Article of the Week 15

Panel: Limit Medical Experiments on Chimps

By Dan Vergano, USA Today

See Article Here

This article describes that issues with using chimpanzees for medical experiments and how more and more scientists are moving away from the use of chimpanzees. The reason being that for the most part they are unnecessary. This is because many other animal tests would work just as well. "If chimpanzees were not available for research, science would still go forward" The author is certainly on the side against the use of chimpanzees, but he doesn’t seem to try to persuade others to be on his side. I think the main purpose of his article is just to better inform people of the topic. For the most part he just sticks to logos, providing information from various professors, doctors, scientists, and activists. The only time he appealed to the audience emotionally was in the first sentence when he included"...chimpanzees, the closest cousins to humans in the animal world..." Overall, his writing was very informational, clear, and concise. He didn't crowd the article with much fluff, not taking as much as a dusting of artistic liberties. Not too much imagery and not a great quantity of figurative language. This author just stuck to the facts, through and through. As to the audience the author was directing towards, it could be anyone who is not well informed on the topic. That seems to pull back to his main purpose, which was to give uninformed people a general idea of what’s going on in the world of chimpanzees. In the end, he has reached that goal, and by informing of the topic, he also will have turned people to his opinion on the topic, whether it was done consciously or not.

Article of the week 14

http://www.theonion.com/articles/november-7-2011,26568/

This political cartoon is titled, November 7th, 2011, after looking up that date; I am under the impression that this was when China decided to ban incandescent light bulbs in 5 years. I am not entirely sure of the background facts, but even without that I can gather a good general view of the topic just by this picture. The cartoonist certainly does a good job in ensuring that we know the topic just by labeling some people, and using speech bubbles. The lights we are beginning to change to, which are supposedly more ecofriendly, are not exactly the best type of lighting. This would be implied by the teary eyed ghost of Thomas Edison and the "dim bulbs" comment being made by the man in the corner. The cartoon makes you wonder, are the lights truly more ecofriendly, or are they just a new scheme China has worked up to make more money? The American light bulb consumers seem to have very naive attitudes in the picture. The words “Latest Fad” printed on the box just further add to defining them as being ignorant in their change, not to mention the Chinese man depicted laughing and clutching of large wad of bills that gives you the impression he would be thinking “hehehe, yet again I have scammed the Americans”. I have no background on the topic, so I have no idea if the way it is being presented is at all accurate; it is after all coming from The Onion. But that just goes to better express the Illustrators effectiveness. I have a pretty good idea of his opinion on the subject, and it makes sense. The only problem, which often comes up in non-written pieces is the lack of credibility and any usage of facts or statistics that make me certain the illustrator must be depicting everything truthfully. Overall the cartoonist does a good job of getting across the implications of this change, through his strong use of text in speech bubbles and as labels. The text directed the views train of thought.  

Article of the Week Thirteen

Bobby McFerrin Hacks Your Brain with Music

See clip here

In this Ted Talk, Bobby Mcferrin illustrates "expectation" with the pentatonic scale. His method of doing so though isn't through lecture. He shows it by making the scale visible. He pretends the floor is a keyboard, and expects the audience to sing the pitch that would be relative to where he stands. He doesn't tell the audience what every pitch is though. He gives 1 or 2 and then our brains figure out the rest of the pattern. It is similar to when your finding the blind spot by looking at a paper with 2 dots. One dot will eventually vanish because your brain fills in the blank with what would make most sense, the white of the paper. Bobby Mcferrin is a very talented musician, but he also presents himself in a very happy and kind way. He doesn't use his talents to distance himself from people, he engages them. (speaking of him not distancing himself from normal people, I saw him going to see a movie at the ambler theater a few months ago) The way he presents himself make you want to soak up every word he says. Come to think of it though, he didn't need to say much in this clip. He was able to "lecture" about the way we think, with only a few guiding words. His methods were purely based on letting the audience get involved. He was able to get across his point by letting the audience experience it for themselves. This was a highly successful method. It brings to mind that saying about how if you hear something you forget it, but if you do it or experience it, it will stick with you. I wish that teachers appealed to these methods more often, it would make learning an entirely different experience.

