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Hoop Realities (2007)
IMDB rating: 6.10
Plot: Hoop Reality is the sequel to the 1995 documentary “Hoop Dreams” and explores what happened during the last decade from where “Hoop Dreams” left off. It follows the original basketball hero past his dream and into reality, examining where life has carried him over the decade, and taking a look at where he is today, as the torch gets passed to the next dream seeker. Along the way he mentors and inspires the up-and-coming basketball star, Patrick Beverly, who leads his team, the Marshal Commandos, for the first time since the original “Hoop Dreams”, to the State Finals.
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Directors: Davis Lee
Actors: Agee Arthur,Beverly Patrick,Bryant Lamont,Documentary,
Betta Fish: Myths and reality!? How to care and how to Train?
Hi!
For a biology project, I have chosen to ‘train’ a fish into doing something (swim through a hoop, soccer, jumping out of the water slightly..).
I am planning on doing this in a week, and I’ve been doing some research lately about fish caring (since I’ve owned over a dozen of fish when I was younger and they all died pretty fast 
, I want to do it right this time).
I was thinking of getting a Betta Fish, but before I do so I just want to confirm all I’ve been seeing lately on the internet, whether it is true or not.
I am planning on keeping my betta in a fish bowl, this as far as I’ve read is fine as long as it is about 1 gallon, and I clean it out every 2-days (change about 20% of the water). The water should have been left out for at least 24 hours to release all the bad chemicals. I should feed the fish floating food or blood worms, and only as much as it can eat within 2minutes. Elsewhere I should remove the food to keep the bowl clean. I should let enough surface area since bettas need oxygen as well and I shouldn’t fill the bowl up completly since they jump.
I hope I have everything correct until now? Please correct me If I’m wrong…I really don’t want to kill the fish.
Betta fish can only live alone, so one fish per bowl.
I should use cultured gravel — Question: Where can I Find cultured gravel, do I just go to the pet store and ask for it? If it is to expensive (I don’t have that much money to work around with at the moment..) is it okay if I don’t get it now and perhaps later? or is it an absolute must?–
Also…can I get a live plant? some websites say it is okay and rather good since it creates oxygen or something? others say it’s bad though…if I CAN get a live plant (like algae or something), which kind should I get?
OKAY! so that’s all I have for the lifestyle wise of the fish…now onto the training part!
I don’t intend on buying one of those ‘train your fish kits’ unless it’s absolutely necessary..is it?
I’m not sure what to do about the feeding…I know that to train it I should let it be hungry in order for it to want the food…but I don’t want it to DIE of starvation…
Is there anyway of knowing when enough is enough?
If I use a stick (that I clean without soap!) to put the food on the end for example, in order to make the betta go where I want it to go…if the betta touches the stick would that be harmful to it? (I don’t want to hurt it…)
That’s all I have to ask for now…oh and when I buy the betta, is there anything I should look out for? Because I’ve been around a bit, and some places the fish look very down (their fins and all are pointing down) and other places the fish are ‘flaring’ (like when they’re about to fight I guess)…is there one that is preferable over the other?
If anyone has any other comment/suggestions please tell me!
Thank you alot in advance 
Mii
Bettas can, indeed, live in a bowl. I have done this for several years and have yet to have a problem. Now, by bowl, I mean something that’s 2 or more gallons. Avoid the trendy martini glass or double tanks.
A heater is not required, but a constant temperature is. He needs to be somewhere where the temperature isn’t constantly fluctuating. You do not need a water change every two days, because everytime you change water, it is stress added to your Betta. A weekly 25% change will do fine. I have never used cultured gravel and that’s never been an issue either. Be sure to thoroughly soak and rinse the gravel you are going to use beforehand.
Fake plants are a fine alternative to real plants. Try for tall silk ones rather than plastic, as plastic can hurt sensitive fins. Bettas don’t need oxygen directly from the water because they are labyrinth fish. They have a special organ in their head called the labryinth that gives them the ability to get oxygen from the surface. Be sure to have at least one plant tall enough to stand a little above the water line. This gives the Betta a clear definition of where the water ends and greatly reduces jumping.
I also feed my Bettas dried bloodworms. Some just refuse the pellets. In the wild Bettas do eat larvae so I can understand pellet form being unappealing, but worth a shot. (Maybe I got stuck with all the picky eaters?!)
I treat with live food. Live Brine Shrimp are inexpensive and last for awhile.
As far as choosing a Betta, this is the website I have used as a reference:
http://www.healthybetta.com/choosing-a-h ealthy-betta-to-purchase
The most I have ever gotten my Bettas to do is jump.
