Inhaltsverzeichnis

1 Homework
2 Basic Skills & Information
3 Obesity in the USA
4 The Hobbit
- 4.1 Talks
- 4.2 Reading Diary / Scrapbook
5 Globalization
6 Robots, Science and Technology - Can they save us?
7 Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet

Abitur 2019

Materialien für das Colloquium

11/1- Schwerpunktsemester

The American Dream

12/1

Obesity in the USA
Globalization
The Hobbit

12/2

Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet
Robots, Science and Technology - Can they save us
Image of the USA since 1945

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Homework

Compare the definition of tragedy on this page with this summary of Romeo and Juliet!
Explain, where in the plot of the play we find typically tragic constellations/situations/decisions/conflicts!

Cartoon
We will regret the day we started making robots that actually live with us and allow us to interact with them like we do with humans!

Comment on this statement!

You interview the speaker of a group of parents demonstrating for child education without PCs and smartphones and a focus on the dangers of the massive use of and focus on technology in our lives!

Link zum zumpad: ClickMe!.

Please finish your answers to these questions:

Can/ should robots love/have a meaningful relationship with people?
Can/ should people love/ have a relationship with robots?
What are the effects/new developments descibed here? What are the problems?

Write your ideas about the future use of robots into this etherpad:

https://zumpad.zum.de/p/robots-will

New

Describe and analyse this Cartoon on Science and Humanities
Remember to write an introductory/a topic sentence!

Describe and analyse this Cartoon on Americanization
Remember to write an introductory/a topic sentence! (Alternative link to the cartoon: here

Describe and analyse this Cartoon on Free trade and Globalization.
Remember to write an introductory/a topic sentence!

OLD STUFF...

Write out pros/cons concerning globalisation from 2 of the pages linked under "Globalisation" further down own this page.

Basic Skills & Information

Information on homework and oral grades
Reading and Marking technique - SQ3R Method A useful method to read, mark and annotate texts.
Working with Cartoons

Obesity in the USA

Reasons for obesity:

medical/biological disposition or use of medication (rare)
unhealthy food cheaper than healthy food
too much salt, sugar and fat
people eat a lot of sugar without knowing
sugar increases your appetite
cornfructose is a very cheap + good tasting ingredient
labels like smart choice make things worse, as they make people eat more and as they advertise fat free food, but fat is replaced by sugar
we do not only eat when we are hungry
we do not think about how much and what we eat
marketing of cheap / high-calorie/sugary food and extremely large portions
insufficient physical exercise compared to amount of food we eat

Effects of obesity:

high cholesterol + and blood-sugar ==> heart diseases, diabetes, stroke,
various cancers, massive diabetes
problems with joints (knees, ankles, hips) due to massive overweight
reduced life-expectancy
health care costs and costs of unemployment, long-term-illnes and care for extremely obese people increase dramatically
problems with public transport, travel, etc. => loss of mobility
severe limitations / loss of quality of life => depression, isolation

Possible solutions:

more exercise/sports
eat more low calorie food
legal steps against hidden sugar, oversize portions, … for better information on labels of food we buy
instruct kids in school + change school lunch
teach people about consequences and responsible eating (portion sizes, sugar intake, ...)
make children walk to school instead of going by bus
local restaurants can change their menus + portion sizes
drink less beer and high-sugar softdrinks

Further material

The Hobbit

Cf. your scrapbook + worksheets + notes that you took while we were reading it in class. Especially look at the two concepts of the hero, at Bilbo and Thorin ...!
Reasons for reading Fantasy:

Why the hobbit is so successful:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/booknews/9555838/The-Hobbit-What-has-made-the-book-such-an-enduring-success.html

Talks

Each talk on a chapter includes:

A short summary of the chapter, and its relation to the chapter before
A short explanation/interpretation of the headline (relation to the chapter, effect on the reader in terms of creating expectation)
Presentation of one passage (about 20 lines) from the chapter, which is most exciting/characteristic/funny / brings most change for reader.

