Imagine and Build the Future

By Daniel Felipe Bohórquez V (undergraduate FIGRI student. Level 2 student)

Imagining the future is not easy, because some people are afraid of being wrong or talking too much. It is something that surprises us constantly and we would like to know about it, so we can find the solution to some of our problems.

Imagining the future is an exercise that lets us grow constantly. As we know, technology goes hand in hand with progress, so why don’t we imagine the technological revolution? This is similar to the industrial revolution years ago: an age of positive changes for human beings and the planet as well.

Technology will always be accepted because it helps us to save time, simplifies our work and generates a certain order. It is something that we use constantly.

The future is something that we can’t stop, and it always generates the question, how are we going to be tomorrow, or next year? How will our personal lives, or our economy change?

Trying to imagine a better future for ourselves, means building a better tomorrow for society and the world.

Imagination has no limits, and it always lets us grow.

My Pet

By Paula Barragán (undergraduate FIGRI student. Level 2 English)

Three years ago my best friend gave me a puppy for my birthday, but there was a problem. My mom didn't like dogs, but I didn't care. I called the dog "Duff", like the beer on The Simpsons.

At the beginning, it was difficult because we had to teach Duff, but every day he damaged things all over the house. My mom wanted him out of the house but as time passed, the dog learned to be well-behaved and obedient and my mom was more loving, as she shared time and went out to the park with him.

When Duff was a puppy I remember that he broke my favorite vase so then he was punished. He couldn’t go on the bed for a week. Duff didn't like it when it rained because the winter was cold and he crawled under the covers.

Today, Duff is a smart and well-behaved dog, although sometimes he damages some little things.

Easy, Quick and Delicious Desserts

By Valentina Roa Díaz (undergraduate Social Communication student. Level 4 English)

If you’re bored, you can make a delicious dessert in only five minutes and you don’t need a lot of ingredients.

Here, you can find two easy, quick and delicious recipes: Banana in Caramel Sauce, and Chocolate Cornstarch Pudding.

Banana in Caramel Sauce

Ingredients:

½ cup butter

1 cup superfine sugar

1 & ¼ cups heavy cream

4 bananas peeled and halved lengthwise

Instructions:

1)      Melt the butter in a large, heavy skillet over a medium heat. Stir in the sugar and cook, stirring until the sugar is melted and light brown. Slowly stir in the cream – the mixture will bubble up.

2)      Let the mixture boil for one minute, then reduce the heat to low. Place the bananas in the pan and cook until heated through, about two minutes. Serve hot, and serve with ice cream if you’d like.

Chocolate cornstarch pudding

Ingredients:

½ cut white sugar

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

A pinch of salt

¼ cup cornstarch

2 & ¾ cups milk

2 tablespoons of butter at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:
1)      In a saucepan, stir together the sugar, cocoa, cornstarch and salt. Place over a medium heat, and stir in the milk. Bring to a boil, and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a metal spoon.
2)      Remove from heat, and stir in the butter and vanilla. Let the mixture cool briefly, and serve warm, or chill in refrigerator until serving.

And that’s all – two easy, quick and delicious recipes. I hope you like them!

Predicting the Future?

By Camilo Molina (undergraduate FIGRI student)

When I was young, I liked to watch movies that took place in the future and I always wondered how those innovative gadgets would look in real life. As time passed, and I started to see some similar devices, I realised that in some way, the film industry had predicted the future.

One example is in the film 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), in which the robot HAL 9000 talks with humans with phrases such as “I’m sorry Dave, I’m afraid I can’t do that,” and other things, which are similar to the well-known Apple programme Siri. This is a programme that you can have a conversation with, and which helps you with many things on your device.

In the same movie, the actors have online conversations on some kind of screen while far away from each other. Obviously it was much less sophisticated, but the concept is the same in all the real-time video chats we have nowadays, like Skype or MSN. The director Stanley Kubrick was very accurate with these predictions, but they took almost 40 years to become real.

In another movie called Minority Report (2001), the actor Tom Cruise uses his hands to control various devices without pushing any buttons, but instead using a touch interface. Some years later, all the technology companies such as Apple, Samsung and Hewlett Packard, launched a line called touchscreen, which lets you control your device with your fingers. There is even technology now that needs your fingerprint when you want to unblock your device.

