Summary:
This chapter is about how technology is advancing and classrooms are not. They are pretty much the same as they always have been. Cathy talks about how at Duke University, an experiment with iPods. They gave iPods to all the Duke students and had them create educational apps for it, to prove that iPods can, in fact, be educational and so can all technology. She also talks about how most students used to be treated all the same and that this is a mistake because everyone learns differently. Also, Cathy says that all of the technology is a great communication source. She also discusses that adults who grew up mostly without technology had to adjust to this new way of life, where technology is used constantly.
Critical Commentary:
Cathy uses a lot of logos in this chapter, as well as the others. She helps prove her argument with sharing the iPod experiment. This proves that something known as a distraction can be very educational and useful when it comes to learning. The fact that the students got to help create educational apps for the iPod allows them to invent and use creativity which is a way of learning. She also uses ethos to prove her argument when she says that when she was in school she didn't have the choice of an iPod or technology. But since she now she uses technology, it proves that she adjusted and so can others. She also shows ethos when she wants her students to use their knowledge to make Wikipedia better, instead of just banning it like most teachers would do. Cathy shows ethos and logos when she talks about how students writing was significantly better when it was in their blog than a traditional term papers. I agree with Cathy when she asks the question "What if bad writing is a product of the dorm of writing required in school...?" I agree with this because when I am being forced to write an essay about a certain topic in a certain way, I just don't enjoy doing it and I get writers block a lot, which can create bad writing.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Chapter 2 Now You See It
Summary:
This chapter is about the biology of our brain when we are learning something. It talks about how we have patterns of attention. It says that neurons are the most basic cells in our nervous system. She also says in this chapter about how just about everything we do requires multitasking. Most of the time we don't even realize this. She gave the example about driving a vehicle. We don't think, "that's a red light, I'm going to take my foot off the gas and put it on the brake so that I can stop". We think, "I see the red light, I'm going to stop". We don't think about all the steps as we do them; we just do them. Cathy also mentions the Hebbian principle: Neurons that fire together, wire together. She also talks about how we have to unlearn things in order to learn new things.
Critical Commentary:
In this chapter, Cathy uses a lot of logos. She provides a lot of facts and scientific information to help prove her argument. When she talks about the biology of our brain when we learn, this makes her argument more convincing by making it more believable because it has scientific evidence to back it up. When she uses the infant example, like she did in the previous chapter, it gives a simple way to understand what she is saying. When Cathy talks about how walking is a simple task that requires almost no thinking for us, but for a young baby just learning to walk it is very complex. This proves that we must unlearn things, because once the child is a little older and walking all of the time, they must unlearn to think about what they are doing when they walk and learn to not think about it and just do it. Cathy does a pretty good job or proving her point in this chapter, as well as the previous. She gives many examples to help you understand.
This chapter is about the biology of our brain when we are learning something. It talks about how we have patterns of attention. It says that neurons are the most basic cells in our nervous system. She also says in this chapter about how just about everything we do requires multitasking. Most of the time we don't even realize this. She gave the example about driving a vehicle. We don't think, "that's a red light, I'm going to take my foot off the gas and put it on the brake so that I can stop". We think, "I see the red light, I'm going to stop". We don't think about all the steps as we do them; we just do them. Cathy also mentions the Hebbian principle: Neurons that fire together, wire together. She also talks about how we have to unlearn things in order to learn new things.
