Album of my Life

Don't Laugh at Me by Mark Wills:
I think this one is self explanatory. I'm sure everyone has had a little of this in there life. Some more than other, but I think it is something that everyone should have somewhere in there soundtrack of life.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mv9fN0-062k

Face Down by Red Jumpsuit Apparatus:
I really like this song, it has a lot of meaning in its words, they're not there just for the sake of room, they actually tell a story and that is what I like. Though this hasn't specifically happened to me, it is something that I would have to strongly agree with. This is one of my favorite songs and it has definitely made me look differently at some people and help me develop the opinion that I have about life and the world.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8wvyPDZo_w

Koji Kondo Super Mario Bros.:
Ok, this one I thought was a little funny. I was looking through my old music and found this randomly and thought just how much Mario was a part of my childhood. I played almost all of the games and it was really fun times. Good memories of happier times is all I can say.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBQTs7ZtKsQ

Let me be Myself by 3 Doors Down:
I think title is a dead give away. People are so vain and superficial that I hate myself for even following them sometimes. The world would be a much better place if we weren't judged on uncontrollable conditions. It really is pathetic how we are said to be the most intelligent being on this planet, but we aren't even able to get over our own predisposition and learn to accept people for who they are. I guess I'm alone in my plight, but if it were my world, this is the first things that I would change about our society. Besides, I absolutely loveed the Geico commercial with the cavemen.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f6pvm9Dcjzo

Slipped away by Avril Lavigne:
This one plays so many parts in my life up to this point. Though it might not be in the exact same contexts that are mentioned in the song, it still does a good job of describing my past. Wow I didn't know nostalgia could be this painful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yj1ExwVsTTc

Erased by Dead by April:
I absolutely love this song. It is really good and cuts deep to the core. It always brings strong emotions every time I listen to it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GI2XXHhTBg

The Nuisances of Nanotechnology

“Another issue is pure hazard. Medical researchers at the University of Michigan have already developed nano-scale devices that selectively destroy certain cancer cells. These devices are not ready for use, however, because they pierce holes through cell walls, leaving the cells vulnerable to infection.”

David, Kenneth, What Can Nanotechnology Learn From Biotechnology. Ed. Kenneth David and Paul B. Thompson. New York: Elsevier, 2008, Print.

The main exploration of my paper is whether or no nanotechnology is an legitimate and beneficial use of our research time. This quote would be good support to why Nanotechnology could prove more trouble and cause more problems then it actually helps. This will help to further the counterargument that Nanotechnology is a greater hindrance than benefit and provide credible support, since the author has graduated from the University of Chicago with a Ph.D. and should prove to be a very strong support for the issues that I am exploring.

Jib Fowles Advertisement Appeals

This advertisement can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9Rd-xQgU-g&feature=related

We enter upon the scene of a professional looking man driving down the road. He is a wearing a button up shirt, dress pants, and dress shoes. He looks down at his hand where a he is holding a latte, and begins to migrate it towards his mouth, when something catches his eye. His heart stops and a panicked look comes upon his face. Flash to the scene of the mans foot, dressed in nice classy shoes, thrusting violently on to the brake peddle of his vehicle. Que a deep and assuring voice. A voice that is well known by all and is easily recognizable. As the camera pans out and we see the car moving in slow motion towards the camera, and a man walking in from the right in real time. He walks along side the with the slow moving car and begins to speak, addressing the camera. He say “all season radial tires,” as the camera flashes to the tires splashing through a puddle of water, and sliding across the pavement. “Anti-lock brake” he says next, as we see the professional looking man within the car drop his latte, spilling it all over his passenger seat, as he grasps desperately on to the steering wheel with both hands. We flash to a rear view of the scene, as we see the man outside the car walking in real time, in front the slow moving car. We also see on the other side, a line of cars stopped only a couple feet in front of the moving car. The man then say, “Electronic stability control,” as he makes his way to the other side of the sliding vehicle. We see a quick top view of a scene of the moving car, no more then three feet from a stopped one and the man, walking in between the two. Then, as he emerges on the opposite side of the vehicle he came in on, the camera changes to a side view of the two vehicles and the man looking on from the behind them, saying “we made everything about the automobile better, except the driver.” Que the time lapse back into real time speed again, as we see the moving car, crash violently into the rear end of the stopped car. Glass shatters, as the hood of the moving car bends upwards as it comes to a violent and jerky stop. We see the airbag deploy and a shocked looking driver, as he is trying to take in what has just happened. Whilst this is happening we hear the deep assuring voice of the man again, saying, “Introducing the safe driving bonus, new, from Allstate. With cash off your renewal bill, for every six months you don't have one of these,” quickly flashing to a view of the front end of the vehicle, the hood completely bent upward, and the front end completely totaled. The man continues speaking saying, “it's time to make the world a better place.” Quickly, the camera changes views again, this time showing us a close up of the face of the man who is talking, where he finishes saying, “This is Allstate's stand, are you in good hands.”