Finally, in the movie Back to the Future II (1989), the main character Marty McFly uses some innovative devices, like a time machine and a flying skateboard, which are pure science fiction. However, in one part of the movie, he uses some glasses that help him to watch TV, play video games and answer calls. Recently, the big search engine on the web known as Google has launched glasses that can do many things. They work with word commands, can record videos and take photos whenever you want, can log onto blogs, show the weather, work as a GPS device, set events, arrange your agenda, and search for any information on Google in real time. These glasses will be launched in more places this year because they are testing this device at the moment to make them as useful as possible. Unfortunately, we don’t know yet how much these sophisticated glasses will cost.

In conclusion, these are just a few examples of what the film industry has been putting in movies for years, and we now have in our markets and affordable for us. Nevertheless, the question remains: do you really think that the film industry predicted these devices, or might it be that technology companies copied these ideas, and made them real in order to make a profit?

Animal Abuse

By Jessica Catherine Jaramillo (undergraduate Tourism & Hotel Management student. Level 4 English)

Many institutions help to protect and care for animals, but unfortunately this is often just words. In Colombia, there is little to no control over cruel behaviour that harms animals. People are generally not interested in protecting animals, or controlling the thousands of cruel acts happening every day in Colombia.

Within the main acts, we can see things like beatings, abandonment, mutilation, the failure to provide adequate water, food, shelter, or the necessary care. There are also the “sport”-based forms of abuse, like bullfighting, cockfighting, dogfighting and circuses.

How much longer will we allow animals to continue suffering from these atrocious acts? Today, it is more common to see animals on the street and this shows that there is no respect for animal life in our country.

To conclude, what I want is to make people aware of animal abuse, and respect the lives of these wonderful beings.

What’s behind this graffiti?

By Juan Camilo Peña (undergradute Social Communication student. Level 4 English)

Throughout our lives, we pass through many places, and without much thought, we let ourselves miss out on so many of the things around us, both big and small. This is the case with this marvellous piece of art that takes the form of graffiti. What we have here is a love story in the most unlikely of places, known as the Bronx, in downtown Bogotá. This graffiti is a replica of a photograph taken by a photo-journalist, Hector Fabio Zamora.

This piece of art narrates the full expression of love between two homeless people, Hernan and Diana. During the Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos’ visit to the Bronx, this couple decided to express their love in the form of a kiss, paying no mind to the amount of security that swarmed the entire city. Their only thought was to give the best of themselves to each other. Hernan and Diana had known each other for more than six years, during which they were only able to see each other for three. That is, until they met again during a drug buy, and since this accidental run-in, they have not dared to part from each other. This shared addiction is what drove them both to the street, without any money for anything as basic as a place to sleep at night. Most nights, they would find themselves sleeping on the streets of Bogotá, joining their bodies for heat as they waited fo the sun to break the darkness of night.

This representation of love covers the side of a building that stretches eight stories high, on the corner of 26^th Street with 15^th Avenue. The artists given the task of creating this piece of art were members of the artistic group known as Vertigo Graffiti, which won a contest held by IdeaTres. This company, IdeaTres, is an advertising agency that adorns architecture with new designs and images as a form of visual communication. The scene of love expressed in the painting lets us accept love in all its forms, because this love blossomed in the harshest of places between two people who were never expecting it.

The Eskimo and his Particular Love Story

By Duvan Darío Borda Basto (undergraduate FIGRI student. Level 2 English)

There was once an Eskimo living in the North Pole. His house was an igloo. One great day, he decided to walk and walk, and after taking many steps in the snow, he suddenly found another igloo. That igloo was very unusual. It was completely solid and made of clear ice. Inside it was a beautiful woman. This woman looked perfect through the ice. She had blue eyes that were perfectly visible from far away. The woman had been there for so long, and the Eskimo really wanted to be the one to take the woman out of her igloo, but he did not know how to break the ice. He tried once, then twice, and it looked like he could not try any more. The Eskimo loved this woman, and wanted to give everything to her.

The Eskimo was tired of trying to break into the igloo, so he returned home. He thought that if he went and rested at home, after a few days he could try harder to break the ice and win the love of this beautiful woman. After a few days of rest, the Eskimo went to look for the lady. When he arrived, he saw the woman he loved with another man who had managed to break the ice.

Moral: Do not let that person you care for get away because you don’t know how to break the ice.

