area thrive because of the amount of workers that can mass produce goods. Also more people means larger markets and more chances to come up with new ideas on how to expand the chances of survival.

Many Factors Determine Population Growth

One way to track population is by Demography which are statistics about births, deaths and where they live and total population.

AIDS Affects Population Growth Rates

AIDS is a horrible disease that can wipe out a population of people with no problem. People who live with AIDS only have about a 31 year life span versus those without AIDS which is about 70 years.

Fertility Varies Among Cultures and at Different Times

To find out the total fertility rate of a population take the number of children born to an average woman during her reproductive life. This rate can change depending on country in which they live. Some countries don’t have the same luxuries as other countries and this could hurt the fertility rates.

World Fertility Rates are Declining

Many factors play into why fertility rates are low but when populations die off it takes generations to rebuild and even though the fertility rate is 2.6, growth rates are now lower than ever.

Fertility is Influenced by Culture

Depending on the size of a family, economic, and social pressures eventually affect population sizes.

People Want Children for Many Reasons

Pronatalist pressures are factors that increase people’s choices in having babies.

Children are valuable ways for families to increase their incomes and also children are able to take over household chores. Some society’s choice to have more children when loved ones die to replenish their numbers.

Education and Income Affect the Desire for Children

In highly developed countries woman choose not to have children because they either want to pursue a college education, and to also have personal freedom. Money also plays a factor because children are expensive and money can spent on other areas. Less developed countries it is not a problem to have more children because it does not cost as much to support them.

A Demographic Transition Can Lead to Stable Population Size

When countries begin to improve their economic development a special pattern called demographic transition takes place which is when death and birth rates fall.

Many Countries Are In a Demographic Transition

The countries that have tried demographic transition believe that they will see a stable outcome between the falling death and birth rates.

The Following Factors Help Stabilize Populations

Different factors that help the population are modern communications such as: television, because you are able to get ideas that can help with change and development.

Two Ways to Complete the Demographic Transition

Providing an equal share of social benefits to everybody by making sure everyone has the same amount of resources helps with family planning. By regulating the amount of children a family can have by pushing the use of birth control will help reduce larger families and if these limits are exceeded then punishment will follow.

Improving Women’s Lives Helps Reduce Birth Rates

            With educating women on the affects of having more children then necessary help them become more responsible and give women chances to have better quality of insurance. Also the opportunities for women to get better jobs chances to reform the land in which they live will help reduce birth rates.

Family Planning Gives Us Choices

            With family planning couples are able to determine the amount of kids they would like and how far apart they want to have them. With the use of birth control unexpected pregnancies will be reduced and celibacy is a great form of birth control.

The Major Categories of Modern Birth Control Techniques

By not having sex period is the best form of birth control out there. There are however different forms such as condoms, pills surgical methods that prevent the release of sperm and eggs.

What Kind of Future Are We Creating Now?

            According to experts the human population will stabilize sometime this century and when it does there will be about 10 billion people.

Successful Family Planning Programs Often Require Significant Societal Changes

            With the help of the community great changes in peoples lives can happen especially if we make sure the children are taken care of. Also women need to continue to improve social, educational, and economic status. The need for assistance when it comes to making money needs to be kept into consideration and also the knowledge of practicing safe sex needs to be a main focus in everyone’s minds.

CHAPTER 9 AIR

What is the Atmosphere?

            The Earths atmosphere is made up of mainly gases such as nitrogen and oxygen. The atmosphere is divided into four zones that all have different temperatures because of the absorption of solar energy. Troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere and thermosphere.

The Atmosphere Captures Energy Selectively

            Near the equator is where the sun supplies most of the Earths energy

The Greenhouse Effect

            According to the second law of thermodynamics energy that is absorbed gradually gets re entered into the air as low quality heat energy.  When this happens heat gets trapped in through sunlight.

Convection Currents in the Atmosphere Move Heat

             Warm air rises at the equator and moves towards the poles and creates three large global convection cells in each hemisphere.

