November 24th 2009
After being taken away, Matt finds himself in the hospital, awaiting the surgery: his inevitable death. El Patron says his farewell speech to Matt, revealing that Matt owes him life, for not taking away Matt’s intelligence when he was born. Then, Celia reveals he injected Matt with a poison that does not kill him, but rather make it impossible for his organs to be fit for a transplant. El Patron dies.
The next day, Tam Lin is ordered to dispose of Matt, to dump him in the eejit wasteland. After being dismounted from the horse, Tam Lin reveals he has created an escape route for Matt. He must escape from Opium into Aztlan, and find Maria in San Luis.
Matt is sent out, on the journey to the border. When he finally reaches it, he makes a running attempt. He barely outruns the farm patrol, and is saved by a “keeper”. Matt is brought into a labor orphanage. He meets new friends Chacho and Fidelito. Every night the children must rehearse principals of work, and must confess to a sin they have committed.
The 3 are transported to a new factory orphanage where they must collect the plankton out of shrimp tanks. It is here that the boys must spend the next 4 years of their life. Matt is commonly referred to as the aristocrat, for his disagreement with the confessions, and how he preaches that the keepers get all these luxuries while the children must work. If you misbehave or disagree with the rules of work, or do not confess, you must “assume the position”, and be beat with a cane until you have learned your lesson.
I am very happy with Matt’s outcome. I’m glad Celia did what she did and Matt escaped. However, it did seem a little sad when El Patron died. He didn’t seem that bad, and Matt kind of felt bad for him too. I agree with Matt, when he said a part of El Patron will live a long as Matt lives.
Overall, the plot turned from good to bad though, when the Keepers took in Matt. It would really suck to have to work for 4 years until you are set free. It really shows how much we take for granted the fact that we live how we do here in Canada.
This section became more inciting, reading that Matt was fighting back against the keeper and their beliefs, however I don’t think this will have a positive outcome for Matt.
The book’s turn of events flows real nice, with each section of the book having an overall segment in setting and conflicts. I’m glad some of my older questions were answered. However I have many more. Will Matt live all 4 years here? Will him, chacho and Fidelito ever escape or be set free within that period? Again, I guess the answers lie within the next, final segment that I really look forward to reading.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
The House of the Scorpion: 3/5
November 23rd 2009
PG 153-228
The next section continues at the funeral. The priest discovers Matt is Patron's clones and threatens to kick him out, however Maria saves him, and takes him away, inside the music room passageway where they kiss, and speak to each other for the first time in years. Maria says she forgives him for killing Furball, but Matt doesn’t think Maria will believe him if he told her he didn’t do it. Maria once again must leave once the funeral ends, but they vow to see each other soon.
Matt, one day, decides to take a horse, to go try and find his old home in the poppy fields. He ventures off towards the uncharted lands, and comes to the eejit pens. The ground becomes unstable and the horse falls. Matt is left unable to move while having asthma attack in the toxic fumed wasteland. Luckily, the Farm Patrol pick him up, but they believe he is a runaway eejit. Matt tells him he is the clone of El Patron and threatens them. They believe him and return him to the “big house”. They tell Matt of Tam Lin’s history.
Steven and Emilia, have been ordered by El Patron to be married. However, during the wedding, El Patron has an almost fatal heart attack. It is here that Matt learns why he was made; to transplant his heart or any other organs that Patron would need in the future. Everyone is searching for Matt who has hidden in the house. They must find him before Patron dies. Tam Lin plans an escape for Maria and Matt, however Steven and Emilia find them, and Matt is sent away to the hospital.
This part of the book has proved to be the most inciting so far. It all builds up to the final climax, and Matt and Maria’s love is finally revealed. I think the ending is very sad. I really hope that Matt’s fate turns out good. I highly believe it will, as I'm not sure how else the book will go on if Matt were to be killed off.
My earlier question about Tam Lin has finally been answered. The farm patrol tell Matt that Tam Lin was a terrorist that tried to blow up the prime ministers building, but instead killed 20 kids that drove by on a bus. El Patron had saved him and brought him here to work while being protected from the police, and government.