=> Explain why you chose exactly this passage!

Reading Diary / Scrapbook

The basic idea is that of a "reading-diary". That means

keeping a simple log-/scrapbook while reading the novel
stopping from time (at least after each chapter) to time to think about what you have read!
thinking about questions like: "Is there anything that puzzles you?" and noting down questions or striking quotations!
asking yourself if you like or dislike a character + what makes you feel so?
making notes that you can add to (e.g. one page per character for characterization)!

The scrap book that you have to hand in is part of the coursework (marked!)

These are the minimum reqirements, that is the questions you need to have readable and reasonable NOTES on:

Chapters 1 and 2:

Characterize Bilbo and one other character (round or flat, relation to each other?)!
What kind of story and hero do you expect at the end of chapter one?
Compare your impressions of Bilbo and the dwarves at the end of chapter II with those at the end of chapter I.

Chapter 3

Collect/write out - passages/quotes that create (page)tension /excitement/premonitions (NOTES!!)

Look at the language, narrator's comments/ descriptions or interesting quotes of characters!

What image of the elves is created? How is this done? (NOTES)
What role can the elves be expected to play? (NOTES)
What must the travellers expect on their way ……? (NOTES)

Chapters 4 + 5:

p. 65-70: What rhetorical devices (e.g. symbols, style) and narrative tricks are used to create the special mood, tension and expectations? (NOTES)
Collect all important information about goblins/orks in a "what travellers ought to know about goblins" profile! (NOTES)
What are the similarities and differences between Bilbo and Gollum? Look at their appearance, behaviour, relation to other charcters ... (NOTES, ideally a simple table ….)

How has Bilbo developed in ch. 4+5

Chapter 7 for Wednesday 26th March 2018

characterize Beorn … (NOTES)
how does the mood / atmosphere develop from page 158 – 162 … How is this effect achieved? (NOTES)

Chapter 8 (READ 8 + 9 + 10 for Monday October 1st)

Show and explain, how this chapter reveals Bilbo's heroic qualities (NOTES+pages)
Compare the different dwarves' (Bombur - Thorin - Kili&Fili) and Bilbo's roles/function in the story in chapter 8! Are the different dwarves flat or round characters? (NOTES)

Chapters 8, 9, 10

Compare the endings of chapters 8, 9 and 10 (NOTES - perhaps a table)!
Look at the mood/atmosphere (language, key words), and the expectations for the next chapter that are created? How effective are the three chapter endings?

Read Chapters 11, 12, 13 for Monday, 8th October!

Write a full text characterization of Smaug from ch. 11 and 12!
Look at pp. 271-272: What makes the text sound old-fashioned?

Read chapter 14 for Wednesday, 10th October!

Characterize Bard and and check his heroic qualities (cf. handout) NOTES!!

Read chapter 15 + 16 for Monday, 15th October and chapter 17 for Wednesday, 17th October!

Apply the concepts of the epic hero and anti-hero to Bilbo and Thorin.

Which of the two models/characters is presentetd as more successful and how is that shown? (Notes ... use a table with two columns)

Read chapter 18 + 19 for Monday, 22nd October!

Sum up what Bilbo has lost and gained in the end!
What do you think of Bilbo's development throughout the book and what does it tell the (young) reader?

Globalization

Listening: Free trade

Listen to this mp3-file on free trade twice.
Answer the following questions:
1. How does Andrew walker define free trade? (two aspects)
2. The WTO is not about free trade but .................... (Complete!)
3. What can two countries in a trade dispute expect from the WTO?
4. Fill in the blanks!

So members can complain if other members break WTO rules. And those rules have been ................... over a series of WTO conferences, like the one in Cancun in September. But the Cancun talks ........................ because of disagreements over what are known as the Singapore ................- Andrew Walker explains why.

5. Name at least 4 problems that are part of the Singapore issues!
6. Fill in the blanks!

Male speaker: It actually costs only half as much to produce ................ here as in, say, America. But these African farmers simply can't match the ................ .......... Western prices and still turn a profit. So along with three neighbours, Mali ..... ................. to the World Trade Organisation.