Within the advertisement, many of the appeals that Fowles describes within his piece are used. The need for aesthetic sensation, being one of the major ones. They try to make it seem like a very death defying and cinematic scene, to draw the attention of the viewers and to stimulate their minds in order for them to better remember the commercial and the name of the company. Also, it uses the need to feel safe, in a less apparent way. The speaker, more importantly then that, Dennis Haysbert, the one speaking, speaks with a very calm and reliable tone in his voice. This quells us into a false sense of security, even upon witnessing such a destructive and dreadful scene as this. They want to be safe and protected from these kinds of incidents and “Allstate” is “right there next to you,” giving you that safety and protection that you are looking for. The need for guidance is also addressed, using Dennis Haysbert, as a symbol of peoples admiration, they are more inclined to take advise from or be persuaded by a man that they can more readily connect to. Overall I was really impressed, not just by this commercial, but by almost all of the Allstate commercials that are featured. Honestly, I think it is the friendly atmosphere and the security, that gets me the most. Geico and those other companies only take about how they can save you money, and how they are so much better then the competition, but honestly, I think I would rather pay a bit higher price, then be in the hands of an unreliable insurance company that might revoke coverage as soon as I'm in an accident. Also, it is said within many of their commercials that not just reliability, they offer good rates and often better then the competition. So it seems only natural that if I can get the best reliably as well as good rates, isn't that more appealing then, cheap coverage, that doesn't actually count for anything. Once I get a car of my own, the first place I will probably look into is “Allstate.” Their claim of reliability and safety, has definitely drawn me in. This doesn't necessarily mean that I will sign with them, depending on what they offer, but it is definitely a nudge above the competition as far as my opinion is concerned.

Roberts - Research topic and what to explore

Question: Is the investigation of stem cells or nanotechnology a legitimate hope for the future, or is there too much risk and opposition for its success?

Originally, I thought that I wanted to write about stem cells and the moral debate on that, but after reading the Roberts article, I thought that it was very bland and dry to write about simply a moral debate, so I thought about other means. I think that is when I came across nanotechnology. It isn't talked about as much as stem cells and is less controversial in its usage, but that makes it a more interesting topic. If there is less of idea about it in the mind of the reader, there will be a greater impact about whether or that is a significant issue for our society. I haven't completely given up on the idea of stem cells, if necessary I might fall back on that if there isn't enough information or opposition to the idea of nanotechnology. I think that it would be interesting to try and protest the new technology, since it seems like such an impeccable advancement, free from the allegation of inhuman that stem cells seemed to be accused of. This mean that it will be all the more convincing if I argue against rather then for it, since there wont be any real logical counter-arguments prepared. The greatest obstacle will be the lack of sufficient and credible data backing up my point. The field of nanotechnology, just like stem cells, is more theory then actual data. Though tests have been run and they look promising, nothing large scale or ultimately deciding can be used as precedent to support the claims made. But like Roberts said, “One rather simple way of getting interest into your paper is to take the side of the argument that most citizens will want to avoid,” which sometimes means taking a harder topic or approach to a paper. One topic that I want to explore is the idea of nanotechnology becoming an environment and health hazard. Like in the industrial revolution with asbestos. Nanotechnology could become just the same, and once released into the world, it is almost unidentifiable, so could become a major health risk. With this I could investigate how technological changes correlate to particular health or environment problems. But overall the paper wont be on the direct facts that nanotechnology has produced since it hasn't advanced enough to tell for sure, but on how its production and use could inversely affect people and society.