AOW twelve (advertisement)

This advertisment, as most are, is based on audience reaction. There is a cute dog in a very strange situation. The most effective advertisements are the ones that require second glances. At first glance all that gets accross is the dog, then at the second glance it is understood that there's a tiger rug biting its leg. This requires that second glance, because its unusual, and not a normal image that we can match with our daily lives. The strangeness of the situation is all thats required to attract the audiences attention. After that second glance, there is the question. Why is a tiger rug biting the dog? This is what leads you to the small unobtrusive text at the bottom advertising batteries. Obviously after seeing this advertisement, you are not going to leap off your couch and run to the nearest cvs to buy a battery, but it does imbed the image of that battery in your mind. Its an image you will not quickly forget, and it is now associated in your subconcience with a Kodak battery, therefore making it more likely you will choose that particular battery when you next need one. There all of these different aspects to the advertsiment that are taken in in a meer second. It all apeals to the questioning nature of humans, and the tendency for curiosity to form around objects that some how draw aur attention (such as cute animals).

Unit 2 Reflection

Argumentative/Persuasive Essay on Hobbes, Machiavelli, Locke, or Rousseau- Reading Hobbes, Machiavelli, Locke, or Rousseau, one gets a similar view of mankind but with different suggestions for its management.Using your own critical understanding of contemporary society as evidence, write a carefully argued essay that explains your support of either Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke or Rousseau.

If political views were placed on a spectrum, Machiavelli and Rousseau would be on opposite ends. Hobbes and Locke would be the lesser extremes. Machiavelli and Hobbes have the more “real” perception of people. They believe them to be naturally bad, whereas Locke and Rousseau think the opposite. Rather than fret with how people would have naturally been before they became a society, we should view how people are in the present. Rousseau believes that by creating a strong central government inhibits the personal rights of citizens, and their naturally good ways are strangled. Although, we shouldn’t dabble in what people might have been if they never joined into any sort of social contract. After observing the way the world of humans has changed and evolved marked by bloody wars and conflicts, it would be difficult not to admit that human nature is not as good as Locke and Rousseau seem to think. So if we establish that humans are inherently bad, a form of government and its management should be formed that counteracts that agreed upon fact.

            Machiavelli is spot on with his opinions on how a ruler should rule. He speaks of how a ruler cannot always act “good” if he is going to keep order in a society of people who are not naturally good anyway. Men are simply selfish, so if a social contract is not enforced newfound individualism would breed chaos and anarchy. People need to be conformed under one goal and under the order of a single powerful government if they will be shaped into the most that they can be.

            As put earlier, men are bad and selfish. A ruler has to resort to harsh methods at times to keep people in order. For without harsh consequences, which create fear, men will have no reason to invest themselves in any sort of social contract to better the community. What needs to be called to mind is reality. People will not just help their neighbors out of the goodness of their hearts; they need to have a hand held over them to lead them in certain directions. It is almost like a game. Governments have to predict the motives of both their enemies and their own people. Order can easily crumble if someone is bribed enough to take out the keystone, and without any sort of consequence the bribe price will not be so high. Rousseau and locke seem to float in their ideas for a dream world, whereas Machiavelli just states how it is, and what needs to be done to manage it.

Article of the Week #11

The Hollywood life and mysterious death of Natalie Wood revisited 30 years later

Fatal Thanksgiving boat trip with Christopher Walken and hubby Robert Wagner

see article here

                                                         

This article revisits the strange death of Natalie Woods. Either it was an accident with alcohol as the main culpret, or there was murder in the air. The way the author presents the story, the whole situation seems a little strange for it to have just been an accident... The author David Hinckley, a journalist for the New York Daily News, chose to write this story in time for thanksgiving, which was when the unfortunate event took place 30 years ago. He captures the attention of his audience with the hook:

she was dead.
Mysteriously dead.
Dead face down in the cold, dark ocean.

Dead after a night of drinking with two handsome men, one her husband and one not her husband.
Beautiful dame, tragic end. It’s a story as eternal as Hollywood.
It’s also a story in search of an ending.

