My experience with "the blogs"

I think that the blogs are a good exercise to practice your vocabulary. Also, you can know a little more about your classmates.

Music!

I don't have only one favorite kind of music, because I have favorite singers of different styles.
One of my favorite singers is Björk, an icelandic singer-songwriter. I can't say what kind of music is the Björk's music, but according to some experts her music is a mix between "trip hop", "electronic" and "experimental". I don't know, but I love her! <3 Her music videos are amazing and her last disc "Vulnicura" is wonderful.
The brazilian music is one of my favorite kind of music. I love Chico Buarque and his social letters with lively tunes. Caetano Veloso is other of my favorite singers. I like the "saudade" in the brazilian music, I think that you can know that feeling through the music.
Baden Powell is my favorite brazilian musician, he is a guitarist and his styles are bossa nova, samba and jazz.
In general, I like the latinoamerican music: the cuban music with Silvio Rodríguez and Buena Vista Social Club (the last year I went to the concert of Buena Vista Social Club and was a good experience); the "nueva canción" movement in Chile with amazing groups as Inti-Illimani and Quilapayún, and the argentinian rock.
I think that the best age music of Argentina and Chile was in the 70's and 80's. Víctor Jara in Chile and Charly García, Luis Alberto Spinetta and Soda Stereo in Argentina are extraordinary.
I like listening to music. This blog was written with two discs: Cuba of Putumayo and Viva Chile! of Inti-Illimani.

Research Workshop, Public Policies and Social Stratification in Chile

This is my fourth semester in Sociology, my degree. This semester I don't have only one favorite subject. My favorite subjects are three: "Research Workshop", "Public Policies" and "Social Stratification in Chile". 

In "Research Workshop" I can choose a free topic for research. My favorite field is Sociology of Work, so my research is about the vocational identities and the collective action in the tertiary sector new employees. Since this year, "Research Workshop" is the first stage of the thesis, so it is an important subject. I'm very excited, but I need to read a lot! 

In "Public Policies" you can design and implement a policy to try to solve problems in an organization or association. I'm working with FECH (University of Chile Student Federation). The problem that I try to solve is the student participation, because it is very low.

In "Social Stratification in Chile" you can be aware about the intellectual debate in our country, social classes and the social position of people within a social group. Sometimes in classes, the teacher (Barozet, I love her!) invites experts in some matters for talking with the students. That's very entertaining! My research in this subject is about the opportunities in the Private Higher Education Institutions. 

An expert in my field: Enrique De la Garza

My favorite sociology field is Sociology of Work. The Sociology of Work goes back to the classical sociological theorist: Marx, Durkheim and Weber, all considered the analysis of modern work to be central to the field of sociology. For example, Marx was the first social theorist to really examine the conditions of work in factories during the industrial revolution.
An expert in that field is the mexican sociologist Enrique De la Garza. 

De la Garza is teacher in Metropolitan Autonomous University of Mexico. 

He has written 250 articles for scientific magazines, about Labor Process Theory, the employment relationship, situation of work and modes of production in Latina America, among others. 

Some books written by him are: Latino American Treatise of Sociology of Work and Social Theories and Studies of Work.

His contribution is very important for me, because this year I started my research about the vocational identities and the collective action in the tertiary sector new employees. But, I think that the problem of De la Garza is the absence in his theory of collective action. So, the perspective of the author for me is incomplete and more theoretical than practice. 

One of my favourite writers: Julio Cortázar

This week, I decided to write about one of my favourite writers, because is very difficult choose one writer. So, I chose... Julio Cortázar.


Julio Cortázar is an argentine novelist and short story writer. He has been called a "modern master of the short story". He wrote a lot of short stories, collected in volumes as "Final del Juego" or "Bestiario". "Final del Juego" was the first Cortázar's book that I read, and since that moment my life changed. One of my favourite books, is written by him: Rayuela, a novel that you can read according to two different sequences of chapters. You can read progressively from chapters 1 to 56, or through the entire set of 155 chapters according to a "Table of instructions" designated by Cortázar. I can't tell the story, but if I had to say something about the book, I can say that is a wonderful travel.
Cortázar was activist engaged in opposing abuses of human rights in Latin America, and was a supporter of the Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua as well as Fidel Castro's Cuban revolution.
In his literature, you can see the influence of the surrealism and he uses the interior monologue.
Last year, I travelled to Buenos Aires, and I could meet the coffee "London City", the coffee where Cortázar wrote the novel "Los Premios". It was a great experience.

 

Wall Street, New York City.

This photograph was taken by my cousin Camila, in the winter holidays of 2014. With my cousins I traveled to New York City in United States that year, for ten days. A exiled partner invited me and I only paid my ticket. That was so good, because NYC is very expensive, especially the play to stay.