I think I have too many questions now. Will Matt ever see Maria again? What exactly will his fate be? Will El Patron die or live from this heart attack. The list goes on. I guess this is what really makes me hungry for more House of the Scorpion.
PG 153-228
The next section continues at the funeral. The priest discovers Matt is Patron's clones and threatens to kick him out, however Maria saves him, and takes him away, inside the music room passageway where they kiss, and speak to each other for the first time in years. Maria says she forgives him for killing Furball, but Matt doesn’t think Maria will believe him if he told her he didn’t do it. Maria once again must leave once the funeral ends, but they vow to see each other soon.
Matt, one day, decides to take a horse, to go try and find his old home in the poppy fields. He ventures off towards the uncharted lands, and comes to the eejit pens. The ground becomes unstable and the horse falls. Matt is left unable to move while having asthma attack in the toxic fumed wasteland. Luckily, the Farm Patrol pick him up, but they believe he is a runaway eejit. Matt tells him he is the clone of El Patron and threatens them. They believe him and return him to the “big house”. They tell Matt of Tam Lin’s history.
Steven and Emilia, have been ordered by El Patron to be married. However, during the wedding, El Patron has an almost fatal heart attack. It is here that Matt learns why he was made; to transplant his heart or any other organs that Patron would need in the future. Everyone is searching for Matt who has hidden in the house. They must find him before Patron dies. Tam Lin plans an escape for Maria and Matt, however Steven and Emilia find them, and Matt is sent away to the hospital.
This part of the book has proved to be the most inciting so far. It all builds up to the final climax, and Matt and Maria’s love is finally revealed. I think the ending is very sad. I really hope that Matt’s fate turns out good. I highly believe it will, as I'm not sure how else the book will go on if Matt were to be killed off.
My earlier question about Tam Lin has finally been answered. The farm patrol tell Matt that Tam Lin was a terrorist that tried to blow up the prime ministers building, but instead killed 20 kids that drove by on a bus. El Patron had saved him and brought him here to work while being protected from the police, and government.
I think I have too many questions now. Will Matt ever see Maria again? What exactly will his fate be? Will El Patron die or live from this heart attack. The list goes on. I guess this is what really makes me hungry for more House of the Scorpion.
The House Of the Scorpion: 2/5
November 22nd 2009
PG 76-152
Throughout this section of the book, Matt is settling in with the Alacrans. Matt finds places to hide and watch people in the house. Finally he gains the courage to try the piano, and when Tam Lin sees him, he gives Matt a Piano teacher.
Matt is becoming very attached to Maria. She is the only one that sees humanity in Matt. She can sometimes be difficult, but I guess that’s all you can expect from a 7-year-old girl. El Patron has taught him to be confident and to show no weakness to his enemies. At El Patrons birthday party, Matt forces Maria to give him a kiss. She is furious, and does not talk to Matt for quite some time. Soon, El Patron has a heart attack, but steadily recovers. Tam Lin leaves to go with Patron.
In an attempt to convince Maria that he is only human, he kidnaps her dog, Furball, as this seemed to be the only way to come in contact with her after what happened. During the kidnapping, someone secretly put a large amount of a sleeping drug in the dog’s food, and kiss it. Matt is blamed, and Maria is taken away to live with her father.
After living without Maria for about 4 years, their paths cross once more at the funeral of an old Alacran family member.
My questions from my last entry still remain mostly unanswered, however this section did somewhat clear it up. El Patron seems to be very old and has a history as a drug lord. He has authority over the family, and can do anything he wants.
This section has changed my thought on Maria. She seems a little greedy, and sometimes never listens or believes Matt. I am hoping this will change when Maria and Matt talk once again.
Matt however. Has earned maybe a little too much from Patron. What he did to Maria was a little over the top: both kissing her and stealing her dog. But again, Matt was only 8 or 9 when this happened.
Tam Lin still remains my favorite character, though it is sad he had to leave after El Patron’s heart attack.