His abrupt statements and repetition of the word dead instantly makes the readers sympathize with the tragic ending of the beautiful and talented actress. The rest of the article that comes to follow builds up to that question; what happened? The fact that we still don't know the answer to that question is like reading a novel and then refusing to read the last chapter. I think the authors purpose is infact to make us question the death of Natalie Woods. When the incident occured it was believed to be an accident, but its been reopened. The author gives us reason to question the death. He also presents Natalie Woods in a way that makes the audience regret her death, wishing she had been able to make her comeback  in the movie world. As a result of this regret, it fills the audience with the desire for maybe even vengence on the person who might be responsible. The author did succeed in creating the gaps that allow enough room for doubt. The entire incident is.... a peculiar one.

                                                    

IRB choice # 2

Title: An Everlasting Meal
By: Tamar Adler

Break down:
Section 1: pages 0-90
Section 2: pages 90-180
Section 3: pages 180-250

Why? "I've read few books that ask us to think about food with this kind of elegance, whether discoursing on how to cook an egg or how to set a table." An author who can describe the art of boiling like poetry, must be worth reading.

Article of the Week Ten

Comparing two articles on the same topic:

Why do parents buy chicken pox lollies?  see link here

Vs

Swapping chicken pox-infected lollipops is illegal  see link here

Both of these articles are on exactly the same topic and yet they take them in opposite directions. The article "Swapping chicken pox-infected lollipops is illegal" describes how dangerous and stupid the practice is, whereas the article "Why do parents buy chicken pox lollies?" acknowledges the dangers but then goes on to describe why parents would even consider it. "Swapping...illegal" is very onesided, it doesn't acknowledge the opposing side once. This makes it a much less appealing article because it doesnt establish a great quantity of credibility. It also establishes a very negative and rude tone towards anyone who could be on the otherside of the controversy. Either the author did not seem to have in mind the reactions of his audience while writing, or he wanted to have that reaction from the audience. The "Why" author does establish that he sees the practice as dangerous and uneducated, but he goes on to describe why the other side may be willing to make the risk. The author sympathizes with the opposing side. This makes me much more inclined to side with the author, and believe him to be more credible. The tone of this article is more...calm. The author seems to say, this is what I think, this is why, this is why what others may say is not what you should think, but you can decide for yourself what you will think (obviously though, what I think is right). He includes plenty of facts and data to further support his view and his overall presentation or delivery is much more pleasing than the previous article. The author for for the "why" article therefore was more successful in turning his audience to think his way than the other.

Final Independent Reading

A Walk in the Woods

By Bill Bryson

Part 1 of A Walk in the Woods describes the struggles and the adventures of Bryson and Kats as they take on the Appalachian Trail. They start at Springer Mountain in Georgia. When they reach Gatlinburg Bryson catches a glimpse of a minimized map of the trail, out of 4 feet of map they had only traversed 2 inches. This is the moment when they realize, they won’t be able to travel the whole way. So they choose to skip over a stretch and begin again in Virginia. Part 1 ends when they reach Front Royal, Virginia. In Part 2, Bryson and Kats part for the summer. Bryson spends much of the summer trying to keep up his momentum by walking day hikes and taking short camping trips in the Northeast section of the trail. In August, Bryson is reunited with Kats to brave the hundred Mile stretch in the wilderness of Maine. Each Chapter focuses on a specific event, a place (such as Gatlinburg), or a person they encounter (like Mary Ellen). This organization keeps up the momentum of the story which presents the factual narrations that might have been dull in a more interesting manner. The Hike through the Trail focuses mainly on the strikingly contrasting worlds that are located so closely. The woods that stand 2 miles from the car can be a scary and treacherous place, as well as an environment of peace and beauty. It is difficult for Bryson and Kats to adjust to this strange world, but when they leave that world they leave with a new perspective. The world of gas stations and K-marts are not so appealing, although it is much easier to adjust to the comfortable beds and Television. Through Bysons humorous language, his narrative style, and effective integration of facts he was able to remind us of the wonderful world that stands in our back yards and to nurture an awareness of how to be mindful of the extent of resources we take from it.  