Rand - Racism Summary and response

In Ayn Rand's article on racism it was obvious that she held hatred and malice towards the use of racism in our society. She makes it seem in her article that she is fighting for the greater good of all people and that the racist boundaries need to be cut so that all can live together, but that is just a cover-up. She actually supports the segregation of the races, calling it individualism and saying that you can't judge a race a whole, because it is only a select few that are actually worthy, while the rest don't have to the right to coexist in a culminated society. This point is distinctly made clear to us, when she says that she is against the civil rights act, which was a corner stone for the civil rights movement, taking away states right to declare “separate but equal” and allowing for a assimilation in schools, work places, and the overall public. Rand quotes, “'If two men, one negro and one white, are equally qualified for a job, hire the Negro'...It does not merely demand special privileges on racial grounds--it demands that white men be penalized for the sins of their ancestors.” (N.Y Time, August, 133 Rand) This lest us know that she is in favor of whites and that she hates that the “Negros” are taking away jobs that supposedly have equal chances for all to get in. Throughout most of the article you get the idea that she is against the segregation of the races, but only in the last couple pages do you see she real point of view. She is emphasizing the fact the the Civil Rights Bill is taking away from peoples right to private property, by saying that it is discrimination not to assimilate together the two races. But she is trying prove the folly, by saying that even though it may me a racist claim, the individual people still hold their rights to private property and the government should not be able to take that away.
I believe the the opinion that Ayn Rand is trying to make in this article is very flawed. She is saying that people need to be judged as individuals and shouldn't be judged by the acts of their race, but at the same time she is only critically judging how the “Negroes” are affecting the rights and opportunities of the White people and choosing to remain silent about just how unfair and biased the “separate but equal” society was. Hypocritically Rand states that “'Racial discrimination, imposed and enforced by law, is so blatantly inexcusable an infringement of individual rights that the racist statutes of the south should have been declared unconstitutional long ago,” (131) but at the same time is arguing against the governments right to eliminate the discrimination and segregation that is causing inequality throughout the country. She is saying that the the states have no right the go against what is considered discriminate, but then she says that the government has no right to might things right again. Rand's argument seems very focused upon making people think that she is against discrimination and segregation to such an extent that it creates holes and contraindications throughout what she is saying. Even her use of the word “Negro,” a derogatory term for the African American people, is contradicting the idea she wants people to perceive, that she supports anti-segregation. The argument that she puts up is just so flawed and blatantly against equal rights, that it shouldn't even exist. She is secretly showing her support for a position that goes against all the ideals that our society disagrees with. I think that this is a very disappointing way of doing things, since you have to essentially trick your reader in order for them to agree with your opinion. It is as if she doesn't have influential capability to convince people otherwise, which makes her seem very shallow and desperate. I don't agree with the author point of view because I think she is only using racism as as wordplay to further her own goals and opinions.

David Sedaris' – Solutions to Saturday Puzzle

In this chapter titled, Solution to Saturdays Puzzle, by David Sedaris, he explores the concept of humor through everyday experience. I found the humor to be a little tasteless, not that I didn't find myself chuckling at times over the shear stupidity of what was happening, but it seemed that the jokes weren't really meant to have much thought in it, it was just blatantly exaggerated and absurd. Though I did find the humor to be a bit over the top more my liking, I did find myself pondering over one of the statements made, “What if I was wrong? I pictured her in a dimly lit room, trembling before a portfolio of glowing X-rays. 'I give you two weeks at the most,' the doctor says. 'Why don't you get your toenails done, buy a nice pair of cut-offs, and spent some quality time with your husband.'” (132) It really hit me hard when that came up. I did not expect to find such a thought provoking and tragic idea within the contexts of something meant to be humorous and joyful. I thought that that was a very strange concept, the idea of tragedy amongst humor. Though that was no were near the focus of the chapter, it was none the less very influential to how I pictured the rest of the story. It drew me away from the humor of the story and made me think, if that really was the case, how would you feel and how would this change the story if the people had known this to be the truth. I found it hard to really focus upon the humorous side of the story, when all my thoughts dwelled upon the seriousness of what the situation could be.
Though I may have overlooked the humor a bit, I did like how the author tied the whole things together at the end when he referred to the the ladies comment as an eight-letter word the was described as, “above the shoulders, he's nothing but crap.” I thought that that really tied the game with reality. As if all of the reality was just a words game. How your very outlook and opinions can be changed upon the changing of even a small aspect of a situation. For example, I found this to be relatively humorous, until I came upon the idea of death, and if Becky was really dieing how would that change things. The whole story is just one way of looking at things. The author is using the idea of humor to give a happy and warm feel to the story, even though when looked at in a different way, that happy feeling goes away. The way that words are presented changes everything about how one will view things. A pessimistic view of life will result in an outlook that is very dark, evil and depressing, were an optimistic view will result in the complete opposite. A lot of this story focuses upon these contradictory ideas of humor very serious and makes you think whether the author was really trying to make this a humorous story, or is the author trying to make a point that the anything can be made to look or appear humorous no matter how serious it really is, as long as you are able to describe it in a humorous manner.

My Joke: Really, really old joke my cousins use to tell me and my sisters during Christmas and thanksgiving when we were really young.

Billy's teacher told him to find 5 vocabulary words for homework the next day. So Billy goes home and asks his mom. His mom says, “shut up!” So he writes that down. Then he goes to his dad who is watching football in the other room and he says “lets go baby lets go.” So he writes that down. Next he goes to his little brother who was watching batman and he says, “Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Batman.” So he writes that down. After that he goes to this little sister who is flushing his toy cars down the toilet and she say, “I flushed them down the toilet I flushed them down the toilet.” So he writes that down. On his way to school the next day Billy passes by a bun shop and hears the baker yells, “My buns are burning my buns are burning.” So he writes that down.
Once Billy gets to school his teacher asks him, “Billy what are your vocabulary words” and he say, “Shut up!”
“Do you want to go to the principals office?” she replied.
“Lets go baby, lets go.”
So they march down to the principals office. When they get their the principals asks, “Who do you think you are?”
Billy says, “Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Batman.”
Angrily the principal asks, “Where are your parents?”
Billy replies, “I flushed them down the toilet, I flushed them down the toilet.” So the principal picks Billy up and begins to spank him, and while she does this he says, “my buns are burning my buns are burning.”