Critical Commentary:
In this chapter, Cathy uses a lot of logos. She provides a lot of facts and scientific information to help prove her argument. When she talks about the biology of our brain when we learn, this makes her argument more convincing by making it more believable because it has scientific evidence to back it up. When she uses the infant example, like she did in the previous chapter, it gives a simple way to understand what she is saying. When Cathy talks about how walking is a simple task that requires almost no thinking for us, but for a young baby just learning to walk it is very complex. This proves that we must unlearn things, because once the child is a little older and walking all of the time, they must unlearn to think about what they are doing when they walk and learn to not think about it and just do it. Cathy does a pretty good job or proving her point in this chapter, as well as the previous. She gives many examples to help you understand.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Chapter 1 Now You See It
Summary:
In this chapter, Cathy talks about the Cymbalta ad. She talks about how the company who made and designed the ad, try to make it more appealing to the viewers. They do this by making sure to grab our attention in the first few seconds of the commercial. According to Draftfcb's motto (the company who produced the Cymbalta commercial), a typical viewer only pays attention to 6.5 seconds of an ad. She also talks about how they use distraction in the commercial. When they name off all of the dangerous side effects, they show happy images and music, to distract the viewer from noticing all the bad things about the product. She also mentions that we are more likely to remember positive things than negative things. Another thing Cathy talks about in this chapter is how we learn about distraction when we are infants and how differently, different cultures interact with their children and how it can affect how the child sees things when they are older.
Critical Commentary:
I think it is interesting about how companies who produce ads, plan everything out to make sure the viewer pays attention to the main point of the ad; the product they are trying to sell. I also think it's crazy, but somewhat believable, that most viewers only pay attention to 6.5 seconds of an ad. In this chapter, Cathy does a good job of grabbing your attention in the beginning of the chapter, so that you start out interested. She does this by describing what she is going to talk about in the chapter, without directly telling you at first. This makes you want to find out what it's about. It is very interesting when she talks about the differences of different cultures when they interact with their children. I never really realized how different it was. Cathy uses a lot of repetition, in her writing. This can be a good thing, but can also be bad. It can be good, because it makes her point or objective stand out. It can be bad because it can make the reading a little boring somethings and it seems to drag on. Cathy provides many interesting facts in her writing, which makes her argument seem more convincing. One of the interesting facts she uses is "A study conducted in 2009 revealed that newborns cry in the language patterns they hear in utero." Her argument in the book is that distraction is a good thing, but this chapter specifically talks about how we learn from distraction.
In this chapter, Cathy talks about the Cymbalta ad. She talks about how the company who made and designed the ad, try to make it more appealing to the viewers. They do this by making sure to grab our attention in the first few seconds of the commercial. According to Draftfcb's motto (the company who produced the Cymbalta commercial), a typical viewer only pays attention to 6.5 seconds of an ad. She also talks about how they use distraction in the commercial. When they name off all of the dangerous side effects, they show happy images and music, to distract the viewer from noticing all the bad things about the product. She also mentions that we are more likely to remember positive things than negative things. Another thing Cathy talks about in this chapter is how we learn about distraction when we are infants and how differently, different cultures interact with their children and how it can affect how the child sees things when they are older.
Critical Commentary:
I think it is interesting about how companies who produce ads, plan everything out to make sure the viewer pays attention to the main point of the ad; the product they are trying to sell. I also think it's crazy, but somewhat believable, that most viewers only pay attention to 6.5 seconds of an ad. In this chapter, Cathy does a good job of grabbing your attention in the beginning of the chapter, so that you start out interested. She does this by describing what she is going to talk about in the chapter, without directly telling you at first. This makes you want to find out what it's about. It is very interesting when she talks about the differences of different cultures when they interact with their children. I never really realized how different it was. Cathy uses a lot of repetition, in her writing. This can be a good thing, but can also be bad. It can be good, because it makes her point or objective stand out. It can be bad because it can make the reading a little boring somethings and it seems to drag on. Cathy provides many interesting facts in her writing, which makes her argument seem more convincing. One of the interesting facts she uses is "A study conducted in 2009 revealed that newborns cry in the language patterns they hear in utero." Her argument in the book is that distraction is a good thing, but this chapter specifically talks about how we learn from distraction.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Introduction to Now You See It
Summary:
In the introduction to Now You See It, by Cathy N. Davidson, she talks about an experiment she participated in with a philosopher. The philosopher had them watch a video of people tossing basketballs back and forth and to only keep track of how many times they tossed the ball back and forth. Davidson, was one of the few to notice a gorilla in the middle of the players. Most of the people didn't notice this because they were so focused on the task of counting. The whole point of the introduction to her book is to get you to realize that when we are so focused on something, we miss a lot of other things going on. This is called attention blindness. Davidson's opinion on distractions is that they are a good thing.