Article of the Week Eight

Column: Wedding days are losing their way

see website here

I initially chose this editorial because of something a Korean friend of mine mentioned last year. She said that Americans don't value marriage as much as other countries do. She said that divorce was something you would be ashamed about in Korea, but in America it seems to be very common and no big deal... In contrast to the concern about the large divorce rates, the author of this editorial is concerned about the method of marriage. The author establishes himself as a credible source because he was in the ministry for 25 years. Although, I don't know how far credibility really goes in Editorials when much of the information is presented in a biased manner. In this case the author was focusing on marriages initiated by a clergy as opposed to mariages performed by nonreligious or unauthorized people. The author argues that marriages not only need to be based on love, but need to be based around the promise. When the clergy is who the vows are made to, it makes the promise much more meaningful and solid. It would be alot more difficult to break a vow you made infront of grandparents, aunts and uncles, and friends than it would be to break one made in confidence just to the spouse. The author first applies to both logos and ethos, mentioning how a bad marriage effects people and their children and then bringing in actual facts and examples. Then he tries to establish himself as someone who would be an authority when discussing who ties your knot when he explains "I've done this before". Then he creates an analogy when trying to place the audience in the situation and questioning how they would act. I suppose the audience would be any American who has an interest in getting married. For me the author did not succeed in his purpose, I did not find his arguments to be concrete, and I don't think that the church is the only group that can create an environment that amplifys the importance of wedding vows.

Article of The Week Seven

IRB: A Walk in the Woods

So far Bryson and Katz have nearly been swept off of a cliff during a snow storm and had their ears talked off by one insane Mary-Ellen and fellow hikers who force conversations about equipment. Their awful lodging experiences are better left unmentioned when the rodents have absolutely no fear of hikers. Bryson does a great job of tieing in how his personal experiences were effected by the environmental crisis and deteriating financial aid for the park service. Among the interesting points he made, were how we have gone between two extremes. First we were causing vast destruction to the environment, and now we are neglecting it. If a park ranger were asked what was being done about the high number of trees dieing, they would reply, we are monitoring its progress. The way Bryson puts it "they're watching the trees die". He draws in readers with his sarcastic tone, and humorous observations. When he switches from narration to background information on the hard boring facts, he presents them like a conversation rather than an informational essay or article. When reading his book, its shocking to finish and realize you have actually learned something, and it was entertaining.

Argument Prompt

Read the following article on books bound in human skin. The idea implied in the article is that when considering the context of the situation, binding books in human skin is not a bad idea. In a well written essay, develop a position on the ethics of binding books with human skin. Support your position with evidence from your reading, observation, or experience.

Article of the Week Six

In California, Going All Out to Bid Adieu to Foie Gras

Read Article Here

            Foie Gras is the fattened liver of a goose or a duck, a French delicacy. The method of fattening the liver though has to do with force-feeding, which does not make animal rights activists very happy. In 8 months foie gras will be banned in California. So a restaurant known as Animal bid farewell to the delicacy by serving an 8-course dinner Friday night featuring foie gras in every course. Animal rights protesters of course gathered outside. For the most part, Adam Nagourney, writer for the New York Times, gave the facts for both sides. I think though, that he was leaning towards the side of the restaurant, he paints a much more positive picture for them by describing all of the yummy foods they served, and including comments like “I want people to have the freedom to eat what they want”. I agree with the restaurant, animal rights people seem to want to turn everybody vegan; I have experienced a vegan diet (unwillingly). I did not enjoy it. I think that Nagourney’s purpose was to, like the restaurant, bid farewell to Foie Gras. His audience then would be anyone with an interest in food, or anyone who has an issue food, such as animal rights activists. Nagourney took a narrative approach to his article. He began by illustrating the scene where the event took place. Then he followed with describing all of the yummy and almost overwhelming foods. He drew the audience in by evoking a reaction, in this case it was anger. Either someone would be angry over the method a fattening duck liver, or they would become angry over the fact that its being banned. By weaving a web of these two very different opinions of the matter, Nagourney left the audience to decide for themselves what they will think. So Nagourney did succeed in his goal, he said good bye to Forie Gras by telling the world the story of its last stand.

Essential Question Reflection

How do speakers & writers use Rhetorical devices to communicate their ideas?