The book is getting better every page. It’s becoming more and more exciting, though it can take time for something inciting to happen.
PG 76-152
Throughout this section of the book, Matt is settling in with the Alacrans. Matt finds places to hide and watch people in the house. Finally he gains the courage to try the piano, and when Tam Lin sees him, he gives Matt a Piano teacher.
Matt is becoming very attached to Maria. She is the only one that sees humanity in Matt. She can sometimes be difficult, but I guess that’s all you can expect from a 7-year-old girl. El Patron has taught him to be confident and to show no weakness to his enemies. At El Patrons birthday party, Matt forces Maria to give him a kiss. She is furious, and does not talk to Matt for quite some time. Soon, El Patron has a heart attack, but steadily recovers. Tam Lin leaves to go with Patron.
In an attempt to convince Maria that he is only human, he kidnaps her dog, Furball, as this seemed to be the only way to come in contact with her after what happened. During the kidnapping, someone secretly put a large amount of a sleeping drug in the dog’s food, and kiss it. Matt is blamed, and Maria is taken away to live with her father.
After living without Maria for about 4 years, their paths cross once more at the funeral of an old Alacran family member.
My questions from my last entry still remain mostly unanswered, however this section did somewhat clear it up. El Patron seems to be very old and has a history as a drug lord. He has authority over the family, and can do anything he wants.
This section has changed my thought on Maria. She seems a little greedy, and sometimes never listens or believes Matt. I am hoping this will change when Maria and Matt talk once again.
Matt however. Has earned maybe a little too much from Patron. What he did to Maria was a little over the top: both kissing her and stealing her dog. But again, Matt was only 8 or 9 when this happened.
Tam Lin still remains my favorite character, though it is sad he had to leave after El Patron’s heart attack.
The book is getting better every page. It’s becoming more and more exciting, though it can take time for something inciting to happen.
Monday, November 23, 2009
The House Of the Scorpion: 1/5
November 21st 2009
For my group novel study, I am reading the book, “The House Of The Scorpion”. It is a 380-page novel written by Nancy Farmer. The title or cover gave me no idea about what the book could be about, until I read the back.
The first chapter introduces me to a character named Matt. He is six years old and living with his young guardian Celia among the “poppy fields”. He is an eager young child, and has almost never been outside his home. He is warned that danger lurks, and he must never be seen when on the inside. One day, Matt breaks free to follow some kids he saw pass by, but ends up cutting him self severely. The kids take Matt back to their mansion, the house of the Alacran to be stitched up, but he is recognized as a “clone”, and is thrown in a cell by the housekeeper Rosa. For six months Matt lived in a room full of sawdust and among his fesses. Finally one day, Rosa takes Matt to do a health check in front of the great “El Patron”. They discover the harm Rosa has inflicted on Matt, and she is taken away immediately. I later discover that Matt is El Patrons clone. El Patron gives Matt a bodyguard, and he officially is part of the Alacran household, but is portrayed as a “beast” and is sometimes neglected.
I think a lot happened in these first 76 pages. I have many questions about this piece I have read. Who exactly is El Patron and why is he feared among the Alacran household. Why does everyone think Matt is a beast because he is a clone? What is Tam Lin’s history, where did he come from?
For one, I am really glad the character Rosa was taken away, as she seemed to be the most vile and evil human I have ever read about. Maria, one among the Alacran kids seems like a nice character. She is the only one who sees humanity in Matt’s eyes, and spends time with him. Tam Lin, Matt’s bodyguard, is my favorite character. He has a very cool personality that is fun to read about.
So far, this book has proven that it is different and stands out among other books I’ve read. I look very much forward to read more, as I hope many of my questions will be answered.
For my group novel study, I am reading the book, “The House Of The Scorpion”. It is a 380-page novel written by Nancy Farmer. The title or cover gave me no idea about what the book could be about, until I read the back.
