In my humble opinion this class was amazing; both fun and educational, defiantly my favorite class. I learned a lot about the way law and society worked together or against each other. I learned about the philosophy of it as well as how much power we as a society have over our laws ( and it changed from less then I thought to more then I thought depending on the topic; mostly it was more than I thought though). I would have, however, liked to focus more on how the law and our society interact with each other. I learned how to affect and interact properly with the law. i would have like d to learn more about the mechanics of law making and perhaps the work behind passing a policy. This class also helped me learn to debate in a more polite and pleasant way and to be able to let some one keep their opinion no matter how wrong I know it is (a skill that comes in handy at my house). This class also helped me learn to argue better and to be able to express my thoughts in a way that gets the effect I want and it helped me learn to be much more diplomatic; which is just really a round-about way of me saying this class taught me to be a better manipulator. =) This class was by far my favorite class this semester and will probably be one of my favorite classes here period. I had a wonderful time and learned so many things and I want to thank everybody for this great experience.

video of the dance

we had problems uploading it so it is here

my last blog

I have attended Folsom Lake College (EDC center) for two years and Mr. Ellerman's class has been one of the most enjoyable but thought provoking classes that I have had yet. The mix of the philosophical law and everyday life made the three hours an easy time slot to fill.
The class started off in the same fashion as the questions. We learned about the science of the law in society through the metiphorical rhetoric of Plato. This wasn't the first time that I heard this story but it is one of my favorite pieces in college and I enjoyed talking about it. Also, we read the Constitution so we would be able to (as outstanding citizens of America) admit that we have read it. The second Greek word: Techne reminded me of the videos we watched about how our brains worked while corrosponding to another person. This connection played a significant role in hw we interpret the law and the well being of those around. This also led into our discussion of how we understand each others emotional feelings with brain functions like mirror neurons. Being able to connnect with other people and figuring out how to communicate effectively is an important piece in law and society. I enjoyed the drawing and explanation videos very much and I would like to promote those for the next class. The last term, metis, was revealed in our nation state game, when the group Atlantis jumped on the opportunity to recieve numerous resources from Andrew. This was a perfect example of using their " street Smarts" to their advantage. Overall, I enjoyed this class and I liked the group assignment for the most part. Having to sdjust to our members was tough at first but was worth it in the end at the celebration.

Thank you !

Episteme The episteme is the ‘apparatus’ which makes possible the separation, not of the true from the false, but of what may, from what may not be characterized as scientific. Technology Technology is the creation, usage and knowledge of tools, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization as means in order to solve a problem or serve some purpose or end. The word technology comes from Greek τεχνολογία (technología); from τέχνη (téchnē), meaning "art, skill, craft", and -λογία (-logía), meaning "study of- Phronesis Gaining phronesis requires maturation, in Aristotle's thought. Phronesis is concerned with particulars, because it is concerned with how to act in particular situations. One can learn the principles of action, but applying them in the real world, in situations one could not have foreseen, requires experience of the world. Metis Metis (Μῆτις, "wisdom," "skill," or "craft")The word mètis was also the ordinary Greek word for a quality that combined wisdom and cunning, this quality was considered to be highly admirable and was regarded by Athenians as one of the notable characteristics of the Athenian character. The question asked is “how did I do”? What did I learn in each of these areas? Well I don’t really know how you did…How do you think you did? I can only answer for me and my experience. For me this class was a great way to be introduced back to college after many years away. You definitely gave us exposure and opportunity to recognize all four of the Greek definitions of Knowledge as listed and described above. First we discussed Societies, and Social laws. We outlined (as a group) our codes… as represented in our group’s coat of Arms. These codes guided our group and myself threw the class. We had videos that enlightened and shed new ideas on these views. We discussed individual rights with class discussions. (Great) which allowed participation and an exchange of ideas. And more videos! Discussing real time news paper articles was good as it had us focus on the” now” too! Having the class form groups is a great way to apply the “Knowledge”… hopefully we have assimilated some of this knowledge and started applying it in our hypothetical Nation situation. Some of us used this to discover and learn more about ourselves, our misconceptions, our prejudice and even our strong suits which we shared with the entire class whether we realized it or not. OK now for what I reflect on looking back, first with the Social law and rights lectures… I learned about deciphering the probabilities of a situation as outlined in some of the videos at the beginning of the class, you mentioned defining and looking at the sources of a said situation, analyzing the thoughts, and with that I realized (sometimes with great regret) that my perception might have changed! Crap! (What else have I missed?) This to me is Episteme. The Technology for me was the Blogging… who would have thought… I… me … would be Blogging. I will be posting a video this evening… hours of oh crap and mistakes, bottom line you will see this video!!! Heres another oh crap!…Blogger site is down! It was honor and a pleasure to be elected group leader and hold the group and myself accountable to our code. As the group leader the first semester, I had the opportunity to exercise Phronesis by applying my lessons of the past … slow down, breath, think, partially due to my age…but also past experiences( mistakes) sometimes a big plus!!! I also got to see the younger students( new group leader) go through the wisdom process… (Reflecting on choices and decisions) very cool! As for the Metis, for me I need to be careful with this, this could be a double edged sword… As long as I am applying the wisdom and cunning for unselfish reasons, they remain valuable in a constructive sense. We got to use all these acquired disciplines in our Nation game. It is interesting that I only see a true representation of these combined disciplines upon reflecting back and mentally reliving my class experience. So Professor Ellerman… How did you do? I did Great… Thank You! Shane K. 5.13.2011