I did this by first putting the food into the water and kept my finger viewable about the water line, but far enough to where I wasn’t a threat. I gradually worked my finger closer over a few days until they ate right off my finger.
Bodda bing, bodda boom, conditioning! They now associate my finger with food. Regardless of how high it is from the top of the water. They’ll jump out of the water towards your finger for their food. It’s not something I do too often though. You don’t want to tease them!
Hope I helped!
samanthahah | Mar 09, 2009
Bettas do not belong in bowls, actually… no fish really belongs in a bowl, not even the goldfish.
Bettas are tropical fish, meaning they need their water to be 72-76 degrees fahrenheit, if they are not kept warm they will be lethargic and eat very little, they are cold blooded after all.
Bettas need some swimming space, if they don’t they could get bored and nip at their own fins (like some people chew their nails when bored, or some bird pluck their feathers). Also, provide him with some plants and decorations to help keep boredom at bay. DO NOT put a mirror in the tank. He will attack his reflection, and as entertaining as it may be for some people, your little betta could injure himself.
Be sure the tank is on a level, sturdy surface that wont get bumped or jostled, as that can put stress on the fish, and he will be more susceptible to disease. Add some aquarium salt to the water too, NOT marine salt. Aquarium salt is for fresh water fish and will help your little guys stay healthy. Marine salt is for brackish and salt water fish, and is not what you need.
Make sure you get a filter to maintain water quality, and be sure to set up the filter so there are no strong currents. Strong currents can tatter his fins.
Cultured sand is not a necessity as the bacteria needed for the nitrogen cycle is already present when you set up the tank. I have never used cultured sand in a fresh water aquarium.
If you want a plant get something hardy and easy to care for. Cryptocoryne wendtii and Cryptocoryne lutea are two of my personal faves as they are fairly easy to care for, and they are quite pretty and leafy.
Water Sprite is another hardy, pretty plant that only really needs to get trimmed. I had one take over half of a 20 gallon when I neglected to trim it for a while, and I didn’t even provide it with fertilizers or CO2.
If you only want one plant, you don’t really need any sort of fertilizing the substrate (ie: fluorite), you can use plain old gravel, just be sure not to get large gravel as it is harder for the plant to root itself in large gravel. Medium grain gravel is good for most plants, although some plants need a finer substrate (sand).
You will want to add a water column fertilizer though. Plant Gro by Nutrafin and FloraPride by Tetra are two examples of water column fertilizers.
One reason why bettas in the store are droopy is because their water is too cold.
Just look to make sure their fins are intact, eyes are clear, no scales are missing, and there are no growths or white patches on them.
As for training fish, I’m sorry but I have no experience with training them, so I can’t help you with that. Best of luck though. 
Yara | Mar 08, 2009
Bettas are very interesting fish. They really don’t require much space to be healthy. Though I’m sure they enjoy larger quarters, most serious breeders keep their male Bettas in bare quart jars since they can’t be housed together. I used to breed them and my house had jars of fish on every flat surface.
In their natural habitat they live in very shallow, stagnant water with very low oxygen content due to the heat in Thailand. They have developed an accessory breathing organ called the labyrinth which they use to breath atmospheric air so they do not require aeration. The females live together relatively peacefully in community tanks. Generally the more females in the tank, the less aggressive they are with each other.
Managing a lot of fish in jars is not too bad once you develop a system for fast water changes. Every three days or so I would take a couple of buckets that the water had stabilized in and dump the jar through a soft net into the first bucket and refill from the second and plop Mr. Betta back in his jar. I’d do about 1/3 of my fish every day since I had a LOT of them.
They like it very warm. 80F is the idea temperature to encourage them to spawn. They detest low temperatures and will get very sluggish.
I’ve never known them to be jumpers, but I guess it’s possible. My jars usually had about 3" unfilled at the top.
Feeding then blood worms will spoil them and they won’t want to eat anything else. I fed mine TetraMin, but the commercial kind that comes in a big bucket that they use in fish stores. Healthy Bettas are always hungry so you don’t need to starve them! Just remember, his stomach is about the same size as his eye.
When you buy a Betta, look for long straight fin rays with no rips or holes. Make sure the eyes are clear. I haven’t raised fish in 25 years so I’m not sure what varieties are out there these days. Droopy fins are not necessarily a sign of poor health, just boredom. My fish often displayed for me at feeding time.
Live plants are fine as long as they are true water plants.
I never trained a Betta to do anything but eat and make more Bettas. I don’t think they are extremely bright fish, not like the Angelfish I raised years later, now they have personality!
L.N. | Mar 09, 2009