Critical Commentary:
I think that the author makes a very good point about attention blindness. It really made me think about all the times I would focus on just one thing, I was missing out on other things happening. The gorilla experiment was really interesting. It's crazy that most of the people didn't even notice the gorilla even though it was right in the middle of the screen. I also thought it was interesting when she mentioned the card trick where while everyone was focusing on something else, the magician puts the chosen card into a stack of different colored cards so he could easily find the chosen card and no one even noticed. I never really thought about how many things I miss because of trying to focus on a specific thing, until I read this. Also, when she talks about the digital revolution and how some people think that the internet is bad and that its a distraction, but she thinks that its a good thing. I agree with this. I don't think the internet is making us dumb. I think that it is causing us to read more and to learn more than we ever have been able to before.
In the introduction to Now You See It, by Cathy N. Davidson, she talks about an experiment she participated in with a philosopher. The philosopher had them watch a video of people tossing basketballs back and forth and to only keep track of how many times they tossed the ball back and forth. Davidson, was one of the few to notice a gorilla in the middle of the players. Most of the people didn't notice this because they were so focused on the task of counting. The whole point of the introduction to her book is to get you to realize that when we are so focused on something, we miss a lot of other things going on. This is called attention blindness. Davidson's opinion on distractions is that they are a good thing.
Critical Commentary:
I think that the author makes a very good point about attention blindness. It really made me think about all the times I would focus on just one thing, I was missing out on other things happening. The gorilla experiment was really interesting. It's crazy that most of the people didn't even notice the gorilla even though it was right in the middle of the screen. I also thought it was interesting when she mentioned the card trick where while everyone was focusing on something else, the magician puts the chosen card into a stack of different colored cards so he could easily find the chosen card and no one even noticed. I never really thought about how many things I miss because of trying to focus on a specific thing, until I read this. Also, when she talks about the digital revolution and how some people think that the internet is bad and that its a distraction, but she thinks that its a good thing. I agree with this. I don't think the internet is making us dumb. I think that it is causing us to read more and to learn more than we ever have been able to before.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Rhetorical Analysis: Research
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-al-sharpton/contraception-obama-administration_b_1265878.html
"Contraception Isn't a PR Game; It's a Woman's Right" By: Rev. Al Sharpton
Who is the author and what are his/her credentials?
http://www.aeispeakers.com/speakerbio.php?SpeakerID=568
The Huffington Post is the publisher/sponsor of this article.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Huffington_Post
The Huffington Post is an American news website and blog, featuring columnists and various news sources(Wikipedia). This website provides a variety of alrticles: news, blogs, original content, politics, business, entertainment, technology, popular media, life & style, culture, comedy, healthy living, women's interest, and local news.
(I got all of this from Wikipedia)
What are the leanings or biases of the author/publisher?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Huffington_Post
The Huntington Post claims that their political views don't affect how they cover their news, but reps. of the republican party believe that the Huntington Post writer's are hostile to their views.
They have also been criticized by several science bloggers and also online news sources for including articles by supporters of alternative medicine and anti vaccine activists and censoring rebuttals written by science bloggers before publishing.
(I got all of this from Wikipedia)
http://usliberals.about.com/od/thepressandjournalist1/p/Profile-Of-Rev-Al-Sharpton-Activist-Msnbc-Host.htm
Rev. Al Sharpton is a democrat, so that could make his articles biased. He is also a Baptist minster, so that could also make his articles biased.
What is the context of the argument? What preceded or provoked how others have responded to it?
Sharpton makes the argument that birth control/contraception isn't a religious freedom, or the federal government, but it's the right of women everywhere in the world. This provokes people to respond because the opinions/views on this issue are very controversy and usually extreme. You are either completely for it or completely against it. He also brings up in the article about how certain religious hospitals wouldn't provide birth control/contraception options for women and that the government has made some of them provide these options no matter what religion the hospital is.
(All of this came form the article)
I think that the argument in this article is put together very well, and seems very convincing. Knowing, the author is a minster, gives him good ethos. He also uses pathos and logos in his article.
