Kentaro Harasaki - 1st Place
Japanese
How did your language form? As you
know, there are many languages in the world, and they have different beginnings
from each other. They have their own ways of usage, and sometimes they are very
unique. Japanese is one of the most unique languages in the world in the form
of written communication. It has three different systems of writing: Kanji,
Hiragana, and Katakana.
Kanji was brought into Japan from
China long ago. A long time ago, the Chinese used Kanji as the way to show the
shapes of things around them such as body parts, animals, and plants.
Therefore, it is possible for us to recognize what it means by looking at the
shapes of them. For example, “口”
means “mouth” and “森”
means “forest”. According to the Kanjigraphy
website in their article the “Origin of Kanji”, they report that a Chinese
historiographer named Ts'ang discovered how to represent things in writing with
a symbol called Kanji about 5000 years ago. He got a clue by a footmark of a
bird on the ground covered with snow (2005). In addition, the Japanese also used
a Kanji character to show different meanings. For instance, “空” means “sky” and also “empty”.
In fact, this later function makes it difficult to learn how to read and write
Japanese. People use Kanji in the same way today as they did years ago.
Hiragana is the Japanese letters
which were made by Japanese in the 9th century, and it is very
essential for understanding Japanese. In the olden days, the Japanese tended to
write as fast as possible so that they could write a lot of documents in a
short time. As a result, its shape was broken down, and Hiragana was formed: 安→あ. It was mainly used on
a personal level like a diary, which was more common among women than men.
According to Simon Ager (2011) in his article “Japanese Hiragana” from Omniglot
website, he says that the original name of Hiragana was “Onnade” or “women’s
hand”, and it was mostly used by women until the 10th. Now, its important
function is to be a connection between words and also within words. The
highlights in the following sentence shows how Hiragana connects words: 私は音楽が好きです。When
Hiragana helps to make words, it looks like this: 愛する。Hiragana can be
connected because it has no meaning unless you use it in a proper way.
Katakana is another type of letter which
was made by the Japanese, and it is very useful. In the olden days, the
Japanese used to use Katakana to help them understand documents from China, and
it was also easy to write. Katakana was made from a part of Kanji. Today, it is
used to represent words from other countries. For example, “America” is “アメリカ” and “food” is “フード”. According to the Nihongo o Narau website in
their article “Katakana Writing”, they explain “Non-Japanese names are written
in katakana. Sometimes it is also used as a replacement for
‘difficult’ kanji or for emphasis. Animal and fruit names are often written
in katakana for these reasons” (2006).
The Japanese use these three different types of
writing systems, which have their own origins and functions. Kanji was introduced
into Japan from China and it shows different meanings. Hiragana was made from
Kanji and it works as a connection. Katakana was made from a part of Kanji, and
it is used to show foreign words in Japanese. Therefore, written Japanese is
one of the most interesting and amazing languages in the world.
References
Ager,
S. (2011, February 30). Japanese Hiragana. Retrieved
September 27, 2012, from Omniglot website:
Katakana Writing. (2006, September
9). Retrieved
September 27, 2012, from Nihongo o Narau website:
Origin of Kanji. (2005, November).
Retrieved
September 27, 2012, from Kanjigraphy.com website:
Dickson Paz - 2nd Place
Venezuelan Sports
Most
of the people in Venezuela like to have a sports life. In Venezuela, most of the people like to play
sports because this is the best way to have a healthy life. However, a
Venezuelan baseball player needs to start to play at a very young age to get
new abilities sooner. Soccer in Venezuela is one the most played sports because
it is the oldest sport in Venezuela. Nowadays, some Venezuelans do not like to
play basketball because basketball in Venezuela only has a short tournament
each year, and athletes like to play all year. Venezuela has different kinds of
sports to play such as baseball, soccer, and basketball.
The
most important sport in Venezuela is baseball because it is one of the oldest
and most popular sports in the country. Venezuela is like a factory for making
good baseball players because they begin to play very young, and that is the
reason that a Venezuelan baseball player gets abilities to play very well.
Venezuela has the most important little league baseball corporation, where
children play from three years old to eighteen years old. After this period,
some baseball players are chosen to play on a professional baseball team. The
Venezuelan Baseball Professional League is constituted by eight teams, and this
league has one of the most popular teams in the Caribbean, which is Leones del
Caracas. Venezuela has won seven Series del Caribe, and Leones del Caracas has
won three of them. This league has a high level of baseball teams, so Venezuela
has a lot of professional players playing in the major league such as Miguel
Cabrera, Carlos Gonzalez, and Felix Hernandez. Venezuelans also have a hall of
fame player, which is Luis Aparicio. In the article “Sports
and Baseball,” the Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela says that in
seventy-two years, 270 professional players from Venezuela have been playing
for many major league teams. In 2006 and 2008, eighteen Venezuelan baseball players
were called from the minor leagues to play at the highest level, and this is a
new record established by Venezuelan players.
Soccer
is the oldest sport in Venezuela, and it is one of the most popular because it
has been played for over 100 years. A soccer player in Venezuela begins to
practice very young with a professional team, so each team has a lot of players
that can play at a high level. Venezuela has a professional soccer league, and
it is constituted by two divisions: Division I and Division II. Venezuela has
one of the most popular soccer teams in South America, which is the Caracas FC,
and this team has won eleven titles in Venezuela. Venezuela has a professional
team that represents Venezuela in international tournaments, and this team is
called La Vinotinto. When La Vinotinto plays, the fans fill the whole stadium
for support, and they scream at the top of their lungs.