Goodbye

For episteme I recall the videos on mirror neurons and other brain functions. The science of mirror neurons clearly shows our physiological link to one another. It demonstrates that we as humans are meant to understand each others joys and sorrows. I think that and the other information on how human behavior develops through a life time is some thing important to keep in mind when developing policies.

For Techne I think of the blog assignments and developing our nations. In both activities we as individuals have work and must work together. Since no aspect of human life is truly a singular activity this learning to work together toward a common goal is an important one. Also many of us in the class have never blogged before, and acquiring this ability to DO this certainly fits in to Techne.

For Phronesis I think of our nations once again. To be More specific the nation state game. While we were each given the same task each of our nations approached this in very different ways. My nation begun by forming alliances, which would prove critical as the game progressed. What lead to these very different tactics was each individual and the unique personality that they possessed. Though our groups each wrote clear treaties there was no punishment to breaking them. Even when other groups attempted to buy our favor we stuck to our treaties. There was no logical reason to, accepting the buy out would have helped us to achieve our goals. The reason we up held them was for ethical and emotional ones. We understood what our desertion would cost our allies.

Metis is the most challenging. How would one go about teaching cunning, or street smarts. The best example I can find is the way in which we can apply the knowledge we have gained from each of the above. That our understanding of human behavior, practiced social skills and the capability to do something with them. Perhaps those of us with less understanding and whom are willing to observe and learn could acquire this knowledge from the interaction with others. No two student are identically knowledgeable. Some will have more of this type of knowledge then others. Even with this though I find metis the least covered by this class though understandable so. I found the other knowledge’s well cover

Final blog

Episteme- I really enjoyed Professor Ellermans approach at teaching us laws. He had us watch informational videos about what to do in a court and what to do when you have an encounter with a cop. The videos were sometimes funny which made them interesting to watch. Now I know more about my rights and how to handle myself in sticky situations.
Techne- This class definitely helped me become more computer savvy. I have never blogged before and I rarely ever do much on the computer other than research and email. So this class was very useful for me. I now know how to blog and upload pictures, videos, and links.
Phronesis- I learned a lot about how to work as a group and I really enjoyed getting to know my classmates. I also enjoyed watching videos about other social issues such as Asbergers syndrome, raising children and complications in relationships and how to get over them.
Métis- This makes me think back to the videos on how to deal with a police encounter, how to handle the situation and what not to do. Also that you can't always trust every cop but I still believe that most of them are trying to help but of course there is always a bad egg. Also I enjoyed the funny video of Chris Rock telling us how to talk to cops. I love that Mr. Ellerman has such a good sense of humor.

Overall I really enjoyed this class and plan to take more classes from Professor Ellerman. I just wish he taught more of the ones I need. Thank you for being a wonderful teacher! And it was nice meeting everyone.

AIPOTU

National Anthem

Sung to the tune of “if I were an Oscar Meyer wiener”

If I were a true human being-that is what I truly want to be
Because if I were a true human being- you would live-in atopia with me
All or people are accountable-threes a sense of responsibility
And if you were to breech this code of conduct- you would have to sing this song singularly
Not everyone understands our nations motives- some say that ignorance is bliss
But if you’re living in atopia-it’s guaranteed there is nothing you would miss
All the people live in harmony-the thought of conflict doesn’t exist much
But if you take an aggressive poke at us-you will sure feel our mighty touch
Integrity is the backbone of society-there no need to lie or cheat
Cause everyone is honest and has morals-atopia is the place that can’t be beat

A reflection On the nationstate game

The nation state game is interesting for a verity of reason. It is clearly a very complex game. It took a lot of statigic trading with the city states to get all the items we wanted for our national projects. Though we were at the receiving end the of the only nuke in the game I am very proud of my group. We still manged to accomplish two out of three of the national projects we wanted. This is thanks in part to the recovery abilities build into the game and because of our alliance with other nations. Both of which I think make excellent reflections on the real world. How often do we lend aid to our allies or support to countries like Japan or Haiti after a natural disaster.

What I wish most though is that we had started this new version of the game much sooner, Its a perfect illustration of how government and foreign policy work in the real world. So its a shame we only used such a useful learning tool for how long we did. All in all though I'm glad that we could use it.