Female speaker: BBC reporter Nick Ravenscroft reporting from Mali, which has brought a complaint before the WTO about US subsidies for cotton farmers. Economics and Business .............. Andrew Walker explains why subsidies and ..................... matter.

7. What is one of the negative consequences of EU subsidies according to the text?
8. Right or wrong? - The EU surplus policy is welcomed by many countries.
9. Right or wrong? - Nigerian farmers are badly affected by EU surplus sales.
10. Right or wrong? - There are complaints about the US as well as from the US.
11. What products are affected by the EU ban on US agricultural products and what reason does the EU give?
12. Why did the WTO order the EU to remove the ban?
13. Fill in the blanks!

And if the WTO decides that a trade ................. is against WTO rules - what happens next? Well the WTO allows members to ............... - to put up their own trade barriers. In the case we’ve just heard between the US and the EU - the US has retaliated with a series of import ................. on goods from Europe.

14. What goods did the US put very high tariffs on? (name two)

Links: General Pros and Cons

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Links: Globalisation and the Internet

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Links: Globalization and culture

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History / 3 Phases of Globalization

Globalzation 1.0 (first phase/era) - 1492 (Columbus) until around 1800

world got connected, shrank from size L to M
trade between Old World and New World
countries' power defined by use of horse power/wind power/steam power/ (horses, ships, engines)
aim: to fit into global competition
motivation often religion / imperialism

Globalization 2.0 (second era) - 1800 to 2000

interrupted by the Great Depression, World War I and II
world got more connected, shrank from size M to S
industrial revolution and multinational companies (e.g. East India Company) as most dynamic forces
global integration ⇐ breakthroughs in hardware development

1. falling transportation costs (steam engine, railroad, cars, airplanes)

2. falling telecommunication costs (telegraph, telephone, PC, satellites ...)

development of really global economy ⇒ massive movement of goods and information

Globalization 3.0 (third era) - from 2000 to …

world got even more connected, shrank from S to XXS and countries got even closer
newfound power for individuals to communicate, collaborate, compete globally
key developments:

- fiber-optic cable + Internet + work flow software + mobile computing

- final end of simple East/West division

⇒ very small, flattened world/playing field (many forces on same level, even individuals are very powerful)

- China has become more powerful

- now much more diverse, non-white, non-European influences ⇒ West no longer dominant in globalization

Source: Friedman, Thomas. The The World is Flat. <http://www.labeee.ufsc.br/~luis/egcec/livros/globaliz/TheWorldIsFlat.pdf>, p. 8f, 13.11.2018

Robots, Science and Technology - Can they save us?

Robots

Pro

Con

can replace humans in many dangerous, boring, dirty situations/jobs
more effective than humans, have no human needs/weaknesses
higher endurance
developments in robotics can be used in medicine (artificial limbs or organs)

Replace humans in all situations, effect could be e.g. unemployment
Humans may get too lazy
Humans are/feel no longer needed
Robot could have a malfunction or be hacked
Robots could threaten, control or eliminate humans
unclear status of robot: Man or machine?

In the future robots will ...

In the future, robots will be used to ...

care for old people
replace astronauts
drive cars
do surgeries
produce most products => (production gets cheaper and better)
provide an independent workforce for many jobs (=> AI)
provide a reliable workforce
make life easier
cure cancer (nanorobots) and other diseases
act as self driving cars => mobility for evryone, safety, fewer traffic-jams, ....