The first chapter introduces me to a character named Matt. He is six years old and living with his young guardian Celia among the “poppy fields”. He is an eager young child, and has almost never been outside his home. He is warned that danger lurks, and he must never be seen when on the inside. One day, Matt breaks free to follow some kids he saw pass by, but ends up cutting him self severely. The kids take Matt back to their mansion, the house of the Alacran to be stitched up, but he is recognized as a “clone”, and is thrown in a cell by the housekeeper Rosa. For six months Matt lived in a room full of sawdust and among his fesses. Finally one day, Rosa takes Matt to do a health check in front of the great “El Patron”. They discover the harm Rosa has inflicted on Matt, and she is taken away immediately. I later discover that Matt is El Patrons clone. El Patron gives Matt a bodyguard, and he officially is part of the Alacran household, but is portrayed as a “beast” and is sometimes neglected.
I think a lot happened in these first 76 pages. I have many questions about this piece I have read. Who exactly is El Patron and why is he feared among the Alacran household. Why does everyone think Matt is a beast because he is a clone? What is Tam Lin’s history, where did he come from?
For one, I am really glad the character Rosa was taken away, as she seemed to be the most vile and evil human I have ever read about. Maria, one among the Alacran kids seems like a nice character. She is the only one who sees humanity in Matt’s eyes, and spends time with him. Tam Lin, Matt’s bodyguard, is my favorite character. He has a very cool personality that is fun to read about.
So far, this book has proven that it is different and stands out among other books I’ve read. I look very much forward to read more, as I hope many of my questions will be answered.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
I, Robot - Chapter 9: The Evitable Conflict
October 11th 2009
The final chapter is basically an overview of the world in the year 2052. Powerful machines that run Earths economy and production, known as “The Machines”, have given orders against their function. These malfunctions haven’t caused much harm yet, but the fact that they are simply appearing is alarming. Stephen Byerley, the new elected World Coordinator, asks for advice from leaders of regions of the world, and Susan Calvin herself.
This final closing chapter to the book leaves me with tons of questions, and has me wondering. Could there ever be a world in the future that relies on Machines to run our economy? To me this idea seems great. If we could have these machines make our economic decisions in the most intelligent ways, then the idea of these machines sounds brilliant. Relating to the book however, our technology would have to be controlled so that malfunctions like this aren’t possible. It would be hard to have these machines run the government, for the sake that a malfunction like this could really mess up our government.
These machines believe that in order for humanity to not be lost in the near future, some inaction of law #1 is needed, ultimately causing small loss to the humans race to prevent mass loss in the future.
This is how I, and many other people like Asimov probably have envisioned a robots race’s fate. If humans ever created robots as what they are portrayed as in I, Robot, then the ultimate climax is that these robots, will malfunction, error and overpowering us to the point of our, or their destruction. I think that intelligence of robot in the future will be so great that robots will be able to become self-conscience, and will have the ability to make their own decisions, whether positive or negative.
My overall take on this book is that if you love challenging novels, and have an interest in science fiction, this is the perfect book for you! Each chapter is a different tale, and can be read in different order. There is no, one plot building up throughout the whole books. Only small plots in each chapter. They all, however, share the theme of humans, robots, and mortality.
For me, this book was slightly more challenging then I expected. Small details included very space like words and dialogue that you really have to read over carefully and think about what they mean, in order to understand these small details. Characters were hard to relate to, in terms of what they did. There wasn’t enough detail given on some character to determine relations
My rating on this book: 7/10
The final chapter is basically an overview of the world in the year 2052. Powerful machines that run Earths economy and production, known as “The Machines”, have given orders against their function. These malfunctions haven’t caused much harm yet, but the fact that they are simply appearing is alarming. Stephen Byerley, the new elected World Coordinator, asks for advice from leaders of regions of the world, and Susan Calvin herself.
This final closing chapter to the book leaves me with tons of questions, and has me wondering. Could there ever be a world in the future that relies on Machines to run our economy? To me this idea seems great. If we could have these machines make our economic decisions in the most intelligent ways, then the idea of these machines sounds brilliant. Relating to the book however, our technology would have to be controlled so that malfunctions like this aren’t possible. It would be hard to have these machines run the government, for the sake that a malfunction like this could really mess up our government.