Evaporated Water Stores and Redistributes Heat

            Water gets evaporated by the solar energy and then it transforms from liquid to gas. Latent heat is the water vapor that stores amounts of energy.

Ice Cores Inform Us About Climate History

            When air gets trapped into snow layers climatologists are able to extract cores and tell how the atmosphere has changed overtime.

Scientific Consensus is Clear

            Scientist share information with one another because of the complexity of science. Evidence shows that global warming is happening because of increased retention of energy in the lower atmosphere.

What is the IPCC?

            Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change which brings scientist and government representatives together to aim and review evidence of climate changes.

Changes in Heat Waves, Sea Levels and Storms are Expected

            Greenhouse gas emissions, temperature rises, sea levels and energy use have accelerated faster than projected.

Policy Makers Have Made Little Progress in Finding Solutions

            Climate scientists say that shifting our energy strategy from coal to wind, solar, and other efficiency could produce millions of jobs and save billions in health care costs.

           

           

CHAPTER 13 WASTE

What Waste Do We Produce

            All kinds of waste find there way into our dumps. From industrial waste such as mining and mineral production produces about 500 million tons per year in the USA alone. Municipal waste such as the trash we produce in our homes, offices and cities make up a large percentage and it’s hard to re use because of all the different materials it contains.

The Waste Stream is Everything We Throw Away

            The wastes system is made up of the materials we usually throw away and many of the materials could be reused if it were not mixed in other trash. With the system the dump uses to collect and crush all the trash makes it difficult to reuse certain things.

Components of the Waste System

            Food waste and organic material such as yard and garden material mixes in with junked cars and sewage sludge. Newspapers and packaging also gets mixed up with these materials to help form the waste system.

Substances Into the Air and Water

            When dumps are not kept under a roof a lot of derby and trash can get into the stream system. Many countries forbid open dumping to help control this problem.

Ocean Dumping is Mostly Uncontrolled

            All around the world trash can be found in the ocean due to dumping of trash, sewage and industrial waste. This is a growing problem and unless stopped it will continue to get out of control.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

            This is a patch found in the ocean that contains plastic debris. The patch is so big it’s said to weigh 100 million tons.

Landfills Receive Most of Our Waste

            Landfills are designed to compact trash and covered with dirt to help decrease the smell.

Methane and landfills

            Landfills also need to manage the amount of methane that is exposed. The gas can either be burned on site or it might be sold and used for fuel for electrical generation.

Incineration Produces Energy from Trash

            Many cities burn trash in an incinerator to make room for trash. Also the energy that’s recovered is able to be reused.

Incinerators Can Produce Health Risks

            Ash and other airborne emissions take flight from the incinerator. These dioxins and furans can get into the lungs and cause problems.

Shrinking the Waste Stream

            Recycling is cheaper the land filling and also incineration it also saves energy, raw materials and land space. Recycling is the reusing of products usually after being melted and recasted.

Recycling Continues to Face Challenges

            While recycling is a helpful thing for everyone to do a lot of trash is still being thrown away rather than separating and recycling.

Recycling Saves Money, Energy and Space

             It is cheaper to recycle your trash than to go to the landfill and it encourages awareness and responsibility.

Composting Recycles Organic Waste

            Composting is degrading organic matter under aerobic conditions. The organic compost resulting from the process makes a nutrient rich soil.

Reuse is Even Better than Recycling

            Cleaning and reusing products is the cheapest way and also saves energy and time. But also go to places of interest such as a junkyard or a farmers market.

Reducing Waste is Often the Cheapest Option

            Most companies are using methods to cut back on cost such as making soda cans with less aluminum and packaging items differently so that they are not using an excessive amount of materials.

What Can You Do?

            You can buy foods from farmers markets and bring your own bags when at the store. Recycle by separating items into piles. Wash and reuse cans and bottles and most importantly spread the word.

Hazardous and Toxic Wastes

            Can be found in the waste stream and it hazardous waste can be a problem no matter the size.

