Going to the zoo is worth your families time and money +0

Reasons to Agree: +3

1. It is worth it to have animals be part of your life
2. You should take your kids outside where they can walk around, see different people, and explore their surroundings. Kids get to see all different types of people at the zoo.
3. You should teach your kids about Animals. Kids learn about Animals by going to the zoo. You can't learn to appreciate animals unless you see them. When kids learn about animals, they learn about biology which may result in medical interest. Medical interest can result in an interest in many different jobs, from pharmacy to being a doctor. Learning about animals also teaches about geography. At least it did for our kid, as he learned what animals lived where. 

Reasons to disagree: -2

1. Usually people don't spend much time studying animals at the zoo. People tend to look at the animal, watch it for a few minutes, and move on... 
2. Kids will learn more about animals by having a pet than going to a zoo. Letting your kids have a pet teaches your kids. Having a long time responsibility for an animal can teach you a lot. 
3. Kids are taught that animal rights can be ignored when going to the zoo.

Score:

# of reasons to agree: +3

# of reasons to disagree: -3

# of reasons to agree with reasons to agree: +0

# of reasons to agree with reasons to disagree: -0

Total Idea Score: +0

Images that agree:

Related Links:

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Videos that agree:

This movie supports the conclusion because it shows that:
1. Kids can have authentic experiences with animals at zoos.

Dolphin show

Daughter dancing

Wolves

Youngest watching the giraffe. 

My oldest son doesn't know how to wear a hat...

Some zoos give animals lots of room

Jonamac apple farm is the perfict farm-tourism destination outside Chicago +4.5

Background, Context, and Assumptions

Jonamac apple farm is a farm-tourism destination outside Chicago. It is located at 19412 Shabbona Rd Malta, IL 60150. Their phone number is (815) 825-2158.

Best reasons to agree: +3

1. Its good for kids to see farms. Kids should learn the science of producing food. It is good for all of us to try to produce food.
2. Joanamac is is a good farm. 
1. They have a: 
1. petting zoo with mules, sheep, chickens, and a Lama
2. apple picking, with a lot of different apple types
3. pumpkin canon, 
4. a big thing like a trampoline. 
5. old-timy-machines
6. slides
7. Kids like to play in the corn silo. 
8. they have an easy corn maze that kids can handle. They have a harder corn maze for adults.
9. they have a place where you can buy food
10. they have live music playing
11. they often have farm equipment on display
3. Joanamac is close to Chicago. It is 70 miles from Downtown Chicago, and less than that from the suburbs
1. Link

Best reasons to disagree: -

1. Jonamac should copy some of the educational stuff from the Lincoln Park Zoo farm display. Jonamac could team up with Illinois Universities to do farm-research or education. They could have signs for stuff. For instance they could say how much corn was a barrel (or bushel?) that day. They could tell you that the corn you let your kids play in won't be wasted because it will be fed to animals, or it was wasted. 
2. Jonamac could have a place for kite flying. Chicago is almost always windy. They have a lot of open space, and there is usually a crowd. Seems like a good place for kite flying.
3. Jonamac could be closer to the City. You pass an awful lot of farms on the way to Jonamac. You would think that any of these places could copy them, but get more traffic.
4. Jonamac could team up with Amish type country knick-knack stuff, to give the whole farm experience. 
5. They could have a real farmer's market at Jonamac. In the fall it gets enough traffic that they could probably sell more stuff than just apples, and fudge. 

Score:

# of reasons to agree: +3

# of reasons to disagree: -5

# of reasons to agree with reasons to agree: +11/2 = 6.5

# of reasons to agree with reasons to disagree: -0

Total Idea Score: +4.5

Best webpages that agree: +

1. http://www.jonamacorchard.com/   Bias grade: poor

Best webpages that agree: -

Chicago has better museums, cultural exhibits, and attractions than Denver

Reasons to agree: +8

1. The Illinois Train Museum in Union IL is a good place to take your kids. Denver doesn't have anything like that+3
2. The Chicago Art Institute is a better Art Museum than the Denver Art Museum. +3
3. The Chicago Shed Aquarium is better than any sort of ocean life exhibit in the Denver area.+3
4. The Chicago Field Museum is better than the Denver Field Museum. +0
5. Chicago has a good Science and Industry museum. Denver doesn't have anything like this. They have a natural science museum that compares to Chicago's Field Museum. 
6. Chicago has a pretty cool planetarium. Denver doesn't have anything like that. 
7. Chicago has way more square footage of museums than Denver. Depth and variety are good ways of measuring museums qualities. This is much easier to achieve with more square footage. 
8. Chicago has a rich history with jazz music, with places that you can still go to. Denver doesn't have anything like that. 
9. More important history and important things happened in Chicago than Denver. Its history is not as rich as Europe, or other places over seas, but it has a pretty good history.

Reasons to agree: +2

1. Denver has better Dinosaur exhibits than Chicago, even though Chicago has Sue (the most complete Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton) and other Dinosaurs. Much of Chicago's rocks from ancient times was scrapped away in the Ice Ages. 
2. Chicago got red of their Elephants at their museum. If you really care about elephants, I guess the Denver zoo is better than the Brookfield and Lincoln zoos. 