These machines believe that in order for humanity to not be lost in the near future, some inaction of law #1 is needed, ultimately causing small loss to the humans race to prevent mass loss in the future.
This is how I, and many other people like Asimov probably have envisioned a robots race’s fate. If humans ever created robots as what they are portrayed as in I, Robot, then the ultimate climax is that these robots, will malfunction, error and overpowering us to the point of our, or their destruction. I think that intelligence of robot in the future will be so great that robots will be able to become self-conscience, and will have the ability to make their own decisions, whether positive or negative.
My overall take on this book is that if you love challenging novels, and have an interest in science fiction, this is the perfect book for you! Each chapter is a different tale, and can be read in different order. There is no, one plot building up throughout the whole books. Only small plots in each chapter. They all, however, share the theme of humans, robots, and mortality.
For me, this book was slightly more challenging then I expected. Small details included very space like words and dialogue that you really have to read over carefully and think about what they mean, in order to understand these small details. Characters were hard to relate to, in terms of what they did. There wasn’t enough detail given on some character to determine relations
My rating on this book: 7/10
I, Robot - Chapter 7: Escape, Chapter 8: Evidence
October 10th 2009
Chapter 7
This Chapter is shortly followed after the events chapter 6. A rival company has developed blueprints to build a spaces ship that can complete an interstellar jump. However, the rival company’s computer was destroyed while trying to calculate the blueprints. US Robotic take these blueprints, and uses their super computer, know as “The Brain”, to calculate the blueprints and to give the orders to other robots to build the ship. Within a few weeks, the ship is completed and surprisingly seems flawless.
Mike Donovan and Greg Powell are sent to the ship to overview it, but the brain sends the ship out without warning. During the procedures of building the ship, The Brain malfunctioned, and became a practical joker. He sent the ship out with the men, into space with no showers or beds, and no manual controls.
How a super computer this intelligent could of messed this up beats me, but sending men into space with no showers, beds, only with milk and beans seems crazy.
So far this chapter has been my favorite in the book. It holds many suspenseful moments, and to be honest, this is the first chapter I have really, really enjoyed.
The Brain cannot harm a human being, and it knew the men would only be gone long enough that they will be perfectly healthy with just beans and milk. The scariest part though, is that with the interstellar jump, any humans must go through the process of… death. That right, for a mere moment, you have to actually die in order to pass through interstellar space. But it is only in the jump that you actually are dead.
This part really got to me. Would interstellar jump really temporally kill you? Whether or not this is true, it really shows we should expect the unexpected when it comes to space science.
Chapter 8
Chapter 7
This Chapter is shortly followed after the events chapter 6. A rival company has developed blueprints to build a spaces ship that can complete an interstellar jump. However, the rival company’s computer was destroyed while trying to calculate the blueprints. US Robotic take these blueprints, and uses their super computer, know as “The Brain”, to calculate the blueprints and to give the orders to other robots to build the ship. Within a few weeks, the ship is completed and surprisingly seems flawless.
Mike Donovan and Greg Powell are sent to the ship to overview it, but the brain sends the ship out without warning. During the procedures of building the ship, The Brain malfunctioned, and became a practical joker. He sent the ship out with the men, into space with no showers or beds, and no manual controls.
How a super computer this intelligent could of messed this up beats me, but sending men into space with no showers, beds, only with milk and beans seems crazy.
So far this chapter has been my favorite in the book. It holds many suspenseful moments, and to be honest, this is the first chapter I have really, really enjoyed.
The Brain cannot harm a human being, and it knew the men would only be gone long enough that they will be perfectly healthy with just beans and milk. The scariest part though, is that with the interstellar jump, any humans must go through the process of… death. That right, for a mere moment, you have to actually die in order to pass through interstellar space. But it is only in the jump that you actually are dead.
This part really got to me. Would interstellar jump really temporally kill you? Whether or not this is true, it really shows we should expect the unexpected when it comes to space science.