Second joke:

Sixth grade science teacher Mrs. Samson asks her class: "Who can tell me which
organ of the human body expands to 10 times its usual size when stimulated?"
Nobody raises a hand, so she calls on the first student to look her way.
"Mary, can you tell me which organ of the human body expands to 10 times its usual size when stimulated?"
Mary stands up, blushing furiously. "How dare you ask such a question?" she says. "I'm going to complain to my parents, who will complain to the principal, who will have you fired!"
Mrs. Sampson is shocked by Mary's reaction, but yet undaunted. She asks the class the question again, and this time Sam raises his hand.
Yes, Sam?" says Mrs. Sampson. "Ma'am, the correct answer is the iris of the human eye."
"Very good, Sam. Thank you." Mrs. Sampson then turns to Mary and says, "Mary, I have 3 things to tell you: first, it's clear that you have NOT done your homework. Second, you have a DIRTY mind. And third, I fear one day you are going to be sadly disappointed."

Ronson's N-word Summary and Response

This short narrative was was recalling Jon Ronson's experiences when he went to visit a Klu Klux Klan rally in the Ozark Mountains located in Arkansas. To his surprise he found it to be much more civilized then he had ever expected. The people their weren't like those shown in the the movies, they were normal people expected that they held a certain opinion which may differ from want you or me might. The new Klans leader Thom was nothing like what he expected him to be like, he was completely against using the N-word, even cringing upon hearing the word, and was focused more upon giving people a better public opinion about themselves and their actions. They were no longer like the gung-ho enthusiasts of the past who would go out on public demonstration trying to instill fear into peoples heart, while secretly trying to take over the world. Some of the groups still try to give off that kind of persona, like the leader from one of the rival Klans who appears on Jerry Springer a lot and throws chairs at people and uses the N-word freely. Thom thinks of those people as Klu Klux Clowns ad doesn't want that for his group, but instead wants to try and portray themselves as the white knights, the heroes, the good guy who are their to try and help those who are being oppressed. A movie, Birth of a Nation, which they watched during the rally, was a good interpretation of what the new Klan was striving to achieve. Some of the individuals that still held on to the hatred and malice from the past left the Klan run by Thom in order to join more “active” groups or some would even go solo and try to help their cause in any way necessary. So that left the Klan dwindling in numbers, trying to achieve a word for white supremacists, but through means closer to that of Martin Luther King's then of Malcolm X's.
In my opinion I like the fact the Thom is trying to achieve his goals without the violence and the hatred that was used by previous generations. But the idea of white supremacy doesn't really sit well with me because if the world was ever divided like that then their would be separate nations all one race, which would lead to turmoil between them, as each nations thought of ways to try an eradicate the others and make a world for only their race (the best race). But on the other hand their would also be those that would go against the rules and try and befriend their so called enemies or love between races could happen, resulting in both parties being shunned from and then another nation filled with the shunned and multiracial individuals would form. This would probably anger the other nations and result in purge attempts against them, since they have not power or money and wouldn't have any means to fight back. So as for the idea of white supremacy it is completely unrealistic and is only a good idea in thought. If it was ever implemented it would have drastic consequences throughout the world.
I also thought that thought they are going to all these extremes to try and get the KKK to be a more civilized group, in the end it will never work. Peoples idea of the KKK has been completely manipulated by the media and the movies that they have seen and all that would result from their actions will be confusion and disbelief. Besides there are still the other KKK groups that follow the views and beliefs of the past and will continue to ruin the efforts of the newly formed group.
One point from the article that I really like was at the end when Ronson spoke about how most older movies were created like Birth of a Nation but then after the immigration of Jews into American this kind of thinking was completely renounced, resulting in Jewish people taking control of much of Hollywood and changing the ideals of the world from that of white supremacy to that or what we now call the American Dream. It is actually very interesting to think how the American dream, being something that everyone wanted was actually advertised by immigrating Jewish people. And also, if you add in the stereotypes about the Jewish people, in particular the one about them being good with money and having a lot of greed, these ideas about the American dream and how it has become what it is now really starts to take form. I am not saying that I promote any of these stereotypes, but I am saying is that I really like how sometimes you don't realized just how our world has come to what it is today without thinking about these small details that are almost always overlooked. I also wonder just how different our world would be events like these never came about.