"Contraception Isn't a PR Game; It's a Woman's Right" By: Rev. Al Sharpton
Who is the author and what are his/her credentials?
http://www.aeispeakers.com/speakerbio.php?SpeakerID=568
This is a link to information about the author who wrote the article. "Rev. Al Sharpton is one of America's most-renowned civil rights leaders" (AEI Speakers Bureau). He is committed to equality for all people. Sharpton ran as a U.S. democratic candidate in 2004. In February 2007, he was called "the most prominent civil rights activist in the nation" by the New York Daily News. Sharpton started his ministry at a very young age. A few years after his first sermon he was licensed to be a Pentecostal minister. His civil rights career began at a young age too.
Who is the publisher or sponsor? What does the organization typically publish?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Huffington_Post
The Huffington Post is an American news website and blog, featuring columnists and various news sources(Wikipedia). This website provides a variety of alrticles: news, blogs, original content, politics, business, entertainment, technology, popular media, life & style, culture, comedy, healthy living, women's interest, and local news.
(I got all of this from Wikipedia)
What are the leanings or biases of the author/publisher?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Huffington_Post
The Huntington Post claims that their political views don't affect how they cover their news, but reps. of the republican party believe that the Huntington Post writer's are hostile to their views.
They have also been criticized by several science bloggers and also online news sources for including articles by supporters of alternative medicine and anti vaccine activists and censoring rebuttals written by science bloggers before publishing.
(I got all of this from Wikipedia)
http://usliberals.about.com/od/thepressandjournalist1/p/Profile-Of-Rev-Al-Sharpton-Activist-Msnbc-Host.htm
Rev. Al Sharpton is a democrat, so that could make his articles biased. He is also a Baptist minster, so that could also make his articles biased.
What is the context of the argument? What preceded or provoked how others have responded to it?
Sharpton makes the argument that birth control/contraception isn't a religious freedom, or the federal government, but it's the right of women everywhere in the world. This provokes people to respond because the opinions/views on this issue are very controversy and usually extreme. You are either completely for it or completely against it. He also brings up in the article about how certain religious hospitals wouldn't provide birth control/contraception options for women and that the government has made some of them provide these options no matter what religion the hospital is.
(All of this came form the article)
I think that the argument in this article is put together very well, and seems very convincing. Knowing, the author is a minster, gives him good ethos. He also uses pathos and logos in his article.
Monday, February 6, 2012
Logos Abuse
http://blogcritics.org/scitech/article/the-healthy-skeptic-dont-fall-prey1/
This link will take you to a website criticizing Hydroxycut weight loss supplement. This is an example of logos abuse because in this article it says that Hydroxycut claims that, fitness competitor and model, Brandy Flores' figure is due to their product. This is completely false. The "Before" picture they show of Flores is right after she delivered a baby, which they failed to mention in the ad. They make the product seem to work better than it actually does.
https://www.asseenontv.com/belly-burner/detail.php?p=293063&v=best-sellers
This link will take you to "The Belly Burner" video. This is an example of logos abuse because they only show/talk about the best results. They don't mention the "normal" or "not so good" results. It also says in small print that "results vary", which means not everyone is going to lose as much weight as the people on the commercial.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ojjrLARMzA
This link will take you to the Lunesta commercial. This is an example of logos abuse because they say things like "clinically proven" and only talk about the "good results" not the "bad". They don't give both sides of the story. But they do say that results may vary.
This link will take you to a website criticizing Hydroxycut weight loss supplement. This is an example of logos abuse because in this article it says that Hydroxycut claims that, fitness competitor and model, Brandy Flores' figure is due to their product. This is completely false. The "Before" picture they show of Flores is right after she delivered a baby, which they failed to mention in the ad. They make the product seem to work better than it actually does.
