Leonardo da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci

                I think it would be really hard to find someone who has never seen the painting of Mona Lisa and I‘m sure the creator of this painting needs no introduction. It‘s Leonardo da Vinci. The reason I‘ve chosen to talk about him is because not only was he a brilliant painter and a sculptor, but also an amazing architect, anatomist and an inventor.

            So, what do we already know about him? His full name is Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci and he was born in the present-day Italy in 1452. He lived for 67 years and died in 1519. Leonardo was, and still is, renowned primarily as a painter. Among his works, the Mona Lisa is the most famous and most parodied portrait and The Last Supper is the most reproduced religious painting of all time. Leonardo's drawing of the Vitruvian Man is also regarded as a cultural icon, being reproduced on items as varied as the euro coin, textbooks, and T-shirts and his Lady with an Ermine is also one of the most famous paintings in the world.

            However, the most amazing thing about Leonardo da Vinci is his technological ingenuity although he was homeschooled and lacked a formal education.  He drew sketches of a working flying machine, a tank, concentrated solar power and an adding machine. And did you know that In December 2000, skydiver Adrian Nicholas landed in South Africa using a parachute built from one of Leonardo's designs? Leonardo was also the first to explain why the sky is blue - it's because of the way air scatters light. You might also be surprised to hear that being a paranoid dyslexic, Leonardo could draw forward with one hand while writing backwards with the other, producing a mirror-image script that others found difficult to read—which was exactly the point.

            I’m sure you’ll agree that Leonardo was not an ordinary man: he enjoyed purchasing caged birds so that he could set them free and he dug into graveyards at night to steal corpses and study human anatomy. He was also a vegetarian for humanitarian reasons. But what‘s really fascinating is that despite being a left-handed dyslexic and procrastinating perfectionist he managed to become so successful.

            There’s so much more I could tell you about Leonardo da Vinci, but I think it’s enough for now. Let me just finish by saying that this man, who died almost 500 years ago was a person that you can truly call a genius.

The younger generation knows best

The younger generation knows best

Many people believe that knowledge depends on age. But, I think, that age doesn’t have such a big influence on person’s intelligence. In my opinion, the younger generation knows better, because they are better educated, it’s easier for them to adapt to the new changes and they have better connections with actual problems.

To begin with, the younger generation has better education than their grandparents and they are able to adapt faster to the new changes than the majority of elders. Younger people are using newest technologies on day to day basis, so because of this they can quickly learn about what is happening around the world or about what they need to have personal opinion, which will be based on different points of view. Moreover, because of better education, the younger generation is more open-minded. Some older people have their personal opinion, which is outdated, but they won’t change it, because they were brainwashed by their government or other institution to believe that it is the only way in life.

Secondly, younger people are closer to the actual problems. Old men and women have safe and quiet life. They are not interested in problems, which do not concern them. But the younger generation is more active, because they have more strength to stand up for themselves and new ideas to fight for.

On the other hand, some people claim that older generation knows best, because they have more experience. Younger generation usually listens to their intuition, while aged individuals listen to their mind. They make decisions, which are more studied and responsible. Moreover, because of experience, they know what can happen if you choose one or the other path in your life. Because of this they make les mistakes.

To sum up, although some people say that older generation knows best, because of the experience they have, I believe that younger generation knows better, because they are more open-minded, closer to the actual problems and because they have modern technologies as their friend.