How to Long Jump

Long jump is a track and field event in which the athlete sprints down a runway and performs one jump from a certain point into a sand pit. The objective of this event is to jump the farthest from the designated area/line. Here are some steps on how to perform this event correctly:

1. Find your dominant foot to take off from

Ask someone with you to push you from behind to see which is your dominant foot. The first foot that you take a step forward with will be the foot you take off from when you perform the long jump.

2. Get your mark

It is crucial to get your mark so you can know where to start sprinting and start jumping without going over the designated area you're required to jump from. To get your mark, place your foot on the line from which you're designated to jump off from. Then sprint down the track at the same speed that you will perform your long jump. Count each step as you are doing this and count up to a certain number of steps (14, 16, 18, etc.) Once you have reached those certain number of steps, mark the exact area from which you took your last step. This is where you will start your long jump.

3. Run down the track

Start your sprint from the area you marked when you counted your steps. Take long strides, with your knees up, and back straight. Good running form is crucial to long jump.

4. Jump

When you reach your designated area from which you take off from, make sure to take off vertically. It is the best way to maximize your distance. Get a good knee lift and have your arms back and legs back mid air. When you land, try to have both your arms and legs out in front of you.

Long jump is a very technical and difficult track and field event. As you become more advanced, you learn that little things such as proper sprint form, a good knee lift, having your arms and legs out forward when you land, etc., are crucial to maximizing your distance.

Why are video games so addicting?

I love playing video games. I mostly play sports games such as Madden and NBA2k. Most of my other friends enjoy playing first person shooter games such as Call of Duty and Halo. Video games take up so much of my time and I always feel guilty after I finish playing them. This causes me to wonder, why are video games so addicting? 

Video game designers are always trying to make video games more appealing in order to get gamers to spend more time playing them. According to the article "What Makes a Video Game Addictive" on http://www.video-game-addiction.org, there are several hooks that video game designers use to make games more addictive. These several hooks are:

The High Score

Having a "high score" in a game can keep a gamer hooked on the game as they attempt to beat it. Some games that have a "high score" are Pacman and Flappy Bird

Beating the Game

This hook is found in almost every game. Gamers are constantly always trying to "beat" the game which causes them to stay hooked onto the game until they do so.

Role-Playing

Role-playing games allow gamers to create their own characters and embark on unique journeys. This causes gamers to be emotionally attached to these characters making it harder to stop playing.

Discovery

This hook that video game makers use are usually involved in role-playing games. In games such as Runescape or World of Warcraft, gamers embark on a journey and discover new lands and worlds. The excitement of discovering these lands and worlds is extremely appealing to gamers.

Relationships

This hook that video game makers use is usually found in online games. The relationships that users make in these games causes users to come back to playing these games in an attempt to further build on these relationships.

Although video games can cause gamers to play for countless hours on end and lose touch from reality, they are not all bad. Some video games such as Wiifit are designed to help lose weight and get exercise. Video games can also teach important lessons that can be applied to reality as well.

Triple Jump

Triple jump is a track and field sport in which the competitor runs down the track and performs a hop, bound and jump into a sand pit. The goal of this event is to jump the furthest into the sand pit. The current world record is held by Olympian Jonathan Edwards of Great Britain with a jump of 18.29 meters (60 feet).

Approach Phase:

The approach run is a full sprint down the track towards the pit that can be maintained throughout the hop, step, and jump phases. This phase is crucial because all the strength and balance of the ensuing phases depends on this approach.

First Phase (Hop): In this first phase, when you jump off the board, throw up your jumping knee (either left or right depending on which one feels more comfortable) and cycle it forward while keeping your thigh parallel to the ground. Your opposite foot should be pulled up behind you while doing this. Make sure to land with your foot even to maintain your speed and to keep your momentum going forward.

Second Phase (Step): Many triple jumpers tend to struggle in this second phase which causes their overall distance to be way off then what it could potentially be. The form of this second phase is somewhat similar to the first phase. In this second phase however, after coming off your first phase, throw up the jumping knee (opposite of the first leg you used in the first phase) and your opposite knee back. You should keep your knee up almost like your skipping but it's actually more like a bound. Remember to land with your foot flat to maintain your momentum and speed.

Third Phase (Jump):

This final phase is almost like a long jump where you use everything you have left in yourself to jump as far as possible. Make sure to bring your feet forward and to lean forward to maximize your distance.

