Week Two Blog

Sickness Prevention

Due to health concerns, students, young and old, are missing classes. The school is one of the worst environments for the spread of germs. In current times, it can be nearly impossible to prevent sickness when some "bug" is going around. With the technology of the 21st century, why isn't some form of immunity established that can prevent at least the common cold.

The bacteria associated with many common sicknesses can be extremely contagious. In a school environment, one sick student can leave bacteria on his desk during 1st hour for it to spread to the next 7 students that will sit there throughout the day. Schools are never sanitized during the day and students are given very little time between classes to wash their hands. Therefore, it becomes very easy for germs to spread. My own roommate currently has the flu. This is a very contagious sickness which is why he must have gotten it from the other students around campus who are currently, or previously had been, suffering from this illness.

With all of these sicknesses spreading so easily, something should be done to prevent the spread of contagious bacteria. Why can't immunities that prevent the spreading of these germs be produced? For example, if someone knows they are in an environment in which the flu exists, they should be able to drive to their local Walgreens and pick up some immune system booster that prevents the flu bacteria from infecting them. Is it really that difficult to prevent the spread of disease?

Sickness really takes a toll on the attendance of all students. This is because bacteria spreads so easily between students at school. A school is the perfect environment for the spread of contagious sicknesses. Why can't anything be done to prevent this harm?

Transportation

Has transportation improved at all over the past 30 years? Sure there are more roads, smoother rides, faster cars, but speed limits prevent people from getting anywhere any faster. A new system should be developed whether it is more efficient cars to reduce cost or a faster and safer form of transportation.
Our country has the the technology to produce much more fuel efficient cars but for some reason, manufacturers refrain from this. It is possible to make cars that get 100 mpg but the same inefficient cars are mass produced over and over again. It is thought that using these fuel efficient cars will put gas stations out of business, but for our country to move forward we need to get out of the current state we are in. Right now gas prices are low, but as we have seen in the past, prices can get surprisingly doubled in a short period of time. I believe that working for a more efficient system is extremely important even if some gas stations take the blow. More job opportunities will open up in the production of these fuel efficient cars anyways.
Prices are one problem but time is just as important. Twenty-five years ago it took nearly the same time to get from point A to point B. You would think that with the technology of the 21st century speeds would be improved from decades ago. Some type of system should be introduced in which transportation time is decreased because so many people waste hours commuting to their job or any other event. It would be very difficult to immediately switch to a faster system because higher speeds create more dangerous risks. This is why I believe that a completely new form of transportation should be developed. For example, cars can become computer operated, we can move to some form of flying vehicles, or even teleportation can be instituted. This seems very unrealistic but I think it is possible to create a computer driven car. If all cars could somehow drive themselves, communicating with the roadways and other vehicles, speeds could be dramatically increased. Relying on computers rather than humans can prevent tons of error and therefore will improve time spent traveling.
The transportation system in the United States has seen barely any improvement over the past few decades. Our country has the technology to improve this system by creating more efficient vehicles or transportation methods. These improvements may hurt certain businesses but it is important to let some things go in order to move forward. The United States is seen as the most advanced country in the world yet we refrain from using our technological power. Rather than sitting permanently in our current transportation system, this country should use its technology to advance above the rest.
--Brock Messner