Federal Legislation Regulates Hazardous Wastes

            There are two laws that are very important the first one is the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976. The second one is the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act passed in 1980. This was to help with the clean up of abandoned toxic waste sites.

Brownfield’s Present Both Liability and Opportunity

            Large field that are contaminated are known as brown fields, they are either abandoned or extremely polluted.

Hazardous Waste Must be Processed or Stored Permanently               

            There are three ways when talking about handeling of hazardous waste. Produce less waste by creating fewer materials. Convert to less hazardous substances by lessening the toxins. Store permanently by making it into something.

CHAPTER 14: ECONOMICS AND URBANIZATION

Cities are Places of Crisis and Opportunity

            Over the years more than half of humans now live in cities rather than living in farming communities and surviving by hunting and fishing.

Mega Cities Are Forming World Wide

            Mega cities are cities with populations with over ten million people. Even though these cities consume loads of space and resources they are also relatively efficient in resource use.

Immigration is Driven by Push and Pull Factors

            Some of the reasons people decide to move to cities is because of the opportunities and independence offered.

Congestion, Pollution, and Water Shortages Plague Many Cities

            The result of having too many people packed into a city is that pollution becomes a problem and some countries have even created laws against over population.

Many Cities Lack Sufficient Housing

            Worldwide there are over a 100 million people that are homeless. Most of them are stuck in the middle of crowded cities, where as the ones that are not, are living in unsanitary slums.

Urban Planning:

            For many years new cities that have been built around debates by city planner to figure out how to best organize the cities structure.

Transportation is Crucial in City Development

            A century ago everyone wanted to live as close to downtown as possible because it was easier to walk if you did not have other transportation. It was not until the automobile was developed and the development of freeways that allowed people to be able to live outside of the city and still be able to get around. The spread of compacted cities in a pattern of development is called “sprawl.”

Suburban Development Adds to Urban Sprawl

            Due to the overcrowding of inner cities, most of the new housing developments choose to build outside of the city in search of inexpensive land and less restrictions on building practices.

Freeways Can Lead to Traffic Congestion and Wasted Fuel

            The freeway was designed to help the people who lived far away from their work or that needed to get across the city in a short amount of time. This concept made sense because most people consider it essential to own their own vehicle.

We Can Make Our Cities More Livable

            Smart growth is a way that makes the use of land affected by encouraging infill development. These infill developments avoid high prices in service and useless land.

New Urbanism Incorporates Smart Growth

            Architects and urban planners are now focusing on redesigning older metropolitan areas to make them more modern and appealing in a way that the cultural history does not become abandoned.

Design Principles of New Urbanism

            A few principle designs are: limiting city sizes, determining ahead of time where new development will take place, and encourage the use of walking rather than driving.

Can Development Be Sustainable?

            Sustainable development means meeting the needs of present without compromising the future.

Ecological Economics Incorporates Principles of Ecology

            Ecological economics uses ecological ideas of system functions and recycling to the definition of resources. It treats the natural environment as part of the economy.

Renewable vs. Non-Renewable Resources

            Non-renewable resources only exist until they run out, while renewable resources just recycle themselves.

Managing Non-Renewable Resources

            Recycling is a good way to extend the use of certain products with the help of technological improvements to help so that they do not become exhausted and unusable.

Communal Property Resources Are a Classic Problem in Economics

            Some of the resources that everybody uses include clean air, clean water, wildlife, and open space makes for one of the biggest difficulties of economics and resource management.

Trade Development and Jobs

            To have a sustainable society, the importance of resources distribution is extremely important because they have to work harder to ensure the economy does not fail.

           

Green Design is good for Business and the Environment

            Green office projects bring in awareness to heating, cooling, lighting, and operating buildings as one of our biggest uses of energy and other resources.

Environmental Protection Creates Jobs

            Green businesses create more jobs and help improve local economies more than it hurts the economy.

            China is the world’s leader in sustainable energy because they invest at least $8 billion on research and development.