Rhetorical devices give writings emotion, personality, and intellegence. When writers use the appeals they are able to promote themselves as educated and perhaps "likeable" people. It makes all the difference when the speaker is aware that they are also a character in their stories and need to create a tone and personality just as much around themselves as around the speech. Speakers and writers use rhetorical devices to make their ideas worth hearing. Just having the idea isn't enough, there needs to be the cushoning around the idea that draws readers and listeners in. Rhetorical devices are like replacing synthetic cushoning around the ideas with down pillows and silk blankets. Writers use rhetorical devices to build a mask for themselves, establishing their credibility as both an educated and moral character. This is the first step writers take when presenting their ideas to new readers. After establishing their credibility, writers use stylistic approaches to their writing that keep readers engaged. (tone, dictation, imagery, humor, etc) While doing all of this, writers consider the organization of their piece. A very important component to their writing is how they are directing you to their main idea, their goal. Writers use rhetoric to lay down a road that guides your thoughts and emotions.

The most helpful assignment for me during Unit 1 was reading How to Tell a True War Story. I felt like it was the first time that instead of reading instructional writings on how to use rhetoric, we were given a chance to apply rhetoric to a reading. I would have liked to have had more oportunitys to apply each of the rhetoric devices we were learning about, there were some methods that I felt we never addressed again after we read about them.

Article of the Week 5

Cat crazy! I've got that lovin' feline

See Article here

In Cat crazy! I’ve got that lovin’ feline Philippa Stockley describes and supposedly celebrates the nation’s love affair with cats. Personally, I thought that she made me a little bit freaked out about how many crazy cat people there are rather than get me excited about all of the adorable and loveable creatures in the world. Stockley used lots of logos, popping in tons of names of famous people who were cat lovers and lots of cat lover statistics; this made me believe her to be a more credible source. She also used pathos effectively; she had plenty of humor and included many of her own cat loving experiences. The actual context of the article was something to do with a recent issue with some war over a cat called Maya or something, but that wasn’t really explained. It seems that the article was directed towards a cat loving audience that would be up to date on the latest kitten news. Since I do not fall into that category I could not relate to the article as much as I would have liked. So it is that her purpose is probably along the lines of congratulating fellow cat lovers on a job well done of expanding their reach in the world. She established herself as a cat lover but in a humorous way. “In the United States, cats are officially recognized as trip hazards. Any cat owner who has tried getting downstairs in the morning with a hangover knows the way Fluffy picks this moment for a determined bout of twined intimacy with one's legs.” In this section, she made herself seem more credible with the words “Any cat owner”, which implies that she is a cat owner herself and speaks from experience. I suppose that she did succeed in celebrating cat lovers around the world, but she didn’t exactly convert anyone else into a cat lover. As I said earlier, I was a little freaked out by her cat obsessions.

Article of the Week 4

IR Book:

A Walk in the Woods

By: Bill Bryson

Bill Bryson is just a funny guy who has done a lot of traveling. His book subjects are mostly about his travels, as well as the English language, and science. So far in A Walk in the Woods, Bryson has had the insanity to even decide to walk the Appalachian trail, and even more insane is that he is walking it with an old college friend who he hasn’t talked to in years and who is not the most fit person. Throughout the book as Bryson narrates his own adventures, he mentions a lot about the history of the Appalachian trails; things along the lines of how it came to be and the amount of forests that have been cut down to make roads so that it will be even easier for loggers to cut down more forests. I suppose his goal is supposed to be to evoke an appreciation of America’s vast and quickly disappearing wilderness in his readers. I suppose the audience he is gearing his story toward then is the average American who doesn’t always realize the great expanse of adventure that waits in their very own back yards. Bryson’s story has a huge amount of humor; he mocks himself as well as the ridiculous people and events he comes across. The fact that he laughs at himself seems to draw me to be on his side, trusting him to give more true accounts, since he doesn’t seem to leave things out to try to make him look like a better person. Overall I think that Bryson did a good job of informing his readers about the Appalachian trail without sounding like a text book.

Article of the Week 3

The Onion is an American entertainment news organization that features satirical articles, news audios, and video among other things. I’ve selected two different articles since both are somewhat short; as satire news tends to be.