Chapter 8
In the year 2032, lawyer Stephen Byerley is running for mayor in New York City. However, a man known as Francis Quinn has developed a theory that Byerley is a robot, as he is never seen eating, or sleeping.
Quinn heads to US Robotics to find people to support his claim. Once Byerley arrives, they ask him to eat an apple, as robots do not eat. Without hesitation, Byerley eats the apple. This has Quinn to surprise, but he still does not believe that Stephen is human.
This really has me wondering that in the future, if robots our introduced as equal as men, will there ever be any robots running in politics? It may seem hard to believe, but I think that if we develop them enough, they could prove to do better jobs then most humans.
All of Quinns actions to prove Stephen a robot fail, and Stephen ends up winning the election.
Quinn heads to US Robotics to find people to support his claim. Once Byerley arrives, they ask him to eat an apple, as robots do not eat. Without hesitation, Byerley eats the apple. This has Quinn to surprise, but he still does not believe that Stephen is human.
This really has me wondering that in the future, if robots our introduced as equal as men, will there ever be any robots running in politics? It may seem hard to believe, but I think that if we develop them enough, they could prove to do better jobs then most humans.
All of Quinns actions to prove Stephen a robot fail, and Stephen ends up winning the election.
I enjoyed the chapter a lot. The whole political plot to this story brought a relief to me. I was slightly sick of all the space plots, as they help a little to much information that I couldn’t take in.
I, Robot - Chapter 6: Little Lost Robot
October 8th 2009
This chapter got off to a slow start. It was full of "hyper space" talk, that really threw me in to a couple of brain freezes. The chapter is on Hyper Base, in space, an asteriod base where scientists are working to develope a hyper space drive. 63 robots with Law #1 (Robots must never harm a human being) modified have been transported to the Hyper Base, in order to complete special operations. One of the robots was annoying one of the workers apparently, and the worker told him to go "lose yourself". The robot did just that, and hid among the other robots of the space stations.
These robots happen to not have serial number, and are expected to apply to their work. With this incident, Susan Calvin, and co-workers are asked to come to hyper base to locate this lost robot.
I am starting to notice a pattern in these chapters. I have noticed that most of these plots involve robot failures and errors, but I guess what these events are that Susan Calvin is describing are key events in the US Robotics history. I feel it is an understandable structure in the book, but it seems to be getting just a little bit repetitive.
Susan must put the robots threw a series of operations in order to determine what robot is Nester 10, the lost robot. In the end, Susan finds the robot, after a long very boring chapter.
At this point, the novel looses a bit of my taste. A lot of these stories are hard to follow, but it really does amaze me how much detail is thrown into a novel like this written in the 40s!
Again, the chapter was a little long and boring in my opinion, but it did include a very clever plot by Isaac.
This chapter got off to a slow start. It was full of "hyper space" talk, that really threw me in to a couple of brain freezes. The chapter is on Hyper Base, in space, an asteriod base where scientists are working to develope a hyper space drive. 63 robots with Law #1 (Robots must never harm a human being) modified have been transported to the Hyper Base, in order to complete special operations. One of the robots was annoying one of the workers apparently, and the worker told him to go "lose yourself". The robot did just that, and hid among the other robots of the space stations.
These robots happen to not have serial number, and are expected to apply to their work. With this incident, Susan Calvin, and co-workers are asked to come to hyper base to locate this lost robot.
I am starting to notice a pattern in these chapters. I have noticed that most of these plots involve robot failures and errors, but I guess what these events are that Susan Calvin is describing are key events in the US Robotics history. I feel it is an understandable structure in the book, but it seems to be getting just a little bit repetitive.
Susan must put the robots threw a series of operations in order to determine what robot is Nester 10, the lost robot. In the end, Susan finds the robot, after a long very boring chapter.
At this point, the novel looses a bit of my taste. A lot of these stories are hard to follow, but it really does amaze me how much detail is thrown into a novel like this written in the 40s!
Again, the chapter was a little long and boring in my opinion, but it did include a very clever plot by Isaac.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)