Lian O'Connell
FSU Student
Class Writing
Photos on Different Platforms
8/31/15
The picture on the left I would post to snapchat and the picture on the right I would post to Instagram. My audience for my snapchat picture would be my story, so everyone would be able to see it. I wouldn't send it to a specific person per se, but instead would decide to post it to my story so that way everyone could see it at once. I edited the picture very quickly within the app itself and then posted it to my story within a few seconds after taking the picture. My purpose was to make the photo seen quickly and by a mass of people in a short amount of time. I wouldn't add this on Instagram, since personally, I like to use my Instagram for more "professional" looking photos, ones I took time to edit and make look nicer. That is why I would post the photo on the right to Instagram since it's more aesthetically pleasing and I took more time to add brightness and contrast and the like. My snapchats I caption much more heavily than my Instagram photos since I want the photo I post on Instagram to be the focal point vs a snapchat where I want the text and the photo to be noticed equally. The end results of the photos are a quick snapshot of what I viewed vs something that I thought was more pleasing to the eye.
Plagiarism Exercise 9/2/15
The article I read was BBC's article on Kanye West's announcement that he would run for the presidency in 2020. He stated this at MTV's VMA Awards and immediately, people started to talk. The article pulls different people's reactions to his statement, mostly from Twitter and also analyzes if it's even possible for him to run for president. The article points out Kanye does in fact meet the stipulations to be president as he was born in the U.S. , is old enough, and lived in the U.S. for the amount of time set in the constitution. (Tam) Even though he meets the requirements, Tam states, "Kanye would have to get his name on all 50 states' ballot papers - not as easy as you might think" (Tam). The task to become president is actually quite extensive, but not completely impossible. The article screenshots different people's reactions to Kanye's announcement with some welcoming him to the race and others believing it to be publicity stunt. (Tam) "I think it's a publicity ploy. It has successfully generated worldwide name-checks for him, but most candidacies begin with years of planning" (J David Morgan, qtd in Tam) So, who really knows what Kanye is planning, but I guess only time will tell.
The part highlighted in red is my short summary of what I read. I just state the overall main idea of what the article was about, so that way in the succeeding sentences people will understand what I'm paraphrasing and direct quoting and will understand the context behind both. My direct quotes are in bold and I chose these two because I think both of them reinforced the two main ideas presented in the article. It backs up my summary and drives home the articles points. After each quote I paraphrase why the quotes were said just to create futher understanding. I then end with my own thought about the entire article just to establish my point of view.
"Kanye West, US President - Could It Really Happen?" Newsbeat. BBC, 1 Sept. 2015. Web. 2 Sept. 2015. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/34113837/kanye-west-us-president---could-it-really-happen>.
Peer Review 9/14/15
Article: Homeless People 9/21/15
The article immediately grabs your attention by its choice of words in the title: misconceptions about the homeless. Many people have their own view of the homeless and this title sucks you in by wanting to read to see if any of your own personal thoughts are true or if they are myths. The author then starts off with a personal anecdote of when she first met someone who was homeless and her work with them afterwards. This makes the topic personal and creates a level of depth since she has had first hand experience and isn't just writing about a topic she chose to research one day. The author's thesis is that homeless people have so much more to them than what meets the eye. They're complex, just like "normal" humans and they deserve to be treated as such. The author makes her 9 points about the common misconceptions people have about them and after each point proceeds to state her opinions as well as quote research to back up her opinions. She uses the NCH (National Coalition for the Homeless) as her main source of information. I think her piece would have been stronger had she pulled from a few different sources as it would give her more credibility. However, she did utilize her main source very well by using statistics, giving people numbers to reference. I think the author utilizes logos and pathos the most. She organizes the article in a logical way, making it easy to follow. The title states "Nine Common Misconceptions About The Homeless" and she does just that. She lists them in a simple fashion, with each one followed by information and her own opinions. She appeals to the readers emotions especially though because she makes the reader think about all the adversity the homeless have to face that we take for granted. For example she says, "many homeless people are thinking about where their next meal will come from, where they’ll sleep that night or indeed, from whence their next hit will hail." These are things that people who aren't homeless don't really think about. It makes the reader understand better just how hard otherwise simple things can be for them. Her word choices and the way she chose to reconstruct that sentence creates a visualization in the reader's mind of what they have to endure everyday. She ends the article by praising the homeless, saying " in spite of it all, they choose to fight. They choose to live. They choose to hope. And that is indeed admirable." This gives the reader a different perspective of how homeless people can be viewed and the change that needs to happen, so they are no longer feared or discriminated against.