Chances:

replacement of other technical devices or even humans (caring professions, cleaning, gardening)
help/support for people in their jobs/an independent life (ill, aged, handicapped people)
replace humans in dangerous environments (defusing bombs, maintenance in nuclear power plants, work with poisonous substances )
can make work easier (esp. if very repetitive work, physically demanding)
can fly to far-away planets -> don’t have to breathe/ eat /sleep /die
can help to fix shortages in human labor (fewer and fewer young people)
can work 24/7
cheaper than paying wages => cheaper products

Problems:

people get lazy / lose their purpose in life
less employment (esp. for low-skilled workers) => high unemployment => social problems
easy to sabotage (cyberattacks, hacks)
used for war (no ethical limits, unlimited supply prolongs wars, high human casualties)
don’t always work perfectly (can't adapt, what if badly programmed, no real creative thinking) => damages/responsibility?
robots using artificial intelligence start reprogramming themselves => who controls/can control if they "learn" the right things?
no real empathy
robots don't pay taxes, neither do most big companies ....

Numbers and uses of robots are increasing in the military sector and in households

Advantages of using robots:

Military robots:

advantage in war
unlimited supply of robots
fewer in human lives lost
more effective use of weapons than human soldiers
arms race in robotics has begun → US a must keep advantage in this field
Machines: no negative or strong emotions
better at quick, rational decision-making
more rational/calm and ethical decisions (no anger, revenge) is

Household robots

save time/work/do boring and dirty jobs ⇒ useful helpers
can be used to control home/house remotely

Problems/dangers of using robots:

Military robots

Sufficient ability to identify proper targets/combatants?
right to decide about acceptable human collateral damage?
inability to show mercy/give pardon
who is responsible if robot kills wrongly
technical ability to kill and destroy is more easily developed than more role/ethical control-mechanisms
dangerous, 100% obedient tool in the hands of dictators etc.

Household robots if hacked, they could be illegally used to

control our homes
spy on us
attack us

Relationships between human beings and robots???

Can/ should robots love/have a relationship with people?

even though they are robots, it still seems lifelike to e.g. chat with them
robots are getting more human-like, e.g. can recognize facial expressions (programming and not real emotions)
robots may not be able to love you back, but could be good at faking it
robots get more realistic/interactive (well developed scripts) ==> people are able to form close relations
humans can feel real concern over robots ==> empathy for a machine
talk to robots via text message feels dynamic and sincere, they don’t judge you …
robots are easy to connect to ==>- people can have real feelings for robots
with a robot, you can live happily ever after (robots don't die, you won't get rejected)
robots are perfect (characters/partners, programmed according to your wishes)
people can explore unmet emotional needs in a world of dreams ==> a perfect/alternative world which can't be found in human society

What are the problems?

robots don't have real feelings ==> responses are pre-scripted/follow algorithms
allowing robots to experience pain or emotions raises moral questions
most robots don't have enough emotional and intellectual depth
people spend hours playing games (esp. if they can chat with virtual characters) ==> games run in real time, once you've started, you have to keep playing or you'll lose track ==> get addicted fast
people can escape reality and start ignoring real life, or the strenuous business of dealing with hard-to-find and unpredictable or “imperfect” human partners
dating simulations have become very popular, start replacing frustrating/difficult “real dating”
fewer real human relationships ==> low fertility rates in Japan
creation of a machine-mediated society ==> love revolution
there is likely to be a heavy stigma attached to human - robot relationships, perhaps leading to discrimination, or even exclusion from some aspects of society
a robot partner does everything you want it to do

not a realistic circumstance for a relationship

humans in relationships with robots could get a wrong perception about what is right or wrong in a human relationship

BUT: people still don't see the interaction with virtual characters as a substitute for human relationships
Robots are already being programmed to learn our patterns and preferences ==> danger for humanity as AI will be evolutionary superior to humans

Science and the Humanities

Science vs. Humanities - Text-Summary

Summary for Text "Science vs. Humanities"

only scientists make real contributions to humanity!
division into sciences and humanities makes solving world's problems difficult
many educated people have no understanding of basic concepts and the projects in modern physics
contrasting positions:

humanities give us understanding of history → learn from history → culture VS.

poetry doesn't save lives etc. like e.g. medicine

→ true that humanities can't solve e.g. medical or technical problems, but they provide what science can't do: answers to moral/ethical questions (not necessarily in shape of organized religion!)

philiosophy in the original sense included looking for answers to all questions (incl. natural. philosophy)
science and humanities give different answers to different questions, but both help us master our lives

Can "green" technology save us?