Websites that agree:

1. Laub Life: Field Museum of Dreams

Score:

# of reasons to agree: +4

# of reasons to disagree: -

# of reasons to agree with reasons to agree: +(+4+3+3)/2 =  +5

# of reasons to agree with reasons to disagree: -0

Total Idea Score: +9

Don't like the score? It is easy to change the score. Just post a reason to agree or disagree with the overall idea, or any of the reasons and the score will change.

Background Context and Assumptions

The quality of Museums is an important way comparing cities.

Reasons to agree: +7

1. Going to museums is a good ways of learning stuff, and traveling the world without jet lag. 
2. The quality of museums are a way of measuring the education, sophistication, and commitment to the arts. 
3. The people that work at, cultivate, maintain, and visit the museums make each community better educated, and better integrated with the wold's communities. 

Chicago has cool architecture +0

Background, context, and assumptions:

1. Cool architecture is functional, sustainable, and attractive.

Reasons to agree: +2

1. The Chicago Architectural Boat Tour is cool -2. It is hard for an Architectural boat tour to be cool, without cool architecture. 
2. Chicago is where the skyscraper was invited. 

Score: 

• Reasons to agree: +2. 
• Net total of reasons to agree minus reasons to disagree: -2
• Total: 0

Images that agree

My mom when she and my dad came to visit on a bridge in Millennium Park. 

Background: Me at The Bean, from a 2006 Chicago boat tour, that McDonalds Restaurant Design group took as a team building experience. The image supports this belief because: The bean is cool architecture because it allows you to see yourself in the City. It allows you to reinterprit your surroundings.

The bean

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State Parks in Illinois are anticlimactic (compared to Idaho)

Reasons to agree:

1. Illinois doesn't have any mountains. Without mountains you don't have good rapids, sking, waterfalls, canyons, views, climbing, etc.
2. Illinois doesn't have very many clean rivers or lakes.
3. Millions of people go to visit Starved Rock State Park each year.

Reasons to agree: 

Having come from Idaho, I can say that Idaho might be lacking in metropolitan attractions as much as Illinois lacks in scenic natural attractions.

We have been to the Zoos, and Major Museums. Fine dinning isn't a big attraction with little kids, we don't go to plays, musicals, or any of that stuff. We often are looking for places to take the kids, let them look at some natural thing that's cool. In Illinois a 100 foot cliff over a river qualifies as a natural tourist attraction. According to their website, millions of people go to visit Starved Rock every year. 

However there is nothing much better from the natural work to look at here, and so I guess this is all we have... So we have driven there twice: One week before Phil tried coming early, and once Memorial Day, 2012.

Images that agree:

Here are some photos from 2010. J was 5, and A was 2:

The look out from the top of a 100' cliff that looks over a river

Look hard James. This qualifies as a mountain view in this state

Here are some photos from 2012:

French "Canyon"

The Lodge

Back of the Lodge

Coming down from the Lodge to the visiting center

You can see "Starved Rock" in the back.
We climbed to the top of it last week. The view is to scenic overlooks
what Mt. Trashmore is to the Tetons. 

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You should go to the Illinois Train Museum in Union IL +2

Background: Before James loved animals, he loved trains. He spoke about them all the time. In particular was a train movie we got from the library that he must have watched 30 times.

I ended up driving up their with James on day, and Megan stayed home.

Best reasons to agree: +3

1. Kids like trains. 
2. The Illinois Train Museum has lots of trains. 
3. Trains are cool. Trains are some of the biggest things that people will see move. Trains have changed a lot over time. Trains used to be very important to our county's development. Learning about trains will also allow you to learn a little about what our grand parent's lives were like.

Best reasons to disagree: -1

1. Union Illinois is 59 miles from Chicago. It would be cooler if it was a little bit closer. 

Score:

# of reasons to agree: +3

# of reasons to disagree: -1

# of reasons to agree with reasons to agree: +0

# of reasons to agree with reasons to disagree: -0

Total Idea Score: +2

Don't like the score? It is easy to change the score. Just post a reason to agree or disagree with the overall idea, or any of the reasons and the score will change.

Best webpages that agree: +

1. http://www.irm.org/ Biased score: 10/10

Best webpages that agree: -

1. 
   

This is my favorite picture, I think.
He just looks so small compared to those giant trains.  

This is in an area with no moving trains...
Don't worry...
I typically don't let my kids play on train tracks.

A very big train

Yes. I did let him climb the trains. 

This train was used to cut through snow. 

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Images that agree:

I hear steam engines are coming back

Related Links:

My parents are cool to visit me in Illinois

There's something truly special about a visit from your parents. It's a gesture that speaks volumes about familial bonds, love, and commitment, and I've been lucky to experience this multiple times. Despite the long, 22-hour drive from their home to mine in Illinois, my parents have made the journey not once, but four times. They've driven here twice, flown twice, and even brought their trailer on one occasion.

Sure, my home might not be the Ritz Carlton, and they've had to make do with our pull-out couch, but these small inconveniences never dampen the spirit of their visits. We always cherish their company, the shared laughs, stories, and the joy they bring, especially to their grandkids.

One visit that stands out is from September 2010 when both Mom and Dad came out after Philip, my son, was born. Their excitement and eagerness to meet their new grandchild turned their journey into a grand adventure. We spent a lovely day at the Chicago Arboretum, creating memories that we still fondly look back on.

September 2010 at the Chicago arboretum, when Both Mom and Dad came out after Philip was born.

2010 when my Mom came out by herself when Megan was on bed rest.

2009 Visit

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