Trevor Noah 9/30/15
The research question we chose would be: How do the social media platforms, Twitter and Facebook affect American patriotism?
Our personal investment in this topic is we all use these platforms to express our thoughts as well as being able to view other people’s thoughts about the issues that are happening in America. Being able to have this communication with others can be beneficial in seeing other perspectives as well as international news sources through media like Twitter and Facebook. Even though we aren't consciously thinking about it all the time, viewing so many different opinions can influence our own personal thoughts. A follow up question could be: How does viewing local newspapers and domestic news shows such as Fox TV versus viewing international sources such as BBC news, shape our perceptions of current events going on in America? The purpose of this research project would be to go below the surface of just a tweet or a status update and actually analyze how these social media platforms really do influence our day to day thinking of relevant important issues in America. This research could be presented to numerous website platforms, locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally because it involves all types sources involving America. NPR or local news stations can bring more awareness to the topic in a local community and if posted on a source like the NY Times, it could reach a global audience. The audience targeted would be young adults, or millennials who can relate to this topic and give their feedback. We could find sources of the owner of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg, discussing this topic or even secondary analyses of others doing the same research, and conduct as well as analyze political polls on the use of social media of current events and their idea about it.
FSU Databases 10/7/15
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The search terms I used was "Chinese" AND "adoption" in order to obtain articles tailored to my specific research topic.
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This is avaliable by full text in both HTML and PDF.
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It is a journal article published by The Washington Journal of Modern China. This journal is clearly focusing on events and issues surrounding Modern China as stated in the title and because it's such a specific title, it allows me when looking in a flurry of sources that this one could potentially be useful since my topic deals with children born in China.
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The article was written by Fang Gann.
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The article was written in 2008, so its around 7 years old. While it might not seem as current as other sources could be, I believe the topic in which the article explores is still controversial and relevant in today's society. Maybe the issue was more prevalent in the earlier years because adoption between the US and China wasn't deemed as normal as it is today, but I think the issue is still relevant today.
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There was an abstract included at first glance and this is what attracted me in the beginning. I read it and instantly knew it would be beneficial to my topic as it explores the history behind China's one child policy and the culture children grew up around as well as when the practice of adoption started and the process of it.
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The article begins with what it's like being a Chinese girl and growing up according to the one child policy. It sets an emotional tone and then has a logical approach of how the practice of adopting Chinese girls began and the relationship between the US and China and the procedure of adopting a child. All of these points are essential to my research question.
Gann, Fang. "A Special US-China Relationship: American Adoptions of Chinese Children." Washington Journal of Modern China 9.1 (2008): 73-95. Print.