Tennis: More than a lifestyle

By Gabriela Vasco B. (undergraduate Social Communication student. Level 4 English)

The sport of tennis is all about feeling, and great players achieve in it without getting frustrated. They accept the facts, and adapt their tactics to allow them to play to the best of their ability in a particular situation. They do not give up, but fight to the end with everything they have and they give the best of themselves regardless of the outcome.

Now, the question is whether people are born with this strength, or can it be trained? In my opinion, it is trainable. As some people say, talented players possess a special ability to perform particular tasks, and they are determined to succeed. Success is achieved by hard work and sacrifice. You have to love training for the sport, and know how to persevere in your efforts.

The secret is to keep trying every day and always make an effort, because you love what you do, and not because you are expecting a reward. The conviction that you can accomplish your goals means that you give the best of yourself regardless of the circumstances. You accept no excuses, and learn to respect and be respected by others.

Bestsellers and the women who write them

By María Camila Gamboa Ramírez (undergraduate Social Communication student, Level 4 English)

In the past, literature was a male area because men thought that women were only good for staying at home, raising the children or cooking dinner for their husbands. But what wasn’t known then was that women were learning to read and write in secret.

During the nineteenth century, women could publish their work if they used a male pseudonym. One example of that was Emily Brontë, the author of Wuthering Heights, a romantic story, which was published under the name of Ellis Bell. This changed in the twentieth century as women were allowed to publish their books with their own names. Nowadays, there are an equal number of male and female writers in society.

This means that women have an increasingly important role in literature. Actually, if a person from the past could see the present, it would surprise him to know how many bestsellers have been written by women. Have you realised this? Do you believe me? I will refresh your memory here.

My intention here is not to give a feminist perspective, but to show you the truth. Did you know that one of the most well-known novels of all time, Frankenstein, was written by a woman, whose name was Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley. Or who do you think wrote the magical stories about Harry Potter? Who renewed our way of seeing vampires? And who wrote the excellent futuristic stories about The Hunger Games? As if writing the stories themselves wasn’t enough, these stories have now become not just bestselling books, but also big screen sensations. And so now, these writers have become rich women.

To conclude, I think that this boom in women writers is because contemporary writers have the same rights as men. They are completely free to say how they see the world, and express their thoughts without fear. I am completely sure that this is not the end, but just the beginning. We will see more of these brilliant worlds!

The Society We Live In

By María Alejandra Rodríguez Vargas (undergraduate Tourism and Hotel Management student. Level 6 English)

Have you ever seen someone covered with tattoos or someone with a weird hairstyle or clothing and just walked past them without having a million thoughts inside your head, wondering why they decided to look that way? I’m pretty sure that we have all done this at some point, and some of us even keep on doing it.

The question is “Why?” Why do we all get shocked and surprised by them? Well, the answer is not that hard to guess. It’s because we are not used to it. We are not used to seeing someone breaking the mold, and being different from what we know. Unfortunately, this is one of the biggest problems in society.

It is well-known that to be accepted by society, people need to follow certain “rules”, which define the ways that we should behave in order to be accepted. The issue is that not everyone sticks to the rules. Some people decide that it’s better to stay true to how they are instead of trying to fit in. The problem starts when society realises that these people are not like the rest, that they don’t follow the established patterns, and when this happens, society just pushes them away and alienates them.

This attitude towards people who look different is what causes trouble and discrimination, because not everyone is open to new things. Not everyone understands that being different doesn’t mean that it’s bad; it’s just different, and until we understand that, we’ll keep on being stuck in this judgmental society.

Stay Positive!

By Lina Hernández (undergraduate Social Communication – Journalism student)

There are many problems that overwhelm citizens around the world: injustice, inequality, unemployment, discrimination and many other issues that are impossible to mention here. However, I believe there are some determinant elements that can change the future of our society. Even though we can’t change the world’s conflicts, at the end of the day we can realize that everything is just about attitude.

One of the problems we face on a daily basis is environmental pollution. Industrial development has its background in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, which in many ways were the origin of the crisis that the Earth is currently facing. To be classified as a “first-world” country means having a very high level of industrialization, and so, a country’s pollution is proportional to its machinery. This also has other effects; in information revealed by the Mexican newspaper “El informador”, the United States tops the list of countries producing the most carbon dioxide (CO2), while Iceland and Switzerland are listed as the cleanest ones. This has happened due to deforestation, pollution in the seas, the hunting of animals and the other environmental problems that we have caused. What is often ignored is that a large percentage of people live in the countryside and in farms sowing what we eat, and because of these abrupt climate changes, crops are damaged and markets are directly affected.