According
to Bell (2004) in the article “Soccer Report; Venezuela Showing Progress” from
The New York Times, Venezuela is the only country that has never participated
in the FIFA World Cup. Venezuela has a horrible record, 7-51-7, in qualifying
matches since 1965.
Basketball
in Venezuela has been becoming popular through the years. In
the article “Basketball Becomes Infectious in Venezuela,” National Public Radio
says that a few years ago, basketball became a domestic craze, one of the
reasons it is becoming popular is because of Greivis Vasquez. Greivis Vasquez
starts on offensives as a point-guard, and he plays for the University of
Maryland (2009). The Venezuelan Professional Basketball
League is the top competition in this sport. The Venezuelan Professional
Basketball League has a short tournament where the best team of ten teams is
the champion. The Basketball Professional League has one of the most popular
basketball teams in the Caribbean, which is the Marinos de Anzoátegui,
and they have nine titles in this professional league. Venezuela has a
professional basketball team with a high level of skill, and they play in a division
that is called FIBA. The Venezuelan professional basketball team has never won
an international tournament, so they are creating a corporation to promote
parents bringing in their children at early ages to learn new basketball
abilities so that the Venezuelan Professional League will be more popular.
Venezuela
has different kinds of sports to play such as baseball, soccer, and basketball.
Venezuela has the most important little league baseball corporation where
children can begin to play to get new abilities faster so they can be a
professional player in the future. Venezuela has a professional soccer team
that is called La Vinotinto, and this team has been the motivation for everyone
in Venezuela; the fans fill the whole stadium for support, and they scream at
the top of their lungs. The Venezuelan professional basketball team has never
won an international tournament, so they are creating a corporation to try to
improve their talent. Venezuelans need to continue working hard on these sports
like they have been doing so that they can get to an elite level, and in this
way, they can start to win a lot of tournaments around the world.
References
Basketball becomes infectious in
Venezuela. (November 11, 2009). Retrieved
September 09, 2012,
from National Public Radio website:
Bell, J (April 13, 2004). Soccer report; Venezuela showing progress.
Retrieved
September 27, 2012,
from The New York Times website:
Embassy of the Bolivarian Republic of
Venezuela. Sports and Baseball.
Retrieved from
Diego Castaneda - 3rd Place
Game
Consoles
Our ancestors played with stones, we play with
videogames, with what are our children going to play? Nowadays videogames are
very common in our homes and are a very easy way to be entertained. Electronic
games are one of the most popular ways of entertainment (Arriaga, Esteves,
& Gaspar, 2004). Every console has a different area were they are
specialized for. There are three major game consoles in the market that are frequently
played: PlayStation 3, Xbox, and Wii.
The PlayStation 3 is a very nice
console developed by Sony. It is probably the most common console because of
the PlayStation Network. The PlayStation Network allows you to play online with
players all over the world and it is free. You can also download games directly
to your PlayStation 3 using the PlayStation network. According to PlayStation 3
official website, the PlayStation 3 is the only console in which you can
reproduce Blue-Ray movies (2012).This makes the PlayStation 3 have good quality
graphics, making the player feel like it was real life. The PlayStation 3 has
the biggest amount of games, and also the biggest variety of game types.
Another good console is the Xbox. This console is
developed by Microsoft. It is very famous for having a game that no other
console has; Halo video game. Halo is a very recognized game for its multiplayer
maps and game types. The Xbox Live gives you the opportunity to play online
with other players, but the membership for the Xbox Live is $ 79.99 for one
year. The Xbox also has an application called “Kinect”. This application’s function
is to read your body’s movements without using any type of control on your
body. Xbox’s official website says “There’s just you. And if you ask us, that’s
all you need”(2012). Xbox is the first console to have this type of technology.
The
Wii is a console developed by Nintendo, and this console is popular because of
its classic games. The Wii is a console in which you will not always use a common
control, and the Wii is more focused on using your body to play such as your
arms and legs. This works by grabbing a control and moving the arm in the
direction you are asked or with platforms in which you stand up and balance your
body. The Wii was one of the first videogames in history to bring us great
classics to play such as Mario and Donkey Kong.
All
three of these consoles accomplish their purpose to entertain people. We now
know that there is a console for every one of us. These consoles can call our
attention by their variety of games, multiplayer platforms and great classics. We cannot tell which one is the best because
each one has a unique feature. At least we know that there is not a specific
age for play video games, so we all can enjoy playing them.
References
Arriaga, A. & Esteves, F. &Gaspar, A. (2004). Playing with Violence. In Business,
Technological, and Dimension of
Computer: Multidisciplinary Developments (Chapter 17). Retrieve
from http://uiu-sun.uiu.edu/cgi-bin/Pwebrecon.cgi?v1=8&ti=1,8&Search_Arg=video%20games&Search_Code=GKEY^*&SL=None&CNT=10&PID=RvxWXMbiumsI3Kc5pfWaXsb&SEQ=20121009213359&SID=1
Xbox
360 + Kinect.(2012). Retrieved September 17, 2012,
from
Xbox
official website: http://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox360?xr=shellnav
Long
Live Play.(2012). Retrieved September 17, 2012, form
PlayStation
official site website: http://us.playstation.com/ps3/