First-Ever Gay 'Dear John' Letters Begin Reaching U.S. Troops Overseas
See Article Here

This article focuses on the effect the repeal of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy has had on U.S. troops. Apparently there has been hundreds of letters sent to troops overseas this week from their partners informing them that they are starting a new life with someone else. This article was printed in the Onion, which means it is not at all credible. It does however, present new perspectives of the current issue, which is the recent repeal of the Don’t Ask, Don’t tell policy. Honestly, I’ve no idea what the repercussions may be of the removal of this policy. Apparently though, the onion does. Mostly, I think their purpose is just to poke fun at any current event. The sort of people the onion is focused towards is probably people who also follow normal news stations; with the background knowledge they would actually find the articles humorous. If this article were serious their usage of sentences like “…has left romantically betrayed homosexuals in every branch of the service grappling with feelings of rejection and despair, a momentous milestone in U.S. military history.” Would easily appeal to pathos and ethos, but since the tone of the article is humorous, it just makes the article funny. It is difficult to understand who is being mocked and whose side the author is on. Near the end it makes McCain sound like a jerk, but I don’t know anything about his involvement in gay rights, so I can’t know if they are being serious or sarcastic. Overall though, I think the author did succeed in his goal, he made me laugh.


General Mills Releases New Lucky Charms With 15 Percent Less Leprechaun Meat

See Blurb Here

 This is a very brief blurb about the leprechaun meat used in, the popular cereal, Lucky Charms. "As always, we use only natural colorings and flavorings in our cereals, which is why you may still suometimes find a wee hat in your bowl" I suppose that The Onion is mocking how unhealthy the cereal is… Their ingredients are definitely not natural! Unhealthful foods are always making claims such as having less sugar, or having the power to lower cholesterol, fewer calories. In the case of children’s cereals, which usually have 99% sugar, a claim like having 15% less Leprechaun meat would not be surprising. This blurb makes outrageous claims and uses the same tone that any usual add may have. Just with exaggeration is the satirical aspect fulfilled.

Article of the week 2... or Visual

Mike Luckavich is an award winning political cartoonist who found that the 9/11 terrorist attack was a turning point in his cartoons. The obvious point that he is getting across to his audience is that since 9/11 America has increased its security so much that it is almost ridiculous. His audience would probably be to Americans (his cartoons are very widely published) and his purpose would be to bring their attention to the ridiculous state of their country. 9/11 was a bit of a wakeup call for the United States; security suddenly became a huge priority. The small details such as the “Keep out” Sign and the magnifying glasses make America seem like a very unfriendly and suspicious place. The exaggerated immensity of national growth is shown by having it so large in comparison to the earth and the black expanse of outer space. By referencing the two towers in the speech bubble anyone will instantly understand the context of this cartoon. Without that piece of text and the sign labeled “Natl. security growth” nobody would have any idea what the drawing was supposed to be depicting. It would just look like an earth with two humongous and silly looking buildings popping out of its side. Just with his use of crazy proportions, luckavich is able to get across his point, National Security Growth has grown a great amount since the 9/11 attacks.

IR Choice

A Walk in the Woods

By: Bill Bryson

Section 1: pg. 1-70
Section 2: pg. 71-143
Section 3: pg. 144-200
Section 4: pg. 201-274

Reason for Choice: Mostly I chose this book because it was recommended to me by my sister. At first I was considering a book about clara schumann but I decided not to go with it because alot of it seemed to be lists of music she played and composed, and famous people she met. I was more interested in her life story than a list of facts. So I decided to go with the more humorous choice.

Article of the week 1

In Case You Wondered, a Real Human Wrote This Column

See Article Here

 

In this article, Steve Lohr, technology reporter for the New York Times, offers proof of the progress of artificial intelligence. There are now computers with the ability to write with the same human reasoning as any journalist. A big question now is, “will applications of artificial intelligence assist human workers or replace them?” Steve Lohr suggests that it will not replace humans; instead it will broaden possibilities. These computers would be able to do jobs that were not being done otherwise; Such as taking in reports on more than 350 local housing markets and generating articles with the kind of inferences and “angles” a person might come up with. Only, the computer would do so for much less money, and in much less time. Steve Lohr’s article is meant to show the community how these new developments in technology are not something we need to be wary of; they’re exciting advances that will give us opportunities to improve our ways of thinking. He isn’t directing his article to the well informed on this topic, he is giving new perspective to the ignorant. The article seemed to have very little to do with the authors opinions. Instead Steve Lohr was just the conveyer of facts, leaving us to infer what we will. Perhaps though, the quotes he chose and references to other people were chosen strategically to make us think what we do. If so, than he very effectively gained his audiences trust using both logos and ethos. I think he succeeded in getting the public excited about this new advance in technology the moment he began with an example of the computers writing. The humanness was startling.