The environment has generated many debates, and today everyone is “ecological” even though they spend thirty minutes taking a shower. However, nothing has caused as much suffering and death as intolerance. Unfortunately, the world is facing a dramatic crisis, as we see how the Middle East is a non-stop war field and Uganda is punishing and mistreating gay people. Colombia isn’t the exception to this rule, as every single day the news is full of horrible cases and tragic stories about fights, killings and corruption caused by intolerance, in spite of us being the “happiest country in the world”.

One of the biggest contemporary problems in the American continent is violence caused  by drug trafficking. Since 2012 there have been over 150,000 deaths according to the defence ministers of the United States , Mexico and Canada. When it comes to solutions, the legalization of drugs is the first proposal. However, the drugs trade will exist whether it is legal or not. The solution is not to pretend to be a free country where everyone consumes a low dosage and is responsible for their bodies. The solution is to make society aware that drug trafficking and easy money is not the honest and fair way to be a millionaire.

Finally, I think poverty is one of the biggest issues, and I’m not just talking about material poverty. Ignorance is invading our lives. Being ignorant is not someone who doesn't know about geography or mathematics. It is letting others choose a politician for us and believing that being gay is a crime. Everyone can be part of the solution. If we learn to be tolerant, not to throw garbage in the streets and accept that we are equals, surely future generations will be thankful.

Sometimes, just having a positive attitude can change your day. Simple details like greeting someone with a smile and saying goodbye when you leave can help everyone feel cheerful. I think that loving what you have and being thankful for what you experience every day is enough, so stop being upset about traffic jams, and instead, be thankful because you have somewhere to go.

Colombia goes to the World Cup

By Oscar David Home (undergraduate FIGRI student, Level 6 English)

Colombia is a very passionate country about soccer, because soccer transmits joy and sorrow to us. It makes us mourn, shout and laugh, and all these feelings and actions are things we share with our friends and family. In short, with the people we love the most.

For many years, Colombia’s national team wanted to participate in the World Cup, but one person is not enough to make this happen. The national team needs to be a competitive team with excellent players who have the ability to face the world with great maturity and a winning attitude.

It is for this reason that in 2014, we can say that we have a team with these attributes, and also that this team has given us the satisfaction of participating in the soccer World Cup in Brazil. This is very important for us as a country, because it makes us more united, with one dream and one goal: in this case, that our national team can be the world champion.

Powder-Puff Girls

By Nicolás Ricaurte Gómez (undergraduate Social Communication student. Level 4 English)

All contact sports have a degree of roughness, but it doesn’t mean that women can’t practice them. For example, physical sports like rugby can be practiced by women. Here are some examples of super girls:

Camila Mantilla is a student, and she is 19 years old. She is studying sociology in the National University of Colombia but her great passion is rugby. She has played this sport since she was 9 years old, and, since this moment, she knew that she would be an excellent rugby player. Although she has represented Colombia in the national women’s rugby team, she hasn’t won anything internationally. However, with Buhos, her team in Bogotá, she has won 3 national trophies. Finally, it is worth highlighting that Camila hasn’t lost her beauty and tenderness through playing rugby.

Another example is Laura Chaux, who studies engineering in the Libre University, but, since she can remember, has played football. She loves this sport with all her heart and dreams of being a professional football player. Since 2004, Laura has won the award for the best player of her category. Football is an integral part of Laura’s life, and different teams in the USA have asked her about signing for them, but nothing has been finalized yet. Laura will continue to represent her country with the national team, and hopes to be able to fulfill her dreams.

These examples show us that it isn’t necessary to be a man to play physical contact sports, and to take part in these sports, the most important thing is to want to participate. Finally, on a personal note, I think that it is also important that women don’t lose their tenderness. They should be women in their normal lives and strong women on the field. 

Are you stressed at university?

(by Mariana Sequeda S., undergraduate Social Communication student. Level 4 English)

We all know that stress is produced by many factors, like: not sleeping enough, academic pressure, and depression. All of these factors can have negative effects if you don’t organise your time.

Sometimes we have subjects in our degrees that we don’t like, and the class is so boring because we don’t understand what the teacher is saying. All we have to do is to try our best to pay attention. If we don’t do that, we will probably suffer from stress.

How can you control that? Easy.  