In this photograph, I was in Wall Street, the "financial district". When the photograph was taken, I went to the East River, because if you sail in the East River you can see the Statue of Liberty. In Wall Street, I could see the National September 11 Memorial, and the huge buildings. But honestly, I went to Wall Street because is the place where you take the ship to see the Statue of Liberty. After the photograph, I went to the East River and saw the Brooklyn Bridge.

I like this photograph, because that holidays were so good. I could know an important part of the country through the perspectives of sudamerican, indian and american people. I learnt that the country doesn't guarantee minimum social rights so, I could confirm that the economic and social model is bad, because is so unequal. 

Human Evolution Timeline

1. About 800,000 years ago, the fire was controlled by early humans.
2. About six million years ago most early human species became bipedal.
3. The Homo Habilis used to live in Eastern and Southern Africa.
4. About 12,000 years ago, humans managed to control the growth and breeding of some plants and animals.
5. The Sahelanthropus tchadensis is the earliest human species from the timeline.

1. What's been the role of climate change in the development of humans?

The role of climate change in the development, was make the adaptation and evolution.

2. In your opinion, what is the most significant milestone for the human evolution? Why?
The rapid increase in brain size, because the difference between the humans and the animals is the reason.

3. Which early human species was thought to be the first to use tools made from stone?

Homo habilis.

4. Who were the first human species to travel to and live in Europe? When?

Homo heidelbergensis.

5. Which species survived for the longest time? For how long?

Homo erectus, surviving more than nine times as long as our own species. 

Dancer in the Dark - Lars Von Trier

I don't have a favourite movie, but I can say that I have favourite film director. My favourite film director is Lars Von Trier (european film director, because my chilean film director is Pablo Larraín). Lars Von Trier is danish and he is associated with the movement "Dogme 95". In "Dogme 95", the filmmakers concentrate on the story and the actor's performances.

Today, I'm going to talk about a beautiful movie of Lars Von Trier: "Dancer in the Dark", starring icelandic singer Björk (I LOVE HER!). The movie was premiered at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival and was awarded with "Palma de Oro".

The movie is filmed at Washington, United States. Selma (Björk) is a czech inmigrant who has moved to United States with her son. Selma has a hereditary degenerative disease which is gradually causing her to go blind. For that reason, Selma moved to U.S., to look for a work and can save money to pay for an operation which will prevent her little son from suffering the same fate. Selma works a lot and to escape the misery of her daily life, she slips into hallucinations where she imagines the ordinary circumstances with ordinary people into a music theater number.

My favourite part is the end of the film (keep your calm, I won't tell you the end). The song of the end, written and sing for Björk is perfect for that moment and her performance is amazing!

I love this film, because shows the reality: the poverty, treachery for money and the ugly part of the world.

I hate the movies with perfect end.

My favourite piece of technology: HP Envy X2

My favourite piece of technology is my laptop. The model of my laptop is HP Envy x2 and is so cool, because is a tablet and a computer at the same time. It's very light, pretty, fast and easy to use. I bought my laptop about three years ago, when I started my first year as an undergraduate student, because I thought that it was very necessary for the university. 

I use my laptop everyday, for different reasons: I use the tablet of my laptop especially for reading, because is very useful. I like listening to music, so I use my laptop for that too. Other use is for seeing movies, because with my account in netflix I can see a lot of movies all time. My favourite Netflix's series is "House of Cards".

Without my laptop, I couldn't work at night, and I always do my homework in the night.

I think that my life would be more complicated without my laptop, because I should spend more money to print texts and I couldn't see with frequency my series. Luckily, I have never lost my laptop.

Why I chose Sociology?

In 2013 I started my first year as an undergraduate student in University of Chile.
My family and me were very happy, because I'm the second generation of professionals.
At first, I wanted to study law, but then I thought that Sociology was a more appropriate degree for me.
My first year studying sociology was cool, because I learnt a lot. Fortunately, I live in Santiago so my first year in the University was easier than for other partners of regions.
Sociology is a social science that uses methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to study the social structure, the change in the social order and power relationships. I like my degree because I can see the things from different angles and I can contribute in public policies.
In the future, I want to study a postgraduate course in the area of public policy to learn more and to take part in reality.

Who I am?

Hi everybody! My name is Antonia Morales and I'm from Chile. I was born in 1995, therefore I'm twenty one years old. I'm student of sociology at University of Chile. I have a beautiful brother, his name is Domenico and he is an important reason to fight for a more equal world. My mother is a teacher, she works in a social risk's school, so her job is very hard. I like eating food of different countries, especially italian and indian food. I love watching movies and my favourite film director is Lars Von Trier. I love reading and my favourite book is "The Savage Detectives", written by the chilean author Roberto Bolaño.

I think my more big weakness in english is the shortage of vocabulary.

I hope that it will be possible to learn in the class, because I think that the english is very important and necessary to read texts of my discipline.