The Danger of a Single Story 10/12/15
The difference between the nature of a formal speech vs. one that is heavily comedic is pretty obvious in my mind, the formal speech doesn't use comedy as their way of getting their points across. Their
points aren't embellished with funny jokes, but are for the most part straightforward and serious. They choose to present their facts in a logical manner and with this particular formal speech, just used her voice as her medium without any other aid of visuals. The documentaries used visuals in order to capture the audiences attention and Trevor Noah used his comedic factor in order to engage people. However, because it was just Adichie speaking with nothing distracting from her, I feel the audience could really focus on her and the speech she was giving. With the other forms we've looked at previously in class, I feel like the audience can sometimes get lost in the overall ideas because of all the other extras used to hopefully enhance the point the speaker or documentary is trying to make. With that being said, I also believe it depends on the subject to know when it's most effective and purposeful to communicate just with your voice or use other mediums as well. With the documentary highlighting the growing problem of obesity in America and the harmful effects unhealthy food can have on your body, it was necessary to use graphics and statistics to further emphasize the overall point the documentary was trying got make. If a speaker just spoke about the issue, I don't think it would've made a lasting impression. The speech Adichie gave though was one that I think didn't need all the extras. She was telling a powerful story, not just about herself, but others as well. By keeping it simple and creating an insightful story to tell and using her storytelling skills, the audience was able to connect to her and therefore connect to the story she was telling better, too. Adichie gives background on herself, so that her and her audience can establish a relationship and she moves on to tell about how others would percieve her and what it meant for her to be African in the United States. While telling her story, she also includes anecdotes of her misassumptions about others as well revealing that she too suffers from a one story assumption. She moves her story logically and uses her own as a teaching tool for others.
The speech I watched was also similar in that their voice was the only medium used to tell it. This again allowed the audience to really focus on the content, instead of any extras that could've been used and I think with the right storytelling skills, that's all you need.
Goldsmith 10/14/15
Two Sources 10/19/15
Writing Concisely 10/21/15
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At this point in time we can't ascertain the reason as to why the screen door was left open.
Right now, we can't understand why the screen door was left open.
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In this day and age in the world around us, we face enormously large economic issues, problems, and complications.
Today, the world faces many economic issues.
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Before delving into the various different conundrums with which she was faced, my friend first told me about her hunger pangs, and subsequently suggested that the two of us embark on a venture to a culinary establishment, located in the union of the campus.
Before dealing with any other problem she had, my friend needed to eat and suggested we go eat at the Union.
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There is a desire on the part of many of us to maintain a spring recess for the purpose of getting away from the demands of our studies.
We all feel the need to get away from studying and relax once in awhile.
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In the times in which we live, people just can hardly be independent any longer. Look what is happening to them in the field of education. They cannot think for themselves. This is also true in other areas of life.
It seems today, people can't think for themselves, educationally as well as other parts of life.
Integrating Sources 11/02/15
Original: The documentary film, China's Lost Girls follows American couples on their journey to adopt and provides insight on what it's like for both the parents as well as other adopted girls. One mother says, "we're not gaining a daughter, but she is gaining a mother."
Alternative 1: One mother from the film China's Lost Girls explains she and her husband, "[are] not gaining a daughter, but she is gaining a mother."
Alternative 2: "We're not gaining a daughter, but she is gaining a mother", says one mother who on the journey of adopting her baby girl from China in China's Lost Girls.
Alternative 3: One mother reflects, "we're not gaining a daughter, but she is gaining a mother" from the film, China's Lost Girls.
The best option I think is the first option, because I haven't lost the meaning of the quote I wanted to use, but I integrated it in a way that's more concise. I put the signaling phrase at the beginning and I think it flows better as the reader doesn't get lost into any information about what the overall film is about, but instead the main idea of the quote itself.
Composition in Three Genres 11/09/15
The purpose of the dictionary terms on page 5 is to give definitions of words or phrases that are in common fairytales. After each definition or definitions, there are examples of the word used in a sentence. This genre is very unique as it presents the information in a concise and easy to read fashion while still getting the point across. The author is somewhat sarcastic and negative explaining the meaning of the words in a pessimistic way and kind of lump all of the fairytales together such as every female character seeking "marriage". The audience for this piece seems to be targeted towards older people who are familiar with the fairytales so they can understand the sense of humor better. There doesn't seem to be any outside sources used since the definitions relate to fairytales and are constructed by the author. This is appropriate though because it's not for an actual research paper, but a more informal piece regarding the authors thoughts of fairytales.