* If you don’t understand a subject, ask for help.

* Take it easy. Organising yourself with a timetable is a great idea.

* Do exercise. It makes you think about other things and helps you with your health.

If you do these things, you will probably control your stress. Stress is a part of all the activities that people do every day, but it is important to say that it’s possible to combat it.

Good luck fighting stress!

Congratulations!

Denver, Colorado.   March 17, 2014. From left to right: David Dueñas, Daniela Rodríguez, Juan Felipe Ospina, Ana María Ardila, Carlos Arenas.

The English department would like to commend FIGRI’s CFA* team for all their accomplishments this year. After having won the national contest, the team was invited to participate in the Americas Regional CFA Research Challenge which took place in Denver, Colorado in March. 

This is the third consecutive year Externado students have represented Colombia internationally in this contest.  Over 40 universities, at undergraduate and graduate level, from different countries in the Americas participate in this important event.

Well done!

*The CFA Program bridges industry practice, investment theory, and ethical and professional standards to provide investment analysis and portfolio management skills.

Beauty or Obsession?

By A. María Tous Manrique (undergraduate Social Communication student. Level 4 English)

Different eating habits? Mental disorder? Social acceptance? These may be some of the causes of anorexia. This disease is characterised by low body weight, inappropriate eating habits, an obsession with having a thin figure and the fear of gaining weight, as well as a distorted self-perception of the body. This occurs more often in adolescent females then males. It is a serious physical and mental condition.

I had the opportunity to experience a case of anorexia and I want to share this story with you. My friend and I were friends since we were five years old and we went to the same school. She was never a thin girl, but in primary school, weight wasn’t important. The problems started when we were in 9^th grade in high school in 2009. Girls made fun of her for not being thin, made nasty jokes about her, and in the physical education classes, the situation was even worse. During the breaks, she often went to the bathroom to cry, and the teachers had to intervene. That same year her parents divorced, and that was horrible because she became depressed. 

The impact of her parents not being together and being a victim of bullying was so strong that she stopped eating. If she did it, it was in small amounts, and she only drank a lot of water, which worried me. She was losing too much weight, her skin stopped being soft, and she fainted often. She was obsessed with losing weight because she felt too fat. This physical change was devastating.

She had this mental, nutritional and physical disorder for almost two years. Halfway through 2011, she left the school, and I don’t know if she continued recovering, which is quite a slow process for anyone with this disease. Since that year, we have completely lost touch.

The first step to be better is to accept that this disease affects your mental and physical health, but before this, to know that what you feel on the inside is what you reflect on the outside, and you need to love yourself as you are.

Why is Brazil the best destination in 2014?

By Ludy Tatiana Pirabán Gutiérrez (Undergraduate FIGRI student)

In 2007, the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) chose Brazil as a World Cup host country.  Since that day the world has paid attention to “the country of the lambada” and without a doubt this June many people from all over the world are expected to visit the largest nation in South America. Although Brazil has become such a famous place and a favorite destination for a lot of people as a result of the next world football event, there are other reasons why it is a good choice to enjoy your holidays there. According to official figures, Brazil has been the third most important tourist destination in Latin America for many years.

On the one hand, it is important to say that Brazil is not just football. This country has great natural resources like beaches, mountains, the Amazon rainforest and a perfect tropical climate. In addition, over the last twenty years some places have achieved significant international recognition. Among them, it is worth noting: Iguazu Falls, Ipanema, Rio de Janeiro, Sugarloaf Mountain, Christ the Redeemer and Copacabana beach. Also, the ideal climate allows you to do so many activities such as paragliding, windsurfing, kitesurfing, boating, swimming, dancing lambada on the beach and enjoying its traditional gastronomy.

So, these reasons are making Brazil the best destination in 2014 and many people, including hundreds of Colombians, see Brazil as the place which will give them a wonderful time on holiday and perhaps that desired gold cup for their country. Either way, humanity will soon know which is the winning team in the World Cup, but before that we should cry, smile and enjoy the most passionate sport worldwide.      

Finally, next June and July thousands of people will enjoy the most important football competition, so if your nation is playing there you have an extra reason to go. If this is not so, you can still enjoy living in an amazing tropical country. Therefore, I am sure that Brazil will leave good memories for each person who visits it and some things like Portuguese, the lambada dance and the world cup song will be fashionable for a while. Bem vindo ao Brasil!