https://www.asseenontv.com/belly-burner/detail.php?p=293063&v=best-sellers
This link will take you to "The Belly Burner" video. This is an example of logos abuse because they only show/talk about the best results. They don't mention the "normal" or "not so good" results. It also says in small print that "results vary", which means not everyone is going to lose as much weight as the people on the commercial.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ojjrLARMzA
This link will take you to the Lunesta commercial. This is an example of logos abuse because they say things like "clinically proven" and only talk about the "good results" not the "bad". They don't give both sides of the story. But they do say that results may vary.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Pathos In Ads
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gspElv1yvc
The link above will take you to an ASPCA video about animal abuse and neglect. This video uses pathos (emotions) to make us sad and feel bad for the abused animals that they show. The animals they show sometimes have injuries and always look really sad. They also have the song "In the Arms of an Angel" by Sarah McLachlan, playing in the background. The song adds to the sadness the animals already bring to the commercial. The goal of the commericial is to get you to donate money to the ASPCA, to help rescue abused animals and find them a new, loving home. They made sure when they made this commercial to make it convincing so that people will donate money. When they show the sad, abused animals and have the song playing it makes you really sad which makes you to want to donate money to the organization. I know everytime this commercial comes on the TV, I have to change the channel because it's way to sad and I almost cry every time I see it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o22o1PuuXo
This link will take you to a Proactiv commercial. In this video they have singer, Katy Perry, promoting Proactiv acne solution. They use a star in their commercials because it glamorizes the product. If a celebrity uses the product then it makes you want to use it because you want to be like them. They use pathos by making you feel happy that there is a "cure" for acne and that celebrities use it. They also show before and after pictures. The before pictures show a lot of acne and then the after pictures show a clean, clear face with no acne. This is also using pathos because it gives you "hope" that your acne will go away, if this product made other peoples' acne go away. They also say that they will give you three free gifts with your purchase. At the end of the commercial they say "... a combined value of $72 for just $19.95. This can make you feel happy because you think you're getting a good deal and some free gifts with your purchase.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSAje0EgYjY
This link will take you to an Apple iPhone 4S commercial. Apple uses pathos in this commercial by showing a parent taking pictures of their daughter at the beach. This could make you want to buy the product because of the nice beach scene in the background and showing a parent taking picture of their daughter and being able to edit the pictures and tweet them or post them online instantly right from the phone. They describe all the features of the phone which makes even more appealing. There is music playing in the background that is happy and kind of puts you in a good mood. This makes you want to buy the product.
The link above will take you to an ASPCA video about animal abuse and neglect. This video uses pathos (emotions) to make us sad and feel bad for the abused animals that they show. The animals they show sometimes have injuries and always look really sad. They also have the song "In the Arms of an Angel" by Sarah McLachlan, playing in the background. The song adds to the sadness the animals already bring to the commercial. The goal of the commericial is to get you to donate money to the ASPCA, to help rescue abused animals and find them a new, loving home. They made sure when they made this commercial to make it convincing so that people will donate money. When they show the sad, abused animals and have the song playing it makes you really sad which makes you to want to donate money to the organization. I know everytime this commercial comes on the TV, I have to change the channel because it's way to sad and I almost cry every time I see it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o22o1PuuXo
This link will take you to a Proactiv commercial. In this video they have singer, Katy Perry, promoting Proactiv acne solution. They use a star in their commercials because it glamorizes the product. If a celebrity uses the product then it makes you want to use it because you want to be like them. They use pathos by making you feel happy that there is a "cure" for acne and that celebrities use it. They also show before and after pictures. The before pictures show a lot of acne and then the after pictures show a clean, clear face with no acne. This is also using pathos because it gives you "hope" that your acne will go away, if this product made other peoples' acne go away. They also say that they will give you three free gifts with your purchase. At the end of the commercial they say "... a combined value of $72 for just $19.95. This can make you feel happy because you think you're getting a good deal and some free gifts with your purchase.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vSAje0EgYjY
This link will take you to an Apple iPhone 4S commercial. Apple uses pathos in this commercial by showing a parent taking pictures of their daughter at the beach. This could make you want to buy the product because of the nice beach scene in the background and showing a parent taking picture of their daughter and being able to edit the pictures and tweet them or post them online instantly right from the phone. They describe all the features of the phone which makes even more appealing. There is music playing in the background that is happy and kind of puts you in a good mood. This makes you want to buy the product.
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