Text basis

Yes, it can:

better technologies produce less pollution/use fewer resources, are accepted as they reduce costs

But it doesn't

as technilogies reduce costs, the saved money will be spent

=> higher consumption, more travelling/transport => more CO2 emissions, more fuel used, more roads, more air-traffic …

growth = higher production/more traffic etc ==> leads to higher pollution/use of resources, although production processes are less harmful and more effective.
green technologies are there, but people get tired of topic of environmental protection, climate change ...
people believe effects of climate change can be countered with more technology (e.g. air filters, air conditioning, , flood barriers, pumps, ...) rather than avoid or reduce higher consumption and warming
Problem: Growth!

massive increase in world population leads to higher demand =higher production and consumption

Can Internet and computer technology save us?

Problems:

web-servers/data centers need a lot of energy + generate a lot of warmth that is bad for the climate change
numbers of servers and data grow expontetially
energy efficiency will slow the emissions, but it´s still expanding too much (more data, users ...)
data without use are spread/multiply => waste of energy
useless/growing amounts of data are never deleted ==> more and more servers needed

Chances:

improvements in energy efficiency
economic growth (in quality, not only quantity/consumption
easier exchange of information

Can IT and computers save us?

YES:

data transfer replaces physical transport
less travelling => teleworking and -conferences
more easily accessable knowledge
more/easier communication
motre collaboration and exchange of data/results in science

NO:

growing energy consumption (running servers, switches, cooling systems)
waste of storage capacities
isuse of the Internet (cat videos, pornography, story huge amount of useless/forgotten data)
data safety
usage hard to learn for older/uneducated people
usage difficult/impossible in regions without basic technical supplies or stable supply of electricity or internet connections

Mediation topic: CCTV cameras, face recognition etc.

FOR CAMERA SURVEILLANCE AT SCHOOLS AND IN PUBLIC SPACES:

cameras clearly deter criminals ==> can reduce crime
protection of weaker students/potential victim
private, public and school property can be protected
security is more important than the right to privacy
automatic crime detection systems alarm police early, human controller decides and triggers action
can be used in accordance with actual laws
private spaces (e.g. flats) are to be excluded
data are to be deleted after 72 hours

AGAINST SURVEILLANCE AT SCHOOLS AND IN PUBLIC SPACES:

there are areas not surveilled ==> crime/violence shift there
solution: more cams/ everywhere ==> illegal, nobody wants that!
constant observation ==> people feel uncomfortable, don't want to go/be there, loss of trust in respect of privacy ==> people change behavior, because tgey feel observed
enormous amount of manpower/money to evaluate the recorded material
bullying can not be effectively stopped by more cameras
deterrence only works for a short time, only big crimes solved more quickly
good for solving crimes, but usually not for preventing them
esp. terrorism can't be stop as they don't fear recognition
camera-free spaces become crime hot spots?
possible abuse by or possibility of establishing a totalitarian control system (cf. 3rd Reich, GDR => Stasi)
only automatic image processing makes it possible to analyze enormous amounts of data ==> lack of human control
can automatic systems really detect/recognize criminal actions dicriminate them from legal/harmless actions?
using randomly collected data to create biometric database of virtually everybody - without any connection to a crime - is illegal and dangerous
complete movement profiles for everybody filmed are created & together with face recognition allows state to completely control everyone
if affected people are not informed, they don't know and can't require information or legally object to this
lack of necessary laws that allow/regulate collection and processing of data only under certain circumstances (decision of judge, temporal and spatial limit, regulations for inquiry and information about stored data)
constant collection of data about everyone at demonstrations infringes on people's freedom of opinion and demonstrating / deters them from using their civil freedoms

Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet

Shakespeare's Theatre and Plays

Watch these two films about Elisabethan plays and playhouses!
Take notes that will help you to answer all the Wh-questions one can answer about plays, theatres, actors and theatre productions!

