Posts tagged ‘school’

Martial Arts And The Olympics

People tend to think of martial arts as being oriental, Kung Fu type fighting. However, the word ‘martial’ derives from the Latin word ‘mars, martis’, who was the Roman god of war. ‘Martial’, consequently, means ‘to do with war or fighting’.

As a result, martial can refer to Western ways of fighting too such as boxing and wrestling.

These martial arts have been around for thousands of years at least and originated on the battlefield where one’s competence in fighting was literally a question of life and death. Wrestling was in the Olympic Games more than 2,000 years ago.

Likewise, many of the oriental martial arts are just as old and came about because peasants were not permitted to bear arms in the social structures of the times.

In spite of the age of these martial arts, they did not become popular in the Developed world until Bruce Lee made them famous with his Kung Fu films in the early Seventies.

It is a little known fact that when Lee was sent to America at the age of 18 to avoid the wrath of a local Hong Kong mafia chief, he hoped to teach traditional martial arts, but was forbidden authorization by the local Chinese community.

There was an unwritten rule that non-Chinese were not to be taught Chinese martial arts. Lee ignored the rule, and he claimed to have been sent death threats from powerful Chinese underworld leaders from America and Hong Kong.

Lee taught martial arts to a select group of famous Caucasians and even invented his own style called Jeet Kune Do.

Jeet Kune Do used Lee’s astonishing speed and power in its moves. Three of Lee’s showcase moves were:

The Power Side Kick: with one kick, he could kick a 300 pound sack to hit a regular ceiling

The One Inch Punch: he could knock a trained fighter over with a punch that had travelled only one inch

The Lightning Snatch: with his arm by his side, he could snatch a dime from an open palm three feet away and leave a penny behind in 5/100 ths of a second.

Individuals wanted to be able to do the same. However, there are many different sorts of martial arts and numerous countries have their own individual style of fighting.

China has Judo and Kung Fu; Japan has Karate; Brazil has Brazilian Jiu Jitsu; Thailand has Muay Thai.. There are numerous other, mostly oriental styles, as well, like Tae Kwando and Aikido but also French Kick Boxing.

Some martial arts are more defensive in nature, but others are definitely aggressive: Judo and Aikido are examples of defensive styles and Karate and boxing are far more aggressive in character. However, all martial arts teach self-discipline and the students develop more self-confidence. Martial arts are experiencing a resurgence in popularity at the moment, mainly due to UFC bouts or mixed martial arts.

You might not approve of the violence of mixed martial arts, but it cannot be denied that many kids are learning a few martial arts, Western and Oriental, because of these popular TV fights.

Owen Jones, the writer of this piece, writes on lots of subjects, but is at present involved with the London 2012 Olympics mascot. Click a link if you are interested in the 2012 London Olympics Volunteers.

Popular Tags:

Complete Your Classes

Class completion rates for college students are getting lower and lower and many simply fail their classes. College is a big investment to be wasting money on and you need to use your time there wisely. Here are a few simple step to help you.

- Know yourself. Are you a morning person or an evening person? Do you study well in the afternoon or at night? If you are a night owl, do not schedule a morning 8 A.M. class. I promise you won’t make it through. Take a night course, plus they tend to be a little easier anyways.

- If you work 40 hours a weeks and then go to school, this is a recipe for diaster. Many people have no choice but to work in order to live. But if there is any way you can get by on fewer work hours then do so. Working all day, then going to school for three hours is a very difficult situation indeed.

- Have you considered online universities? If you have a crazy schedule or inflexible hours then this is the perfect option for you. Just log on and do your work as you have free time.

- Do you work? If you work 40 hours a weeks and then go to school, this is a recipe for sure fire burnout. Many people have no choice but to work in order to live. But if there is any way you can get by on fewer work hours then do so. Working all day, then going to school for three hours is a very difficult situation indeed.

- Tutoring resources are also often available. Many schools offer tutoring centers to help you with your classes. This is especially true of math and languages but writing and other subjects can be picked up for tutoring as well, and most students fail to take advantage of free tutoring.

- Take reasonable hours. 12 hours, or credits, is the normal load for a semester. Yes, you may want to be done with college, but if you take so many classes that you can’t keep up, you will just prolong your stay. Take a manageable amount of classes. Especially if you work. If you know you have a difficult or time consuming class, like algebra, then consider taking fewer classes so you can focus more on passing the difficult class. This is also true for classes that require those pesky labs, such as sciences and language arts. For a great education try university degrees for a degree you will love.

- Peer help and study groups are another great option to help you with your classes. Ask a couple of students if they would want to form a group. The professor will usually make an announcement if you ask them to. Find somebody who knows what they are doing (or at least looks like they do) and ask them if they would help tutor you or at least join your group. Study groups cater to multiple study styles which reinforces the information in your mind. It could also be a good way to connect with that cute person sitting in front of you.

Doing these simple, manageable thing may not seem like much but the can go a long way in making the difference between passing and failing.

If you are in the armed forces try online navy education to continue your education.

College Majors

When picking out what to study in college it’s important to consider your interests, talents and the job outlook of the field you are considering. It wouldn’t be a good idea to pick engineering you’ve failed all of your math classes. You want to pick a major that suits your abilities. Here are a few of the more common university majors.

If you enjoy number crunching then why not earn a living doing it! Accounting may not sound very exciting but CPA’s can make pretty good money. Coursework consists of extensive mathematics classes including statistics and calculus. Some can make millions if they become financial officers of big companies. Visit Trident PhD Online in order to earn a degree online.

History involves study about historical events; classes may include topics about American history, European history and even ancient history. Exams may consist of questions about historical events and students may be expected to write essays pertaining to the subject matter.

Engineering graduates can expect starting salaries that are much higher than that of their classmates. However, engineering classes tend to be a lot more challenging than English or History classes and generally involves a lot of very advanced mathematics. Chemical engineering degrees are very lucrative; some graduates can earn as much as $90k a year.

If you are interested in managing a business or even owning your own business then it may be a good idea to earn a business degree. Some students go on to earn an MBA or Masters of Business Administration. Most MBA students have had experience in the working world.

If you love reading and writing then consider majoring in English. You will get to read many books, novels and writing many essays of yourself. It may be difficult to find a high paying job with an English degree at first.

Psychology can be a very rewarding and interesting field of study. You get to learn about human emotions, interactions and the brain. Job outlook is best for graduates with a Phd degree in the field. Bachelor degree holders generally work as assistants to senior psychologists.

One way to pick a major is to attend one class of a subject that you are interested in to test out the waters. Another option is to “shadow” a professional who works in the field that you are interested in and to observe their day to day routine.

Interested in an online education? Trident University Degrees offers degree programs for military students. Our program allows you to study from the convenience of your own home.

Popular Tags: