A Ton of Crap (63 page)

Hartford Convention
On December 14, 1814, Federalist delegates from Massachusetts, Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island met to discuss opposition to the war, and even the possibility of New England seceding. As a result of the Hartford Convention, constitutional amendments were proposed. These amendments stated that war and laws that restricted Congress needed a two-thirds majority in Congress, successive presidents could not be from the same state, presidents were limited to a single term, and the three-fifths clause would be eliminated.

DEBATING

Innuendo
Innuendo is alluding to something that is not being said outright, often a rumor or popular belief. Though it is not necessarily nice, innuendo is certainly effective when debating. Innuendo is an easy way to work from prejudices without having to make overt statements that would require facts to back it up, or that might be difficult to defend.

CURVES

Ellipses
An ellipse is another form of a closed curve. Its appearance resembles a circle, only it is squashed and is an oval. Ellipses are defined by two points, known as Focus 1 (F1) and Focus 2 (F2). At any point of the ellipse, if the distances of the focus points are added up, they are constant. The basic formula for an ellipse is:

GLOBAL WARMING

Impact of Global Warming
With the increase in greenhouse gases, the average temperature of the Earth begins to increase. Global warming can have serious effects on the planet. Oceans will rise, hurricanes will become more frequent as the temperature of the oceans increases, there will be an increase in droughts and heat waves, and of course maybe the most well-known result of global warming, the polar ice caps will melt, which can throw the Earth’s ecosystems completely out of balance.

KOREAN

Dialects
There are many dialects found in Korean. In South Korea, the standard language is based on the dialect of Seoul. In North Korea, the standard language is based on the dialect of Pyongyang. The dialects found in both North Korea and South Korea are mutually intelligible. The dialect that is most noticeably different is that of Jeju Island, which features many archaic words that have since been lost in the Korean language of today.

THE WAR OF 1812

Treaty of Ghent
The War of 1812 ended on December 24, 1814, with the signing of the Treaty of Ghent between the United States and Britain. The treaty called for amnesty for all Native American participants, the return of prisoners of war and territory, the return of slaves, and a commitment to end the international slave trade.

DEBATING

Clarity
When debating, you are arguing against someone who opposes your opinions and wants to make you look bad. That is why clarity is so essential to being a good debater. Your words can and will be interpreted by the other person, so choosing your words wisely is essential. Stay away from generalizations or ambiguous terms. Be precise and make your opinion clear so it can’t be misconstrued later on.

CURVES

Parabolas
A parabola is a curve that is U-shaped. It is the locus of a point that is always the same distance from the focus and a given line, called the directrix. The standard equations for making parabolas are:

y
 – 
k
 = 
a
(
x
 – 
h
)
²
and
x
 – 
h
 = 
a
(
y
 – 
k
)
²

If
a
is greater than zero, the parabola opens upward, and if it is less than zero, it opens downward.

GLOBAL WARMING

The Clean Air Act
The Clean Air Act, first passed in 1963, is a United States federal law enacted to control air pollution. Since 1963, it has had two significant amendments, one in 1970 and the other in 1990. In 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court stated global warming emissions are air pollutants and would be subject to regulation by the EPA under the Clean Air Act if it was proven they were an endangerment to the public’s health. In 2009, the EPA released their findings, claiming that global warming emissions were a danger to public health. In 2010, the Senate rejected the findings, and an effort to have it passed is still ongoing.

KOREAN