Questions:

Where? (<= why?)
When? (built, idea of playhouse? plays performed?)
What? (shape? size?) - (plays? themes?)
Who? (players/audience/producers?)
Why so attractive?
How? ( performance? advertising? stage? costumes? effects? music? lighting?)
How much ( money? length of play? payment?)
What happened (during the play?)
Special stage effects?
What effects on way of playing/performance?
Difficulties concerning building/running such a playhouse?

For a better understanding of the layout/structure of the playhouse ...:

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The Prologue

Blank verse and rhyme in "Romeo and Juliet"

Version from a 1996 movie:

Prologue to the most lamentable story of Romeo and Juliet

Two households both alike in dignity,
In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,
From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,
Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.
From forth the fatal loins of these two foes
A pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life;
Whose misadventur’d piteous overthrows
Doth with their death bury their parents’ strife.
The fearful passage of their death-mark’d love
And the continuance of their parents’ rage,
Which, but their children’s end, nought could remove,
Is now the two hours’ traffic of our stage;
The which, if you with patient ears attend,
What here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend.

What is the function of this prologue at the beginning of the play? What should it do - considering the opportunities and devices a play at Shekespeare's time is limited to!
What can you say about the language and structure of these lines? (Look at rhyme, rythm, metre and choice of words!)
Learn lines 1 - 8 by heart + practice reciting them .....!

Plot

Video summary

The Sonnett

A sonnet is a poetic form which originated in Italy. By the thirteenth century it signified a poem of fourteen lines that follows a strict rhyme scheme and specific structure. One of the best-known sonnet writers is William Shakespeare, who wrote 154 of them (not including those that appear in his plays).
A Shakespearean/typical English sonnet consists of fourteen lines written in iambic pentameter, a pattern in which an unstressed syllable is followed by a stressed syllable five times. The rhyme scheme in a Shakespearean sonnet is

a-b-a-b
c-d-c-d
e-f-e-f
g-g

The last two lines are a rhyming couplet. The couplet often includes the point/turning point of the poem or sums up the content.

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Tragedy

Tragedy: Drama of a serious and high-standing character that usually describes the development of a conflict between the protagonist and a superior force (such as destiny, circumstance, or society, the laws, in which the character often must choose between two alternatives, which both lead to his destruction. In a tragedy there is typically a sorrowful or disastrous conclusion.

Good Example:
Antigone by Sophocles( around 441 BC.) In this tragedy Antigone has to struggle against King Creon, her uncle. Her two brothers, Eteocles and Polynices were to reign over Thebes taking turns, but fighting over power, the two brothers kill each other. After this event, Creon declares that, as punishment, Polynices' body (he is quite correctly seen as a traitor) must be left on the plain outside the city to rot and be eaten by animals. Eteocles, on the other hand, is buried as tradition demands. Antigone determines this to be unjust, immoral and against the laws of the gods, and buries her brother regardless of Creon's law. Creon's guards discover this and capture her. Antigone is brought before him, where she declares that she broke his law, and agrees that the King's laws must be obeyed in a state, but she chose to break it, stressing the superiority of 'divine law' to that made by man.
Sophocles' Antigone ends in disaster, with Antigone hanging herself (she doesn't want to be stoned to death, or die slowly in the cave she has been put in), and Creon's son Hæmon, who loved and was engaged to Antigone, killing himself after finding her body. Queen Eurydice, wife of King Creon (who finally decides he should not kill Antigone – but comes too late to save her), also kills herself due to seeing such actions allowed by her husband.

^{Cf: http://www.answers.com/topic/tragedy#ixzz2NRtzACW5 and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antigone}

Apply this concept of tragedy to Romeo and his involvement in the deaths of Mercutio and Tybalt!

Read the text from here: Well, peace be with you, sir. Here comes my man. up to here: EXEUNT

Romeo and Mercutio are Montagues, Juliet and Tybalt (her cousin) are Capulets.

Thelenberg 2018 19