Overall, triple jump is a very technical and difficult track and field event. However, one of the things most enjoyable about this event is that you can always improve on something. Wether it may be your your speed in your approach phase or your last phase, you can always get better. This is my favorite event to compete in because it requires lots of time and training and I know I can always improve no matter how bad or how well I do.

Should Oscar Pistorius be placed in a South African Prison?

On February 14, 2013, Judge Masipa convicted Oscar Pistorius, an olympic and paralympic track star, of culpable homicide in the killing of Reeva Steenkamp. Ms. Steenkamp was a 29 year old law graduate and model who had been dating Mr Pistorius. However, there is a debate on wether Mr Pistorius should serve his sentence under home arrest, or at the South African prisons. The South African Prisons have been called overcrowded, harsh, and are dominated by gangs.

Oscar Pistorius will most likely stay in a hospital wing if sentenced to a prison. The hospital section contains five wards, 22 rooms, and one bath and one shower per ward. Zach Modise, the acting head of South Africa’s correctional services, also testified that the country's prisons contained single-cell accommodation, vocational training, health care, sports facilities and gyms and that they were well equipped for disabled people. However, Mr. Modise declined to guarantee that Oscar Pistorius would be placed in a hospital wing if sentenced to prison.

However, if Oscar Pistorius is sentenced to a prison sentence and is not placed in a hospital wing, he would have to face the overpopulated, harsh and unhealthy environments of South African prisons that are also dominated by gangs. The environment would also be unsuitable for him in his disabled state that requires special health care. It has also been reported that one of the most notorious prison gang leaders threatened to "take him out" even if Oscar Pistorius was a very wealthy individual.

Although the harsh prison environments may not be ideal to the disabled Oscar Pistorius, it is only fair that he is punished just as fairly as others for committing such a heinous crime. Even if he is not placed in a hospital wing, it is only fair that he is sentenced to prison just as if any other "ordinary" individual would be punished despite the potential dangers of the prison gangs residing there. This is something Oscar Pistorius must deal with as a consequence for committing this inhuman, foul crime.

Websites:

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/17/world/africa/oscar-pistorius-sentencing-hearing.html?ref=world&_r=0
http://online.wsj.com/articles/oscar-pistorius-to-remain-in-hospital-wing-if-sentenced-to-jail-time-1413457391
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/crime/jail-threats-revealed-oscar-pistorius-sentencing-hearing-article-1.1976215

Response to Community Post -#1: Exposing Hidden Biases at Google to Improve Diversity

In the article, "Hidden bias at Google" by Farhad Manjoo published on September 24, 2014, Farhad Manjoo reveals the hidden bias of males over females and certain races over others is present in many forms in today's society. Companies such as Google, Apple, and Facebook, have released documents revealing the different races and sex of their employees. This documents showed that men represent an overwhelming majority of the employees compared to women. There is also a severe underrepresentation of Blacks and Hispanics among its work force according to nytimes.com. Google has taken into account of these new reports and has taken action. For example, Google has started a series of workshops in a attempt to make Google more accepting of a diverse community. The series of workshops that Google has launched are based on a field of research in social psychology known as unconscious bias. Unconscious bias are hidden judgments that shape peoples views and can affect several key components in a work environment such as how welcoming or open people are to people of diverse backgrounds and different ideas. Lazlo Block, Google's executive in charge of human resources, suspected that unconscious bias was most likely more hidden and a deeper part of culture. One of Mr. Bock's researchers Dr. Brian Welle claimed that everyone is a little racist or sexist and that damaging bias is unconscious. However, Dr. Welle points out that we can become more aware of our unconscious actions and overcome these hidden judgements with better decision-making and forcing others to face their biases.

Google has taken huge strides towards ending unconscious bias and the social preferences of others by launching several workshops and raising awareness of these recurring problems in Google as well as other major tech companies as well. Although these workshops may not solve the problem of unconscious bias in many companies, it raises awareness and causes employees to be more cautious and aware of their actions. This is a very important first step towards creating a culture of acceptance of diversity. Google also offered several anecdotes in which employees displayed examples of their less biased culture. “Just raising the awareness was enough for people to think about it,” Mr. Bock said. Also, another benefit of improving diversity in Google could be that diverse teams can be more creative than homogenous ones according to nytimes.com and a diverse work force could aid Google's business. Although everyone may be a little racist and sexist, it is still possible to change people's views and opinions for the better and help people be more accepting of others and their differences.